Free Mail Order Bride: Westward Dance by Linda Bridey

it wasn’t really. That is until sun down
came and the shadows got long.”
    Maddie’s interest returned.
    “See, Tessa hadn’t been here all that
long and didn’t understand that there are different kinds of
creatures around here,” Seth said.
    Trouble whined as if afraid and Seth
could have kissed the dog for unconsciously playing along with
him.
    Maddie became enthralled. “Creatures?
What kind of creatures?”
    The pain in Seth’s leg began to fade as
he warmed to his story. “There’re all kinds: wild cats, cougars,
wolves, coyotes, and bears. Those are the more common, but there
are some others that I’m not sure are ever seen anywhere
else.”
    “Like what?”
    “Like the one that crept up on Tessa
that night. It was so quiet that she never heard it until it was
almost too late,” Seth said.
    Maddie had always loved stories and
their father had told them many scary stories as girls. They had
shrieked and laughed through them and then piled in Tessa’s bed
because they were all too frightened to be alone. It seemed as if
she hadn’t changed, Maddie realized.
    Seth loved the way her attention was
riveted on him. She looked cute and sexy all at once and he could
have told stories to her all night just to know he was pleasing
her.
    “It came up on her slowly, moving one
huge foot at a time, putting it down so quietly that it didn’t even
make the grass rustle. It was big with a hump on its shoulders and
black as onyx. Dead skunk smells better than its
breath.”
    Maddie wrinkled her nose as she
imagined what that would be like.
    Seth lowered his voice. “It was only a
few inches away when Tessa felt that stinky breath on the back of
her neck. She went to turn around to see what was there, but she
wasn’t fast enough. It grabbed her hair!” he said
loudly.
    Maddie jumped and made a little
squeaking sound.
    Seth leaned forward a little. “It
started dragging your sister away, trying to take her back to its
lair. She started screaming and hitting at it, but it was way too
powerful.”
    “How did she get away?” Maddie
asked.
    “She remembered she had her pencil and
stuck it up its nose. It roared with fury and leaped back letting
go of her. Then it thundered away, back where it had come,” he
said.
    “My sister fought off a monster with a pencil ?” Maddie said.
    “A monster?” Seth shook his head.
“Nope. Just a Texas longhorn bull.”
    “A bull?” Maddie was confused for a
moment before realizing that he’d pulled a fast one on her. She
would have hit him if it wasn’t so funny. “You said it was some
creature that’s not seen everywhere, not a bull!”
    Seth laughed. “Not just any bull. How
many people do you personally know that have seen a Texas
longhorn?”
    Maddie realized that he was right. She
doubted that many in her social circles would have any reason to
visit the Midwest, much less have anything to do with a Texas
longhorn. The thought of some of her friends meeting one was
amusing.
    “You’re right, of course. I don’t see
them strolling along in a pasture where they could possibly be
trampled,” Maddie said.
    Seth chuckled. “Thanks for not getting
mad at me for having a little fun with you.”
    “You may have grown up with brothers,
but you have no idea what havoc three sisters can wreak on each
other. Ask Papa, he’ll tell you,” Maddie said. “On that note, I’ll
bid you goodnight. Thank you for the story and the
company.”
    Seth inclined his head. “Likewise, Miss
O’Connor.”
    As she rose, Maddie found that she
didn’t want to leave him. She worried about how he was going to get
to bed, but then figured that they must have an arrangement worked
out. They had been doing this ever since Seth had been hurt, after
all.
    Maddie was an intelligent woman and
though she was all for having fun and dreaming about an exciting
and wonderful future, she wasn’t quite as fanciful as Tessa.
Inside, however, she felt that a connection had been made with Seth
as surely