The Payment

THE PAYMENT

Mysty McPartland

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THE PAYMENT

MYSTY MCPARTLAND

Published by Solstice
Publishing at Smashwords

Copyright 2010 Mysty
McPartland

Publishers
Note
: This is a work of fiction. All
names, characters, places, and events are the work of the author’s
imagination. Any resemblance to real person, places, or events is
coincidental.

Solstice Publishing

The Mathew’s men learned their lessons well
from the woman they should have been able to love and trust above
all. Instead, their own mother taught them that women could never
be trusted and were nothing but venomous to ones soul. She left
them with bitter hatred in their hearts and poison in their souls
towards all women.

It will take a very special woman to defeat
the bitterness in their hearts and teach them to respect and care
for a woman.

Dane, the eldest brother, finds the very
woman he cannot live without. Even though he knows how furious his
brothers will be. He cannot give her up. Little does he know that
this one woman would heal all their hearts and souls.

Follow the Mathews men as each one takes you
on their journey and they find the only woman who will completely
heal their hearts and souls.

THE MATHEWS MEN

BOOK ONE

DANE

THE PAYMENT

ONE

Alone in his hotel room, he sat with his
long legs stretched out in front of him, he held a tumbler of
whiskey in his hand. Dane sprawled in a chair and wondered if he
might have completely lost his mind; his brothers would certainly
think so. Is his pride and ego so great that he intended to force
that stuck up little vixen to marry him?

Irritated at himself, he wiped a hand over
his face and dropped it on the arm of the chair. He leaned his head
back against the leather seat and closed his eyes. Tomorrow he
would be married to the most beautiful and enticing woman he ever
laid eyes on. As soon as he saw her across the room at the
Tillerman’s ball, he wanted her.

He had never seen a more beautiful or
alluring woman as this one. She wore a deep lilac gown, which bared
her shoulders, white pearls at her throat and in her ears. Both set
off her midnight hair and creamy tanned skin to perfection, the
sheer beauty of her captivated him and astounded him.

Never did a woman have such an effect on him
before. Her violet eyes slanted upwards and were a color he could
never remember seeing previously. The few short moments he gazed
into them, they fascinated him and drew him deep into a vortex of
sensual pleasure. Those few seconds still confounded him; he shook
his head in confusion. He returned his thoughts back to the night
that now would change his life forever. She might be small of
statue, but her enticing, and seductive curves definitely were made
for a man’s loving.

Even now, he could feel his body react
just thinking about her. He grimaced as he started to become
aroused. It amazed him how easily a certain part of his body
hardened and grew just thinking about her. He opened his eyes, gave
an exasperated sigh, and shifted in his seat.
Hell, if just thinking about her makes me react like this,
what in the hell will it be like when I finally have her in my
bed?

With an irritated toss of his head, he shook
his lustful thoughts aside and continued to think of their first
meeting. He asked his friend Colin to introduce him. Colin advised
him not to waste his time, he still insisted. How could he have
acted like such a damn lustful fool?

He probably would not be marrying tomorrow
if he could have controlled his lust. Well, it was far too late
now. He insisted on meeting her and after the introduction, those
mesmerizing eyes of hers gazed back at him distastefully, she
lifted a dark brow in the air. Then with a dismissive toss of her
head, she turned away ignoring him completely.

He heard the snickers around him and felt
the heat of embarrassment crawl up the back of his neck. He quickly
excused himself and left. Furious at her for humiliating him, he
swore to make her pay any way he could.

Luck turned his way two nights later when he
ran into her brother at a high stakes poker game. He didn’t
hesitate to quickly join the game, which continued late into the
night. Finally, around dawn her brother lost everything he owned to
him.

It did not surprise him that her brother
turned up at his hotel room late the following day. It came as no
revelation to hear he could not pay his debt. Her brother made
several possibilities on how he would eventually pay off his
gambling debt, and none of them interested him at all.

He did not want to take the man’s ranch. He
did not need his money. In the end, he told her brother, he would
make a decision in a few days. He didn’t intend to rush in to
anything without thinking the matter over first.

The next two days he thought long and hard
over the debt. He hesitated to take everything from her brother.
Even though he now held the means to have his revenge on the woman
right in his very hands, he found himself unwilling to take it. One
thought though kept whispering through his mind, and he kept
shoving it away.

An absolutely ridiculous idea yet, a
persistent one though, it nagged at him day and night and in the
end, he finally accepted the idea. Lord, he must have completely
lost his mind and when he put the suggestion to her brother, he
must have thought so as well.

After a few speechless moments, her brother
reluctantly agreed, knowing it would be his only hope to keep hold
of all he owned. Taking a long sip of his drink, he let out a heavy
sigh. Could he be making the biggest mistake of his life? Well, it
is far too late to be having second thoughts now.

He wondered just how she would react to the
news that she is about to be married because of her brother’s
gambling debt. A feeling in his gut told him she would not only be
enraged, but would try just about anything she could to stop the
wedding from occurring.

Well there would be no stopping it. Neither
one of them were backing out off this deal. All he could do is hope
that once she was over her anger, she would be willing to give
their marriage a chance.

Once again, he wondered how he would
explain this madness to his brothers. No doubt, they were going to
be furious. None of them ever wanted another woman living with them
again.
Not after Irene.

Tuff, who is more like a father to them all,
already angrily pointed that very fact out so many times over the
last few days that he’d lost count. He knew Tuff was right though,
and he should forget the whole stupid deal completely.

Yet he couldn’t. For some reason, he
did not understand why he wanted the woman with an overwhelming
desperation and he could not deny himself. He would do just about
anything to have her.
Even forcing her to
marry me.
He didn’t understand the hold she possessed
over him, and he definitely didn’t like it but he felt powerless to
fight against it.

All he knew was he wanted her.

Once again, his thoughts turned to his
brothers and how they were going to react. No doubt, they would
kick up a storm. He only hoped he and the woman would survive the
confrontation. Hell he couldn’t begrudge how the boys would react,
but he wanted a wife.

He wanted a wife and a family of his own. He
loved his brothers, but they were not enough anymore. Irene, their
mother, might have destroyed any trust or the need for a woman in
them all. Now though he felt at his age that taking a wife seemed
the right thing to do.

Hell, he did not have any idea what is right
or wrong any more, not since he met that woman. He seemed to have
lost every bit of sanity he owned. This might be the greatest
mistake in his life, and it would be utter madness to go through
with the marriage.

Lord help him, he could not stop it and by
God, no matter what happened, he would make sure his brothers were
protected from any damage or harm the woman may cause. If it turned
out to be a mistake, he would cut his losses and send her back
home. Lord, he hoped things would work out, he truly did.

TWO

Still unable to believe what is about to
happen to her, India furiously paced her bedroom. Her brother must
have completely lost his mind. What madness now possessed her
brother and how could he ever imagine she would actually go through
with his crazy scheme?

Never would she let her brother force her
into marriage with a complete stranger. To a stranger her brother
owed a great deal of money to, damn his hide. Jarrod is a fool to
have gambled away everything he owned and by God, she did not
intend to be the one who would have to pay for it.

She stopped pacing and her eyes narrowed.
Reaching up, she lifted a vase off the mantle and threw it against
the wall, where it shattered into tiny pieces over the floor. Her
lips turned up in a sneer.

It might have been a beautiful vase, a
present from her brother, and she felt not an ounce of regret in
destroying it. The anger inside her so immense she wanted to tear
the room apart.

With that thought in mind, she hurried over
to the wardrobe, flung open the door, and let it bang against the
wall. Inside she stared at the only things that remained after her
brother ordered her clothing removed and now they were packed in
the waiting wagons.

With spiteful anger, she reached in
pulled out the beautiful white wedding gown and all the other
paraphernalia that went with it.
Damn you
Jarrod if you think I will wear this or marry that man you are in
for a huge disappointment.

No matter what he tried to do to force her
to marry the fiend, she would not go through with it. He is mad to
have even imagine she would. Going over to the fireplace, she
tossed everything in and reached for the matches. Kneeling down she
smiled maliciously as she set fire to everything.

You might think you have given me no choice
Jarrod to do what you want. Taking my things and locking me in my
room will only make me defy you even more.

Down stairs sitting behind his desk in the
study, Jarrod cringed when he heard something upstairs smash
against the wall. He should not be surprised his sister would act
in such away, and he did feel guilty about forcing her into
marriage but he did not have any other choice.

If she did not marry this Mathews fellow, he
would lose the ranch. He still could not understand why this
stranger wanted to marry India but by God, he felt relieved and
immensely grateful that he made the offer.

India, being a beautiful young woman even
though she might be headstrong and stubborn as all get out; it
never stopped men from pursuing her. Many a man came out to the
ranch to court her and offer her marriage, but she refused every
offer. Soon she would be considered an old maid.

Perhaps she will eventually realize he
didn’t have any other choice, wearily leaning back in his chair he
rubbed the back of his neck in remorse. Well, one thing he knew
without any misgiving he would never ever gamble again.

He foolishly nearly lost everything his
parents left him and his future with the turn of the cards. Only
his madness to win is what drove him into insanity. No, he would
never gamble again.

Now with a chance to rectify his stupidity,
he would most likely lose his sister. A horrendous situation and a
terrible toll to pay, but he did not have any other choice. His
only worry now is getting his willful sister to agree to marry
Mathews.

It might be the hardest part of all and he
knew he would have a fight on his hands. He grew determined to find
a way. If he didn’t, he could lose everything and hopefully one day
she will find it in her heart to forgive him.

India heard the key in the lock turn and the
door whisper open. She did not bother turning around. She knew her
brother had entered the bedroom. Well, if he thought he could
sweet-talk her into this mad scheme, he is definitely crazy.