“I can certainly get you some clothes and a wig.” She went over to throw open the wardrobe. “She looked about my size.”
Jedidiah studied the woman’s ample curves and compared them to his mental image of Susannah’s shapely body. “She’s a little smaller than you,” he said, “but not much.”
“Huh. Young, too, I’ll bet.”
“Not too young.”
“Good, then I won’t have to hate her.” Loralee pulled out a gray gown with a demure lace collar. “This ought to do. I use it for funerals. Add a dark wig and give your lady a Bible to hold, and no one will recognize her.”
“She’s not my lady,” he felt compelled to point out. “I told you, this is business.”
“Uh huh.” Loralee looked him up and down. “Jedidiah, you and I have known each other for a lot of years.”
“Going on ten,” he agreed.
“And never before have you come to see me and left again without at least being tempted by what I can offer.”
“Loralee, I told you—”
“I know what you told me, Jedidiah. You’ve said all the right things and smiled in all the right places, but this time you’re all talk.” She paused, studying him with her head tilted to the side. “She must be someone very special.”
“She is.” Uncomfortable with the whole conversation, Jedidiah took the dress from her. “I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings.”
“Not at all. It does my heart good to see how the mighty have fallen,” she said with a grin.
“I haven’t fallen,” he muttered. “Do you have the wig?”
Loralee pulled several boxes out of the wardrobe and rummaged around until she came up with a wig made up of straight black hair. “Here you go, sugar. I used to wear this for a fella who liked to pretend I was a squaw. It braids real nice.”
“It’ll do.” Jedidiah rolled the wig up in the dress. Then he took Loralee’s hand and pressed a kiss to the palm. “I can’t tell you how much this means to me, Loralee. As soon as I saw your name on the sign for this place, I knew I could depend on you.”
“Don’t mention it, sugar.” Loralee sauntered to the door and opened it for him. “I’m just glad I got to see the day that Jedidiah Brown finally surrendered.”
“This is business,” he grumbled one more time.
“If you say so, sugar.” Laughing, Loralee shut the door behind him. He scowled at the closed door before setting off to recover Susannah.
Jedidiah came to collect her from the reverend’s care, refused an invitation to dinner and then whisked her off to the wagon so quickly that Susannah barely had time to draw breath. Then they were headed down the main street at a fast clip.
As they passed the dance hall, a stunning redhead stepped out onto the second floor terrace. Clad only in a deep green dressing gown, she folded her arms across her chest and met Susannah’s interested stare with raised eyebrows.
Was this magnificent creature the person Jedidiah had gone to see? Susannah lifted her chin proudly and nodded once in acknowledgement. Surprise crossed the woman’s face, followed swiftly by amusement. She nodded in return, then went back into the building.
Susannah faced forward just in time to catch Jedidiah’s scowl. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
“What was all that about just now?” he demanded.
“What?” Feigning confusion, she widened her eyes at him.
He only looked disgusted. “Don’t try that innocent look on me, princess. I saw that little exchange just now. What do you think you’re doing?”
“What’s wrong with giving a nod of greeting to someone?” she challenged. “I assume that was the person you went to see when you went to the dance hall. I also assume that she provided you with that gray dress in the back of the wagon, correct?”
“It’s not what you think—” he began.
She smiled. “You want to know what I think? I think it was a brilliant idea to go to the dance hall looking for a disguise. These women are entertainers. Of course they would have costumes and wigs and all manner of things that could be used for disguises.”
“Well, that’s what I thought.” He glanced at her, clearly confused. “I just didn’t want you to get the wrong idea. Loralee is an old friend of mine.”
“Did you think I would be jealous?” Susannah gave trilling laugh that made such a conclusion seem ridiculous. “I made my choice by the stream, Jedidiah. And I would be the worst sort of hypocrite to hold it against you if you went elsewhere to…ah…take care of your manly needs.”
“You’re not jealous?” he asked skeptically.
“Of course not.” It wasn’t a lie—not exactly. She certainly wasn’t jealous now. And she only had felt murderous for a few minutes before she remembered Jedidiah’s dedication to the law.
“Good,” he replied. “Because if you were jealous, I was just going to remind you that you could always change your mind about your decision.”
“You’ve mentioned that before, Jedidiah.” It was getting harder and harder to maintain her casual tone. Still, she tried. “I think we’re both being very wise to keep things the way they are.”
“If that’s the way you want it.”
She glanced at his handsome profile. “That’s the way it has to be,” she said quietly.
“All right then. I’ll find a secluded place at the side of the road, and you can put on your new clothes. There’s a wig with the dress. I plan on stopping in a town before nightfall so I can send a wire.”
“You seem to have everything taken care of,” she said with admiration.
He sent her a glance that was only half teasing. “Except my manly needs.”
She rolled her eyes, and he laughed, the sound echoing over the wide-open road.
“Susannah,” he said with a grin. “I know you were jealous.”
Her only reply was a haughty sniff.
Proctor’s Corners was a rough and ready mining town.
Susannah took comfort in the fact that Jedidiah had taken to wearing his guns again, though his badge yet remained absent. This town looked like a man could get shot in the street and no one would even notice. She herself was dressed in the prim gray gown and dark wig with her deep-brimmed bonnet. The Bible in her hand served to turn unwanted male attention away from her.
Jedidiah pulled the wagon to a stop in front of the mercantile. As he leaped out to tie up the horses, Susannah climbed down her side of the wagon. Jedidiah met her there and took her arm.
“Stay close and keep your head down,” he murmured, leading her to the wooden walkway. “I want to work our way down to the telegraph office without seeming too obvious about it.”
She nodded and played the part of obedient wife as they made their way down the street.
The crowd was full of rough-looking miners who strode along without consideration for others, jostling people and shoving them out of their way. Children clung to their mothers’ skirts to avoid being trampled by the rowdy crowd, and women walked quickly along with their eyes down so as not to draw unwanted attention to themselves.
Susannah stayed close to Jedidiah, his lean, warm length lending a sense of security that was welcome in this very uncertain crowd. The rowdies took one look at Jedidiah’s face and turned away. People moved out of his path rather than attempt to jostle him or block his way. They arrived at the telegraph office in short order, and Jedidiah quickly hustled her inside.
The office was empty except for the gangly young man who operated the telegraph.
“Stay here,” Jedidiah murmured, then stepped up to the counter to handle his business.
Susannah stayed where he had left her, just to the left of a window overlooking the street. Jedidiah spoke in a low voice to the telegraph operator, then took a pencil and a scrap of paper and began to write. Bored, Susannah turned to glance out the window.
A man stood just across the street, scowling at the door to the telegraph office.
Susannah stiffened. The fellow was tall and broad,
bigger than Jedidiah, and he wore tan pants and a blue shirt that made his blond coloring all the more striking. But despite his boyish good looks, there was an element of danger about him, a watchfulness that claimed every muscle of his body as he casually leaned against a post, his gaze fixed steadily on the doorway. She couldn’t help but notice that he wore his guns as if they were a part of him.
Fear rippled down her spine. She looked around the office, but she and Jedidiah were the only ones present, aside from the clerk. She glanced back at the blond man. He hadn’t moved.
Did he work for Caldwell? Or perhaps she was simply imagining things.
Jedidiah crossed to her. “Let’s go,” he said, taking her arm.
“Wait. There’s someone out there.” She resisted his efforts to pull her along and gestured toward the window.
“Where?” He peered out at the street over her shoulder. “Who are you talking about?”
“He’s right there…” Her words died unspoken as she looked back where the man had been standing. He was gone.
“Where?”
“Never mind.” Feeling like an idiot, she refused to look at him. “I thought someone was watching us. I guess I was wrong.”
He squeezed her hand. “Don’t you worry about it,” he said softly. “Being on the trail this long tends to make people jumpy. But we’ll be in Denver in a couple of days, and then you can relax.”
“Oh, sure I can,” she retorted as they stepped out into the sunshine. “I find being tried for murder so relaxing!”
He chuckled, and the sound warmed her heart. The tension between them lately had done away with most of their easy banter, and she had missed his dry sense of humor.
She smiled up at him, then noticed a flash of blue out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head and met the gaze of the blond man who had been watching the telegraph office. This time there was no mistake. He was definitely staring at them.
“Jedidiah,” she whispered. She didn’t dare break eye contact, lest the fellow slip away again.
“What is it?” Jedidiah stopped and pulled her to the side of the walkway.
“He’s back. The man who was watching us.”
She felt him tense beside her. “Where?” he asked, following her gaze.
“Right there. The blond man with the blue shirt who’s standing by the sheriff’s office.”
She knew the moment he spotted the man, because he jerked with surprise. Then a slow smile crossed his face.
“I’ll be damned,” he said.
The man in the blue shirt lifted a brow at Jedidiah, then turned and entered the sheriff’s office. Jedidiah took her hand and started after him.
“I take it you know him?” Susannah asked.
“Yup.”
That one word was all the answer she got. The rest of her questions remained unanswered as Jedidiah led her into the sheriff’s office.
The blond man was hanging his hat on a peg on the wall when they entered. He paused in the motion, then turned to face Jedidiah, slowly crossing his arms across his chest.
“Afternoon, Jedidiah,” he said.
“Nate.” Jedidiah gave a nod of acknowledgement. “So, where’s the real law in this town?”
“You’re looking at him.”
Jedidiah looked Nate up and down. “Like I said…”
Nate scowled. “I ought to put a hole in you for that.”
“You’d best learn to shoot then.”
“You first.”
Jedidiah narrowed his eyes at Nate, and Nate did not look away. Silence reigned for a long, charged moment. After a minute or so, Susannah shook her head in amazement. I it took a man of fortitude to hold Jedidiah Brown’s gaze.
Suddenly Jedidiah grinned and broke the eye contact. He held out a hand. “You always were more reckless than smart.”
Nate laughed, reaching out to firmly shake Jedidiah’s hand. “I learned everything I know from you, you sorry son-of-a-gun.”
“Don’t be blaming me for your bad habits.” Still smiling, Jedidiah turned to Susannah. “This is Nate Stillman, an old friend of mine. Nate, Susannah Calhoun.”
“Pleased to meet you, ma’am.” Nate took the hand Susannah extended and only held it a moment longer than necessary when he got a good look at her face. A flicker of appreciation lit his very blue eyes for a brief instant, then he released her hand and turned to Jedidiah. “Loralee sent me a wire, said you might be coming through. What are you doing in this neck of the woods?”
“Escorting Miss Calhoun to Denver.”
“Most people take the stage.” Nate’s teasing remark held a question.
“It’s a long story,” Jedidiah replied, and Susannah breathed a sigh of relief. She had a feeling that Nate’s gentlemanly demeanor towards her might undergo a change should he discover she was accused of murder.
“Aren’t they all,” Nate drawled. “Can you stay a spell, or do you have to move on?”
“What do you have in mind?” Jedidiah asked.
Nate grinned. “Things have changed since I last saw you,” he said proudly. “I got myself a bride.”
“You got married?” Jedidiah stared. “By all that’s holy, who would have you for a husband?”
“The orneriest female in Colorado, that’s who. Her name’s Darcy. We got married last autumn.” Nate kept a straight face, but his eyes sparkled with mischief. “I was planning to ask you to stay to supper, but I don’t know how the wife would feel about a no-good saddle bum like yourself setting his feet beneath my table."
Jedidiah gave a bark of laughter. “You’re just worried I might steal her from you.”
Nate arched his brows. “My Darcy knows a real man when she sees one—which is why she’d never look twice at you.”
“If that’s true, I’m wondering how in heaven she came to marry up with you.”
“Ouch! That was nasty, old friend.” Nate made a face as if he were in pain.
“We’d be pleased to stay for supper,” Jedidiah said with a grin, “if only so I can meet this brave woman who took you on.”
“Just don’t get her mad,” Nate said with an exaggerated shudder. “She’d make mincemeat out of both of us.”
Jedidiah burst out laughing, and Susannah watched him with a fond smile tugging at her lips. Never before had she seen Jedidiah so open and relaxed. The next few hours promised to be very interesting indeed.
Chapter Thirteen
Darcy Stillman was not at all what Susannah expected.
Nate had led them down the main street to a pretty white house that stood at the edge of town. Flowers lined a stone walkway, and a white picket fence surrounded the front yard and disappeared around the corner of the house.
Jedidiah glanced at Nate. “This is your place?” he asked with disbelief.
“Yup.” Proudly, Nate surveyed his home. “It used to be the mayor’s house, but he built a bigger place farther out, so I bought it from him. Makes it convenient in case I need to get to town in a hurry. Come on in.”
They followed Nate into the house. He hung his hat on a peg in the foyer. Directly in front of them was a staircase leading to the second floor. To their right was a hallway with a shiny wood floor and the doorway to what seemed to be a parlor. Susannah caught a glimpse of pretty white and blue china sparkling on the shelf of a china cabinet and comfortable rugs spread out before a large fireplace. A rocker and a sturdy cushioned chair faced the fire.
“Nate, is that you?” a feminine voice called from somewhere in the house.
“It’s me, darlin’,” Nate called back. “I brought some company for supper.”
“Who is it?” A woman came down the hallway. She couldn’t be more than five feet tall, yet with a buxom figure any woman would envy. Her red-brown hair caught the sunlight as she came into the foyer, a friendly smile curving her Cupid’s bow mouth. Her dark eyes warmed as she looked at her husband. “Nate, aren’t you going to introduce me?”
“Of course I am. This here is Marshal Jedidiah
Brown—I’ve told you about him. And this is Miss Calhoun.”
“So this is the famous Marshal Brown.” Darcy held out her hand with a pleased smile. “Nate has talked about you often. I’m so glad you came by.”
Jedidiah’s lips curved in that charming smile that always made Susannah’s heart skip a beat. Bending over Darcy’s hand, he brushed his lips gallantly across her knuckles. “Had I known Nate had married so delightful a lady, I would have come to visit sooner.”
“Oh, my.” Darcy gently tugged her hand away. “Mr. Brown, you’ll turn my head with such compliments.”
“I’m just telling the truth.” Jedidiah stood, continuing to smile. “If Nate doesn’t treat you right, you let me know about it and I’ll knock some sense into his head.”
“That will be the day,” Nate retorted.
“Behave, Nathaniel,” Darcy said mildly, “or I might just take Marshal Brown up on his offer.” She turned toward Susannah. “Hello, Miss Calhoun. I’m Darcy Stillman.”
“Please, call me Susannah.”
“Susannah it is. And you can call me Darcy.”
“Jedidiah and Miss Calhoun are on their way to Denver,” Nate said. “I asked them to stay to supper.”
“That’s a wonderful idea.” Darcy looked at Jedidiah. “Will you be staying the night with us, Marshal Brown?”
“Jedidiah. And I hadn’t thought about it…”
“Do stay,” Darcy entreated.
Jedidiah frowned. “I don’t know if that would be the wisest thing, ma’am.”
Darcy pursed her lips and put her hands on her hips. “Jedidiah, please excuse me if I speak plainly. Since Susannah is obviously wearing a disguise—your wig is crooked, dear—I am assuming that you are trying to avoid attention. How better to do that than to stay in a private home? How long has it been since you’ve had a proper bath? Or slept in a real bed?”
“Ah…” Jedidiah glanced at Nate, who raised his hands in a position of surrender.
“You’re on your own, friend.”
“If you can’t remember, Marshal, then it has obviously been too long,” Darcy said sharply. “Come, Susannah. I’ll show you to a room where you can wash up. And let’s do get rid of that awful wig. It really doesn’t suit your complexion. I do hope you have something to change into, for I fear my gowns won’t suit. You’re so delightfully tall.”
The Lawman's Surrender: The Calhoun Sisters, Book 2 Page 13
