Free Rafe's Redemption by Jennifer Jakes Page B

I—”
    “Then you think me a spinster?” she ranted.
    “I didn’t mean—”
    “Didn’t you? Why, it’s no wonder you live alone. No woman in her right mind would tolerate your insults.”
    “Now, wait just a damn minute.” This wasn’t about him. “I—”
    A shot blasted through the trees and whizzed over Rafe’s head.
    He shoved Maggie forward, flattening her face against Moses’ mane.
    “Umph!” The breath rushed from her.
    “Shhh,” Rafe hissed in her ear. He eased his pistol from the holster.
    “Get off me,” she demanded. “The saddle horn is digging a hole in my stomach.”
    “Better than a bullet.” He eased to one side. “Stay down.”
    “State your business,” a man yelled, “or I’ll pick you off that horse with the next shot.” The voice echoed through the snow, but Rafe recognized the owner.
    “Cecil! It’s Rafe McBride. I need help.” A light flickered to the right of them, then brightened as a shadowy man held up a lantern. “Ride closer, so I can see your face.”
    Moses plowed a few more feet toward the light. Rafe kept his pistol drawn, but hidden beside his leg.
    If he was wrong, if this wasn’t Cecil, they were dead.

Chapter Four
    Maggie squirmed in the saddle, then peeked through frozen horse hair as the lanky man trudged through the frozen forest toward them. Snow whirled around the evergreens, making it impossible to see if the man looked friendly—or deadly.
    “McBride?” He lowered the rifle.
    “Cecil,” Rafe shouted, relief in his voice. He removed the hand that held her facedown and pulled her back up against his chest. His arm slid around her waist, and she felt all the tension drain from his muscles. He kept her in a loose, possessive embrace, as if she belonged there.
    A fter his rude assumption a few minutes ago, his large palm spread over her belly confused her to no end.
    “My God, McBride! What are you doing out in this storm? A nd what were you yelling about? I went to check my horses, and it sounded like a war party coming.”
    “I’ll tell you later.” Rafe climbed from the horse and shot her a disapproving look. “How far is your house?”
    “Not far.” Cecil tilted his head and spoke around a heavy red scarf. “You passed it about a hundred yards back.”
    “Jesus,” Rafe muttered, “we rode right past.” The wind propelled his words to her ears, slapping her with realization. They would have died tonight!
    Tremors racked her body, clattering her teeth so loudly the men glanced at her.
    “I don’t see how you made it this far.” Cecil peeled a blanket from around his shoulders and flung it around Maggie. “How long have you been riding?”
    “A hell of a lot longer than I’d planned.” Rafe looped the reins around his hand. “Let’s go.” He nodded toward Maggie. “I’m worried about her.”
    They struggled up a hill, then wove through a row of pines. She clutched the saddle horn and shivered.
    Without Rafe’s body to block the wind, the snow battered her from all sides. Through the swirling snow, she spied a cabin, tucked between two large boulders. Well, maybe cabin was too generous a word. This was a shanty, a miner’s shack if the gaping tunnel beside it meant anything. Hope sprung inside her. Maybe this was just the barn. She squinted into the snow, searching for another building. Nothing. A nd unless Cecil had a cave attached to the back, she couldn’t imagine they would all fit inside.
    Rafe stopped at the house, then wrapped his hands around her waist to lift her down.
    “I can do it.” She didn’t want kindness from a man who believed her an old maid with loose morals.
    Twisting in the saddle, she hefted her leg over the horse’s neck and tumbled to the ground. Sputtering, she mopped snow from her face.
    “Damn stubborn woman.” Rafe scooped her into his arms.
    She should have known her legs would be too stiff to accept her weight. But the fact that he’d known made humiliated heat creep up her