Free Kiss of The Christmas Wind by Janelle Taylor Page A

love and desire any man as she did her husband. He had entered her life and changed it, had changed her, both for the better and for the best. Almost, her mind challenged. If only they could live where they wanted and how they wanted, they would be blissfully happy and safe.
    Her present fatigue, the cold and snow outside, and her love’s impending departure pressed down on her as a heavy weight. They brought back memories of the miseries that had ended this past July. “I was so tired of running and hiding, tired of being scared, tired of being shot at, tired of being pursued until I was exhausted or forced into committing violence in self-defense. I was tired of the loneliness and anguish. I hated to see innocent people get hurt. That’s no way for a seventeen-year-old girl to be living, and I never wanted that kind of life. The Good Lord knows I tried to go straight many times, and so did Darby and the boys.”
    Thad stayed quiet and still as she went on, “We all wanted normal lives, peace, and safety. I wanted a home, a family, a loving husband. I wanted to ranch again. I wanted to be the Carrie Sue Stover I was before the Hardings destroyed my whole world. Those seven years on the outlaw trail were awful—the hot summers, blinding rains, cold winters, dust, and hunger. Finally I couldn’t pretend to be hard and tough any longer. I wanted real meaning in my life. I wanted friends, not just other bandits. I hated what people thought and said about me.”
    She lifted her head to meet his consoling gaze. “Blazing stars, T.J., I was twenty-four and I’d never been in love, never been married, never had a child! I was galloping down the wrong road into a box canyon with the posse on my tail. Surely the Good Lord and fate sent you into my life, even if you did only want to hunt down the Stover Gang and destroy us.”
    “I never counted on the Texas Flame being so irresistible,” he teased with hopes of lightening the somber mood in their home. He kissed the tip of her nose, then her forehead. He comforted, “I know how you feel, love, about us having to be apart at a time like this. I haven’t had a home either since my parents died. It’s been strange hotel rooms, or rowdy bunkhouses, or crumbling shacks, or sleeping on the trail. We were on different sides of the law, but we existed in pretty much the same way. I didn’t have anyone special in my life. I was about to kiss thirty without a home, wife, and children. I didn’t think much about them until I met you. Mercy, woman, you showed me how miserable and empty my life was.”
    He cupped her face between his hands and said, “It didn’t take long to get to know the real Carrie Sue and to love her too much to see her destroyed. I hate to keep riding off and leaving you with all the chores around here. I hate leaving you alone for days and weeks at a time. Now that I’ve found you and have you, I can’t stand being parted more than a day.”
    Carrie Sue read the anxiety in her husband’s eyes. “If there’s one thing you know about me, Thad Jamison, it’s I’m a hard worker and expert shot. I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me so much that you’re distracted on the trail; that’s dangerous, my love.”
    “I know you are, but I can’t help worrying about you when I’m gone. Accidents happen. Outlaws roam the country. The weather gets crazy.”
    She stroked his jawline, which had darkened with stubble since his shave early this morning. He was so handsome and his gaze so enticing that it always stole her breath when she watched and touched him. How lucky she was to have this special man. As her fingers teased over his parted lips, she said, “I wish a blizzard would lock you in with me. A fresh snow would leave you without a trail to follow.”
    Thad captured the mischievous fingers and pressed kisses to their tips. He wanted to lift her in his arms, carry her into their bedroom, and make love to her forever. But he had grave responsibilities