Free LeClerc 01 - Autumn Ecstasy by Pamela K Forrest Page A

table and supported her chin in her hands. She was sick so infrequently, and it had been years since Betsy had nursed her through an illness. Her brow wrinkled with concentration as she tried to remember what Betsy had done to help her.
    “Water!” Linsey smacked the table with her hand, regretting it when her palm began to sting.
    Looking around the cabin, she found several kettles and bowls … all empty. She added another log to the fire as she tried to think of the nearest water source. Surely Bear did not travel all the way to the river!
    “Idiot!” she hissed loudly. “There’s all the water anyone could ever need right outside!”
    Carrying a large bucket, Linsey opened the door and took a couple of steps outside. The howling wind had stopped, leaving it eerily quiet. The snow sparkled brightly in the glow of a full moon while shadows from the trees danced darkly mysterious in a silent breeze. The air was bitterly cold but smelled invitingly fresh with a hint of wood smoke. A trail through the deep snow led toward the trees, showing the path Bear had taken that morning when he went for the dress.
    Linsey knelt and began scooping snow into the bucket. Her long hair draped over her shoulders and dangled onto the ground. Several times she had to stop to push it out of the way and decided the first thing she needed to do was to find some way to anchor it on top of her head.
    Her hands were tingling from the cold by the time the bucket was filled. Carrying it back inside, Linsey was relieved to have the warmth and security of the cabin as she closed and latched the door.
    She separated the snow into several smaller pots and kettles, placing them near the fire so that it could melt. She ran her fingers through her hair, trying to smooth the largest tangles. Twisting it into a long coil, she looped it around itself, forming a knot low on her neck.
    Turning her back to the fire, her gaze came to rest on the buckskin dress still lying on the table. It was going to be a long night, tending both the man and the fire. The blanket wrapped around her would hamper her movements. It was bulky and constantly slipped down her shoulders.
    Holding it gingerly with two fingers of each hand, she held up the dress. It was beautifully made, and closer inspection showed that the beadwork down the front was a series of tiny flowers, each vining into the next.
    Biting the inside of her lower lip, Linsey looked across the room to assure herself that Bear still slept, then let the blanket drop and slid the dress over her head. A rawhide thong laced the front closed from the middle of her chest to just beneath her chin.
    Linsey slipped on the moccasins while admiring the unfamiliar comfort of the dress. It hung lightly from her shoulders and flowed softly around her body. Its light touches were almost a caress against her skin where her curves swelled out to meet it. She felt nakedly exposed with so much of her legs uncovered; but the leggings were unfamiliar, and she had no idea how to put them on. Shrugging slightly, she decided she had more important things to worry about. Anyway, no one would see her highly unconventional mode of dress.
    Wrapping the blanket over her head and shoulders for added warmth, Linsey carried the large bucket outside and refilled it. She placed it near the fire, tossed the blanket over a chair and waited impatiently for the snow in the smaller kettle to completely melt.
    Across the room Bear moaned, tossing and turning, searching for a little coolness for his burning flesh. Linsey put the intimacy of touching him from her mind as she tested the water and found it no longer bitterly cold but still cool. She carried it to the bed and stood for long moments looking down at the feverish man.
    It had to be done… .
    Tearing the remainder of the ragged chemise into long strips. Linsey sat gingerly on the edge of the bed. She wet one of the rags, wrung it out and placed it on his broad forehead. Using another one, she