Jillian Hart Read Online Free Page B

looked so pale, despite his suntan. She hoped that when he opened his eyes he would remember everything—including his promises.
    "Thank you, Doc."
    "It's what you pay me for. Take your time." Seriousness lit his intelligent eyes. "I know you have arrangements to make."
    "Or unmake." She waited while the doctor stepped aside and let her through the threshold.
    "Ma!" Chad's voice echoed in the hall as his footsteps pounded across the wooden floor.
    "Walk, please," she said automatically, but already she was kneeling down and her son was against her, his arms clenched tightly around her neck. "I missed you."
    "We had pancakes for breakfast With huckleberry jam." Chad released her, his eyes wide with the excitement of having spent the night with his best friend, Blanche's son, and with what could only be the same tightly lined worry that settled on his face the day Michael died.
    "Sounds like you had a great time." She brushed back a mop of fine, blond curls from his eyes.
    "Yep." Chad bit his lip. "Is my new pa gonna wake up?"
    "He's been awake several times during the night." Lissa took his hand and wished she could wash away his fears as easily. "Mr. Murray is going to be fine, but he's not well enough to take me to church today. Maybe you could be my escort?"
    "Oh, Ma." Chad shook his head. "Do I have to sit next to any girls?"
    "Does Mitsy Buchman still have a crush on you?"
    Chad sighed, his burdens great.
    Footsteps caught her attention. She looked up. Blanche Buchman looked perfect, as always, all dressed up for church, yet her gaze held sorrow and worry, for she knew how very much Lissa needed a man to take care of the rustlers.
    Lissa stood, chest tight. "I can't thank you enough for helping me out."
    "And I can't do enough for you." The smile of friendship reached all the way to Blanche's eyes. "Your son is so well-behaved that he makes my three look like wild coyotes."
    Lissa let a chuckle warm her. She knew Blanche was just trying to ease her worries.
    "Does he remember?"
    Lissa shook her head. "The doctor hasn't examined him this morning. He's still sleeping."
    "Then the wedding is off?" The question held such great sadness that Lissa's throat closed.
    "I can't impose any expectations on John. It isn't fair. He's an injured man." Lissa took Chad by the hand. "Son, why don't you go outside and play with Ira?"
    "But what about my new pa?"
    "The doctor will watch over him. Don't worry."
    The towheaded boy dipped his head and trudged down the hallway, feet dragging.
    My new pa, the boy had said.

    His chest ached, emotion lingering as the child disappeared from his sight. Pain cracked through his head, and he leaned heavily against the threshold.
    It was Lissa's voice that drew him, soft as morning sunshine and twice as warm. "Yes, I think it's safe to assume the wedding is off. At least, until Mr. Murray is feeling better."
    He thought about that. He was Mr. Murray. It didn't sound right.
    "Lissa, what about the danger? Those cattle rustlers are getting violent." About the same age with dark hair and eyes, the second woman had real concern in her voice. "What will happen if your Mr. Murray doesn't marry you?"
    "Then I can't hold onto my cattle. I'll go bankrupt." Her voice came again, gentle and sensible. He only saw her from behind, the set of her thin shoulders and her steely, straight spine. "It can't be helped. I'll not pressure an injured man into a marriage he can't remember agreeing to, no matter how much I may need him."
    Pain speared through his skull. Whoever this woman was, he'd made a commitment to her, promises that should not be broken.
    "Perhaps the doctor will have better news." The second woman sounded hopeful.
    "Even so, it would not be right." Lissa formed a small and delicate fist at her side. "I hope he remembers, of course, but I can't count on it. I can't wish him healed. I'll just have to wait and see what happens. Perhaps he'll be well in a couple of days, and then he and I can talk. Maybe