Elizabeth Lane – The Widowed Bride (страница 9)

“Save your breath, lady. You don’t have to draw me a picture.” Ethan exhaled raggedly as he sat up. “Come on, let’s get this damn mattress out the door. For what it’s worth, I promise not to lay an ungentlemanly hand on you.”

“Fine. And if I gave you the wrong impression, I’m sorry.” Ruby stood, turning away from him to hide her burning face. Ethan was one of the most compellingly attractive men she’d ever met. His kisses, and the casual contact of their bodies, had filled her with a pleasure so sweet she could have wept with it. But when he’d pressed her for more, she’d been unable to hold back the gut-clenching panic, the fear of being hurt again.

Hollis was dead. She had fired the three shots that killed him and been acquitted of his murder. But it seemed that the memory of her late husband, who had so relished causing her pain, would never leave her in peace.

Ethan had heaved the mattress back onto its edge. He and Ruby were scrambling to get it headed in the right direction when the knock came—this time as a discreet tap on the front door.

“Oh!” Ruby dropped her end of the mattress and flew across the parlor. Letting the mattress sag to the floor, Ethan moved back into the hallway. Maybe the mayor and his son were making a return call. Whoever it was, he’d be smart to stay out of sight until he knew what was going on.

From where he stood, he could see that Ruby had reached the front door. She hesitated a moment, smoothing her clothes and tucking in strands of hair that had come loose during their tussle on the mattress.

It had been a delicious tussle, Ethan mused. Or, at least it might have been. Kissing her had been as sweetly intoxicating as sipping hot buttered rum. She’d responded with a hunger that seemed to match his own. Then, suddenly, it was as if he’d become her enemy. What was going on here? Had he done something to spook her or was the woman playing games with him?

To say the least, Ruby Rumford was a challenge.

But then, he’d enjoyed challenges before.

The click of the latch jerked his attention back to the present. Ruby opened the door a few cautious inches, then swung it wide to reveal a rangy, slightly stooped man with a thatch of silver-white hair.

“Hello, darling girl!” His voice was an old man’s, pleasantly gruff.

“Sam!” She flung herself into his arms for a welcoming hug. Only as he released her to step away did Ethan see the silver star pinned to his worn tweed vest.

Ethan’s memory clicked back to the briefing he’d been given for this assignment. The man would be Sam Farley, who’d been the marshal in Dutchman’s Creek for more than thirty years.

Farley had a trustworthy reputation. But experience had taught Ethan to be cautious. In Kansas, he’d brought down a bootlegging operation that had involved the mayor, the sheriff and the bank president. Until he had evidence to the contrary, everyone was a suspect.

He’d seen the story played out before—a public servant who’d received scant reward for a lifetime of honest work and felt he deserved better. Sam Farley would be nearing retirement. He could probably use some extra cash to see him through a comfortable old age. Who could blame the marshal for turning a blind eye to the sale of illegal booze for a share of the profits? Especially if the extra money was needed to catch the attention of a beautiful woman?

That possibility, and the fact that Ruby had greeted him like a long-lost uncle, didn’t exactly put a shine on Farley’s reputation. Or on Ruby’s.

Ethan pressed against the wall to better hear what was being said. Whatever he learned, it was bound to be interesting.

Ruby had met Sam Farley a year ago, when she’d come to Dutchman’s Creek to get her brother out of Sam’s jail.

During the awful months Jace had been on the run, charged with Hollis’s murder, she’d developed a contempt for lawmen that bordered on hatred. Most of them had been in the pay of Hollis’s wealthy friends, and they’d gone out of their way to make her life miserable. Only fear for the safety of her daughters had kept her from blurting out the truth—that she was the one who’d killed her husband, and Jace had taken the blame to protect them.

When Clara had telephoned her with the news of Jace’s arrest, Ruby had commandeered her lawyer and caught the next train west. Fearing the worst, she’d been astonished to find her brother in the custody of a gentle, silver-haired man who was the soul of fairness. By the time Jace had been cleared of all charges, Ruby and the aging marshal had become fast friends. They’d remained so to this day.

“Son of a gun, girl!” Sam’s gaze roamed the drab parlor, coming to rest on the mattress. “Don’t tell me you’re trying to fix up this place by yourself. Where’s your brother?”

“Jace offered to come. But with Clara’s time getting so close, I didn’t want to keep him in town.”

“Couldn’t you have borrowed a couple of the ranch hands?”

Ruby shook her head. “I couldn’t afford to pay them, and I won’t impose on Jace or on Clara’s family. They’ve done so much for me already. Besides, I did manage to find some help. A man who’ll be living here is doing some work in exchange for his first week’s room and board.”

“A man, you say?” The marshal’s face creased into a suspicious scowl. “You mean you hired some stranger who just happened by? And you’re going to be here alone with him? Lordy, girl, where’s your common sense?”

Ruby bristled slightly. Sam Farley might be old enough to be her father, but that didn’t give him the right to treat her like a fifteen-year-old. “He offered to help and his price was right. As for my being alone with him…” She paused. “You, of all people, should know that I can take care of myself.”

The marshal’s scowl deepened. “Well, you let him know that I’ll be checking on you—and on him.” His gaze swept from the kitchen to the stairs. “I don’t see much work getting done. Where is the lazy so-and-so, anyway?”

“Right here.” Ethan stepped out of the hallway. His expression was guarded, but he extended his hand. “Professor Ethan Beaudry. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Marshal. You’re just in time to help me haul this mattress outside for a beating. The lady and I managed to get this far before you knocked on the door.”

“Sam Farley. And it looks like I got here at the right time.”

As the two men shook hands, Ruby glanced away to hide the flash of color to her face. Moving the mattress wasn’t the only thing they’d managed before the marshal showed up.

Sam’s long arms and added strength eased the work of hauling the mattress out to the backyard. Ruby stepped aside to let the men pass. Lugging the mattress outside, they laid it against the raised entrance to the cellar.

Ruby closed the screen door behind them. She had plenty of work to do in the house. But on second thought, leaving the two men alone might not be a good idea. On her first visit to Dutchman’s Creek, she’d made it clear to Sam that the scandal of her husband’s death was to be kept private. Sam had promised to respect her wishes. But the marshal did like to gossip a bit. If his tongue slipped, she wanted to be there to stop him from saying too much.

As for Ethan… Ruby struggled against the memory of his kisses. What she needed was some time away from him to regroup her emotions. But that would leave him alone with Sam, and a conversation between those two could lead anywhere.

There was only one thing to do. With a sigh, Ruby opened the door again. She came out onto the stoop just in time to hear Ethan saying, “So, Marshal, how is it you know Mrs. Rumford? Something tells me there’s an interesting story here.”

Chapter Four

Ethan had hoped to get the marshal talking. But now Ruby had come outside. It was she who answered his question.

“My brother lives near Dutchman’s Creek. Sam and I became friends last year when I came for a visit.”

A glance flickered between Ruby and the old man. Whatever she’d said, Ethan sensed that her words had fallen short of the real story.

“Ruby’s brother, Jace, married into one of the finest families in the valley,” the marshal said. “His father-in-law, Judd Seavers, owns the biggest ranch in these parts.”

“My brother and his wife are expecting a baby,” Ruby added. “I moved here from Missouri to be near them. But I wanted to live in town, on my own. That’s why I bought the boardinghouse.” She paused. A clever smile lit her face. “But enough about me, Professor. Why don’t you tell us about the history book you’re writing. I’ve never met a real author before.”

Ethan picked up the baseball bat and gave the mattress several solid whacks. A too-innocent story followed by a deft evasion. The woman had outmaneuvered him and he wasn’t happy about it. First thing tomorrow, he’d begin the process of checking out everything she and the marshal had to tell him. If there were any holes in their combined stories, he would find them.

Ruby’s link to the prominent Seavers clan might put her in a more favorable light, but it didn’t wash her clean. The best of families could have its black sheep, and she could be using the Seavers connection to win people’s trust. Ethan had learned to suspect anyone who hadn’t proven themselves innocent. That included politicians, elderly lawmen and beautiful, seductive women.