Rocky Mountain Rose (Rocky Mountain Bride Series Book 3) by Lee Savino Page A

her new husband’s talk of a life together. After a lifetime living in hotels and boarding rooms, a homestead sounded like a fairy tale. “My place is set in the woods, close to the river, a few miles away from the mine. We’ll hunker down and get ready for winter. Come spring we’ll pan for gold, and then see if we can find a vein that runs deep.”
    Leaning against her husband, cheek to his chest, Rose stared at the fire and imagined everything just as he said. At some point, Lyle’s head dropped so when he spoke, his breath stirred her hair.
    “We can help Miles with his autumn slaughter, and eat the meat all winter. Miles has a wife, Carrie. You’ll like her.”
    He shifted and she looked up at him, realizing that she’d been staring at nothing for a few moments of silence.
    “But there’s plenty of time to talk about that. You need to rest.” He smiled at her dazed expression and leaned down for a moment. She felt his fingers searching around her hem and came wide awake.
    “It’s okay, Rose. I’m just checking the marks. Let me see.”
    She let him lift her chemise away, feeling his hand hover over her bare skin, touching her sore flesh gently.
    “Good girl,” he soothed. “You took your punishment well. Tomorrow you’ll be good as new.” When he faced her again, he wore a smirk she knew well. “And, if you learned your lesson, we’ll have a quiet day tomorrow. I have no wish to wake up getting rode down by bandits again.” He laughed and pulled her head in to kiss her forehead, letting her know he was teasing.
    She rolled her eyes.
    “Still haven’t heard a thank you for that rescue. But I’m a patient man, Rose, so—”
    “Thank you.”
    His arms came around her as his shoulders shook with silent laughter.
    “You’re infuriating.” Her voice was muffled by his shirt.
    “Same to you, darlin’. Same to you. But it’s worth it.” His hand sifted through her hair, and his voice turned thoughtful. “I’m going to take care of you, Rose.”
    Her breath caught, and she pressed her face into the firm plane of his chest, her eyes suddenly burning. “Why are you doing this?”
    Almost immediately, he drew back so he could look at her face. She tried to turn her head away to escape his soft expression, but he caught her chin with gentle fingers. “You and me, we’re connected.”
    “You don’t know me,” she whispered.
    His smile was so tender, so breathtakingly beautiful, she couldn’t look straight at it without her vision blurring with tears. “I know you. Your favorite meal is green beans, bacon and cornbread. You had a doll named Nelly until you were twelve, and a calico blanket you slept with every night.”
    Drawing in a shaky breath, she fisted her hands in his shirt, close to crying.
    “You’re scared, Rose, scared to let anyone get close. You’ve never had a man treat you right. And five years ago, you lost the only family you ever had.”
    “I had Sam.”
    Lyle didn’t say anything for a moment, just stroked her hair. “Tell me about Sam.”
    Rose relaxed again, cheek to his chest. “He was just a kid. Worked at a traveling show with me. I was a dancer, and he was good at announcing. He wanted to act. Then the manager started drinking away our pay, so we stole our cuts and ran.” She lowered her voice. “Sam wouldn’t harm a fly. I was the one who protected him.”
    “Has anyone ever tried to protect you?”
    “Just Mary.” And now you. She wanted to add.
    Lyle stroked the side of her face with his curled fingers. He seemed to hear her unspoken words.
    “You’re worth protecting,” he said.
    Her face hardened, and she dropped it to his chest, unwilling to look at him. A few more seconds, and she really would cry again. After five years building a fortress to hide her emotions, she no longer seemed to be able to lock them in. What was wrong with her?
    “Rose, did you hear me?”
    “Stop talking.”
    “I’m going to spend a lifetime convincing you, if