My apologies for the delay in this posting but that crazy real life took precedence. This is a short post, but longer posts are definitely in store. A huge thanks goes out to all of you who have left their reviews and comments.
When we left this story, Nick and Kate were in her lower berth on a Union boat heading up the Mississippi.
Once more, he glanced down at the dark hair that felt so soft as his fingers combed through it, then he softly stroked her arm that lay on his chest, seeming so delicate even as his fingers ran over the hint of muscles lying under the smooth, white skin. He thought about dropping a light kiss on the top of her head, but chewed his bottom lip instead and let his own head drop back against the wall, his eyes closing as he listened to her easy breaths, the pattern of his own chest rising and falling becoming slower until they lay there peacefully, sleeping together, looking like two young lovers without a care. Anyone looking in at them would see no trace of the danger that surrounded them, no indication that they were caught in the middle of war.
Chapter Seven
Nick woke to a world of contradictions. On the one hand, he could hardly remember the last time he slept in a real bed and he would have liked to have stayed in it for as long as he could, but he very quickly realized that he had to get out of that bed as soon as he could. But getting out of bed would take some maneuvering due to the girl sleeping on his arm. Nick glanced over at her, noting her dark hair splayed across the pillow, her face slightly upturned toward him as she slept, her lips and cheeks pink and beckoning.
He'd never woken up with a girl in his bed, or, as it were, he'd never woken up with a girl in her bed and while his body screamed for him to roll over and use his free arm to pull her closer, his mind told him to figure out a way to free that trapped arm and do it quick. He started to roll over, hoping to be able to pull his arm from under her, but let out a low moan as he realized how much more difficult it was going to be to deal with the unconscious reaction of his 19 year old body when there was a lady present. Not that he hadn't woken up in the same state most mornings without a girl there, but having a girl at his side and not being able to do anything about it struck him as plain wrong. Swallowing hard, he redoubled his efforts to concentrate on the trapped arm, to concentrate on anything but her, and he was able to scoot to the edge of the bed and pull his arm mostly free. Determined to free the rest of his arm, he shifted his weight, pushing up on the trapped elbow, then placing his free arm on the other side of her head, holding himself up over her as he pulled his forearm and hand free, moving so carefully as he was trying his best not to disturb her sleep, but moving just enough that he caused Kate to rouse, her face just inches from his, her eyes batting their way awake as she stared up at him kneeling over her. Her eyes quickly took in the situation and she asked coolly, "Is there an explanation for why we are as we are?"
Nick flashed back to their first meeting when her stare was so hard and he found himself not quite sure how to explain. "We uh, well, we fell asleep."
Her brow furrowed as she glanced at Nick's body looming over hers and the sliver of space between them as she slid the sheet up. "Like this?" she asked, her voice incredulous but still soft.
"Well, no," Nick stammered. "That is, you fell asleep on my arm. It was caught," he insisted.
Her eyes darted from the arm firmly planted on the left side of her head to that on the right. "They both look to be free now," she replied, the implication that he could move clear in her tone.
Nick quickly pushed back away from her, but in so doing knocked his head hard against the bottom of the top bunk, and he instinctively clutched the back of his head, dropping back onto the bed and her, and just as quickly, as if he'd fallen on hot coals, pushed his body up and away, unceremoniously falling onto the floor.
Kate rolled to her side, her eyes wide, and losing the battle to fight back a laugh, she stared wide eyed at him. "Are you okay?"
Nick looked up sheepishly, joining her in laughing at himself. "Yeah, I'm fine."
Kate shook her head at the absurdity of the situation, gifting him with a smile as she sat up on the edge of the bed. "Nick, Nick, Nick. In the last 24 hours, you have given your word to an army general that you would be on your best behavior and assured a naval captain that no one would be sharing my bunk. What do you plan on telling the Marines if they make an appearance? Just so I can know what to expect next." Nick dropped his head down as he sat on the floor, feeling the blood rush to his face and he fought to put together an apology, looking back up at her when he felt her tousle his hair as she stepped past him. "You're sweet. What say we get dressed and head to breakfast?"
Nick and Kate dressed quickly and went to the Officers' Galley, the two of them glad when they saw that the Captain was not amongst the men gathered for breakfast. Upon seeing Kate, the naval officers stood, nodding to Kate, exchanging salutes and then shaking hands with Nick. Nick watched as Kate charmed them, his curiosity piqued when he realized the difference in her demeanor. The trace of a Southern accent was gone, replaced by an accent he association with the Eastern seaboard. Boston, he thought, remembering she had once said something about being in Boston. The cold, hard woman he had first met in the swamp was gone, as was the traumatized young girl from the night before. As he watched her, he thought about the forthright woman he had watched negotiate with General Dodge, a woman who seemed to know what she wanted and wasn't afraid of standing up to Union General to get it. Watching her with the naval officers, he remembered the young woman from the porch, a woman who gave very little information about herself while having entire conversations with the others at the table. Leaning forward on the table, he found himself wondering who this woman was and what she was like when her guard was down.
Since neither Nick nor Kate had any duties aboard ship, they spent the morning visiting with the wounded, writing letters for the injured or providing what small comfort they could. Nick watched Kate, knowing even from across the room that her touch was gentle, her tone soothing. He started to reflect on how honest and sincere her eyes were but caught himself and remembered that while he had no doubt that she was at times sincere, that it was as easy for her to lie to a man as it was for her to breathe. Seeing her draw out even the most reticent of men, he saw that whether she was talking to officers or enlisted men, she was equally adept she was at getting people to talk about themselves and deliver information and he thought about how, for many men, himself included, talking to a pretty girl who was hanging on a man's every word could prove irresistible. Watching her, he realized why General Dodge would consider her such a valuable asset and he had no doubt in his mind why the general wanted to be sure she got to Washington safely.
For his part, Nick sat back and talked with the men, shared the latest news from Vicksburg and swapped war stories with them. Kate watched from across the room and noticed that, at times, when stories about the war seemed to touch a raw nerve, Nick would change the subject, regaling the other men with stories about ranching and the West, much as he had done with her the night before. A few times, Kate was close enough that she could listen in and she found herself sitting forward in her seat, listening intently as he described lassoing a mustang and the power of the tug on the rope, or the earth shaking as cattle threatened to stampede around you, and at one point, she felt the pangs of homesickness for the grandeur of the snow capped mountains of the Rockies even though she had never seen them. It was easy to be swept away in Nick's stories, the adventures he described seeming to always have a happy ending, something so different than the experiences of the injured men on the boat.
As they walked to the Officer's mess for dinner that night, strolling in the open air of the deck, Kate gave Nick a sidelong glance. "So the story about getting caught in the snow storm, how much of that was truth and how much was make believe?"
Nick laughed openly, looking down at her. "Well, if that isn't the pot calling the kettle black?!"
She stepped in front of him and turned so she could look him straight on and started walking backwards as she said, "Now, wait just a minute – " but she was distracted by an odd sound and the splintering of wood flying from the wall of the ship. She began to turn in the direction of the falling wood chips but instead fell against the wooden deck of the ship, Nick dropping solidly atop her. Kate began to push him away, but he didn't budge, instead drawing her more firmly underneath him, barking out "Stay down!" his gravelly voice brooking no argument in a tone she quickly remembered from the swamp when his men didn't follow an order fast enough or to his satisfaction. Seemingly out of nowhere, there were pounding feet running past them, men yelling, and Nick grabbing her by the waist, half guiding, half carrying her through the closest door. As Nick barreled inside, a sailor taking aim at the shore crumbled just outside the doorway. Keeping low, Nick made sure Kate was well inside the room and he growled, "Stay here," before he went back to the door, pulling the wounded man in, depositing him next to Kate, then grabbing the hurt sailor's rifle and heading back outside.
Kate frantically looked around the room for something to stop the flow of blood, glancing up in time to see Nick's reflection in a mirror and she watched as he scanned the river bank, then suddenly set the rifle against his shoulder and fired. Even though she couldn't see Nick's face and she could hear shots firing from all around, she knew the moment when his shot found its mark. There was something that changed for the briefest of moments in the set of his shoulders, the way he held his head. And then he transferred the rifle from one hand to the others, letting the barrel point down at the ground almost casually, as if it were a part of himself.
His eyes darted back to the door and he strode quickly to Kate's side, dropping down next to her. "Are you all right?" he asked, the angry tone insisting on an immediate answer.
"I'm fine," she spat out, "but he's not."
Nick turned, calling over his shoulder to no one in particular, "We have a wounded man here," his booming voice ringing out and, as if by magic, the room was filled with people. A medic came in to take care of the wounded and, as other marksman came in from outside, Nick stood and demanded of one of the naval officers, "Why didn't you tell us there were snipers?"
"What? Of course, there are snipers. Why would you think the river is any different from a convoy on a country road?"
Nick blew out a heavy breath, knowing that he had depended on the security of the boat and that he had let his guard down. He promised himself that it wouldn't happen again.
