Taming of Jessi Rose (32 page)

“Faster than she can say her real name, I'll bet,” Jessi cracked.

“Jessita's probably right,” Two Shafts replied. “A woman like that has few loyalties.”

“Then let's wait a few days before we confront her; we don't want to spook her, but maybe after I win the election next week, we'll sit her down and have a nice long chat.”

That night as Griffin and Jessi patrolled the outer boundaries of the Clayton land, they were supposed to be on the lookout for suspicious activity, but their thoughts were focused on each other instead.

When they reached the river, Jessi reined Snake Eyes to a halt and Griffin stopped his gelding right beside her. She dismounted and let the horse drink a moment. “The last few days have been something, huh?”

Griffin dismounted as well. “No kidding.”

Jessi looked out over the ribbon of black water and the night-shrouded range beyond. “They've been good
for us, though. Don't you think?” She looked back to study him.

He nodded. “Yes. It took a lot of strength and courage to tell me the story.”

She was glad she had. She'd been so afraid to confess the truth to him, so afraid it would alter his love for her. “Some men wouldn't be as understanding.”

“Some men are fools. You didn't have a choice.”

Her voice was as quiet as the night. “No.”

It still tore Griffin up inside, knowing that she'd gone through the ordeal alone and had been stoically and silently carrying the experience around all these years. What strength she had, and now he knew what had made her so rawhide tough: life.

“Are you ready to ride on?” he asked.

It was a question that covered many things. She told the truth. “Yes.”

 

Doyle had appointed himself Griffin's campaign manager and had tacked up broadsides all over town. It didn't matter that Percy and his men tore them all down, the notices were up long enough for everyone to know that Griffin Blake was running for sheriff. The declaration caused quite a stir. Folks all over the area talked about the coming election and many a bet was laid on the outcome. Some were predicting there would be a record-breaking number of people going to the polls, while others predicted no one would vote at all out of fear of retaliation from Reed Darcy. In a blatant attempt to buy votes, Reed was handing out crisp, new one-dollar bills. He even gave Jessi one, saying she and Griffin would probably need it to buy food once the election was held and Griffin went down to defeat. When Jessi got home, she looked at the new bill and thought there was something odd about the dollar's face, but it had
been so long since she'd held a freshly printed bill, she shrugged it off.

Election day, Jessi and the Clayton contingent accompanied Griffin into town. In the past, the polls were located inside the barbershop, but today, because there were so many men wanting to cast their vote, the venue had been changed to Auntie's where there was more room.

Jessi saw folks in town she hadn't seen in years and others she'd never seen before. Percy and his minions had taken up position outside the saloon and appeared to be there for the sole purpose of intimidation. He gave Jessi and the others a surly stare as they passed, but said nothing.

Inside, a line of men snaked up the steps to the room where they'd put the voting station. A few people were seated at the tables conversing quietly, while others were up walking around and helping themselves to the free eats and lemonade. The subdued atmosphere befitted the occasion.

As Jessi, Griffin, and the Twins entered, they saw Doyle seated at a table and headed his way. A few men and women inside offered Jessi a tight nod, which she returned in kind. No one made any overt displays of welcome or acknowledgment and it soon became apparent why. Reed Darcy and his family were ensconced at a table in the center of room as if Reed wanted everyone to know he was there as they waited in line to vote.

He glared at her as she passed, but she ignored him. Roscoe sat at the table looking surly and displeased. Jessi wondered if Reed had forced him to be here this morning because she couldn't imagine Roscoe wanting to be here on his own. If Reed had indeed forced his son to be at his side, he'd had less control in other areas. Roscoe was obviously drunk, and he met Jessi's eyes
with a bitter grin and toasted her with the drink in his hand.

The poll closed at seven that evening. Barbershop owner Wilson Cornell and Abe Thomas were locked in the voting room, tallying votes. Two Shafts had gone up to represent Griffin, and Minerva to represent Reed's side.

Auntie's was packed by now. People had been filtering in all afternoon to await the final results. Reed was still holding court in the center of the place, but Roscoe had left the premises hours ago.

The room quieted as Wilson and the others appeared on the stairs. Jessi gave Griffin a big smile, then turned her attention back to the stairs. When Wilson Cornell announced the results, cheers erupted and hats and bonnets filled the air. Griffin had won by a landslide.

Jessi leaned over and gave him a huge kiss. “Congratulations, darling!”

“Thanks,” he said grinning.

It was the only moment they got to share, because the newly elected sheriff was immediately mobbed by well wishers wanting to shake his hand.

Reed was livid. If looks could've killed, Griffin would've been dead on the floor. Reed had been rebuked publicly and resoundingly. Fueled by the repossession of their lives and their properties, the citizens had chosen light over darkness, and Reed knew he was out on his ass! As the celebration swirled around him and someone began banging out a tune on the piano, he met Jessi's eyes malevolently. She didn't blink or look away. She held his gaze with the same courage she always had, and it felt wonderful. He swung his glare from her to the celebration, gave it one last look, then forcefully pushed his way to the door. An angry Minerva followed in his wake.

The happy Clayton clan didn't make it home until
very late that night. Griffin carried the sleeping Joth inside and helped Jessi put him to bed.

In the hallway Griffin stood with his arms linked around Jessi's waist and feasted his eyes on the woman he loved. “You know something?” he asked in a slightly slurred voice.

“What?” she asked, looking up at him contentedly.

“I'm the new sheriff.”

Her smile peeked out. “Yes, you are.”

“I also had a little too much to drink.”

She chuckled. “I think so, too, but you deserved to celebrate.”

“How many kisses did I give you on the way home?”

“Last count, hundreds.”

“Wish I could give you more, but I have to go to sleep now.”

“That sounds like a very good idea.”

He gave her a sweet kiss on her forehead. “Night, Jessi Rose.”

“Good night, Sheriff.”

Jessi waited to make certain he made it to the bed, then softly closed his door. She walked to her own room with a smile on her face.

Over the next few days, Griffin, the Twins, and the Preacher spent most of their time in town fixing up the sheriff's office and opening the mail that had been piling up since Casper Hatcher's departure. Gillie took time away from the sewing of Jessi's wedding dress to come over and measure the office for new window curtains. Abe Thomas and the men from the church made Griffin a new Vale Sheriff sign, and painted the place inside and out. Folks donated furniture, lamps, and cots and bedding for the lock-up when word got out that Darcy had stripped the place clean after losing the election.

“I'm impressed,” Jessi said, as she looked up at the new sign and the fresh whitewash on the building's ex
terior. “And they did this all on their own?”.

“Never asked for a thing.”

The love shone in her eyes as she said, “The town has really taken to you, Griffin.”

And it had. People seemed friendlier and more at ease everywhere Jessi went. There were still strained feelings between Jessi and a lot of folks, but she was more than willing to meet them halfway, and that too could be attributed to Griffin.

“Lots of ladies have been dropping by too,” he told her.

“So Gillie's been saying. Should I come and remind them where you park your boots at night? I can and I will you know.” She raised one eyebrow.

Griff smiled at the spark in her eye.

“No, for now, they're just coming in and introducing themselves. If any get out of line, you'll be first person I'll call on.”

“Good. Now kiss me, and I'll let you get back to work.”

So he did.

Three days later, Griffin was wired a warrant for Minerva's arrest from the sheriff in Austin. At the dinner table that evening, Jessi and the men decided they'd go after her first, then Percy. They needed all the information she could give them on Reed's shady business dealings, and they needed Percy to confess Darcy's role in the murder of Jessi's father. With Minerva and Percy out of the picture, Darcy would have no one at his back, and hopefully by then it would all be over.

It was now the first week of June and it was Griffin's two-week anniversary as the new Vale lawman. He wore the star left by Casper Hatcher, and the shield had been buffed and polished before being presented to Griffin by Wilson Cornell on behalf of the town and the newly reformed town council.

The week also held two other anniversaries: Jessi's birth and her mother's death.

Jessi usually did not celebrate her birthday because of the bittersweet memories the day evoked. Griffin, having been told this by Gillie and Auntie, hoped to change her thinking about celebrating it.

Doyle's nephew was in town for a three-day visit, and since he and Joth had known each other for years, Doyle invited Joth to the house so the two boys could have some fun. Preacher had been spending most nights in the sheriff's office and the Twins at Auntie's, so Griffin had a clear deck upon which to work.

Jessi got up the morning of her birthday, watched Joth ride off with Doyle and then as always joined Griffin on the roof.

“Good morning,” he called, as she walked over to join him.

She leaned down and gave him a kiss. “Good morning to you too.”

She took the offered cup of coffee and settled in beside him.

Sitting content and silent, they watched the sun rise.

Jessi had reclaimed the breakfast duties since Neil and his brother had taken to waking up in the soft new beds of Auntie's girls instead of their bedrolls behind Jessi's house, and although she didn't mind the duties, Neil had a way with omelets that she'd never be able to match.

But she and Griffin ate her attempt and it was surprisingly good. At the conclusion of the meal, Griffin grabbed his hat to head to town.

Jessi walked with him out onto the porch. He looked down at her and then laced his hands around her waist. Without a word, he dragged her closer and kissed her until her knees melted into her boots. When he finally turned her loose, her eyes were closed and the sweet
warm echoes of his kiss played over her insides like spring sunshine.

“That's going to have to hold you until I get back from town,” he said, smiling softly. “Oh, and I'll be bringing you something, too.”

“More kisses, I hope. You know, we'll have the house all to ourselves this evening.”

“Definitely more kisses, but something else, too.”

“What?”

“Your birthday present.”

Jessi backed out of his arms. “I—I don't celebrate my birthday.”

“I know,” he said softly. “And I know why.”

Jessi held his eyes. “Having your mother die the day after your thirteenth birthday is not something you easily forget. I haven't celebrated it since because it always reminds me of her.”

“I understand.”

He walked over and took her back into his arms. She placed her cheek against his chest and they held each other tight as he whispered, “But you are very very precious to me, and the day of your birth is something I want to celebrate, if only a little. Who would've changed my life if you hadn't been born?”

She eased back a bit and looked up at him, “Probably some sweet young thing with a trunk full of money.”

“Possibly,” he answered, smiling down, “but I doubt it. I prefer my women seasoned, mature.”

“Oh, ‘old,' in other words?”

“Very old.” He slowly traced the tempting lines of her bottom lip, then touched his lips to hers, murmuring, “Very very old…”

The kiss swept them away, and as time stood still for that tiny moment, they both felt love grow deeper.

“So do I have permission to celebrate the birth of the
woman who'll soon be my wife?” he asked, holding her close once more.

She nodded yes.

He gently raised her chin so he could see her eyes.

“Are you sure?” he asked softly. “You've been in the dark too long…let me be your light.”

Jessi's eyes closed as sharp poignant emotions welled up inside. She loved this man more than life. “You are my light, Griffin, more than you'll ever know.”

“And I want you to make me a promise.”

“What is it?”

“That you will not do a lick of work today. No fence mending, no stable mucking. Nothing. It's your birthday, and as your maestro and your sheriff, I'm declaring this day a holiday.”

“Griffin—”

“Don't whine. Just say, ‘Yes, Griffin.'”

Her voice was as sultry as her smiling eyes. “And if I do say yes, what do I get as a reward?”

“All you can handle, little girl. All you can handle.”

A
fter Griff rode off to town, Jessi moved about the silent house. Bantering with him had lifted her mood, but deep down inside she was still a bit melancholy. Although Griffin hadn't made the time of his return specific, she knew it wouldn't be until much later, and she contemplated how to occupy herself until then. She thought about going ahead and cleaning out the stables in the barn but she ignored the thought, mainly because she'd promised Griffin she would not do any chores in his absence. She located the newspaper she'd picked up in town and sat down with it, hoping it might hold her interest, but it didn't. After glancing over a report on Democratic President Grover Cleveland's recent appointment of Black Bostonian James M. Trotter as recorder of deeds, Jessi set the paper aside.

She went to the barn, saddled Snake Eyes, and rode off to a place she hadn't visited in months.

Jessi stood before her mother's grave and as always felt the sadness well up in her heart. Her parents were buried side by side. Jessi was certain the placing annoyed her father no end. He'd gone to his own judgment never having forgiven his wife for her adulterous liaison with Reed Darcy. After her death, Dexter Clayton had adamantly refused to order a stone to mark Violet's
grave, so Jessi had had one made upon her return from back east. He'd been very angry over the purchase and had berated Jessi for days about it, but she hadn't cared. Violet Clayton might've been an adulterous whore to him, but to Jessi and her sister, she'd been a loving mother. Jessi ran her hand lightly over the marker, then knelt to free the site of the weeds threatening to obscure the spot. When she was done, she stood and said, “Mama, I love you, but I'm not going to cling to the shadows anymore. Griff says it's time for me to start walking in the light, and he's right.”

Jessi used to come here often to talk to her mother about the goings-on in her life, and she doubted that would ever change. Although her father had been convinced Violet would be burning in hell for eternity, Jessi never believed that. Violet had had her hell on earth, being married to Dexter Clayton. Jessi hoped the Lord would've seen fit not to punish her twice.

She wondered what her mother would've thought of Griffin. Would she have loved him as much as Jessi? The question would remain forever unanswered, but Jessi was truly thankful to have him and his love in her life. She ran her hand over the stone to say good-bye, then went back up to the house.

She wrote a long letter to her friend Paris LaMarr to catch her up on the goings-on in her life and of course included many pages on Griffin. She then laid out her best skirt and blouse and the new camisole Gillie had sewn for her. The former teacher had taken it upon herself to fatten up Jessi's meager wardrobe with garments she termed far more suitable for a woman with a man in her life, and although Jessi had protested, Gillie had ignored her and started picking out fabrics and patterns anyway. Even though she was still working on the wedding dress she'd somehow found the time to make Jessi a beautiful nightgown out of a length of gold silk. Jessi
had no idea when she'd wear it, but Gillie promised it would tempt Griffin just as much as the fancy French underwear.

It was early evening when the sounds of a buckboard pulling up to the house came through the open windows. She hurried to the door, hoping it was Griffin and hoping he wouldn't notice she'd gone ahead and mopped the kitchen floor. It was Griff, and as she stepped out onto the porch, he greeted her with a smile. “I'm back. Sorry it took so long. Can you help me bring these things inside?”

“Sure can.”

Jessi left the porch and Griff handed her a wooden crate whose towel-shrouded contents smelled like food. “Whatever is in here?” The tempting scents were heavenly.

“Your birthday dinner, courtesy of Neil, Auntie, and her girls.”

Jessi stopped and stared at him. “You're jesting?”

“Nope, so take it on in, then come back and help me unload the rest.”

When they finished unloading, a curious Jessi looked at the crates now sitting on the kitchen table. There were three of them. Griff set one aside with a warning that she couldn't peek at the contents of that particular one until later, but he gave her permission to take the towels off the tops of the two that remained. Inside one was a ham studded with cloves and dripping with maple sugar. There were also pots holding still warm yams, collards, and fat yellow cornmeal rolls. The other crate held a large bag of Chase and Sanborn coffee, a plate filled with molasses cookies, some apple dumplings, pretzels, four long tapering candles, a candelabra to nest them in, and a very fancy lace-edged tablecloth. Beneath the tablecloth were two sparkling china plates and two sets of
tableware. Jessi was so outdone by the display she'd no idea what to say.

“Speechless?” he asked, as he encircled her in his arms.

“Yes!” Jessi exclaimed, turning to face him. “Why did they send all of this?”

“Because it's your birthday, Jessi, and they wanted it to be special.”

“Well, they've certainly given it a start. Do you wish to eat now?”

“Let me go wash up first and then we can. If that's okay?”

She leaned up and kissed him softly. “That sounds perfect.”

While he went out to the pump to clean up, she set the table. By the time he returned, she had everything ready. The light from the candelabra centering the food-laden table gave the kitchen a warm romantic glow.

“After you,” he said, gesturing her to her seat. He assisted her with her chair, then sat down too.

They helped themselves to the ham, vegetables, and bread, then began to eat.

Griff looked across at her bathed in the glow of the candlelight, and decided they would celebrate her birthday this way every year. A woman as majestic and lovely as his Jessi deserved a bit of softness in her life now and again, and he'd make certain she received her share from now on. He still found it hard to believe that she shared his love or that she'd agreed to be his wife. Hands down, he had to be the luckiest man in all the world.

“This ham just melts in your mouth,” Jessi purred.

“That's what took me so long,” he told her, smiling in satisfaction. “I had to wait for Neil to say it was just right. I'm glad I did.”

“So am I. Everything is simply wonderful.” She then
looked over at him and said, “Thank you, Griffin.”

“My pleasure.”

For a moment the food was forgotten as they gazed at each other through the wavering points of flame atop the candles. He wanted to reach over and touch her, kiss her, undress her; push everything off the table and take her right here under the candles' glow.

“What are you thinking?” she asked softly.

“That I'd like to undress you and make you do shameless things.”

The thick timbre of his voice touched her like a potent caress from his hands.

“Neil and Auntie wouldn't be happy if we wasted the food…” she said, her eyes sultry.

“No, they wouldn't.”

Jessi could feel desire thickening the air in the room, and unable to resist becoming the siren that he sometimes made her be, moved her hands to the top button of her shirtwaist and slowly worked it free. “So how about a compromise…” Under the full attention of his vibrant eyes, her fingers freed the second button and then the third. “…We'll eat now, and play when we're done.”

Enough buttons had been opened to reveal the low-cut camisole underneath.

“You're getting more outrageous by the day, Jessi Rose Clayton.”

“If I'm being too forward, I can always close my shirt again.” Her fingers moved toward the buttons.

“Don't you dare touch those buttons.”

Their smiles mingled through the flames. Griff found her actions stimulating, to say the least. “Eat,” he told her, pointing at her plate.

In direct contradiction of his command, she undid the remaining buttons, then slipped off the shirtwaist. Only then did she pick up her fork and return to her meal.

Griffin tried his best to concentrate on the food, but the distracting lady seated across the table fueled his appetite for something else entirely. The lacy edges of the low-cut camisole kept drawing his eyes to the glow-kissed planes of her breasts and the bare expanse of her shoulders and throat. Each time she moved or reached, the garment fluttered open just enough to give him a teasing glimpse of the dark beauties within. Who knew she could be so bewitchingly playful? During the sensual opening of her blouse, he'd had to force himself to stay on his side of the table. It was a display he'd remember for quite some time. He was enjoying the meal, but his eyes were feasting, too.

When they were done eating, they both put down their tableware and silence reclaimed the shadowy kitchen.

“I should store the rest of this food for tomorrow,” Jessi told him, even though her rising desire made it hard to remain focused on something as mundane as preserving the remnants of the meal. All she wanted to think about was Griffin's bone-melting loving.

“I'll help.”

She stood and leaned across the table for the plate holding the last four rolls. The camisole fluttered down and gave him an unhindered view of her breasts. Unable to resist such a blood-firing sight, he slid his finger over the soft-as-satin swell, then traced the skin down inside until he found the dark-tipped nipple. The nubbin ripened just as it had been trained to do, and so did his manhood. For a few heat-filled moments he teased her silently, lazily moving his touch from one to the other until she purred in the flickering candlelight.

“I thought you were going to help…” she gasped, as the sensations climbed.

“I am helping…”

“No, you're not…”

He eased the bodice down and filled his hands with
her twin delights. “Yes…I am.” When he had her ripened to his satisfaction, he gently eased the camisole back into position. “Now, you can finish.”

For a few seconds Jessi had a hard time remembering what she'd been about to do, because his fondling had left her mind in such a haze.

It shouldn't've taken long to clear the table, but it did, because Griffin couldn't resist the urge to
help
. His assistance consisted mainly of freeing her breasts once more so he could play as he wished, and the slow, sensual raising of her black skirt so he could play there too. Sometime during the interlude her drawers were stripped away, but she couldn't remember when because she was too busy purring in response to his fingers dallying so magnificently. She did remember that they never made it to the bedroom—he took her right there on the clean kitchen floor that she'd mopped and waxed this afternoon. Her camisole was down below her breasts and her skirt rucked up above her hips, but she didn't care about how shameless she might appear. Her whole world centered on Griffin and the glorious, rhythmic thrusting that sent her screaming into paradise.

When she came back to herself, he was stretched out on the cool floor beside her, propped on one elbow. She returned his soft smile. He slid a finger over one of her still hard nipples. “You're pretty loud for an old lady.”

She punched him playfully. “It's all your fault.”

“Yes it is, yes it is,” he answered, his voice filled with satisfaction.

“Do you have
any
humble bones in that red and gold body?”

“Not a one.”

She never got the chance to retort because his warm mouth had begun a slow stalking her of breasts; his hands were meandering and exploring.

“I'm going to bathe your beautiful body and have you
again…” he murmured in a voice thick with promise. “So come with me.”

Encased in the familiar haze of desire, Jessi let herself be led outside to the pump. There was a fire going in the pit near the pump. On the pit's grate sat two large cauldrons.

“The water should be warm by now.”

“When did you start the fire?”

“When I came out to wash up. Are you ready for your bath?”

Still throbbing from his touch, she nodded and watched as he pulled the tarp from the big bathing tub. It was soon filled her with the warm water and Jessi ventured in.

Her love for baths rose again as she sank down into the velvety liquid. Griff went back inside for a moment, then returned with wash cloths, drying towels, and a bar of soap wrapped in tissue paper.

“One of the girls gave this to me. She said it's rose scented. Stand up for me,” he coaxed softly.

As she complied, the water cascaded down her body, leaving a damp sheen on her skin that caught the Texas moonlight. Jessi vividly remembered the last time they'd done this, and feeling Griff's warm hands sliding the soapy cloth over her filled her with shimmering anticipation. She could smell the scent of roses rising on the night air. The languid movement of the cloth teased her body in all the places he'd loved so thoroughly only a little while ago. By the time she'd been rinsed and wrapped in the large drying towel, Jessi was once again floating on clouds of desire.

“Are you ready for dessert?” he asked, drying her slowly.

“Yes.”

“Then go slip something on, and after I wash, I'll get it ready.”

A still hazy Jessi padded nude into the house and went to her bedroom. She donned the muted gold gown from Gillie. The sleeveless garment had been designed for a man's pleasure. There were lacy open seams up the front and down the sides and they offered a lover easy access to a woman's charms. One tiny ribbon held each of the sides together and a matching tie positioned between her breasts did the same for the front. It was the most beautiful garment she'd ever worn and it flowed over her bareness like a cloud.

She took a moment to look around her room in anticipation of Griffin spending the night. The space was as neat as always. Smiling, Jessi left the room to rejoin Griffin.

When she walked back into the kitchen wearing a gown that undulated and opened with each step she took, Griffin could only stare. Speechless, he feasted his eyes on the teasing glimpses the gown gave of the sides of her legs and the sweet black triangle at the apex of her thighs. Even in the candlelit shadows the fabric was so sensually transparent he had no difficulty at all viewing the curves and hollows of her dark beauty. “I thought
I
was the one preparing dessert.”