Read A Texas Sky (Yellow Rose Trilogy) for Free Online Page B

so special to her. Darvi didn't know if she'd ever told
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    her that, but she would this time. This time she knew she
    could.
    "Did you come alone, Darvi?" Calder suddenly asked.
    "No," she turned to him, "but my escort seemed to
    think I would want a private reunion."
    "Who is it, Darvi?" Merry asked.
    "A friend of my uncle's. He wanted to wait by the
    creek"
    Husband and wife exchanged a look before Calder
    turned away and said, "I'll just head out and invite him in
    to lunch."
    Merry waited only until her husband was gone before
    sending the girls back to the table and ushering Darvi into
    the kitchen.
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    "Have a seat there, Darvi, and 111 get you a bowl of
    soup."
    "Should I have gone out with Calder?"
    "I don't think so," Merry said easily. "He'll just go out
    and introduce himself, I'm sure."
    Merry said all of this while laying two extra place settings,
    making sure the bread was in reach, and then serving
    her friend a bowl of soup. It took a moment for her to see
    that Darvi was staring at her, a look of near desperation on
    her face.
    "What is it, Darvi?" Merry asked gently, taking a chair
    close to her.
    "I did it!" Darvi could wait no longer. "I asked Jesus
    Christ to save me from my sins. I wanted to pick the perfect
    time to tell you, but I just have to tell you now. I'm a
    believer, Merry, just like you."
    Having prayed for this for years, Merry was surprised
    at her own reaction: one of tears. She tried to speak, but the
    words stuck in her throat. Silent tears trickled down her
    face, and when her little daughters saw them, their own
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    tears began. This made the women laugh.
    ''Tell me everything!" Merry commanded when she
    finally had air again.
    A Texas Sky * 43
    The words and sounds coming from the kitchen in the
    next minutes included an amazing blend of laughter and
    breathless sobs, none of which could be heard by Calder,
    who had finally spotted Dakota and was moving toward
    him. Calder was nearly to the rock the Ranger was sitting
    on before he realized that man had his shirt off and was
    trying to stop his side from bleeding.
    "Hello," Calder called as Dakota glanced at him.
    "Hello."
    Finally at the boulder, Calder stopped and looked down
    on him. "It looks as though Darvi was something of a
    tyrant."
    One corner of Dakota's mouth quirked. "She rode
    harder than I figured."
    "Do you want me to have a loo^?"
    76
    Dakota took his eyes from the wound. "You a doctor?"
    "Yes."
    Dakota shrugged a little, "I saw a doctor in Austin. He
    gave me some powder."
    "It wasn't Marcus Scott by any chance, was it?"
    "As a matter of fact, it was."
    "He's my uncle."
    Dakota took a moment to compute this.
    "I thought you were a Ranger."
    Calder smiled. "Thafs my brother."
    Dakota laughed a little.
    "I'll get my bag," Calder said and started away.
    Dakota was too weary to argue with him. He didn't
    think he needed any more mending, but he certainly felt
    worn.
    Back at the house, Merry heard the door the moment it
    opened and went to meet their other guest. She was surprised
    to find her husband alone.
    "He's hurt," Calder said by way of explanation.
    Merry accepted this without questipn or comment.
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    Darvi, on the other hand, followed Calder to the door on
    his way back out
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    "Dakota's hurt?"
    "Yes. I would guess a gunshot wound to his side."
    Darvi's mouth opened. "He never said a word."
    Calder's smile was full of amusement "Somehow mat
    doesn't surprise me."
    Tempted as Darvi was to go with him, she thought she
    might be in the way. The blonde made herself stay put, but
    as soon as she saw him, Darvi would have a few questions
    for Dakota Rawlings.
    --gr'3-
    Dakota
    woke slowly, his body telling him he was rested
    and comfortable and that everything was all right. He
    remembered getting to the front porch and even going
    through the kitchen, but almost as soon as he'd laid on the
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    bed he had been directed to, everything had begun to fade.
    Now his eyes were opening, and for the