Page 21 of Heart of the Storm (Hearts Over Wyoming #1)

Twenty-One

The heavy snow fell outside, an unexpected storm arriving early in the season. It blanketed the world in a quiet, white stillness. Tessa sat by the window, her elbows resting on the cold wood of the windowsill, staring out at the snowy expanse of the sallow fields. The farmhouse seemed as desolate as it had been in her childhood. It felt even worse now, since she was alone.

The waiting would kill her. Waiting for spring to arrive, so she could pack her gear and follow the call of the mountains and the call of her heart.

“Mountain fever,” Ike had told her when he’d stopped by a couple of days ago. He’d brought her a side of venison, and they’d shared a pleasant afternoon reminiscing about their adventures. “Once you’re afflicted, there’s no cure.”

Tessa had smiled. “It’s more than mountain fever, I’m afraid.”

Ike was unaware that she was in love with Adrian, and he was the reason she had ‘mountain fever.’ She could settle down anywhere, even remain here on this farm, as long as it was with him.

Before he’d left, Ike had said, “I heard your pa went under a couple of days ago.” Clearly, he hadn’t wanted to bring up the bad news when he’d first arrived.

“I knew his time was close,” she’d said. A small twinge of guilt had grabbed her that she hadn’t felt anything at the news. “I assume someone gave him a proper burial.”

Ike had nodded. “Cemetery outside of Riverbend. Cletus Hobbs paid the undertaker. I heard there wasn’t any money left from the Missouri River Fur Company. Your pa was completely broke.”

“I’ll reimburse Mr. Hobbs,” she’d said. “And I know that the fur company had no more money. Even after I paid my father for the cost of the supplies we brought into the wilderness, he still owed a lot of people money.”

The sale of all the furs she’d brought back to St. Louis had been even more profitable than she’d first imagined. The demand for beaver pelts had gone up, and so had the cost. She now had enough money to start her own fur company, but that wasn’t in her plans.

“With the wages you paid me and the others, we were thinking of starting our own company,” Ike had said. “We’d be honored to have you join us next spring, Miss Tessa.”

“I plan on going back to the Tetons next spring, so I’d be happy to join you. But, I’m not going to trap beaver. I have my sights set on a bigger catch.”

Ike had looked at her with a puzzled frown. Then his eyes had lit up as if he’d finally understood, and he’d nodded. “He suits you, Miss Tessa. Adrian Storm.”

“Yes, and I just need to convince him of that.”

“You will, Miss Tessa. I have no doubt.”

The winter months would drag on too slow, but returning to the mountains was out of the question. The passes would be impossible to navigate this time of year. All she could do was sit with her thoughts, make plans, and wait.

The snow continued to fall in lazy flurries as her thoughts kept drifting back to the mountains. Back to Adrian’s face and the way he’d turned away from her the last time she’d seen him.

Why had he been so angry?

They’d grown so close, or so she’d thought. Everything had changed at the A’aninin village. She’d watched as the people of his tribe had honored him during the evening ceremony. He seemed to have been enjoying the feast and the celebration, and she’d waited patiently for it to be over so she could talk to him and tell him that she loved him. Instead, he’d been a changed man, filled once again with anger. He’d left her completely stunned and speechless, and hadn’t given her a chance to explain herself, much less given her the opportunity to let him know what was in her heart.

The next morning, when everyone had been ready to leave, there had been no sign of Adrian, and she’d had to make the most difficult decision of her life. She could have stayed and waited for him, but she’d also realized that in order to be truly happy and forge a life with the man she loved, she needed to confront her father and get the truth out of him about Jacob Storm.

Tessa drew in a deep breath, her hand unconsciously resting over the knife Adrian had given her. She had carried it since that day in the Tetons, a reminder of him, of everything she had left behind. The weight of the knife against her chest felt oddly comforting, as if it connected her to something far away – something she had lost.

Tessa’s fingers curled around the leather sheath, lifting it from beneath her shirt. The knife’s worn handle pressed into her palm, cool and familiar, a silent tie to Adrian. She traced its edge with her thumb as her mind drifted back to those fleeting months in the Tetons. She closed her eyes and let the memories consumer her.

The fire in the hearth was a reminder of the first time they’d shared a campfire, when he’d tended to her wound. The quiet strength of his voice when he’d whispered her name called to her in her sleep, and his dark eyes that had softened when they’d shared their first kiss by the firelight burned heavily in her mind. These images strengthened her resolve that she was going back to the mountains…back to him, even though his hard stare on that final night, as if she’d betrayed him somehow, left her confused.

Together, they had shared grief, vengeance, and something deeper that seemed unbreakable. Whatever had happened that night, she was going to find out and make it right again between them.

Tessa looked away from the window and stood. The chair scraped against the rough floorboards. She moved across the small room to the hearth, still holding the small knife. It was the only tangible thing she had of him at the moment. The fire’s glow reflected over the dull blade as she turned it in front of her. Why give it to her if he meant to cast her out?

Her chest tightened. Her heart had been a dull ache that hadn’t lessened in three months. In her restlessness over the weeks, she’d replayed their last moments endlessly, and heard his clipped words and the venom in the way he’d said her last name.

She couldn’t have been wrong and misread him that he didn’t care for her. He did care for her. From the beginning, they’d shared something undefinable. That unspoken thread between them had been – was – real. She’d felt it, and so had he.

The snow continued to flurry outside, swirling against the windowpane. Tessa sheathed the knife and tucked it back inside her shirt. It felt familiar against her skin. She sighed as the restlessness grew. Sitting inside the cabin, alone with her thoughts, was like being in a cage. She grabbed her coat that hung by the door and pulled it on, grabbed her rifle more out of habit, and stepped outside into the falling snow.

The cold breeze bit at her face as she trudged across the field. The sound of crunching snow under her boots was loud. At the edge of the woods, where the farm met the forest, a small mound rose beneath a bare oak. At one point, there had been a crude wooden cross made from the branches of a tree. She’d stumbled upon the grave in her childhood and had wondered about it then. When she’d returned to the cabin a few weeks ago, she’d visited the grave. Nothing had marked it, so she’d added a few rocks to outline the area, and cleared away years of debris.

This was the grave of Adrian’s mother, alone and forgotten. Tessa knelt in front of the stones, brushing away some of the snow that had accumulated. Her breath swirled around in front of her face. Perhaps she could fashion another wooden cross, like the one she remembered when she was just a girl.

“I wish I’d known you,” she murmured, cutting through the quiet. With winter coming, not even the birds sang in the trees. Her fingers lingered on a stone. She adjusted it to sit more firmly over another one. Every day since her return, she came to sit by the grave, drawn by a need to honor Adrian’s mother. It was another way she could feel close to him. In spring, before she left to return to the mountains, she would lay more stones to mark it more permanently.

A sound cracked behind her, like someone stepping on a branch. Tessa’s hand gripped her rifle. Her heart lurched as she spun around. Snow veiled the nearby trees in the woods and all was silent again, but she felt it, a definite presence. A familiar presence.

Her pulse quickened. She got to her feet, and her eyes narrowed as she glanced around. The sensation she’d felt had been unmistakable, but it wasn’t possible.

She gasped, and the rifle dropped to the ground. She shook her head. Was she seeing ghosts now? No. He was as real as he’d been the day she’d first laid eyes on him.

Adrian stood at the tree line, his silhouette stark against the white. Snow dusted his dark hair and his shoulders. He stood out just as she remembered, and his face was set in a determined line. He wore a fringed leather shirt that couldn’t possibly keep him warm from this autumn snow. His bow was in his hand, but it hung casually at his side.

His eyes, those dark and storm-filled eyes, were locked on hers as if piercing across the distance and straight into her.

Tessa’s breath caught in her throat. Her hand went to her chest as if that would steady her pounding heart. Her fingers felt the knife under her shirt. The knife that had been her only tangible link to him…until now. He was here.

“Adrian,” she whispered. Her lips trembled as she said his name. She took a step, then stopped. Part of her wanted to run to him, yet she held back. The memory of his anger and the confusion it caused weighed heavily in her mind.

The connection between them hadn’t changed – she’d sensed him before she’d seen him, just as she always had. So why had he broken their bond that night? Why had he let rage sever what they’d built, and left her grieving for months?

He stepped forward, slowly, and closed the gap between them. His moccasins were silent in the snow. He’d always moved silently.

“Tessa,” he called out. His voice was low and rough, but it held a certain longing when he said her name. He stopped a few feet away, his gaze dropping to the grave, then back to her. Neither of them spoke. Tessa was at a loss for words. Finally, he cut through the quiet between them.

“You found her.”

Tessa frowned, then looked at the mound of rocks beside her. She nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat. “Yes, I’ve always known about this grave. As a young girl, I wondered if this was your mother. Mortimer confirmed it. I couldn’t let her be forgotten.”

She shook her head, then stared at him. “Why are you here, Adrian? Why did you come all this way?”

His jaw tightened, and for a moment, it looked as if he’d turn away again. But he held her gaze. Something raw flickered in his eyes – regret, maybe, or was it shame?

“I was a fool,” he growled, but the anger was directed at himself. “That night in the village…I pushed you away because I was a coward. I and couldn’t face losing you.”

Tessa’s breath hitched. Her brow furrowed. “Losing me? You didn’t lose me – you cast me aside.” Her voice rose as her pain and confusion turned to anger. “I wanted to talk, to tell you—” She stopped, her voice cracking. “Why were you so angry?”

Adrian ran a hand over his face. “I overheard you with Ike and Todd. You said you were going back to St. Louis, to your father’s company. You were going back to him... choosing him over me.” He faltered as his eyes drifted to the grave. “I couldn’t bear the thought of losing someone else I love…not again after all the others.” His eyes became more determined, but he couldn’t hide his uncertainty. “I let my fear turn to anger, and I broke what we had. I’ve carried that regret every day since.”

Her heart twisted. Months of heartache unraveled in his words. “You love me?” she whispered. Moisture pooled in her eyes.

He nodded solemnly. Tessa stepped closer. She brought her hand up to his face.

“I love you, too. I wanted to tell you that night.”

His hand reached up to cover hers. “Then why had you planned to leave?” he pleaded.

Tessa gave a soft laugh. “You didn’t give me the chance to explain,” she said softly. “I had to come back to St. Louis to face my father. I had to know the truth about what he did to Jacob Storm. Ever since you told me he killed your father, I’ve been torn. I needed to know if it was true…and so I could break all ties with him for what he did.” She swallowed. “I planned to come back in spring, to tell you that I love you.”

Adrian’s eyes widened, a mix of emotions flashing across his face. “You…truly love me?” His voice was barely above a whisper, as if testing the words.

“Yes,” she said in a firm voice despite the tremble in her chest. “With everything that was happening, I never found the right time to tell you.”

In one swift move, he pulled her into his embrace. His hand cupped the side of her face, and he stared into her eyes. “Forgive me, Tessa. I allowed my old habits to rule me.” A slow grin lightened his face. “My mother, Ahka’aweh, told me I was a fool. She urged me to follow you, and tell you what is in my heart.” He took a deep breath. “I love you, Tessa. I will no longer allow fear or hate rule over my actions. This I promise.”

Tessa’s eyes stung. She leaned into him then, and the feel of his arms around her dissolved any final misgivings. His warmth chased away the cold from the snowy autumn day. She lifted her chin in an unspoken invitation.

Adrian stared down at her, his eyes now warm and soft, and he brought his lips down on hers in the same quiet and tender way he’d done the first time they’d kissed.

“What happens now?” Tessa whispered against his lips.

Adrian smiled. “Now, the bond between us will never be broken again…if you’ll have me as your husband.”

Tessa’s eyes widened. “Yes…yes, of course,” she mumbled. There was no question in her mind that this was what she wanted.

“And then we will decide where to go. I can learn to live as a white man, if that’s what you want.”

“What if I want to go back to the mountains. We’ll build a life together under the Teewinots.” She clasped her hands behind his neck and smiled. “I already have a plan.”

Adrian grinned. His eyes roamed over her face. “As long as your plan includes me,” he mumbled, then lowered his head to kiss her again. In that kiss, the last remnants of pain, anger, and fear vanished, replaced by the promise of a new beginning that would take them both to where their hearts belonged.