Eugenia closed the door behind the young woman and stepped back into the hall. Well, Desirée and Travis were under the same roof. Now what should a matchmaking mother do?
***
Rose watched as the door shut, then ran over to the bedroom window. She tugged at the wooden frame until she managed to slide the pane of glass up. Quickly she stuck her head out and gazed in amazement at the orderly look of the place.
The sweet fragrance of flowers drew her attention to a wooden trellis entwined with climbing roses, their blossoms just below her window. Cattle bawled off in the distance, and occasionally she heard the snort of a horse. The Bar None was just about the biggest spread she'd ever seen. But then again, she'd never been on a working ranch, only heard about them.
And the house. Lord, this place was a mansion compared to some of the hellholes she'd been forced to live in. She stepped away from the window and glanced around the room, wondering what would it be like to grow up in a home like this. With a mother who probably baked cookies and sewed your clothes. What would it be like to sit down at a dinner table and glance across at both of your parents?
She shook her head, cleared her thoughts, and glanced around the room. She would never know, and she wouldn't be here long enough to find out. But for the short time she was here, why shouldn't she enjoy herself? After all, Eugenia seemed excited to have company, and Rose just knew that had to stick in Travis's craw. And she'd do just about anything to make this cowboy suffer. Just about anything.
An hour later Rose came back down the stairs. She had dusted off her only gown and taken a sponge bath in the water basin provided in her room. Overall she didn't think she looked too bad, for having ridden over a hundred miles on horseback. Her derriere was bruised and sore, but otherwise she'd fared pretty well, all things considered.
She walked through the parlor, her eyes taking in the splendid furniture, the classic revival-style couch, a Georgian gentleman's chair, and a lady's rocking chair. The room was elegantly furnished with a richness she'd never experienced in her twenty-one years.
Her eyes were drawn to the painting above the fireplace. The man's steely gaze caused her to stop and stare. Travis Burnett stared back at her, but he was older, more distinguished-looking. The same deep, rich brown eyes, the same arrogant nose and stubborn chin, stared back at her, and she knew this must be Thomas Burnett. Papa Burnett looked meaner than a bull in springtime. She felt as if he were returning her gaze, measuring her worth. And she couldn't help but tilt back her head and meet his gaze head on.
Strolling through the parlor, she lingered to admire the trinkets, wondering if her mother had ever owned a home as fine as this one. Finally, she reached the kitchen door and heard the raised voices. Her hand rested on the door as she listened to mother and son argue.
"Mother, Desirée is not a guest to be treated like royalty."
"Travis, I don't care what you think she's done, she is still a visitor in our home."
"You're the one who accused her of taking your ring."
"You're right, but that doesn't mean I'm going to stand by and let you take her to jail. She doesn't deserve to be locked up."
Rose put her hand to her mouth to keep from crying out. Jail! He wanted to take her back to jail! The memory of sitting in that cramped cell with four other women made her cringe.
"What do you want me to do with her? Slap her on the hand and say 'don't do it again'?"
"I want you to let her stay here at the ranch until the ring is found."
"How do you know we'll ever get the ring back?" he exclaimed. "That is no punishment."
"We'll get the ring back. And keeping her here will be punishment enough," Eugenia snapped.
"She stole your wedding ring, Mother. Do you want her to take the rest of your jewelry, the silver, and anything else of value we have around the house?"
"We don't know for certain she stole the ring."
"Mother, you told me she took the ring. You're the one who started this fiasco." He sounded frustrated. "You're going to let her get away with it, aren't you?"
"I did not say I was going to let her get away with stealing. I merely do not want her punished until I'm certain she did it. After all, isn't that what our country is founded on, innocent until proven guilty?"
"Please. I don't need a history lesson," he drawled sarcastically.
"No, you need a lesson on hospitality and kindness." Eugenia sounded as if she was ready to bend him across her knee like a naughty child.
"That's enough, Mother. You've managed to change the subject. We're supposed to be talking about what to do with Miss Desirée Severin, not fighting between ourselves."
"You're the only one with the problem. I'm perfectly content to let her stay here until the ring is found."
There was a moment of silence. "I'm going into town tomorrow to speak with Tucker. Together we'll decide what to do with Desirée."
"Travis I swear that if you try to take that girl to jail, I will personally go down and get her out again."
Rose clenched her fists. She had to get away tonight. She couldn't afford to stay a moment longer.
There was no way she was returning to the Fort Worth jail for any reason. No one would take her back. She didn't know how yet, but one thing was certain. She was leaving tonight
The decision firmly settled, she took a deep breath and pushed open the door into the dining room as if she'd heard nothing.
"Good evening," she called and took a seat across from Mrs. Burnett. "I'm sorry if I'm late. I lay down for a few moments and fell asleep."
"It's quite all right, dear. Travis and I were just discussing our family reunion, which is coming up in several weeks."
"Oh? Do you have a large family?" Rose innocently asked, watching mother and son try to calm their heated expressions.
"Usually there are around fifty of us."
"Don't worry, you won't be around when we hold it," Travis remarked, his deep voice secure.
"Now, Travis, you don't know that for certain," Eugenia snapped.
Rose raised a brow and smiled at Travis. "I'm sorry to hear that. I had so hoped to meet the rest of your family. I'm sure they're nicer than you."
"Why? So you can steal from them too?"
Eugenia sucked in a great gulp of air. She was past irritated at her son. "Travis Burnett! How rude. Where are your manners? You apologize this moment. You will treat Miss Severin like any other guest in our home."
"Its okay, Mrs. Burnett. He's been rather grouchy since he kissed me this morning." She couldn't contain her smile as she noticed the shocked faces.
Eugenia managed to utter, "He kissed you?"
"He stole a kiss from me. If I had kissed him, that would have been different, but he initiated this kiss and I think it rather surprised him."
Rose almost laughed as Travis gasped, his face turning a heightened shade of pink. "I didn't have to steal anything. You kissed me back."
"Would you deny that I pushed you away?"
He looked as if he could happily put his hands around her neck and squeeze until she gasped her last breath. But Rose only smiled.
The older woman looked shocked for just a moment, and then she laughed a startled sound. "Well, with that interesting bit of news, I think I'll tell Cook we're ready."
Eugenia pushed back her chair, stood, and walked through the door into the kitchen.
Travis shook his head, his gaze troubled. "Did you have to tell her I kissed you? Now she's going to be putting all kinds of ideas together about you and me. Ideas that will never come true."
"Your mother is a smart woman. She knows that the two of us go together like boric acid and sugar. Sweet and deadly."
Travis smiled. "It's the first thing we've agreed on."
Rose sat back in her chair and blinked once, then twice. "You know, I think that's the first time I've noticed your smile. It's kind of nice, when you're not barking orders or saying something scathing about me.
"I only bring
it out for company."
"Well, aren't I a lucky woman?" she said sarcastically.
He shrugged. "Don't get too used to it. You won't be here long and it slipped out this time. It won't happen again."
"Too bad."
He took a deep breath and leaned forward. "Let's get the rules straight while you're here, Miss Severin."
"Rules? You give all your house guests rules to obey?"
"You're hardly a house guest. As it is, you are confined to the house. No solitary walks, no buggy rides around the ranch, and certainly no horseback riding."
Rose pushed her chair back and rose. She circled the table, her eyes glancing about the room. "So, I'm to sit inside this house, day after day, until I give your mother's wedding ring back."
"That's right."
She ran her fingertips along the top of the wooden china hutch as she moved closer to Travis. The light from the setting sun shone through the window, bouncing off the crystal in the china hutch and creating an iridescent rainbow on the wall.
She stopped just inches from him and then let her gaze linger on the china in the room. "You're going to keep me in this house? A veritable mansion compared to where I'm used to staying?" she questioned as she turned and glanced into brown eyes flecked with gold. "Are you sure that's such a good idea? I mean, from what I can tell, there are plenty of tempting trinkets here for a thief."
He jumped up and with one stride reached her side. Grabbing her by the arm, he pulled her close. "You touch any of them, and you'll be down at the county jail before the next sun rises. If I had my way, you'd be looking out from between steel bars right now. So don't tempt me."
What did she have to lose? He was going to visit his brother the marshal tomorrow morning to see about putting her there anyway. She was leaving tonight. And somehow she couldn't help but want to make him pay for this unexpected trip. She put her arm around his waist and leaned into him. "I'm going to tempt you every chance I get, cowboy."
The door from the kitchen swung open and Eugenia stepped through. Travis stepped back and Rose smiled an impish grin. Caught again.
For a moment Eugenia glanced from one to the other. "Did I interrupt something?"
"Not a damned thing," he snapped.
***
The moon had risen over the horizon and glowed high in the darkened sky before Rose thought she had waited long enough before making her daring escape. Travis had gone to his room long ago. It had been oddly unsettling to hear him moving around across the hall, but finally even his rustling noises had ceased.
She had no choice but to leave tonight. She wasn't taking a chance on being hauled back to jail. Though she had only been there once, it was more than enough for this lifetime or any other.
Mere days had passed since she'd left that dank pit of humanity and less than a week since Isaiah had left to visit his family. Most likely he was looking for her at this very moment, and she missed him terribly.
As soon as she made it to the next town, she would send word to his family where she could be found. But for now, she couldn't return to Waco, so she would have to travel on and hope that Isaiah would catch up with her.
The rustle of leaves reminded her of the window, which she'd purposely left open. With a quick glance around the room, she spotted her valise and wondered how she was going to get it down. She couldn't carry the bag and climb down the trellis at the same time. If she tossed it out the window, it was bound to make noise.
With a yank she threw back the bed covers and pulled off the cotton sheets. She started to tear the bed linen into strips, but just didn't have the heart to rip such nice material. So instead she tied the two sheets together, then tied her bag to the cloth and proceeded to lower the valise out the window.
When her bag touched the grass, she let go of the sheets, watching them fall like a silvery ghost out the window.
She glanced down at the trellis and the roses that grew up the wooden makeshift ladder. It was going to be a thorny descent, but if she gained her freedom, then the pain would be worth the effort.
With a last look at the guest room, she threw her leg over the side of the window and found her first foothold. Holding onto the window ledge, she backed out of the window and placed her second foot onto the decorative lattice. With her full weight on the trellis, she felt it sway slightly and prayed it would hold.
It was too late to back out as she started to descend the wooden decoration. The wood creaked as she slowly found her next foothold and then her handgrip. The lower she descended, the more the roses entwined around the wood, the thorns pricking her fingers.
The urge to glance down to see how much further was tempting, but she feared freezing in fright at the height. The thought of spending the night stretched like a scarecrow suspended on the rose trellis kept her eyes searching at eye level for the next handhold.
The calico material of her dress caught on a thorn, and with a grimace she heard the material rip in the still night air. The sweet smell of rose blossoms drifted to her nose, and she thought she would forever hate roses after this night. Their delicate blossoms fell to the earth below her, and she couldn't help but fear she would be next.
Finally, after what seemed like hours but had only been minutes, her right boot touched the earth, and she wanted to shout hallelujah. But instead, when both feet were firmly planted on the ground, she picked up her valise and headed for the gate.
She was free.
Quietly running, she rounded the corner of the house, passing the wooden front porch where they had arrived just that afternoon.
Suddenly a voice called from the darkness, causing her heart to skip a beat.
"Going somewhere, Miss Severin?"
With a jolt she came to a halt. Travis Burnett sat in a rocker on the front porch watching her. As blood pounded in her ears, she gazed at the man, her nemesis.
The urge to scream obscenities at him almost overcame her and she quickly retorted with the few French words she'd learned.
"Zut alors!"
"It's a little late for a stroll."
"Salaud!"
"There you go again, talking that sexy French talk. You know, it's the time of night that a man doesn't like to be alone. And that French talk is kind of making me excited."
He stood up from the rocker he was sitting in and came around the porch and down the steps.
Part of Rose wanted to run. Part of her knew she would be wasting her time, and part of her just wanted to cry. But she wasn't ready to admit defeat, not yet.
"Hold on, cowboy. Don't be getting any ideas." She took a step back. "Why do you want to keep me? I'm just going to try to escape again. I'm only going to make your life miserable, so why don't you let me go?"
Travis ran his finger down her cheek. "I'm getting kind of used to you being around. Besides, Mother enjoys your company and there is still that missing ring." He leaned down close to her ear and whispered, "The ring is your key to freedom."
Rose took the valise that was in her hand and swung it at him. "I don't have the damn ring!"
The bag smacked him in the chest, causing him to grunt in pain. He grabbed her hand and squeezed until she let go of the bag, tears coming to her eyes.
"Stop! Stop!" she cried. "You're hurting me."
She brought her hand up to her face; blood dripped from her fingers.
"What the hell?"
For the first time she noticed the rose thorns embedded in the skin of her hand and fingers. Tears ran down her cheeks. But they were tears of sorrow more than pain. Tears of frustration and anger. Tears of just plain tired of being defeated at every turn.
He grabbed her by the wrist and gently held her hand up in the moonlight. "You're hurt."
"No kidding, cowboy."
He pulled her up the steps and opened the door. Quickly he walked through the house to the darkened kitchen, pulling her along. "Sit down and don't you dare make a move to get up."
She sniffled. She didn't have the energy to move. She'd
used her last resources climbing down a rose trellis, for nothing.
Striking a match, he lit the lantern in the kitchen and then went to a cupboard where he found first- aid supplies.
Putting the lantern on the kitchen table, he took each of her hands and held them in the lamplight. "Well, I don't think you're going to be holding any more séances for a while. At least not until your hands heal."
She sniffed. "I don't need my hands to speak with the dead."
He shook his head and then took out his knife. Slowly and gently, he plucked the thorns from her hand. At times he had to dig into the wound to get the embedded stickers out. Shocked, she sat amazed at how gentle and easy his touch was on her skin.
"So just where did you think you were going, this time of night?" he asked.
"I don't know. I kind of thought that once I got away, I would figure it out."
"Have you ever heard of coyotes or Indians attacking at night? Weren't you concerned for your safety at all?"
He didn't look up at her, but kept his head bent over his task.
"Well, I..."
"We're five miles from town, Miss Severin. Five miles from Fort Worth, the most lawless town in Texas. It isn't safe for a woman in the daytime, let alone at night." He plucked a thorn from beneath her skin. "You best be concerned with both the two- legged and four-legged animals that live around here."
"Let me assure you that I can take care of myself. I've been doing it for years. It's just that I never— never thought about what I was going to do after I left. I just thought I would make it to town."
"Not thinking can get you killed." He ran his fingers very gently across her injured skin. "I think I got all the thorns. Can you feel, any more?"
She felt lots of things, but it wasn't the thorns. Her hands were stinging from the barbs, but her heart was racing from his gentle ministrations. "No—I think they're all gone."
"Good." He started to smear a smelly salve onto her hands. "This should take out the soreness and help your palm to heal."
The salve was soothing, and already the stinging had begun to ease. She gazed at Travis Burnett and couldn't believe this was the same man who had carried her out of the roadhouse, ridden across country with her on horseback, and refused to let her go.
He took strips of clean cloth and covered the welts. "You should get some rest now. Sunrise is only a couple of hours away, and it'll be time to get up soon."