Katie Rose (25 page)

“Thomas … I can’t. Not like this.”

He looked at her for a long moment, then lifted her face to his. To her horror, the suppressed tears spilled out, and she wiped them quickly away, seeing a smear of rouge come with them. It didn’t matter now—none of it mattered. With a dismal sense of loss, Emily realized that she had somehow ruined everything. The only thing left was to tell him the whole truth.

“I’m sorry. I really felt you left me no other choice! I had to know, especially since …” She opened her eyes and looked through the moisture at him. “Especially since you were beginning to mean something to me.”

That cost her, and she saw, to her tremendous relief, that he understood. Some of the anger seemed to leave him as he gazed at her, weighing what she said, looking for any sign of falsehood.

“Do you mean that?” he asked, his voice rough.

Emily nodded. “I admit that I had decided to look through your things tonight. When I first thought of it, I felt apprehensive, but I couldn’t come up with
an alternative. I thought that it was better to do that, and know I could trust you, than to start to … fall in love with you without knowing the truth. Thomas, you investigated me. I don’t blame you for that. How can you blame me?”

“What did you say?”

“I said that I know you investigated me—”

“No, before that.”

Emily stared at him and felt more exposed than if she had been wearing one of Rosie’s negligees. “I said I was afraid I was falling in love with you. That’s why I had to know.”

A weight seemed to come off his shoulders. Emily watched him digest this, then his hand fell from where he’d been holding her arm.

“I don’t think there is anything else you could have said to me tonight that would have mattered except that.” He slid his fingers up the side of her throat, softly touching a stray curl that had escaped her hat, then back down, to the bare neckline of her gown. Emily’s breath hitched as the warm, wonderful sensations ignited within her. The rough feel of his hand, the closeness of his half-naked body, the scent of him, clean and masculine, filled her senses. She was overwhelmed with desire, and powerless to stop him when he took her into his arms.

“Don’t be afraid, Emily. I won’t hurt you, I just want to pleasure you. It is inevitable, this thing between us, isn’t it? My God, Emily, let me …”

His mouth covered hers, and Emily sighed with intense pleasure. The fear was gone, replaced by
wonder as his tongue flirted with hers, teasing her, making her want more. The erotic images from the bordello flitted through her mind and she pressed eagerly against him as he plunged his fingers into her coiffure and removed her hat. Emily was aware that he placed it aside carefully, but none of that mattered at this moment. Her body was aflame, his bare chest pressed against her sensitive skin, and her blood felt like honey flowing thick and sweet through her veins. His kisses went teasingly lower, then he freed her breasts from the bodice of her dress and closed his lips over one of them.

“Oh, Thomas!” Emily luxuriated in the pulsing madness that seemed to possess her. His tongue was like a flame as it tortured her nipple into a hard little point, then went on to treat the other to the same delicious torment. Arching up against him, Emily let her dress fall to her waist, allowing him to taste even more of her aching breasts, wanting everything that his lean body promised.

“Tell me,” he said roughly, his eyes burning with a strange light. His tone, and the way he fumbled with the buttons of her gown were even more exciting to Emily. “Tell me how much you want this.”

Cold air hit newly bared skin and she gasped at the myriad of sensations. Shivering, she stepped out of the gown, dimly understanding now why Rosie’s dresses were always so easy to unfasten. She nearly melted into the heat of his embrace, marveling at the throbbing ache of desire that culminated between her legs.

She lifted her face to his, and in a breathless voice, she managed, “Yes, I want this. I know I can trust you. Oh God, Thomas, don’t stop—”

His smile seduced her and she trembled as his lips lowered, inching down her chemise with each fiery kiss, until she wore only the black silk stockings Rosie had given her. She saw his brief look of surprise, and attributed it to the belief that colored stockings were considered very fast. Yet that, too, only added to the sizzling eroticism of the moment. Emily had one more fleeting thought about Rosie—she certainly knew her stuff—then Thomas lowered his head even more and she was swept away, incoherent.

“Oh my … Thomas, you can’t! You must stop, please stop—oh my God, don’t ever stop!”

Emily was aware of the sounds coming from her, but for once she was unable to form a conscious thought. The feelings he generated in her were simply too powerful. His mouth dazzled her, his tongue seemed to know exactly how to tease her, torment her, until she was writhing before him, her back against the wall, his hands holding her up by her silk-encased thighs. She would have fallen if he hadn’t held her, and when the tremors wracked her, she did fall, and he caught her in his arms.

“Thomas,” she murmured, letting the unfamiliar emotions wash over her. Never in her life had she felt like this. Never had she thought that such a delicious reward lay at the end of such a sinful deed.

“I know, sweet.” He carried her to the bed, smoothing back her hair, holding her as if she were precious, fragile. His eyes swept over her as he removed
his trousers and the rest of his clothes, and his voice was dark with passion. “So beautiful. So sensual. My dear Emily.”

He gathered her into his arms, wedging himself gently between her legs. Emily felt the first hard thrust of him and she gasped, but he held her close, caressing her, easing her fears. “Easy, Emily. It may hurt just a bit at first. My God, you are so hot, so tight. I don’t know if I can hold back.…”

“Don’t hold back,” Emily breathed. The feel of him, hot and full against the most sensitive part of her, was exquisite. When he slid into her, she felt a stinging pain, then gradually, it subsided. She sighed as her body expanded to accommodate his male hardness, taking all of him inside her.

“That’s it. Now put you legs around me. Yes, like that. Oh, God …”

Emily wrapped her stockinged legs around his back and felt him thrust even deeper. Excitement sparked within her and she arched her back against him, moving with him. Thomas whispered encouragement, then with a throaty cry, met his fulfillment. Tenderly he held her against him, and Emily could feel the pulsations of his body drain away in rhythm with her own.

A few moments passed, and he pressed a kiss on her neck. Emily felt a kind of satisfaction that she’d never known—emotional as well as physical. There was the closeness of the man beside her, the completeness of sexual fulfillment, and the knowledge that he would keep her safe, warming her. She smiled at him and Thomas’s mouth quirked softly.

“I take it you didn’t think it so bad.”

“I thought it was wonderful,” Emily sighed. “Thomas, I … I am so sorry for what I’ve done. You do realize why I had to look at your letters?”

“I’m not happy about it, Emily, but I do understand. And now I guess I’ll have to tell you the rest.”

She nodded and waited patiently.

“I haven’t told you who I really am because it would be dangerous for you to know—not because I didn’t trust you. And you’re not going to like what I’m about to tell you.” He paused, drawing in a long breath. “About a year ago I worked for Wells Fargo. My real name is Thomas Brant. You correctly guessed, from my accent, I suppose, that I come from Virginia. My father died in the war, and my family was left penniless. I tried my hand at a few things, but other than my accuracy with a gun, I didn’t have many advantages.

“In any case, the job at Wells Fargo promised a lot. My ability with the rifle was a benefit to them, and I was sent to guard a shipment of gold. It was a payroll sent from one of the banks in the East.”

Emily sat up, suddenly sure that she did not want to hear what he was going to say, but unable to stop him.

“Your father was my partner,” he continued. “I didn’t know him well, but he acted as a mentor to me, teaching me the ropes, pretending to be my friend. I had to admit, I bought it. I admired him. It was a long trip, and he talked of nothing but you, and of the way he would secure your future.”

“Thomas, I don’t know …”

He held up his hand. “Emily, in one respect you
are right. If we are to have this kind of relationship, there can’t be secrets between us. Let me finish. About halfway through the trip, your father shot me and left me for dead. He disappeared with the gold. No one knew where he’d gone. I was suspected in the theft as well, and lost my job, my income, and my name. My family suffered as well as myself. The only way for me to clear my name is to find that gold.”

“I don’t believe this,” Emily said, stunned.

“It’s all true,” Thomas told her gently. He showed her the scar on his shoulder. “This is where I was shot, Emily. After I was fired, I contacted my old supervisor, Will Jenkins, and told him I was going to find that gold. Will, thank God, never believed I was guilty. He agreed to help me, and he put me in contact with Ewert Smith, who suggested the role of traveling preacher as a cover. From Ewert, I learned of your father’s fate, and your arrival. At first I was certain that you knew about the money, and that you’d come back to claim it as your inheritance. I’d set out to stop you, but after I got to know you, I realized you were innocent.”

Emily stood up and began to dress. Thomas watched her from the bed, his eyes never leaving her.

“It’s the truth, Emily. You wanted that.”

“It’s not! You’re wrong, Thomas. My father never stole that gold! Why do you think we haven’t found it? It doesn’t exist!”

“Emily, I know how hard this is for you to hear. But I think your father may have had an accomplice, someone who was supposed to get half the money. I think he double-crossed this man, and that man
killed him and Rosie. Are you listening to me, Emily? This is the danger I’ve been warning you about!”

Thomas got out of the bed and stood beside her, but Emily refused to look at him. Quickly fastening the last of her buttons, she found a knot of tears in her throat. This couldn’t be true, it just couldn’t be. Her father wasn’t exactly citizen of the year, Emily knew that. He’d left her and her mother, taken up with a soiled dove, and lived in a bordello, but that was very different from ruining a man’s life, especially Thomas’s! Surely her mother couldn’t have loved a man that low. The facts added up, but for the first time, logic failed her.

“Emily, don’t do this. Listen to me—”

“I’m leaving. Thomas, I’m sorry about what happened. I think we both realize this was a mistake. Please let me go.”

“Emily, damn it.” Thomas touched her cheek, trying to coax her to talk to him. But she stood next to the door with her head down, refusing to meet his eyes. Helpless, aware that nothing he said at this moment would make a difference, Thomas slowly put on his clothes. Retrieving the key from under the bed, he unlocked the door. Before she could bolt, he took her arm.

“I’m walking you home, Emily. Don’t argue with me about this. Especially after what I told you tonight, you have to be more careful.”

She considered that for a moment, then reluctantly nodded. They walked in silence from the boardinghouse to the former bordello. The moon
rose high in the sky, illuminating the path, but the lack of conversation between them was painfully awkward and Emily almost wished for complete darkness to hide in. When they reached her porch, he finally spoke.

“Emily I just want you to know one thing. I remember what you said to me before all this happened, and it meant the world to me. I know you need time to sort through all this, but when you’re ready to talk, I’ll be here.”

Emily squeezed her eyes shut. She had to get out of here, had to get as far away from him as possible. As soon as he opened the door, she turned and ran inside.

“Well, well, looky here. What have we got, boys?”

Jake grinned as Emmet Colter hobbled into the abandoned miner’s shack. Lizzie looked up, her eyes wide with terror. She was seated in a chair, her hands tied behind her, her mouth gagged. She watched Emmet approach as a deer would a hunter, leaning as far back in the chair as her bonds would allow.

“I brought Miss Lizzie to visit,” Jake said, and the two outlaws broke into drunken laughter. “Seems she was fixin’ to fly the coop. I brought her back here where I could keep an eye on her.”

“I ain’t seen you in a long time, sweetheart,” Emmet said, but his eyes were narrowed dangerously. “Not since that detective on the train filled my leg with lead. Sad that I ain’t much use to a woman now, though. I know you missed me.”

“We’ve got something else to worry about.” Jake stood up and began to pace in front of the door. “That spinster woman, Emily Potter, has been stirring up trouble all over town. She’s been asking questions, poking her nose everywhere. She had even been to see Miss Lizzie. Lizzie claims she told her nothing, but somehow I don’t rightly believe that.”