Chapter Twenty-Two

Riding a stagecoach was not quite the adventure that Cassandra had had in mind upon leaving her home all those weeks ago, however, some would consider being sandwiched between two bickering old ladies while a young boy digs for treasure in his nose across from you and a skinny, sunken-faced man leers from the corner, an adventure in itself.

Cassandra tried to sit up a little straighter to ease the tension in her back and shoulders as she shifted upon the thinly padded seat. She envied Finnegan who was riding alongside the stage on Theo. Seamus was inside the stage with Cassandra and Cassandra could feel him watching her as they rode.

Between his watching, the skinny man's leering, the boy's nose picking and the two women's constant bickering, Cassandra was growing extremely close to going stark raving mad!

She had been cooped up in this stage for five days and the only relief she got was when the stage stopped in the evenings at whatever stage town or house they reached that day. Finnegan had insisted on the two of them posing as husband and wife so that they could continue to share a room and the memories of their nights together managed to bring a ghost of a smile to Cassandra's face.

She realized with disgust that leering man smiled back... clearly he thought he was the reason for her good humor. His hand reached out toward her knee and Cassandra was fully prepared to smack him away when Seamus' hand grabbed the man's wrist and tossed his arm to the side.

"You might want to watch yourself. My brother is a jealous man and won't take too kindly to you pawing all over his woman," Seamus warned.

Cassandra nearly laughed at the idea of Finnegan being jealous. The man was so sure of himself and his abilities that Cassandra knew there was little chance he would be jealous of any other man—especially one that looked like skinny man across the way.

"She smiled at me first," skinny man quickly spoke up. The bickering women had quieted and were completely enthralled in the new turn of events inside the stage. Clearly they thought perhaps there may be a fight.

The young boy had even paused in his exploration of his right nostril and was staring at Seamus with shock. Seamus hadn't spoken much in the five days they'd been with the stage. Cassandra knew they'd be leaving the stage soon because it wasn't heading north the way they needed and she would be glad to be away from all these people.

"I can assure you that I did not," Cassandra countered, her gaze going out the window. She saw Finnegan on Theo a short distance from the stage. He was whistling a tune, though the sound of it could scarcely be heard over the horses hooves and the creaking of the stage coaches wheels.

She longed to be on that horse with him. To be riding carefree with the wind in her hair and Finnegan's strong body against hers.... But Cassandra knew that Finnegan was right when he said they needed to take it easy on Theo for a while. Truthfully she needed her own horse but hadn't had the money for one yet.

Finnegan had been willing to allow her to ride Theo while he rode in the crowded stage but Seamus had been adamantly against that and Cassandra had chosen not to go to war over the issue. Seamus had insisted that stage coach roads could be dangerous places and Cassandra was safer inside. When Finnegan had seemed to agree, Cassandra had given up.

The sun was getting lower in the horizon and Cassandra nearly cried out with relief when the stage coach began to slow and then stopped completely. She moved the dainty curtains aside and saw the large three story manor house they had pulled in front of.

It looked as if they had reached home for the night.

Cassandra was all too happy to flee from the tight confines of the stage coach, though her legs were stiff and sore from lack of use. She very nearly fell coming down the stage steps until a strong pair of arms wrapped around her waist and hoisted her down.

"I saved your life, Little Cass," Finnegan teased in her ear as he pulled her to the side so the other passengers could exit the stage coach.

"My life was not in danger, Finn," Cassandra replied breathlessly. Why did the man insist on holding her so closely?

"Your backside then," Finnegan amended as he buried his nose in her hair. "I saved your deliciously round arse from quite a nasty bruise,"

Cassandra could feel him smiling against her head and she rolled her eyes, pulled from his grasp and adjusted her blouse. "My backside would have been just fine."

"Her new man would have caught her," Seamus agreed as he came to stand beside them with his arms crossed over his broad chest.

Finnegan frowned. "New man?"

"It's nothing!" Cassandra exclaimed. "Shall we get our belongings and go introduce ourselves to our host?"

"Little Cass, ya had better just tell me now what Dear Seamus is talkin' about. I won't be sharin' ya with no one else."

Cassandra was surprised by the possessiveness and jealousy in Finnegan's voice. She hadn't realized Finnegan had it in him to be either of those things. She was certain he had never been that way with any other woman, his carefree nature would not have allowed it, so to know that she brought those things out in him--that he cared about her more--it made her heart swell just a bit.

"There is no other man, Finn," Cassandra assured him.

"Sure there is," Seamus countered, earning him a glare from Cassandra. He simply grinned. "Why the man has been staring at her all day."

Finnegan seemed thoughtful and then burst into laughter.

"What's so funny?" Cassandra demanded.

"My competition! Tell me, Little Cass, is it the little lad or the malnourished gent who is glarin' over at us?"

Cassandra saw the skinny man was indeed glaring even as their hosts for the night introduced themselves to he and the young boy. "There was one other man on the stage coach with me," Cassandra replied vaguely as she let her gaze pass over Seamus.

"Dear Seamus then?" Finnegan asked and instead of sounding jealous he seemed quite amused. "Now I know you're lyin', Cassandra."

"And how do you know that?" Cassandra demanded with a stomp.

Finnegan poked her nose, "Because Seamus here has a bit of a problem with the ladies and I know he doesn't take to starin' at one for an entire day."

"That's enough about me and my lady troubles," Seamus snapped as he took Cassandra's small suitcase from the stage hand.

"So ya admit there are troubles then?" Finnegan teased, flashing Cassandra a grin and a wink. She rolled her eyes. Would these two never cease to aggravate each other so?

"Nice to meet you folks," a woman who seemed just past middle aged greeted with a stern glance as they made their way toward her and her husband. "This is our home and will be your home for the night." Her gaze went to the guns on Finnegan and Seamus' hips. "No guns in the house, they all have to be checked with me and I lock them in the cabinet. The horse can be stabled over there in the barn for the night but you're responsible for feeding him yourself from the feed buckets that are there and rubbing him down. I don't much care for doing those things myself. Men and women can only share rooms if they're husbands and wives. Dinner is at eight, breakfast at six, if you're late then you don't eat, it's as simple as that."

Cassandra and Finnegan shared a look and Cassandra fought back a laugh. This woman certainly didn't seem to be worried about appearing too accommodating.

"I don't much like the thought of not having my gun, ma'am," Seamus countered with a shake of his head.

The woman looked up at him, her eyes scanning him over the top of her beak-like nose. She scoffed. "I don't much care what you like much the thought of, sir. Those are my rules. If those are not acceptable guidelines for the night than you are more than welcome to sleep beneath the stars and go without food. I daresay you may be seeing things more my way when this storm that is approaching rears its head."

Seamus appeared ready to argue once again and Cassandra could see the sturdily built woman's even more sturdily built husband heading their way. She sunk her elbow deep into Seamus' gut to silence him. "My brother-in-law will be more than happy to give his gun up for the night to keep from angering our hosts, won't you, Seamus?"

Seamus rubbed at his stomach and glared down at her. Finnegan laughed loudly before swinging forward and planting a noisy kiss on the older woman's soft cheek. "Well I for one will me more than happy to abide by the rules of such a beautiful lass," he winked. "O'course you can have my gun just so long as ya promise to keep me safe with it."

The woman blushed and became visibly flustered as Finnegan unhooked his gun belt and laid it in the her hands. "We'll have no more of that, Irishman," she smiled. "You're a bunch of charming little devils from across that ocean aren't you?"

Cassandra rolled her eyes as Finnegan put his arms around the woman's shoulders and her husband glared at him. "We try to be, ma'am. Now would ya happen to have a pretty name to match those pretty blue eyes?"

"Her name is Mrs. Hammonds and you can get your hands off her now," the husband, apparently named Mr. Hammonds, grumbled.

Finnegan sighed and released his hold on their host, bowing deeply as he backed away. "Alas, I arrived too late to win the heart of the pretty lass," he took Cassandra's hand and squeezed it tenderly. "I suppose ya will be stuck with me a bit longer, Little Cass."

"Lucky me," Cassandra replied, batting her lashes up at him and earning a broad grin from his lips in the process. That grin faded quickly when thunder rumbled in the distance.

"That barn over there for the horse?" he asked Mrs. Hammonds quickly with a bit of a higher pitch in his words.

"Yes, that's correct," she replied as she fussed with her gray streaked hair. Her husband led her away toward the two women who had also been on the stagecoach as Finnegan led Theo toward the barn.

"You're still afraid of storms?" Seamus questioned, his amusement of that fact plain to hear in his scathing tone.

"No o'course not!" Finnegan waved his hand. "It's Theo. The poor beast starts knockin' in the knees and gets all beside himself over the smallest...." Finnegan squeaked when lightning lit up the distant, darkening sky. "....show of turbulence."

"In other words, yes he is still afraid of storms," Cassandra teased. "Now if you men will excuse me I'm going to go inside and see about our accommodations for the night."

Cassandra was caught off guard when Finnegan grabbed her arm and pulled her close. His lips danced across her cheek, to her temple and landed upon her ear. "I love ya, Little Cass."

Cassandra felt her heart pound, skip, stutter and thud against her chest. She turned her head and caught his lips beneath her lightly. Keeping her mouth brushing against his, Cassandra smiled. "Almost as much as you love Mrs. Hammonds?"

Cassandra felt his lips curve beneath hers and she turned and began to walk away, waving her hand as she did so. "Take care of Theo, Finn. I don't want him to be scared."

Cassandra was led into the tidy home and escorted by Mr. Hammond to the second story and the door that led to her bedroom for the night. She thanked him politely, received a grunt in response and then entered the room, closing the door behind her.

The room was nice. It was plain, simple, very unfussy, but it was clean, tidy and smelled pleasant. The furniture was heavy and darker than she liked and the curtains were thick and floral but it would do just fine.

Setting down her small suitcase on the bed, Cassandra found herself flopping down on her back beside it, moaning with pleasure at finally being able to stretch out and relax after so many cramped up hours in that bouncing stage coach.

While she lay there Cassandra found her mind going to Finnegan just as it always seemed to when she let it wander. She knew it was foolish to think him completely changed after only five days away from that town and that jail but that is exactly what Cassandra found herself believing.

She knew that he loved her. It was evident in the way his eyes lit up every time they fell upon her. It was plain to feel each and every time his lips brushed hers or his hands lingered upon her skin. He was still a shameless flirt as had been evidenced just outside with their hostess and Cassandra knew he still kept whiskey stowed away to warm his blood. Cassandra knew that he truly believed he believed he could be good for her and so Cassandra was going to believe that too.

Until Finnegan gave her a good reason to believe she should have no faith in him she was going to have more faith in him than any other person had in anything else.

"Such a sight for sore eyes ya are, Little Cass. Ya look like an angel all sprawled upon the bed that way."

Cassandra smiled and responded without opening her eyes. "Is Theo all taken care of? I would hate for him to be scared and all alone."

Cassandra heard the door close. Finnegan's footsteps crossed the room and then the bed dipped as he came down upon it. Cassandra felt her arms yearn to reach out for him but she remained still and unmoving even as he stretched his body out long beside hers and nuzzled at her neck.

"Aye, 'twould be a shame for him to be lonely and scared. Luckily there is a little mare who can keep him warm and safe and make him forget all about the storm ragin' outside his window."

Cassandra felt her breath catch in her chest, becoming trapped in her lungs as Finnegan's fingers traced the length of her torso, dancing over the soft mounds of her breasts. As if on cue a crash of thunder shook the windowpanes and a bolt of lightning lit the ever darkening room. Rain began to pour down upon roof and Cassandra couldn't help but laugh lightly at the way Finnegan jumped and cursed under his breath.

"You poor thing," Cassandra teased as she sat up and looked down at him. He looked miserable and afraid as his brown eyes gazed into hers.

"Why does it have to be thunder and lightnin'?" he questioned pitifully.

Cassandra stood and went to the saddlebags he had placed upon the floor. She was very much aware of Finnegan's watchful gaze as she rifled through them and found the bottle of whiskey she had known was tucked away.

Finnegan's brown eyes lit up as she held it up and gave it a little shake. "Will this help settle your nerves, Irishman?"

"It just might," he admitted, throwing his feet over the edge of the bed.

Cassandra knelt back down and fished out the deck of cards that had been with the whiskey. "What about these? Will these help?"

Finnegan leapt to his feet and bounded across the room, pulling Cassandra into his arms as he spun her around and hugged her tight. "Aye, Little Cass, those'll do just the trick! An angel is what ya are!"

Cassandra rolled her eyes as she pulled from his arms. "Let's play a little then while we wait for the storm to pass and dinner to be ready," Cassandra added, covering her growling stomach with her hand.

It had been Cassandra's hope that with Finnegan frightened of the storm and sipping at his whiskey, she might just stand a chance at truly besting him but whatever bad luck had plagued the man in his past when it came to the cards seemed to have left him.

It didn't take long before Cassandra was down to nothing but her underclothes... Finnegan was a fan of losing an article of clothing each time you lost a hand--but he swore it was only because he was playing with her.

"Finnegan, I'm not comfortable like this!" Cassandra hissed as she glanced at the locked door and heard footsteps pass on down the hall.

"Are ya scared someone might see your bloomers then, Little Cass?" Finnegan waggled his brows. "Quite a nice set of bloomers they are."

"And you've had enough whiskey in the last hour that you're seeing three pairs I am sure," Cassandra countered vaguely. "Now rather than continue this game and reach the inevitable conclusion that we can both see coming, I say that I redress myself and we head downstairs. Supper should be ready soon."

"I'd rather like to see the conclusion of the game though," Finnegan countered. "I must say it's not often I find myself on such a winning streak. It must be the high stakes of this game."

"High stakes?" Cassandra snorted.

"Oh aye," Finnegan leaned forward and the kiss he pressed to her lips was long, slow and liquid. Cassandra could feel the burn of alcohol as his tongue slipped into her mouth. He pulled away and rested his brow against hers as she tried desperately to catch her stolen breath. "A glimpse of ya out of those underclothes, a chance to graze my fingers across that bare skin, those are the highest stakes of all and some I'm not willin' to lose against."

"Well aren't you a charming devil?" Cassandra whispered with a raise of her brow.

"I've been told so a time or two," Finnegan admitted, his lips brushing her temple. "It's the Irishman in me, don't ya know?"

Cassandra was seconds away from giving in to Finnegan as he continued to leave trails of kisses across her face but a knock on the door had her leaping from the bed. "Supper will be ready in ten minutes!" Mrs. Hammond's clipped voice called. "If you're not there I won't keep it warm for you."

"Isn't she a ray of sunshine?" Finnegan mumbled. He stood from the bed with a sigh and picked Cassandra's skirt up from the floor. "Ya were saved by the dinner bell, Little Cass, but ya will not find yourself so lucky tonight."

Cassandra smiled and fixed him with a challenging gaze. "You must really think you're something special, Finn."

Finn winked, "Ya know I am, Little Cass, ya know I am."

***

A couple of hours later Cassandra found herself elbow deep in sudsy water as she listened to Finnegan, the Hammonds, and the two bickering old ladies from the stage coach, laugh, drink and gamble to their heart's content.

To say she was irritated would have been an understatement. Aggravated was not a strong enough word. Livid. Yes livid seemed to suit her mood just fine.

So much for thinking she and Finn would have a passionate night. He had so much whiskey in his blood now that she would not allow him to make love to her... not when he would wake up in the morning with no memory of what had happened between them.

It was her own fault, she knew, and that was what made it worse. She had gotten him started with the drinking and gambling and it had been her, when Mrs. Hammonds had sat down so snootily at the table and began laying down her dining rules, who had encouraged Finnegan to loosen the woman up....

Which had led to everyone in the house loosening up quite nicely. Seamus was gone, claiming that watching Finnegan make such a fool of everyone in the house was too much for him to handle though Cassandra had a feeling he had only been trying to get out of dish duty.

Finally finished with the supper dishes, Cassandra dried her hands on Mrs. Hammonds' borrowed apron and stepped out into the dining room. She couldn't help but smile when she saw Finnegan at the center of attention at the table.

The drunken din that was three cackling older ladies and two rowdy men (Mr. Hammond included) was quite comical to behold. Finnegan was landing kisses to all the ladies cheeks and hanging on Mr. Hammonds as they played hand after hand of poker.

Cassandra glanced at the elegant clock in the hall and realized it was nearing eleven. She was tired but it was very clear Finnegan would not be calling it a night anytime soon. He was currently regaling his audience with a loud, and very off-key, Irish song.

Without a word, Cassandra slipped out into the night. She wanted to get a bit of fresh air, relax in the cool breeze now that the storm and rain had passed and quickly check on Theo before heading to bed herself.

The air was nice and the breeze felt good as it teased at her thick golden curls which had fallen loose from the chignon she'd had them styled in.

Cassandra grabbed the kerosene lantern from the porch and headed out across the yard toward the barn.

It was dark and she was a bit intimidated by the oppressive night around her which was why at first she assumed she'd been hearing things when she heard the thud from within the dark, foreboding barn.

Cassandra's heart quickened its pace but she refused to allow her fear to get the better of her. Another thud sounded inside the barn, this accompanied by male voices. There were men in the barn? Who?

Another mumble filled the night and Cassandra gasped. That was Seamus. She was nearly certain. What was Seamus doing in a dark barn, at night, with another man?

Cassandra stepped into the barn holding the lantern high. "Seamus? Seamus, are you in here?"

Curses filled the air, the sound of shuffling from a nearby stall and then Seamus came stumbling out of the stall. There was straw in his dark hair and he was adjusting his pants.

"What....what are you doing?" Cassandra whispered, her eyes widening with shock when another man stepped out of the same stall.

Both men were flushed, covered in straw and looking quite sheepish and afraid. Cassandra couldn't speak. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't form a single coherent thought. Her face reddened with embarrassment and she turned to run away only to have Seamus' hand close tightly around her forearm and hold her in place.

"I can't let you run back in there like that, Cassandra," he warned.

Cassandra stared up at him with shock and was growing a bit nervous. Seamus seemed desperate as he stared down at her, his expression hard. The other man was cursing and shoving his hand through his hair as he paced back and forth.

"I.. .I won't tell anyone," Cassandra promised. "I won't tell anyone that you were out here with...with him."

Just when it seemed that Seamus might be willing to let her go, Finnegan's laughter filled the night. "I was right all along, Dear Seamus! 'Twould seem ya do have trouble with the lasses!"