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“Now you do” Benteen turned to leave, angered yet aware she hadn’t known He paused, fighting down his teht, Lorna,” he said, to let her knoasn’t putting any fault with her “Just be more careful”
He swung down froaze made a circle of the ca the other direction
Walking back to the fire, Benteen scooped up the cup he’d dropped and carried it to the chuck wagon Rusty inding his alarm clock so he could rise before any of the others and have breakfast going by the tiht touched the sky
“Havin’ wo presents all sorts of difficulties that ain’t even thought of,” Rusty said without looking at Benteen
“So I’”
The cook glanced sideways, a whiskery white growth beginning to show up on his face “’Pears to ht” His glance slid down to the bulge in Benteen’s pants “I don’t have to ask if you’ll be sleepin’ with your bride ‘Tween you and Stanton, the to be workin’ overtime without hearin’ any thin’”
Benteen didn’t disagree “Wake me before the others,” was his only reply
“I will—unless the wagon’s rockin’,” Rusty murmured
Instead of going directly to the wagon, he walked out to the picket line and had a s it under the heel of his boot A couple hundredthat wasted cigarette, but it wasn’t what he wanted now
The wagon was dark and silent when he reached it He climbed in and peeled off his clothes down to his underwear Feeling his way to the mattress, his hand encountered Lorna’s quilt-covered fore
“Move over” His voice was low, but the wagon springs creaked under her shifting weight
When he slid beneath the quilt, he discovered that Lorna was hugging the side of the wagon, taking pains not to touch any part of hi minutes he lay on his back and stared at the ribbed canvas roof Then he reached over and ran his hand along her arm
“Lorna” It was a request for her to roll over to him
“No” She was rigid under his touch “They’ll hear us,” she whispered
Benteen shifted to his side and applied pressure to force her shoulders onto the mattress Her hands came up to push at him, her face faintly outlined in the darkness