by Mary Wehr
While she’d been waiting in his office fighting back tears for being abandoned by her own father she had also fretted over how Jake would respond to her being in his saloon. They weren’t exactly the best of friends and she wasn’t fool enough to expect him to greet her with fond smiles or a gentle pat on the head, but she never expected to be implicated in one of her father’s plots to get the saloon back.
And it hurt to have him think she could be as callous as her father. “You got some nerve, Jake McCabe, accusing me of such deceit. You honestly think I came here willing?” Her words only made him glower more, but even when angry he sent her pulse racing.
Arms crossed over his chest and head cocked to one side, he practically growled, “Don’t stand there looking all innocent-eyed. There’s a rumor going around that your pa brought a young underage kid in here. The sheriff would do a jig naked in the middle of the street if he got the chance to shut the place down since he’s such good pals with your father.”
He skimmed her boyish clad figure once again. “Did he have to force you to wear these clothes or did you happily agree?”
That’s it. She had had enough. “First of all, I had no idea Pa was in such high standing with the sheriff. As for why I wear these clothes I already explained myself.” Her shoulders slumped in defeat. “Do you honestly think I would go along with this atrocity?”
“I don’t have to think, I know. You always found ways to piss me off. Why change now?”
His summary of their relationship wasn’t far from the truth, but that was long ago. “For heaven’s sake, that was years ago and you don’t get to stand there blameless. You goaded me as much as I chafed your ass, but...”
He raised a hand and she abruptly closed her mouth. “You curse?”
“Every chance I get.” She beamed with pride then realized they were getting off track. The fact that she liked to swear was no one’s business but her own. “Look, we both did our fair share of getting on each other’s nerves, but I’d never do something that would get you in trouble with the law. You know me better than that, Jake, or at least I hope you do.”
His fierce expression faded just a bit. “I guess you’re right. But that still don’t change the fact that you’re here.” He strode to the door and stopped as if he’d forgotten something. Swinging back around, he retraced his steps. “By the way, mind that mouth, Emmaline, ‘cause if I hear you curse again I’ll wash that dirty little mouth out with soap and no amount of squawking from you will stop me.”
Emma tossed her head haughtily. “Don’t you dare scold me, Jake McCabe. I’m a grown woman, not a child who requires tending.”
“You’ll always be the reckless stubborn brat I knew long ago.”
She stomped her foot. Damn, his words cut to the quick. He’d never see her as a grown woman even when he got to be an old man. If she didn’t kill him first. “And don’t call me Emmaline. I swear you drag out those last four letters on purpose just to rile me.”
“Don’t go getting a knot in your drawers.” He shot her figure a look of disdain. “That is if you’re even wearing any.”
“Whether I wear drawers or not is none of your concern,” she snapped.
“Drawers or not, you can’t stay here.” He seized her by the wrist and started for the door once again. “Come along, Emmaline.”
“Where to?”
“Back home, dammit, where you belong then maybe I can finally get some peace.”
“No.” Emma planted her feet on the floor and stubbornly refused to move.
“I ain’t in the mood for games, young lady.” With a growl, he gave a hearty yank, practically lifting her off her feet. She tried to curl her other hand around his thick wrist, but she couldn’t even get her fingers to touch. “Dammit, Jake, you’re going to rip the skin off my wrist.”
“Then stop all that pulling and yanking. For once in your life will you do as you’re told?” he snarled with frustration. “Jesus H. Christ, you’re just a kid. You don’t belong in a saloon.”
“I’m nineteen,” she spat at his broad back.
“I don’t give a hoot if you’re thirty,” he threw back over his shoulder.
“But I can’t go home.”
Her desperate wail finally caught his attention. Throwing his hands up in defeat, he raised his eyes heavenward. “For the love of all that’s holy, why not?” He shook a finger under her nose. “And I want the truth.”
Looming above her the way he was made her feel like a child about to be given a proper punishment for doing something naughty. Did it make her want to run to the nearest exit? Hell, no.
Emma cleared her throat. “Pa says he can’t provide for me anymore. I have to go out on my own.”
Chapter Eight
While Jake paced back and forth like a caged lion, Emma shifted from one foot to the other. She longed to sit down, but stubbornness prevailed. She’d wait until he made the first move.
Finally, he went to his desk and pulled out a chair. He motioned for her to do the same.
They stared at each other without either one uttering a word. Her future was at stake and, as the minutes passed by in silence, she grew anxious. What was she going to do? Would he throw her out on the street? She wasn’t his responsibility.
“Emmaline, how long has it been since we last saw each other? I’m afraid I can’t recall.”
She remembered the day well. “It was your wedding day.”
“I do believe you’re right.” He angled his head to the side and lazily ran his gaze over her face. “Your face filled out some.”
“But I still look boyish?”
“In those clothes, but I know better.”
The Cheshire grin he wore immediately sparked her curiosity. “Your wedding day was a long time ago and you barely noticed me so how can you be so sure?”
“Hmm, you seem to be forgetting the time you and Amelia went to the swimming hole by yourselves, I assume without permission.” He shook a finger at her. “Naughty, naughty.”
The only way he’d know about that was if he... her eyes widened with shock. “You spied on us?” The dirty rat.
“Only once, but nonetheless guilty as charged.”
Emma shot to her feet. “How could you do such a lowdown despicable thing?”
“Relax, wildcat, it wasn’t deliberate. I happened upon you and Amelia quite by accident. I left almost right away.” He scratched behind one ear and to her surprise appeared to be embarrassed.
“Almost,” Emma remarked and slowly resumed her seat. Good heavens. The few times she and Amelia managed to get away had been few and far in between, but they’d make the most of it by stripping down to their underthings. Her face bloomed with color. They may as well have been naked.
Jake cleared his throat awkwardly. “By the way, I don’t remember seeing you at the wedding.”
His gravelly voice poured over her like warm honey and she couldn’t remember why she was angry with him. If he looked her over again like he had done seconds ago she’d shatter into a million pieces. “You were in love with your new bride.”
“I wouldn’t bet on it. Love doesn’t exist,” he replied flatly.
“You can’t mean that. Your parents were in love. I never heard a harsh word pass between them.”
He shrugged one brawny shoulder. “They had their moments.”
“But doesn’t that happen to all married folk at one time or another?” Emma scooted to the edge of her seat. “Jake, I saw the way you stared at Lucille. You were in love with her.”
“No, little girl, I thought I was and that’s one mistake I don’t ever intend to make again.” He waved a hand in the air. “Enough talk about all this mushy shit because that’s what it is. What the hell is going on with you and don’t tell me nothing because I can read you like a book.”
He was right. He had the uncanny ability to see right through her, but what would it accomplish if she came clean and told him she dressed this way because of Jeb and Chad’s pawing? Absolutel
y nothing.
“I have no idea what you mean. I’m fine so don’t feel as if I’m your responsibility. You always hated when you had to keep an eye on me.”
His laugh made her smile. “It wasn’t that I hated it. My parents raised me to respect my elders. I always liked your ma. She asked me to go with you and I obliged.” He paused a moment. “You never answered my question.”
She pretended ignorance. “What question?”
“Enough with the games, Emmaline. What’s up with the pants and oversized shirt?”
“Not this again,” she groaned, rolling her eyes. “I told you why.”
“And I still ain’t buyin’ it.”
“Well, then that’s your problem, not mine.”
“And don’t roll your eyes at me again,” he added sternly.
A wispy flutter much like a butterfly’s delicate wings settled in the lower region of her belly. As a young girl, his lectures and reprimands had been irritating and downright boring, but now she felt something else, something more physically pleasurable.
His forehead wrinkled and his jaw was set firm. Dear heavens, he had grown into such a handsome man.
Lordy, she wished he’d say something before she jumped out of her skin.
“I have no use for your father.”
The bold statement didn’t come as a complete surprise to Emma. “I know you don’t. You blame him for your father’s death,” she replied somberly.
“I do.” Jake blew out a breath. “Did he come right out and tell you that he didn’t want you around anymore?”
“In a roundabout way.” Emma had always thought daughters were extra special to their daddies. At least her friend, Amelia had claimed it was so. She’d brag about all the gifts he’d buy for her on her birthday and how he surprised her with a cute pony. Emma’s father always forgot hers. Ma had been the one to make that day special.
Emma blinked back to the present. “He’s been complaining for a while about how hard it was getting to make ends meet.” She swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. “Any money he makes from selling livestock goes mostly for drink.”
He was scrutinizing her with such intensity that Emma began to feel guilty for doing absolutely nothing wrong. She rose from the chair on trembling legs and turned her back to him. She had to gather her bearings. She would not cry in front of Jake McCabe.
“Did you tell him about his drinking?”
She nodded.
“What’d he say?”
Emma swung around. “Pa doesn’t get his point across by talking much anymore.” She touched her cheek, still tender from the most recent blow.
Jake swore.
“It’s all my fault.”
“Don’t give me that line of bullshit.”
“It’s not bull...” She caught his warning glare and stopped herself. “If I would’ve agreed to give Chad a chance we could be married by now and none of this would be happening. Pa would be happy and I’d still have a roof over my head.”
“Are you out of your ever-loving mind?” Jake’s bark was followed by a low growl. “Chad Montgomery is lower than a snake’s belly. Your father should be shot for even suggesting such a thing.”
“You don’t have to tell me about Chad. He’s a rat just like his father.” The only one she could turn to was Jake and it bothered her to think he still held doubts about her involvement with her father’s plans.
There was only one thing to do. She had to find a job and pay Jake back. That was the only way he’d truly believe she had no part in her father’s latest scheme.
“I want to pay for that bottle of whiskey Pa stole. I need a job.”
“There’s only one thing you can do that’ll make money around here.”
Emma longed to smack the grin right off his face. “I wasn’t suggesting I work here. I thought about asking Amelia’s parents if they could use another hand at the Blue Bonnet. I can wash dishes.”
He cocked a brow. “Sounds like a plan. If you’re lucky and you do get a job, where do you intend to sleep when you finish up for the day?”
She pondered a moment then said, “Here, if you’ll let me, at least until I make things right.”
“And who you going to get to walk you back to the saloon?”
She shrugged. “I can walk back by myself. I’m a big girl.”
“That’s precisely the point.”
Anxiety got the best of her and she resorted to pleading her case. “Jake, I’m at my wits’ end. My reputation will be ruined if someone from town sees me here during the day. At least with the cover of the night, I have a chance.”
“Your reputation is already ruined. The only thing to do is keep you here. When I sell the place I’ll give you the money to move away from here and start fresh.”
“I don’t want your money or your help.” His expression remained fixed. “Damn you anyway. Just forget the whole thing.” She stomped to the door, aware that Jake was right on her heels. Well, he didn’t scare her. Not in the least.
Suddenly, she was lifted high in the air and thrown over one broad shoulder.
“What do you think you’re doing,” she screeched, pounding his back with her fists. “Put me down, you big bully.”
One hand landed heavily on her bottom.
“Ouch, how dare you strike me.”
“I’ll dare a hell of a lot more if you don’t stop that screeching.” He set her down none too gently. “You ain’t going anywhere, young lady, so I suggest you sit down before I give you a damn good hiding.”
Emma’s eyes widened with shock. He actually threatened her with a spanking. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me, Emmaline. You’re my responsibility whether you like it or not. As for preserving your reputation, it’s too late. If the town truly believed I had a kid in here, a dozen women with torches blazing would’ve been here by now demanding I shut the place down.”
She opened her mouth only to close it when he shook his head.
“Not one more word.”
Chapter Nine
Emmaline stood there with her tiny fists clenched and her bottom lip sticking out. He remembered that expression well. She was doing her best not to throw a fit and he was a bastard for wishing she would. His hand itched to repay back all those times she had annoyed him as a child and that one smack didn’t do it.
Puzzled, he stroked his jaw thoughtfully. There had to be another reason why she was wearing a shirt two sizes too big and a pair of baggy pants. Another thought puzzled him even more. Why the hell was he so interested?
Jake’s gaze dropped to her nonexistent bosom. There was no way he had imagined those full breasts and pert nipples poking the thin fabric of her chemise that day at the swimming hole. The shirt she had on couldn’t conceal that much flesh.
By the time he raised his gaze back to her face, she had relaxed her stubborn stance. In fact, she looked defeated. Beaten down. One thing for sure; he wasn’t about to throw her out in the street. She’d be defenseless against the two-legged varmints who prowled the dark alleyways.
“There’s a cot over in the corner. It’s clean. You had a long day. Lie down for a bit while I fetch Dory. She’ll get you settled for the night. We’ll discuss this further in the morning.”
Expecting an argument, he drew in his breath, but when Emmaline went straight to the cot without so much as a glare he felt his heart soften. The poor kid had to be exhausted.
Jake left the office and noticed Dory lurking in the shadows. “What?”
She stepped forward. “Well?”
One dark brow lifted at her high and mighty attitude. “Well, what?”
“Is she leaving or staying?”
Irritated, Jake thumbed back his hat and stared at her. “Well, I sure as hell ain’t throwing her out in the street if that’s what you’re thinking.”
Dory looked ready to throw a fit. “Where’s she supposed to sleep? We got two itty bitty rooms. Me and Claire share one and Trudy and Megan the other. I can’t figur
e you out, Jake. You hate Ray Foley. Why keep his daughter here?”
“Because her mother and mine were good friends, that’s why.” He surveyed the smoky saloon. The gambling tables were filled. Men were drinking. Sales should be good. The more money brought in got him closer to paying the saloon off.
Jake caught sight of Trudy standing at the bottom of the stairs talking to Chad Montgomery. He frowned. The Wild Mustang was more his sleazy style. Maybe Dory would know. He turned to find her gone and Megan in her place.
“What’d you say to Dory? She looks like she ate a sour mouse.”
Jake ignored her ‘fuck me’ smile. “Megan, when did Chad start coming here? I thought he hung out at the Wild Mustang?”
She shrugged one sleek bare shoulder. “Don’t know. He’s kinda cute if you ask me and loaded. I overheard him talking about getting some fresh meat.” She placed her fingers just above his belt buckle. “Let’s go back to your office, Papa Jake and you can spank me.” Her eyes darkened with desire and she moved in closer so her pussy was aligned with his knee.
Jake caught her hand before her fingers curled around her destination. “You know the rules, Megan, and don’t get ahead of yourself. I decide who to punish.”
“But I’ve been such a naughty girl,” she whined. “I need to be punished.”
His steely glare was answer enough. With a huff, she walked away.
Jake glanced toward the stairs again. Chad and Trudy were now at the top and disappeared around the corner. Out of all five women, Trudy had to be the closest to Emmaline’s age. Sometimes he wandered about her parents. Were they still alive? Did they know what she did for a living? Did they even care?
Jake immediately steered clear of any thoughts of concern. He wasn’t a parent or guardian to them. They were hired to entertain. His father had taken a small percentage of their earnings and under no circumstances did he allow them to be handled roughly unless they were into that sort of thing.
Upon hiring Megan it hadn’t taken long for Claire and her to get into squabbles. For some reason, the two rubbed each other the wrong way. He’d give them both some time to get whatever was bugging them out of their system. Claire was always the first to let things go, but Megan liked to keep pushing.