Her Bodyguard (3 page)

Clever girl, Miss Mari McBride.

Doorbells chimed as he opened the shop’s door, and one of the customers waiting in line in front of him glanced his way. Alarm lit the man’s eyes. He took hold of the arm of the young woman standing next to him and tugged her close to his side, then his chin came up as he sent Luke a warning stare.

Daddy and daughter, Luke surmised, then dismissed him when the crowd parted, and he caught sight of the display cases.
Well, now
.

Indulgences sold confections, and its cases held the largest variety of sweets Luke had seen this side of the Mississippi. Two boys stood with their faces all but pressed against the glass, eyeing marzipan, chicken feed, candy eggs, and sugar plums. They debated their choices between horehound drops and jellies, licorice ropes and peppermints, rock candy, lemon drops and dozens of other candies. Watching them, Luke grinned. Indulgences was a child’s vision of paradise.

Adults appeared to like the view, too. They congregated in front of a second display case, this one containing chocolates. The visual appeal of the offerings in the case tempted Luke to do some face-against-the-glass pressing himself. What was it about sweets that appealed to the child in everyone?

Then he got a glimpse of the proprietress, and Luke grew up fast.

She had an angel’s face and a strumpet’s figure, blond hair and a bright, welcoming smile. Her deep blue eyes sparkled with intelligence. She wore a white apron trimmed in chocolate-brown over her dress, a modest design in a simple cotton print. Her sleeves were rolled up to the elbows.

Luke shifted out of line but moved closer, forgetting all about his sweet tooth as a more basic hunger swept through him.

She was speaking to a young matron. “…chocolates are my specialty, and they’re all made here in the shop.”

“What is this one?” the customer asked, pointing toward a dark brown square topped with a ripple of mint-green.

“That’s one of Indulgences’ creams.” Mari McBride smiled. “I call it a Chocolate Tease.”

“A Tease?” another customer repeated.

“The flavor is one that is rich and mysterious. You won’t quite be able to place it, though you’ll try. It lingers, and it teases.”

“That’s a challenge I can’t resist,” the customer said. “Please add Teases to my order.”

Not only beautiful, Luke thought, but a damned good businesswoman, too. He folded his arms and leaned casually against the wall, enjoying the show as she pointed out other offerings. Temptations and Enticements. Heavens and Rainbows and Enchantments. Sinfuls.

Luke definitely wanted a couple of those.

Miss McBride reached into her display case and pulled out a flat medallion-shaped candy. “With a two-dollar purchase, today’s customers all receive a bonus of three Kisses. Here’s a sample.” Her eyes gleamed wickedly as she handed the candy to the woman. “Now, don’t go home and tell your husband you’ve enjoyed a kiss that’s better than his.”

A smile played on the customer’s lips as she eyed the candy. “You say this kiss is better than my Harold’s?”

“I’ve never kissed your Harold, but…” Mari McBride winked. “Why don’t you try one and tell us?”

The woman accepted the piece of candy, bit into it and moaned. A long, full-throated, honey-I-saw-Jesus groan. “Oh, Miss McBride. Poor Harold’s kisses are nothing compared to yours.”

The other women in the shop giggled, while the lone man grumbled. Mari McBride smiled magnanimously. “I’ve been selling this particular chocolate for three weeks, and so far, no one has claimed to have experienced a superior Kiss.”

Though the comment was obviously made in jest, Luke couldn’t ignore the unspoken challenge. He stepped forward. “That’s quite a claim, little lady.”

“It’s quite a piece of candy, sir.”

“Reckon I’ll have to give one a try.”

Luke locked gazes with the beauty as he reached for a piece of her chocolate. Silently, she challenged him. He grinned, enjoying the moment, then he popped the piece of candy into his mouth and bit into it. Flavor exploded across his tongue. Cherry, smooth and creamy and so delicious that he had to concentrate to keep his eyes from rolling back in his head. It was like sex, really good sex. No wonder that customer had sounded as if she’d had her bell rung.

As was his habit with sensual matters, Luke took his time. He savored the chocolate, wrung every last bit of pleasure from the sweet. The customers waited anxiously.

Finally, he swallowed. Anticipation and expectation sparked in Mari McBride’s eyes. Slowly, his eyes still on hers, Luke licked his lips. “That’s mighty fine, ma’am. Mighty fine.”

“Thank you.”

“However…” He paused significantly, waited as she folded her arms and arched a curious brow, then continued. “I don’t think my opinion is the one that matters. I’m not the one selling Kisses. As good as your chocolate Kisses are, I think you should try mine before you make that superiority claim again.”

“You make chocolates, sir?”

“I’m talkin’ kisses.”

Now it was the man in the shop who chuckled. The beauty’s eyes widened, then narrowed. Luke’s blood stirred. When was the last time he’d bandied flirtatious words with a woman of good character? He couldn’t recall.

When she didn’t voice a protest, Luke reached for her sample plate and snagged a Kiss. Stepping close to her, he held the Kiss to her lips. “Are you confident enough to compare?”

Her mouth opened, and he fed her the chocolate, his thumb brushing slowly across her lower lip. Luke stared deeply into her eyes as she sucked on the piece of candy. It felt as though they were the only two people in the room.

When her tongue slipped from her mouth to rim her lips, he knew a surge of pure lust that transformed the moment from light flirtation to something much more intense. Everything within him went tight as he watched her finish the candy and swallow.

“Well?” he asked, his voice a low, rumbling taunt.

“Delicious.”

Tension thickened the air. “Delicious, hmm? The best you’ve ever had?”

Licking her lips once more, she nodded.

“Then I think it’s time to expand your sample base, don’t you?” He trailed his fingers across her downy soft cheek, then gently cupped her chin. Leaning forward, he lowered his mouth toward hers…until an elbow jabbed him hard in the ribs and shoved him aside.

“Excuse me.” A man’s cold, hard voice cut through the tension like a hot knife through cold lard. “Maribeth, your mother needs you. I’ll man your shop for now.”

Mari jerked her attention away from Luke and color stained her cheeks. “Papa,” she said, a hint of protest in her voice.

Well, hell, Luke thought.

The man was tall, broad, graying at the temples, and angry enough to chew nails. Trace McBride claimed a position at his daughter’s side, then folded his arms and glared at Luke. “I didn’t know you were back in town, Garrett.”

“Yep. Got back a couple days ago.”

Luke and McBride had worked together a time or two regarding issues in Hell’s Half Acre, and McBride had been friendly enough whenever their paths crossed. Of course, this was the first time their paths had crossed while Luke was in the process of romancing one of his daughters. He could understand the man’s reaction.

Still, that didn’t mean Luke had to change directions.

Luke rolled his tongue around his mouth, tasted the lingering flavor of cherry cream, then winked at Mari McBride and drawled, “You know, I do have a powerful sweet tooth, and those Sinfuls look to be right up my alley. Give me two dollars’ worth.”

Trace McBride smiled—or rather, bared his teeth— and bagged up the candy. “Maribeth, you get on home now.”

The beauty shot her father a beastly glare. “These are my customers, Papa. I’ll take care of them.”

“Not him, you won’t.”

“Papa!”

Like any successful thief, Luke understood the importance of good timing. He tossed his money onto the counter and grabbed the small bag of chocolates from Trace McBride’s hand. “Not to fret, sweet thing,” he told Mari. “I’ll return another time for my bonus Kisses. It’ll give me something to look forward to. I find that anticipation for a particularly sumptuous treat just makes a man’s appetite all the stronger.”

Luke tipped his black hat toward Mari, then, accompanied by the sound of a protective father’s growl, exited Indulgences, grinning all the while. That had been fun.

He opened the small white bag and fished out a piece of candy. He popped the chocolate into his mouth, then groaned aloud. Chocolate, caramel and nuts. “Sinnin’s even better than Kissin’.”

Luke glanced over his shoulder toward the redbrick building with green-and-white awnings, toward the gorgeous Mari McBride’s Indulgences.

As a rule, he stayed away from young, unmarried females of good birth, no matter how pretty they were. But Mari McBride tempted him to make an exception. She tempted him, period. And she owed him three Kisses, by God.

Maybe he’d just make an exception this time. Maybe he’d take her hint and indulge himself. Luke dug into his candy sack and removed another Sinful. He popped it into his mouth, savored it, then swallowed with a moan, his mind made up.

Any woman who could make him moan from a block and a half away was a woman worth knowing better. Plus, cozying up to her would have the added bonus of driving Trace McBride crazy. How could Luke resist?

He couldn’t. He wouldn’t. He’d see to his chores, then tend to his sweet tooth. She had Heavens and Rainbows and Sinfuls and Kisses. He was of a mind to inspire a brand-new candy. Something long and hard and tasty.

She could call them Luke’s.

MARI BURST into the kitchen at Willow Hill and demanded, “Mama, you’ve got to stop him.”

Seated at the kitchen table, her honey-colored hair slipping from a makeshift bun at the back of her neck, Jenny McBride glanced up from her mending. She closed her blue eyes and let out a long-suffering sigh. “What has Billy done now?”

“Not my brother.
Your husband!
”

Jenny’s full mouth twitched with a smile as she patted the seat beside her. “Sit down and talk to me, honey. Tell me what mischief Trace has been up to now. I suppose he was being overprotective?”

“Overprotective? Ha.” Mari flounced across the room. “He’s the King of Protective. The Emperor of Protective. I’d say he was the God of Protective if it weren’t blasphemous!”

Jenny McBride laughed softly. “Such dramatics. You sound more like Kat than yourself.”

“I don’t
feel
like myself. I’m harboring some serious anger toward my father.” Mari plopped down into a chair at the kitchen table and buried her head in her arms. “Mama, he’s making me crazy.”

“Yes, Trace can do that.” Jenny put a final stitch in the hem of the yellow gingham curtain, snipped the thread, then folded the cloth neatly on the table. She reached out and stroked Mari’s hair. “What happened?”

Mari gave her stepmother a quick but thorough rundown of the afternoon’s events at Indulgences. Jenny winced on Mari’s behalf a time or two during the telling. When Mari finally wound down, Jenny sighed and asked, “So who was the gentleman?”

“I don’t know. Papa called him Garrett.”

“Garrett? Luke Garrett?”

Mari shrugged. “He never mentioned his given name.”

“Describe him to me.”

The man’s image floated like a fantasy in Mari’s mind. “He’s tall with thick, dark hair that has a little wave to it. Brown eyes.”
Wicked, hot-caramel eyes
. “Broad shoulders. A nice smile.”
A devilish grin
. “He has a dimple, here.” Mari placed a finger against her left cheek.

“A dimple.” Jenny nodded. “That is Luke Garrett. You’ve heard of him, Mari. He owns the Blue Goose Saloon in the Acre. He’s been in prison. In fact, I didn’t know he’d been released. He’s the one Idalou Whitaker…” Jenny allowed her sentence to trail off unfinished.

Mari’s eyes widened at the mention of the year’s most notorious scandal. She tried to imagine starchy Idalou with the intriguing man who had challenged Mari’s Kisses, who had stared at her with such intensity, but her mind wouldn’t picture it.

“As much as I hate to say it,” Jenny continued, “I think that this time, your father was right to interfere. Luke Garrett’s not the sort of man for a good girl to tangle with.”

“Why? Because he owns property in Hell’s Half Acre? Just like Papa did when you met him?”

“Now, Mari.”

Mari pushed to her feet and began to pace the kitchen. “It doesn’t matter whether my customer was a convicted criminal or a candidate for sainthood. He was my customer in my shop and dealing with him was my business. I am not a McBride Menace any longer. I’m an adult. I am responsible for my own actions, my own deeds. My own mistakes. I cannot—I will not— have Papa leaping to the rescue whether I’m selling a man chocolate or…or…or kissing him senseless on the courthouse steps!”

Jenny grimaced. “Please, Mari. Not the courthouse steps. That would revive your Menace reputation and you’ve worked so hard to shed it. Besides, you’d give your father apoplexy.”

“He’s giving me indigestion. And a headache. I’ll probably break out in hives any minute.”

“He’s worried about you, sweetheart.” Jenny rose and crossed the room toward Mari. She touched her cheek. “You’re seldom home anymore. We hardly ever hear you laugh. Ever since Alexander—”

“I’m fine, Mama,” Mari interrupted. She didn’t want to talk about Alexander Simpson. She didn’t want to even think about the man. “I’m happy. I’ve been busy opening my business. You know what that’s like. When you opened Fortune’s Design, didn’t you work long days?”

“And nights,” Jenny agreed. “Yes, I understand how much work is involved in launching a new business, and I know that you’ve been immersed in the entire process. Your father and I are so proud of what you’ve accomplished. But there’s more to life than work, Mari. Even during the busiest times at Fortune’s Design, I tried to maintain a social life. You, on the other hand, have done everything possible to avoid social engagements in recent months, and I don’t believe Indulgences is the reason.”

“Wait a minute. Didn’t I speak at the Literary Society just last week?”