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Instinctively her legs tightened around hi it out tohim Her face was turned away from hi hi her parted lips to open thean to shake her, his kiss filled her opened ue His own shudders drove him deeper into her

Afterward he gathered her satisfying body into his ared her to his side “You are a shaainst her dark hair

“Don’t say that,” Lorna protested in an alarmed whisper

“It’s true” He breathed in the war”

“I thought youher mouth before the rest came out

“Feel how small you’ve made me” He took her hand and showed her

She brought her hand quickly back to his chest His chuckle was a silent one, amused by her persistent atte but o

“Did I do so?” Lorna murmured

“You pick the oddest tis That’s all,” Benteen assured her, and kissed her temple “You’d better close those dark eyes and try to sleep We’re going to be rising with the sun”

“Good night” She snuggled against hiainst his rock-hard frame

11

They’d been on the trail over three weeks and still hadn’t left Texas Monotony had set in One day was little different fro prairie that see The only variation came from the weather Most of the ti track across a cloudless sky When there was a wind, it didn’t bring relief Instead it whipped Lorna’s face, burning her cheeks and sending its particles of prairie dust through all her clothes

The first tiht rain would be a blessing, but she soon learned it wasn’t For four days it was dis with a steady downpour that saturated everything She ate and rode in wet clothes, and shivered and slept in them, too And the ht watches doubling, and on bad nights when the herd wouldn’t lie down, all of them rode

Lorna saw little of Benteen He was always up and often in the saddle before she awakened, checking the herd So hihts she was asleep when he came to bed She had not seen this compulsive side of him before Benteen pushed himself harder than he pushed anyone else She’d —the crusty cook allowed the

Rusty had supplied the explanation: “He’s the trail boss It’s part of his job to be first up in the n each drover his duty He has to ride ahead and see where water is, knohere to stop at noon and otta keep a tally of the cattle to know if any is lost If there’s any dispute a the men, his word is law A trail boss always rides three, four times the distance the herd covers”