For a Sister's Love

by Paty Jager

  The buggy stopped. “I’ll be in here an hour or more. Don’t stroll around this street. If you like, the driver can take you to a more reputable street and you can look around.” He didn’t want some passerby thinking she was a sporting girl. This street held the gaming establishments and the brothels.

  “I’ll wait right here.” She crossed her arms and leaned into the corner.

  “Suit yourself.” He stepped out of the buggy and whispered to the cab driver. “I’ll pay you extra to keep an eye on her.” The man nodded, and Ty entered the smoke-filled building. He needed one more overseer and the man he wanted worked here.

  Maggie watched Ty strut into the gambling house. She’d caught up to him outside another gambling house. Was he collecting on debts owed him or did he flit around gambling like this? Either way she didn’t care. Gambling was a sorry way to make a living. Though he dressed well and stayed in a fancy hotel.

  She leaned back in the corner and closed her eyes. She hadn’t slept well fearing she’d sleep late and miss him. Settled in his buggy and believing he couldn’t get away, she could afford a couple minutes sleep. She clasped her hand around the locket hanging about her neck and fell into a deep slumber.

  ****

  Maggie woke with a start and moaned. Her neck had a crick in it. She rubbed her sore muscle and stared out the window of the buggy. The vehicle lurched, and she sat straight up. Where was the coach going and where was Mr. Bancroft?

  “Stop! Stop!” She shouted and lunged to the door, flinging it open. The vehicle stopped. Her body fell out the door. She flailed with her arms trying to grasp the door, anything…

  She stopped falling. To big hands held her arms, setting her upright and on her feet.

  “Let go of me!” She tried to shake off the hands and glared at an unkempt man with bushy hair and missing teeth. Finally escaping one hand, she shaded her eyes and peered up at the driver. “Where were you taking me?”

  “I was hungry and figured you could do with a meal as well.” The man’s head ducked down between his shoulders showing contrition, unlike the oaf still holding onto one of her arms.

  Maggie wrenched her arm, trying to dislodge the man. “I said let go!”

  “I like your hair.” The toothless man smiled and reached a large dirty hand toward her hair. Her stomach soured. She’d seen that look in other men’s eyes walking home alone late at night.

  “Leave her be.” Ty marched up to the big lout and stood nose to nose with the man.

  Her heart hammered in her chest. She couldn’t take her gaze from Ty’s set jaw and defiant eyes.

  The man jerked her arm, slamming her against his side. “What’s she to you?”

  Ty pointed to the buggy. “I left her in this buggy while I attended business.”

  “Guess she got tired of waiting. She’s mine now.”

  That did it. Maggie stomped on the lout’s foot. He yelped, and she jerked out of his hold.

  “I don’t belong to anyone.” She rammed her fists onto her hips and glared at Ty. “If you hadn’t a need to gamble I could have that list and be out of your way.”

  The shaggy man lunged for her. Maggie jumped back in fear and annoyance. Ty slipped in front of her, landing a fist in the man’s stomach, doubling him over.

  “Get in the buggy.” Ty opened the door and motioned with a sharp wave of his hand for her to enter.

  She huffed past him and slid to the far side of the seat.

  “Take us to the restaurant at the edge of town,” he said to the driver and climbed in beside her. His chest rose and fell as he breathed deep and let it out. His twitching jaw worried her.

  It wasn’t her fault the man grabbed her or that she fell out of the buggy. If he’d just write the list, she’d be out of his life and finding Lora Beth.

  He shifted slightly on the seat next to her. His knee touched hers through her skirt and petticoats. The pressure and intimate contact filled her belly with squiggling sensations. Never one to back down, she raised her eyes and gazed into his irritated eyes.

  “Why did you get out of the buggy? This part of town isn’t safe for women.” His voice reminded her of the many times her father scolded her.

  “I didn’t plan to get out. I awoke, the buggy lurched, I moved to the door to ask the driver what was happening, the door opened, the buggy lurched again, and I fell out.” She brushed at her arm where the lout had grabbed her. “The man kept me from falling on my face, but other than that I didn’t want him handling me.”

  “Why did the door open?” His gaze roamed over her face.

  “I hit it by accident when I hurried to see why we were moving.” She felt foolish announcing it was her own clumsiness that caused the whole incident.

  “And where was the driver going?” His soothing deep voice calmed her frazzled state.

  She almost sighed at the softness and the curve of his full lips. Why did he have to be a gambler? And the one keeping her from her sister?

  “He said he was going to get something to eat.” She glanced away. His intense stare quivered her insides.

  “We’ll do the same. Then I’ll take you home and continue with my errands.”

  His easy brush off lit her indignation. “You’re not dumping me anywhere until I get the list of places you’ve been. I’ve been waiting a long time to gain information about where my sister is, and I’ll not let my only hope of finding her dash away.”

  “I can’t have you following me around all day. I promise, I’ll put that list together as soon as I get my business venture started.” He shrugged. “What can a few more days matter after all these years?”

  Maggie stared at him. A few more days? Easy for him to say. She was so close to finding Lora Beth she couldn’t imagine waiting any longer. “I take it you’ve never been apart from someone who meant the world to you or that you made a promise to.” She willed the tears burning in the back of her eyes to go away. “I have thought of nothing else since the day I was put in a wagon and watched another wagon carry my sister a different direction.”

  “Tell me about her.” He leaned back, watching her intently.

  “We’re only a couple years apart. We did everything together, though Lora Beth was sickly when she was small. Mama, Papa, and I doted on her. She was pretty with such a sweet disposition.” Her heart ached remembering their parting after the Indian’s brutal attack. Lora Beth’s lost and frightened face still haunted Maggie. “I have to find her. We have to be together again. Mama and Papa would want it.” She fingered the locket. “I promised.”

  The wagon stopped. She peered out at the classy restaurant then down at her shabby dress.

  “I can’t go in there. I’ll wait here.”

  “Nonsense. You need to eat.” Ty stepped out of the buggy and reached up offering a hand to help her.

  “If you insist I need something to eat bring me a roll.” She didn’t usually let her appearance keep her from going where she pleased. After the way Ty stuck up for her earlier, she didn’t want to disgrace him. She owed him that much.

  He scowled, spoke to the driver, and grasped her ankle, dragging her across the seat to the door. “If you want to make a spectacle, so be it.”

  “Let go of me!” She kicked at him only to have his hands circle her waist, lift her from the buggy, and place her feet on the ground beside him.

  He extended his arm waiting for her to place her hand in the crook of his elbow. The nerve of the man. But she couldn’t think of anything to do but acquiesce and hope she didn’t make a bigger fool of herself.

  The minute her hand touched his arm a smile broke out on his face and he winked at her.

  “See, it’s not that hard.”

  “Ooooo.” She moved to pull her hand from his arm but he countered by pressing it to his body.

  “Kitten, you wouldn’t want the doorman to think you don’t belong in this establishment would you?”

  Rage singed the tips of her ears. He’d smirked the first time he’d called her
that, and the merriment dancing in his eyes now said he knew just how she hated being called a kitten.

  If she didn’t need him to find Lora Beth…

  Ty couldn’t believe how exhilarating he found raising the hackles on the feisty woman on his arm. Her tirades and squabbles were the most fun he’d had in a long time. The gamble of whether or not she’d walk away or hang on to get what she wanted invigorated like holding a straight.

  He knew her faded dress and patched shawl would raise a few eyebrows from the restaurant clientele, but he’d frequented the establishment enough in the past few weeks he also knew the owners wouldn’t mind her dining since he left generous tips.

  Ty led her into the main room and all eyes followed them. He smiled at acquaintances and walked to his usual table. Maggie walked boldly beside him, her head up and her eyes daring anyone to make a comment. The woman had a lot of spunk.

  He held out a chair. She glanced at him, and her boldness wavered in her eyes. She sat, fiddling with a fold in her skirt.

  A waiter arrived at his shoulder. “We’ll have my usual,” Ty said, sitting opposite Maggie.

  Her hands remained in her lap. Her gaze scanned the room eventually landing on him.

  “You know these people?” she asked, her gaze once again taking in the room.

  “Only as familiar faces. I’ve had meals here several times over the course of my stay.” He leaned back as the waiter filled their water glasses.

  The man retreated, and Maggie’s unusual eyes glared at him. “So you spend your days down here gambling?” Her hand clasped the locket around her neck.

  “Not gambling, scoping out business associates.” He didn’t know why he wanted her to understand he didn’t make a habit of gambling. He’d been raised in the gambling world, knew it, and happened to excel at it.

  “You wish to associate with other gamblers?” She reached for her glass of water, her exotic-shaped eyes glistening with disdain.

  The waiter returned, setting a plate in front of Maggie first and then himself. “Thank you.” Ty waited and wasn’t disappointed. Maggie clasped her hands and closed her eyes. He’d grown up in an area that worshiped anything from Satan to God and had wondered if she clung to her roots. Her dusky pink lips moved as she gave thanks for her meal.

  He picked up his sandwich and heard her sniff. Ty raised an eyebrow and glanced across the table. Maggie held a pickle in her fingers, her eyes glistened with tears. What made the sassy woman cry over a pickle?

  “Something wrong with your pickle?”

  She held it up and peeked at him over the knobby top. “Lora Beth would do anything for a pickle, especially one soaked in dill brine.” Maggie set the pickle on her plate and pulled a tattered handkerchief from the sleeve of her dress and wiped at her eyes and then her nose.

  Ty lost his appetite watching the sadness envelope the woman. “If you miss her that much why haven’t you found her by now?”

  “I was too young. Then, Mrs. Freeman, who adopted me after our parents and her husband were killed, needed me. She had a small amount of money that kept us comfortable during her failing years, but when she died, what was left went to family. Her sister provides a place for me to sleep, and I’ve been saving every penny I get to travel to find Lora Beth.” She fingered the locket and narrowed her eyes on him. “And now I know where to start. That is if you ever give me a list.”

  Ty heaved an exaggerated sigh and watched with pleasure as her little, bow-shaped mouth formed a straight, stern line and her dark eyebrows curved down toward her pert nose. He’d sent a telegraph off that morning to Timberland, Colorado. He wouldn’t give Maggie any information until someone in Timberland confirmed the sister was still there.

  “I’m still trying to remember where I won that locket. I know I didn’t have it in Texas. I headed north and made my way through the Colorado and Montana territory.” He bit into his roast beef sandwich and chewed watching her eyebrows curve together and deep wrinkles form on her forehead as she contemplated his words. She was a pretty picture even in consternation.

  She picked at the crust of the bread. Her small tongue flicked the crumb on her fingertip. He fixed his gaze on her motions and his body leapt to life. His trousers strangled his growing desire.

  “When can I get a list of the places you traveled in Colorado and Montana?” Her softly spoken words seeped into the haze of need fogging his mind and holding his tongue.

  He swallowed water and cleared his throat, shoving the images in his mind to the deepest corners. He came here to start a new life for himself and getting attached to this woman who cleaved to family like butter melting on warm bread wouldn’t distract him.

  “I have more meetings today. Tomorrow I have to purchase goods. The day after tomorrow I’ll head up the Columbia River to man and set up the gambling salons on each ship.“

  Fear widened her eyes before she narrowed them. “You’re not leaving Portland without giving me the list.”

  “I’ll work on it tonight and tomorrow night and hand it over to you before I head upriver.” He hoped to have a reply to his telegraph by then. No way would he send a lone woman to Timberland if it proved a dead end. Especially one with limited funds.

  “How do I know you’ll keep your word?” She shoved her plate to the center of the table.

  At this rate she’d be nothing but skin and bones within a few months and no man would be willing to give her a home. Of course if she didn’t tone down her attitude the same could be said. Not many men found a woman with her sass appealing, except him.

  Ty placed the sandwich on a cloth napkin, tying it up in a tidy bundle and stood. He paid the waiter and motioned for Maggie to stand.

  She eyed him suspiciously but stood. He grasped her elbow, escorting her out of the restaurant and to the buggy.

  Inside the vehicle, he handed the sandwich to her. “I’m dropping you off at your home, and then continuing with my business.”

  She started to protest, and he raised a hand. “I promise. I’ll deliver the list to you before I leave. In the meantime eat and rest so you have energy to travel.”

  She crossed her arms and stared out the buggy. He allowed her to remain silent, ignoring him until they arrived on the outskirts of Portland.

  “Where do you live?”

  She stared at him, her lips pressed tight together.

  “Not telling me will only get you set out on any street I choose.”

  He held in the chuckle tickling his throat as she glared at him. He’d never seen such a gorgeous woman even when mad. Her dark curly hair bounced around her head with the movement of the buggy, and her exotic gaze locked onto his. She squirmed under his scrutiny and broke the connection. Her cheeks blossomed a deeper pink, and she averted her eyes.

  “Since you won’t tell me where you live you leave me no other choice.” He leaned out the window and called to the diver. “Take us back to my hotel.”

  Maggie shot a glance toward Ty. He was too good looking and held too much esteem of himself. She didn’t mind that he planned to leave her at the hotel. She’d slip into his room and wait for him. He wouldn’t leave town without his clothes and valuables.

  The buggy stopped at the boardwalk in front of the hotel. Ty jumped out and held his hand up for her. She didn’t want to touch him. The heat he radiated set off whispers of anticipation in her and caused her heart to pick up speed. But to not take his offered hand would reflect badly on both of them with the doorman and several passersby watching.

  His fingers wrapped around hers, she placed a foot on the first step. The vehicle surged forward, throwing her into his arms. The security of his strong hold fuzzed her mind. Speech, standing, the ability to push out of his arms all abandoned her. She hadn’t experienced this strength and safety since her father’s death.

  She glanced up into his face and found herself caught in his heated gaze. His blue-green eyes held her captive as securely as his arms.

  “I’m sorry. A fool boy tossed a rock.
” The voice of the driver weaved its way into her thoughts.

  Maggie flattened her hands against Ty’s chest and pushed back. He held her a moment before letting her put space between them. She stepped back, swung around, and hustled down the boardwalk away from the heat of his body and the fire of his eyes. She had to think.

  The sound of his buggy moving down the street drew her attention. She pivoted and stared after the conveyance. If not for his knowledge of where to find Lora Beth she’d walk away. Her father would never understand her consorting with a gambler. But consort she must. The gambler held her best hope of finding her sister.

  Three

  Ty slipped his key in the lock of his door and nodded to Ainsworth. “I have an excellent scotch inside.”

  He opened the door and motioned Ainsworth to enter. The man took two steps into the room and stopped. Ty nearly bumped into his back stepping through the threshold.

  “You didn’t tell me you were married,” Ainsworth said in a whisper and spun to face Ty.

  Ty held his tongue until he caught a glimpse over the man’s shoulder at the woman curled up on his bed. Maggie. How did he talk his way out of this? Ainsworth was a family man. He wouldn’t understand how a woman came to be following him and so desperate she stole into his room.

  “I didn’t think it made a difference in our dealings.” He tugged on Ainsworth’s sleeve, to guide him back out into the hall.

  “It doesn’t other than I like knowing you have family values.”

  Ty nearly laughed. He didn’t put much stock in family values. Not his family’s at least.

  Ainsworth nodded. “I’d like to meet Mrs. Bancroft. Bring her to dinner tomorrow night.”

  Ty stared at the man’s back as he strolled down the hall. He whipped his head back around to stare at the disheveled woman on his bed. In her sleep, her relaxed features appeared angelic. If only her disposition were so.

  He shut the door with a thump. Maggie flinched and raised her head. Her long lashes fluttered as she searched the room. His chest tightened, and his body ignited with desire. She was breathtaking all in disarray.