To Love a Stranger

by Connie Mason

  Duke, the bartender, seemed surprised to see Pierce. “What are you doing in town, Delaney? We heard you and Miss Zoey were divorced. She married Samson Willoughby two days ago.”

  “So I heard,” Pierce muttered. He ordered whiskey and tossed it back in one gulp.

  “Sorry it didn’t work out between you and Miss Zoey,” Duke commiserated. “Samson Willoughby always did have a hankering for her. Seems he finally got what he wanted.”

  “Don’t count on it,” Pierce muttered darkly.

  “What did you say?”

  “Nothing important I heard the newlyweds are on their honeymoon.”

  “That’s right. They boarded the stage immediately after the ceremony. Heard Willoughby say they’re going to Butte.”

  “Butte,” Pierce repeated, slapping a coin down on the counter. “Thanks, Duke.”

  “Something wrong, Delaney?”

  “Everything is wrong, Duke, including the marriage between Zoey and Samson Willoughby.”

  Zoey was grateful for the other passengers traveling on the stage with them. Having fellow travelers kept her husband in line. She could tell by the lustful looks he gave her that he was eager to consummate their marriage. They stopped at a way station each night, and Zoey was only too happy to share a room with the other female passengers while Willoughby slept in the room set aside for the men. The accommodations were very much to her liking.

  Zoey had been nauseous during most of the trip. She knew it was the baby giving her fits and wondered what Willoughby would do if she told him she carried Pierce’s child. She would tell him in a minute if she didn’t think he’d try to harm her and her baby. In fact, she was seriously considering telling him in hopes that he wouldn’t want her under those circumstances. It was a long shot, but one worth taking if things got out of hand. Never would she let him in her bed!

  Zoey tried to doze as the scenery sped by. Unfortunately Willoughby’s daunting presence beside her, touching her possessively from time to time to remind her that she belonged to him, kept her alert and watchful.

  Pierce wasn’t far behind the stagecoach. He had inquired at the last stop and learned that the Willoughbys were still aboard. A smile kicked up the corner of Pierce’s mouth. If he had his way, Willoughby’s final destination would be in hell. Zoey belonged to him, Pierce. No other man had a right to her. The revolting image of Willoughby’s hands on Zoey made him physically ill and angry enough to kill.

  Pierce couldn’t ever recall feeling this strongly about a woman. His damn pride had kept him from following Zoey after she left Dry Gulch. There were just too damn many reasons why they couldn’t find happiness together. His family was falling apart and he couldn’t seem to think straight. Now, when he’d finally realized he needed Zoey to make his life complete, he might lose her.

  Chad Delaney rested his lanky frame against the saloon from which he had just exited and lit a cigarette. He watched with bored disinterest as the stagecoach pulled into town and discharged its passengers. What he saw jerked him to attention. Flinging his cigarette to the ground, he settled his hat farther down on his forehead and stared with disbelief at the couple who had just piled out of the stage.

  It was Zoey, all right. Accompanied by a man he’d never seen before. He waited for Pierce to appear, and when he didn’t, Chad spit out a curse. It was just like a woman to pull a dirty trick like that on a man. He had no idea what was going on, but he sure as hell was going to find out. Chad followed the couple to the Claymore Hotel, watching from the front window as the man signed the hotel register and turned to speak to Zoey. He couldn’t hear what the man said, but he could tell Zoey wasn’t happy about it.

  “Go upstairs with the bellhop, my dear,” Willoughby said, sliding his hand down Zoey’s arm in a possessive manner. “Prepare yourself for me. I’ll give you time to … don something more appropriate for our first night together. Meanwhile, I’ll arrange for an intimate supper to be served in our room.”

  When Zoey balked, Willoughby closed brutal fingers around her arm and turned her toward the stairs. “Go!”

  Giving Willoughby a hateful look, Zoey followed the bellhop up the stairs to the second floor, unaware that Chad had entered the hotel right behind her and Willoughby. Chad waited around until they had gone their separate ways before approaching the clerk.

  “Who is that couple that just signed in?” Chad asked.

  “We’re not allowed to give out that information,” the clerk said, looking down his long nose at Chad.

  Chad dug in his pocket and pulled out a ten-dollar bill. “Are you sure?” he asked, sliding the money toward the clerk.

  The money disappeared into the clerk’s palm. “I can’t tell you anything.” Then in a low voice he said, “The register is on the counter.” He deliberately turned his back while Chad availed himself of the hotel register.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Samson Willoughby.” Chad muttered something vile beneath his breath. What in the hell was going on? He knew Willoughby to be the man who had given Zoey so much grief. Why would she marry a man she despised? And what had happened to Pierce? How could Zoey be married to two men? The answers lay with Zoey, and Chad intended to get them. He took note of the room number and made for the stairs.

  Zoey stared out the window, gathering her courage for what was certain to be a nasty confrontation with Willoughby. There was no way she was going to let Willoughby bed her. If he so much as touched her, she’d make him sorry. He’d promised she could see Cully after the wedding ceremony, but she knew now he never intended to keep his word. Willoughby was a heartless, lying bastard; Cully could already be dead.

  The weight of the gun in her pocket lent her courage. She’d carried it since departing Rolling Prairie, and she wasn’t afraid to use it. She’d give Willoughby a dose of lead poisoning if he tried to force her, and she’d feel no remorse for shooting a man like Willoughby. Jail held little appeal, but neither did bedding Willoughby.

  A furtive knock on the door brought Zoey’s thoughts to a skidding halt. He’s here! Expecting her to act the dutiful wife. Her hand slid into her pocket as she walked to the door and flung it open. Her hands were shaking, but her resolve was firm. The last person she expected to find outside her door was Chad Delaney.

  “Dear God, it can’t be! Chad! Is it really you?”

  His gaze slid over Zoey, his eyes hard and relentless. “In the flesh, Zoey, and demanding answers. What in the hell are you doing with Willoughby? Where is my brother?”

  “It’s a long story, one I don’t have time for now.” She caught his arm. Her voice rose on a note of desperation. “Oh, Chad, you’re the answer to my prayer! Will you help me? I’ll explain everything, but please, take me away from here.”

  Chad caught her shoulders in his strong hands, holding her away from him while he searched her face. “Are you in danger, Zoey?”

  “Please, Chad, later. Just get me away from here before Willoughby returns. I’m not here by choice.”

  That was all Chad needed to hear. He grasped Zoey’s hand and pulled her from the room. Going down the front stairs was out of the question, so he looked for a back exit and found it.

  “This way,” he urged, pulling Zoey to the end of the hallway with him. In minutes they had negotiated the back stairs and were standing in the alley behind the hotel.

  Zoey was out of breath but exultant. Having Chad appear when she needed someone was a miracle. “Where to now?” she asked, casting furtive glances over her shoulder.

  “I’m taking you to my lodging. You’ll be safe there until I hear an explanation and determine what course to take. My hotel isn’t as grand as yours, but no one will ask questions when I bring you upstairs with me.”

  They turned down a side street to a seedier part of town and entered the run-down lobby of an establishment calling itself the Cow Town Hotel. A couple of cowhands standing around shooting the breeze took scant interest as Chad led Zoey down the hall to his room. Zoey nearly collapsed with relief when Chad cl
osed and locked the door behind them.

  “You’re safe here, Zoey. Sit down and tell me how you ended up in a hotel room with Samson Willoughby when you’re married to my brother.”

  Zoey perched on the edge of the sagging bed, wondering how and where to start. Finally she said, “Much has happened since you left Dry Gulch, Chad. I returned to the Circle F … alone, and Pierce and I divorced.”

  “Divorced! I thought you and Pierce … That is, I could have sworn you really cared for one another.”

  “You’re half-right. I care for Pierce, but he doesn’t return my feelings. He can’t get past the fact that I forced him into marriage. He also holds me responsible for driving you away.”

  “Now, that’s plain dumb. You didn’t drive me away. I left of my own free will.”

  “But everything that’s happened started with my forcing Pierce to marry me.”

  “You’re wrong, Zoey. Cora Lee started the whole thing when she said Pierce got her with child and beat her.”

  “Pierce doesn’t see it that way. If he wanted me, he would have come to the Circle F after me. He let me leave because he didn’t want me.”

  “Damn him! Didn’t he realize how vulnerable you’d be to Willoughby without him to protect you?”

  “Not really. Pierce believed I was safe from Willoughby. Everything would have been fine if I’d taken the time to hide the confession Willoughby signed before I left. He had it stolen while I was with Pierce in Dry Gulch and the hands were on a trail drive.”

  “Why did you marry Willoughby?”

  “I needed money to pay the taxes. He knew Pierce and I were … no longer together. I agreed to marry him in return for the loan, but I never intended to go through with it once the taxes were paid. He suspected I wouldn’t keep my word and had Cully kidnapped. He threatened to kill Cully unless I married him. Cully is like my own family. I couldn’t let him be hurt.”

  “The bastard,” Chad snarled. “Why didn’t you ask Pierce for the money? He wouldn’t have refused you.”

  “Pierce made it perfectly clear that he wanted nothing to do with me. My pride wouldn’t allow me to ask him for money.” She twisted her hands in her skirt. “I vowed to stay out of his life no matter what. I can raise my baby—” She clamped a hand over her mouth, realizing what she had just said.

  Chad’s eyes narrowed. “You’re expecting Pierce’s child and you married Willoughby?” His voice held a wealth of contempt. “What kind of woman are you? What would you have done had I not come along when I did?”

  Zoey reached in her pocket for her gun. “I had this. I would have killed Willoughby before I let him touch me.”

  “Wouldn’t it have been easier to ask Pierce for help?”

  Her chin tilted defiantly. “I am fully prepared to take care of myself, and that includes raising my child. I forced Pierce once, I won’t do it again.”

  Disgusted, Chad shook his head. “You would rather have gone to jail for shooting Willoughby? Women, they’re more bother than they’re worth,” he muttered. “I take it my brother doesn’t know he’s going to be a father. Never mind, I already know the answer.”

  Suddenly Zoey looked so dejected, so utterly defeated, that Chad thought it best to save further questions for later. “Tell you what. I’ll move my things from the room and find some other place to sleep. We’ll finish this discussion tomorrow. I’ll arrange to have food sent up to you so you won’t have to leave the room. You’ll be safe here.”

  He picked up his saddlebags and turned to go. “Don’t open the door to anyone but the maid until I return tomorrow.”

  “It isn’t right to turn you out of your room.”

  “I can sleep anywhere. Besides, I need to make arrangements to send you back to Pierce.”

  Zoey bristled indignantly. “Sending me back to Pierce will solve nothing. He’s going to resent me for trapping him.”

  “Perhaps, but that’s my brother’s child you’re carrying. Get some rest. I’ll return in the morning.” He opened the door, stepped out into the hall, and pulled the door shut behind him.

  Zoey stared at the closed door. She knew Chad was angry with her. He didn’t seem happy about getting involved in her problems. She couldn’t blame him. Nothing could change the fact that she was Willoughby’s wife. He had every right to demand that she return to him, and the law would back him up.

  Sighing dejectedly, she lay down on the bed and closed her eyes. She wanted Pierce, desperately, and it hurt to know he didn’t want her. She would love him always; that would never change. She regretted mentioning the baby to Chad, but it had been a slip of the tongue. She hadn’t wanted any of the Delaneys to know. As much as she loved Pierce, she wanted him to want her for herself. Exhausted from the long days of travel, Zoey fell into a fitful sleep.

  Pierce rode into Butte several hours behind the stage. He was dirty, tired, and hungry. Putting physical comfort aside, he wanted to begin his search for Zoey immediately. Common sense told him Willoughby would stay at the best hotel in town, and that sounded like a good place to start.

  Chad flung his saddlebags across his horse’s withers and walked him to the Claymore Hotel. He wanted to keep tabs on Willoughby, to see what he would do when he found Zoey missing. He could summon the law, and that could present problems. Chad had no idea how all this would be resolved, but he knew he couldn’t abandon Zoey to Willoughby. Not while she carried Pierce’s child.

  Lost in thought, Chad accidentally bumped into a man who attempted to enter the hotel at the same time he did.

  “Sorry, mister,” Chad said, giving the man a brief glance.

  The man merely grunted, but something about the set of his shoulders made Chad turn and give him a hard look.

  “Pierce?! My God, man, you couldn’t have turned up at a better time.”

  Pierce straightened his weary form and stared with disbelief at his brother. “Chad? You’re a sight for sore eyes, brother. What are you doing in Butte?”

  They clapped one another on the back and then exchanged a hearty bear hug.

  “I’ve been in a lot of places since I left the ranch. Butte is just one of them. We need to talk, Pierce. There’s a saloon around the corner. We can talk privately there.”

  Pierce followed Chad to the saloon, more than a little confused by the surprising turn of events. They found a table in the rear of the room and ordered drinks.

  Chad waited until after their drinks arrived to ask, “What brings you to Butte, Pierce? You’re a long way from home.”

  “I’m looking for my wife. Zoey and Willoughby left Rolling Prairie together, and I want my wife back.”

  “It’s taken you a long time to decide that.”

  “I admit I’ve been a stubborn idiot, but I’ve finally come to my senses. Zoey belongs to me. I’ve got to find her before …” His sentence fell off and he stared moodily into his drink.

  Chad knew exactly what Pierce was thinking. “Willoughby hasn’t touched her.”

  Pierce’s head jerked up. “What? How do you know?”

  “Because I just left Zoey. She’s stashed away where Willoughby can’t find her.”

  Pierce shot to his feet. “How? Where?”

  “Keep your pants on, brother. Zoey is married to Willoughby. Did you know that? I saw them getting off the stage and followed them to the hotel. I managed a moment alone with Zoey and she asked me for help.”

  “Of course I know Zoey married Willoughby, but it isn’t legal. I never signed our divorce papers. Zoey is still my wife and she’s going to remain my wife.”

  A cynical smile spread over Chad’s handsome features. “Changed your mind about women, huh? Zoey is your problem now, Pierce. I’ll tell you where to find her, and you can take her home where she belongs.”

  Pierce’s relief was so profound that at first he failed to comprehend everything Chad had said. Then it dawned on him. “Aren’t you coming back with us? Let the past go, Chad. It’s time to return home.”

  Chad’s mou
th thinned and his eyes reflected a soul-deep bitterness. “I’m not coming home. I can’t forget what happened there. I was responsible for four deaths, Pierce, and I can’t seem to run fast enough to escape it. I’ll tell you where to find your wife, then I’m heading out of town.”

  “Dammit, Chad, listen to reason.”

  “Forget reason. It’s too late for that. Do you want to know where to find Zoey or not?”

  “You know I do.”

  “Then go to her. She needs you. You’re going to be surprised by what she has to tell you.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “It’s best if it comes from Zoey. You’ll find her at the Cow Town Hotel, Room 129. It’s just around the corner. Get her out of town before Willoughby turns the city upside down to find her.”

  “I don’t know how you managed this, Chad, but I’m damn grateful. Are you sure I can’t convince you to come back to the ranch with us?”

  “Positive.” He clipped a hand into his pocket. “Here’s the key. You’ll probably find her sleeping. The room’s paid for.”

  Pierce swallowed the rest of his whiskey and pocketed the key. “Keep in touch, Chad. Let us hear from you from time to time.”

  Chad nodded curtly and rose to leave. “One more thing, Pierce, take a bath before you go to Zoey. You stink.” His laughter followed Pierce out the door.

  Pierce took Chad’s advice. He visited a bathhouse, shaved, and changed his clothing before heading over to the hotel. He found his way to Room 129 with no difficulty or interference. He stared at the door for several moments before fitting the key into the lock and turning the knob. The door opened noiselessly and he slipped inside. A single lamp cast a nimbus of light throughout the room.

  Pierce softly closed the door, turned the key in the lock, and tiptoed across the room. He noticed the tray of half-eaten food first, then her dress, which lay neatly folded across the arm of a chair. Finally his gaze settled on Zoey. She was curled up on the bed, sleeping soundly. She didn’t awaken when he shed his clothing and slid into bed beside her. When he took her into his arms, she murmured his name and slid naturally into his embrace.