Lilac Temptress (19 page)

“
I didn’t want to get you
all worked up, but this is probably one of the biggest deals we’ve
ever made. Morgan has offered us a substantial bonus pending the
sale. I didn’t mention it in the letter that I sent you because I
wanted you to get your rest and be alert—I know I haven’t slept
well the last few days. We couldn’t have represented better
clientele.”

Drake listened to Girard patiently,
pondering. “It’s all about timing, Girard. The deal is as good as
made.”

“
Now enlighten me, Drake,”
Girard said curiously. “What about this beautiful woman and her
brother traveling back with us?”

“
Sierra is her name, and I
want to take her out of this place,” Drake said to his friend
seriously. “I won’t leave without her.”

Girard groaned. “For God’s sake,
Drake, you’ve been here less than a week. What about Isadora?” The
words slipped out of his mouth, but he immediately wished he hadn’t
said them.

Drake’s face hardened—unpleasantly
surprised. “What do you know of Isadora and me?” he
asked.

Girard shook his head from
side-to-side and spoke hesitantly. “I once saw you with her in a
vague disguise, leaving the Queen Anne hotel. I was there the same
night as you, meeting with a lady friend, trying to show some
discretion. If I didn’t know you so well, I would not have thought
the man I saw to be you. Drake, I’ve told no one about you two.”
Girard wiped the beads of sweat forming at his temples, unable to
look at his friend. Drake might never forgive him for holding
Isadora over his head, but strangely enough Drake didn’t appear too
unsettled.

“
Sierra is in trouble
Girard,” Drake stated firmly, caring little about what he’d just
heard.

Girard wasn’t surprised to
hear of trouble. He knew of his friend’s uncanny
talent
to find it. He
gritted his teeth before folding his arms across his chest. “What
sort of quandary is she in?”

“
Her brother watched the
murder of her fiancée,” Drake sighed, watching Girard’s facial
expression alter from surprise to dread.

“
How do you know this for
certain?” Girard asked skeptically.

“
I trust what I’ve been
told about William Hunter.”

“
William Hunter?” Girard
interrupted. “The man we’re going to do business with, the man that
threw us out of his saloon is a murderer?” he asked
incredulously.

“
William is a very
intimidating figure in this town,” Drake said, registering Girard’s
growing apprehension. “The townspeople don’t interfere in his
affairs, not even the priest, which is why he’s never been brought
to justice.”

Girard glared at his
friend, with a distressed look. “Why did he kill her fiancée,
Drake,” he asked, then quickly rescinded the question. “Never mind,
I don’t want to know. What I am concerned with is how William will
react to you setting off with the girl. “This deal is bigger than
your
need
to
become her savior,” he argued.

“
She’s worth the trouble,”
Drake stated sharply.

Girard, settled his eyes on Drake,
dumbfounded. He had never seen him willing to risk so much for a
woman. “Drake, we must cut this deal and be quick about it. After
that, I suggest we get the hell out of here—for God’s sake, I still
don’t understand why you’re getting yourself so involved with her,
especially after knowing all of this about William.”

“
It’s
because
of what I learned
about William.” Drake further didn’t want to admit to Girard that
he had been ensnared by Sierra the first moment he saw her dancing
on the stage, and no matter how he tried to resist her, he was not
ready to give her up just yet.

“
Drake this is madness!”
Girard’s tone of voice indicated wonder and aggravation. “Answer me
this, do you love her?”

“
I’ve only just begun to
get to know her. She intrigues me. Being near her makes me feel...
invigorated. She has a remarkable way about her. She doesn’t know
what is appropriate, how to respond to men or what’s fitting for a
young woman such as herself. She is like a breath of fresh air. She
is so real, so innocent.”

“
Innocent?
” Girard asked with raised
eyebrows.

Drake ignored the question,
continuing. “I think she might mean something to me.”

“
Meaning something to you
is not enough. You have not learned much since Angelique.” Girard
loathed bringing her up, however he had to remind Drake. “Your duel
was honorable, you suffered only a flesh wound. But Angelique was
not so fortunate. Are you willing to endanger the life of another
woman you’ve just met?”

Drake thought about how Sierra had
kissed the scar at his navel, the mark that would always remind him
of his injustice to Angelique. He had never come to terms with her
death and as a consequence, he could not truly open his heart to
another woman. But when Sierra had touched his scar, the wound
ignited, as if she would become the next victim of his folly. She
was not much different from Angelique, he thought. William Hunter
had a noose on Sierra much like Angelique’s ex-lover.

“
Tell me something.” Girard
stared grimly at Drake. “Did you ever love Angelique?”

Drake’s lasting silence was answer
enough. Girard tensed in frustration. He didn’t want to see Drake
suffer a repeated mistake.

Drake glanced away from Girard. He
couldn’t stand receiving a “talking to” by him.

“
Let Sierra go,” Girard
demanded.

“
She deserves to be
free of Hunter,” Drake protested. “She deserves to leave this town
and make a new start. She’s only loved once in her life,” Drake
continued, “and she thinks that the man she fell in love with,
never loved her in return. But he
did
love her. He died for that
love.”

“
So did Angelique—she died
while loving you,” Girard countered. He wanted Drake to see the
error of his ways, but he knew that once Drake had made a decision,
it would be easier to pull teeth than to convince him to
reconsider.

“
Why bring up Angelique? Do
you think that I have forgotten about her—her fate and my shame?
Are you deliberately trying to provoke me?”

“
I’m trying to get you to
be reasonable. You haven’t thought this through. If you try
bringing this woman back, history might repeat itself. I don’t
think you could live with it. Wake up my friend or you will find
yourself in a world of misery.”

“
I don’t want to discuss
this further with you. What’s done is done.” Drake’s tone became
unfriendly as he began pacing the floor. He ran his fingers through
his hair. He never could appreciate Girard’s blunt
criticisms.

Girard aimed his serious eyes at his
friend. “Does William know you are taking her away?”

“
I instructed her not to
tell him until the last minute, just before we leave.”

“
Better hope that he
doesn’t find out before the deal is cut or it will indeed go sour,”
Girard’s disgruntled face showed his anger.

“
He won’t,” Drake stated
solidly.

“
You had better be right,
Drake.” Girard paused, arching his eyebrows and rubbing his chin
with his fingertips. “And what will you do if he comes after
her?”

“
I’ll deal with him when
and if the time comes.”

“
You’ll deal with
him—you mean we’ll
all
have to deal with him.” Girard sighed, leery if whether or not
they would all make it out of town alive. “I’ll warn Daniel to stay
alert.”

“
And the others?” Drake
voiced his uncertainty. “You shouldn’t have to warn everyone on my
account. Let me—”

“
Absolutely not. I
won’t risk this deal because of your
personal affairs
.” Girard scornfully
replied. “I’ll be discrete, and won’t let anyone know that our
safety is in jeopardy because of
some
woman
. I will only tell them to keep a
watchful eye—that William Hunter has a sordid reputation. That
should be good enough.” Girard swiftly exited the
room.

* * *

Every man has his
price
, Drake thought as he handed the last
few documents over to William to sign. Drake had prepared for this
man to be more difficult. However, everything had gone smoothly,
despite William’s henchmen, sitting at a nearby table prepared for
any trouble that might arise. The buyers, Drake, Girard, and
Daniel, stood and took turns shaking William’s hand.

“
Good doing business with
you,” Jackson Holton said, more than pleased with his
transaction.

“
Well, you gentlemen
certainly know how to strike a deal.” William grinned, passing over
the deeds and titles to Jackson.

Gavin Jones laughed in agreement and
then headed out of the tavern with his men.

William stood, giving a nod of his
head, bidding Drake a silent farewell before he made his way to a
back room.

“
Meet you outside in a few.
Don’t be long,” Daniel said to Drake, also taking his
leave.

“
You be out there when we
take leave this time.” Girard slapped Drake on the back before
heading outside.

Drake noticed Sierra and Kyle slowly
enter the bar. He nodded at Kyle as he made his way to stand beside
him, and they both watched Sierra head to the back in search of
William.

“
She is going to tell him
now,” Kyle informed Drake, sounding uneasy—speaking quietly to keep
William’s men from hearing.

“
Shouldn’t we go with her?”
Drake asked with a worried look on his face.

“
I, for one, have nothing
to say to Wil,” Kyle said aggressively. “I’ve been every bit the
prisoner Sierra has been.”

“
Then I should be with
her.” Drake started to head to the back of the tavern, but Kyle
caught his arm.

“
You can’t go back there.
It’s not your place to interfere and you will only make things
worse,” Kyle said eyeing the men at the nearby table.

“
That man cannot be
trusted,” Drake protested, struggling to keep his voice
low.

“
I know how you feel,
but
she
is
my
sister and
he
is the closest thing I’ve ever had
to a father. We should go outside and wait for her with the others,
and if she takes too long—I promise we’ll both go in after her,”
Kyle said. “I’ve never known William to do her any harm. She’ll be
safe,” Kyle reassured Drake convincing him to exit through the
swinging doors.

* * *

“
Sierra, honey, I’m glad
you came to see me because I have something that I need to talk to
you about, “ William declared, all charms and smiles. He stood near
his liquor cabinet, pouring himself a drink.

“
That’s good Wil, because
there is something that I have speak to you about as well,” Sierra
remarked softly with a slight tremble in her voice.

“
Can it wait until I’m
finished?” William sounded like a commanding general. “What I have
to say is very important.” He took a sip of gin and leaned back
against his desk, casually watching her.

Sierra stood silently in the center of
his office wondering about what he had to tell her that was so
urgent.

“
Why don’t you take a
seat?” William motioned her toward a chair, sitting near a small
sofa.

“
I prefer to stand,” Sierra
said.

“
If it suites you,” William
replied. He would have offered her a drink, but he knew she didn’t
take hard liquor.

“
Sierra, I know that I have
sometimes been hard on you and Kyle. I haven’t always agreed with
you or even allowed you to do what you’ve wanted. I know how badly
you want to leave this town.” William moved closer to
her.

“
After this morning, I
don’t own a damn thing in Jadesville. I’ve sold all my land and
I’ve got only a few weeks to clear out before they come tearing it
all down,” William huffed, taking a larger gulp of gin, and then he
refilled his glass.

“
I think maybe it’s time I
took you seriously. Now, I know that I’m an old man—but if you want
to travel, then so be it. All three of us can travel halfway around
the world and back again.”

Sierra’s face changed to one of
amazement. She stood speechless.

“
Sierra, you are a
beautiful, bright woman. You look just like your mama did when she
was your age and this town ain’t got nothing for a girl like you.
You remind me so much of her.” William stared at her intensely as
he thought of Marie Anne. “Kyle is a clever young man. Traveling
might do him some good, make him grow up a bit and stop chasing
skirts around here, inviting trouble. I know something of the world
outside Jadesville and I can make a good companion for you
both.”

“
It’s too late Wil,” Sierra
murmured so softly that her voice was barely audible.