The Whippoorwill Trilogy - Sharon Sala Page 0,298

bandage on his arm, right before her eyes rolled back in her head. She was out before she hit the ground.

“Damn it,” Robert Lee muttered, and bolted off the porch.

“Oh my!” Mildred gasped, and ran into the house, calling her husband’s name.

Letty came to almost as fast as she’d passed out. Robert Lee was kneeling at her side and cradling her head in his lap.

“What happened?” she mumbled, as she pushed herself upright.

“I reckon you fainted, ma’am,” he said softly, regretting the fact that he no longer had an excuse to be touching her.

“I don’t faint,” she said, then pointed to his arm. “Are you all right?”

He grinned slowly. “Except for a hole in my shoulder, I’m just fine.”

“I fail to see the humor in this,” Letty said. “You could have been killed.”

Her fear and anger surprised him. His expression stilled.

“There are far too many times in my life when that has sure been the case. Today was no different. However, if you don’t mind my sayin’, I am right glad it isn’t so.”

His soft voice rattled across Letty’s senses. She looked up into his dark, solemn eyes, and then swallowed nervously.

“Well… of course, I am, too.”

At that point, Dr. Warren came running out of the house.

“What’s going on out here?” he cried, as he ran down the steps.

“She fainted,” Robert Lee said.

Letty glared. “I don’t faint.”

Robert Lee frowned. His shoulder was hurting something fierce and he wasn’t in the frame of mind to let Letty get away with the lie.

“You know, Doc, she must be right. I guess I just mistook her fainting, when it must have been disgust. I reckon that when she saw my ugly mug, she closed her eyes from the sight, and then fell on her ass because she couldn’t see where she was going.”

The doctor swallowed what sounded like a small snort of glee as Letty gasped. Robert Lee had just mentioned her backside and made fun of her at the same time. She pointed her finger in his face.

“It’s not polite to talk about women’s body parts.”

“No one ever accused me of having manners,” Robert Lee drawled.

Letty fidgeted. “I didn’t faint, I guess I was just… just… relieved and uh… afraid.”

“There’s nothing to be afraid of,” he said softly.

Letty didn’t know why, but she suddenly felt as if he was saying one thing but meaning another. It threw her off kilter even more.

“Well, I—” Letty stuttered and then waved her hand. “Oh… never mind, just somebody please help me up.”

Dr. Warren took her by the arm and helped her up while Robert Lee kept his distance. Once Letty was up, she began brushing the dust from her dress and muttering beneath her breath.

“I swear… scared me half to—… don’t know what—… high and dry… damn guns.”

Robert Lee ignored her fussing because he couldn’t fix what was wrong with her, anymore than he could fix what was wrong with himself. She was at a loss without her husband, and he was drowning in his own love for her.

“I gotta go find my horse,” he said, and then shook the doctor’s hand. “I appreciate you fixing me up.”

“My pleasure, Robert Lee. Take care of yourself, and if you have any trouble with that shoulder, you come back to see me.”

“All right,” Robert Lee said, and waited until the doctor had gone back in the house before he turned to Letty.

“Where is your horse?” she asked.

“He was at the hitching rail at the bank, although when all the shooting started, people and horses went everywhere. I hope he’s still there.”

Even as he was saying it, Noah Shaffer was riding up, leading Robert Lee’s horse.

“It sure is good to see you standin’,” Noah said, as he dismounted and handed Robert Lee the reins.

“Yeah, I’m encouraged by the fact, myself,” Robert Lee said. “I reckon I’ll be heading on back to the mine now.”

“Oh no, you aren’t,” Letty said. “You’re coming home with me. You’re going to need some help with changing bandages and such.”

Robert Lee didn’t know if the shock he was feeling showed on his face, but there was no way in hell he was going to spend a single night under the same roof with this woman.

“No, ma’am, I’m not. I’ve been shot before, in far worse situations, and without a fine cabin or a horse to get me out of the weather.”

Letty wouldn’t let it go. “But what if—”

Robert Lee balked. “Ma’am. I appreciate you more than you will ever know, and I understand