The Bounty Hunter's Bride. Sandra Steffen

side and what does he do? Practically accuses me of wantin’ to shoot him. Why, if I wanted to shoot him I woulda done it by now. If he wasn’t so thickheaded and stubborn he’d know that all I want is to get to know him. I’ve tried being nice. The nicer I am, the grouchier he gets.”

      She was still sputtering an hour later. Huffing, she reminded herself that she didn’t have to take this kind of abuse. Not from her father and brothers. Not from the man she’d been stupid enough to fall in love with. Until he gave her a sign, she was done being nice to him. That decided, she carried two chipped bowls and mismatched cups to the table.

      On the other side of the room, Kane grimaced and ducked his head slightly. Amazed that neither of the shallow bowls had broken beneath the force with which Josie had clanked them onto the worn wooden table, he measured her with a long, appraising look.

      She’d stomped the snow off her boots and had come inside almost two hours ago. Although she hadn’t said a word to him, she’d talked to herself pretty much nonstop. She was wearing another flannel shirt, this one yellow and green. Instead of buttoning it, she’d left it open, revealing a plain white shirt that clung to her thin body.

      Ambling closer, he said, “My mother used to sputter like that under her breath, too. I’d forgotten until now.”

      She looked at him over her shoulder. “Something tells me you gave your mother a lot to sputter about.”

      Kane shrugged his good shoulder. “What’s for supper?”

      She waited a good, long time before answering. “Rabbit stew.”

      Kane strode a little closer. Stomach rumbling, he sniffed the air. She’d been gone two hours before he’d heard the first shot. The second shot had come from someplace closer half an hour later. He’d tried not to watch the clock, he’d tried to sleep and he’d tried to tell himself that the reason he couldn’t seem to do either had nothing to do with a guilty conscience.

      Kane Slater may have been a lot of things, but he was no liar. He’d screwed up, plain and simple. He’d been ornery, mean and inconsiderate. She’d nursed him back to health, sharing her warm cabin and her food. And what had he done? Treated her unkindly.

      “I’m sorry, Josie.”

      Josie turned around slowly. Kane was looking at her, one arm cradled in the makeshift sling, the other hanging limply at his side. He seemed as surprised by his apology as she was.

      “I should have thought. I should have realized. And I should have thanked you,” he said, hesitating as if he’d had to dredge the words from a place deep inside him.

      She tried to hold a grudge, really she did, but she didn’t have it in her to stay angry at this man. She’d hoped he had a gentle side. Like the tip of an iceberg, she was glimpsing it now.

      “I know it’s no excuse,” he said. “But I’m not used to all this inactivity. Sitting around is driving me crazy.”

      She studied him thoughtfully for several seconds. He’d had another bath that morning, but this time he’d insisted upon doing everything himself. The nick in his chin was the result of shaving with his left hand. Other than that, he’d managed quite well. His light brown hair was clean, the color of his skin more healthy looking. He’d come to her injured and bleeding. The flicker of emotion way in the back of his eyes made her think that his shoulder hadn’t been his most serious wound. The realization was dredged from a place beyond logic and reason, a place where there were only shimmery emotions and yearnings older than time.

      He’d told her, in no uncertain terms, that he didn’t want or need anybody. Need was a funny thing. It could hide deep inside a person, going undetected for years, until one day you noticed it squeezing into your thoughts, into your sighs, into your soul. Kane might not have realized it yet, but he needed a woman’s softness, a woman’s gentleness, a woman’s strength. Not just any woman’s. He needed hers.

      Going back to her stew, she said, “Apology accepted. And you’re welcome. Now, I hope this stew gets done soon. There’s nothing like trailing a potential supper for hours to give me an appetite.”

      She handed him the silverware and told him to make himself useful. She noticed he set the table restaurant style, the fork on the left, spoon and knife on the right. Somebody had taught him manners. Feeling suddenly buoyant, she smiled and said, “It was beautiful out there today. I don’t understand what you don’t like about the Blue Ridge Mountains. They’re just so pretty. Did you know that on a clear day you can see seven states from Lookout Mountain?”

      Kane shook his head and lowered onto a straight-back chair. Barely taking enough time to draw a deep breath, Josie continued. “Tennessee is called the big bend state. Wanna know why?”

      Kane shrugged. Sure, why not? He was getting used to listening to her stories.

      “Because,” she said, her long wooden spoon sending steam wafting from the pot of bubbling stew. “The Tennessee River bends in the middle and flows through the state twice. Bubba Jones told me that in the third grade. He went to Texas to be a rodeo champion. He couldn’t hit a bull in the butt with a bass fiddle, let alone ride one, but he ended up marrying a rich widow from Portland, Oregon way. Strange how some things work out, isn’t it?”

      Kane stared across the small room. He felt dizzy. That happened a lot when he tried to make sense of what Josie said.

      She talked on, telling him about people he’d never heard of and places he never planned to go. He glanced up in surprise when she placed the pot of stew on the table and began ladling a healthy portion into his bowl. Breathing in the mouthwatering aroma, he said, “I can’t believe there are still women alive who can shoot supper, clean it, dress it, cook it and still have the stomach to eat it after all that.”

      She dropped onto a chair opposite him and scooped up a spoonful of stew. “It’s given me a good understanding of why some people become vegetarians. They say they can’t eat the flesh of living creatures. Plants were alive, too, once. How do we know they don’t have feelings? I once read that there’s an entire segment of our population that talks to their roses and tomatoes and whatnot. I think the human race has to eat something, don’t you?”

      Kane stared across the table, spoon poised in midair.

      “What?” she asked.

      “Oh,” he said, lowering his spoon to his bowl, “I was just thinking that you’re really nothing like I expected a mountain woman to be.”

      “And how’s that?”

      Waiting to answer until after he’d taken his first bite of supper, he said, “Bear in mind that what little knowledge I have of mountain people is based on Beverly Hillbillies reruns.”

      “I’m definitely no Granny, and I’m afraid I’m not built like Elly May.”

      “You don’t wear a bra.” He clamped his mouth shut. Where had that come from?

      Her smile set his teeth on edge. “There’s something to be said for small breasts, isn’t there?”

      He groaned inwardly, his gaze straying below her shoulders. There was something to be said for her small breasts. Dragging his gaze away from the gentle slopes evident through the white fabric of her shirt, he cleared his throat and took another bite of stew. He tried not to think about kissing her taut nipples, tried not to wonder if he would be the first.

      It was lucky for him that she didn’t seem to mind keeping up a one-sided conversation. Funny, a few days ago he hadn’t thought there was anything lucky about it. A few days ago he hadn’t felt a surging desire when he least expected it. A few days ago he hadn’t eaten two bowls of rabbit stew without tasting any of it.

      She didn’t look at him again until her bowl was empty. Only then did her gaze meet his from the other side of the table. She smiled, and he felt as if the wind had been knocked out of him. He did his best to return her grin, but it wasn’t easy, when what he wanted to do was vault over the table and kiss her the way he had the other