Chapter Thirteen

“Where did your family live back east?” Turner asked as he and Will trudged through the snow. He’d made sure that Will was plenty bundled up and while the man had complained of too many layers, Turner knew it needed to be done to keep him warm.

“Virginia,” Will replied. “Looking back now I know we were wealthy but my parents never spoke of that or lived extravagantly. We had a simple house and most of the money my father made as a lawyer went to helping families who didn’t have as much as we did.”

Turner nodded at the long explanation. While he wasn’t much of a talker, he knew that Will was and so he figured he’d do his best to give the man the conversation he needed--and it wasn’t like Turner didn’t like to hear Will talk. He happened to like Will’s voice.

Beaux dashed past them, barking and biting at the snow and Will laughed, “He seems to be enjoying himself. I’ve never seen anybody like snow quite that much.”

“He’s a few bushels short of a load,” Turner acknowledged when Beaux tripped and went flipping headfirst into a drift.

Will gave Turner an odd look before looking up at the sky. Turner sighed as he unburied his final trap and baited it. Will had been giving him those odd looks all day. It was obvious he didn’t completely trust Turner nor understand the change in him. Hell, Turner didn’t blame him. It would take time and while Turner was not well known for his patience, he would force himself to wait and keep working for as long as it took.

Turner straightened up and rubbed at his back, “Colorado is a long way from Virginia. What made you move out west?”

“I wanted to see new things and new places,” Will replied, shouldering the sack that held the one mink that Turner had managed to catch. “I told you before I like to live and be happy.”

“What about your family?” Turner wanted to know more. He wanted to know everything.

A smile lit up Will’s face and stole Turner’s breath, “If they were still alive I probably never would have left home. They were amazing people.”

Turner glanced back at Will, “I’m sorry you lost them.”

Will shrugged as he followed along, walking in Turner’s footsteps through the deep snow, “That’s what happens to parents. My father passed away about five years ago and my mother a year after that. I only had one sister that lived past childhood and she’s eight years my senior. We never had much in common and I haven’t seen her in ten years.”

“Sorry,” Turner mumbled, unsure what else to say.

Surprisingly Will smiled, “Don’t be. She’s happily married with a good husband and four healthy children. We’ve sent a few letters to one another.”

Turner wanted to know about the saloon and the brothel in Caudilltown. He wanted to know how Thompson had gotten Will to work for him in that brothel when it was clear that Will hadn’t wanted to. But he couldn’t just come out and ask that. Turner had to figure out a way to learn those things without seeming judgmental or confrontational because both things had caused Will to shut down in the past.

“What brought you to Caudilltown?” he asked.

Instantly Will’s face darkened and Turner regretted the question, “I wanted adventure,” Will snorted, “I got adventure alright.”

“I saw you at the saloon a few times,” Turner admitted. “I noticed you real fast.”

Turner glanced back at Will again and saw the look of confusion on his face, “I don’t remember you.”

“You wouldn’t. I stayed out of your sight. I was still trying to decide if I was ready to invite someone into my life when you quit coming to the saloon.”

Will nodded, “Guess you missed your chance then.”

Turner fell back and took Will’s hand in his, “Got a new one now.”

Instead of replying, Will swallowed several times as he stared up with wide green eyes. Turner wanted to kiss him. The urge was so strong that he nearly shook with restraint. He wanted to let Will make the first real move toward any kind of passion. He wanted it to be Will’s choice so that Will could feel that power and not feel as if Turner was only trying to use him again.

Suddenly Will broke the contact between them. He pulled his hand away from Turners and plowed on ahead, taking the lead and following the tracks they’d made on their way into the woods.

Turner swallowed hard. What he wanted to do was grab Will, throw the mans legs around his waist and slide his cock into that warm ass….. His fists clenched tightly at his sides and he took several deep breaths while counting slowly to three in his mind.

Peter had taught him that trick. And it worked--just barely.

“What about you, Turner? Why are you living all alone up here on a mountain? Do you hate people that badly?”

Turner whistled for Beaux who had become distracted by a squirrel in a branch, “I wanted peace and quiet,” Turner replied.

“That’s rather vague,” Will noted.

Turner sighed, “The truth is sad, Will, and you don’t want to hear that. Why don’t you tell me more about your family?”

Will scratched at his stubble covered jaw, “Why?”

“Your eyes get a little brighter when you do,” Turner shrugged. “I like that.”

Again Will seemed to flounder like a fish out of water for a moment and Turner felt a bit of irritation. He wasn’t acting that damn different… was he?

After several minutes of trudging along in silence, Will finally began to speak again, telling Turner story after story of growing up with the family he had obviously loved and who had loved him in return. Turner listened avidly, not only because he wanted to know everything there was to know about Will but also because Turner had never had that in a family and it was nice to hear that it did exist.

***

Will was damned confused.

Turner was a whole different person…. Maybe not completely different. He had grumbled more than once that day, cursed at Bernice, threatened to sell his mule Clyde to the soap factory and growled more than once while looking at Will hungrily and seeming to fight tooth and nail to keep from leaping at him…. But still, he’d been different.

He’d been softer, somehow, more gentle. He had smiled, he had talked, he had been pleasant…. What the hell was going on?

Was this all a game to him? Was he hoping to have his way with Will again and hoping that acting this way would accomplish that? But what would be the point in this charade? Will had no doubt that Turner knew that if he pushed, just a little, Will would give in to him. Will wasn’t proud of that weakness but it was there just the same.

Or was Turner honestly hoping to win Will’s affection? Was he truly sorry about what had happened and the way he’d acted and trying to start fresh? But if that was the case then why had he acted so horribly to begin with? What had caused his blow up just last night when he had nearly killed him by tossing him outside in the cold?

Will wanted to find the answers to those questions and yet seemed unable to figure out how to ask them.

And now wasn’t the time.

Just now he was having a battle of wills and he was determined to stand his ground.

“I will not be sleeping in that bed with you, Turner.”

Turner growled and stepped forward, placing his hand on the sofa that stood between them, “Yes you will.”

“No, I won’t. I told you I’m only here until the snow melts.”

“And I told you, you weren’t going anywhere.”

“You never said that,” Will countered, willing his cowardice legs to stand still when all they wanted to do was step back away from the predator before him.

Turner’s brown eyes flashed, “I’m saying it now.”

“You won’t hold me prisoner here, Turner,” Will warned, feeling fear cause his heart to pick up speed. Maybe he wasn’t quite as over his time in that brothel as he had thought he was.

Turner frowned, “Of course I won’t. You’ll stay because you want to.”

Will rolled his eyes and pointed at the bed, “Go to bed, Turner! It’s late, we walked all day and I’m tired.”

Turner grinned but it was a hungry expression that caused trembles of excitement to race down Will’s spine. Damn traitorous anatomy!

“Come to bed with me, Will.”

“No, I’m sleeping on the sofa,” Will insisted, stomping his foot stubbornly. Childish? Yes. A convincing way of getting ones point across? He hoped so.

Turner grumbled under his breath and rubbed his face roughly with his hand. He looked down at the sofa and scowled at it as if that piece of fabric, wood and cotton was the enemy, “This sofa?”

“Do you see another one?” Will quipped. Beaux was glancing back and forth at them from his place on the rug and seemed to be quite enjoying the show.

“I think I can solve this,” Turner assured him. He walked to the door and threw it open. Cold wind blew into the cabin causing Will to shiver and wrap his arms around himself.

“You’re not going to throw me out there again, are you?” he questioned.

Turner expression was one of hurt as his eyes met Will’s, “Of course not, dammit. I told you I was sorry about that.”

Will said nothing.

Turner strode back to the sofa and began scooting it toward the door, “What the hell are you doing?!” Will exclaimed.

Turner grunted, “Solving the problem.”

“Don’t you throw that sofa out the….” Will didn’t have time to finish. He was shocked into dumbfounded silence when Turner hoisted up the sofa and tossed it out the door, straight into the deep snow.

“Why you overgrown, giant, hard-headed brute of a jackass!” Will yelled. “Now I’m going to have to sleep on the floor!”

Turner shook his head as he walked over to the bed and slipped off his shirt and boots. He pulled off his gun belt next and laid it on the bedside table before climbing to the bed and patting the empty expanse of mattress beside him, which of course wasn‘t much in a bed that was clearly built for one man, “Don’t be ridiculous. You’ll sleep right here.”

“And if I refuse?” Will questioned, determined to hold on to his stubbornness despite the fact that he had already lost this fight. “Will you tear up the floorboards and toss them outside in the snow too?”

Turner growled and his fist closed around the blanket tightly. Will could tell he had a very small grasp on his temper. His deep voice rumbled like thunder when he spoke, “Quit being childish. I’m not asking you to let me make wild passionate love to you, Will. We’ll sleep and that’s it. Now get in this bed.”

Will tried to think of an argument but the image of Turner making love to him that had flashed through his mind after Turner’s statement made speech impossible. He sighed with defeat and turned off the lamp beside him.

Grudgingly he headed toward the bed but it wasn’t because he wanted to sleep with Turner and he was sure to let the man know that.

“Only cuz I ain’t sleeping on the damn floor.”

Turner’s quiet chuckles filled the night.

A/N: Hope y'all liked the chapter! After several days of more than one update a day, I'm afraid I probably won't get one up tomorrow.. I might but I have quite a few things planned so hopefully this one can hold you over! Love y'all and let me know what you think!