Katey stretched and opened her eyes as the first rays of sun peeked through the window. The events of the previous night played over in her mind and she smiled as she recalled the touch of Heath's hands on her skin and the feeling of his body against hers.
"Morning, sleepyhead," came the soft drawl from the other side of the bed. " 'Bout time you woke up."
Katey turned to find Heath watching her, a smile playing around the corners of his mouth.
"Morning yourself," she greeted as he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her deeply.
"So what would you like to do today, Mrs. Barkley?" Heath asked when he finally released her.
"I don't know, Mr. Barkley," Katey replied, sliding her hands across his back. "Do you have any ideas?"
"Oh, maybe one or two," Heath chuckled, pulling her close again. As Katey expected, Heath's ideas didn't involve getting out of bed just yet. They spent a long time, enjoying an intimacy both had longed to rediscover. Afterwards, they still didn't get up, content just to lie in each other's arms.
But the rest of life eventually had to intrude on their happiness. Katey didn't want anything to ruin the joy of being with Heath, but she felt she had to speak up. "My father's not going to give up, Heath."
Heath propped himself up on one elbow and gazed at his new bride. More than anything he wanted to be able to erase the worry in her eyes, didn't want anything to mar the start of their new life together. He brushed a wayward strand of hair off her face. "Kinda figured that. But you're a Barkley now and there's not a lot he can do."
"I just don't want to cause trouble for your family," Katey insisted. "He's a powerful, influential man. There are just so many things…"
Heath leaned over and kissed her, cutting off the rest. "The Barkleys are a powerful and influential family," he reminded her, "and they're your family, too. And we're certainly no strangers to trouble. Now how about some breakfast?"
Katey gave in, but she fervently hoped Heath wasn't being overconfident.
It was closer to lunch than breakfast by the time they came downstairs. Katey and Heath made their way into the kitchen where they made an impromptu meal of whatever they could find. Hand in hand, they wandered out to see where the rest of the family was.
Victoria was seated at the small secretary desk, looking through her correspondence. She smiled as Heath came up to give her a kiss on the cheek.
"Hello, sweetheart," she greeted him
"It's pretty quiet," Heath observed, "where is everyone?"
"Jarrod left early to catch up on some work at his office," Victoria informed him, "and Nick and Audra went to collect Katey's things. They should be back soon." Audra volunteered herself and Nick to gather some of Katey's belongings for her after it had been decided last night that Katey should stay away from town while her stepfather was still there.
Nick and Audra entered the house at that moment. Nick was sporting a rapidly blackening eye.
"Boy howdy, what happened to you, Nick?" Heath asked.
Nick gave an unintelligible grunt. "Ran into that stepfather of yours in town," he told Katey. "Guess he took exception to something I said." A wicked smile played across his face. "If you think this eye's bad, you should see him."
"Nick, I don't want you getting into trouble on my account," Katey protested.
"Ol' Nick can get into trouble all on his own," Heath told her with a grin.
"Oh, don't worry, Katey," Audra jumped to Nick's defense, "Nick didn't start the fight, but he definitely finished it."
Heath put a hand on Nick's shoulder. " Appreciate your sticking up for Katey, Nick."
"Think nothing of it, little brother," Nick replied glibly, "after all, she's my sister now too." He gave Katey's hand a squeeze. "Now how about some help hauling in all this stuff we brought?"
Nick and Heath carried Katey's things up to what was formerly the largest guest room, now to become theirs. Both of them protested, but Victoria wouldn't hear any objections. Heath wisely decided not to argue when Audra suggested she and Katey move Heath's things into the new room too and unpack.
.
Jarrod returned home a short time later and found his brothers in the library, having coffee.
"That's quite an impressive black eye," he commented when he saw Nick.
"You should see the other guy," Nick retorted, grinning.
"I did." Jarrod poured himself a cup of coffee and sat across from Heath. "He was in the sheriff's office when I stopped by, trying to swear out a complaint against you. Luckily, several witnesses saw him throw the first punch." He gave his blond brother a long look. "Heath, have you thought about taking Katey away for a week or so? Some sort of honeymoon, perhaps?"
"Hadn't given it any thought," Heath admitted. "Things did happen a mite fast. Why do you ask?"
Jarrod took a sip of his coffee. "Apparently, Anderson's been having trouble finding Judge Norris to have his petition heard. Wasn't sitting too well with him and it's probably the reason he took so much offense to Nick's face. It might be better to have Katey out of reach when he finds out the two of you got married yesterday."
Heath thought about it for a minute. Getting Katey away from the situation made sense and he sure wouldn't complain about spending some time alone with his new wife. But still… "Kinda feels like running away, Jarrod."
Nick spoke up. "Ah, come on, Heath, take that little woman of yours up to the lodge for a few days. All the privacy a couple of newlyweds could want."
"I dunno, Nick," Heath replied slowly as he made up his mind, "not sure if you're up to running this place all by yourself."
"What do you mean?" Nick protested loudly. "I'll have you know I was running this place long before…" He gave up when he saw the amused looks on his brothers' faces. "Just get out of here before I throw you out."
Heath found Katey and when he made the suggestion, her eyes lit up. It was decided they'd leave that afternoon, and, since the lodge had already been opened for the season, they didn't have to take any supplies other than what they'd need overnight. Heath's Charger and Tango, the horse he had given Katey as an engagement gift, were saddled and the newly married couple were soon on their way.
.
"Well, that was rather unpleasant," Jarrod observed as he and Nick watched Katey's stepfather ride off in fury. It wasn't half an hour after Heath and Katey left when Anderson showed up at the ranch, face livid under the bruises left from his encounter with Nick. Gossip being what it was, the news of Heath and Katey's marriage spread through Stockton like wildfire and Anderson wasted no time in charging out to the Barkley ranch. Jarrod managed to keep the situation from escalating into an all-out battle and the threat of Nick's fists was still enough to send Anderson back to town.
"Unpleasant isn't the word I'd use," Nick growled. "It's a good thing we got Heath and Katey out of here. No telling what that animal's capable of."
Jarrod agreed and decided he'd head into town first thing in the morning to obtain a restraining order against the man, thankful Heath and Katey were off where Anderson wouldn't find them.
