He thought she meant she had been wrong about him. She turned to correct him, then stopped and stared into his beloved face. Golden light bathed his cheekbones and the mouth she longed to kiss, illuminated the steady love glowing in his eyes.
“Would you do something for me?” she whispered.
“Anything you ask.”
“Would you fetch my bedroll out of the wagon?”
He glanced at the sky, judging the time, surprised by her request. “Of course.”
“Put it over there, beside the women’s latrine tent, please.” Gripping the crutch, she swung forward. “And then, please leave me.”
He stiffened and turned away, but not before she saw the pain in his eyes. “Good night, my love. Sleep well.”
Dropping to her knees on the grass, her heart pounding and her hands shaking, she untied her bedroll and checked to see that everything she wanted was there. When she was sure, she dropped her head and touched her fingers to her eyelids.
“I can. I’m not wrong about this. I’ve never been so right.”
Freddy sat next to Dal, their shoulders touching, looking across the campfire at Les and Luther. Les and Luther held hands, gazing into each other’s eyes wordlessly. Seeing them put the sweet into the bittersweet thoughts that drew lines across Freddy’s forehead.
She didn’t want the drive to end.
Never again would she know the thrill of chasing a tough old longhorn, or sleep in the open air beneath a starry sky. Never again would she tuck into a raw steak and a charred biscuit and think she was dining on the food of the gods. She’d never again pick at calluses on her palm, or feel the warm power of a cutting horse between her thighs. Or lie in the arms of a man that she loved with all her heart and soul.
She leaned against Dal’s shoulder and closed her eyes. There had to be a way they could find a future together without giving up their dreams, without making each other miserable. Why couldn’t they find a solution?
Dal dropped an arm around her. “Are you all right?” he asked in a low voice.
“I feel as hopeless as John looks.”
John sat across from them, cradling an empty cup between his hands, staring into the flames licking the bottom of the coffeepot. For the past week he’d been almost as silent as he’d been when he came to them.
“Where’s Alex tonight?” Dal asked, frowning and looking toward the chuck wagon.
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen her in a couple of hours.”
Then she heard Drinkwater gasp, and one of the other drovers dropped his cup. Dal’s fingers tightened on her shoulder, and she heard him draw a sharp quick breath. When Freddy followed their stares, she saw Alex standing beside the chuck wagon lanterns, leaning on her crutch.
But it was an Alex that Freddy had not seen in several months. Her luxuriant blond hair was dressed high and scattered with tiny wild roses. She wore a blue silk dress that matched the color of her shining eyes. She was as elegantly beautiful as Freddy had ever seen her.
Looking at John, she came forward on the crutch. And Freddy rose to her feet as the drovers slowly stood, watching. The hush was so absolute that she heard the crackle of the campfire, heard the longhorns settling down out on the bedding grounds.
When John came to his feet, Freddy sucked in a breath and held it, feeling a lump rise in her throat. Understanding blazed in his expression, and his hands opened and closed at his sides. Moisture glistened in his eyes.
Alex came to the fire and scanned the faces staring at her until she found Freddy. “Thank you.” Her soft voice sounded loud in the silence. “I love you.”
Freddy nodded and smiled, and blinked hard. She clutched Dal’s hand so tightly that her knuckles whitened.
Then Alex drew a deep breath, and tossed her crutch into the flames. The drovers made a hissing sound between their teeth, and Freddy gasped, but Alex didn’t fall. She pulled back her shoulders, standing straight and tall, her head high, her hips aligned, her shining eyes on John McCallister.
When he started forward, she smiled and shook her head. Then, pressing her lips in determination, she took the first step toward him, wobbled and threw out her arms for balance, then steadied her gaze on his face, and took another step. And then another.
Dal threw back his head and shouted the Rebel cry. The drovers erupted in applause and wild cheers as Alex stumbled and fell forward into John’s arms. He caught her and swept her into a fierce embrace, burying his face in her hair. Coffee cups lifted in shouted toasts, hats sailed into the air, and everyone rushed forward to pat Alex and offer encouragement and congratulations. In the melee, Freddy spotted Les sobbing happily against Luther’s chest. She, too, was weeping.
Dashing at the tears swimming in her eyes, Freddy watched as John led her sister away from the fire, seeking privacy. Arms wound around each other, gazing into each other’s eyes, they walked north, toward the future. And Freddy didn’t doubt that Alex would master the wooden leg as she had mastered so many other things.