The Stranger

Author's Note: Again, Thank you to CandyCaner, Ikkichi, Saige, and DarkDelta for reviewing. I loves you gaiz. Ikkichi! You gonna test that word limit? *waggle*

Sorry, inside jokes are fun only for the people who get them. I understand this. Sorry about the timing between chapters. Blame school and Ikkichi constantly distracting me with her literal ROFLing. Is hilarious.

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I chewed on my lip and let my eyes roam around the bare room nervously. They finally fell onto her face after taking a long time to avoid it.

Her normally expressionless features were in turmoil. There was the love she once had for Doowal, there was the disgust for her ex-fiancé, there was worry, but most of all there was hatred. Hatred for herself.

She opened her mouth to speak, closed it, paused and then opened it again.

“Millie… When I left that place, I died on the inside. I died with her. I thought I would never feel again… Then I rode on into this town, and I just had to walk into this bar, didn’t I?” She reached up and stopped her hand an inch from my face, afraid.

I leaned in, and let her touch me. She stroked my face gently and ran her fingers through my wild, red hair.

“You were so bright and cheerful. You were a sassy little thing that didn’t know when to shut up. You…” Her lips quirked up, her breath hitched and she stared me directly in the eyes. The amount of emotions swimming in them scared me. I gasped.

“You make me feel things that I killed long ago. I don’t know whether to love or to hate you for it.” Her eyes flicked back down and her hand dropped. She pulled her shirt back up over the beautiful design.

I missed her skin already.

“You make me feel… Fear. Attraction. Lust. Anger. Hatred. Agony. Even Love… I have no idea why you do these things to me, but I don’t know if I can ignore them… I want nothing more than to kiss you, but I’m a bad, horrible person, and I’d understand if you’d send me away. I wouldn’t blame ya in the slightest.”

My voice got caught in my throat. I didn’t know what to say. I wanted her… God I wanted her, but I didn’t know if I was strong enough.

“I… I don’t know Lynn.” I searched her face for… I didn’t even know what.

“I have no idea how to react to this. It scares me…” My hand fell to my hip and brushed over where my scar was. My lips tugged into a small smile. I guess I should reciprocate in story time, huh?

I took her hand and gently lay it on my hip where the long gash was. She wouldn’t be able to feel it through my thick dress and undergarments, but I wanted to let her know it was there.

“I have a scar here. It’s a long gash caused by a knife grazin me long ago.” My breath started to wheeze in and out of me. I hated remembering my parents’ death. “My poppa, momma and I all ran a saloon back in the city of Yellastin. After my primary education was over, I started helpin out there because we were the busiest bar in town and they needed me. I didn’t think it important to continue learnin.”

I breathed in, swallowed, and let it out in a long shaky stream.

“One night, a few years ago, a gang of thugs tried to rob us. We kept all our money in the bank, but we gave them all we had in the registers to get them to leave peacefully. They weren’t happy with it though.” I gulped and she gripped my hand tightly.

“The leader had one of his men hold me down and when he held me against the floor, he ran that knife up and down, across my skin.” I was panting.

“He was an Indian. They all were. This is why I just can’t seem to believe you when you say that all the stories aren’t true. They hurt me… killed my parents in front of me and then burned the bar to the ground.” My eyes were tearing up and my chest felt heavy and tense. Almost as if something was stuck in my heart and expanding.

“I don’t know if I can see those Indians the way you do Lynn. I just can’t see them as anything other than killers. But here you are, telling me that you are family to them and you even fell in love with one of those people… You being a killer yourself after such a long time with them don’t help either.” I gulped and the tears began making their way down my cheeks. I was so scared. I didn’t know what to do. I wanted Lynn so badly, but she terrified me.

I felt her gently brush my cheeks. I opened my eyes –I hadn’t even noticed them closing earlier –and looked at her. She was wiping my tears away with the backs of her fingers. Our eyes met and I knew she could see my fear. There was fear in her eyes as well.

She rested her forehead against mine and stroked my hair.

“I know you’re scared Millie. If I was in your shoes, I would be terrified of me, as well… I can’t promise to never hurt you, because I might… I don’t want to, you gotta believe me, but I won’t make promises that I can’t keep. We… If we try this and we get discovered, you might get hurt. They might come after me and kill me, even. I don’t know if you could handle that.” I closed my eyes and tried to take all of this in.

She wanted me. She wanted to protect me, even though she wasn’t sure she could. I knew she was a gentle person, but her murderous rage hung in the air.

Could I ever love a person that destroyed their own family?

Could we overcome our differences when it came to the red-skins?

Would I be okay with hiding my love for her?

…

Love.

…

I leaned forward those last few inches and kissed her. I didn’t know what I was doing, and both our lips were dry and chapped. She didn’t kiss back.

She pulled back and looked at me.

“Why did you do that, Millie?” I licked my lips. It was almost as if I could taste her fading presence from them.

“Well, I…” I wrung my hands, “I know we gotta lot to talk about and I know we have so much to overcome and hide from but… I really think I could love you Lynn. But… I-I wo-won’t live in the shadow of that girl. You understand that right?” I was worried that she was just lonely or something. Just using me.

She chuckled and gently cupped my face where my bruises were. Her touch didn’t feel poisonous like Ferguson’s was. It felt calm and soothing. I wanted more of it. Her thumb stroked my cheekbone.

“You are nothing like her, Millie. You two are so different and lovely in separate ways, and yes, I will always love her, but you… you are a wonderful woman in your own right, and I want you for you. Don’t ever think otherwise, but… I won’t forget about her… she taught me so much about myself and Doowal was great. I will never forget her and my love for her; do you get what I’m sayin?” I sighed and nodded.

I couldn’t replace Doowal, but I could be something new in Lynn’s life. And… hopefully… something better.

“Now, let’s try this again.” I looked at her smirking face and smiled conspiratorially. I licked my lips and she licked her own. She leaned in.

This time it was wonderful. Her slick but rough lips pressed to mine firmly. The pressure was tender yet promising. I had never kissed anyone before, but I just knew that this was exactly how it was supposed to feel.

It made my body rush with a fire that had never been there before. I felt the area between my thighs grow moist and throb in a cry for attention. I moaned and clamped them together to bring some sort of relief. What was happening to me?

She slanted her head to the side and opened her lips. Her tongue tapped against my own lips and my eyes popped open in surprise. What was she doing?

I pulled away and she smiled. She placed her hand on my chin and pulled lightly, making my mouth open slightly. She leaned in again and this time her tongue went in.

Oh lord.

I moaned at the sensations she was causing. She was tapping her tongue against my own and stroking inside my mouth softly. My hand shot up and wrapped around her neck. I felt as if I needed something to hold on to or I would just melt away from the heat pumping through me. My legs quivered and my heart pounded. I was short of breath, wheezing hard through my nose, but I didn’t want to end it.

She pulled away and I gasped for breath. Oh lord. How could people do this? I would die from lack of breath soon enough, but I wanted to do it again. No matter what happened.

I finally opened my eyes and stared at her. She was smirking and I scowled back at her.

“Liked that, did ya?”

“Of course I did, what clued you in?” She laughed and hugged me. I was so unbelievably happy in that moment. Everything was perfect. She stroked my hair.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there to keep the deputy from harming you. I don’t know if I’ll be able to protect you from him and keep our secret safe at the same time, Millie.” I snuggled my head into her neck and breathed in. I wanted to melt into her to keep myself from ever having to leave her side.

“I understand that, Lynn. I think he’s going to stay away for a while, anyway. He’s under a lot of heat from the men around here that respect me, so he’ll keep to himself for now. But, I don’t know what he might do next. He might get help the next time.” I breathed in her scent again. “I’m scared.”

“I am too, Millie. We just have to hope for the best and be careful. Whenever you see me around town, don’t get too excited. And we can’t see each other every day, or people might get suspicious, especially since it’s been floatin around that people don’t want you near me. Okay?”

“Alright.” I gripped her heavy duty shirt and pulled down that sleeve. I looked at the tattoo on her shoulder and then leaned down to kiss it.

“I will probably always be afraid of them Indians, but… I’ll try. For you, Lynn.” A bright, full smile stretched across her face and she cupped my jaw.

“Thank you. You don’t know how much that means to me, darling. Those people… they’re my true family. They understand my pain and they take me in without question whenever I absolutely need them. They really are kind people. Those men who robbed your saloon are not like most of them. I swear it.” I nodded and looked at her lips again. I wanted another kiss.

I looked up into her eyes. They were warm and inviting. She had no more barriers for me to climb over. Everything was out in the open. She was putting her trust in me and I needed to do the same.

Hell, she had my trust almost the moment she walked into my door just under a week ago.

I leaned in and kissed her again. I opened my mouth instinctively when her tongue traced my lips.

I was so damp in that place. She made me burn white-hot and whither at her touch. Her soft groan made everything worse and I tried to get closer.

I gripped her shirt even tighter and ran my hand over the exposed skin of her shoulder. She groaned again and her hands moved down the curves of my body. She ran her hand over the tops of my breasts, skimming the edge of the neckline and when her palms reached my hips she gripped my thighs gently and pulled me as close to her chest as possible.

When I moaned like an animal she snapped back and away from me.

“I-I’m so so-sorry Millie. I didn’t mean to take it that far, I swear it-“ I put up my hand and interrupted her.

“It’s okay Lynn. I promise. I enjoyed it.” She looked skeptical, but chose not to argue me on the subject.

“Okay, but we’re not gonna rush into this. I wanna do this right, Millie. Only kissin for now, okay?”

I sighed but nodded, exasperated. She smiled and kissed me again.