Free Kate's Outlaw (Steam! Romance and Rails) by E.E. Burke Page B

mother’s family takes care of her children." The pride in his voice was unmistakable.
    What a notion, his mother’s entire family taking him in and treating him as one of their own. Kate had never met her mother’s sister.
    They rode out of the trees into a field painted with wildflowers and splashed in morning sunshine. Her head grew warm. Thank goodness for the floppy hat his aunt had loaned her. Jake slowed the horse to a walk. His shoulders relaxed when she removed her hands from around his waist. That he didn’t want her touching him shouldn’t disappoint her so much. But it did.  
    "What about you?” he asked. “How big is your family?"
    Kate shook off her melancholy. If he was interested in knowing more about her, she might be able to form a friendly bond and gain his trust. "My family wasn’t as big as yours, just my parents and me. I was their only surviving child. My two brothers never made it past infancy.”
    "You were raised alone?”
    Alone? He couldn’t possibly know how alone. “My father’s business kept him away from home.” He’d virtually ignored her, because she wasn’t a son. “My mother was bedridden.” Too distracted by her complaints to be bothered with raising a daughter. “And I never knew my grandparents. We weren’t close to any other family.”
    Even friends had been few because of her painful shyness as a child. Thank heavens for dear Miss Applegate, who’d praised her cleverness and fed her curiosity. "But I had my governess. And my books.”
    “Sounds lonely.”
    Kate’s throat tightened. God forbid he would pity her. She didn’t want that. Nor did she want to return to the worksite empty handed, looking as though she’d messed up again, which was what everyone would think because she wouldn’t betray Jake.
    “I’m not complaining about my childhood,” she said in light tone. “I have more than most people, and I’m in the fortunate position of being a railroad heiress.”
    “That is fortunate.” His voice was laced with irony.
    “It could be, for you . If we worked together—”
    He nudged the horse into a loping gait. With no option other than sliding off, she tightened her hold on him and pressed close.
    The wind blew strands of his hair into her face and it tickled her nose. She nuzzled his neck. He smelled of soap and leather and sunshine. She hadn’t intended to sniff him, but she couldn’t very well avoid it sitting this close.
    He didn’t seem to notice, or maybe he’d become resigned to the necessity of having her hug him to stay on the horse. For her part, it would be best if she ignored this inappropriate longing and focused on what was more important—convincing Jake to take her to the council.
    “With the council’s support we could persuade my father to change routes. The proposed line follows the old Texas Road. It’s the most direct path, but also the most rugged terrain we’ve encountered. Henry complains all the time about how expensive it is to build. You could help us locate a better alternative.”
    “I’m not a surveyor.”
    “But you know this land, and we have surveyors. They can assist you.”
    “I’m not taking you to the council,” he said, a bit too firmly. Why was he so determined to keep her away from the Cherokee leaders? Did he not believe her when she said she wouldn’t turn him in?
    “I promise I won’t betray you, if that’s what you’re worried about.” She hugged him.
    He stiffened. “Stop doing that.”
    Kate loosened her hold. Her eyes began to sting. She wasn’t normally weepy, but Jake had the power to hurt her. Why? Because she cared about what he thought. She cared about him. This wasn’t just a physical attraction. She respected him and was even starting to admire him. If they’d met some other way, she might’ve set her cap for him. That is, if she could’ve drawn him away from the beautiful women hovering around, hungry as hummingbirds.
    What was the point of dreaming up an imaginary