Destiny's Bride by Ginger Simpson

With each passing day, the belief that Walt was gone for good became harder to accept. Here she was in the middle of nowhere, with no idea how to find her way back to Silver City. What was she to do?
    She should have paid attention during the trip here. Could she possibly find her way back to the Stinsons’? Another reality to face. The answer was no. It was unbelievable that at nineteen, she'd married and was now almost certainly a widow stranded in the middle of nowhere…and expecting a child. Thank God for Lone Eagle. At least, he kept her company and acted as though he understood her pain.
    As he readied his bed next to the fireplace, she stilled her crying enough to tell him again how she’d met and married Walt and came to this desolate place. Lone Eagle offered no advice, but instead shared stories about his people.
    Cecile curled on her side, welcoming the distraction. Anything to quell the hurt in her heart.
    “In the summer, my people camp on the flatlands, near rivers and streams, to be closer to plentiful food. We spend the summer building stores of game, fruit, and berries to carry us through the winter. When the leaves turn colors or begin to fall, we travel to the land sheltered by mountains and trees to shield us from winter winds and other tribes who want to steal what is ours. On the prairie there is no protection from mother earth and there is no place to hide.” His mood turned somber.
    “One young girl became sick and unable to make the journey to our winter camp. Her family stayed behind until she is well. I traveled to make sure of their safety, that was when I came upon the man on the prairie.”
    The fear flooded back, seizing Cecile’s heart in its icy grip. She collapsed into tears again and turned to face the wall. There was no need to hear this part of the story again; it was embedded in her mind.
     
    Chapter Seven
    Lone Eagle opened the cracked shutters and peered at the orange glow in the sky. The rooster Cecile feared perched atop the corral fence and crowed, and flapped his wings. The tip of the sun crested the horizon, reminding Lone Eagle of the fire’s reflection in the white woman’s hair, and he smiled, not knowing if it was the thought of her or the feel of the brisk morning air on his bare chest that brought him fully awake. It had been over two weeks since he’d come here, and now he had a decision to make.
    The winter snows fast approached. His wound had healed and his strength returned. His responsibility to the woman who had nursed him back to health kept him from leaving…that, and the feelings he experienced whenever he looked into her green eyes. But he had to go; he had only to decide how to convince Cecile she must come with him. He could not abandon her here, trusting fate she would survive a winter alone. Her food supplies were almost gone, and she was with child. The climbing sun moved higher in the cloudless sky and he decided that within ten more risings they would leave for his village. The remaining days should be enough time for her to see the wisdom in his words.
    Lone Eagle closed the shutters and turned. Cecile stood next to the bed, running fingers of one hand through her long, auburn hair while stifling a yawn with the other. Her eyes were red and puffy from all the crying she'd done in the past days, but she was still the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. His gaze followed her as she crossed the room to the fireplace.
    “Good morning. I didn’t mean to sleep so late.” She perched on the edge of her rocking chair and peered up through swollen eyes. “I’m afraid I’ve been letting you handle most of the chores. I need to pull myself together and get a handle on things again. It’s time to learn to rely on myself, now more than ever.”
    Her words showed the beginning of acceptance. No more tears rimmed her eyes, and she finally spoke true about a future without her man. She rose and, with a sniffle, walked to the kitchen counter while Lone