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

you’ll let me.”
    She sucked in a breath. A lifetime with Lyle was too huge to contemplate at that moment.
    “You’ll get tired of me,” she told him. “And then you’ll get rid of me. Men always do.”
    “I’m not just any man.” His hand smoothed down her hair.
    “You should’ve let me go,” she said into the darkness.
    His grip tightened in her hair, just shy of painful before it relaxed again. “Why did you run?”
    She raised her head again. “Last night, by the campfire, I knew those men were dangerous. I would’ve drawn them away and you would’ve been safe.”
    “Yes, but you would’ve been killed.” His arm dropped to her shoulder and squeezed. “Rose, what are you thinking?”
    “You’re better off without me, Lyle. You saw how those men looked at me. They wanted me. I’ll bring nothing but trouble to you. Me leaving was the best way to keep you and Jesse safe.”
    “We were safe. At dawn we were going to break camp and hide out in the butte. We planned to watch for our chance to slip away, or take them out.”
    She shook her head. “You should let me go. You can’t put your life at risk to protect me.”
    “That’s my decision, not yours. You need to trust me, Rose.”
    “I do trust you.” She thumped his chest. “But it is my decision. It’s my life.”
    “Wrong.” His arms enveloped her, holding her to him fiercely, until she could feel his breath rise and fall in his chest. He was everything she saw, everything she smelled, everything she touched. His head dropped so his lips almost touched hers, his whisper harsh against her skin. “You’re mine, Rose. No one’s taking you from me, not even you.”
    A pause, while her throat worked and she tried to think of what to say. Then, to her horror, she started to cry. As her sobs shook her, she barely noticed his touch turning gentle, and stirring her hair and smoothing down her back in an attempt to soothe her. She hadn’t cried like this since she was a young girl, and still believed in hope, missing Mary. Tears were fool’s gold, and had never done her any good.
    The whole time, he murmured to her. “Beautiful Rose. Just let it out. You don’t have to carry it anymore.” He held her until her sobs died to sniffles, and then even those subsided.
    She lifted her head, freeing a hand to scrub at her face.
    “Your shirt is wet.” She almost laughed.
    He grinned. “It served a worthy cause.” He waited until she stepped away to take a minute to compose herself, and got her some water. He let her drink then used the rest to dip his handkerchief in to clean her face. She submitted to his touch, sighing at how good it felt. When he stepped away again, she was almost swaying on her feet.
    “Ready for bed?”
    She nodded, exhausted.
    Together they lay down on the bedroll. Lyle stretched out on his back beside her, and drew a narrow strip of leather out of his pocket. He fastened one end to his wrist, then found her hand and used the leather thong to tie her wrist to his.
    Rose raised her head. “What are you doing?” She tried to make her voice sharp, but just couldn’t manage it.
    “Tying you to me. That way, if you try to make a run for it, I’ll wake up.” The leather was soft and supple, but she wouldn’t be able to undo the bindings easily.
    The old Rose would have fought, but the new Rose didn’t have it in her. “I’m not going to run.” She settled back down.
    “Good.” Once their wrists were bound, he tugged her arm across his body so she was forced to snuggle closer into his side. “I’ll keep you tied to me all the same.” She felt him kiss her hair. “Fight me all you want, Rose,” Lyle said. “I’m not going anywhere. And if you do manage to get away from me again...I’ll ride until I find you. I don’t care if it takes another five years, or the rest of my life. You’re not on your own anymore.”
    What he said was so huge, the weight would crush her, but instead, more of her stone fortress