Ladies Prefer Rogues: Four Novellas of Time-Travel Passion

by Janet Chapman

  “I might not have a lot of practice, cowboy, but I know when a woman is wishing that she was sitting in my seat. That blonde with . . . Digger, I think his name was . . . looked like she wanted to eat you. And wanted to poison my meal.”

  “That would be Shelley. She owns the flower shop in town.”

  “Well, Shelley has the—what did Louise call it?—the hots for you.”

  Ty groaned. “Remind me to kill Louise.”

  “Are you denying it?”

  “Shelley’s been dating Digger for months,” he said.

  “Wow, that was the worst way of not answering a question.”

  “Let’s go on to your second-favorite part?”

  “My second favorite is that I’m in this car, with you, and Shelley’s not.”

  Ty took his hand from the gear shift and threaded his fingers through hers. “That makes two of us.”

  Her soft, soft hand squeezed his. “So where are we going now?”

  Ty glanced over at her, and by the light of the street lamp saw the wide-eyed excitement in her brown eyes. “I figured you’d want to go home to my mom’s.”

  “Oh. Okay.”

  “But if you don’t,” he added quickly, “we can do something else.”

  “I would love to! That is, unless you’re too tired. I mean, I realize you’ve had some trying days.”

  “I’m not tired at all,” he said, happier than he could say that she didn’t want the night to end. “Want to catch a movie?”

  “You mean, in a real theater?”

  “Sure. Miller’s has late showings.”

  “But that would involve just watching a movie, right? We wouldn’t be able to . . . talk . . . or anything?”

  “The other people in the theater might take offense at us talking . . . or anything”

  “Then, no, I don’t think I’m in the mood for the theater.”

  “Want to get some ice cream?”

  “After that flambé thing? I couldn’t eat another bite.”

  “Okay, what sounds like fun to you?”

  “Maybe someplace where you could show me step three?”

  Ty nearly ran a red light, staring at her instead of the road. He screeched to a halt and reluctantly disengaged their hands to shift. “Really?”

  “I know it’s so very forward,” she said, “but I really don’t care.”

  “You hussy!” Ty said, grinning to make sure she didn’t take offense.

  “Maybe so,” she said, lifting her chin and meeting him eye to eye. “Seems to me there’s only one way to find out.”

  “Well in that case,” he said, “how’d you like to meet my dog, Josie?”

  Her smile was breath-stealing. “I’d love to.”

  Ty flipped the switch that turned on the gas fireplace and then returned to the couch. He poured them both a glass of cabernet then sat back and watched what the light from the fire did to Maggie’s hair. There were about fifty shades of blonde in it, and if he didn’t know better, he’d think that someone had just done the most perfect color job on her.

  She’d kicked off the heels she’d been wearing, tucked her legs under her and rubbed her feet.

  “Those shoes . . . take some getting used to,” she said, then took a sip of wine.

  “I was actually surprised at how well you took to them,” he said. And them to you. What those heels had done to her legs should be illegal.

  “Expecting me to fall flat on my face?” she asked.

  “Let’s just put it this way,” he said, “I wasn’t just holding on to you because I love the feel of you under my fingers. But it was kind of nice to have an excuse.”

  She laughed softly, then sipped again. “Mmmm, this is delicious.”

  Oh, how he wanted to taste that wine on her lips. But something was bothering him, and before he or they did anything she’d regret, he wanted to clear the air. “Can I ask you something?”

  “Certainly.”

  “What do you see for your future?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean . . . have you given any thought to trying to go home?”

  “To Philadelphia? I’m fairly certain I no longer have a home in Philadelphia.”

  “I meant home to 1850.”

  Her mouth dropped open. “Is that even possible?”

  “I don’t know. Hypothetically, let’s say that it is. Would you want to?”

  “I . . . I don’t know. I’m here for a reason, Ty. I don’t know what it is, but I know that I’m here. I’m supposed to be here.”

  You’re here for me, is what he wanted to say. You’re here because I need you. You’re everything I didn’t know I was looking for. Instead he asked, “Do you miss it? Any of it?”

  “I suppose I miss the familiarity. I knew who I was then. I knew my place. But . . . I burned bridges in Philadelphia when I quit my job and sold my family home. But Little Fork in 1850 was not so kind.”

  “I hope you’re finding us a much friendlier bunch now.”

  “Oh, most definitely. But do I belong here? Or should I try to return to Philadelphia? See what the city is like now.”

  “It’s filthy.”

  She eyed him. “Is that so?”

  “Well, not all of Philly. But parts are.”

  “Which parts?” she asked, sounding more suspicious by the second.

  He waved. “I don’t know exactly. But the point is, neither do you.”

  “I could find out on the Internet.”

  He was beginning to hate computers. “I suppose. But you’ll need money to get back there and find a place to live,”

  “Didn’t I tell you?” she asked, sitting up straighter. “Your mother took photo-paintings of my money and clothes and then put them up for action—”

  “Auction,” Ty corrected, now not feeling so grateful to his mother, suddenly.

  “Yes, auction. And before she left she checked and told me that people had already placed bids. She said even she was shocked at how quickly the bidding had started. She said there must be a huge demand for pre-Civil War mementos.”

  She cocked her head and looked at him a little sadly. “Imagine that. I missed an entire war.”

  “You’ve missed several of them, darlin’.”

  “So I’ve heard. But one that abolished slavery? I so wish my mother had lived to see that. She so hated slavery, Ty.”

  “It’s gone, Maggie.”

  “But she never got to see that,” she said, and Ty hated the sadness in her eyes.

  “You told me she disappeared. Do you know what happened?”

  “My mother made a lot of people angry. I can think of any number of people who would want to quiet her. But she was never found, and no one was ever brought to justice for her disappearance.”

  He could tell she was becoming melancholy, and he didn’t want to go there. “I’m so sorry.” He searched for some seamless way to change the subject but was stymied. He knew what it was like to lose a parent, but he hadn’t exactly liked, much less loved his father, so he definitely couldn’t claim that he could relate.

  “But you know what?” she added, after another sip of wine. “Even going back in time, if it’s possible, my mother would still be gone. I’d be going back to a time when I was trying to change my life, to find something new and exciting.”

  Excellent segue. “Well, you’ve certainly found that here.”

  “To say the least! Then again, it’s an entire new world everywhere.”

  Uh-oh. “Well, I know Little Fork might not be as exciting as other places, but it does have its moments.”

  “It certainly does,” Maggie said and set down her wine. “Like right now,” she said, crawling over to him and coming nearly nose to nose. “What is this thing that I feel whenever I’m around you?”

  “I don’t know,” he said. “Describe it.”

  “You make me feel all tingly. Do you feel tingly, too?”

  “I feel like my insides are going to explode,” he said, because he
didn’t think telling her that she made him horny as hell whenever she was near him was a great idea.

  “Is that a good thing?”

  “It can be. Or it can get damn uncomfortable.”

  She sat back on her ankles. “Uncomfortable? That doesn’t sound good.”

  He threaded his hands through her silky hair, cradling her face. “It’s only not good if you don’t want me to touch you. Because I really, really want to touch you.”

  “You’re touching me now,” she said, in a bare whisper.

  “I want to touch you all over, Maggie. Every inch of you.”

  She sucked in a small breath. “I think . . . no, I know I want you to. But is it okay if we start with you teaching me step three?”

  “My pleasure,” Ty said, and kissed her.

  After several incredible moments of tasting her, smelling her, feeling her, he sat back. “Maggie,” he said, his voice an almost croak, “I don’t understand any of this. All I know is that I want you. But I can’t do this.”

  Her eyes looked kind of foggy. Her lips looked deliciously swollen. “Why?”

  “You’re a . . . you’re . . . innocent. It scares me.”

  “I don’t feel innocent, Sheriff. I feel . . . I don’t know how to describe it. Louise would know.”

  “We’re not consulting Louise on this matter.”

  “Maybe I could look it up on Google?”

  He officially hated computers. “Mags, this is just you and me. You are not going to learn about making love on the Internet.”

  “Actually, your mother showed me this page that had—”

  “Nothing you needed to see. And nothing to do with this moment.” He was going to confiscate his mother’s computers. “What do you feel about me?”

  Maggie looked directly into his eyes. “You saved my life. You gave me this new life.”

  “So you’re grateful?”

  “Of course.”

  He sat back and away from her, his heart killing him. “Then this can’t happen, Maggie. Gratitude is a bad reason to have sex.”

  “What if the reason is I want it to be you?”

  He looked at her, sitting there with her eyes pleading, her lips half open, and her body almost quivering. “You’re sure?”

  “I’m not certain about anything right now, Sheriff, except that I would very much like to see you without clothing. I just don’t know if I want you to see me without mine.”

  Ty started slowly, pulling off his shirt first. She stared at his chest for a long time, and Ty had to keep himself from fidgeting.

  “I have figured out what scrumptious means. You are scrumptious, Ty,” Maggie said, still staring at him.

  “Maggie, I don’t know about this. I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “Do you want to make love with me?”

  “Oh, God, Maggie, yes.”

  “I’m a little scared, Ty.”

  “So am I Mags. I think I love you. But I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “You won’t hurt me. Will you, Ty? Make me learn how to love.”

  Ty stared at her for a moment, then pulled her to her feet. “My bedroom and bed are this way, Mags. You can let me take you there, or you can stop right here. I could also make love to you right here, but I want your first time to be in my bed. It’s your choice.”

  Maggie looked around. “I think I’d like the first time to be in your bed. The next time I could have rug buns.”

  He opened his mouth to correct her but decided her description might just be more accurate than she knew. “Come with me, Mags,” he said, meaning that in more ways than one.

  He led her into his bedroom. She looked around and said, “This is so like you. So . . . just made for a man.”

  Not in the mood for a description of what exactly that meant, Ty sat her on his bed.

  “Are you afraid to let me see you?” Ty asked.

  “Are you afraid to see me?”

  “Hell, no. I’d give anything, Maggie.”

  “Then see me. But I’m not all that good to see.”

  “Says who?” he asked, dying to see her.

  “Ummm, says me?”

  “May I be the judge of that?”

  “You may.”

  “Then take off that dress, Maggie. Please.”

  She hesitated, but then shimmied out of the dress like an honest-to-god stripper. And what he saw left him breathless.

  “The rest,” he whispered.

  She was hesitant, but then pulled off her bra over her head, instead of unclipping it

  “You are so beautiful. The panties please.”

  She hesitated for a second, and then pushed down the black matching panties and stood before him, naked and stunning, and not able to look at him.

  “Your turn,” she said, eyes still studying the floor. “I want to look at you, too.”

  He was very certain that his cock was going to scare her. “Let’s lie down and just let me touch you for a while.”

  “No, not fair. I’m standing here completely unclothed. You have to be the same.”

  “Maggie, I want you so much. I’m afraid of worrying you.”

  “I’m not worried, Ty,” she said softly. “I’m very certain of what I want. I would not be standing here like this if I didn’t know.”

  He started unzipping his slacks. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “You won’t.”

  “How do you know?” he asked, as he kicked the slacks aside and moved to her.

  She finally peeked downward and whispered, “Oh, my.”

  “Say no now, and we’re done.”

  “How’s that going to . . . fit inside me?”

  “Because I’ll make sure your body wants it to.”

  He saw the fear in her eyes and reached for his pants. “Okay, not tonight, Mags. No way am I going to scare you.”

  She reached for his arm. “But . . . you didn’t say anything about hurting me.”

  “I can’t guarantee not hurting you. I can guarantee trying not to. But scaring you is different. I’m already doing that, and can’t live with it.”

  She grabbed his arm. “It has to be you, Sheriff Coltraine.”

  His insides dumped all over themselves. “Why?”

  “Because for whatever reason, you love me, Ty. I want to be with the man who loves me, not the one who leers at me.”

  And he did. He loved every inch of her. She was so soft and smelled so good and had a body that was every man’s fantasy.

  He pulled her to him, and every part of him was touching every part of her.

  Not only that, but she apparently loved being touched. As he kissed her skin and touched her, she made soft noises. Gasps. Lovemaking sounds.

  He picked her up and laid her on the bed. Then fell down beside her and began worshipping every inch of her.

  “I love this,” she whispered. “I never want you to stop.”

  “Maggie, I need to be inside you. But I want you to need me inside you, too.”

  “I want it. I know what this is. I want it.”

  “Let me help you get used to it, okay?”

  “Please. But hurry up, okay?”

  He buried a finger inside her, then two, while stroking her with his thumb. She looked at him with such pleading eyes, and then cried out when he ran his tongue across her.

  “Are you sure, baby?”

  “Oh, my, yes.”

  He moved up and spread her legs even farther. He felt her and knew her body was ready. So he did what he’d wanted to do for a long few days. He made love to her. She came first, with an orgasm that was obviously new to her. He had an orgasm just watching her. The rest of the night was so much the same, and so much different. And Maggie loved every difference. Ty was too dazed to know anything but he never wanted this to end.

  Six

  Two days later Ty left his office to pick Maggie up at his mother’s house. After forty-eight hours of not seeing her, he’d been miserable. He’d checked in on her plenty, but he’d be
en so busy, he hadn’t been able to be with her. And he desperately wanted to be with her.

  But she’d never given any indication in any of those conversations that she was missing him. In fact, she’d always been impatient to get back to her new next adventure.

  And then this morning after his shower he’d emerged to find a text message on his cell.

  I have just discovered what a one-night stand is, cowboy. If you don’t want me to believe that’s what happened, you better find a way to get your ass over here.

  Even as he dialed the phone in a panic, he was definitely kicking himself for thinking ensconcing Maggie at his mother’s house had been a good idea.

  This morning he’d announced to his deputies at their weekly meeting that he was going to take a few days of vacation. They’d all looked at him like he’d gone over the edge. In the eleven years he’d worked for the Little Fork PD, he’d never once taken a day of vacation.

  But Helen, one of his two female deputies, had piped up while the others just stared at him, speechless. “I think that’s an excellent idea, Ty. You might not have noticed, but you’ve been awfully grumpy the last few days.”

  “I have not,” he’d barked. Then took a deep breath. “Well, maybe. Which is why I think a couple of days of vacation is in order.”

  “He’s in loooooove,” Jinx had chimed in.

  “You’re fired,” Ty responded.

  Jinx just grinned.

  “In love, huh?” Marlie his deputy, second in seniority only to Jinx, said. “Could it be that pretty girl he rescued from the Rooster?”

  “Meeting over. Jinx, you’re in charge of the roster.”

  “I no longer have a job, I believe.”

  “You’re re-hired until after I get back.”

  And with that Ty had stalked out of the room, and thank the Lord and pass the butter, no one said another word.

  So now Ty had at least a couple of days to convince Miss Margaret Prescott that she belonged in Little Fork. Little Fork 2010, not Little Fork 1850.

  And she belonged to him.

  After the other night, one of the best of his life, he’d had to do some true soul-searching. He had to realize that as impossible as it seemed, he’d fallen hard for a woman who’d dropped into his life from two centuries ago.