The Circle Eight: Nicholas Read Online Free PDF Page B

course. Nick was being a ridiculous fool, but as was his way, he couldn’t seem to stop himself. “Then help me grease up this rig’s wheels. It’s ancient and I don’t know if it will make it without a bit of work.”
    The work helped to take his mind off the impending trip. They checked the rig over, greased up the axles and checked the traces. The leather was worn but not ready to fall apart yet. Whoever they ’d rented it from should have been horse-whipped for letting an old man and a woman drive it all the way to the Circle Eight. At best, this was a ride-around-town rig.
    Darkness had fallen when he finally decided it was good enough to make it back to Houston. Benjy sat on an upended bucket watching him. The boy had probably decided Nick had lost a bit of his mind, which wasn’t too far from the truth.
    “Supper time.” Benjy pointed toward the door. “Eva rang the bell a few minutes ago.”
    “Get yourself cleaned up then , or she’ll tear my hide off if you’re late.” Nick wiped his forehead with an already dirty rag and blew out a breath. He was tired. Beyond that, though, exhausted. It had been so long since he’d slept well, if at all. Physical labor helped him forget all of it, for a short time.
    Benjy stared at Nick a moment longer before he stood up. “You gotta let the light in sometimes. Darkness will eat you alive.” With that bit of sage wisdom, the young man left the barn.
    Sometimes Nick forgot everything his brother had endured. Benjy had lived under the thumb of a kidnapper, sold as a commodity to a man who’d done unspoken things to him. Nick’s problems paled in comparison. He felt petty and ridiculous, but it was what it was. Perhaps driving Winnie to Houston was a good idea. It could be the knock to the head he needed to climb out of his hole.
     
    Rebecca watched from the corner of the house. Her heart did a pittypat as Vaughn picked up Elizabeth’s hand and kissed her palm before they climbed in the wagon and drove away for their honeymoon. Her sister had found a hero—a man who’d changed his life and swept in to marry her. It was terribly romantic.
    One day Rebecca might find a man who would do such a thing for her. She had no illusions about actually finding that man, not out in the middle of nowhere Texas. Nope, she would have to travel to locate such a hero, or settle for a man who would provide her security, a home, children and a future.
    It wasn’t a very fair choice, to be certain. She dreamed of more, though. Now seeing Ellie with Vaughn, it made Rebecca ache for her own slice of heaven. Being seventeen was prime marrying age. Many of the girls she knew had already decided on their choice of husbands. It was slim pickings.
    She hadn’t told anyone, but Rebecca had a man in mind. It was no one her family would approve of and she wasn’t sure he would be a hero. She couldn’t love a man if he couldn’t be a hero.
     
     
    The sunrise brushed the sky with a swath of pink when Nick led the horses to the rig and hooked up the traces. An early morning mist hung in the air, the humidity of the day making itself known. Summer had its grip on Texas and it wasn’t letting go anytime soon.
    The horses were not the cow ponies he was used to but they were solid animals, a matched set of bays. Both geldings were well taken care of, unlike the carriage. He double-checked the gear and then led the rig out of the barn.
    Winnie stood there, bag in hand, wearing a light blue dress. Her beauty stunned him, knocking the words out of his mouth. He nodded at her, avoiding her gaze lest he make an ass of himself. Again.
    “Eva packed some food for the journey.” Winnie held up a burlap sack.
    Nick grunted. He stepped toward her and reached for her traveling bag. She pulled back, surprising him.
    “Perhaps you can actually look at me again one day without flinching.” Her words were harsh but her voice was the opposite. Hurt.
    “I never meant to hurt you, Winnie.” His soft