Liz?
Chapter Four
The woman didn’t have much of a seat on the horse, but she had grit. Grady pushed her hard, intentionally past her limits and nearly to his. The only consideration he made was for the horses. He let them rest, the only break Eliza got. She looked exhausted with a pinched expression around her mouth. Even though she spent a good deal of time bouncing on the saddle, she didn’t complain even once.
Hell, if she were a man, he’d say she had a pair of brass balls.
“What’s your family’s name?”
His voice apparently startled her because she let out a squeak. “I didn’t think you wanted to speak at all.” She met his gaze from under the brim of a hideous brown hat. “I appreciate the conversation.”
“Liz, answer the question. Or maybe there is no family?” He actually believed her about the Ephraim fella, whoever he was, but knew there were other things she was hiding.
“My family’s name is Hollingsworth. Why have you started calling me Liz?” Eliza frowned at him. “Do you dislike my given name?”
“I don’t feel one way or another about it, just think Liz is easier to say.” Grady mulled over her answer about her family’s name. She didn’t hesitate a second, which might mean she was telling the truth. For the moment he’d give her the benefit of the doubt.
“I suppose that’s true. I’ve never been called anything but Eliza. It sounds, well, odd.” She frowned at him.
“You’ll get used to it. It won’t hurt none to do something you never do.” He was pretty sure everything she’d done over the past few days were things she never did. “When’s the last time you heard from these folks?”
“Almost a year ago.” She sounded wistful, an emotion he didn’t think he’d hear from the staid schoolmarm.
“Where abouts were they living?” He would let Eliza think he was helping her find her family. However, his paying job was first and foremost on his mind. If they happen to find Eliza’s kin, then it would likely be a coincidence.
“I believe it’s near Raymer Falls. They own a boardinghouse.”
This time Eliza’s words didn’t ring true, and he wondered if this family was real or if she was just running from the supposedly dead husband. No doubt she would do what she had to. Wouldn’t be the first time a woman had to find a way to survive no matter what it cost.
“It’s about two hundred miles to Raymer Falls. That’s a long way to be riding alone.” He watched her reaction from the corner of his eye.
She glanced down at her hands on the saddle horn. “I’ll go as far west as you’re traveling. If you don’t make it the entire way to Raymer Falls, I can proceed the rest of the way alone.”
After all the trouble she’d gone to wiggle her way into riding with him and she was acting meek? He snorted at the thought.
“You are full of shit, Liz. You’ll stick to me like a damn cocklebur until you find what you’re looking for.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Grady shook his head. “You heard me. Just be good and I won’t leave you behind.”
He was satisfied to hear her suck in a breath, but she didn’t say a word. He had a feeling she wasn’t used to being silent for any reason. It had been a while since he enjoyed anyone’s company, but he was enjoying sparring with the fancy-talking Eliza.
It should have sent him riding in the other direction, but the memory of what she felt like in his arms stopped him. She was a combination of so many different and unusual things, he was challenged to find all of them.
And his body ached for more of what was hidden beneath the little wren disguise.
The sun was high in the sky before he spotted the edges of Bellman. It was a good time to stop for dinner, and he needed to get supplies. Now that he had a cook, they could actually eat more than stale biscuits and dried beef.
When they rode into town, for once people either nodded or tipped their hats toward him. Usually he received dark looks and folks avoided his stare. Grady knew it was because of Eliza. She looked respectable, even travel weary and covered with dust.
Until that moment, he hadn’t recognized he found a tool to help him in his own quest. With Eliza at his side he would gain access to places he’d been unable to breach in his business. Folks didn’t like gunslingers and made it clear he was unwelcome to even step foot in some places. She’d be a perfect companion for a man on the hunt who needed to find the scent of his prey.
Grady didn’t pretend to be a good person, or a moral one for that matter. He shouldn’t feel guilty; he refused to feel guilty about keeping Eliza with him for his own ends. She was using him to find her long lost family, or something like that. He suspected she was running from a husband who smacked her around. Either way, she was using him just as much as he was using her. Or at least that’s what he told himself, then shut down the thought in his mind before it could go any further.
“Are we stopping here?” She sounded like she’d been gargling sand.
He tossed her his canteen, which bounced off her shoulder, but she caught it in midair before it fell.
“Take a drink, would you? Yes, we’re stopping here for supplies and dinner. This will be the last time you don’t have to cook for a while.”
She moaned as she took a swig of water. The sound went straight to his dick. When she looked over at him, drops meandered down her dusty chin and he had the urge to lick them off. He was going loco for sure.
“That sounds lovely. I’m looking forward to it. I’ve never eaten at a restaurant before.” She smiled, showing even, white teeth.
Two things hit him with the force of a slap. Eliza had never eaten at a restaurant and her smile completely transformed her face. Grady didn’t let his reaction show even a tiny bit. If she knew how she affected him, he’d lose the power he wielded over their agreement.
He couldn’t let that happen. He wouldn’t let that happen.
Eliza was simply miserable. Every muscle in her body ached as if she’d been beaten with a thousand sticks. When Grady finally stopped in front of what appeared to be a mercantile, she almost wept with relief. He’d pushed her hard, to test her mettle, no doubt.
She’d risen to the challenge and rode until she had to conjugate verbs in Latin over and over in her head as a distraction. If she was fortunate, they’d spend a good deal of time in town so she could have more than a few hours’ rest from riding a horse.
When Melba actually stopped moving, Eliza still vibrated from the motion. She tried to pull her right leg over the saddle to dismount, but she found her limb unresponsive. Biting her lip, she attempted again but to no avail.
She simply couldn’t get off the horse on her own power, and she was loath to admit it. Grady dismounted with his usual grace and secured his horse to the hitching rail. He looked up at her and scowled.
“Are you planning on riding on without me? Or do you want to get down and get some vittles?”
Eliza clenched her teeth. “I would like nothing more than to get down and find vittles, whatever they are.”
“So get down and let’s get moving.” He turned and walked a few steps toward the sidewalk before he stopped. Without turning around, he spoke again. “You can’t get down, can you?”
She counted to five while she wrestled with her pride and her fear he’d think her weak. Finally pain and hunger won.
“No, I cannot. I would be much obliged if you would assist me, Mr. Wolfe.”
“That’s