The Cowboy's Love

{Chapter} 10

{Chapter 10}

“Where are you going, Toni?” Erik asked, watching his wife thrust a stack of signs in her saddlebag and mount her black gelding.

“Politickin’” Toni said.

“What?”

“I promised that sheriff I’d see to it that he got kicked off his pedestal. You don’t want me to go back on my word, now do you?” Toni smiled at him.

Erik smiled in spite of himself. “Of course not. Want me to go with you?”

Toni looked around the empty ranch yard. The boys had been gone for hours. Sandy had spent the day with Aunt Katie at the Dylan’s little line shack.

“Think they boss’ll behave while we’re gone?” Toni narrowed her gleaming eyes at him.

“Probably” Erik answered, though nothing could keep him from so well deserved alone time with his lovely wife.

“I agree. Go get your horse. We can’t dethrone the sheriff by just standing here, can we?”

**********

Wade entered the little shack and closed the door behind him, leaning against the door with his eyes closed. It was nearly midnight now, and he had to get up before dawn. Opening his eyes, he looked around for Aubrey or Jay. He saw the both by the fireplace, Jay’s head in Aubrey’s lap sound asleep, and Aubrey carefully stitching on some fabric. He smiled, taking the two of them in. They were depending on him so much, yet he had nothing to offer.

Aubrey looked up. “It’s about time,” she whispered.

“I had to get the first few logs up on the barn. I won’t be so late tomorrow… or at least I hope not” Wade smiled at her.

Aubrey yawned and began folding up the fabric she was working on. “Can you take Jay? Guess he can sleep in the middle so we can have our pillows back.”

Wade smiled and lifted Jay in his arms.

　

Aubrey smiled at the little face next to her in the bed. Little Jay slept peacefully between her and Wade, and she couldn’t resist that tug of her heart when she looked at him. She looked up to see Wade watching her from his side of the bed, those eyes scaring her all over again. She looked down at Jay.

“Guess I’m this little guy’s momma now” she said.

An expression came over Wade’s face, looking akin to regret. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.

“Huh?”

“Not only did I make you a wife, but a momma, too. I never meant to make it this hard on you” Wade sighed and rolled onto his back, looking up at the ceiling.

“Hey” Aubrey reached across Jay to touch his face and make him face her. “This isn’t a burden for me. Think about it this way, I never had to change this one’s diapers.”

Aubrey smiled, but Wade didn’t even smirk.

“Seems to me like you’re blaming yourself for this, which is exactly what you told me not to do, isn’t that right?” Aubrey asked.

Wade rolled onto his back again.

“Yes, Aubrey. That’s exactly what I said” Aubrey said in a deep, mocking tone.

Wade smiled then.

“Stop being so hard on yourself, Wade. Really, I’m loving it here” Aubrey told him.

“You are?” Wade looked over at her.

Aubrey nodded. “So rest easy, okay?”

Wade smiled at her, and their eyes met. Aubrey held her breath as she studied his sapphire eyes, so deep and so bold. If only they didn’t look as if they were piercing through her soul.