Page 3 of May I Kiss the Bride

VIOLA HADN’T PLANNED ON SLEEPING; in fact, she’d highly doubted she’d be able to manage it, but somehow she opened her eyes in the middle of the night.

The sleeping cabin was pitch-black—save for the swath of stars through the window.

She’d purposely kept the curtains open since she wanted to see the train robbers if they happened to be riding horses alongside the train.

She had to know when to duck.

Which is what the sheriff had told her to do.

When she’d confirmed that, no, she didn’t know how to shoot a pistol, and, no, she wasn’t willing to kill a man, he’d told her that she should plan on hiding beneath her sleeping bunk if the train was forced to stop.

At the very least, stay below all windows if shooting started.

Well. It was quite a wonder that she fell asleep at all.

The train hadn’t slowed, and the steady chugging of the wheels upon steel rails hadn’t changed. So what had awakened her?

Pulling her robe about her dress, she climbed off the sleeping bunk and stepped up to the window. She had decided not to change into her night clothes. If she were going to be robbed, it wouldn’t be in her nightgown.

The stars raced by and the moon seemed to bobble a bit.

Were they in Wyoming territory yet?

She looked toward her closed door and wondered about the sheriff.

Was he awake, watching and waiting like he said he’d be?

What if he’d fallen asleep and didn’t see the train robbers until it was too late?

What was his plan? To stick his arm out a window and start shooting?

Again her mind returned to the possibility of him falling asleep and then all havoc breaking loose.

There was only one thing to do.

Find him and make sure he was ready for his job.

Viola tied her sash about her robe, securing it closed, then she opened the compartment door. All of the other doors in the sleeping car were closed, and everything seemed quiet and peaceful.

She moved along the corridor, the floor rumbling beneath her.

Once she reached the dining car, she scanned the place, only to find it empty.

She headed toward the lounge with the benches where she’d first met Rey.

The gaslights had been turned off, so it took her a minute to adjust to the darkened interior.

Rey sat in the same location she’d left him.

He wasn’t stretched out though, with his hat pulled low.

No, he was leaning forward, elbows on knees, as he studied the window.

Through the window, the sky had lightened from a deep black to a murky gray.

She guessed it would be some time before the sun rose, but the landscape was taking shape and form.

“You’re safer in your sleeping cabin, Miss Delany,” Rey’s voice rumbled in the near darkness.

She shouldn’t be surprised he’d heard her come in, but she flinched all the same at the sound of his voice. She walked to the bench and sat across from him. “See anything?”

He shifted his gaze to her, but she couldn’t see much of his expression on his shadowed face.

“Nothing yet, but that doesn’t mean nothing’s out there.”

His words sent a cool chill through her. He’d shed his rawhide jacket, and it sat on the bench next to him. This allowed her to see the two pistols in a holster strapped to his hips.

She turned to look out the same window he was watching.

She couldn’t make out anything unusual, apart from fields of grass and groups of trees.

She couldn’t even see roads or houses. Eventually, the gray gloom softened and pinked.

The sun moved closer to pushing over the western horizon, and Viola began to make out more details.

The pale green of sagebrush. The deeper green of summer leaves on trees.

The stretches of yellow-green grass blowing in the wind.

Suddenly Rey stood and swept off his hat.

Viola popped to her feet. “What is it? Did you see them?”

His eyes landed on her for an instant. “Saw something. Hold my hat.”

She grasped his hat with both hands and stared as he slid not one, but two pistols from his holster belt. He didn’t check to see if they were loaded, which meant he’d already loaded them.

“Rey,” she said as he stepped away from the bench. “Can I … help?”

A small grimace appeared on his face. “Keep my hat safe.”

Was that all? Not that she could manage a pistol, but surely … maybe she could alert the passengers? “What if—”

“Get back in your cabin,” he cut in. “Stay hidden. And if you’re a praying woman, I wouldn’t mind a good word put in for me.”

Viola opened her mouth to respond, but Rey strode toward the door that connected to the next car. He tugged it open, stepped through, then closed it firmly behind him.

Something in her belly tugged and she had the sudden urge to hurry after him. Surely she could do more than pray. Instead, she rushed to the window. What had he seen? And was the train slowing?

Her heart hammered its way up her throat as her gaze moved across the landscape speeding past. Grass, sagebrush, trees, a river … Then she saw it. Or more accurately, them .

Five riders atop horses. The beasts were charging ahead of the train as if in a race to the next train depot.

But there was no train depot coming up, and the horses were sprinting, their eyes wide, their mouths open as if in a scream.

The riders had whips and they were using them generously on the horses’ flanks.

Viola hated all five men on the spot. First, they dared to rob this train and steal from hardworking folks, and second, they were terrorizing their horses.

Viola didn’t know what she’d do if they boarded the train and demanded valuables, but she wouldn’t be hiding underneath any bunk. She’d give them a piece of her mind.

Gripping Rey’s hat in one hand, she scooped up his jacket with her other hand. Then she marched to the connecting door. Opening it, she found another corridor leading to another car. Rey must have gone through there. So she did too.

The next car was a storage car. Filled with crates and trunks.

The windows were high and let in very little light, but she continued through and opened the next door.

The engine was louder now, and she must be getting closer to the front of the train.

She entered the next car to find it was another storage car. Still, no Rey. How far had he gone?

She was about to open the next door when the train lurched, accompanied by a high-pitched screech. Viola lost her balance and fell next to one of the crates. Were they completely stopping? And did that mean Rey hadn’t been able to stop the train robbery?

Were the robbers climbing aboard even now? Had they shot Rey?

Viola’s stomach soured as panic raced through her.

She gripped the nearby crate to haul herself up, but before she could stand, the door burst open in front of her.

The tall figure coming through the door could have been anyone.

The morning sunlight behind the man obscured his features, but when he spoke, there was no doubt it was the cowboy. Alive.

“Ms. Delany?” he barked. “What are you doing here? I thought I told you to stay in your cabin.”

Relief shot through her so swiftly, she had to keep ahold of the crate. “I wanted to check on you.”

He didn’t seem amused. In fact, his face was pale, and perspiration stood out on his forehead. That’s when she noticed. Blood soaked his shirt. It seemed to be everywhere. One of his hands gripped his stomach while the other hand still held a pistol.

Viola’s knees gave out and she again slid to the ground. This time, everything went black.