Trailing Home Ch. 08

"I'll make you pay for that tonight," he threatened, nuzzling beneath her ear.

Her breath caught in her throat as she smiled. "Do you promise?"

Their travel slowed considerably as they struggled up one mountain after another. In the distance ahead of and behind them, they could see other covered wagons picking their way along the rocky trail. Even though Selena's bottom had gotten used to the hard bench, she winced as they bounced over the jagged rocks.

Noticing her discomfort, Liam gave her a lecherous look. "Would you like me to rub some liniment on that tonight?"

Selena rolled her eyes in mock exasperation. "No doubt you would use the opportunity to take advantage of my person," she quipped pertly.

"No doubt," he replied with an unrepentant grin.

The next morning, Selena was surprised to find that he had made her a cushion of sorts out of an extra blanket. She spied it on the seat while she was waiting for him to lift her up, and she turned to him with a smile.

"Thank you, Liam. That was very thoughtful of you."

He wrapped his arms around her waist, giving a furtive glance around to make sure they weren't being observed before he clasped her buttocks in his palms. "My pleasure," he grinned. "I don't want any more bruises on my wife's pretty little behind."

"You are incorrigible," she scolded, but she stretched up to give him a kiss, just the same.

Selena was surprised by how much the temperature changed throughout the day. In the mornings, they had to wear overcoats and mittens. By noon, Liam had rolled up his shirtsleeves, and she had unfastened a few buttons on her bodice to let in a cool breeze. They sweated throughout the day, and then by nightfall, they were huddled under several blankets to sleep. By dawn, a thin layer of ice had formed over the water in their buckets.

Selena had never seen such beautiful country. Wildlife became plentiful. They spied elk, rabbits, coyotes, wolves, and even a grizzly bear as they plodded along. Thankfully, the bear was a good distance away from them, but Liam laughed when Selena slid closer to him on the seat. Liam shot a deer that they shared with the other families, and they enjoyed hearty venison stew for several days. They had long since run out of dried apples and peaches, but Selena made a pan of bread baked with butter, sugar and cinnamon to reward Liam for his efforts.

They occasionally saw Indian villages in the valleys far below. Despite what Liam had told her, Selena was still nervous about them. She had heard numerous stories about bloodthirsty savages, and she shivered at the thought of being scalped. However, as the days went on and the Indians showed no signs of aggression, she relaxed and even waved hesitantly when they saw two Indian braves watching them pass by.

They were camped near a cold, clear river one Sunday, when Selena went to catch up on their laundry. Marcia had gone before her and had found a good spot, where the water was clean and shallow. The river had cut a deep ravine between two steep, rocky cliffs, and Selena knelt beneath one of them as she worked. The two women worked side by side, enjoying the company while they completed the onerous chore.

"You seem awfully happy these days," Marcia commented, giving Selena a sidelong glance.

"Mmmm, I am," Selena smiled. "I never would have believed just a few short months ago that I would find everything my heart desired." She gave a sheepish smile. "There was a time I thought I never wanted a man, and I had all but given up on the idea of marriage. Then Liam showed up."

Marcia laughed at the thought. "So Liam's your knight in shining armor, so to speak?"

"No, he's much more than just some girlish fantasy. He not only makes me feel safe and protected, but he makes me laugh and makes me feel so alive. Every day, I learn something new about him, and I look forward to a lifetime of such discoveries." She laughed a bit self-consciously. "I'm sorry for going on and on. I must be boring you to tears."

"Not at all, Selena. I just hope that my two girls will find someone just as wonderful as your Liam." Marcia made a face as she scrubbed. "Sometimes I don't know about Natasha, though. I wonder if that girl will ever be completely happy."

"What do you mean?" Selena asked.

Marcia gave a weary sigh and eyed Selena ruefully. "She's nineteen, she's beautiful, she has all the clothes she could possibly ever wear. In fact, she has nearly everything she could want, but she always wants more. And what's worse, she always wants what she can't have."

"Such as Liam," Selena said, keeping her tone as neutral as possible. After all, it wasn't Marcia's fault that Natasha couldn't keep her eyes off Liam.

"I'm afraid so. I keep hoping that she'll meet some other young man who can sway her interest. Take young Adam. He's handsome and charming. He's completely smitten with her. He keeps bringing her flowers and mooning around, but she all but ignores him." Marcia shook her head. "I'm not sure where I went wrong with her. Natasha is so different from Susan and her brother. Those two are hard workers, and they appreciate everything they have. They bring joy to my life. Natasha never lifts a finger to help unless it directly benefits her, and she always seems to make things more difficult for Gerald and me, with her whining and complaining. And what I don't understand is that she used to be very different. When she was younger, she was sweet-tempered and thoughtful. It was only after she got into her teens that she started to change." She tossed Selena a quick glance. "You must think the very worst about us."

Selena reached out to squeeze Marcia's hand fondly. "Not at all, Marcia. You've become very dear to me. And don't worry about Natasha. I'm sure everything will work out. Surely, once we reach Oregon, she'll meet a nice young man. Liam told me that men outnumber the women by four or five to one, so she should have her pick of suitors."

"I hope so," Marcia laughed. "I hate to admit it, but I'm looking forward to the day I can marry her off. Then, it will be up to her husband to try and make her happy." Marcia finished her laundry and gathered up the damp clothes. "I'd better get back to camp. I've got to get supper going if we're going to eat before it gets too late."

"Alright, I'll be finished soon too." Selena waved to her and then resumed her own scrubbing. She only had one more of Liam's shirts and one chemise to wash and then she would be done.

As Selena worked, she replayed Marcia's words. She thought about what Natasha had done, trying to come between her and Liam, and Selena's jaw clenched with anger. She would never reveal the incident to Marcia, as she knew it would cause her too much shame and pain. However, Selena would be cautious not to let Natasha cause any further trouble for them. The selfish chit would just have to find her own husband and stop coveting Selena's.

Selena began to feel a prickling sensation, and an uneasy feeling settled in her stomach. She sat back on her heels, scanning the brush around the river for any signs of someone or something that might be lurking there, but everything was still. The birds were chirping in the trees, and everything seemed fine, but Selena couldn't shake a feeling that something wasn't quite right.

She had almost convinced herself that she was just being silly when a pebble bounced off the cliff above her and splashed into the water. Selena glanced up and saw several more rocks tumbling down, along with clumps of dirt. She jumped up and ran, getting out from under the sliding rocks in the nick of time. She had only taken a couple of steps when a huge rock, almost two feet across, crashed down in the spot where she had been sitting, crushing the washboard and Liam's shirt beneath it. The rock bounced and fell into the river, a geyser of water splashing around where it settled.

Selena screamed and clutched a hand to her throat as she stared in horror. If she had been just a second or two slower to move, she would have been crushed just like the washboard. She was shaking like a leaf, and it took several minutes for her heart to stop pounding and her breathing to return to normal. There was a small scrape and a couple of bruises on her arms from where the smaller rocks had hit her, and as she looked at them, she shivered.

She eyed the cliff warily, looking for any signs that more rocks were ready to fall. When she was finally satisfied that it was safe, she ran back to where she had been working. Casting frequent glances up at the cliff, she snatched up the washboard and Liam's shirt. She scooped up the rest of the laundry and headed back to camp. She had had enough of doing laundry for one day.

Liam was busy greasing the axles, but he turned to greet her when she returned. He took one look at her and scrambled to his feet.

"What happened to you?" he asked anxiously, scanning her frightened features.

"I'm alright. I just got a fright, that's all," Selena replied with a trembling smile. She set the clothes on the bench of the wagon. "I was doing the laundry and there was a rockslide from the cliff behind me. I almost got buried under a nasty rock. I got out of the way in time, but the washboard wasn't so lucky." She held it out to show him, and Liam blanched.

"My God, are you alright?" He hugged her to his chest, being careful not to get any grease on her.

"Yes really, I'm fine. Just a few scratches. But I have to tell you, I'm tempted to make you do the laundry from now on. Laundry always seems to get me into trouble, one way or another," Selena said wryly.

Liam straightened and gave her a dubious grin. "Now that's a lousy excuse to try to get out of your chores. You know, as I recall, that was part of our deal when I agreed to let you come with me on this trip. You said you would do the laundry."

"That's right," she said, with a saucy tilt of her head. "And as I recall, it was also part of our deal that you wouldn't be sharing my bed. Would you like to revert to the terms of that agreement, Mr. McKenzie?"

"Well ah . . . since you put it that way," Liam said, his grin growing wider as he leaned closer to peek down into her bodice, "I guess I'll be washing my own clothes from now on." He kissed her, his lips soft and searching on hers, reminding her of past delights and promising more to come. The kiss was more eloquent than words could have possibly been.

Selena gave a sigh when he raised his head, and she toyed with the buttons on his shirt. "Well ah . . . since you put it that way, perhaps I could keep doing the wash for a while yet." She stretched up for one more quick kiss before stepping away to retrieve the laundry. "I'd better spread these out to dry, then I'll start supper."

Selena was cooking dinner when she remembered the feeling she had felt just before the rockslide. Her brows furrowed in thought. Somehow, she had felt a presentiment of danger, and she was lucky she had or she would have been killed. The thought made her shiver. Pushing it to the back of her mind, she finished making the cornbread.