The Marker (11 page)

Lexie had found herself in esteemed company. Her new friends were the governor himself, along with a senator and a congressman, and two of the wealthiest men in Sacramento. Hell, the woman surrounded herself with men who had an obscene amount of money and power. He wondered if she knew. He wondered if she would find herself a benefactor—a man to pay off her father’s debt, a man who wouldn’t blink an eye at throwing such a sum at him in exchange for her attention—if she did.

He wondered if, perhaps, he was just such a man.

The bell rang, calling them to dinner, pulling him out of his reverie. Finally, he would have her in his company for longer than a few minutes, and he sighed with relief. Patting her on the hand, he escorted her to the dining room. He noticed other men watching him, and had to admit he was delighted to have Lexie on his arm. No matter who else she talked to, she would be leaving with him tonight.

Then they entered the dining room and his temper flared as he became aware of their seating arrangements. He wouldn’t have received worse seating arrangements if he had asked for them. Just two seats away from the governor, she was seated at the exact opposite end of the table from him. He wondered which of them had arranged for this. He suspected, judging from the jealous look the governor threw him, Lexie hadn’t been aware of any change in the seating. She could do worse than to be the mistress of the governor of California.

His heart twisted at the thought.

He gave her a jovial smile as he pulled back her chair and assisted her to her seat. Brooded when he found his own.

As the first course was served, Lexie’s delicate laugh filtered through the hum of the conversation, and he peered down the length of the table to find her smiling at an older gentleman to her left. As if sensing his eyes upon her, she turned her gaze to him, regarded him with glittering black eyes, and then turned back to her companion, laughed again and touched him lightly on the hand.

Good Lord, the woman was flirting. And not with him.

Well, two could play at that game, and no one had more experience with flirting than Nicholas. He might not be able to get her to talk to him, but he would have Lexie jealous in a matter of minutes.

Thus, their domestic battle progressed to the next level.

The opposing ends of the table were by far the loudest. Men hung on Lexie’s every word, regaling her with stories of adventure both funny and daring, each man trying his best to extract a laugh from her. Nicholas, at the other end of the table, charmed the ladies with his own tales of adventure, and the women laughed often, touching him, batting their eyes at him. But even as the women warmed to him, he fought a stab of jealousy every time the sound of Lexie’s voice would reach his ears.

By the meal’s end, Nicholas was in his element. Several glasses of good wine, fine food, and women had flocked to him. As they stood to go to the ballroom, Nicholas saw the governor tuck Lexie’s hand into the crook of his arm, clearly marking her for his—no matter that his wife stood nearby. By the time Nicholas made his way to the ballroom in an attempt to reclaim her, his sparkling scarlet jewel was already dancing with the governor.

He watched her for a spell, declining to dance when the congressman’s daughter asked him to, then fetched himself a glass of whiskey and returned to the wall to watch Lexie. She danced beautifully, graceful and lithe as she twirled around the dance floor. Except for riding, he couldn’t think of a single thing she didn’t excel at. Not long after, a man sidled up next to him.

“Who is she?”

Nicholas glanced over to find James standing beside him. “Campbell,” he acknowledged. “That, my friend, is Alexandra Markland.”

“As in
your
Markland?”

“Hardly my Markland, but yes, that’s her.”

James whistled, watching Lexie as she twirled around the dance floor. “She’s quite something.”

Nicholas nodded. “Yep.”

“It’s not a wonder you’re taken with her.”

“I’m not taken with her, James.”

“So that’s why you brought her here?”

Frowning into his glass, Nicholas said darkly, “I’m not entirely sure
why
I brought her here. The woman is as stubborn as an ox.”

James laughed, but kept his eyes on the scarlet skirt spinning around the dance floor. “It
was
quite a show you two put on in the dining room. I’m wondering if you have any plans to take your act on the road. Join a troop of actors, or maybe the circus.”

“You’re an ass. What are you doing here, anyway?”

James gave him a bored little shrug. “The O’Connors couldn’t make it tonight, so they sent me to act in their stead.” James was related to Mrs. O’Connor—stepbrother or half-brother, he couldn’t recall which, but one look at her told him they weren’t full blood relations—a wealthy woman who now lived in San Francisco. Her husband had struck it rich in the silver mines of Virginia City, and later, they’d moved to San Francisco, a city built on Nevada’s bounty. They’d invested their money in shipping, and James had encouraged Nicholas to become part of their venture. They’d made him a fortune.

“They’re in town?” Nicholas asked, a little surprised his partner hadn’t contacted him to let him know he planned to come to town. Or that James, at least, hadn’t told him.

He wondered what else they’d neglected to tell him.

“Mm. But you know O’Connor. If he thinks Claire won’t be welcome, he won’t go. So he sent me to act in his stead.” Mrs. O’Connor was native, at least in part, and a woman of such exquisite beauty that, between her looks and her money, the elite of San Francisco had welcomed her, though the same wasn’t necessarily true for the less cosmopolitan capital city.

Nicholas made a noncommittal noise in response, locating Lexie as she sashayed around the dance floor, beautiful and perfect and so beyond his reach.

“So, back to dinner. Were you
trying
to make her jealous?” James’s voice broke his reverie.

“Hardly. She’s not my type. I simply brought the woman.”

James grinned. “Well, if that’s the case...” With that, he left Nicholas’s side and approached Lexie.

She turned her bright smile to James, and Nicholas had to suppress the fit of temper that came over him. Anyone but James—he could handle her flirting with anyone else. But not James, a man as close to him as his own brother had been, and a notorious rake. The idea galled him. Perhaps because he could see a woman like Lexie—beautiful, strong-willed, and smart—falling for a man like James, and could see just as clearly James falling for a woman like Lexie.

But James’s idea to make Lexie jealous, now that wasn’t a bad idea. Maybe, if he evoked some emotion in her, she would speak to him again. Irritating her hadn’t worked, but he hadn’t tried jealousy. Yet.

And again, their domestic battle was ratcheted up a notch.

Glancing over her shoulder at the light touch on her arm, Lexie turned and caught her breath when she saw the man standing beside her. Silkily, he said, “May I cut in?”

Her dance partner, whose name suddenly escaped her, scowled but stepped away. Hands out to Lexie, her new companion said, “I’m James Campbell.”

“Lexie Markland,” she replied with a smile, accepting his hands.

He pulled her into his arms, a little closer than the dance warranted, but Lexie found she liked it. A little taller than Nicholas, James had wavy reddish hair curling at his collar, and warm brown eyes. Fine lines fanned out from the corners of his eyes and creased his forehead, but Lexie decided even those suited him. With his longish hair and the vaguely wind-burned complexion, he could have played the part of the dashing pirate captain, stealing money and hearts along the way. He was handsome and obviously knew it. In many ways, he was very much like her employer. Intelligence gleamed in his warm brown eyes, and Lexie liked him immediately.

And knew just as quickly he wasn’t for her.

Oh, he had everything a girl wanted—humor, good looks, money. Lots of money, if the cut of his clothes was anything to go by. Lexie had to admit he was more attractive than most men. He was, quite possibly, the most attractive man in the room. Lexie wasn’t oblivious to the jealous looks the other women gave her as she twirled around the room in James’s arms. But he didn’t stir her blood like Nicholas did. She enjoyed talking to James, but she wondered if she would enjoy
not talking
to James as much as she enjoyed not talking to Nicholas, wondered if any other man would still be trying talk to her after weeks of silence. Wondered if he would play the game as Nicholas had.

And suspected not, because no one would play the game as Nicholas had.

That was, unfortunately, what made Nicholas so perfect.

And so dangerous.

A short time later, James excused himself to get refreshments. Lexie located Nicholas with her eyes, found him dancing with a pretty blonde who smiled up at him coquettishly, and Nicholas smiled in response. She felt a stab of jealousy she tried to suppress. She had no right to be jealous. He wasn’t hers, nor would he ever be. If she needed to flirt, she should flirt with James. It irritated Nicholas, and James wasn’t the danger to her heart Nicholas was.

No one was.

Nicholas caught her eye and winked at her, then caught his tongue between his teeth and smiled wickedly, tempting her to say something. His was an expression so blatantly seductive it set her skin on fire, and she had to turn her gaze away. When her eyes found him again, he had cast a similar look on his blond companion, and Lexie’s temper flared.

“Having fun, dear?” said a voice dark with anger.

Lexie whirled. And discovered the last person she wanted to see.

Her fiancé.