Loving Ellie - #4 In Red Valley Series

Chapter 2

Blake's mind raced, frantic to find a way to buy a little time until he and John could get together and figure something out.

"I get the first go at her, she kicked me in the chest!"

"No, I want her! I had to stay here last time y'all went to town. I didn't get a woman or any whiskey!"

The men were arguing among themselves, so no one paid any attention to the sandy haired man as he walked up behind Lydia and whispered something in her ear. No one saw the color drain from her face and turn white as a sheet.

John watched as Blake gave him an almost imperceptible nod then quietly walked up behind the brunette. He quietly whispered over her shoulder into her ear. "Come with me if you want your friend to live."

Blake watched, and once John and the other woman were in his cabin he walked up to Ellie and ran his knuckle down the left side of her face. She hadn't been paying attention to him, instead she had been watching the other men argue. She turned to give him a scathing remark but as soon as she opened her mouth, his lips came crashing down onto hers. The kiss was over as quickly as it started.

Ellie stood there in shock at the outlaw's audacity. Gathering some of her senses, she brought the heal of her boot down as hard as she could on top of his foot but the man didn't even flinch. By this time all of the men were watching them intently. Some were even making lewd comments and cheering their fellow outlaw on.

Again, Ellie opened her mouth to give him a good piece of her mind. How dare he touch her like that! This time Blake grabbed her hips with his hands and snatched her body to his. "I don't like hitting a woman, but I will!" His voice was rough and a little raspy. Then without warning, his lips swooped down on hers for a demanding kiss as he thrust his tongue through her parted lips.

She placed her hands against the hard wall of his chest and pushed with all her might and twisted in a futile effort to get away. But the beast simply slid his arms around her, trapping her and bringing her entire body in contact with the full length of his. Ellie was stunned. She had never been kissed before and she certainly had not expected her first kiss to be like this! She felt so, so cheated.

Blake pulled back so abruptly that she would have surly fallen if his arms had not still be around her waist. She looked up in shock only to see a wide mocking grin on the devil's face. Without thinking, the palm of her had landed soundly against his bearded cheek with a deafening crack. His nostrils flared, his eyes darkened and his smile widened even more. He leaned down and lifted her up, throwing her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "She's mine boys!" Blake swatted her backside and walked toward his cabin with her kicking and screaming the entire way. He kicked the door open, strode across the room dumping her on the bed.

Ellie scrambled to her feet as quickly as possible; her eyes were wide with shock. "You will not touch me again you, you beast! I'll kill you if you do! I'll fight you with every breath in my body!"

Blake was even more furious now than he had been, if that's possible. This was Ellie for God sakes! She was here in an outlaw camp! He lit the single lamp then began pacing back and forth, hearing her, but not really listening to what she said. He snatched his hat off his head, slapped it against his thigh, and then shoved his fingers through his inky black shoulder length hair.

That action made Ellie stop and look at him. She knew someone that did the exact same thing with his hat. Oh my God! It's Blake! He was here! She hadn't recognized him in the dark with his hat on and a full beard. What was she doing here, with these outlaws and robbing trains? He stopped pacing and looked at her with his beautiful turquoise eyes. A shiver ran down her spine. In all the years she had known Blake Weston, he had never looked at her with such anger.