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had never come in contact with a man quite like this before. He didn't respond in the same manner as other men. She had fully expected this one to follow sheepishly after her when he'd had enough of the drink. For all she knew, he could very well be locating his own weapon right this minute, and she was helpless to do anything but run.
    She wasn't running. Lifting her rifle protectively, Lily stepped away from the wagon and the child. She wasn't letting an innocent get caught in the crossfire, if it came to that. But she sure as hell didn't mean to walk back to the ranch. He broke the yoke. He'd darned well better fix it.
    She lowered the rifle again in surprise when Cade staggered out of the house carrying a doll's cradle under one arm and a child's feather mattress under another. The child squealed with delight as he dumped the load into the back of the wagon. Without giving Lily a glance, he stalked back to the house.
    When he returned bearing a dresser spilling small cotton garments and glimpses of lace, Lily hurriedly began arranging the articles in the wagon bed and fastening them down so they wouldn't slide too much. The doll's cradle looked handcarved and beautifully done. The doll inside had once had a lovely china face, and her long linen nightdress was now well worn with time.
    She dodged out of the way as Cade returned and flung in a bedroll and the rails for a child's bed. Without a word, he made one final trip to the house, this time carrying out a splendidly tooled Spanish saddle, a bundle that undoubtedly represented his own meager wardrobe, and saddlebags that appeared too heavy for any normal man to carry.
    After dropping the last of his worldly possessions into the wagon, Cade walked past Lily and toward the stable. Unable to do anything else, Lily started to climb into the wagon seat when she noticed a small gray kitten peering around the corner of the house. Deciding that as long as she was adopting the man's family she might as well adopt his cat too, Lily went to collect the stray.
    The kitten had other ideas. Scratching and spitting, it leapt from Lily's grasp and darted to the safety of the wagon wheels. Lily was on her hands and knees under the wagon bed trying to remove the animal when Cade returned, leading his horse.
    If he had anything to say about his employer's unladylike position, he had the sense to leave it unsaid as he hitched his horse to the back of the wagon and leaned over to scoop up the snarling kitten in one mighty fist. While Lily hastily backed away from his too-close proximity and stood up to dust herself off, Cade dumped the kitten in the child's lap and went around to the front of the wagon to mend the yoke with wire he had brought with him.
    Lily climbed to the seat and waited uneasily for Cade to finish. With his horse tied to the back of the wagon, it was quite apparent that he didn't mean to ride. The idea of having the man beside her on this narrow seat didn't sit at all well. If he was drunk, he gave little sign of it as he worked steadily at repairing the damage. She didn't know how she would react when he claimed the remaining portion of the bench. She fully meant to keep the reins to herself, but what chance had she against his obvious strength if he decided otherwise?
    Before Lily could thoroughly panic, Cade finished his mending, walked around to the back of the wagon, and throwing himself in, collapsed against the bedroll. He passed out cold before Lily could urge the oxen out of town.
    * * *
    "Esta un monstruo, senora," Juanita whispered fearfully, peeking out the window curtains at the man unloading his possessions into the small cabin in the side yard.
    "A monster?" Lily glanced out to see the child dancing happily between the wagon and the cabin. "I don't think so. A giant, maybe, but I think he's gentle." She tried to say the words convincingly to calm Juanita's fears, but the memory of the rage in Cade's eyes and the ease with which he had dismantled the wagon