A/N:
Hello all-
I'd like to take this time and thank all the reviewers. I appreciate them! Keep them coming guys!
Long story short- here's the next chapter! Enjoy.
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Tai was warm and content. He felt the clean sheets around him and a soft mattress underneath his body. It had been so long sleeping on the ground that any kind of mattress would have been acceptable. That need only made this one seem all the better. The smooth pillows that were around him also were quite enjoyable.
Pulling the object to his side closer to his body, Tai sighed with contentment at the warmth he found. The silkiness of the object only added in his yearning to feel with his hands. Moving in bed, Taichi came to an abrupt stop when he felt a warmth breath on his hand.
He knew the object in his arms was no longer a pillow as a feminine voice mumbled something before nuzzling deeper into the bed sheets. Taking stock of the current situation, yesterday's compromising situation would have looked like nothing with her legs intertwined with his, and his arms tightly around her.
No matter how much he wanted to pull away quickly, the warm feeling inside his heart seemed to keep him in place. He found her attractive- that was not the problem. Heck, he would have to be dead to not find the auburn haired woman anything but a rare beauty. She was the most beautiful creature he had ever laid eyes on.
The problem was that while he felt right having her close and holding her in his arms, he knew that he could not, at least not feel totally comfortable just yet... He just was not ready to find a new woman in his heart, especially not one that was limitedly clothed and lying beneath him.
There lying on her stomach was the mysterious woman he had met only the other day, and yet he was smitten. His eyes looked at her peaceful face still caught up in sleep. Following the soft trail of crimson locks, he found himself looking at his hand's current perch.
Softly cupping the swell of her chest, Tai's cheeks burnt a bright red. Feeling uncomfortable with the situation he quickly, yet as naturally as possible rolled off from her, and withdrew his hands from underneath her body.
Feeling the weight on her back suddenly removed, Sora gave off a sleepy whimper and attempted to snuggle back into the warmth of the bed. Finding that the warmth was gone, the red head rolled to her back and stretched her arms above her head.
Noticing the figure sitting on the bed, she smiled remembering the events of yesterday. 'He fell asleep before I could even finish tending his bruises.' She mused.
"So did you sleep well?" She asked as she looked up at his deep brown eyes from her position on the bed.
Tai could not help but watch her muscles flex in her arms and throughout her body as she stretched. She moved like a sleepy cat not wanting to awake fully from a nice nap. He hated to admit it; however, he could not remember sleeping so well.
The way he had his arms around her felt almost natural- like the two almost were meant to be together in that way. Yet, something within his mind felt like he was betraying the memory of his family with all the thoughts he had been having recently.
"Tai, can I ask you something?" Sora's voice called as she slowly got up from the soft white sheets. Watching her stand from his position sitting on the bed, he nodded in approval.
"Who is Mimi?" She questioned sitting next to him on the bed. "In... in your sleep you called out to her... I was just curious..." The look on his face told Sora of the immense pain the question brought. Placing a supportive hand on his, she gave him a compassionate squeeze.
"She must have been special... I can tell you loved her very much. I'm sorry for bringing back unhealed wounds, excuse me." She said as she was about to get up and rush out of the room. However, Tai's hand grabbing her arm forced her to stay sitting next to him.
"She was my wife." He said with a faint, sad smile. "We were going to have a baby before everything stopped..." He trailed off and a silence filled the room for a time.
"It must have been nice to have someone you loved and be loved in return... I've... I've not felt that for a long time." Sora said quietly. "I doubt I'll ever feel that again..."
"If you want to let your heart feel that, you've got to be honest with yourself and go for it." Tai said with a sigh. He had been telling himself that he could love again, and that Mimi would want him to find happiness... yet the words were not that convincing even to him.
"Not for a saloon girl. Falling in love is something I can't do, and having anyone really serious wanting a...a..." She stopped giving herself a mental slap. "Enough of the depressing stuff." She added standing up and walking over to the chair piled with clothes.
"So partner, there's a list of men and random information I've been able to compile about the possible whereabouts of the group and things like that." She said as she grabbed a frilly number and walked into the bathroom. "You might want to read it over and add it to your information. Maybe we'll find something."
Tai watched the natural sway of her hips before she disappeared behind the bathroom door. Having to shake himself out of his daydream of the beautiful saloon girl, Tai took a calming breath.
'What is she doing to me?' He wondered trying to forget the sensual spell that had affected him the moment he first laid eyes on the crimson haired girl.
Getting up from the bed, he walked over to the information she had mentioned. Her information gathering skills were amazing he thought as he read the descriptions and accounts she had gotten out of countless men.
He was so engrossed with the information in the notebooks, that he did not hear the bathroom door open or the rustle of fabric coming up behind him.
"Tai?" Her voice startled him a bit and he jumped.
"Ah... you scared me." He said as he turned around. His eyes nearly bulged out when he saw the extremely low cut of the dress she wore. Smiling sweetly, Sora turned around.
"Could you tie me up in back?" She asked of him.
Nodding, Tai finished lacing the back of the dark garment. He had never seen the type of garment she wore, it was shaped like a corset, however the lacey bodes was on the outside. His experiences with those things were always worn under long dresses like the ones his wife use to wear.
"Is this your first time lacing a corset? You need to tie it tight." She smiled at the looseness he had drawn the fabric to her body. "Just give it a good, hard tug. I always have problems with this little number."
Tai closed his mouth in fear he would make a comment about the 'littleness' of the dress she wore. It was very seductive and alluring, everything that she seemed to possess already, however the garment left little of her shapely body to the imagination. The shortness skirt accented her long legs, clad in dark stockings. The curves she possessed were also well prominent in the tight number.
"You can go a bit tighter- I thought tying a little corset would be no problem." She smiled amused at the silence from her new partner.
"Do all women out here wear these kinds of things?" Tai questioned as he tightened the article of clothing as tight as he could get it.
"Only if they want to eat and keep their animals fed." Sora said as she turned and adjusted the skintight top of the dress. Shaking her hips to get the fabric of the skirt to puff out a bit, she smiled. "It may be a man's world- however that doesn't mean I can't lighten their wallets a bit with a few blinks of my eyes and a provocative flash of skin." She added returning to the bathroom where she continued her preparation.
"Oh, that reminds me... you might want to get yourself more acquainted with the saloon and surrounding buildings today. There is going to be a big gambling session tomorrow with the regular boys. They always seem to stop by on Thursdays for a drink after they've finished terrorizing the surrounding territory." She said all lightness of her voice gone. She had turned serious in moods once again. "I'll be gone for most of the day today, so you'll have to ask Joe for help if you need it."
"Where are you going to be?" Tai asked a bit curious.
"Well I'm heading off to the saloon in an hour or so. On my way, I need to stop by the stable and feed the boys. Then I've got an appointment with Matt for the rest of the day." She said as she finished her makeup application and returned to sit on the bed. Bending over, Sora pulled a pair of high-heeled boots out from underneath the bed. While she was still bent over, she made a point of opening the box of guns she had and retrieved a few times.
Tai watched as she loaded the derringer and slipped it under a garter high on her thigh.
"If you want, I can feed the horses, you are letting Yume stay there. It's the least I can do." Tai spoke up, partly wanting to end the silence that had taken over the room.
"Sure, that does actually help me out." She smiled standing up now fully dressed. Walking over to the corner of the room, she pulled a pair of keys out of a small silk purse. Throwing him a keychain, she picked up a long shall and wrapped it around her shoulders.
"I'll see you at the saloon then." She smiled as she walked out of the room, "Oh, and lock the door before you go."
