Tabby's Touch

Gina Duncan

Copyright © 2026

CHAPTER ONE

Tabitha had barely taken two steps toward the living room when Brian walked in with a man who made her forget what she’d been about to say. Ted Robey filled the doorway like he’d been carved to fit it—broad shoulders, sun‑warmed skin, and a presence that seemed to hum through the air. Well, she thought Brian definitely left a few details out.

Heat curled low in her stomach, surprising enough that she almost laughed. Of course, Brian would bring home a man like this and expect her to act normal. She straightened, brushing her hand through her hair as if she weren’t suddenly aware of every inch of herself. Ted’s gaze, hidden behind dark sunglasses, slid to hers—slow, deliberate—and held for a beat longer than polite.

Oh, he noticed her. Good.

Her pulse kicked, but she lifted her chin and let a small, knowing smile tug at her mouth. If he was going to look at her like that, she wasn’t going to pretend she didn’t enjoy it.

Brian launched into introductions, his voice a little too eager, the way it always got when he was speaking about someone he admired. If you didn’t know him you’d probably never know the difference. Tabitha barely heard him. She watched the way Ted nodded, the quiet confidence in his posture, the ease of strength that made Brian stand a little taller beside him. No wonder her brother talked about him nonstop.

And if Brian respected him this much, maybe he’d finally stop treating her like the kid sister who needed guarding. Maybe he’d even realize she was a grown woman who knew exactly what she wanted, and right now, what she wanted was standing three feet away, looking at her like she was a puzzle he wouldn’t mind taking his time solving.

A warm shiver slid through her. Let the games begin.

Ted wasn’t just Brian’s boss and friend anymore. He was about to be Brian’s new housemate. Brian was practically vibrating with excitement when he told her Ted offered him a place to stay in his spare bedroom, eager to escape from their parents’ house. She didn’t blame him. If she had the money, she’d have gone already. But with no job, no college picked out, and parents who guarded the “college fund” like it was a classified file, she was stuck. For now.

Not that she could think about any of that with Ted standing in the middle of her living room looking like a masculine god.

He looked too big for the space, like the room had shrunk around him. Broad shoulders, relaxed stance, hands in the pockets of his tight black jeans—he carried himself with a quiet confidence that made her pulse skip. She let her gaze travel over him openly, then flashed him a slow, wicked little smile when he caught her looking.

“Well,” she sauntered toward him with a sway she didn’t bother hiding, “Brian didn’t mention you were… this...” She made a circular motion with her hand as she stepped closer to him.

Ted’s brow arched. “This?”

She let her eyes drift down his frame and back up again, deliberately slow. “Tall. Solid. Distracting. Pick whichever one bruises your ego the least.”

Ted’s mouth twitched. “Distracting, huh? I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“Good,” she said lightly. “I meant it as one.”

Brian was too busy talking about moving boxes to notice, but Ted did. His gaze dipped, just a flicker, but enough to send a warm flutter through her stomach.

She stepped closer, close enough that she had to tilt her head to meet his eyes. “You sure you’re ready for being here? It comes with… challenges.”

Ted leaned in just a fraction. “I like challenges.”

“Mhm.” She brushed past him to grab a throw pillow off the couch, letting her fingers graze his forearm in a feather‑light tease. “Like me. I’m a handful.”

His quiet laugh rumbled low, warm, and far too tempting. “I’m starting to pick up on that.”

Brian shot her a warning look, the one that meant behave. She almost laughed.

Growing up on a Marine base with a Sergeant Major for a dad meant she’d seen plenty of attractive men. They jogged past her window every morning, all muscle and discipline. She’d made a sport out of teasing the new recruits just to watch her father’s jaw clench, miniskirts, Daisy Dukes, sunbathing on the lawn. She’d perfected the art of harmless rebellion.

Well… mostly harmless.

Private Mitch Southland had been the exception. She’d meant the flirting as a joke, but he’d latched on like she’d promised him something. She’d apologized—twice, but he wouldn’t let it go. She was hoping he’d lose interest before she had to tell Brian or, worse, her father.

She wanted something steady. A place that felt like hers. They’d been here almost four years, long enough that she’d finally started unpacking more than the essentials. Long enough that the idea of leaving made her chest tighten.

And now Ted was here, watching her with a look that felt warm and deliberate, like he was trying to decide exactly what kind of trouble she was offering.

She tossed the pillow back onto the couch and gave him a bright, teasing smile. “Welcome to our home, Ted. Hope you can keep up.”

His answering smile was slow, deep, and entirely too promising. “I’ll do my best.”

As excited as she was for Brian, a small part of her hated the idea of him moving out. He’d always been the one person she could count on. But he still treated her like she was twelve instead of a grown woman. If he ever found out how she teased the recruits, he’d blow a gasket. And if he knew she’d once snuck into his room to watch the X-rated movies he hid under his bed… well, he’d have keeled over.

Maybe with him gone, she’d finally get the chance to figure herself out.

Nothing had ever hit her the way Ted did. A warm, electric tingling spread through her every time she looked at him, like her body was waking up in ways she didn’t fully understand. He moved with the easy strength of someone who didn’t need to prove anything. Every step he took made her breath catch.

She let her gaze roam over him slowly and deliberately. Wavy chocolate‑brown hair, neat but still a little wild. A rough‑edged handsomeness that made him look like trouble she wouldn’t mind finding. The sunglasses only added to it, giving him a dangerous, untouchable edge.

Then he pushed them up, revealing warm brown eyes that hit her like a punch.

His composure slipped, just a fraction. She saw it. He knew she saw it.

He walked across the living room like he owned it, like he owned the air she was breathing, and then he stopped right in front of her.

“She’s cute, your sister,” Ted glanced back at Brian.

“Yeah, she’s the baby,” Brian answered.

“I’m not a baby, Bri!”

Ted chuckled. “The name fits. She’s as cute as a kitten.”

“Yeah, a kitten with claws,” Brian laughed.

Ted stepped past her and then shot her a look over his shoulder. “I don’t mind claws.”

Her pulse jumped.

When Brian disappeared into the kitchen, Ted sat across from her. She felt his gaze settle on her, slow, warm, deliberate. It slid over her like a touch.

She let a teasing smile curl at her mouth. “Like what you see?”

Ted didn’t miss a beat. “Hard to say. I haven’t seen much. Yet.”

His voice dipped on the last word. He hadn’t meant it to. She saw that too.

Her stomach fluttered.

Brian returned with drinks, breaking the moment. She tucked her legs beneath her, and she felt Ted’s gaze follow the movement.

She stood and stretched.

Brian creased his brows as he frowned. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going for a swim.” She smiled sweetly. “Cooling off. It’s a little hot in here. You and your boyfriend are welcome to join me.”

Ted choked on a laugh. Brian glared. Perfect.

She slipped outside through the French doors before either could react, letting the cool air hit her heated skin.

She turned back just in time to see Ted standing at the door, watching her with an intensity that made her breath catch.

“Oh, she’s getting a spanking for that one,” Ted was amused.

Tabitha felt a spark of triumph. She was biting down on her fingernail the opened her mouth to suck her finger in as she starred at him as she slowly pulled it back out before letting it fall away again a tiny, rebellious tease meant only for him. She was secretly hoping it would bring Ted out after her.

Ted’s composure cracked. Just a little. Just enough.

She dove into the water, letting the coolness wash over her frustration and the heat Ted stirred in her.

When she surfaced, he was still there. Still watching. Still looking like he wasn’t sure whether to laugh or come closer. Then he reached down trying to adjust his cock through his tight ass jeans.

She smiled to herself. He’d be the one needing the cold water soon enough.

She climbed out and stretched on a lounge chair near the doors, close enough to hear Brian’s voice through the slightly open door.

“Yeah, like I’m going to let you put your hands on my baby sister’s ass,” Brian said nervously.

Ted laughed. “You know Because could handle those claws.”

“Not before she used them on you,” Brian shot back. “And stay away from her. Because saw the way she looked at you and the way she was talking. Because think she’s interested in you.”

Tabitha rolled her eyes. Damn you, Brian.

Through the crack in the door, she saw Ted shift, clearly unsettled, not by her, but by the situation. He wasn’t the type to go behind a friend’s back. She could see that. But she could also see the way he looked at her.

She stood and slipped back into the pool, letting the water close over her head as she thought.

She’d just have to find a way to make him want her enough to take the risk. She slipped beneath the surface again, letting the water cool her cheeks, her thoughts, the stubborn heat Ted kept stirring up. When she rose this time, she didn’t look toward the house right away. She took her time, smoothing her hair back, letting the droplets trail down her shoulders.

Only then did she glance toward the French doors.

Ted was still there.

But this time, he wasn’t just watching her, he was leaning one shoulder against the doorframe, arms crossed, jaw tight, as if he’d been standing there long enough to lose the battle with his own composure.

Their eyes locked. He didn’t look away. Not even when Brian called his name once more. Ted’s gaze stayed on her, steady and warm and entirely too revealing.

For the first time since he’d walked through her front door, he didn’t bother to hide the slip in his control. And Tabitha felt it…the shift, the spark, the quiet surrender of a man who’d been trying very hard not to want something he suddenly couldn’t ignore.

Slowly, deliberately, Ted pushed off the doorframe. He didn’t step outside. He didn’t say a word. He just gave her a look that promised trouble, a look that warned her she was playing with fire, a look that said he might just let himself burn.

Then, in a voice low enough that Brian couldn’t hear and she barely heard through the glass, he murmured.

“Careful, Tabby. Keep this up, and I might stop pretending I don’t notice.”

Her breath caught. Because for the first time, she believed him. And for the first time, she wanted him to stop pretending.

~ * * * ~

Ted hadn’t expected trouble today. Boxes, dust, maybe a few beers with Brian, which was the plan. What he hadn’t expected was her.

Tabitha Jameson.

He’d barely stepped into the living room before she’d knocked the breath out of him. It had been years since anyone had slipped past the walls he’d built, longer still since a woman had stirred anything in him he didn’t allow. Force Reconnaissance had drilled discipline into him until it lived in his bones. Control was second nature of his reactions, his instincts, his emotions. It had been a long time since a woman could stir Ted’s blood enough to get him hard without his actually wanting to be hard.

He wasn’t on active duty any longer, but still did things for his Commander and friend when he asked. But the moment Tabitha looked at him, something inside him shifted. Something he didn’t like. Something he didn’t trust. Something for which he wasn’t prepared. How was this girl blowing ten years of discipline?

He tried to ignore it. Tried to focus on Brian’s chatter, on the move, on anything but the girl who seemed to glow in the sunlight pouring through the French doors. But she kept catching his eye, deliberately, he suspected, and every time she did, he felt that careful discipline slip another inch.

Brian had warned him. Stay away from her. Don’t encourage her. She’s not ready for someone like you.

Ted had agreed. He’d meant it. Brian was one of the closest friends he’d ever had, and Ted wasn’t the type to betray a friend’s trust. But Tabitha. He shook his head. She wasn’t making it easy.

Especially not when she stepped outside in that white bikini, sunlight catching on her like it had been waiting for her. His pulse jumped in a way he hadn’t felt in years, a way he didn’t want to feel. He tried to look away. He really did. But then she blew him a kiss, playful, bold and something inside him tightened in response, something he’d spent years training himself to shut down.

He shook his head again, though the corner of his mouth betrayed him with the faintest twitch. She had no idea what she was doing to him. Or maybe she did. Which was worse?

“I thought we were here to pick up your stuff,” he said, dragging his attention back to Brian.

“We are,” Brian said, though his gaze drifted toward the pool. “I hate moving out and leaving Tabby Cat here with all these people. I’m the only one she’s ever really had. With all these Marines around, who’s going to keep them away from her when I’m gone?”

Ted huffed a quiet laugh. “You sound like you’re moving to the moon. It’s across town. She can visit you, and you’ll be over here to at least see her.”

Brian wasn’t the only one thinking about her. Ted kept that part to himself the part that scared him more than he wanted to admit.

“Yeah, well,” Brian muttered, “I’m not sure I want her visiting my place either. And if she does, you have to promise me she’s hands‑off, Ted.”

Ted blinked. Brian’s tone was serious, more serious than Ted had ever heard from him. For a moment, Ted wondered if Brian could read his mind. Because the truth was, Ted wasn’t sure he wanted her to visit either. She was… dangerous. Not in the way he was trained to handle, but in a way he wasn’t trained for at all.

“You make it sound like I’m going to attack your sister,” Ted said, keeping his voice steady. “I thought you knew me.”

“I do,” Brian said quietly. “But I know Tabby too. She’s felt left out most of her life. She’s only ever had me. If you give her any attention at all I don’t know what she’ll do. And I saw the way she was looking at you.”

Ted swallowed. He’d seen it too and it had rattled him more than he wanted to admit.

“Don’t worry,” he said lightly. “She’s not my type.”

But the words felt thin, even to him. Because the truth was, he wasn’t sure what his type was anymore. Tabitha was small, fiery, unpredictable nothing like the tall, polished blondes he usually dated. And yet she drew his attention like a tide he couldn’t fight. Hell, just thinking about her was making him hard.

Brian sighed. “Maybe I just worry too much. I hate it when the new recruits stare at her. And she flirts with them just to get under Dad’s skin.”

Ted looked back toward the pool. Tabitha cut through the water with an easy, athletic grace. She wasn’t like the women he usually went for she was softer in some ways, sharper in others. She had curves, confidence, and a spark that made it impossible to look away.

He forced himself to sit down before Brian noticed the effect she had on him. Brian was the closest friend he’d ever had, closer even than most of the men he’d served with. Hell, he was probably closer to Brian than he was to his own twin brother. Ted would never do anything to jeopardize that. And the way Brian talked about his sister made it clear that crossing that line would cost him everything. The front door opened just then pulling Ted’s attention away. Two women stepped inside, Brian’s mother and his other sister.

Karen Jameson was elegant and warm, her dark hair streaked with silver, her smile gracious. Cassie, on the other hand, was all sharp edges and cool glances, tall, polished, beautiful in a porcelain‑doll sort of way.

“Ted, this is my mother, Karen, and my sister Cassie,” Brian said.

Ted stood, offering his hand. “It’s very nice to meet you, Mrs. Jameson. You have a lovely home.”

She blushed when he kissed her hand. “Thank you. We enjoy it.”

Cassie rolled her eyes before giving him her hand. “It’s Cassandra.”

“Of course,” Ted said smoothly. “A pleasure.”

She withdrew her hand almost immediately. “I’ll be upstairs, Mother.”

Karen sighed. “You’ll have to excuse her. Long day shopping.”

“Not to worry,” Ted said. “It’s her home. She’s entitled to be herself.”

When Karen left the room, Brian leaned back. “Cassie gets her attitude from Mom, but she’s the Barbie doll of the family. Business major who wants to be a CEO someday. Right now, she’s working as a secretary. Just be glad you didn’t meet Dad, the Drill Sergeant.”

Ted raised a brow. Cassie was beautiful, smart, and clearly used to getting her way. But she didn’t stir anything in him, not one cock twitch...not like Tabitha at all. With Cassie, he imagined polite conversation over dinner. With Tabitha, he couldn’t even finish the thought without losing his focus.

He shook it off and followed Brian downstairs to help pack. Brian was moving in with him, and they were discussing the possibility of Brian buying into Ted’s nightclub, Naughty Knights. Brian wanted more than being a bouncer, and Ted respected that. He’d been the same way once, restless, searching, needing a challenge.

“Brian,” Ted said finally, “I want to talk to you about your sister.”

Brian didn’t even look up. “Forget it. I already told you no way.”

“Not Tabby,” Ted said quickly. “Cassie.”

Brian froze. Then he laughed. “You want to date the Barbie doll? You serious?”

Ted shrugged. “Maybe. She seems interesting.”

Brian snorted. “She’s headstrong and a little icy. You’d have your hands full.”

Ted didn’t deny it. “I just want to take her out. See what happens.”

Brian shook his head. “You want to go vanilla for Cassie? Man, you’re losing it.”

Ted didn’t answer. He wasn’t sure himself why he was even considering it. Maybe because Cassie was safe. Predictable. Nothing like the girl outside who kept pulling his attention like a tide.

Brian tossed him a pair of fuzzy pink handcuffs from a box. “You sure you want to drag her into your world?”

Ted laughed. “We’ll keep my lifestyle and the business separate. For now.”

Brian shrugged. “Go for it. Just don’t let Cassie walk around the house half dressed. I don’t need to see that.”

Ted laughed with him, but his mind drifted back to the pool, back to the tiny white bikini, the sunlight, the spark in Tabitha’s eyes. What was he thinking? Planning to ask one sister out while lusting after the other? He scrubbed a hand over his face. He was in trouble. And he knew it.

Ted led the way back up the stairs, grateful for the distraction of boxes and small talk. Work he could handle. Logistics he could handle. Anything that didn’t involve the girl outside who had somehow gotten under his skin in less than an hour.

He told himself he was fine now. Steady. Back in control. But the moment he stepped into the living room and glanced toward the French doors, that fragile control wavered.

Tabitha was climbing out of the pool, water sliding down her arms, sunlight catching on her skin like it had been waiting for her. She pushed her hair back with both hands, slow and unhurried, and then almost as if she felt him watching she looked up. Their eyes met through the glass. And Ted felt something inside him go still.

Brian said something behind him, but Ted didn’t turn. He couldn’t. Not when she was looking at him like that so curious, so bold, and a little triumphant, as if she knew exactly how close he was to losing the grip he prided himself on.

He swallowed hard, forcing his jaw to unclench. He’d been trained to withstand pressure most men couldn’t imagine. But this girl, this woman was unraveling him with a single look.

She tilted her head, just slightly, as if asking a question he didn’t dare answer.

Ted exhaled slowly, pushing off the doorframe before he did something reckless, like stepping outside. Like let her see how deeply she was getting to him. But he didn’t walk away. Instead, he let his voice slip lower than he meant it to, just loud enough for her to catch through the glass.

“Careful, Tabitha,” he murmured. “Keep looking at me like that, and I might stop pretending I don’t notice.”

Her lips parted, just a breath, just a flicker but it hit him like a punch.

Brian called his name again, sharper this time.

Ted finally tore his gaze away, but the damage was done. His damn cock was already responding to her once more. In that moment, he realized something he’d been trying very hard not to admit. He wasn’t afraid of wanting her. He was afraid of how much he wanted her. And worse yet he wasn’t sure he wanted to stop.

THE TRADE

GINA DUNCAN

Copyright © 2017

Chapter One

 

Piper didn’t know what she expected when she rang the doorbell. A co-worker, named Charlie, had told her to go speak with Lucas Grant, and then gave her the address to his place. From the description of what the man was capable of doing to help her with her problem, she certainly hadn’t expected the house to be so nice. She thought Lucas would live in a shack somewhere in a seedy neighborhood.

This house wasn’t a shack and this was no seedy neighborhood. It was a big beautiful white farmhouse with blue shutters, set out in the middle of a rolling green meadow. She was directed through large gates and drove down a long paved driveway by a guard. No other homes could be seen anywhere near the large porch. What kind of man would be behind the brightly painted blue door? Most of the house was behind tall privacy fencing.

What opened the door was a giant of a man with bulging muscles, barely concealed beneath his tight black T-shirt. His biceps looked strangled by the sleeves. His body narrowed at the waist. His blue jeans hung low on his hips and he was standing there barefooted. She let her eyes scan back up his body. His hair was short cropped, brown with a tint of blond here and there. His eyes were a beautiful green that stood out from the dark tan of his face. His lips were full and pink, his face clean-shaven. It took her a moment to catch her breath. He definitely wasn’t what she imagined him to be, she suddenly wondered why the guard and fortress of a home. He certainly looked as if he could take care of himself.

“Lucas Grant?” she inquired, her voice quivering slightly.

“Yes, and I assume your Piper Sutton.”

“Yes.” She suddenly felt very jittery. His voice was deep and smooth with a touch of a southern drawl. It was the type of voice that could melt a woman to a puddle, she felt a little uncomfortable as his eyes scanned up and down her body, much like she had done his. She wondered what he thought about her. Was she what he expected? Goose bumps spread over her body, she stiffened to keep from shivering. She never had someone’s voice, or the way they looked at her, affect her in the same way Lucas did. She wasn’t pretty enough for a man like him. Men like Lucas usually wanted tall, skinny women with big boobs and no brains. Piper never took the time to fix herself up like Pippa did, standing in front of the mirror for hours on end applying make-up and lipstick. Piper simply brushed her hair and put it in a bun before leaving the house. Today she wished she were more like Pippa.

“Perhaps you should come in and tell me just what it is you believe I can do for you, Miss Sutton.”

“Didn’t John tell you about my problem?” Her brows creased as she shook her head.

“John told me a few things, but I want to hear it from you.” He stepped back opening the door wider.

Piper stepped through the door cautiously and looked around. The house was immaculate. It almost looked like no one lived in the place on the outside. It was an older farmhouse, but someone had totally redone the whole thing. It looked like a brand new home on the inside. The entryway, and what she could see of the other rooms, were large and spacious. She jumped slightly when she heard the click of the door behind her. Lucas held his hand out, indicating that she should precede him toward what she assumed was the living room. She stopped just inside the doorway and Lucas passed her. He sat down on a black leather recliner to the far side of the room facing the couch. The man even made the big easy chair look small.

“Won’t you have a seat, Miss Sutton?” He motioned to the couch. “And tell me what it is you believe I can do for you that no one else can.”

Piper sat on the edge of the large, black leather couch facing Lucas. What he could probably do—that no one else could—was give her an orgasm just by speaking. He rested his elbows on the chair arms, crossing his hands before his face, and his lips resting on his thumbs as he studied her. She felt uncomfortable once again, but tried to remain still. It just wouldn’t do to be squirming in her seat.

“I’m not sure what all John told you, but I need someone to help me get my sister back. I don’t have much money, but I’m willing to make some sort of arrangements to pay you if you will help me. John says you’re very good, and if anyone could find Pippa, it would be you.”

“Did he now…and did John also tell you that I’m not a very nice guy?”

“That’s good, because I don’t need a nice guy for what I’m looking for. If I did, I wouldn’t be here.”

“You wouldn’t be here if the authorities would help you. Do you have any idea of what could happen to you by coming way out here to no man’s land and meeting with a complete stranger? A man, that some other man, told you about.”

“I’ve known John for four years now. I trust that he wouldn’t send me somewhere dangerous. Besides I’m not totally helpless.” She pulled her purse closer. What he didn’t know was that she had pepper spray and a .22 pistol in there, and she was totally capable of using both of them. What she didn’t know was how to find her sister. Once she was close enough to Yuri, she planned to kill him for taking Pippa.

“I was told that you believe your sister was kidnapped and you want me to go find her and bring her back, is that why you’re here?” He was staring at her through hard green eyes. Was this his mercenary look, or was he always a hard man? She rubbed her sweaty palms down the legs of her pants.

“Yes. Pippa has been missing for over two months now. I’ve been everywhere and no one in the government will help me. I’m at my wit’s end. When I broke down at work, John gave me your name and address and told me to come see you.”

“Where do you think your sister is, and how can you be sure she was kidnapped? Maybe she went with this man of her own free will. Why come to me for help, why not your family?”

“Pippa is all the family I have left. Our parents died four years ago in a car wreck. I’ve taken care of my sister ever since. The man she was seeing is from Iran. I believe he kidnapped her and took her back to his homeland with him, and now he’s holding her against her will.”

“How old are you?” Lucas cocked his head to look at her again. He put his hands down and sat forward.

Did it matter how old she was? What did her age have to do with anything? He was just sitting there staring at her, waiting for an answer.

“Twenty-six, my sister is turning eighteen and I know she didn’t go with him on her own. We have no secrets. She broke up with him because he hit her. She was afraid of him.” Piper lowered her head when she felt the tears threaten. She didn’t want to show this man any weakness. She feared he’d take advantage at any weakness he saw in her.

“If I do decide to do this for you, just how did you plan to pay me, Miss Sutton? Do you have any money at all? My expenses are quite high.”

“No, but I was hoping we could make out some sort of a payment plan. I’m willing to pay anything to bring her back safe and sound.”

“So, you want my help, and you can’t pay me. Tell me what makes you think I’ll help you, without being paid? I’m not a generous man either, Miss Sutton. I don’t work for free.”

“I’m sorry I wasted both of our time.” Piper stood and avoided eye contact with him as the tears rolled down her cheeks. What else could she do? All hope was lost. Lucas had been her last hope of finding Pippa and bringing her back home. She hadn’t even heard Lucas move and jumped when he put his hand under her chin and tilted it up, forcing her to look at him.

“You need to stop crying—I don’t do tears. Dry your face and remove your clothes,” he ordered as he moved back to his chair and sat down, just staring at her.

Who the heck did this man think he was ordering her around like that? And why in the world did he want her to remove her clothes for?

“What?” she choked out past a huge lump that had formed in her throat at his suggestion. She crossed her arms over her chest, trying to be defiant. There was no way she’d remove her clothes in front of this stranger.

“Call it a down payment. I want to see what you’re offering before I decide what my payment will be.” He shrugged his big shoulders.

“I didn’t offer you my body. I could pay you back whatever it costs if you’ll let me do it in installments.” She wiped at the tears with one hand the other one was still covering her breasts, what sort of man went around ordering women to remove their clothes? Did he order strange women around like this all the time?

Lucas shook his head. “I don’t want your money, sweetheart. I want your body. Now, do we have an agreement or not?”

Why did he want her body? She wasn’t beautiful enough for a man like Lucas. What did he have planned to do with her?

Piper had never been with a man before. No one had seen her naked since she was a child. She was too much of a prude. She had her doubts that she could do this, but if that was what it took to get him to bring Pippa home, so be it.

Piper swallowed her pride, wondering what he’d want her to do once she was naked. Would he demand that she have sex with him? Oh Lord, I hope not. Would once be enough for a man like him? She was sure it would be something she wouldn’t soon forget. The cost of her sister’s safe return—her virginity. Her heart was in her throat, she swallowed hard. She’d do or pay anything he asked, as long as he brought her sister back to her safe and sound.

What else could she do? The only things she had were her virginity and pride. It looked like she was about to say good-bye to both of them to save her sister. Piper began to remove her clothing slowly—very slowly. Her hands shook as she tried to unbutton her blouse. She hadn’t had a chance to date after her parents died. They’d had enough insurance money to bury them and to pay the house off, but she had to go to work after school every evening to pay the bills and buy food for her and her younger sister.

What would this handsome, cold-hearted bastard do when he found out she was still a virgin? Better yet, what would he do when he found out she had no intention of sleeping with him after the job was finished? She just hoped he wouldn’t demand to have sex until then. After Pippa was found, Piper would just do her best to avoid the man.

“Come on, don’t be shy, sweetheart. I’m not going to bite you—at least not yet.”

Piper held her blouse against her chest and stared at him. What the hell did he mean, not yet? Did he intend on biting her? She felt her face heat with his laughter. Once again, she wasn’t sure she could do this, but she’d already tried everything and everyone else. No one wanted to help, even though her sister was a U.S. citizen. Everyone was convinced that Pippa had gone with Yuri willingly. The government was afraid it would cause relationship problems within the UN if they intervened.

She wondered what kind of man Lucas was that he would demand her body for payment. She hadn’t intended to pay him with her body, but it seemed she had no choice. It wasn’t as if she was saving her virtue for anyone in particular, and if he could bring her sister home, then she’d gladly let him believe she’d give him what he wanted. She just hoped he wouldn’t demand her body until Pippa was home.

Piper dropped the shirt to the ground, trying to be brave. She finished stripping out of her jeans and underthings while Lucas sat in his chair watching her. Once she was completely unclothed, Piper fought hard to keep her hands at her sides and not cover herself the way she wanted to as she stood there, her eyes closed and head bowed down. She felt defeated once more.

“Hold your head up and open your eyes, sweetheart. I want you looking at me.”

Piper took a deep breath and blew it out before doing as Lucas said. Staring into those green eyes of his was almost hypnotic. She wanted to close her eyes, or look away, but she couldn’t. She wanted to reach out and touch him, caress his face, but she didn’t. She wanted to feel more human and less like a side of beef. She merely stood there like a statue as he studied her, looking up and down her body. She felt shame that she had to stoop so low as to use her body to bargain for something she needed. If it had been for anything other than Pippa’s life, she would have slapped his handsome face and stormed out the door. How could such a handsome man be such an ass?

Lucas motioned with his hand for her to turn. She swallowed past the lump once more and prayed her shaky legs wouldn’t give out on her as she made a slow, but complete pivot. Piper wanted to smack the smile from his face once she looked at him again. Her heart jumped, then begun to race as she watched Lucas stand. She was sure it would stop when he made his way toward her. Her fight-or-flight senses kicked in. She wanted to move away, just run, but she fought hard to remain in place.

He chuckled. “You couldn’t even imagine in your wildest dreams the things I’ll do to you and your body.” He trailed his fingers down her cheek, her neck, and over one of her breasts with a feather light touch.

A shiver went over her body as her nipple hardened instantly at his touch. She wanted desperately to step away from him. His touch sent too many thoughts racing through her mind. Things she had no business thinking at this moment. Things she didn’t think she’d feel until she was married. She needed to find her sister, and she needed Lucas’ help to do it. She had to keep in mind that he was the only one left who could help her, so she’d do or feel any way he wanted her to for the time being. Once her sister was home, she’d go back to her life and Lucas wouldn’t be in it.

“Your body is very responsive, I like that.” He smiled, showing perfect white teeth against his tanned face and pink lips.

She knew he was telling the truth about not being a nice guy, but it didn’t matter because she needed him. And right now, with the way he was looking at her and touching her, she wanted to be surrounded by him, even knowing she wouldn’t. She wanted to breathe him in and never let him go, but she knew he wasn’t the relationship type. He was more the love ‘em and leave ‘em type. If he wanted her body, she could give him that, she just hoped she’d be able to keep her heart out of it. She didn’t have room in her life or heart for a man just yet. There were too many things she wanted to do. She wasn’t here to find the love of her life. She held her head high and tried her best at flirting. She hadn’t had time for such foolish things before, she just hoped Lucas wouldn’t be able to tell how naïve she was at it.

“What would you do?” She looked up at him as she bit her bottom lip. The smile on his face was almost evil as he stared at her mouth. She licked her suddenly dry lips. The nerves in her stomach were tied in knots. She feared she’d vomit at any moment. She could promise him anything he wanted right now, but that didn’t mean she’d have to follow through with it once Pippa was home. The only thing she worried about was what she’d have to do to get him to start the job.

“First you tell me why you so easily gave in to my demand of your body for payment. You don’t strike me as the type of woman that would be willing to bargain with her body, sweetheart.” He looked her up and down hungrily. “Not that I’m complaining. I’m more than willing to take your body as payment. I just want to know why you’re so desperate.” He moved back across the room to study her once more. His finger worked back and forth over his chin, and his eyes didn’t blink once.

“I told you I’ve tried everything else. You’re my last hope, Mr. Grant.”

“So, you’re willing to bargain with your body?”

She began to shake her head, but the look in his eyes demanded the truth. “Yes. I need your help to find my sister and bring her home. I don’t have the means or the money to do it. I can’t pay you right now, so I’ll give you anything you want, or do anything you want if you’ll help me find and bring her back. That is how desperate I really am, and if I had anything else to bargain with besides my body, then I would.”

“Anything I want.” He rubbed his chin.

Piper took a deep breath to calm her nerves. She didn’t know what this man would demand of her. “That’s what I said.” Her nerves felt as if they were eating a hole in her stomach. She wasn’t sure of how much longer she could take it.

He licked his lips and looked her up and down, again.

“Oh, the things I’m going to do to that body of yours when this is over.”

Piper bent to retrieve her clothes. She’d had enough of feeling like a piece of prime meat. She hadn’t seen or heard Lucas move, and nearly jumped out of her skin when he moved behind her, bringing his arms around her to cup both her breasts in his warm, massive hands. Her breath caught in her throat as chills went through her body. He pulled her back against him, grinding the bulge of his hard cock against the crease of her ass. A shiver ran over her as he whispered close to her ear. His hot breath and indecent words caused gooseflesh to rise. She felt an ache deep in her core, and had no idea of how to ease it.

“I can’t wait to finish this mission and earn my payment,” he whispered into her ear.

“Remove your hands from my body, Mr. Grant, because you haven’t earned it yet.” She had no idea where that bravery came from. Maybe it was that fight-or-flight she’d heard about. She had to say something because this stranger’s touch was causing too many thoughts running through her brain.

Lucas chuckled deeply, nibbled her ear, and then licked the column of her throat before he slowly released her. “You taste good. I can’t wait to taste all of you.” He chuckled once more as she shivered again. “I’ll bet you’re all wet, too.” He inhaled deeply. “Yes.” He moaned.

When he asked her if she saw the door across the room, Piper nodded her head. She feared trying to speak at the moment, her brain and body wanted his hands back, but she just wanted to get away from him.

“Good. It’s my office. Once you’re dressed come in there. I’ll have a list of things I’m going to need from you to get started. We’ll discuss your payment after I get all the details and information I need.”

Piper held her blouse in front of her, watching as Lucas stepped past her and walked silently across the wooden floor and disappeared through the door. She wondered how such a big man could be so quiet. Had it been part of his special ops training? She hadn’t been able to learn too much about Lucas Grant, except that he’d been a marine. He’d joined when he’d turned eighteen, and he was at least thirty now. She had no idea what he’d done after joining the marines, or really what he did now, and she didn’t care. He was going to help her.

She dressed quickly, then stepped through the door to see Lucas sitting behind a big mahogany desk. He was writing something down, but paused long enough to look up at her.

“Well, come in and have a seat.” He motioned to the empty chair in front of his desk.

She couldn’t believe he could be acting so calm after what just happened. Her body was still tingling where his hands had touched her. Her legs were still weak and wobbly. Her pussy wet and aching, she wasn’t even sure she could make it across the room to sit down in the chair.

Piper felt the heat on her face and knew she was blushing. It was hard to look the man in the eyes after what he’d made her do and feel.

“I’m going to need pictures of your sister and the man that kidnapped her. Any information you can remember about him, his home, his family, friends. Where he said he was from, or anything he used to do there.”

“Ok, is there anything else you need?”

“No, not yet.”

“I don’t remember too much of what Yuri said, but I will write down everything that I do, and I’ll search Pippa’s diary. Maybe there will be something in it.”

“Good. Anything you remember or find will help me to locate your sister and bring her home to you. I will also need something of yours that she will know, so she’ll come with me when I find her.”

“All right, now when do you expect your payment?”

“When you bring me the things I need, I’ll expect your first installment.”

“That soon?” There went those nerves again. She didn’t think she’d have to do anything until he brought Pippa home.

“Yes, normally I get half my money before I go, and the rest upon my return.”

Piper merely nodded her head, as she squirmed in her chair. There went her plan.

“I will also need a doctor’s report clearing you of all diseases. I have a recent report clearing me that you can look over. I know it sounds odd for me to ask for something like that, but you can never be too careful.”

“No, I understand and would appreciate seeing your report, as well.” She wondered if he made all of his women go to the doctor. She was positive that he did just by the way he spoke so casually about it, and if she did have to have sex with him, she’d be happy to know he wouldn’t give her anything, as well.

“Are you on birth control?”

“Birth control?” She was caught off guard by his question. She hadn’t thought about birth control because she didn’t have any men in her life at this point, but she would definitely speak with her doctor about getting on something. She didn’t need any children at this point. Taking care of her sister was more than enough. She watched as he raised his head to look at her.

“Yes, birth control and I’d like to have some proof you’re on it. I don’t want children. And even though you’re on something, I will also use a condom to assure myself.”

“I’m not on anything at this moment, but I will definitely speak to my ob-gyn doctor about it.”

“Good.” He looked back down at the paper on his desk and wrote something down.

Piper felt as if she were on a job interview, only these questions were personal, and she wasn’t sure she wanted this job. Besides, shouldn’t she be the one asking questions, like how was he going to find and return her sister safely? Would he have to kill anyone to bring her back? Would Pippa trust this man and believe that she sent him? She was getting a headache from all the thoughts and questions, not to mention all the things he’d made her feel.

She would speak to her doctor tomorrow about birth control, and get a report clearing her of all diseases. She should have known that a man like him wouldn’t want children.

“I will need everything from you before I go after your sister.”

“I understand.” She nodded her head.

“If there’s anything that I should know about your sister, you should also write that down. If she refuses to come back with me, I refuse to make her. That means you will only owe me for going after her.”

“She will come back, but you need to know that she’s afraid of Yuri, so I don’t know what her state of mind is at this point.”

“Don’t worry, I will assure her if she comes with me that Yuri will not find or hurt her again.”

Piper nodded her head. She prayed that Yuri hadn’t hurt or killed Pippa by now. Pippa had to know that Piper would never give up until she found her.

She feared that Pippa would refuse to go with Lucas, so Piper needed to find a way to go with him to bring her home, or at least send something with him of hers so Pippa will know Piper had sent him.

“I need to go with you so Pippa won’t be afraid.”

“No way, sweetheart.” His reply came quickly.

“What if she doesn’t believe you? I could be there to assure her.”

“No, it’s too dangerous. And that is the end of that discussion.”

It might be the end for him, but she planned to go whether he liked it or not. She knew Pippa would be afraid of Lucas and would probably be afraid to leave, but if she was there Pippa would come with them. She would just have to figure out how to go with him without him knowing it.

“How soon will you be ready to leave?”

“As soon as I get everything from you and get a plan set up.”

“It shouldn’t take me long to get everything you need and get it back to you.”

“Sounds good.” He laid his ink pen on the desk and stood. “I’ll show you to the door.”

He held his hand out when he moved to stand next to her chair. She placed hers in it and he pulled her to stand. He didn’t release her hand until they were standing in front of the door. He opened it, then brought her hand to his lips, kissing it gently.

“I hope to see you soon.” He arched his brows, a hungry leer on his face.

She was too nervous and breathing too hard to answer him. She merely nodded her head and pulled her hand out of his as she headed out of the door. She was still shaking as she got into her car. He had her so flustered she wasn’t sure which way was home.

BORROWED ANGEL

 GINA DUNCAN

Copyright © 2013

 Chapter One

“Why didn’t you tell me you wanted to fuck me?” Trevor asked in a strong deep voice, stopping Angel in her tracks. She wasn’t sure how to answer him. She wanted him, but could she, or should she come out and say such a thing? She was still struggling with the idea of him being her brother-in-law. Not to mention the trust issues she now had.

Angel Dayne was a twenty-eight-year-old widow. She loved her husband and had for what seemed like forever. Adam and Angel had met in high school. She was a sophomore and he was a senior. They began to date that year and were married when Angel turned eighteen and graduated from high school. Adam was in college by then, taking business courses. She started college that year to become a surgical-trauma nurse.

She had never thought of another man in the entire eight years that Adam and she had been married. She was happy with her life even if she missed Adam horribly each time he went away on his business trips and couldn’t wait for his return. But Adam seemed to be drifting further away from her a little more with each trip he took.

Her world went to hell right after their eighth anniversary. On his way home from another business trip, Adam was broadsided by a semi-truck, killing him instantly. Angel had never felt so alone or devastated in her life as she had the day the police showed up at her home to tell her about the accident and that her husband had died. At least it had been quick and he hadn’t suffered.

That’s also when she met her brother-in-law Trevor for the first time. He was older than Adam and had already graduated and joined the army before she’d met Adam. Apparently Trevor had been sort of the black sheep of the family or at least he was to everyone except for Adam. Angel hadn’t met him in all their years together and so, she was a little shocked when Trevor came to stay with her for a few days after Adam’s death. She supposed he took pity on her because he ended up staying a little longer.

Angel spent most of her time in her room with Adam’s ashes. She’d known that he’d wanted to be buried, but she just couldn’t imagine putting him in the cold dark ground. His parents had disowned her at that point. Trevor was the only one who’d stayed by her side. He would often lean against the doorframe, watching and listening to her talk to Adam’s ashes as if he could answer her back. Trevor never said a word. He merely stood there as still and silent as a statue. It unnerved Angel to have him there, but for some reason she just couldn’t bring herself to make him go away.

In truth she’d been a mess and Trevor took care of her. She actually thought she was losing her mind when she heard Adam’s voice one night as she lay in bed, and then she saw him. Well at least she thought she saw him but wasn’t positive that her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her since she could see the wall and everything else in the room through him. Adam hadn’t said a word and he didn’t stay there but a few moments. Trevor hadn’t been in the doorway that evening so she had no idea if it had only been her imagination or not.

The first time Trevor spoke from the doorway, it was soft yet Angel jumped slightly, almost dropping Adam’s urn. Apparently Trevor hadn’t noticed her because he just continued with the story he had started. It was tales of him and Adam growing up. Stories of when they were young and all the things they’d done together or gotten into. She loved hearing those stories so she remained silent just sitting there listening. Adam had never talked much about growing up so it was all new to her. When she closed her eyes she could almost see the two of them young and mischievous, Adam following his big brother around.

Angel fell asleep that night and dreamed of two little black-haired boys running and playing, but somehow her dream turned and the boys became grown men and then the men began to merge into one man standing before her—Trevor. He was standing there before her as nude as the day he’d been born and he was beckoning to her. Angel was calling for Adam, not understanding what was going on. She could hear Trevor saying her name over and over and then he was touching her. Angel jerked awake to a dark room, but she could see a dark outline just before she felt his touch. Trevor was standing over her bed, shaking her and saying her name to wake her.

“You were dreaming and screaming out for Adam. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

Angel was still half asleep when she asked, “Where’s Adam?”

“He’s gone, Angel, you were just dreaming.”

Angel shook her head as she felt hot tears streaming down her face. The dream had felt so real it was almost as if she could have reached out and taken Adam in her arms and held on to him forever. When Trevor sat down on the side of her bed and pulled her into his arms, she felt the wetness of his tears and knew he was crying as well. She wasn’t the only one hurting and missing Adam, so was his brother. She wrapped her arms around Trevor and held him to her, giving comfort as much as she was taking it. She knew somehow they’d get through this together.

* * * *

Trevor woke with a start when Angel had begun screaming for Adam. He pulled on his jogging pants and ran to her room. He didn’t bother to knock. He just opened the door and rushed to her side. He tried calling out her name but she didn’t answer so he bent to shake her, hoping she’d stop screaming and wake up.

“Angel, please wake up you’re dreaming,” he called out and shook her a little harder. It had been six months and he had avoided touching her up until this point. He’d been attracted to her from the first moment he’d laid eyes on her and would have done anything to take her pain away. Adam had sent him photos of their wedding and the two of them together over the years. He knew she was a beautiful woman, but he didn’t realize how beautiful or how sensual everything she did was until he spent time with her.

Her name seemed to fit her perfectly. She looked like an angel. She was small and delicate, her hair so blonde it was almost a silvery white, and looked like silk. She wore it long with bangs, her eyes so blue like the deepest ocean. Her oval face held the perfect hint of a blush, and her lips were full and the perfect shade of pink.

Her body was another matter altogether. She only stood maybe five feet if she was lucky, coming to his chest, and had enough curves to make her body look sinful as hell. She grew her fingernails long, but left them unpolished. Trevor could almost imagine them buried in his back.

He felt guilty that he wanted his brother’s wife, but there was nothing he could do to change the fact. He’d thought about leaving and putting a lot of distance between them but for some reason he couldn’t bring himself to leave her when she seemed to need him so much.

At this moment all he wanted to do was pull her in his arms and heal her—love her. He knew she was still half asleep when she asked where Adam was and he hated that he had to remind her that Adam was gone. It hurt him to have to hurt her, but there was nothing else he could do. He sat down on the bed and pulled her into his arms before he thought better of it.

He felt her hot tears on his chest just before he realized tears were sliding down his own face. She wrapped her arms around him holding him tightly. He inhaled her scent as he buried his face in her hair. She probably thought he was crying over Adam, but he knew it was because he hurt for her loss more than his own.

He knew she’d run if she knew how bad he wanted to make love to her. He wanted Angel more than he’d ever wanted a woman in his life. The feel of her in his arms and the fresh scent of her in his nostrils had his cock wanting to rise. He hoped she wouldn’t feel it. She’d think he was some sort of pervert taking advantage of a grieving widow and that’s exactly what he’d be if he pursued her at this moment so he just held her and comforted her the best that he could.

 

 

DESIGNS ON THE CARPET LAYER

 GINA DUNCAN

Copyright © 2012

 Chapter One

Atlanta, Georgia, 2012

 

Shyann Ellsworth liked her life just the way it was, simple and complete. She felt she’d accomplished just about everything she wanted to in her twenty-eight years of life. She was a top-notch, savvy interior designer with her own company, designing homes and offices for the wealthy of Atlanta, Georgia. She also enjoyed living life to the fullest. All of Shyann’s clients so far seemed extremely delighted with her work.

Shyann liked the city but loved her log home in the beautiful Cleveland countryside with its own large pond just out her back door. She loved the quiet serenity and peaceful nights. She’d tried living in an apartment in Atlanta when she first finished her degree at Savannah College of Art and Design, when she’d started her first job for a major designing firm. Two years later she’d made enough money to open her own design firm, and once it was established she’d bought her home and moved away from all the hustle and bustle of the city nights.

She’d been dating what appeared to be a wonderful man, a little older than her at thirty-eight. He really didn’t look his age though. He was still a very handsome man with his immaculately styled sandy-blond hair and baby-blue eyes. Not to mention the body of a trainer, at six foot two and weighing about one-ninety. Bryce tried to keep his physique hidden beneath those dark business suits he wore every day. Why, she didn’t know.

There had been a guy she’d met at work just before she started seeing Bryce. He was a carpet layer for one of the jobs she’d been doing…a very sexy carpet layer and, oh, how many daydreams she’d had about Jesse Hartley slash carpet layer, lord only knew.

Shyann had thought about giving into lustful temptation on so many occasions. She wondered what ever happened to Mr. Sexy with an inner chuckle. Jesse had been a lot of the reason she gave into Bryce. He was safe and reliable, not just heart-stoppingly sexy.

Bryce Chandler was a prominent defense attorney with his own firm. Shyann had met Bryce when he’d hired her to decorate his beautiful new lakefront mansion. He’d asked her out several times, but she was too busy to even think about dating at the time. She finally gave into him a couple of months later, and now they had been dating for almost a year.

Bryce had mentioned marriage a time or two, but Shyann always managed to change the subject. She just wasn’t sure she was ready to be someone’s wife. She wanted to be married someday. She just wasn’t sure it was the right time, or if Bryce was the right man. The only thing she and Bryce had in common was neither one of them wanted children. Shyann was too afraid she’d have to give up on all the hours she put in working, and she just wasn’t ready to do that. Bryce never told her why he didn’t want children, and she guessed she never really cared enough to ask.

Shyann considered herself to be fairly pretty and quite healthy. Actually, fit would be more like it since she worked out at the gym whenever she wasn’t working. That was the main reason she didn’t want to have children. She didn’t want to give up her figure to have them. Then there was the matter of where to live. Yes, Bryce’s house was beautiful, but she loved her log home, and large pond.

No one knew she kicked her high heels off and stripped out of her suit jacket as soon as she was inside her car, not even Bryce. She hated to have to dress up all the time, but her clients expected it, so she did it every day. They also didn’t know she loved her nice, quiet swims in her pond on warm nights, skinny-dipping most of those times since her backyard was surrounded by its own natural privacy fence of trees. Or that she drank her coffee on the deck while she drew out designs for whatever house or office she was working on. Her best ideas came while sitting outside listening to nature. She never did like to work in a stuffy, closed-in office. Going to college in a city had almost been her downfall. Shyann liked living a private life, so no one had her home number or address except for family, Bryce, and a few of her closest friends, and she wanted to keep it that way.

Today she stopped off and bought a bottle of champagne on her way home. She’d just landed a large job overseeing and decorating the construction of the Prescotts’ sprawling mansion, and she couldn’t wait to get started Monday morning. She had so many thoughts and ideas for their new place. She’d worked for the Prescotts once before. They had been so delighted with her work that they hired her once again for their new home. She’d made a bundle the last time and this home was almost three times the size of their first one. She was pretty sure she was going to buy a new car this time around since hers was on its last leg.

She was also thankful that Bryce was off on a golf trip with his partner Terry, so she didn’t have to worry about him calling and asking her to go out tonight. Hell, she wasn’t sure she wanted to go out with him anymore after the way he’d acted and talked to her before he’d left for his trip. She had been a little frightened when he’d lifted his hand as if he was going to slap her, all because she’d refused to go with him. What was she supposed to do while he played golf, sit around sipping tea? Shyann smiled as she slipped out of her stiff clothes and pulled on a T-shirt and jogging pants. She grabbed a glass and the champagne bottle then padded across the lawn to the pond deck in her bare feet.

She sat down in her favorite lounge chair and poured her glass full. She took a drink, giggling as the bubbles teased her nose. She almost felt like doing a happy dance with the thought of all the money she was going to make, but decided a quiet celebration would work just fine. She looked out across the pond, the last remaining rays of the sun reflecting off the water. It was so serene and relaxing, she pondered staying out there the entire night, and the weather was certainly warm enough. Sometimes she dreamed of having someone at her side that enjoyed all this quiet beauty as much as she did. Shyann knew it definitely wouldn’t be Bryce. He liked to be seen and heard too much to laze around the pond enjoying nature.

She knew eventually she was going to have to break up with Bryce. They were just too different and separate people. Bryce needed a woman who would enjoy all those fancy nights out on the town or traveling to Paris for fancy dinners and as for her, she could be alone for a while, or maybe she’d find someone more like herself. She and Bryce would have a lot to talk about when he got back, and if he didn’t change then they would be through.

Shyann sat there thinking about her and Bryce’s first date. Bryce had shown up exactly on time. He was dressed immaculately in a charcoal, herringbone-striped suit, crisp white dress shirt, red tie, and black dress shoes. She learned quickly that was the way Bryce dressed most of the time. He had to look perfect just in case he was seen. He looked gorgeous standing in her door holding a bouquet of pink roses and white baby’s breath in his hand.

He offered her his arm, walking her to the passenger side of his navy-blue 1969 Corvette Stingray. He opened the door for her and waited until she was seated then shut it before moving to the driver’s side to slide behind the wheel.

Bryce took her to the most expensive restaurant in Paris on his private jet, and the place knew him by name. They had been seated immediately in a very private and secluded part of the place. Fancy white tablecloths covered the tables. Their table had a candle surrounded by flowers for the centerpiece and their own violin player standing by them to play romantic music for the whole meal. He ordered their most expense bottle of wine and then ordered their meals, telling her that he knew what food was the best there.

Of course, Shyann felt completely out of place, not to mention nervous as hell that she’d mess up. She had never been treated that way before and wasn’t sure how to react or behave in such a place as this. She’d rather be listening to some classic rock at a pizza or hamburger joint where everyone just sat around talking and discussing the day’s events. She might have enough money now for places like this, but she was still just a farmer’s daughter at heart. She almost couldn’t wait for this date to end and she wasn’t sure she’d ever want to go on another one with Bryce.

The only things Shyann found out about Bryce that night were that he’d been married once and was now a widower because his wife had been killed in a car wreck. They didn’t have any children, and he didn’t really have any plans of having any in the future. Which was fine with Shyann because she really didn’t want any either. Didn’t that make him a perfect match for her?

Mostly, Bryce wanted to know about her. Why she chose to be an interior designer? Where she’d gone to school, all the places she’d worked, when she’d bought her own design firm and home? Did she enjoy living in Cleveland, and why not Atlanta? Had she ever been married? Did she have children or want them? Shyann almost felt as if she were in some sort of an interview instead of on a date. She just knew she had no intention of making this a permanent relationship.

Bryce said very little about himself when she asked except that he enjoyed working out at the gym in his office building to keep in shape since he sat behind a desk most of the time. He also loved playing golf and horseback riding, which he informed her that he tried to do as often as he could. Apparently he went riding pretty often since he owned a few thoroughbreds of his own.

Bryce walked Shyann to her door and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips good night before leaving. He had been the perfect gentleman. So, what was wrong with him? Shyann just knew there had to be something. No one was that perfect. She was sure she’d find out soon enough. He was just too good to be true. When she’d agreed to go out with him she’d thought it would be a onetime thing. She still wasn’t sure how Bryce managed to work his way into her life, besides being nice to her and not taking no for an answer, even though she tried to say it. She just knew it didn’t have anything to do with his money or his influence in the community. Maybe it was just that he was comfortable to be with, and he didn’t complain about her long work hours since he worked a few of his own.

Shyann wasn’t sure that was still the reason though. Their relationship was no longer comfortable. It was still as dull and as boring as it was the first night. Bryce had become obsessive over time, refusing to let her spend much time with her friends, insisting she would be in better company around his friends. Somehow, she’d just gone along with that. She still saw her friends when she was at work with them, so it wasn’t like she wasn’t seeing and talking to them every day anyway. Shyann’s assistant and best friend Traci informed her that she didn’t like Bryce, so it didn’t bother her that they didn’t hang out together when Bryce was around.

 

 

HIS GRACE'S PAYMENT

GINA DUNCAN

Copyright © 2014

Chapter One

Bethany Thurlow looked up from her sewing when her father stepped into the sitting room. He staggered slightly. She shook her head in disgust. He’d been out drinking once again. How many more nights could she stand to watch him come home this way? How many more nights could his body take the abuse? She just prayed that he hadn’t been gambling as well. He’d already lost almost everything they owned, or at least everything that was worth anything. All they had left was their home, what clothes they wore, and the little bit of her mother’s jewelry she’d managed to hide away from him. Their home was in desperate need of repair, but there was no money for that. They wouldn’t even have food to eat if she hadn’t taken it upon herself to start a vegetable garden.

Her father had been this way ever since her mother’s death a few years ago. She and the unborn baby had died in childbirth. He’d begun drinking, which had led to gambling. He stopped being a solicitor, he’d let all the servants go, and then he began selling off everything in their home, a piece at a time.

Bethany had lost all hope of ever getting married to a gentleman. She no longer had a dowry to offer. Besides, what man would want the daughter of a poor drunkard with no means of supporting himself? Perhaps she’d meet a nice man from the country who didn’t know anything about her father, or obtaining a position in a home taking care of someone else’s children. She didn’t have much hope of that happening, either. They would probably want someone with more learning than she’d gotten. If nothing else, she could always get a position as someone’s kitchen help. She had learned to cook some, once all the servants were let go. She believed she did a good job with what little she had to work with. Her father certainly hadn’t complained whenever he chose to eat.

She watched him through lowered lashes, pretending to sew once more. She hoped he would just go to his room and go to bed. He wasn’t very nice when he’d been drinking. She normally tried to avoid him. She hadn’t expected him to return home so early. Most of the time, she’d already gone to her room before he returned. He was home early this evening and acting quiet nervous, wringing his hands and pacing the bare floor. What had he done now? There was nothing left for him to sell, only their home and lands. Her heart skipped a beat. Surely, he hadn’t sunk that low. She didn’t know where they would go or what they would do if he gambled those away.

“I need for you to pack a few things and put on your heavy cloak, girl,” Warren Thurlow grumbled.

She sucked in a harsh breath. No, he wouldn’t have. She began to panic a little, but pretended not to understand him. Her father never took her anywhere, especially nowhere that she would need extra clothing. Why did he suddenly want to take her somewhere? What was he up to? He couldn’t have lost their home. She wouldn’t allow herself to believe that until she heard it with her own ears.

“Why, Father? Where are we going?” She laid her sewing aside and clasped her hands in her lap to keep them from shaking. He looked more agitated than normal, when he stopped pacing long enough to look at her.

“Not that I need to explain anything to you, but we are going to His Grace, Clayton Merrick’s estate,” he answered, turning to look through the shambles that was left of their home. He began to gather anything left that still had any value at all. Most of it was just sentimental value, things her mother had loved that weren’t worth much of anything to anyone else.

“Who is Clayton Merrick?” she had never heard of the man before. Was he one of her father’s gaming friends? At least he hadn’t said he’d lost their home. Did her father owe this man money? She knew something was wrong with the way her father was behaving, strange, even for him. Why was he making her go with him? What purpose would she be there for?

“He is a very important man that I owe a great deal of money to,” Warren Thurlow declared.

“Then why do I need to pack a few things? Are we going to be staying there for a few days?”

Why was her father being so secretive? Something wasn’t right. She could feel it in the pit of her stomach. Why did he want her to go with him? Just how much money did he owe the man? Did he think the man would take pity on him if he brought his daughter along? She didn’t have the proper clothes to go to some important man’s home. Hell, the servants there would probably be dressed better than she was. There had to be a reason he wanted her to go with him. She stood and followed him to the doorway.

“No, we are not staying…you are, Beth.” he made it sound like a demand, his voice was hard and uncaring, sounding very much like the tyrant he had become.

“What do you mean…I will be staying?” Had her father lost his mind? Why would she be staying at the home of a stranger? Did he have children for her to attend to? She leaned against the crumbling wall of the foyer, her arms crossed over her bosom. She didn’t like the sound of what her father was suggesting. She had never met this Clayton Merrick before and had no intention of going to his home to stay.

“I have no other means in which to repay the man my debt. He is expecting me there tomorrow.” He started past her on his way to search through the house, for what she had no idea. There wasn’t anything of great importance left that he hadn’t already sold, so what could he be looking for? Just what did she have to do with repaying the man?

“So, you are just going to give me to him? What kind of man is he—what kind of man are you?” she put her hand to her mouth when she realized she was screaming at her father’s back.

Warren Thurlow stopped and turned, moving back to her side. He drew back his hand as if to strike her, but seemed to think better of it when she closed her eyes and flinched, because the pain never came.

“Must I remind you of whom it is you are speaking to?” he threatened.

She swallowed against the bile rising and shook her head. “No, Father, I know very well who it is I am speaking to.” She tried not to tremble in fear as she opened her eyes to look at him once more. He’d never struck her before, but then she usually tried to avoid him whenever he’d been drinking. She just wasn’t sure that he wouldn’t actually do it one day.

“It’s not as if I am just giving you to the man, Bethany. I’m sure he will find something for you to do until my debt is satisfied.”

When her father reached for her, she flinched again and then watched as he lowered his hand back to his side. He turned away from her as if he were ashamed to look at her after what he’d just said and done. He should be ashamed, she thought. How could he just expect her to accept what he was doing? Oh, how she wished her mother were still alive. Things could have been so different. Perhaps she would have a suitor by now and be planning her wedding.

“What sort of work is it that I am to do for him? I have no skills, Father.” She had never done anything outside of this home. She couldn’t even remember the last time she had left home for anything. They hadn’t had the money for her to go to town for anything. She hadn’t seen another soul besides her father in at least three years. She had never been alone with a strange man. She had never been alone with any man except for her father. Was this man rich? Did this man have a wife and family? Was he young? Was he old? He had to be someone important. Her father had referred to him as His Grace.

“You will learn to do whatever it is that His Grace demands of you,” Warren barked, his voice echoing in the empty hall.

Her insides began to jerk, her hands shook no matter how hard she grasped them together, and there was a throb beginning to form the front of her head. She wouldn’t know how to prepare fancy meals. Their diets had consisted of vegetables from her measly garden. She wouldn’t know how to prepare meat. She could barely remember what it even tasted like, for that matter. No one would want her in their kitchen. She didn’t even have proper clothes to go out in society. What would this man think of her when he saw her shabby clothing?

She’d lost her tutor years ago, so she didn’t have the knowledge it would take to teach children. It was highly doubtful anyone would want her for a governess. She closed her eyes as a wave of nausea overtook her. What if the man wanted her for a different reason altogether? She grasped the wall to keep from stumbling and falling. She placed her other hand over her stomach. She opened her eyes to look at her father, fear gnawing at her insides.

“What if he demands something I cannot do? What if he…” She took a deep breath, closed her eyes once more and swallowed hard. “I don’t know anything about being with a man, as you well know.”

She opened her eyes, but kept them downcast. She could feel her father’s gaze on her. He was looking her up and down with a snort, as if she were some dirty beggar out on the streets. She felt self-conscious as she wrapped her arms around her waist.

“I quite wager that will not be one of the services His Grace will demand of you, but if he does then you will lie there and do as he tells you to.” His voice sounded so uncaring.

“Please, Father, I beg you, don’t do this to me.” Tears streamed down her face. She didn’t know why she was crying, besides fear of the unknown. There was nothing left here for her to stay for. Their home had long since begun to crumble, yet she didn’t wish to leave. This home reminded her of her mother.

She knew she’d probably never marry, but she had no desire to become a man’s mistress, either. She’d overheard her mother speaking with one of her friends one day when she was younger. The woman had been crying because her husband had taken a mistress. Neither woman had anything nice to say about mistresses. Bethany couldn’t imagine becoming something so detestable.

“Stop begging, it is very unbecoming, Bethany. This is just the way it has to be. Now be quiet and do as I tell you.” He took her by the arm, pulling her along with him up the stairs.

“But, Father, you can’t just leave me with a man I don’t even know. How can you expect me to do something like that? I cannot believe he agreed to this madness. What sort of man could he be to do so?”

“He doesn’t know that you will be there as my payment. He doesn’t know anything about you at all. At least he doesn’t know anything…yet.” He stumbled on the stairs a few times, almost bringing them both down.

“Then maybe he won’t even agree to such a thing. Can’t we please just talk about this a little more, Father?” she implored. There was still hope, then, she thought. Maybe this Clayton Merrick was a gentleman and would refuse her father’s offer. There had to be another way to repay her father’s debt. Perhaps she could speak with the man herself, work something out. She realized that hope must have shown on her face with her father’s next words, and then all hope was lost.

“He will agree. He won’t have any choice.”

He deposited her at her door, then turned away from her to finish looking through the upstairs section of the house. “Pack your things tonight and then get some sleep. We will be leaving early in the morning.”

Bethany knew she had been dismissed by him, and there wasn’t any sense trying to reason with Warren Thurlow in his current mood. She could smell the whiskey on him, as if he’d taken a bath in the stuff. She knew she would have to do as he said for now, but she would find a way to change the situation as soon as she could come up with a plan.

She made her way into her sad, almost-empty room. It had once been filled with so many beautiful things, but that was before her mother had died and her father had begun drinking and gambling away everything they had.

She hid her mother’s jewelry in the bottom of her satchel. Most of the dresses she owned had once belonged to her mother as well. They were worn and dated, plus her mother had been a very petite woman. Bethany wasn’t much bigger, but enough so that the dresses were small on her. She had let the dresses out as much as she could, but they were still a little small and tight on her. It didn’t take her any time to gather what she had left.

She looked at herself in the floor-length mirror she still had, and she shook her head. Her unruly hair was a mess on its best days. She hated the color. Nothing went well with the red tint. Her skin was pale except for her cheeks that had turned red from being out in the sun. The dresses had her breasts mashed almost flat. They weren’t flattering at all.

She could only imagine what a rich gentleman would think of her once he saw her. He’d probably laugh her and her father out of the house. It would be embarrassing, but at least she’d still have her virtue intact. How could her own father try to force her to become a strange man’s mistress? She closed her green eyes as a shudder went through her. She turned away from the mirror and began to pack.

She lay down on her bed once everything was packed and let her tears flow freely. She would miss the only home she had ever known if she was forced to stay at the man’s home, but she vowed she would return here one day, and she would fix this place back to the glory it had once been.

* * * *

Bethany’s father was waiting by the door as she descended the stairs. He didn’t look any happier than he had last evening. He looked a little green, and she was almost happy that he wasn’t feeling well. He didn’t deserve to feel good while she was the one feeling punished for something he’d done. She had hoped he’d changed his mind when he sobered some, but she wasn’t that lucky. He had already fastened their only horse to the raggedy buggy. He pried the satchel bag from her trembling fingers and placed it in the back, then helped her up. She didn’t speak as they passed homes and lands close to theirs. She didn’t even have the heart to look back at the only home she had ever known.

She certainly couldn’t look at her father, feeling only disgust for him at the moment. She kept her head lowered or turned the other way, anything to avoid looking at the man next to her. She was appalled that he was trying to tell her about relations between a man and a woman. Her face burned and she tried to block out the sound of his voice. No daughter should have to listen to her father stumble over such things.

She was thankful when he’d finally stopped speaking and turned the buggy down a long lane, trees lined both sides. She pulled her cloak tighter to her as cold air and fear bit into her flesh. Her body trembled as they neared their destination.

What would this man be like? Would he be old and cruel? Would he hurt her, punish her for her father’s sins? She couldn’t imagine a gentleman who would agree to the scheme her father had set into motion. What would her father do if His Grace refused his offer? Would he simply try to sell her to another man? What would become of her once the man finished with her? She had no future. Her life would be ruined. She hoped her father wouldn’t lose their home. It would be the only place she had to return to.

She saw the massive manor before they ever reached it, it stood so tall and wide. She’d never seen a home so huge. What sort of man lived in such a place as this? The large stone steps reached all the way to huge, double wooden doors. Their entire home would fit inside this one, with plenty of room left over. She could get lost in a home as big as this. She shivered violently, and it had nothing to do with the cold wind. Good heavens, this man was beyond rich. What would he want with someone like her?

“Stay seated until I tell you otherwise,” Warren Thurlow ordered, bringing the buggy to a stop before the stone steps. If she knew how to drive the buggy, she would leave her father standing there before the door and return home. She silently prayed the man would send them away.

Her father hadn’t stood at the doors long when one opened. An aging man with thinning white hair stood there. She couldn’t hear the words they had exchanged, but the door closed, leaving her father standing there. He turned to her and motioned for her to join him. She shook her head, refusing to obey him. She didn’t think her legs would carry her even if she wanted to get out…which she didn’t.

He came down the steps in a huff, pulling her from the buggy, and grabbed her satchel with his other hand. He yanked her unwilling body up the stairs, threatening to beat her the entire way. Once they reached the top, he released her and dropped her satchel at her feet. He reached into his overcoat and took out two sealed envelopes.

“Give these to the butler when he returns. Tell him they are for His Grace, and do as His Grace tells you.” He cupped her face and looked down at her. Bethany could have sworn she saw tears gathering in her father’s eyes, but he turned away quickly and hurried down the steps away from her. Was he upset that he was doing this to her?

Bethany watched in silence as he climbed back onto the buggy, turned it around and headed back down the lane. She should have run after him, and probably would have if she didn’t feel so weak and numb.

How could he leave her here to face the man all alone? She had no idea what would become of her if Clayton Merrick turned her away. She feared she’d catch her death from the cold, trying to make her way back home on foot. Would he at least see her back home?

She turned back toward the door when she heard it opening. She held the envelopes out to the same man she’d seen before. He looked taken aback when he first laid eyes on her. He craned his head and looked past her to see that the drive was empty, and then shook his head.

“Pick up your satchel and follow me.” He looked down at the envelopes as he waited for her to step through the door. The great hall was huge and finely decorated, the floors shining like glass beneath her old, worn-out shoes. She was amazed at how large the place was.

She jumped when he closed the doors with a thud and then headed toward the other end of the hall. They stopped before a closed door. The man turned toward her and shook his head once more. She lowered her head, feeling inferior to the superbly dressed butler.

“Remain here and don’t touch anything until I come back for you.” He turned away from her and opened the door.

“Thurlow, glad to see that you are not a liar, although I must admit I was beginning to think you weren’t going to show yourself today.”

“Excuse me, Your Grace, but the man left these for you,” Bethany heard the servant say as he stepped through the door with the sealed envelopes clasped in his hand.

Apparently, the lord of the manor hadn’t been paying attention to who had entered his library. She listened to the men intently, trying to decide what sort of man His Grace was. His voice had sounded almost jovial at first, but then there was a bit of irritation to it when he realized he wasn’t speaking to her father.

“Where is Mr. Thurlow?” The stranger’s voice was deep, resounding off the walls of the room. She tried to picture what the man would look like. Would he be short, rounding at the middle and old like her father, or young, tall, and lean? She certainly hoped for the latter. She couldn’t imagine how she’d feel about a man like her father touching her. Her body shuttered at the thought and her nausea returned with a vengeance.

The servant interrupted her thoughts as he spoke once more. “I am afraid that he is gone, Your Grace, but he left something else as well.”

“Well, what else did he leave, Simpson?”

Bethany let out a gasp as the servant reached outside the door, grasping her arm and pulling her inside the library. She kept her gaze downcast as he led her tense body before a massive oak desk. Her body quaked with fright. What would she say to this man? What would he do to her when he realized she was his payment? Lord, help me I can’t do this. She was sure she’d die from fear and shame.

“This, Your Grace.” The butler stopped a few feet from the desk.

“Who are you, girl?” Clayton Merrick’s voice was deep and soothing, but held a bit of anger and cruelty to it as well. Bethany tried to back away, but Simpson held her in place with his hand wrapped tightly around her upper arm.

“Bethany Thurlow, Your Grace,” she answered softly without looking up. She was surprised her voice worked at all. Her throat was so tight, she wondered how she was even still breathing.

“Why are you at my home, Miss Thurlow, and where the devil has your father gone?”

“I do not know where he has gone, Your Grace. He said to give you the envelopes. They are supposed to explain everything. He also said that I am to be part of his payment to you.” Her voice trembled.

His Grace began to laugh, causing her body to tremble harder. He stopped laughing and she could feel his gaze upon her. Was he studying her? She was too afraid to lift her head to see.

“You may leave us, Simpson.” His voice was calm and quiet.

“Should I prepare some refreshments, sir?”

“No, Simpson, that won’t be necessary just yet.”

Bethany waited as the servant exited the room. She jumped as he shut the door behind him. She was now alone in the room with the man. What did he have planned for her? Maybe he didn’t want the servant to hear what he had to say.

She closed her eyes, but opened them when her body swayed. Her knees were knocking together, she was shaking so badly. Could he hear her heart racing in the quiet of the room?

“Are you cold, Miss Thurlow?”

“No, Your Grace.” Her voice cracked, and her knees went weak. She feared her legs would fail her at any moment.

“So, what am I supposed to do with you, if you’re meant to be my payment? I’ve never won a child in a card game before.” She could hear the merriment in his voice.

How old was he to believe that she was a child? How old did he think she was?

“I do not know, Your Grace. I believe my father penned everything on those letters.”

She waited and listened as he tore the seal from one of the envelopes. She jumped when he shoved his chair backward, knocking it over as he stood. Whatever her father had written had apparently angered the man. She heard him take a deep breath before he spoke again.

“I’ll wager your father will see the error of his way and return for you shortly, Miss Thurlow.”

“No, he won’t.” She shook her lowered head. “He’s not the same man he once was. I do not know my father any longer, Your Grace.” She watched as his shiny black boots appeared at the side of the desk and moved around it to step closer to her, and then he made his way completely around her. Her body began to tremble violently once more. She felt faint, but refused to give into the black depths of unconsciousness for fear of what would happen while she was out.

He stopped before her and pushed the hood of her cloak from her head. He placed his hand beneath her chin, lifting her face. She closed her eyes, afraid of what she would see, tears streaming down her cheeks, unbidden. She swallowed hard and inhaled deeply before forcing her eyes open to look up at him. He looked shocked as he stared down at her.

Her heart skipped a beat when she looked at the man. He didn’t look anything like what she had feared. She had expected an old, fat, angry-looking man with a red face and balding head. This man was none of those things.

He was a tall, well-built man with hair the color of a raven’s wing. His hair hung loose, reaching a little past his shoulders. His skin was a lot darker than hers. His eyes were a bright, brilliant blue that reminded her of the ocean her mother had taken her to see once when she was a small child. It scared her the way her body reacted to the sight of this man. He was beautiful. No man had the right to look the way he did, it had to be a sin. He raked his other hand through his hair as he stared at her.

“How old are you, Miss Thurlow?” He studied her reaction to his question.

“Eighteen, Your Grace,” she answered softly. “I will be nineteen in a few days.”

“What the hell am I supposed to do with you?” His voice echoed through the room, loud and violent-sounding. His face was twisted as if he was in some sort of pain. “What the bloody hell is your father up to?”

Bethany jumped at the menace in his voice and backed away from him. Fresh tears streamed down her face.

“Oh hell, stop sniveling. I’m not angry with you.” He turned away from her. “Simpson!”

The older man appeared within seconds of his name being called. She wondered if he’d been standing just outside the door the entire time.

“Yes, Your Grace?”

“Get Miss Thurlow something to eat and some hot tea to warm her. I also want you to have one of the guest rooms made ready for her to rest in, while I figure out what to do about her and her father,” he ordered calmly, moving back behind his desk once more.

“Yes, Your Grace…please follow me, Miss.” Simpson took the satchel from her hands.

She turned to follow the servant and then turned back to stare at Clayton. She didn’t know why she should concern herself, but she had to know.

“You won’t hurt my father, will you, Your Grace?”

She tried to avoid looking him directly in the eyes. She wouldn’t deceive herself. No matter how handsome she found this man, he still frightened her. She feared for her father’s safety.

“To be quite honest with you, Miss Thurlow, I’m not entirely certain what I would do to the man at the moment.”

Bethany nodded her head and then turned to follow Simpson. She could certainly understand the man’s anger with her father. She was angry with him as well, but he was the only family she had left. She couldn’t imagine what would happen to her if something happened to her father.

Simpson led her to the kitchen where he’d instructed her to sit after taking her cloak. He shook his head once more after seeing the way she was dressed, and then introduced her to Mary, the cook, before he disappeared with her things, leaving her with Mary to wait on her food and tea.

Bethany felt ravenous as Mary sat the plate of food down before her. She hadn’t seen so much food since before her mother’s death, and thought to never see as much again. The ham, eggs and sweet rolls melted in her mouth as she savored every last bite.

She looked up to catch Mary watching her from the corner of her eye. She almost felt ashamed of the way she’d ravished the meal, but Mary smiled approvingly at her. She thanked Mary just before following Simpson to her new room.

MIDNIGHT MOON

 GINA DUNCAN

Copyright © 2013

 Chapter One

Cut Bank, Montana Territory 1840

Drake was standing alone looking up at the midnight moon. It always seemed to bring him an inner peace of mind and soul, which he really needed now. His white grandfather had informed him that he had found the perfect bride for him. Some rich overly pampered girl more like it. Drake thought to himself. All he wanted to do right now was get out of this place, maybe visit with his father’s people or just go to his cabin out in the mountains, away from everybody and everything.

He lived a hard life being half Indian and half white. When he was a child it felt as if he didn’t belong in either world. Being forced to grow up in the white man’s world he was expected to be white, and now no one seemed to remember his Blackfoot blood except for him. The only thing they thought of was his grandfather’s money and what it could buy. It had bought Black Thunder a white man’s life as Drake Peterson, the only grandchild of Austin Peterson.

He had lost out on learning about his Indian heritage until he was old enough to decide what he wanted to do and big enough to tell his grandfather what he wanted without being knocked down whenever he spoke his feelings about his father’s people.

His given Indian name was Black Thunder, but his white grandfather refused to call him by it, instead he called him Drake and gave him his last name Peterson. Now whenever he could escape the white man’s way of life, he went by his given name Black Thunder, and he tried to get away as much as possible.

Right now he needed nothing more than to be away from Austin Peterson and the way he believed Black Thunder should live and who he should live it with. He wanted to be able to pick his own wife, when he was ready for one. At this moment in his life he just wanted to be free. After all he was only twenty-six. He didn’t want to take over his grandfather’s life once he was gone. He wanted a life of his own, one where no one was nice to him or talked to him just because of the money or status of his name.

Austin Peterson believed he could buy and sell people every day of his life. He had no regards for another person’s feelings. Black Thunder didn’t want to be like him. He didn’t remember much of his father, since he was young when his father died, but now that he knew his father’s parents and their way of life, he wanted to be more like them, loving and caring. He wished that he could have been raised in their village and grown into the brave he had to learn to be once he was grown. It had taken a while for the other braves to want to include him in on anything, but Flying Eagle, his Blackfoot grandfather wouldn’t let him give up until he was as good as any brave born and raised in his village.

Shaking his head, he went to his room to put some clothes together. He was leaving for a while in hopes that his grandfather would forget all about trying to marry him off to someone he’d never set eyes on before.

Drake changed into his buckskin britches and beaded shirt then took his other clothes and tied them to his horse Shadow once he had the big black stallion saddled. He was through listening to that old man. He had never asked to come here to live or asked the old man for anything. Sure he went to college on the old man’s money and learned all about the white man’s way of life. He always wore his hair short and his suits tailored. That’s the way his grandfather ordered him to live, but once he was away from Austin and at his own cabin in the mountains, he was who he wanted to be—Black Thunder.

He might be the old man’s only blood grandchild, but right now at this moment he didn’t feel anything for Austin Peterson but contempt. After all, who did he think he was, telling Black Thunder who he would marry, especially when he’d never intended on getting married in the first place, let alone to someone he’d never met before? He hadn’t even stuck around to hear the name of his intended bride. His temper had overridden every other instinct he had, so he knew the best thing for him to do was get away for a time.

Maybe he’d go hunting for a while, be alone and just think about his future. Most of the town’s people near his cabin knew his white name so he wouldn’t have any problems there. He liked to go to town when he was up at the mountains. The people there didn’t know anything about his grandfather or his mixed blood, they just thought he was some sort of mountain man. He enjoyed going to the local tavern to play cards and just have a drink at times.

Most of the time when Drake was up in the mountains, he had a long beard and long hair. Right now his raven hair hung halfway down his back. He’d started letting it grow the first day the old man told him about the marriage idea. He kept it pulled back in a leather tie most of the time. He had shaved a few days ago, but his beard was slowly growing back in and would soon be a full-grown beard once more. Drake didn’t realize that when he started out following the moon’s light that it was actually leading him closer to his destiny.

Riding his black stallion, Shadow, Drake headed out toward his log cabin. He’d built it up in the hills between his father’s people and his white grandfather’s house. Once he was finally free to leave and be on his own he really didn’t have any use for the old man, after everything he had put Drake and his mother through, but he wanted to stay close enough in case he was ever truly needed.

He stopped Shadow when he saw something white headed toward town. As it got closer he saw that it was the most beautiful white mare he’d ever laid eyes on. But what surprised him most was the young lady riding that white horse. He wondered who she was and why she was coming to the small, rugged town all alone in the middle of the night. She turned and looked in his direction, catching him off guard for a moment as she sat there staring at her.

“Good evening,” he offered with a nod of his head as she started past him. She was beautiful, young, but beautiful nonetheless. From what he could see of her hair in the light cast by the full moon, it looked to be a deep brown, not like most browns that looked like dirt or mud, but a mixture of honey and molasses. He wasn’t sure but he thought her eyes looked green, almost like a wildcat’s eyes when the moon hit them. Why is she staring at me like that? It was a mixture of fright and fascination that he saw on her face and again he was wondering why she was alone but then decided it was none of his business as he spurred his horse and rode out of town.

Drake stopped Shadow in the trees just outside of town. He wasn’t sure why but he just had the strangest compulsion to watch over the young woman. He shook his head as he sat there in the quiet for a short time. He didn’t know what he was thinking. The lady probably stopped at the inn and got a room or had family she was going to see, but he just needed to make sure.

A few moments passed and then she appeared in his sights and headed farther into the trees, and once again Drake found himself wondering why she was out so late and all alone, and what the hell was she thinking, entering the woods so late at night? Drake rode a safe distance behind her. His training as a brave had taught him how to be silent on foot and horseback, so he didn’t think she would know he was following her. She was getting close to his cabin, but he knew that there was no way she could have known he had a place there. No one ever came there.

It had been too long since he’d been hunting and he almost wasn’t sure the cabin would still be here, or if it had been taken over by someone else by now. He was glad to see the place. His grandfather had kept him so busy these days and he hadn’t had a chance to get away. He couldn’t wait to get inside, build a fire, and sit in his chair and drink his whiskey until his problems disappeared tonight.

He thought if it didn’t help being at the cabin and hunting, he’d travel to the Blackfoot camp to see his aaáhss, grandparents. He knew they’d be happy to welcome him to their home again.

Drake slowed Shadow and stayed hidden in the trees. He could see that she was starting to tire, but he knew that it wouldn’t be long before she reached his cabin. What he didn’t know was what he was going to do once they reached it.

* * * *

Satin Daring was standing on her balcony looking at the same moon, not feeling at peace with anything at the moment. Her father had just informed her that she was to be getting married in a few weeks to a man she didn’t know. Still, she had a feeling that she wouldn’t want to. She didn’t care that he had gone to college and learned lots of things, or that he was the only grandchild of some rich old man that her father knew. She didn’t even know his name yet. She hadn’t stayed in her father’s study long enough to find out who he was, it didn’t matter.

She started to cry, not understanding why her father was forcing her to marry someone she didn’t know, or ever want to know. He had never made her do anything she didn’t want to before, so why now? She had always been free to do whatever she wanted to, whenever she wanted to.

Sometimes she loved to get on her horse, Snow, and just ride to her heart’s content. She enjoyed adventures in the woods out past their land. Her father had taught her to shoot a gun, fish, and hunt. She never learned much about being a girl since her mother’s death when she was only three. Now at the age of eighteen, she missed her mother more than she ever had before. Her mother had taken a terrible fall down the stairs, breaking her neck and killing her unborn child. Satin couldn’t remember her very well now, but her father kept her mother’s portrait hanging over their fireplace and he never remarried.

She figured he must have loved his wife very much to never find another to take her place. He always seemed so lonely to her. She felt sorry for him most of the time, wishing she knew what to do for him. All she knew now was that she had to find a way to get out of this place or get her father to change his mind before that day came.

She tried to change his mind desperately every day for weeks with the same ending, No, then he would dismiss her for the rest of the day. She spent most of her days in her room alone plotting, but today she decided was the last day. She decided it would be easier to run away than to try to persuade her father not to go through with this farce of a marriage.

Now the problem was where she would go once she left home. Satin knew she would have to find some kind of work, but the only thing she really knew how to do was sew, and that was only because the housekeeper taught her that much. She didn’t do very well, but still she would be willing to try just about anything. As long as it was in a new town, far away from this place and far away from the man her father intended on making her marry. He was probably some dirty old vulture anyway, or so grotesque that he couldn’t find a woman that would have him.

She waited for her father to go to sleep, changed into her riding habit, and packed a few necessary things into a satchel. She went back to the balcony, remembering how she used to sneak out for a late night horseback ride as a young child. She smiled when she threw the satchel over the balcony, letting it hit the ground below. She climbed over the railing and down the rose trellis, then finally down to the ground. Slipping out of the house, she made her way to the stables. She knew well how to saddle her own horse, so being as quiet as she possibly could, she made her way to the barn and found her saddle and carried it to the stable, finding her white mare she’d appropriately named Snow.

“Hello Snow, how is my girl tonight?” she asked the horse, stroking its head and nose. She then walked around to the side of the horse, took the blanket off the wall, threw it over the horse’s back, and then proceeded to place the saddle on. She fastened the cinch tight enough to hold it in place, yet not so tight that it would bother Snow.

Next came the bit and leads. She placed the bit in Snow’s mouth, and then patted Snow’s nose once more. Leading Snow out of the stall, Satin stopped long enough to grab a small rope to tie her satchel to the horse’s saddle. She mounted the horse and rode away as silently as she could manage. She still had no idea of where she was going or what she would do once she got there. All she knew was she had to get far away from this place. She only wished she didn’t have to hurt her father this way, but there was no other choice since he didn’t care about hurting her.

Satin headed Snow toward the mountains, figuring she’d be able to camp somewhere up there at least for the night and perhaps find a room in a nice town tomorrow or the next day. Somewhere just to give her father time to realize the mistake he was making. It had been a while since she’d ridden so far, and she was surprised to see she was headed toward a town, then she heard something off to her side. She felt fear for her life for the first time as she looked toward the dark man sitting on an even darker horse. The instant his eyes met hers, Satin felt frozen to the spot. Snow must have felt similarly, for the horse stopped as well. His gaze was mesmerizing, and somewhat foreboding at the same time.

“Good evening.”

His deep voice seemed to hold her there, and the only thing she could do was stare at him. She felt a little foolish that when she opened her mouth nothing came out. Her heartbeat hammered in her chest and she wondered if he could hear it from in the distance.

His hair was coal black and tumbled down across his thick black brows. He had a dark shadow of beard across his jawbone. He was different from the other men she knew. His eyes seemed to chill her as they held hers, but for some odd reason she just couldn’t look away from him. She watched as he nudged his horse and took off out of the dirty-looking little town and disappeared in the dark crop of trees. He was dressed in buckskin clothing, but she didn’t believe he was an Indian. From what she knew she didn’t think they grew facial hair. Maybe he was a trapper or trader. She sat there giving him enough time to get a good distance ahead of her since he was headed in her direction.

She thought about staying in town tonight then leaving on the stagecoach tomorrow, but she wasn’t so sure that would be a good idea. What if her father came there to look for her? He would surely check the stagecoach first. No, she decided she had to keep riding. She looked toward where the stranger had just ridden out of town and wondered where he was headed to. Maybe another town or maybe home. Something about him frightened her, yet called out to her at the same time. She just couldn’t figure out what it was, all she knew was she wanted to follow him.

The farther Satin rode the more she felt as if someone was watching her, but she never saw anyone when she turned in her saddle to look. She also thought she’d heard a horse once or twice, but there was always nothing in sight when she looked back.

Satin rode for a while yet she didn’t see the stranger. He must have gotten farther away from her than she thought. She saw a cabin standing just over the next clearing and smiled to herself. She was never so happy to see anyplace as she was that dark little cabin. Pushing her horse to go just a little farther and closer, she couldn’t help but feel a little nervous the closer she got. What if a killer or thief or just plain old outlaws live here, what would they do to me if I go in there? But eventually her tiredness took over and she was willing to take her chances. Stopping Snow in front of the cabin, she slid down out of the saddle and walked up to the door. Slowly opening it, she peeked inside to find that it was empty and dark.

Walking Snow to the small barn just off to the left of the cabin, she unsaddled her then put her in a stall. There were no other horses there or any sign that one had been there recently. Removing the blanket, she put everything over the small wall. Going to the cabin, she slowly opened the door, calling out to see if anyone answered. When no one did she crept inside.

Satin decided to light a lantern so she could have a better look around before settling down for the night. The cabin was actually one large room. The kitchen was off to the right with a table on one side and two chairs, but absolutely no food anywhere to be found. The other side of the room had a big bed with a side table. The fireplace was in the middle of the cabin, with a comfortable-looking chair and table on one side of it and a stack of wood lining the wall on the other in the sleeping area.

The fireplace was pretty big, made up of large stones from the floor all the way to the ceiling. The cabin wasn’t large but it was comfortable and homey looking. She found some matches and candles on the table next to the bed. She lit a couple, placing them on both sides of the bed. She knelt by the fireplace and tried to build a fire without any luck. After all, it had been a while since she’d had to build one. She stood and walked to the bed, picked up a blanket, shook it out, and then made the bed.

The days were still warm, but the nights could get pretty cold, especially up here in the mountains. She had to admit she was a little frightened being out here all alone. She found herself jumping at every sound she heard and then there was the fact of not knowing who the cabin belonged to. What if it belonged to some old mountain man who might even be on his way back home even now, what would she do then? Satin decided she better get some sleep in while she still could. She began to strip down to her slip. Blowing out the lantern she’d left on the kitchen table, she made her way back to the bed. She lay down and pulled the blanket up over her just before leaning to each side to blow out the candles. She pulled the cover over her head when she heard noises that she couldn’t explain away, and was soon fast asleep.

 

 

THE OUTLAW’S LADY

 GINA DUNCAN

Copyright © 2012

Chapter One

Montana Territory, 1875

Cora Belle Talon was a beautiful young woman with only one problem at this point in her life, or so she thought as she moved around in the dark room with the light of a single burning candle. She had always hated the dark, but if she was going to leave, she’d have to do it in the middle of the night while her stepmother Olivia slept. Otherwise she wouldn’t get away. She thought that her father’s murder was the worst thing that could ever happen to her, but now being forced to run away from her home, the only home she’d ever known, might actually turn out to be the worst thing to ever happen to her.

She had no idea of where she would go or what she would do once she got there. The only thing she had ever done was take care of her father, cooking for him and keeping the house. All she knew now was that she had to get as far away from home as possible. She was trying not to think about being out in the open in the dark all alone. She knew if she did, she’d probably change her mind about leaving altogether.

She was dressed in her father’s old clothes and boots. They were a little big on her, and she had tied the britches to keep them up. The boots were also a little big, but there was nothing she could do about it. She had pinned her long blonde hair up and stuffed it under his old hat. Looking in the mirror to be sure it was all hidden beneath the old hat, she was finally convinced she looked more like the young boy she was pretending to be than the woman she had become.

Cora crept to Olivia’s room to make sure the woman was asleep then pulled the door quietly closed as she made her way back to her room to get the satchel of clothes she had already packed and hidden beneath her bed earlier today while Olivia was out somewhere. Taking that and the candle, she made her way to the kitchen where she wrapped some bread in a cloth. She quickly looked around to see what else she could take with her. She wasn’t sure how long it would be before she found a town as far away from this one as she could get, or how long it would take her to get settled once she was there. She didn’t have any money for a coach—not that Olivia or Donavan would let her get on one if she did in the first place.

She headed for the back door then remembered she’d forgotten her locket lying on the dresser in her room. Making her way back there and grabbing it, she placed the chain around her neck. Seeing the portrait of her parents sitting there on the dresser, she grabbed it as well and hurried back to the satchel waiting for her at the back door, stuffing it inside.

Carrying the candle and satchel, she made her way out to the barn where her father’s brown mare was prancing in her stable as if she knew something was afoot.

“It’s all right, girl.” Cora soothed her hand over the mare’s nose after she set the candle and satchel down. She thanked God that her father had taught her how to saddle a horse and to ride when she was a little girl.

She pulled the stool to the mare’s side so she could reach her, throwing the blanket over her back then the saddle, and then stepped down to fasten the cinch beneath of it. She pulled on the horn to make sure she had the saddle tight enough, and then she grabbed the bit and bridle, slipping them into place. She led the mare out of the stable, bringing her closer to the rail, and then tied the satchel to the saddle. She blew the candle out, leaving them in the dark except for the moon that was shining through the open barn doors, and then used the rail to climb onto the mare’s back.

It was a shame her father didn’t own a gun and she’d never learned how to shoot one, she thought. It would sure make her feel a little safer right now if she had one.

She was running from an unwanted marriage to the man she just knew in her heart had killed her father, but had no way to prove it since the sheriff was in the man’s back pocket. Olivia hadn’t even believed her and couldn’t wait until after the funeral to tell Cora that she was going to be marrying her off as soon as possible.

“All right, girl, it looks like it’s just you and me, and this god-awful darkness.” She patted the mare on the side of the neck as she leaned down to make her way out the barn doors.

She wasn’t so sure that leaving home was the right thing to do, yet staying home to marry Donavan Carlyle would have been worse than what she was going through right now. Not really knowing which way she should head, but knowing at least enough not to head toward town and the horrid man she was running from, she headed in the opposite direction.

Heading northwest from Hellgate Valley toward French Town, she knew the terrain wouldn’t be easy. She’d have to cross a high range to reach it at some point, but it would be her best choice. She could have headed south to Bitter Root, but knew that would be the first place Donavan and Olivia would look for her because it was the easier route. At least going to French Town would be easier than trying to head east toward Bears Town. If she had chosen that way, she knew the canyon there was at least forty miles in length with a range less lofty than those on the west, but she would also have to cross over the Hellgate River, which was quite deep in most places considering several streams poured into it. The largest of the streams was the Big Blackfoot, but she would also have to worry about an Indian ambush. They had already heard of fur hunters and trappers being ambushed along that trail just trying to make it to Hellgate Valley.

Cora had ridden slowly for most of the night over the hills and ridges, being careful not to injure the mare or herself. She kept to the shadows, being as quiet as she possibly could. She also kept an eye out for Indians and was always looking back to make sure she hadn’t been followed. It was almost too much. She’d never been out on her own before, and it was scarier than she thought it would be when she’d come up this plan. She wasn’t sure how much farther she or the mare would make it, and now that it was starting to get a little light out, she decided she was far enough away from home to stop for a little while and maybe eat a bite or two of the bread she had brought with her. Sliding off the mare’s back, she then grabbed the reins and led her to a low-hanging branch next to Bitter Root River and tied the reins to it. She thought it’d be best to leave the saddle on, just in case she had to move fast. Cora untied the satchel and pulled out the blanket she’d brought with her. Spreading it out on the ground and sitting down, she pulled the bread out. Looking around, she was sure she was hidden pretty well in the trees behind a fairly big ridge. She felt secure enough after eating a few bites, and she decided to lie down for a little while to see if she could rest.

She must have fallen asleep because she was awoken suddenly by the sounds of gunfire. Sitting up, she began looking around to see where she was and trying to identify where the shots were coming from. The best she could tell, they sounded as if they were coming from the other side of the ridge she was resting behind.

Holding on to twigs and rocks jutting out from the side of the ridge, she climbed and pulled herself to the top to peer over, trying to be as quiet as possible, not knowing who or what was on the other side. She almost cried out when she saw what looked like a nightmare in progress before her. It looked as if there were at least five or six dead men lying on the ground in their own blood. There were five men getting off their horses. All were dressed from head to toe in black, and they even wore black masks to cover the lower halves of their faces. She watched as they began moving around the dead men. They were using the toes of their black boots to nudge the men on the ground.

To make sure they were dead, Cora was sure, and a shiver ran down her spine. She put a shaking hand to her mouth to keep from crying out for fear of being discovered and murdered the same way. She tried to move as quietly as a mouse back down the ridge so she could repack her things and get on her mare before she was discovered. She felt like cursing when rocks and pebbles began to slide down the ridge, making a soft rumbling sound. She stopped suddenly and prayed the masked men were too far away to hear something as soft as the pebbles. She quickly peeked back over the top of the ridge, watching as one of the masked men looked up at where she was hiding. Cora prayed a little harder that she was too small and far away to be seen by the murderer.

She lay there watching until he turned away, and then she slid as quietly and as quickly as she could back to the ground, going to her blanket and satchel. She began rolling up her blanket, stuffing it back into the satchel. Walking softly and quietly, trying to avoid any fallen leaves or sticks the best she could, she made her way back to where she had left the mare tied to the small branch next to the river. She tied the satchel to the saddle and led the mare to where a log had fallen so that she could mount once again.

Cora was glad that she had been far enough away that she couldn’t see the faces of the dead men. She just knew their dead stares would have brought her nightmares for months to come. After all, it hadn’t been that long ago that she’d found her own father lying in a puddle of his own blood. His empty, glassy eyes staring up still haunted her. All at once she began to worry…what if the man who’d looked up at the ridge had actually seen her? Would he come after her now? Would they kill her, too?

She wondered if she should try to make it to French Town quickly and try to find a lawman to tell what she had seen, but if she did, then she would be right back to where she had started from. They’d want to know who she was and what she was doing out along Bitter Root River all alone. Would they return her to Olivia and Donavan? God, what should she do? Trying to put as much distance between herself and the outlaws as possible.

Still, she couldn’t ride very fast or hard until she was clear of some of these larger ridges, but once she was clear of them and some of the thick woods, she’d make better time. She just had to.

* * * *

Royce Wilkason looked to the top of the ridge when he heard the rocks sliding down. There had only been a few, and they hadn’t made enough noise to catch everyone’s attention, but he had grown used to listening for every sound and movement to keep them all safe. He knew someone must have been up there watching. He hadn’t seen anyone, but that didn’t mean they weren’t there. He could almost sense someone watching them. He knew someone had seen them, but whom? Yeah, there was no denying that they’d killed these men, but not in cold blood. These men had been sent to do a job, and they’d done it pretty well by the looks of his ranch, broken fences, and dead cattle. He’d almost bet they were the same men that tried to burn their barn down just a few nights ago. Anyone just seeing this fight, though, would think he and his men had chased these men down without any rights and outright killed them. Looking from his brother and hired ranch hands back to the top of the ridge, and knowing there was only one safe pass off that ridge, he knew how to get just ahead of the person who’d been up there, if there had been anyone. He knew he couldn’t take any chances as he turned back to his men.

“See if they have anything that can help us learn who’s doing all this to us, and then we need to get out of here before anymore of his damn men show up,” he said, looking around.

He hated knowing what they had to resort to, what they had become just to survive and keep what belonged to them. At least what rightfully belonged to him and his younger brother, Seth. The other three men were their hired hands. They had been hired to help run their cattle and horse ranch, not to have to kill men. They didn’t mind doing the killing so much anymore, not since their livelihood was threatened, too. If there was no ranch, no cattle, and no horses, there would be no work.

There wasn’t enough head of cattle left now as it was to do much of anything with. Luckily for them, the men had at least got the horses out of the barn before they’d lost any of them. Since whoever it was that wanted their ranch had come along, they’d all had to learn to do things they never thought they would. The man sure wasn’t stopping at anything to get what he wanted. He wasn’t even above murder, Royce realized, when men started shooting at them as they tried to repair the barn that had been half burned down. Hell, they’d even killed a couple of the horses today. When they returned home today, they were going to have to work on the fencing so that head of cattle and horses they did have left wouldn’t get out. The barn would have to wait until after that.

There wasn’t much law about, and what there was certainly wasn’t any help. They were too afraid to leave town to come anywhere near the Flathead Indian Reservation, which was just beyond Royce and Seth’s ranch. Royce was also beginning to wonder if whoever wanted his land owned the law as well. That would certainly be a better reason for the law not to want to come to his ranch. The Flathead Indians had been quite friendly and never gave him any problems. Now their only hope to keep what was theirs and stay alive long enough to find out who was doing all this, and hopefully get enough on the man to take it to the marshal was to kill whoever came after them first. So, dressing as outlaws themselves and killing the men that were sent to kill them or run them off was the only way they had to stay alive and keep what was theirs until they found out a way to stop the bastard.

“Take whatever you find, split up, and head back to the ranch. I’ll meet you there to see if we found anything worth taking to the marshal,” Royce said, slipping the Colt back into the low-hanging holster at his side. He slipped the mask off his face, sheathed his Winchester, and then mounted his black stallion. He removed his hat to wipe at the sweat beading on his forehead.

“Hey, where are you going?” Seth called after him.

“I’ll see you at home. There’s something I need to do. Just be careful and keep out of sight,” Royce said, placing his black gambler hat back atop his head.

Royce waited until Seth nodded his head, and then he took off across the plane headed toward the tree line. He had to know who was up there watching them. Was it the man gunning for them or maybe a spy for the bastard? He’d question whoever it was, and if necessary, kill them. He knew there was someone there. He just couldn’t shake the feeling coming over him. He’d felt their eyes on him, watching and waiting.

He rode hard to be ahead of whoever it was then looked around until he found a place among the trees to hide. He wasn’t about to be discovered and have any of them hung as outlaws when they were all good men just trying to survive. For their own good, he could only pray it was only his imagination and not a spy or the man himself. He hated to have to kill men over cattle, horses, and land, but what else could he do? He was worried enough about Seth, who was starting to behave as if he liked living as an outlaw. No, he decided he couldn’t let that happen. It had to end soon.

Royce heard someone coming before he actually saw them. He smiled to himself, knowing someone had been up there on that ridge watching them. He was filled with apprehension, not knowing what he was going to be facing. Had there been more than one person up on that ridge? He didn’t think so. He hadn’t really felt threatened, and yet that feeling of dread lingered. A chill ran up his spine as the person came into view. It was a feeling he’d never had before and never wanted to feel again. The person didn’t look big enough to be too much of a problem. More like a young boy lost or out to make a name for himself. He didn’t like the thought of having to hurt someone so small, or so young. Maybe he could just frighten the boy a little, put a good scare into the young lad, and he’d learn not to go around spying on people.