Prince Charming

“Are you out of your mind?”

He didn’t turn around when he answered her. “Must be,” he called out in a gratingly cheerful tone of voice.

Taylor sagged against the door frame. Her shouted question caused a bit of curiosity with some of the other hotel guests. Three doors opened along the hallway. Two men and one woman peeked out to see what all the commotion was about. Lucas and Hunter disappeared down the stairwell. She was left to deal with the neighbors. She considered calling out an apology, then changed her mind. She hurried back inside her room and shut the door.

She collapsed in the nearest chair and tried to reason through Mr. Ross’s outrageous request. Or was it a demand? She sighed then. It had certainly sounded like a demand.

Didn’t he realize how complicated things would become if they became intimate? She didn’t want to think about it. That man. What in thunder was wrong with him? Didn’t he remember he didn’t want to be married?

“He’s bluffing.” She whispered her conclusion. The possibility filled her with relief, for sharing a wedding night with Lucas Ross would complicate everything.

Wouldn’t it?

Lord, she could barely catch her breath. The image of Mr. Ross in bed with her without his pants on made her heart skip a beat. He had to be bluffing. She repeated the thought. He didn’t want any complications either. Or commitment, she added with a nod.

The man was downright rude to get her all riled up with his games. Taylor forced herself to put her husband out of her thoughts. She had more important things to think about.

Like Victoria. Since Hunter had taken over the adjacent bedroom, Taylor decided to secure yet another room for her friend. She didn’t have to go down to the lobby. She rang the bellpull in her room. By an intricate set of levers built into the hotel, a peg with her room number was lifted down below. Less than ten minutes later, one of the hotel’s courteous staff was at her door to offer assistance.

Lucas and Hunter returned to the hotel an hour later. The train, Hunter explained, was going to be four hours late. They grabbed something to eat and were now going to meet with a man they hoped would lead them to the twins. Lucas assured Taylor that either he or Hunter would meet Victoria. Taylor, he added with a meaningful scowl, was to stay in the room.

Her husband went into the bedroom. She followed him to ask him if she could go along to the meeting. He told her she was out of her mind. She guessed then he wasn’t going to be reasonable.

Lucas had gone in search of his money belt. He knew the man they were going to meet would demand compensation for selling out his friends. Lucas was going to give him whatever he wanted. He found the money, put half the amount in his pocket, and then turned his attention to his wife. He almost smiled when he saw her expression. Lord, she looked disgruntled. He told her no again but in a kinder tone of voice and even added the explanation that the man they were going to meet might not talk as freely if a woman was along.

It was a lame excuse. He didn’t care. Like it or not, she was going to have to wait for them to return. He needed to know she was safe, but he didn’t tell her that.

Lucas left a few minutes later. Hunter was getting as bossy as her husband. He followed Lucas out the door, then turned around and ordered her to keep the door bolted until they returned. “Don’t let anyone in, no matter what the reason. Got that?”

“Yes, of course.”

He started to leave, then paused again. “He’s got enough on his mind. He shouldn’t have to worry about you.”

“And you have enough to worry about as well, Mr. Hunter. I won’t let anyone in. I promise.”

Hunter pulled the door closed, waited until he heard the bolt slip into place, and then left.

Lucas was waiting for him at the steps. They planned to meet their man in the lobby. They hoped he’d have information for them.

His name was Morris Peterson. He wasn’t a bad sort, for he hated the Border brothers as much as Lucas and Hunter did. He didn’t hold with the practice of buying and selling of people, but he didn’t have any problem taking money for the information he supplied. He was taking a risk, after all, and if the Borders found out he squealed, they’d cut his throat for sure.

Lucas paid him the cash he wanted. They stood together in the corner of the lobby. It was crowded with businessmen, and no one paid them any attention. Morris still insisted on keeping hidden behind Lucas’s sizable bulk.

“I can give you a name,” he whispered. “Boyd,” he added with a nod. “He drinks every night at the saloon on the corner of Hickery. You know the place I’m thinking of?”

“We’ll find it,” Hunter said. “What can Boyd tell us?” he asked.

“He was talking last night,” Peterson whispered. “Bragging, he was, about the money he was going to make. I heard him say he was going to get double the money. Then he laughed real hard . . . like he knew a secret. I’m thinking he was referring to the twins you’ve been asking about.”

“When does he usually start in drinking?”

“After dark,” Peterson replied.

“Anything else?”

Peterson shook his head. He pocketed the money Lucas had given him and left a few minutes later.

“Could be another false lead,” Hunter cautioned.

“Could be,” Lucas agreed. “But you know . . . I got this feeling . . .”

Hunter smiled. “I got the same feeling,” he admitted. “My instincts are telling me Boyd’s going to lead us to the Borders.”

Things were looking up. “It’s only a little after six. I’m going back upstairs and sleep for an hour. After I meet the train and bring Victoria back to the hotel, you and I will go find Boyd.”

“I’ll go get Victoria. You can sleep until I get back.”

“What about you? Aren’t you tired?”

“I didn’t lose forty hours on a train. You did. What does Taylor’s friend look like?”

“Red hair, green eyes.”

Hunter filed the information. “I think I’ll go find this saloon. It will save us time later.”

The two took off in opposite directions. Lucas told Taylor what had happened while he stripped out of his shirt and shoes. He was sound asleep on top of the covers five minutes later.

Hunter found the saloon, then backtracked to the train station. By the time he got there, the passengers had all disembarked. He told the driver to wait, tossed him a coin to keep him patient, and then went looking for Victoria.

Red hair and green eyes. Easy enough to spot, he thought. And yet he almost missed her. She was hidden behind three gigantic trunks the size of an ordinary carriage. The trunks were stacked one on top of the other, and if he hadn’t noticed a bit of skirt when he turned to leave, he would have thought she hadn’t been on the train.

The station was almost deserted. One of the porters had gone in search of a wagon sturdy enough to haul her trunks. Victoria was certain the man had forgotten about her. She prayed she was wrong, for she was too weary and too ill to do more than slump against the trunks and wait.

She was feeling horribly nauseated. She shouldn’t have eaten the apples. They were green and not at all ripe, but she’d been hungry and feeling queasy, and she foolishly thought the apples would calm her stomach.

Quite the opposite was the case. The apples were giving her fits. She felt like she was going to throw up any minute. She stood as still as possible, afraid any movement at all would make the illness worse, and prayed she wouldn’t disgrace herself.

Ladies did not lose their suppers in public places.

“Victoria Helmit?”

She turned at the sound of her name. Then she backed up a space. The man who’d addressed her took her breath away. He gave her quite a fright as well. He was extremely dangerous looking, until he smiled. Then he turned handsome. He had dark, rugged good looks. His hair was as black as midnight. So were his eyes. His gaze was piercing, his clothes were rumpled, and he was in dire need of a shave.

Who, in heave

n’s name, was he?

He repeated her name again. She might have nodded, she couldn’t be certain. She could feel the bile in the back of her throat. She took a long breath and tried to stay upright.

He thought she was afraid of him. She was a pretty thing, with those wide green eyes and fiery colored hair. It was a mass of curls now. Pins hung from the copper locks about her face. The ribbon holding her hair behind her neck had come untied. The blue and white checkered strip was dangling down her back.

“My name’s Hunter,” he told her. “I’m a friend of Lucas Ross. I’ll take you back to the hotel. Are these trunks all yours?”

She couldn’t answer him. Her throat felt as dry as parchment paper. She swallowed and tried to find her voice. She could taste the bile now. Oh, God, she knew she was going to be ill any moment. Victoria took several deep breaths in rapid succession in a bid to stall the inevitable.

Hunter couldn’t imagine what had come over her. He knew most women were a little nervous around him. He thought it was because of his size and his customary frown. Her reaction went way beyond nervousness, however. She was staring up at him with a look that suggested he’d turned into a gargoyle.

Hell, he wasn’t that godawful looking, was he?

With an effort, he held onto his patience. Then he introduced himself again. He kept his voice as mild as a summer breeze. He was trying to calm her. Her eyes were wide with panic. He wasn’t going to do her any harm, but he guessed she didn’t know that. His ego was taking one hell of a beating.

“My name is Hunter,” he repeated.

“I’m . . .”

She was choking on the word. He wanted to whack her between her shoulders to help. He stopped himself in time. If he touched her, she’d probably faint or start screaming.

“Yes?” he asked, trying his damnedest to sound reasonable. He clasped his hands behind his back in what he hoped was a casual stance.

She glanced to her left and then her right. She was obviously looking for a means of escape.

“How about if I put you in one of the carriages and I take another to the hotel? Will you feel comfortable with that arrangement?”

She frantically shook her head at him. When she started taking great gulping breaths again, he lost his patience.

“Look, lady, I’m only doing Lucas a favor. If you don’t . . .”

She grabbed hold of his arm. He was so surprised by her touch, he forgot what he was going to say.

Her bizarre behavior made sense to him a minute later, but by then it was too late.

“I’m going to be sick.”

And she was. All over his favorite pair of boots.

Hunter pounded on the door to Lucas’s room, then bent over to take his boots off. He left them outside the door.

Taylor opened the door for them. The second Victoria spotted her friend, she burst into tears.

Lucas was in the process of buttoning up his shirt. He walked into the room just in time to see Victoria hurl herself into Taylor’s arms.

“Whatever happened? Why are you so upset, Victoria?” Taylor asked. She hugged her friend while she glared over Victoria’s shoulder at the man she thought was responsible for her pitiful condition.

Hunter glared back. Taylor noticed he wasn’t wearing any shoes.

“I’m not feeling at all well,” Victoria confessed.

“What happened to your boots?” Lucas asked Hunter. He stood behind the women.

Hunter stalked into the room. “Never mind,” he muttered.

“You’re just tuckered out,” Taylor told Victoria. “You’ll feel better after you’ve had a bath and a nap. Come into your bedroom and I’ll help you get settled.”

Hunter stood in the middle of the room glaring at Victoria. He waited until Taylor had taken her into the adjoining room, then turned his glare on Lucas.

“What happened?” Lucas asked.

“I introduced myself.”

“And?”

“She threw up all over me.”

Lucas smiled. He wanted to laugh but he didn’t dare. Hunter would have killed him. He turned away, coughed to cover his amusement, and then finished getting dressed by tucking his shirt into the waist of his pants.

“Don’t ask me to do you any more favors,” Hunter snapped.

Taylor’s laughter suddenly filled the room. Her friend had obviously confessed what she’d done. A moment later Lucas and Hunter could hear Victoria laughing.

“It wasn’t funny,” Hunter muttered.

“You sure have a way with women,” Lucas told him. He was thoroughly enjoying his friend’s irritation.

“The cabbie charged four times his usual fare.”

“Why?”

“She threw up inside his carriage. I couldn’t get her to calm down.”

Lucas did laugh then. He pictured Hunter trying to soothe Victoria and being completely inept. God knew he would have been inept. Neither one of them had any experience dealing with persnickety ladies, and Lucas was suddenly damned thankful he hadn’t been the one to go after Taylor’s friend.

“I wasn’t responsible for her condition,” Hunter said. “She told me it was the rocking motion of the train that made her sick. God, I need a bath. Will she get hysterical if I go in there and get my clothes?”

“Taylor already had your things moved to your room. It’s on this floor, just three doors down the hall. The key’s on the table.”

Hunter couldn’t hide his surprise. “They gave me a room in this fancy hotel?”

The question was telling. Hunter was used to the prejudice against him. Lucas wasn’t. Hunter pretended to take it all in stride. He never made a scene when he was discriminated against. He told Lucas once he didn’t have to stand up for himself and his rights. Lucas took over the task for him.

“You weren’t here to sign the register,” Lucas pointed out. “Taylor put the room under her name.”

They both knew Lucas wasn’t being completely honest. The hotel management would never have given Hunter a room on his own. Arms would have had to be twisted. Lucas would have seen to that, but Taylor, unwittingly, had averted a scene.

Hunter was ready to move on to a more important topic in his estimation.

“When do you want to leave?”

“As soon as you’re ready.”

Hunter picked up the key and left. He returned to Lucas’s room a half hour later. Taylor had spent her time helping Victoria get settled and seeing to the chore of cleaning Hunter’s boots.

He found them waiting for him inside the door. His boots looked brand-new.

Taylor walked into the room just as Hunter was putting them on.

“It was thoughtful of you to have them cleaned, Taylor. I didn’t think there would be enough time.”

“Taylor cleaned them,” Lucas told his friend. He leaned against the arch to the alcove. His gaze was centered on his wife. She looked flushed to him.

“You feeling all right, Taylor?” he asked.

She looked at the floor when she answered. “Yes.”

It wasn’t like her to act timid. Something was wrong, he decided. He put his gunbelt on, checked to make certain each of his two guns was fully loaded, a ritual that gave him a considerable amount of peace of mind, and then told Taylor to come to him.

She took her time walking across the room. When she reached his side, he took hold of her hand and pulled her into the privacy of the bedroom area.

“Look at me,” he commanded.

She took her sweet time obeying that order as well. “Why haven’t you asked me if you could come along with us?”

Her eyes widened in surprise. “Would you let me?”

He shook his head. “No, but you didn’t ask. What’s the matter with you?”

She ignored his question. “I should go with you, you know. When you find them, I should be there. They’ll be afraid, Lucas. They’ll need me.”

She gave a valid argument. He nodded. “All right then. When we find them, I’ll come

back and get you.”

“Thank you.”

“You still haven’t told me what’s bothering you.”

She let out a sigh. “Were you bluffing?” she asked. “I was certain you were, but now I find I need to hear you admit it.”

“I never bluff.”

“Oh, all right then.”

“Taylor?”

She started to turn away. He put his hands on her shoulders to keep her there.

“Yes?”

“What are we talking about?”

“Your wedding night.”

He smiled. Then he leaned down and gave her a quick kiss. “Our wedding night,” he corrected.

She looked thoroughly disgruntled with him. “Don’t you realize how complicated you’re going to make . . .”

His mouth silenced her argument. It wasn’t a gentle kiss. He wanted to overpower her. His mouth took absolute possession. His tongue thrust inside. She melted against him, wanting to be swept away, to pretend, if only for a moment or two, that everything was as right and as clean and as beautiful as sunshine after the rain.

She knew he wanted her. She wanted him to love her. But he’d rather be hanged.

She pushed herself away from him. “You forget yourself, Mr. Ross,” she stammered out. She was panting and blushing and diligently trying to act prim and proper.

He was having none of it. He pulled her back into his arms, kissed her again, long and hard, and when at last he pulled away, she could barely form a coherent thought.

He left her sitting on the side of their bed. Taylor came to her senses a minute later. The whistle did it. Lucas made the arrogant noise as he sauntered out the door.

Taylor patted her hair back in place, let out a loud sigh, and then went to check on Victoria. Her friend was sound asleep. Taylor tucked the covers around her, closed the window so she wouldn’t catch a chill, and then tiptoed out of the room. She suddenly remembered the notes she made and wanted to discuss with Lucas. She caught herself before she let out an unladylike expletive. She would just have to wait until tomorrow to find out what her husband thought about placing an advertisement in the papers and hiring a private investigator. She couldn’t imagine he would have any objections, for they needed all the help they could get, but she still felt that because he had taken charge of the search, the suggestions should first be discussed with him. Taylor got the paper out and put it on the table so she wouldn’t forget again.