Why couldn’t Kora have yelled at him about the Colt, or about being late to the table, or about the mud he’d tracked all over her kitchen? Why’d she have to act like nothing was wrong when he knew she must hate him? But, hell, the woman even passed him the first piece of pie. That was about as far as he’d be pushed, he’d almost exploded.

Win could stand the study’s confinement no longer. He almost jerked the door from its hinges as he bolted out of the room and down the hall to the kitchen. He would allow her to drive him mad no longer. It was time she faced him and had her say. How was he supposed to defend himself if she didn’t take a swing at him? She’d probably thought out this strategy of kindness just to drive him insane. Well, he would stand for it no more.

The kitchen was dark except for the glowing fire in the corner and the flashes of lightning from the windows.

Win stormed back down the hall and up a flight of stairs. If she’d gone to bed without a word, it would be the last straw.

But when he touched the railing to the final staircase, he hesitated. What if she were packing? What if she’d already left him despite the rain?

Jamie opened her bedroom door only a few feet from where Winter stood. ‘‘Evening, brother. I figured you went over with Wyatt and Cheyenne to the bunkhouse for a game of cards.’’ She looked pouty. ‘‘They made it plain I wasn’t invited.’’

‘‘I didn’t go.’’ Winter looked up the stairs toward his bedroom. ‘‘I was working in the study and finally decided it was time to turn in.’’

Jamie laughed. ‘‘I never know if you’re going up or down. I figured you were sleeping downstairs again. You’re worse than a yo-yo. I’ve seen bedbugs stake claims longer than you do, cowboy. She kick you out again?’’

Winter frowned. ‘‘No.’’ He wished he’d managed to sound more definite. ‘‘I just had some work I needed to do in the study first.’’

‘‘Well, try to stay up there all night this time. You wake me up always tromping down these stairs.’’ She leaned against the door facing. ‘‘I could give you some advice.’’

‘‘I don’t need any!’’ Winter snapped. ‘‘I’m doing fine on my own.’’

He took the stairs two at a time, wishing his words were true. Kora probably hated him more than she had ever hated anyone. For all he knew, she’d blockaded herself in the room or would toss him out in the rain. But not without a fight. If that was what she wanted, he’d give her one.

When he reached the top of the stairs, the warm glow of several lamps greeted him. Kora was curled in a blanket in an overstuffed chair she’d set next to the bookshelves. She glanced over at him, and he saw the fear in her eyes. Raw, childlike fear.

Winter almost turned around, but he wasn’t sure he could stand another day of arguing with himself. He took a step toward her.

‘‘Win,’’ she whispered, and in one sudden movement she was up from the chair and running toward him.

He caught her in midair as her arms wrapped around his neck with such force, for a moment he wasn’t sure if she was hugging or attacking.

‘‘I was wrong about the room!’’ she cried. ‘‘It’s frightening up here.’’

Her words didn’t register. The feel of her against him, the smell of her surrounding him, the light dancing in her hair was all he could take in.

‘‘What?’’ he said as he held her.

Kora pulled away. ‘‘The lightning looks like it will hit the house at any moment, and the thunder rattles the glass. I don’t like this place anymore. Maybe we can both sleep in the study tonight? Up here, it’s like being in the middle of a thundercloud.’’

Winter smiled and lifted her off the floor in his arms. She wasn’t frightened of him; she was frightened of the storm. ‘‘It’s all right,’’ he whispered as he carried her back to the chair.

He sat down and pulled the blanket over them both. ‘‘The captain told me once that he ordered the glass for these windows all the way from Chicago. He said the wood in the frame will split before the glass will break. The house has stood for fifty years without a storm taking it down, and I think it will be all right tonight. But if the storm bothers you, I could have shutters put up for nights like this.’’

She cuddled into his lap, leaning her head on his shoulder. ‘‘I’m sorry to be such a fool. I usually don’t let storms bother me. It doesn’t seem so bad now that you’re here.’’ She placed her hand over his heart. ‘‘Jamie would make fun of me for being so childish. I like to see the sky, but when it’s stormy I feel closed in. Shutters might be a good idea.’’

Win thought of all the things he’d considered saying to her. How he’d argued with himself for hours. In his mind he’d apologized, blamed her, and organized his strategies all day. But now, with her curled in his arms, he couldn’t remember what he’d been going to say.

‘‘Kora,’’ he finally whispered as his hand moved comfortingly along her back. ‘‘About last night.’’

She raised her head and looked at him, blue eyes full of question. ‘‘I forgot to thank you for placing your shirt where you did.’’ She paused and looked down, embarrassed at the memory. ‘‘It helped ease the pain considerably.’’

Win leaned his head back and closed his eyes. She wasn’t holding up her half of the discussion he’d planned. But he’d already prepared his reply and it jumped from his mouth before he could stop the words. ‘‘Well, don’t expect me to apologize for taking what’s mine.’’ He knew he sounded rough. That hadn’t been the way he’d meant to say it. ‘‘You should have reminded me you were a virgin and to slow down some. I may not be as experienced in these matters as you seem to think. You can’t expect me to slow down in the middle of a stampede.’’

Kora straightened in his arms and moved to face him. ‘‘I didn’t ask you to apologize.’’ Each word rose in anger. ‘‘And I didn’t think you were so dense that I’d have to remind you I was a virgin. And you don’t have to tell me you aren’t an overactive lover. I think I figured that out on my own last night.’’

He steadied her back as she squirmed in his lap. It was one thing for him to express his lack of female partners in bed, and quite another for her to comment on the fact.

Before he could think of anything to say, she attacked. ‘‘I don’t know what I have to do to convince you I’m not some fragile doll made of china that will break. I can take all the bedding you want to give, but I’ll not be taken like a whore, and that’s final.’’

She stood and faced him with her hands on her hips. Her anger rivaled the storm outside. ‘‘The act of mating hurt me far more than I thought it would, but I survived. Last night when I finished crying, I realized I’m your wife, not because of some bargain we made or because you bedded me, but because I want to be. And if you weren’t so stubborn and bullheaded, you’d realize the same thing. We’ll share a bed as married folks do, but we’ll only do the act when both of us are willing. So don’t go thinking you were taking when I was the one giving.’’

Winter felt the anger in him building. She wasn’t saying any of the things he’d thought she would, but she’d obviously practiced for this discussion as he had. She wasn’t crying or throwing him out, or even running from him like a frightened rabbit. ‘‘Are you saying you’ll sleep with me again?’’

‘‘I am,’’ Kora answered directly. ‘‘But there will be no more bedding until the bruises heal. You’ll not touch me until then. And you’ll never leave a mark on me again.’’

‘‘Like hell.’’ Win pulled her back into his lap with a sudden jerk. ‘‘I’ll try never to bruise you again, but I’m not waiting to touch you. Last night in the orchard you said I could touch you whenever I liked.’’

Before she could protest, his lips covered hers. All the worry and anger vanished as he tasted her again. He groaned when she only hesitated a moment before opening her mouth to his. She was right about one thing. He knew he was her husband and would be until the day he died. Not because of any bargain or last night, but because he wanted to be.

When he finally lifted his head, she made no move to leave his arms.

‘‘I’ve been waiting all day to taste you again.’’ He brushed her cheek with his knuckles. ‘‘I like the way your mouth looks when it’s been kissed.’’

She cuddled into his arms, resting her head on his shoulder. The kiss had cooled her anger as well and reminded her of the part of last night that she’d enjoyed greatly.

‘‘I didn’t intend to hurt you last night,’’ he whispered as he stroked her hair. ‘‘I’ve spent my life working hard and, when the need came, fighting hard. You’re the first person in my life who ever made me want to soften my touch. I didn’t think about it much, but I figured even if you hadn’t slept with Adams, at your age you’d have already had a few lovers.’’

Kora straightened slightly. ‘‘I’m not the kind of woman men notice. I’ve seen men fall all over themselves to open the door for a lady in front of me and let the door close in my face without even noticing.’’

Win laughed. ‘‘I find that hard to believe.’’ But he remembered the way Logan had first described her and how he’d thought he was marrying a shadow to live in his house. ‘‘There was no one?’’ Win watched her closely.

Kora smiled. ‘‘When I was ten there was a boy who lived next door to a basement room we rented. He kissed me once.’’

‘‘So I’m not the first?’’

‘‘No,’’ Kora answered. ‘‘And what of you, Win?’’

Win frowned. ‘‘Men don’t talk about the women in their past.’’

Kora’s bottom lip came out. ‘‘I told you.’’

Win fought to keep from kissing her. ‘‘All right,’’ he finally answered. ‘‘The first time I was man enough to handle a cattle drive the captain bought me a woman when we reached Dodge. I’d had so much to drink I don’t remember much except she’d earned her money and was gone before I finished the bottle.’’