An Outlaw's Weakness*Fifth in Crane Gang series*

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

"That road leads to a town, doesn't it? I saw the sign," Preston said, pointing toward the road they were riding passed.

Xavier nodded. "Yeah, but the falls are this way."

Two days had passed since Preston had insisted that Xavier had been treating him differently. And it had been true. Xavier had. But, damn, it was hard! To learn that the man you loved was so damn sick was hard enough and to watch him have a breathing attack like he'd seen, it had knocked Xavier down hard. And Xavier was not a man who had ever been knocked down.

Xavier had hated treating him differently just as much as Preston had hated being treated differently. He'd missed the back and forth with Preston, he'd missed the laughter, the bickering, the passion... Xavier knew that his worry over Preston wasn't' going to be disappearing anytime soon, but at least the tension over his sickness was fading.

"I want to go to town," Preston insisted.

Xavier shook his head. "We don't need to. We have plenty of supplies. Let's just head on."

"I'm not asking permission," Preston insisted, pulling his horse to a stop. "I'm going to town. I'm good enough with directions to follow a road."

"Why? Why do you want to go to town?"

Preston glanced down the road. "Is it a decent sized town? Do they have a telegraph office?"

Xavier thought about lying but decided against it. "Yeah, they have a damn telegraph office."

A smile lit up Preston's face. "Good. I'm going to go into town and send a wire to my family. I haven't checked in with them since I left home. I gotta let them know I haven't died yet."

Xavier bristled as that pain in his heart reared its head. "Not funny, Preston."

He sighed. "Sorry. But I do need to send them word and let them know I'm okay."

"Fine. We can ride into town, send your wire, and be on our way."

Preston headed down the road, leaving Xavier grumbling as he caught up to him. "No," Preston insisted. "I'm staying in town a couple of days. I want to go to the saloon, play cards, have a few real meals in the café, sleep in a real bed..."

"Your record ain't real good in damn saloons."

Preston winked leaving Xavier stuttering a moment. "Maybe I'll have better luck if my big strong man is with me. Besides, I'm not quite as helpless as I used to be in a fight. You've taught me a thing or two."

Xavier knew that was true. Preston had been doing damn good with his lessons—especially knife lessons. The man could throw one with damn good accuracy and he was quick with wielding it as well. Preston had the talent to gut the next man who thought about taking advantage.

"So, you're determined to waste a couple of days in town?"

Preston heaved out a sigh. "I don't see it as a waste."

"We only have a few more days 'til we reach the falls and then a couple days after that we'll be at the healers. We should keep moving on," Xavier insisted.

Preston picked at his mare's mane. "We'll get there eventually."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?"

"Don't play ignorant with me. You're stalling for time and putting off going to the healer. Why?"

Preston's shoulders suddenly seemed heavy. Xavier longed to pull him onto his horse, cradle the man in his lap, and kiss that sadness away—but they were on a road that was fairly well traveled and he didn't think very many people would appreciate riding up on two men all curled up.

"I just don't see the point in going to see her, Xavier."

'We've been through this, Preston. If there's a chance that she can help we have to go. Damn, man, don't you want to have a little hope?"

Preston shook his head. "No. Hope hurts."

Xavier's jaw tensed. "Not always."

Preston threw his hand in the air. "Yes, it does!" he exclaimed, startling the horse beneath him. "I had plenty of hope! As a boy I had hope that someday I'd outgrow my sickness. Then a few years ago we all had plenty of hope that I had. The attacks became fewer and further between and they weren't as intense when they did come. Then they came back and they were worse than ever and my medicine no longer helped. Then we heard about the specialist and I had hope again. Hope that he'd be able to help... you see where that got me. I'm dying, Xavier, and nobody can change that."

They rode in silence for a long while as Xavier swallowed back his temper born of pain. Finally, he figured out what he wanted to say. "Hey Preston?"

Preston's voice was tight. "Yeah?"

"I know you've had hope before and it has let you down, I understand that. But, see, I've never had it. This is my first go around with hope. Do ya reckon you could let me hang onto it until life gives me a reason not to?"

Preston was quiet for a several long moments as he picked at his mare's mane. When he swallowed hard and turned to meet Xavier's gaze, the sadness in those blue eyes made Xavier's heart ache to its core. "Sure, Xavier. I'll let you have your hope."

Xavier rode a little closer to Preston and reached out, taking the man's hand in his. "Thank you."

Preston gave his hand a squeeze before pulling away. "But we're going to town for a couple of days. I want to play poker, get a real bath, sleep in a real bed..."

"I've never had you in a bed," Xavier cut in, imagining the tempting image Preston would paint all tangled up in the sheets.

Just like that the sadness weighing Preston down seemed to lesson and his blue eyes were sparkling again. "Sounds like I might have talked you into enjoying town."

A smile tugged at Xavier's lips. "Yeah, I reckon you did. I just hope you got some money cuz your man is flat broke from keeping you surrounded by the fineries you've become accustomed to lately."

Preston's laughter filled the midday air. "And such lavish fineries they are!"

"I haven't heard any complaints."

"I'm pretty easy to please." Preston patted his saddlebags. "I still have a bit of the money I left home with. I haven't had to spend much since I found a wealthy man to tend to me."

Xavier snorted. "Wealthy? I ain't got a dime to my damn name. I'm gonna have to sell this old mule pretty soon."

"You can't sell Earl. I've gotten attached."

"Well if Earl is staying, I have to find some way to make some money soon."

"We could always hunt a bounty," Preston offered.

Xavier feared for the man's sanity. "That can be dangerous."

Preston shrugged. "Maybe it's something I want to try my hand at least one time."

Xavier's first instinct was to say hell no but he bit his tongue. He wanted Preston to be happy. He wanted Preston to have every bit of adventure that he wanted to have. If that meant chasing a bounty, Xavier could always pick an easy one. He'd keep Preston safe.

"I'll make a deal with you. We'll check the wanted posters in town and I'll pick one out for us. We'll hunt that bounty down together after you see the healer."

Preston sighed. "Fine."

"Don't pout."

Xavier chuckled when Preston simply grumbled under his breath.

A/N: Preston is learning how to get what he wants from Xavier , Xavier is hanging onto hope, and I wonder what Jeb and Gill will think about Preston the bounty hunter.....