Tumbleweed Letters Read Online Free PDF Page B

his power to go to his head—and his fists. He scared me so badly, I took what little savings I had, threw some clothes into the valise Tommy bought me for a birthday gift, and hopped a train west. Between rail and stagecoach fees and paying for food, my money was almost gone by the time I reached Deadwood. Madame Dora gave me a job and a place to sleep, so I stayed.”
    “So you ran away because you were innocent?”
    “I ran away to save my life, because that was all I had left. You see, my brief marriage to Tommy branded me as one of the band who terrorized and brought about bloodshed. I was a schoolteacher, not a criminal or a radical. I lost my teaching job, and the bank took possession of my house.”
    He wrapped his arm around her shoulders again and patted her arm in what he hoped was a comforting gesture. Dear God, what all has she been through? He’d make it up to her somehow. He’d give her a good life.
    “Did you read in the newspaper about ten men being hung back in June? The lot of them were Mollies.”
    He nodded as if she could see him in the darkness. “Yes, I read about that. Gabe Thatcher sets copies of newspapers back for me to pick up when I’m in town. Nice to have that touch with the rest of the world. Article in the newspaper called it the Day of the Rope, if I recall correctly.”
    “Yes. That’s right. The hanging sent a whirlwind of panic through our community.” A shaky audible sigh filtered through the night. “I hope I’ve outrun those Pinkertons.”
    Was that why she had so eagerly agreed to his impromptu proposal? To hide out on his ranch? Maybe this marriage of convenience wasn’t such a wise idea.
    “I guess you’re sorry for bringing a woman into your family with the possibility of law officials on her heels.”
    “We McBrides protect what’s ours, Sophie Catherine. Your worries are mine now, and mine are yours. You help me raise my son and be a good wife, and I’ll gladly keep you safe.”
    She sighed and moved so that her skirts rustled again. A faint smell of roses wafted over him, and he was surprised at his immediate arousal.
    “I’m thinking I don’t know how to be a good wife to you, Cam McBride. I suppose your first wife knew how.”
    Pain took a stranglehold around his heart. “Yes.”
    “How long were you married, then?”
    “Three and a half years. Amanda’s mother and my maw were childhood friends and kept in touch after we left Atlanta. Both women had it in their heads Amanda and I should marry. Letters were exchanged. We wrote each other for a couple years and grew close. One fall, after the harvests, we traveled to Georgia for a month. Amanda and I married two days before we came back home.”
    “I guess the wide open spaces out here were a change for her.”
    “Yes. She cried for home and her family.” She’d threatened to leave him a time or two, but once she found out she was carrying his child, it seemed as if her nesting instincts kicked in. She began thinking of the ranch as her home.
    The team of horses evidently smelled their corral and feed; they picked up their pace a little. “We’re almost home.”
    Sophie shifted on the wooden seat. “I’ll confess to being eager to stand for a spell. I’m sorry we didn’t have the time to be better acquainted. What little you know about me must raise concerns.”
    “If you’re innocent, we have nothing to worry about.” She was innocent. Right? “A lot of people move out west to start over and undo mistakes of the past. We tend to judge people on how they treat others, not on what went on in their lives before. Even so, we McBrides have always lived within the law. Family and home come first. I promise you one thing. As long as I’m alive, no man will ever lay a hand on you again.”

Chapter Seven
    Their conversation went a long way toward easing Sophie’s fears about her new husband. He seemed gentle. Understanding. Protective of his family. The tone of his voice softened when he talked