Read The Gunslinger for Free Online Page B

others.
    His tongue delved deeply, hungrily, as though he were a man coming off a fast. Then like a man whose hunger had eased, he gentled his touch. He threaded his fingers through her hair while the callused pads of his thumbs caressed her cheek. She had never been kissed with such tenderness, had never experienced so great a yearning to give back in kind what she was receiving. She twined her arms around his neck and heard his guttural groan. He tore his mouth from hers and blazed a trail of hot, moist kisses along the column of her throat. A tiny gasp escaped her lips.
    Without warning, he surged to his feet. She stared at his rigid back and listened to his harsh breathing echoing through the night. She struggled to her feet. Afraid her trembling legs would give out beneath her, she clung to the porch post for support. “Chance?”
    â€œGo to bed, Li—lady,” he growled.
    She licked her swollen lips, tasting where he had been. “Are you—”
    â€œI’m sleeping in the barn.”
    â€œI don’t understand. I thought you wanted me.”
    He spun around. “Christ, lady, I do want you . . . more than I’ve ever wanted anything. And that’s the very reason I won’t take what you’re offering.”
    She watched him storm toward the barn, disappointment slamming into her. Disappointment with him because he’d left her with a woman’s yearnings. Disappointment with herself because she wished he’d satisfied those longings.

 
    Chapter 5
    H AVING ENDURED A restless night’s sleep, Lillian dragged herself out of bed before the sun had yet to peer over the horizon. After washing her face, brushing and rebraiding her hair, she changed into a simple dress and apron. She made her bed, then walked to the window. Wilder’s horse was still in the corral. She was hoping that he might have left sometime during the night. It was going to be awkward to greet him this morning. She had difficulty believing what she’d offered him. Or the sting of mortification she’d felt when he rejected it.
    She couldn’t deny that Wilder was handsome in a rugged sort of way. Nor could she deny that she was drawn to him as she’d never been drawn to another man. Maybe it was the loneliness in him that so mirrored hers. Maybe it was because they were both outcasts. Maybe it was because in spite of his roughened manner, he was patient with Toby.
    Or maybe it was simply that he would be leaving soon, taking with him the absence of judgment. He didn’t look at her as though she were beneath him. He didn’t talk to her condescendingly. He didn’t turn his back on her. He didn’t try to harm her.
    None of those things could be said about the citizens of this area. They were never going to accept her, not if John Ward had any say in the matter, and it appeared he had a great deal of say. But she wasn’t going to be run off. The land was hers, and by God, they could bury her in it, but they weren’t going to take it from her.
    Sighing, she contemplated the barn inside which Wilder slept. She couldn’t leave the cows much longer without milking them. No reason for them to suffer simply because she was dreading seeing the man who had kissed her so thoroughly and then walked away.
    Grabbing the lamp, she left her room and peered into Toby’s. He was still sprawled over the bed. He got up with the sun, not before. She refrained from going in and ruffling her fingers through his hair. She didn’t know if she’d ever love anyone as much as she loved him. She hated that he was so quickly losing his innocence. Maybe they should leave, but what would she be teaching him if they walked away simply because things were difficult? If she’d learned one lesson in life, it was that things were always challenging.
    In the kitchen, she traded the lamp for a lantern. When she stepped onto the porch, she realized the barn door was ajar and