Free MM02 - Until Morning Comes by Peggy Webb

fire of their passion. Jo Beth clung to his shoulders, and Colter began to murmur in the musical language of his ancestors.
    He lay down with her, the blanket spread underneath them. The rhythm of his Apache song increased with the rhythm of his body.
    Jo Beth was carried to a place she'd never been, a bright and shining place, filled with light, rich with color, burning with the flames of a thousand stars. She climbed up, higher and higher. Earth Mother reaching for the Father Sky. The sky came down, bold, full of thunder and lightning. Earth trembled beneath it. Lightning seared, splitting the earth, burning through its core. The earth rocked with the assault; then slowly its fertile center opened to receive the life-giving rains of the sky.
    Still joined, Jo Beth and Colter lay together on the blanket.
    “What is that beautiful language you spoke?”
    “Athabascan. The language of my people.”
    “Teach me.” She traced her hands over his face.
    “The language?” His smile was teasing.
    “Whatever.”
    He sat up, taking her with him. Kneeling beside her, he taught her the words of simple courtesy, “please” and “thank you.” He taught her words for greetings and partings.
    “I need you, Yellow Bird.”
    “How do you say that?”
    His eyes became hooded. “This is not a language lesson.”
    He reached for her. His hands were dark on her shoulders. He didn't bother with words; he didn't have to. His silence was more eloquent than a two-hour oration.
    Her body went languid as he positioned her. He came to her kneeling. And the journey started all over again.
    It was a journey that lasted through the night. And just before dawn pinked the sky, he dressed her and carried her from his tepee. The stallion neighed a soft greeting.
    Colter put Jo Beth on the horse and mounted behind her. It was a different journey they made this time, a journey filled with the nostalgia of parting. Neither of them spoke until they were within sight of her cabin.
    Leaning close to her ear, Colter whispered, “I’ll come for you again tonight.”
    “Yes.”
    “Listen for my signal.”
    Then he lifted her off the stallion and watched until she had entered the cabin. She stood just inside the door, listening to the sound of hoof-beats until they faded in the distance.
    o0o
    Jo Beth had slept only three hours when her mother came to her bedroom door.
    “I thought I'd better wake you, Jo Beth. You don't usually sleep this late.”
    “I guess I'm just tired from all the desert photography.”
    She hated lying. As she got out of bed she thought briefly about confiding in her mother. Would Sara understand the need, the passion that had driven her to Colter's bed? Would she remember what it was like to want a man so badly that he filled her thoughts every waking moment?
    Jo Beth didn't know. Nor did she know how she would explain to Sara that Colter was more than an interlude, more than a desert affair, that he had toppled her beliefs and threatened her lifestyle in a way that no man ever had.
    Instead of confiding, she smiled. “What would I do without the two of you taking care of me the way you do?” She reached for her robe. “Thanks, Mom.”
    Sara eyed her keenly. “Jo Beth, we both know who's the caretaker around here.” She crossed the room and put her arm around her daughter's shoulders. “Honey, I don't want you sacrificing your life for us. We'll manage just fine.”
    “I know that, Mom. And I won't.”
    “Promise.”
    “I promise.” Her fingers were crossed behind her back when she said it.
    Jo Beth somehow managed to get her equipment loaded and out to a place where the giant saguaro cactus grew in abundance. For once, Silas was content to sit on the porch and read a book. It renewed her hope.
    Alone in the desert, Jo Beth thought about Colter. Forget the sparks. He'd gone so far beyond sparks that he was setting dynamite next to her heart. She would have been thrilled to learn that love was not an obsolete art,