Adam, Devils on Horseback: Generations, Book 1 by Beth Williamson Page B

question back from the air. “Regret? No, my red giant. I’ve done a lot of things in my life I wish I could do over, but this isn’t one of them.”
    My red giant.
    A rush of affection surprised him. He knew he liked her, but this was something more. Deeper. He wanted to be with her, protect her. Adam found himself possibly wanting to be her husband in truth.
    “Do you plan to lie with me?” Her words came out in a rush.
    Adam’s body clenched with need. “I wondered about that myself.”
    She was silent for a few moments. “Perhaps we should wait a day or two and get better acquainted?”
    He respected the request. They were still strangers. “We can do that. Will you let me know when you’re ready?”
    “Of course.” She rocked back and forth in the chair, a bundle of quilt and woman he wanted to taste, to touch, to hold. Eve had every right to ask for a reprieve.
    The delay, however, didn’t make him feel one bit better. Adam wanted to claim her, to brand her as his. No matter the reason, he was her husband and he couldn’t wait to take on that role in truth.
    * * * * *
    Given the fact his wife slept in a separate room, Adam was up with the sun, going into the mill to start the day’s work. Pa was still unconscious, but he hadn’t developed a fever. There was nothing else to do but take care of things as he would.
    He was checking the waterwheel when his uncles descended. To his surprise, Elias, Spencer and Clint accompanied their fathers Gideon, Zeke and Lee. The resemblance between fathers and sons was no more apparent than it was at that moment. A wall of muscle and wide shoulders, they would scare even the heartiest of men. Unless of course they were his family.
    Which they were.
    He smiled at the six of them. “What are you all doing here?”
    “We thought you might need us while your pa is out of commission.” Uncle Gideon spread his arms. “There’s work to be done and we aim to help you get it done.”
    The leader of the group of five soldiers in the Civil War, Gideon was still serving in that role. He had a cattle ranch and also owned the restaurant in town with Uncle Lee, the blond, one-armed devil. Zeke, of course, was the law in Tanger. The missing member of their group was Uncle Nate, who lived a few days’ ride away with his wife, Elisa, on their ranch.
    Lee’s son, Clint, worked on the wheat farm with his father and had the largest physique of all Adam’s cousins from the hard work with the crops. Spencer was a slightly smaller version of his cousin Clint and had a knack for charming the fairer sex. They were big men used to hard work and they’d arrived to help Adam when he most needed it.
    Elias was the exception to the group of cousins. He was studious, incredibly smart and not as physical as the rest of the cousins. Nonetheless, the brown-haired young man had naturally wide shoulders, but a more slender form. He had his shiny black medical bag in his hand. His father had bought it for him when he received his certificate as a physician.
    “I’ll be upstairs with Uncle Jake.” He nodded at Adam. The quiet doctor had proved himself to be very skilled at healing and treating patients.
    After Elias left, the other five waited for Adam to tell them what to do. It was a unique experience to be the one who was in charge. He was momentarily flummoxed by the thought; then he smiled. He could do this. He would do this.
    “Clint and Spencer, can you clean the grindstones? The stone crane is in the basement, but you can hook it to the beam upstairs.” Adam knew what he was asking. There was blood, skin and hair to be removed. The task would not be easy.
    Clint was the quietest of them. He didn’t speak unless he had something to say, which wasn’t often. Other than being a massive man, he looked a lot like Spencer, blond with brown eyes and ridiculous long eyelashes Adam had teased him about since they were boys.
    “Of course. I’ll get a bucket and scrub brush from the house. Meet