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“No, he didn’t tell me he loved me right away.

He did court me first. But it wasn’t long after that he told me he loved me.

” A wistful look crossed her face. “Your brother was romantic. He would bring me flowers and candy, and when we went to dinner parties, he only danced with me. Wherever we went, I felt like no other lady existed. His devotion was completely for me.”

That did sound romantic. What Bernadette wouldn’t give to have Blaze act like that.

To be fair to him, Blaze was attentive in some ways.

He helped her on and off her horse. He made sure her horse was saddled up and ready to go for the day.

He led her horse to the water. He took the saddle off the horse at the end of the day and left it free enough to graze.

He even kissed the top of her hand once in a while and told her she was pretty.

But the more he did these things, the more it seemed he did them out of necessity, because it was his role as her betrothed to do them.

Now, as she watched Blaze and Zeke, she got the sinking feeling that Blaze was far more interested in teaching Zeke how to help him apprehend Lee and Wilson than he was in her.

The end of another day had come. Blaze pulled the reins on his horse so it came to a stop.

He got off of the steed in one swift motion then tied the reins to a nearby tree.

Bernadette pulled her horse next to his and waited for him to help her down.

It was funny how quickly people fell into a routine.

They hadn’t been traveling for a full week, and everyone in the group did their part without even thinking about it.

“How are you holding up?” he asked her as her feet hit the ground.

“I’m doing fine,” she replied.

“Good. I’m glad all of this traveling isn’t wearing you out.

” Out of habit, he kissed her hand. He wasn’t sure when he started doing that, but it was something she seemed to like, so he saw no reason to stop.

Perhaps he would kiss her hand every evening after they married.

Maybe he would do it to thank her for cooking his dinner.

He released her hand then said, “I should check the map with Zeke. I’d like to know if we were able to shave off an hour or two from the total time it will take us to get to Quartzsite.

After that, we’ll have something to eat.

You’ll like what I have planned for tonight.

I have some wild honey in a jar to put on our biscuits. ”

He gave her a wink then hurried to get their horses ready for the night.

All day long, he had thought of how he and Zeke might trap Lee and Wilson.

Ideally, they would avoid a gunfight. The best strategy was always the one that avoided gunfire.

But sometimes one couldn’t escape the need for guns, and Zeke still wasn’t ready for a scenario like that.

He reached Zeke just as Zeke opened the map. “It looks like I have good timing,” Blaze told Zeke.

“I want to see how much progress we made today,” Zeke replied. “I think we were faster than we were yesterday.”

“I think so, too. It helped that we had the wind to our backs.”

Their gazes went to the map, and within a few moments, Blaze was satisfied with their progress. He was relieved that having two women in the group hadn’t slowed them down. Bernadette and Gail, thankfully, were skilled riders.

“Do you think we’re really going to reach the X on this map when Lee and Wilson do?” Zeke asked, his hopeful tone laced with a hint of doubt.

“As long as we believe it, we will,” Blaze replied.

Zeke frowned. “It doesn’t seem like whether we believe it or not will make any difference.”

“If we don’t believe it, we’ll slow down, and that will hinder our progress.

” When Zeke still seemed apprehensive, he gave him a firm pat on the shoulder.

“It’s true. I’ve seen it happen before. As soon as you believe you can achieve something, you act in ways that will lead you in the direction you want to go.

Success starts in the mind. You can’t give in to doubt.

Doubt tells you what you can’t do. If you focus on your doubts, you will act in ways that will reinforce the doubts. ”

“I don’t know, Blaze. I can tell myself I’m brave all day long, but I might not act that way when it comes time to go up against Lee and Wilson.”

Blaze thought over his words. “When the doubts come up, remind yourself of what you’ve accomplished.”

Zeke’s frown deepened. “That will work?”

Blaze nodded. “It will if you let it. Whatever the doubt is, find something to combat it. For instance, if you doubt you can shoot a certain target, remind yourself of the other targets you’ve shot.”

The frown eased. “I suppose that could work.”

“It will work, and you’ll find out for yourself how well it’ll work after we eat. Why don’t you get dinner started? I’ll set the targets up.”

With a nod, Zeke tucked the map away.

Blaze retrieved the things they would need and headed for the group of trees that were safely out of the way from everyone else. Though Zeke was still timid, he was willing to learn, and that made him feel much better about the upcoming confrontation with Lee and Wilson.