Last Promise (7 page)

George greeted the woman politely, but Mary Ann remained silent. She wasn't sure she could even form a civil reply. How could a married woman throw herself at a man in the middle of the street in broad daylight? Actually, she was amazed the woman didn't pop out of her dress when she hurled herself through the air at Luke. Did Luke McBride have any female acquaintances who were not tarts?
His partner's wife indeed!

“Arina, where is Sam?” Luke asked, but what he really wanted to ask was what in Hades was that kiss about. Normally, he might have been excited to have an attractive woman throw herself at him, but not Sam's wife under any circumstances.

“That's what I need to see you about, Luke darling.”

Luke frowned.
Darling? Darling?
Where did that come from?

“Mrs. White, we were just going to have lunch, please join us,” George said.

Arina looked Mary Ann up and down, and immediately came to the conclusion she was involved with Luke. “I'm sorry, but I need to speak with Luke privately and I'm afraid it is quite urgent.”

Mary Ann breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't want to be at the same table with the rogue or his . . . his . . . whatever she was to him. He was the worst sort of cad to behave that way with his partner's wife.

“I understand,” George held his arm for Mary Ann. “Come, my dear, let's give these two some privacy.”

“I apologize, George.” He turned his gaze on Mary Ann. “I was looking forward to our lunch.” He wasn't a man who normally worried about what people thought about him, but at this very moment he was very concerned. It was inexplicable to him why Mary Ann Hardwicke's opinion of him mattered, but he couldn't deny it mattered very much.

“Don't give it another thought, we'll do it another time.” George said as they walked into the hotel.

Luke picked up Arina's luggage that the stagecoach driver had placed beside them. Arina linked her arm through Luke's and together they followed George and Mary Ann to the hotel.

“Could we talk over lunch, Luke?”

“Yes, we'll just get you checked in.” He'd allow her time to tell him what was going on before he asked her about the greeting she'd just given him.

* * *

George and Mary Ann sat at the table and waited for their order. “She certainly is a lovely young woman, although not extremely circumspect.”

Her uncle seemed to be reading her mind, and Mary Ann couldn't disagree with his assessment. The blond woman's apparel, though costly, looked more suitable for the women she'd seen on the balcony at the saloon. Her bodice was way too tight and far too revealing for day. “I should say she is certainly not circumspect. But it appears Mr. McBride prefers that type of woman. You should have seen the behavior of the two women he was escorting when he was brawling in the street the day I arrived.” Mary Ann finally leveled with her uncle and gave him her true opinion of Luke McBride. “Uncle, I know you like the man, but he is a rake, make no mistake.”

“My dear, I heard from the lady who owns the mercantile that Luke was defending the honor of a lady.”

Mary Ann frowned at her uncle. “Lady my foot.” She did recall Mr. McBride had said those very words to her. But if those women were ladies, why, she would eat her hat, feathers and all.

George chuckled. He wondered if the true reason she had a bad opinion of Luke stemmed from the gals at the saloon talking to him that night. Perhaps it was because of what happened with Edmund Stafford that made her wary of men in general. “Mary Ann, you will see that the men here are very different than in England. Here they often handle their differences with fists or guns in the street. It's the same in England, only we do it in a more gentlemanly fashion, we fight duels at dawn so no one can see.”

What had happened to her uncle? Surely he didn't condone such behavior as brawling in the streets, and women dressing indecently and generally behaving like harlots. “It all seems rather uncivilized.”

George remembered he'd felt the same way when he first arrived in America so he could appreciate her perspective. “It can be, but the good men here will not allow the rowdies to disrespect ladies. I think they feel it is the most expedient way to handle a problem. Many men carry guns, and good men like Luke McBride must be prepared for any situation. Give him a chance. I think you will come to appreciate a man like Luke.”

Before her last encounter with Edmund, Mary Ann may have thought the men in England were different from these men in America. She was no longer that naïve young woman. She'd seen Luke's true colors, he used his charms indiscriminately on every woman he knew. If he were a woman he would be called fickle. She supposed the term for him would be
skirt chaser
. “I'm afraid if you are waiting on the day when I appreciate a man like Luke McBride, you will surely be in for a disappointment, Uncle.”

* * *

After Luke checked Arina into the hotel, they walked into the restaurant. They sat just a few tables away from George and Mary Ann, and Luke positioned himself so he could watch Mary Ann. After he turned his attention on Arina, he thought she was much lovelier than he remembered with her long blond hair and dark blue eyes. They placed their orders and Luke got right to the point. “Where's Sam?”

“I don't know.”

This stunned Luke more than her kiss. “What do you mean you don't know?”

“That's why I came here, I thought he might be with you.”

“Maybe you better start at the beginning and tell me everything.”

“Sam told me he had to go to Denver on business and I haven't seen or heard from him in three months.”

“Did he mention what kind of business?” Luke wasn't aware of any reason Sam would need to be in Denver.

“No, he didn't say. He'd been acting very strange, but I don't know what was wrong with him.”

“What do you mean he was acting strange?”

“He wasn't coming home at night. He said he was staying in his office.” Arina pulled a handkerchief from her reticule and dabbed at her eyes. “I just don't know what has happened to him.”

“Why didn't you telegraph me earlier?”

“I thought he would come back before now.”

Luke thought if Sam was in trouble or needed help he would have contacted him. “I haven't heard from Sam for some time. Did you two have an argument?”

“No, we didn't. I was sure he would contact you.”

She wasn't telling him something. “Did you ask the sheriff for his help?”

“He said there was nothing he could do if a man wanted to go somewhere without telling anyone.”

Luke could understand the sheriff's position, particularly if there was no evidence of foul play. “What about his foreman, Buck?”

“Buck is dead.”

Luke leaned forward with his arms on the table. “What happened to him?”

“He was shot just before Sam left.”

That was an odd coincidence, Luke thought. “Who killed him?”

“No one knows.”

“Arina, I need to ask you about the kiss you gave me. What was that about?”

She reached over and placed her hand over his and stared into his eyes. “I was just so glad to see a familiar face. I'm sorry if I overreacted, but I always felt a connection with you.”

Her comment threw him.
Connection?
“We've never even been alone for five minutes, Arina.”

Squeezing his hand, she looked at him with sad eyes. “I want to be friends with you, Luke. I know Sam trusted you. Please don't turn me away. I need someone I can trust.”

Luke looked away, feeling uncomfortable with Arina's unusual behavior. It had been his plan to ask her if she preferred to stay at the ranch, but after the kiss she'd landed on him, he thought better of that. None of this was making sense to him. He really didn't know anything about Arina, other than the fact she was his partner's wife. Sam had never confided in him about his relationship with her, and it came as a complete surprise when Sam told him he was getting married. The whole situation was confounding. Luke glanced up and found himself staring directly into large silver disapproving eyes. He quickly jerked his hand from Arina's grip.

Chapter Seven

Later that evening, Luke was alone with his brothers and he told them about his meeting with Arina and her strange behavior.

“I can see why you didn't invite her to stay at the ranch,” Colt said.

“The way you like to flirt around, are you sure you didn't give her the wrong impression at some point?” Jake asked.

Luke didn't take exception to Jake's question, he didn't hide the fact he liked women. “I don't think I've said more than ten words to her before today. She never paid me the least bit of attention at the wedding, and I left Arizona right after that.”

“Did the sky fall?” Jake teased. “You met a woman who wasn't all over you in five minutes. I can't believe it!”

“Very funny,” Luke countered. “Sam didn't talk much about her, so I know very little. I don't even know how they met.”

“What are you planning on doing?” Colt asked.

“First, I'm going to telegraph the sheriff and see what he can tell me. I'll also telegraph the supervisor at the mine. He worked for Sam before I became a partner.”

“Doesn't he have a foreman at the ranch you could contact?” Jake asked.

“That's another strange thing. The foreman I knew at Sam's ranch is dead. He was shot and apparently there are no leads on his killer. Odd coincidence, don't you think?”

“There are no coincidences,” Colt and Jake said in unison.

Luke laughed. “I knew you were going to say that. And in this case, I have to agree.”

“What are you going to do about the wife?” Colt asked.

“She wants my help, but I'm not sure what I can do from here.”

“If you're asking my opinion, I think this is exactly where you need to be,” Colt told him.

“Why is that?”

“Think about it, if Sam is not dead, he must have had a purpose for leaving. It stands to reason a man would protect his wife, but as he didn't confide in her, it makes me think he didn't trust her.”

Luke hadn't thought about it from that angle. “I'm not sure we can go that far in our thinking.”

“Do you think your friend would have left his wife to fend for herself if there was trouble?” Colt asked.

“Not the Sam I know.”

“Then if he is alive, do you think his actions indicate he is protecting her or suspecting her of something?”

“Colt has a point,” Jake cut in. “Maybe you should keep her here and get to know her a little better. If she has something to hide maybe she'll accidentally say the wrong thing. I'll make some inquiries, too.”

“Thanks, Jake. It comes in handy to have an ex-U.S. Marshal for a brother. Colt might be right. Sam had to have a reason to leave without telling her what was going on.” Luke hoped his friend was alive, but he couldn't figure out why he hadn't heard from him if he was.

* * *

Luke knocked on the door to room number six. He wasn't so foolish that he expected Mary Ann would be thrilled to see him. She'd made it perfectly clear she was determined not to give him the time of day, but he was equally determined to change her opinion of him once he figured out a way to accomplish that goal.

The door opened and Arina was standing there in a silky robe which was loosely belted. Her hair was disheveled, and Luke thought she looked like she'd just left her bed. “Luke!” Like yesterday, she snuggled up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Why didn't you tell me you were coming?”

With her pressed so tightly to his body he didn't need to ask what she was wearing under her robe. He almost forgot that she wasn't the woman he expected to open the door. “What are you doing here?” Hearing footsteps coming down the hall, he halfway turned to see who it was. Arina was still hanging onto his neck.

He groaned when he saw it was Mary Ann. How could this be happening? She couldn't miss Arina cozied up to him.
Again
. Thank goodness Arina wasn't kissing him this time.

Arina released his neck and took his hand, trying to pull him into her room. “I told you I would be staying for a few days.”

He turned to face Mary Ann and tipped his hat when she neared the door. “Mary Ann, I was just coming to see you.”

Mary Ann's gaze shifted from him to Arina, and Luke could tell by those silver eyes darkening like a storm cloud that she didn't approve of what she was seeing.

His head whipped around and there was Arina with her hands on her hips and her robe gaping wide above the belt, leaving little to the imagination.

“Yes, I can see that,” Mary Ann snapped. She didn't miss a step as she continued down the hallway.

“Wait a minute!” Luke tried to go after her but Arina was holding tight to his hand.

“Luke, come in, honey,” Arina said.

“Hold on.” Luke pulled away and hurried down the hallway after Mary Ann. He reached her at the top of the staircase. “Would you wait a da . . . dang minute?”

She stopped so fast that he bumped into her and almost knocked her down the stairs. He grabbed her arm to steady her. “Careful.”

“You curse at me and you expect me to stop and converse with you?”

“I didn't curse at you! I just . . . I just . . . well, I almost cursed, but it wasn't at you. I have a habit of saying some bad words.” That sounded lame even to his own ears.

“Bad words?” If he wasn't such a cad she might have smiled at his choice of words.

“Ah, yeah. That's what my nephews call them.” He blessed her with his famous McBride grin. “They told me their ma would wash my mouth out with soap. And if they are really bad words, they told me God won't let me into heaven.”

For a flicker of a moment, she saw the same charming man she'd seen that night in the kitchen when they were cooking together. He might be a scoundrel, but at least he spoke about his nephews with unabashed affection. “As well she should wash your mouth out with soap. What kind of influence is your language on young boys? However, I'm not sure our Maker would keep you out of heaven for that transgression.”

He didn't care that she was dressing him down, at least she was talking to him. “I've been cleaning up my language for them. Working around men who are rough as cobs most of the time it's hard to remember your manners in polite company.” He saw she was staring at something past him, so he turned around to see Arina standing in the hallway watching them, and she hadn't bothered to pull her robe together. Before Mary Ann took off again, he spoke quickly, “I wanted to explain about yesterday. I didn't want you to get the impression there was something going on between Arina and me. And I thought I was knocking on your door this morning.”

She felt like telling the woman that the hotel was a respectable business and not a brothel, and if she wanted to act like a common tart she could jolly well go to the saloon. She held her tongue, but instead addressed the man in front of her who was creating the problems in the first place. “Mr. McBride, you certainly don't owe me any explanation. I have no interest in your personal life.” She glanced back down the hallway. “I think your . . .
friend
is waiting for you.” She turned and descended the staircase as regally as a queen. Her thoughts, on the other hand, were far from noble.

Taking a deep breath, Luke wanted to let out a stream of bad words. Trying to talk to Mary Ann was like trying to grasp the wind. He turned around and walked back toward Arina's door. When he reached her, she was still standing there with her arms on her hips, robe barely clinging to her every curve. A very enticing package if she wasn't a married woman. He'd prefer it was Mary Ann in that getup.

“I don't think your girl likes me.”

Luke hooked his thumbs in his belt and gave Arina a no-nonsense look. “She's not my girl. But I'd sure like to know why you keep throwing yourself at me.”

Arina reached for his hand and brought it to her chest, right over her heart. “Oh Luke, I just feel all alone and I'm scared. I don't know what's going on and I'm afraid to be here alone.”

Luke looked at his hand pressed against her bare skin. Just an inch or two one way or the other . . . no . . . don't go there. He tried to concentrate on what she was saying. He could understand if she was frightened, particularly not knowing what had happened to her husband. She was a beautiful young woman and vulnerable. He sure wouldn't like his wife traipsing all over the country alone. Sam should have made some sort of arrangements for her. Colt might have thought she was involved with whatever was going on, but he had a hard time believing that. She'd never acted so forward in Arizona, so maybe she was really scared.

“Please don't be angry with me. You make me feel safe, even when you were in Arizona I wanted to be friends with you, but you left so soon after the wedding we didn't have a chance to get to know each other.”

This was news to him. He couldn't recall having much of a conversation with her the day of the wedding. After he'd talked to his brothers he'd done some reflecting on the few times he had been around Arina. He remembered catching her staring at him once or twice, but she certainly never did anything inappropriate. “You shouldn't be in the hallway dressed so . . . in your nightclothes.”

She looked down at her robe, but made no move to pull it together. “What's wrong with the way I'm dressed?”

“You shouldn't wear your robe outside your room. Another man might walk by and get the wrong impression.”

“Then come in for a minute while I change. There's a dressing screen so it would be proper.”

“I can't, I need to get back to the ranch.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck again. “Please don't leave me alone here, Luke.”

He couldn't help feeling sorry for her and found himself saying, “I'll come pick you up and take you to the ranch for dinner tonight.”

“Oh, thank you.” She cupped his face and kissed him on the lips again. “I'll be waiting.”

* * *

Within minutes Luke was downstairs, but instead of walking out the door he decided to have breakfast in the restaurant. If Mary Ann didn't want to see him . . . well, that was too bad. He'd left home without eating, and he was hungry. When he didn't have food in his gut he wasn't a happy man. Right now that wasn't the only reason he was in a foul mood.

He sat where he had a good view of the front desk and the staircase. If Arina came downstairs he planned to gulp his food and get out of there in a hurry. He didn't even intend to try to talk to Mary Ann again. He wanted a few minutes alone to think things over. Thinking back to Sam's wedding, he did recall Arina was very affectionate with Sam. Since they were newlyweds, he thought Sam was lucky to have such a loving woman. Granted, her clothing had probably been more revealing than most ladies wore, but at the time he didn't give it a second thought. He figured he should take her at her word that she was scared. People often acted in strange ways when they were frightened.

The waitress delivered his steak and eggs and warmed his coffee. He glanced up and saw Mary Ann walking behind the desk while she conversed with Eb. She glanced his way, but for once, he didn't bother to acknowledge her. To show his indifference, he picked up his coffee and took a healthy gulp and nearly burned his tongue off. Thankfully, Mary Ann wasn't watching, her attention was on a cowboy who walked in and approached the desk. Luke kept his eye on the drifter. He was taking his own sweet time if he was checking into the hotel. He stood there chatting with Mary Ann before he turned the register around and signed his name. He saw Mary Ann hold out a key to him, but the cowboy grasped her hand along with the key. Luke stood, threw some coins on the table for his meal, grabbed his hat, and strolled to the desk.

“Let go of my hand, sir,” Mary Ann said.

“Honey, I want you to show me to my room,” the man said.

George approached the desk and overheard what the man said to his niece. “Sir, release her immediately.”

The man elbowed George out of his way. “Mind your own business, old man.”

Luke clamped down on the man's shoulder with a firm grip. “I think you should listen to him.”

The man held on to Mary Ann as he turned to Luke. “Like I told him, mind your own business, cowboy.”

Breakfast hadn't helped Luke's mood. He reached down and grabbed the man's hand and removed it from Mary Ann's in a grip so tight he thought he might break a knuckle or two if he was lucky.

The man took a swing with his free arm and Luke was late in blocking his fist before it connected with his lip in the exact spot where Clyde Slater had hit him days ago. Fresh blood dripped on his clean shirt. That did it! Luke threw one punch to the man's jaw that sent him reeling into the staircase. The man gained his balance and charged Luke, knocking him into the door leading to the dining room. Luke didn't think about the damage he would cause when he hauled back and caught the man squarely in his mouth. The man went skittering across a table in the dining room and dishes went flying. Fortunately no one was sitting at the table. Realizing what damage could be done if he continued this fight inside, Luke grabbed the man by the shirt and dragged him out the door and tossed him in the street. George and Mary Ann ran from the hotel to the sidewalk in time to hear what Luke had to say. “If I were you I would mount up and keep on riding until I reached Mexico.”

Sprawled on his back the man leaned up on one elbow. “I paid for the room.”

Luke reached into his pocket, pulled out enough money to cover the room, and threw it next to the man. “As I said, keep riding.” Luke turned and saw Mary Ann and George were right behind him.