𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚'𝙨 𝙢𝙘𝙙𝙤𝙤𝙣 . .

Kate had been lucky enough to know love... at least the beginnings of it. She and Sam never spoke on it. They had only shared one kiss. But she had been in love with him. He had been the answer to what she had needed at the time... and now it felt that Henry was the answer to who she was now. She wasn't Miss Katherine anymore. She had been hardened. She had faced the cruel realities of the world had on. The grief had ripped her open, and slowly, the wounds had started to scar over. It didn't mean she didn't have days and moments that knocked the air from her lungs. Those were still very apparent. But right now? Things were good. Great, even. And she was going to fight tooth and nail before she allowed someone she cared about to be ripped from her again.

Her arms tightened around his neck when he pressed her flush to him, a grin against his lips before she melted into his kiss with a soft hum. She turned her arm to cradle the back of his wet head of hair, lips moving to let her tongue seek out his. Actions that spoke what three words were fighting so hard to come out.

Her tongue brushes to find his and he meets it, letting his own slide against hers for a deeper kiss. He hums a low sound into it, holding her close to him still. He feels good and he knows that isn't short lived anymore, not with Kate around. He'd never felt what he felt for her before and it was consuming, overwhelming, and right there on the tip of his tongue. He'd never spoken such thoughts aloud to anyone-- no matter the bedfellow. No one had ever made him feel the way Kate does and he knows that's part of the reason Cletus hates her, but McDoon is to selfish to think about that. He respects Cletus and enjoys traveling with him, but whatever transpired between them those few times... it was nothing as fiery as what happened with Miss Katherine.

He breaks the kiss, but only so he can kiss a line down her along her jaw and to her neck. Despite making it to her neck he places one kiss, soft and unseeming near her ear. He tips his head and his nose bumps her earlobe, shaky breath escaping as he holds her just a bit tighter. "Kate..." he exhales it then brings in another breath that's nearly uneven. Wasn't like him to be nervous or unsure. Usually he was confident and certain, but with this... "Could you see yourself with me?" He draws back slightly, an even expression on his face as he looks over her own, "You travel with me, you sleep beside me, and we kiss like we're about to walk the gallows after... but do you want me and this life?"

. . . 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐓 𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆

there was a lazy grin plastered across her lips as she tilted her head, completely dissolving in the feeling of his lips against her skin and his hands on her. what was happening between the two of them? it was fiery and electric. it made her feel more alive that she had ever felt. she wanted it to consume her, wanted to wrap herself up tight in it. though she wasn't quite to the edge of speaking on those feelings, they were there, and today, she was showing him that. not just in their teasing comments and wandering hands, no. it had all started the moment she had gotten that key to break him out, the refusal to leave him behind.

a soft moan formed in her throat when his hand dipped and grazed between her legs, her head gently bumping back against his shoulder. " better hang on, " she murmured with a twist of a grin before she turned off the path to head for the watering hole she had mentioned.

a few minutes down the trail, she arrived at the large pond, one that reflected the clear blue sky and had the perfect amount of shade in the form of long-limbed willow trees. she found one to hitch beauty up to, sliding off the saddle after henry and tying her reins to one of the limbs. she popped her saddle bag to give beauty a carrot and some sugar cubes to tide her over and made sure she had enough slack to nibble on some of the grass along the shore and sip some of the water before clothes became piled within one another's on the shore. a shirt here, gun belt there, a boot off to the side. laughter and splashing filled the air as the two dipped into the pond.

her long locks had been slicked back and her lips were stained but faded from the dip the water. her arms found their way around henry's neck, legs around his waist as she released a soft hum of contentment in basking in the warmth of the sun and coolness of the water. here in this moment, three words were fighting their way towards the tip of her tongue, but she swallowed them back. " having a better day now, jailbird? " she teased in a soft hum, a volume reserved for their close proximity as she tipped her head forward to rest her forehead against his.

When they arrived at the clearing he slid off the mare in order to give his legs a stretch, arms coming up as well. He turned to watch as she tended to her horse, eyes trailing along her frame and small smirk eating at his face. Damn was he a lucky man. He wouldn't outwardly speak it into existence, but he was certain the two of them were tangled beyond physicality. Hell, if it'd been about the sex he would still be rotting in a cell. No, he knew there was something deeper there. Something that was brewing and bubbling, but it wasn't like him. Did he often have thoughts and fantasies about living a life without all the robbing and killing? Maybe. But he could see it as both. He enjoyed what he did, enjoyed the life of a bandit-- but the idea of a woman to love and to hold beyond an intimate sense? Was it too much to feel that way about Kate? Or was he right to think she felt it too seeing as she risked herself to get him free? God, he felt a fool thinking like this, but it was hard not to.

When she turned to face him it wasn't long before they were against each other, hands roaming and grabbing at articles of clothing until they were both bare and stumbling into the water. He welcomed the cool touch of it and the way it washed his skin of the jail he'd been in. But he welcomed more the sight of Kate, the warmth of the sun giving her a slight flush to her skin as she moved and dipped in the water. He was hypnotized watching her and was almost glad she hadn't noticed his stare when she came over to him, closing the distance to wrap around him completely. He was still standing within the pond, the water coming up to just below his biceps. It allowed him to hold her, hands sliding down to her thighs and holding them steady-- close.

having a better day now, jailbird?

A low chuckle leaves him, eyes flicking from her large brown eyes to the pout of her messily stained lips. He gives a nod and tips his head from where she's resting against it, allowing lips to ghost hers, "Mightily so." He presses in after, mouth brushing to hers for a slow and warm kiss. His right hand leaves her thigh in order to slide up and around, arm pressing to her lower back so he can bring her flush against him even more. He exhales contently through his nose, smiling some into the kiss without a care in the world.

kissing a bandit was deadly work. he was someone that her parents would hate to see her with. her church going devout parents? they'd faint the sight of a wanted criminal. but there was something about him that spoke to her soul, that wrapped around it and gave it a squeeze with all its might. she had never had her chest leap at the sight of someone before, but here she was, living out the lines of poetry and romances that she loved to read.

she knew that green lake was small but bustling, and anyone could pass by the school house with its open door and windows to let the air in and see what was happening inside. especially trout walker. he had been incessant lately. she flushed at the thought of being caught and released a soft, shy little laugh in their closeness. " or i could take you to my home, " she hummed, releasing a soft sigh at their bodies pressed together at her desk. " give you a warm . . . comfy bed to stay in tonight . . . as long as you'd like -- "

or i could take you to my home...

Her hummed words are nearly purred to him in that closeness, dark eyes flickering between lips and beautiful brown hues. He's hooked almost instantly on the idea, giving a slow nod as she continues with her offer. He liked the sound of that... all of that. He couldn't give her an exact length on how long he'd be in town, but he knew he could stay tonight and tomorrow. It was usually trouble to stay long in a place... people would start noticing him, start paying attention, recognize his face. Couldn't have that... no matter how good Miss Barlow kissed or perfectly wrapped her legs around him.

"Rather enjoy the sound of all that," he crooned in the closeness, hand sliding around to her back and other coming up to catch her chin. He gently tipped her head so he could lean in and brush a soft kiss to her lips, delicate but filled with slow growing hunger. He held it for a moment then drew away, letting her sit with it as he put space between them. He grabs his hat from her desk as he does so, bringing it up to place on his head and adjusting it to sit perfectly. His voice falls out again as he settles a foot or so off from her, "Shall I meet you there, Miss Barlow? Or would walkin' together spark your fancy and what it could mean for someone to see?"

schoolteachers were held to a certain standard outside of the normal citizens. it was written on the very paper that kate had signed when she was hired to be green lake's primary schoolteacher. teachers were to present themselves in public with demure purity. they weren't to drink, they weren't to marry during the terms of their contract, they weren't even to be in the company of another man in public. she was to be miss barlow from the second she stepped out of her house, no matter the hour or day.

there were men who tested those limits. men who gave flirty little comments. trout walker was the most forward of them all. there wasn't an adult education session that he wouldn't end without a flirtatious comment or another request for her to let him take her out.

trout, remember the contract . . .

however, when kate found herself tangled with an outsider, someone who was more rugged and rough than the likes of the men in this town? the contract was the last thing on her mind. something about henry mcdoon had fire coursing through kate's veins. his visits were far and brief, but when they collided? she felt alive. she felt something burning within her that she hadn't realized she had been yearning.

she had stayed late at the school to prepare it for the impending winter and catch up on some grading when @mcswoon had walked through the doors. her heart nearly leaped out of her chest at the sight of him, and there was no hiding the grin that grew across her lips. she giggled as he grabbed her by the skirt and pulled her into a kiss, one she melted into and wrapped her arms around his neck as he backed her towards her desk.

she exhaled a soft sigh as he tore from her lips to drag down her neck, grabbing his black cowboy hat with one hand to set on the desk so the fingers on the other hand could run through his dark locks.

i had a dream about you.

his panted confession against her neck had a grin spreading across her lips. " you wanna tell me what it was about? " she murmured, turning her head to nuzzle her nose against his hair before she pressed a soft kiss. " i missed you . . . "

Henry didn't make it a commonality to present himself in a town more than once or twice, but something about Green Lake kept him coming back. Something, heh. He knew what that something was and he wasn't one to shy away from the admittance of it when Cletus said something quippy regarding it. The bandit was in an iron grasp of desire when it came to a brunette woman with large eyes and pink lips. Kate Barlow was beautiful, quick, and smart. She also knew what she was doing when it came to putting those pretty lips of hers to work. So coming back? That was normally always aa possibility when they were within the area... and sometimes it was just him, Cletus too annoyed to join him or worried they were getting too comfortable. After all-- McDoon was a wanted man. He couldn't be showing his face all willy-nilly because he was entangled with a school teacher.

How that came about was a slow burn, in a sense. He'd chatted with her as she walked home one night, riding along on Hornet and admiring her as they went. She didn't part from him with much more than a quiet goodbye, but soon enough he was making a habit of it over the course of a few months when he and Cletus would pass through. Pass through. It wasn't until he was tangling up with Miss Barlow that it started to be more of a fixture... a more out of their way trip. Cletus was sick of it, but fuck was McDoon enjoying himself. It had been at least two months since he'd been able to roll into town. And so here he was, tying Hornet up outside the school house when he didn't find her at her home. He walked through the doors, boots clicking against the floor in a way that got her attention. She looked up and their eyes met before he was crossing the rest of the space to reach for her.

He admits what's on his mind as he kissed her, lips brushing her pulse point with the confession. She asks her question about it and he smirks there, thinking briefly before pausing as she mentions having missed him. The arrogant bastard within him wants to tell her he knows and of course she did, but instead he drew himself back some so he could look down at her. His dark eyes flicking across her expression then settling onto her soft gaze, "I felt it'd been long enough-- couldn't have you missin' me too damn much." Part of him wanted to repeat it back, but he wasn't that guy. He never had been. Though, Hell, he'd never been one to return to the same pair of legs as often as he was with her either...

He brought a hand up to catch her by the jaw gently, tipping her head and dragging his thumb over her bottom lip, "But that dream? God was it good." He flicked his eyes down to her lips, "Don't compare to the real thing though..." dark hues return to her gaze, "might be a good reason to why I'm here now." He stepped a bit closer, pressing her further against the desk, "And I'd play that dream out right here, but..." he nodded his head towards a wall of windows, "Would hate to have someone see you canoodlin' with the likes of someone on a Wanted poster."

" don't start with that -- " kate was quick to protest with a quiet sigh when he asked his first question about not telling him. she was going to tell him somehow, some way. but soon, she noticed his hand unclip his gun and before she could react, his other hand was in her hair. her heart sank to her stomach as her head was yanked back, the nausea creeping up her esophagus and catching in her throat as she yelped.

the stoic expression was lost as she was forced to stare up at him. fear had taken its place, not from him lashing out though. she understood where his anger was coming from. but she was scared. so fucking scared of bringing a child into this cruel, cold world. scared of what might happen with them being on the road and run constantly. she wasn't a schoolteacher in a cushioned life where a midwife would come at a beckoned call, no. she didn't know where they'd be when that time come or if any help would be there. at this rate, she didn't know if henry or cletus would be there either.

" i - i just found out. i only noticed a couple of days ago! " she insisted, her bottom lip quivering as tears flooded her brown eyes. she exhaled a few sharp breaths to pull herself together, jaw tightening. " now get your hands off'a me and don't you ever fuckin' touch me like this again if you wanna keep 'em -- "

i - i just found out. i only noticed a couple of days ago!

His hand in her hair pulled just a bit tighter only to let up some what when she began to tell him to get his hands off of her. He bit back the growl and curl of his lip, teeth clamped onto his tongue and hands letting her go with a huff through his nose. He stepped back from her and shook his head, "Don't speak to me like that. Y'ain't gonna like what comes from it." A threat, but would he act on it? He wasn't sure in that moment. Instead he found himself staring at her, watching what she'd do next or say. It was a complicated situation and he was aware of that. He knew that she was probably just as surprised by it as he was-- if not more. Sure they weren't taken the proper precautions with all their moving about, but it was still shocking to see that coming back against them. Truthfully he wasn't too sure what to feel about all this.

Part of McDoon wanted a family. A wife, kids... the whole thing. He didn't know when that would come around, but he knew he craved it. He also knew he felt something heavy for Kate. He was reacting so terribly with this, but it was in his damned nature. He reacted angry, bold, and forcefully. But the truth was... he should be handling it differently. Handling her differently. He had strong feelings for Kate and the way he was acting?

He turned halfway from her, hand raising to brush at the lower half of his face. He shut his eyes and breathed out a slow breath then looked to her again, hand dropping to his side, "What are you wantin' from me with this, Kate?"

his little frustrated grumble earned a snickered laugh from kate. she moved with him to roll over, her knees falling onto the bed roll at either side of his hips. " hush now, " she scolded playfully, a hand coming up to brush her hair back that had fallen into her face as she felt him grab her hips and slam them down against his. her lips parted with a groan as her brow furrowed and bottom lip found purchase between her teeth.

" you ain't got a lick of manners or patience, you know that, " she scolded again with a smirk. as tough as he was, she loved watching him get worked up, loved to see him hot and squirming. her hands came down to smooth against his chest as her gaze found his, a warmth behind her large brown eyes as she studied him while she started to roll her hips down against him.

She scolded him and he just huffed a sound. He knew that. He wasn't a man born of patience or manners. He could be charming, he could woo, but manners? Don't make him laugh. He knew what he wanted and when he wanted it, taking it all by the horns was better than waiting around and asking please-- even if he'd teased her with a scold of his own on her not saying the word prior to insisting they move. McDoon was a hungry man and he liked to be feed in whatever way possible-- physically, mentally, and emotionally. Kate checked all the boxes in providing the food, if you will, for that. Couldn't blame him for not finding something he never had.

"Can't have what I was never given," he murmured before she pressed her hands along his chest and began to move. Instantly he was brought back to the bliss of the moment, hands on her hips giving yet another squeeze before one slid down to rest on her thigh. His face curled with a grunt of pleasure and he watched as she rolled, her body lifting and falling every so slightly but enough to bounce her perky breasts. He watched with marvel before forcing his eyes to her face, needing to see the way she'd soon crumble with all of this.