“Not here. Not now. Right now I look like a bear after a winter’s hibernation.”
She nodded, enjoying this light, teasing moment. “You probably smell like one, too.”
“Probably.” He chuckled, low and deep in his throat. “Would you care to find out?”
He saw the slight flush on her cheeks. For some reason he felt enormously pleased. “Well, we’ll let it go for now. But after I’ve cleaned up, I have to see you.”
“When?”
“Tonight. Is that a problem?”
She pretended to think a moment, until her laughter gave her away. “I was planning to invite my sisters and their husbands to supper to celebrate.”
“Celebrate what?”
“The completion of the outer walls of my new shop. Farley said he can begin on the interior tomorrow.”
“That’s wonderful news, Ruby. Congratulations.”
His words warmed her as nothing else could. She felt the curl of pleasure deep inside.
“Thank you. I was planning to celebrate with a special supper. That is, if I get home in time to ask Carmelita to cook. Would you like to join us?”
Now it was his turn to pretend to mull over her offer. But she could hear the warmth in his tone when he finally said, “I’d rather have you alone. But I guess I could put up with the rest of your family.”
“Then come for supper.” She picked up the reins. “And Marshal,” she said primly, “be sure to shave. So you won’t be mistaken for a bear.”
He stared after her until the little horse and cart disappeared over a ridge. Then he nudged his horse up the dusty street and dismounted at the jail.
“Marshal.” Arlo bolted out of the chair as if someone had just lit a fire under him. “I didn’t expect you back for a couple more days.”
“I can see that.” Quent couldn’t even work up any feelings of anger for his lazy deputy. Right now it felt so good to be back. And, he realized, the weariness that had dogged him for the past few days had completely disappeared, thanks to the vision in red satin who had just invited him to supper.
“Can I get you anything?” Arlo began to stack the papers that had scattered all over the floor.
“Yeah.” Quent trudged to his room and dropped his saddlebags and rifle on the bed, before running a hand over his bearded chin. “Run over to Barney Healey’s barbershop and tell him I’m heading over for a shave and a haircut. And I want him to start heating a tub of water. I’m ready for a nice long soak.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And Arlo,” he called as the deputy headed for the door, “when I come back, I expect to find this place clean.”
Arlo nodded before beating a hasty retreat. As he made his way toward the barber’s, he scratched his head. Something had softened the marshal’s usual taciturn attitude. Maybe he’d engaged in a satisfying gunfight with some outlaws. But then, he’d have brought their bodies back to town for burial.
The deputy decided not to try figuring it out. He’d just be grateful that, for now, he wouldn’t have to face the marshal’s wrath. And by the time Quent Regan returned to his office, it would be clean as the widow Purdy’s parlor.
Chapter Nine
“T
hey are coming,” Carmelita called. “I hear a carriage.”
Ruby threw open the door and stepped out onto the back porch. Reverend Dan Simpson was just helping his wife, Jade, from the fancy white-and-gilt carriage she had brought from San Francisco.
“Dan. Jade.” Ruby hugged them both. “I’m so glad you could come to supper.”
“We wouldn’t miss it,” Dan said with a grin.
Though Jade still dressed in the silk of her mother’s homeland and carried herself with the cool elegance of one born to a life of opulence, she appeared to be more comfortable with the role of a simple, small-town minister’s wife. The loving glances exchanged by the happy couple spoke volumes about their happiness.
They looked up as Pearl and Cat rode up in their wagon. In the back were their adopted sons, Gil and Danny. Riding alongside on their spirited mounts were Diamond and Adam.
“Looks like we’re all here,” Adam called as he tethered the horses and strode hand in hand with his wife up the stairs.
Carmelita dried her hands on her apron before embracing their guests. She saved her biggest hugs for the two little boys. “Umm. It is so good to have children in the house.”
Gil, nearly fourteen and tall as most men, looked offended by her comments. But six-year-old Danny was clearly enchanted by the housekeeper’s cuddling.
“Soon,” Carmelita added, “there will be another.” She embraced Diamond, then stood back to cast a disparaging look at the way the young woman was dressed. “What is this?” Carmelita asked with a sniff of disapproval.
“One of Adam’s old jackets.” Diamond patted her swollen middle. “It’s more comfortable than my own right now. Everything of mine is too snug.”
“I thought by now you would switch to a pretty dress,” the housekeeper remarked.
“You know me better’n that.” Diamond and the others turned at the sound of approaching hoofbeats. “I didn’t know anyone else was coming. It looks like...”
“Quent Regan.” Ruby kept her tone deliberately casual, but she felt her heartbeat already starting to accelerate.
“I’m glad to see he’s back in town,” Cal muttered as he dropped an arm around his wife’s shoulders.
Pearl shot him a love-filled look that had a lump forming in Ruby’s throat. Love, it would seem, had transformer each of her sisters in some subtle way.
Quent slid from the saddle and tied his horse, then strode up the steps. For a moment, through the blur of faces, the only one he could see was Ruby.
“Good evening.” He caught her hand and absorbed the expected jolt of pleasure. She made a dazzling picture, with that rich swirl of auburn waves framing the prettiest face he’d ever seen. And, as always, her red satin gown revealed a body so lush, it rivaled the lady in the portrait that hung in Buck’s saloon.
“Good evening, Marshal.” She couldn’t help staring. His hair was freshly cut, his face clean shaven, revealing a proud, firm jaw and strong, even features. Best of all, he was wearing the shirt she’d made him. “You look...” She almost said handsome. Instead, she covered by saying, “Much less like a woolly bear tonight.”
He grinned, sending her heart into a series of somersaults. “Amazing what a shave and haircut can do.”
Ruby’s family stood watching and exchanging puzzled looks.
Diamond whispered in Jade’s ear, “When did this happen? When did these two enemies become... whatever they’ve become?”
The young woman shrugged and turned to Pearl, who seemed as surprised as the others. It was obvious to everyone watching that there was something happening here. These two had eyes only for each other.
“Adam. Cal.” Quent was easy and comfortable with Ruby’s family, shaking hands with the men and boys, greeting the women with a smile and, in the case of Diamond, a hug. When he spied Carmelita, his smile widened.
“Looks like I get to sample your good cooking again, Carmelita.”
“And I get to cook for a man who likes to eat,” she remarked with a laugh. “Come inside. All of you.” She dropped an arm around Gil and Daniel. “I have a special treat for both of you.”
As Carmelita hurried off to the kitchen, Ruby led the way to the parlor, where a decanter of whiskey and several tumblers rested on a small table. Ruby poured and handed them to the men. The moment she offered one to Quent, and their fingers brushed, she felt the sizzle along her arm.
It was a relief when Carmelita entered with tea for the women and glasses of lemonade for the boys. It gave Ruby a chance to turn away and hide the heat that stained her cheeks.
“You were gone a long time, Quent.” Adam paused in front of the fireplace, and the other men gathered around, eager to hear about the marshal’s journey. “Arlo said a rancher and his wife were killed.”
“Arlo talks too much.” Quent took a drink of whiskey and held his silence.
“I heard it was a young couple,” Cal said. “New to Texas. Had only been here a year. You going to tell us the rest? Or do we have to wait and hear it from your deputy?”
Quent shrugged. “Arlo or his wife will probably have it all over the territory by tomorrow.” He drank again. “Young husband and wife from Kansas City. it. They had a small, poor ranch. Not much to steal. Looks like the gunman just walked in and helped himself. Both were shot in the head. Wife was—” he glanced toward the women, and kept his voice low “—brutalized before she was killed.”
“Got any idea who shot them?”
Quent merely shrugged.
“See anything or anyone suspicious on your journey?” Adam asked.
“No. But I’ve asked all the lawmen in the territory to send me any reports of similar murders.”
“Sounds like you’re being pretty thorough.” Adam exchanged a glance with Cal before asking, “You looking for anyone in particular?”
Quent chose his words carefully. No point in alarming people without proof. “I only know I have a particular hatred for killers.”
“You don’t think Boyd Barlow’d come back, do you?” Cal shot a quick glance at Pearl and the boys across the room.
Seeing it, Quent was quick to soothe. “Now, don’t go thinking the worst. That’s my job. If he’s smart, he’s already in Mexico. But I can’t take any chances. That’s why I wanted to check out the area.”
“No sign of him?” Cal pressed.
“I found a couple of campsites. Someone had gone to a lot of trouble to clean them up, and make it look like nobody had been there.”
Adam and Cal looked at each other before Adam said, “That doesn’t sound like a drifter passing through. It sounds like someone who’s hiding out.”
“My thoughts exactly.” Quent sipped his whiskey while the others pondered his words.
Carmelita paused in the doorway. “Supper is ready.”
The men drained their glasses, then trailed the women to the dining room. The table had been set with festive linens. The crystal and silver gleamed in the light of the candles that winked from the overhead chandelier.
“I don’t remember this tablecloth,” Diamond said as she sat in the chair Adam held for her.
The four women sat on one side of the table, with the four men across from them. Pearl and her husband chose the seats closest to their boys, who sat together at one end.
“That’s because you haven’t seen it before,” Ruby said with a trace of pride. “I just finished sewing it.”
“You made it?” Pearl sighed. “Oh, Ruby, it’s lovely.”
The three sisters examined the fine stitches and remarked on the exquisite handwork.
“I just know your shop is going to be a success,” Jade said emphatically. “Once the townspeople learn of your fine talent, you won’t be able to keep up with the demand.”
“‘You’re right about that,” Quent remarked. “I can attest to the fact that your sister’s a fine seamstress. She made this shirt, and it’s the finest I’ve ever owned.”
At that her sisters turned to study her, then the man across from her.
“I’ve been admiring that shirt,” Adam said with a laugh. “Now I know why.” He turned to Ruby. “I hope you won’t forget your family. I might be handy with a needle and thread, but there are a whole lot more things I’d rather do than mend my own clothes.”
“Not to mention mine,” Diamond added. “Adam didn’t realize when he married me he was taking on twice the work.”
“Diamond, for what I’ve gained, I’d take on a hundred times the work,” he said.
“Talking about extra work...” Cal surprised them by pushing back his chair and rounding the table until he was beside his wife. He bent and pressed a kiss to Pearl’s temple, then said, “I think, since we have the whole family here, we ought to share our good news. What do you say, boys?”
Gil and Daniel were grinning from ear to ear.
Cal urged Pearl to her feet, then dropped an arm around her shoulders, drawing her close. The others watched in puzzled silence.
“It’s awfully soon. I was hoping to wait until after Diamond had her baby.” Pearl smiled up into his eyes, then nodded. “But I can’t wait to see their reaction. You tell them, Cal.”
Her husband cleared his throat. “As foreman of the Jewel ranch, it is my pleasure to announce that Pearl and I are about to add another wrangler to our crew.”
“He means,” Pearl said with a laugh, “that we’re going to have a baby.”
“A baby?”
There was a collective gasp around the table. Then, as the fact sank in, Ruby shoved back her chair to embrace the happy couple. “I am so thrilled for all of you. Mama used to say that a child is a special gift from heaven, to remind us of the beauty of angels.”
Hearing her, Quent was struck by the tenderness in her tone. It wasn’t something he’d expected from this fiery beauty.
Suddenly there was a rush of hugs and kisses as Diamond and Jade and their husbands joined in the congratulations, hugging Pearl, then Gil and Daniel, before pumping Cal’s hand. Hearing the commotion, Carmelita rushed in carrying a heavy platter.
When she heard the news she set the platter aside and fell, laughing and weeping, into Pearl’s arms.
“For so long this house has been without the sound of children. And now. First Diamond. And now you. Oh, Senora Pearl,” she said on a sob, “this makes me so happy. So...” She was too overcome to speak. She burst into tears and, dabbing at her eyes with the corner of her apron, fled to the kitchen.
Cal and Pearl stood, their arms around their two young sons, wearing identical grins of pure happiness.
“What do you think of all this, Daniel?” Ruby asked the little boy.
“Gil says it’ll be neat to have a little brother to teach.”
“A brother would be fun. But, of course, it could be a little sister,” Ruby remarked.
The smile was wiped from Daniel’s lips. His eyes widened in surprise. It was clear he’d never even given that a thought. “What would we do with a little sister, Gil?”
The older boy shrugged, then ruffled his brother’s hair. “I guess you’d have to put up with her tagging after you all day, while I was off with Dad running the ranch.”
Everyone burst into roars of laughter at the pained expression on Daniel’s face. But Ruby took pity on him and knelt down to draw him into her arms. “Do not despair, Daniel. Whether it is a boy or a girl, you will always be the big brother who can do no wrong.”
“I will?” As the thought sank in, Daniel’s smile returned.
“Oui,”
Ruby said, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “When I was growing up in Bayou Rouge, I would have given anything for a gallant big brother.”
Again Quent found himself witnessing a side of Ruby he hadn’t expected. There was a gentleness, a tenderness she kept hidden, except from those most in need.
When at last their interest returned to food, they began to pass around the platters of chicken and beef, laden with spicy chilis, and the basket of corn bread.
Before they began to eat, they joined hands and bowed their heads as Jade’s husband spoke from the heart. “Bless this food, and those gathered here. And bless, especially, Diamond and Adam, Pearl and Cal, Daniel and Gil, and the precious new lives they’re so eagerly awaiting.”
“Arnen,” the others intoned.
“Diamond, when are you going to stop riding and roping?” Pearl asked as she lifted her fork to her mouth.
“Why should I stop?” Diamond seemed genuinely surprised by Pearl’s comment.
“Why, because you need to slow down now,” Pearl said. “You’ll want to spend more time at home, resting and knitting little clothes.”
“Knitting? Me?” Diamond couldn’t help laughing at the thought.
“Pearl is right,” Jade put in. “You should give up riding your horse, and get yourself a proper carriage.”