CHAPTER 3

The next morning, Michaela once again requested a ride outside the gates. The corporal in charge of the horses sent his assistant, Private Jones, to get the lieutenant as he set about saddling the chestnut mare. No longer did they go through channels, waiting to see who would be assigned to accompany her – it was just taken for granted that Lieutenant Sully would get the assignment. It seemed he was always with her. Heck, he spends more time with her than her own fiancé. The corporal stopped that thought before it could go any farther, out of respect for his superior as well as for the lady, as he had never seen any impropriety between them.

When she came out several minutes later, David met her in front of her quarters.

"Oh, going riding, darling?" he asked with a solicitous smile.

"Yes, it seems to be what I enjoy most these days," Michaela instantly retorted, unaware of the slight edge to her voice.

David noticed and immediately went on the defense. "I'm sorry I've been so busy since you arrived, Michaela...but I did warn you that I wouldn't have time to jump at your every beck and call..."

Michaela's eyes flashed at that, since she had made sure she wasn't putting undue pressure on him to 'entertain' her. "I know that, David." Then before she could stop herself, she added, "But it does seem to me that you could spend less time idly chatting with your fellow officers, and more time in the evenings with me."

David's eyes narrowed. "What are you doing, checking up on me?"

"No, of course not," she quickly assured. "I just...heard someone mention it, that's all."

His eyes narrowed even further. "Who?"

Casting around for what she could say to that, not wishing to get the private who had confided in her in any trouble, she murmured, "I don't remember."

Just then, Sully came around the corner, stopping short when he saw the captain and his fiancée speaking in front of her quarters. On closer inspection, he clarified in his mind, 'speaking heatedly' in front of her quarters. As he watched, he saw the captain raise a finger up to her face, obviously perturbed at their conversation. Michaela instantly leaned back a bit, away from him and his indignation.

At that moment, a huge surge of protectiveness rose inside of Sully and flared into a blinding light as all of his muscles tensed. It took everything he had, all of his military training, to stop from rushing to her defense. But the man did outrank him and was her fiancé. Unconsciously, Sully's hands curled into fists at his sides as he waited for the captain to walk on.

When he finally did, with Michaela looking after him thoughtfully, Sully quickly strode up to her, carefully touching the material of her sleeve to get her attention.

"Ready to go?" he asked gently.

Still smarting from the 'dressing down' David had just subjected her to; she turned her head and looked into his eyes, thinking once again how special they were. She'd seen blue eyes before – David had blue eyes – but there was something mesmerizing about Sully's...perhaps it was his gentleness, the way he seemed to care about her feelings...

She stopped herself from thinking any further on that subject and nodded in answer to his query. "Yes, I am, thank you."

With a smile, he swept a hand toward the corral for her to precede him, and followed behind her, surreptitiously watching the gentle sway of her hips under her riding skirt.

Before long they were meandering along the now familiar path, riding side by side in comfortable companionship, after giving the horses a good exercise with several minutes of their customary race at full gallop – which he won that day.

Michaela took off the small, smart hat she had donned and used it to fan her face.

"You hot?" Sully observed, determinedly steering his mind clear of any extraneous thoughts that word might conjure up.

"Yes, a little. But I'll be fine in a moment," she added demurely.

Sully nodded and trained his eyes on their surroundings, ever watchful for any type of danger. His hand slipped to the gun at his side, adjusting its holster more comfortably against his thigh. Michaela watched his movements, wondering if he was as good with that gun as he was with everything else. Well...everything else that she knew at this point, she corrected silently.

After a few minutes, she reached up to pin the hat in place again. Sully's eyes swept from side to side, then over at his companion. Before he could stop himself, he asked, "You and Cap'n Lewis have a fight this mornin'?"

Michaela's eyes momentarily widened, as she hadn't realized anyone had observed their heated exchange.

"Not a fight...more of a...um..." she hedged, unable to think of a word.

"Looked like you were fightin' to me. At least...he looked angry," he added, not mentioning his own feelings at the time.

"He, um...I accused him of not spending as much time with me as he could, and he accused me of checking up on him," she admitted, though not elaborating on the angry tone in her fiancé s voice when he had poked a finger at her face and told her she didn't 'own' him since they weren't married yet, and that he could idly chat with the other officers if he so chose – and for as long as he chose.

"Well...it's true, he should spend more time with ya..." Sully contributed, flashing an uncomfortable glance in her direction, wishing he outranked the captain so he could give the cad a good dressing down.

Michaela shot a glance at him, her mouth curling up in that half smile Sully had already learned to cherish. "Thank you...Sully."

"You're welcome," he murmured just above a whisper, silently adoring the way his named rolled so easily off her lips.

Their eyes met and she pondered the easy rapport between her and the lieutenant. It seemed as if they had known each other their whole lives. Once again, she contemplated what that could mean...

But before either of them could say another word, they heard the unmistakable nerve jarring sound of a rattlesnake directly to the right of Michaela's horse. Instantly, Flash reared in fear.

Her hands off the reins as she had still been in the act of adjusting her hat, Michaela screamed in fright and clawed desperately at the saddle horn, barely keeping her seat. Flash's hooves crashed down to the ground and took off at a fast gallop directly away from the fort, with Michaela hanging on for dear life.

"Sully!" she screamed in reflex, knowing he was right behind her, she could hear his horses' hooves thundering on the hard ground.

"Hang on!" she heard him yell, above the sound of the horses and of her own pounding heart. In pure reaction, she screamed out in fear for her life, which only served to frighten the filly even more.

The horses kept up their frantic pace, putting more and more distance between them and the fort as Sully gave it his all to catch the fleeing animal and her frightened passenger.

The ground rushing by beneath her mount appeared as nothing but a blur. As a doctor, Michaela knew if she were to fall off and hit the ground at that speed, it would mean certain catastrophic injury, and perhaps even death. Gripping large handfuls of Flash's mane in both hands, she gasped, "Whoa Flash, whoa..." to no avail.

Finally Sully drew abreast of them. Michaela turned her head slightly, her eyes as wild with fear as the filly's, as she was barely able to stay in the saddle, her feet had flown free of the stirrups. Her eyes screamed to him, "Help me!"

"Come to me!" he yelled and without another thought, both horses in full gallop, he reached over and performed the very difficult task of clamping his arm around her waist and sliding her off of her saddle and over to his, without dislodging them both from his own mount. Her arms clamped around his neck as if she were drowning. As soon as he had hold of her, he allowed Flash to continue her gallop as he immediately reined in his larger stallion, pulling him to a stop.

Shaking in reaction, he lowered Michaela to the ground and threw his leg over the right side of the horse, sliding off and dropping to his knees beside her where she had collapsed.

Extremely traumatized, she looked up at him with no forethought and bleated, "Hold me."

He obeyed without hesitation, pulling her into his arms and nearly onto his lap as he cradled her against his chest. Looking upward, he mouthed a thank you to the heavens that she was safe and unhurt. He felt her shudder with the residual trauma, and then with relieved tears, as he gently rocked her to and fro, softly pressing his lips to the top of her head. Her hat had immediately blown off in the wind and the pins had shaken free leaving her long hair tumbled down her back. He gently smoothed the long tresses, whispering, "You're safe. I've got ya. You're okay."

They stayed thus for several minutes as their heart rates eventually slowed to normal.

"I was so frightened," she finally managed to whisper, her face pressed against the uniform covering his chest. The material hadn't prevented her from hearing the comforting thump, thump of his heart as he held her close.

"I know. Me, too," he admitted in a whisper.

When she could manage, she sat up straight, pushing a lock of her disheveled hair back away from her face. Glancing up into his eyes, she murmured, "Thank you, Sully, for saving me," and leaned forward to press a soft kiss to her rescuer's cheek.

He tried. He really tried to just let it go at that...but the temptation was too great. Overwhelming. All of his emotions rushing to the fore, he turned his head when she began to pull back. As if in slow motion, he leaned in, their eyes fluttering closed as he pressed his lips to hers for the briefest touch. But it was enough. At that instant, their relationship changed, deepened, expanded...

Michaela pulled back as if in a daze, gazing up into her handsome escort's eyes, and wondering if she was dreaming. She was filled with a strange mixture of euphoria and self-reproach. She knew she should rebuke him for taking such liberties, she was engaged to be married to another man! But...Sully's kiss had felt so magical, so...right. She realized at that moment that she had never felt anything remotely resembling such feelings when David kissed her.

Sully gazed back, his lips curving into a blissful smile. He knew from that moment on, this woman would own him, body, mind, and heart. He knew, also, that he should feel remorse that he had taken advantage of her in a moment of weakness – but he didn't. Never had a kiss felt so enchanting, so...perfect. An old Indian saying rose to his mind and he silently acknowledged its truth. His heart seemed to reverberate in an almost musical hum when he was in her presence.

He knew it now...Michaela Quinn was his heartsong...and if she married the captain, his heart would be achingly silent for the rest of his life.

OOOOOO

"What is the meaning of this!?" David barked as the two rode through the gates of the fort an hour later. He had been alerted by a sentry that something happened to his fiancée, a description given to him in full detail of the two of them taking off at a run on their horses, and quickly moving outside of the sentry's sight. Needless to say, he was quite suspicious – for now here they were back again, riding the same horse. However, it hadn't occurred to him to go after them and 'rescue' her.

Michaela looked down at him from her perch across Sully's saddle. Against her rescuer's better judgment, she had insisted that she ride with him, essentially sitting sideways across Sully's thighs, as she didn't feel she had the energy left to ride normally for the long trip back to the garrison.

Quickly, other troopers ran to see what was happening, all of them noticing the intimacy of her position, across Sully's lap, and the location of his arms around her waist and one hip. Sully squirmed a little under their scrutiny and released his hold.

"THIS is Lieutenant Sully bringing me back after saving my life," she stated matter-of-factly, her eyes daring David to make a scene in front of half the post.

Immediately, David back peddled and changed the tone of his voice, reaching up to lift her down from the horse as he flicked his eyes at the man in the saddle, murmuring, "Thank you, Lieutenant, for performing your duty with such perfection."

Sully nodded wordlessly, managing to keep his expression neutral.

Michaela looked up at him once she was on solid ground. "Yes, thank you, Lieutenant Sully. Your performance today was, indeed...perfection," she added softly, the comment taken by all as merely innocent thanks, except for the two people involved. Their eyes held for a moment, Sully unable to utter a word in response, then she turned to go as David, hovering and fussing over her, escorted her to her quarters to lie down to rest after her harrowing ordeal.

Worn out physically and emotionally, Sully nudged his tired horse toward the corral. "Corporal Lance, take two men and go after Miss Quinn's horse. Due east."

"Yes, sir!" the corporal responded, immediately signaling two privates to saddle up and accompany him on the task.

Sully maneuvered his stallion into the corral and dismounted, beginning the task of removing the saddle as he went over every moment of the last few hours...and the fact that he had come to the realization that he was in love with the captain's fiancée. He knew the proper thing to do would be to request another man to be assigned 'Beauty Duty,' but the thought of not being with her each day, even platonically, made his heart sink. He sighed wearily. What a mess I got myself into...

Within a few minutes, he looked over to see Captain Lewis heading his way – and he didn't look happy.

Sully swallowed in anticipation of this showdown. He'd been expecting it for some time, and he steeled his mind and expression to one of suitable blank respect toward an officer of higher rank.

When the captain reached him, glancing around to make sure they were alone, he launched right in.

"Lieutenant Sully! I want a word with you!"

"Sir?" Sully responded, his voice and facial features carefully neutral.

"I want to know what happened out there!"

Sully met the slightly taller man's eyes and held them steadily.

"Cap'n sir...we were ridin' along and M...Miss Quinn had let go of her reins to adjust her hat, when a rattler spooked her horse and it took off. She managed to hang on. I gave chase and caught up with 'em, and was able to grab her off the horse and on to mine. After she calmed down, we came right back to the fort, sir," Sully recited in a monotone.

"With her sitting across your saddle, practically in your lap?" David growled.

"Sir, that was at her request. She said she didn't have the strength to ride normal," Sully answered truthfully. He had, in fact, urged her to turn in the saddle and face forward, but she refused. He had tried to convince her to sit behind him, or sit on the horse and he would walk, leading it, but she adamantly refused those suggestions, too. Matter of fact, for most of the way, she had sat curled in his arms, her head tucked under his chin; though that was one detail he would leave out in this conversation with her fiancé.

"You are supposed to be there to make sure Miss Quinn doesn't get hurt or frightened. You are supposed to prevent mishaps, not be her 'knight in shining armor,' Lieutenant."

"Yes, sir," Sully immediately responded. He knew his duty, and the Captain was totally correct.

Then stepping close, David sneered, "I know you're attracted to her, Lieutenant Sully. I've seen the way you've been looking at her!" He waited for him to deny it, but Sully merely swallowed and met the captain's gaze unflinchingly. Inside he was thinking Captain Lewis had no clue just how attracted he truly was to the beautiful Michaela. It was as if she were a bright lantern and he a helpless moth, drawn to her flame. He only hoped the attraction wouldn't, for him, turn out to be fatal.

"Well?" David persisted, jealous anger fueling fire into his normally dull nature. "Do you deny you find her attractive?"

"With all due respect, sir...any man would," Sully murmured truthfully.

"Is that a fact?" the captain smirked as he took another half step; so close Sully could smell the onions the man had eaten at lunch.

A muscle flexed in Sully's cheek as he clamped his teeth together, two sets of blue eyes silently dueling. This was one part of army life that he found particularly difficult – remaining silent in the face of biting sarcasm from an officer of higher rank. The captain was baiting him on a personal level, but Sully knew if he responded wrongly, the man could use his rank against him. He had to tread softly.

"Yes, sir," he replied, concentrating on not reacting, not allowing himself to imagine the pleasure of flipping the larger man on his back in the dirt and jamming his foot on his neck. Breathe...breathe...

"And just what else would any man do in this situation?" David goaded unmercifully.

Sully's mind scrambled for the correct response to that loaded question. "He would...take pains to perform his duty to the utmost, making sure that the lady is watched over and protected at all times, against all comers," he recited.

"While allowing his eyes to roam over her body at will?" the captain murmured jeeringly.

Sully's brow furrowed for a brief second. "No sir."

"Or her beautiful face? Her tiny waist? Her smooth skin?" David jabbed.

"No sir."

"Imagining what parts would be soft...and what parts would be firm to his touch?" David tried once more. Sully's nostrils flared slightly at the images the captain had purposely planted in his mind. His eyes narrowed just a fraction, but he held fast.

"No sir!" He repeated, this time with more force.

The captain's eyes bored into Sully's as he searched for any hint of misconduct on his part in the horse incident. But satisfied there was none, he finally moved backward a half step, murmuring menacingly as he raised a hand to jab a finger into Sully's chest to accentuate the words, "See that you perform your duty by the book where she's concerned, Lieutenant. Is that clear?"

"That's clear, sir," Sully answered, forcing himself to avoid any thought of the kiss he and Michaela had shared, sure it would reflect somewhere in his eyes.

Thankfully it didn't, and the captain backed up out of his face with a nod of satisfaction that he had 'put the lieutenant in his place.'

"Carry on, Lieutenant."

"Yes sir!" Sully responded automatically, lifting his arm in a crisp salute.

David grudgingly returned the gesture and turned on his heel to stride confidently away, sure that he had just properly defended his fiancée's honor.

Sully watched him go, the tiniest hint of an angry smolder darkening the blue of his eyes.