Caden's Vow Read Online Free PDF

the big man, but he’d turned and looked at her, appearing so dark and
alien she’d almost reconsidered, then with a nod he’d held out his hand. She’d
taken it full of fear, only to find beneath that harsh exterior was a good
man.
    He’d been looking for his Ari then, sympathy for her plight no
doubt driving him to collect discarded women along the way. Tracker had brought
her home to Hell’s Eight the way he brought many others. Giving them a place to
heal. Most had left after a month or two. Moving on. She’d stayed. She hadn’t
had any other place to go and she’d been afraid to start over. Or so she’d
thought. Truth was, she’d just been slow to be ready.
    She looked beyond the open stable door to the fading night
beyond. But that was all changing. “We’re going adventuring, Flower.”
    She snubbed the little horse to the hitching post and fetched
her tack. Worthless flopped by the post. “Caden thinks he can just break a
promise to me, but he can’t,” she told the hound. He rolled his big brown eyes
at her.
    Thanks to Caden’s relentless instruction, she made short work
of saddling and bridling the little mare. At the time she’d wanted to curse him,
but now, when time was critical, she appreciated every tedious lesson. She
couldn’t afford to let Caden get too far ahead of her. She took the IOU out of
her pocket and stuck it on a nail jutting out of the post. Stealing a horse was
a hanging offense. She wanted to be sure the Hell’s Eight knew she was only
borrowing Flower. Over the IOU she put the note she’d written to Tia and Bella.
It was short and to the point. A thank-you and a simple I’ve decided to live my life. As an afterthought she’d added, Please, don’t worry. She hoped she’d spelled
everything right.
    It was a novel thought that someone would worry about her. She
smiled. Taking control of her life was working. She now had friends.
    Looping the leash around Worthless’s neck, she tied the other
end around the saddle horn. His silent tracking was going to work for her. The
last thing she needed was for Caden to know she was following until they were
too far out for him to send her back.
    She took one last look around. Here she was safe. Beyond the
door, her life waited. For a minute she hesitated. Worthless whined and stood.
She nodded. “You’re right. It’s time to go.”
    She swung up into the saddle, her skirt settling around the
pants Caden had purchased for her when he’d noticed how she’d been sore after
that first time riding. She hadn’t had pantaloons and she’d been too embarrassed
to tell anybody. She’d fretted for days he’d tell and she’d be embarrassed. So
much had embarrassed her back then. Gathering up the reins, she sighed. She’d
felt so lacking amid the confidence of the Hell’s Eight women. But that had been
her own silliness, as Bella would put it.
    Then, a few days after that first riding lesson, Caden had
handed her a box and told her to open it in private. Her first thoughts had been
shameful. Thinking he’d bought her scandalous womanly things, and it had been
with great trepidation she’d placed the box on her bed. When she’d opened it,
she’d cried. Stupid, silly tears. He’d bought her ugly man-pants to wear under
her skirts. Made of soft wool and thick enough so her thighs wouldn’t chafe.
She’d lost her heart to him right then, though it took her weeks to identify
what that skip of a beat had meant.
    She loved those damn pants. Loved that damn man. And now she
was planning on loving her damn life. So much had changed around her in the past
year. So much had changed within her. She’d gone from a scared child who hid in
make-believe to a woman who was learning to live. It was exciting. It was
energizing. It was as scary as all get-out. Patting Flower on the shoulder and
smiling at the eagerly waiting Worthless, Maddie urged the mare forward.
Worthless fell in beside.
    “Ready or not, here we come.”

CHAPTER THREE
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