Janie glanced toward the stairs and then looked down. When she looked up again, there was no mistaking the promise in her eyes. “Actually, I was hoping to get you alone. It’s been such a wild day. Maybe we could go for a walk?”
Clint nodded. “I could use some fresh air. Just let me settle up my bill and I’ll be right with you.”
It didn’t take long for Clint to pay for his beers, but Janie wasn’t in the lobby when he returned. All he had to do was step outside the hotel and he found her leaning against one of the posts lining the street. Hearing the hotel’s door open got her to look over her shoulder. The moment she saw Clint, she smiled and took his arm.
“I have a confession to make,” she said.
“That’s not my line of work, but I’ll do my best,” Clint replied with a wink.
“I’ve been wanting to clear my head with a nice, long walk all night, but haven’t felt safe enough to go anywhere.”
“There’s been plenty of lawmen in the streets after what happened,” Clint said.
Janie shrugged. “None of them stepped up like you did. To be honest, I think you’re the only one who stands a chance against that killer.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that.”
“I know,” she said. “I was there. I saw how you stood up to him. It made my blood warm up inside of me.”
She kept walking arm in arm with Clint and led him around the next corner. They walked into a section of town that was away from the sounds and activity of the saloon district. In fact, it was so quiet along their path that they were the only ones out and about on that street.
Suddenly, Janie stopped and turned to face Clint. She was tall enough to lean forward and kiss him without needing to pull herself up or make him come down to get to her. Before she could kiss him again, she saw one of the marshal’s deputies come around the corner and walk toward them.
“And here I thought I’d get you to myself,” she whispered.
“The marshal’s men will be making their rounds all night to watch for the killer,” Clint said.
“Then maybe we could go somewhere out of sight?”
“That sounds like a great idea to me.”
“Good,” Janie said with a smile. “I know just the place.”
THIRTY-FIVE
The place where Janie took him was a small corral in the back of a fenced-in lot on a darkened corner. Since there were no lamps on the street and no lights in any of the nearby windows, Clint felt as if he’d left the town’s limits altogether. There was hardly anything inside the small building where Janie took him, apart from a few bales of hay and an old mule in the far corner.
“Not quite alone,” Clint said as he nodded toward the mule, “but it seems close enough.”
“It’s just fine,” Janie said as she pressed herself against him and pulled Clint’s shirt out from under the waistband of his pants. “Because I don’t want to wait another second.”
Janie’s hands slipped under Clint’s shirt and her fingernails raked against his skin. She kissed him urgently and even chewed gently on his bottom lip.
While Janie ran her tongue along Clint’s mouth and unbuttoned his shirt, Clint was keeping busy as well. He moved his hands along her hips, sliding them all the way up until he could feel the ample curves of her breasts. He then eased his hands back down again to cup her plump backside.
Unbuckling Clint’s belt, Janie let out a loud sigh. “It feels like you don’t mind me being so forward,” she said while stroking his erection through his jeans.
“Not in the least,” Clint replied. “I hope you don’t mind some of the same.” Before he got a reply to that, Clint hiked up her skirts and slipped his hands beneath them.
Not only did Janie allow him to go on, but she leaned back and raised one leg to grant him easier access to the warm place between her legs.
Clint backed her up against a wall so Janie could wrap both her legs around him. Holding her up to waist level using both hands, Clint felt her mouth on his lips again and again as Janie became more and more excited. Finally, she brought her legs back down so she could stand on her own.
“Take that gun off,” she ordered.
Clint smirked and unbuckled his belt. “Yes, ma’am.”
Janie pulled his jeans down and grabbed onto his cock with both hands. She then dropped to her knees and sucked on him as if he was a stick of candy. As her head bobbed between his legs, she reached up to run her fingertips along his chest.
For a minute or two, Clint watched her lick and suck on him with a passion that only grew as time went by. He then reached down to grab her by the arms and help her to her feet.
Wearing a sexy pout, Janie said, “But I wasn’t finished yet.”
“Neither am I,” he told her while turning her around. “Not by a long shot.”
She looked over her shoulder and kept her eyes on him as she was turned around toward a stack of hay bales. When she felt Clint rub her hips through her dress, Janie arched her back and let out a slow moan. As soon as she felt Clint start to pull her skirts up again, Janie helped out by hiking them up around her waist and spreading her legs in a wide stance.
“Oh God, Clint. This is so . . .” Her breath along with the rest of her words was taken away when she felt Clint enter her from behind.
His rigid cock slid easily into her wet pussy. Clint held onto her hips with one hand, while holding her skirts up with other. She wore black stockings with little red bows at the back; both of which stood in stark contrast to her soft, luminescent skin. As he pushed all the way inside of her, he saw Janie lean forward until she was almost resting her chest flat upon the bales of hay.
As Clint started pumping in and out of her faster, he looked down at the smooth, pale skin of her thighs. Her plump backside felt soft and warm as he bumped against her. When he slipped every last inch of his cock inside of her, he could feel Janie’s body clenching around him.
“Yes,” she whispered as she grabbed onto the hay bale. “Just like that. Don’t stop.”
Clint ran one hand along the small of Janie’s back and kept his other hand on her backside. That way, when he pumped in and out of her, he could feel her squirming and wriggling against him. Before too long, she’d adjusted to his rhythm and began rocking back against him.
Propping herself up on her elbows, Janie tossed her red hair over one shoulder and looked back at Clint. She locked eyes with him and bared her teeth in something that was part smile and part snarl. When Clint buried his cock deep within her, she gritted her teeth and dug her fingers into the hay.
Clint pulled out of her and spun her around. Noticing how much she liked being handled that way, he didn’t say a word before lifting her up so she could sit on the edge of the bales.
Spreading her legs open wide, Janie wrapped them around Clint’s waist and pulled him in. She didn’t kiss him, but stared up into his eyes as she guided his penis into her with both hands. Once he was inside, she leaned back and held herself up with both arms.
Lifting her skirts, Clint got a good look at the soft hair between Janie’s legs. It was every bit as fiery as the hair on her head, making the skin of her inner thighs seem even more like fresh cream. As he eased into her, Clint saw Janie reach down to hold herself open for him.
Her fingers brushed against the lips of her pussy to allow him to penetrate her more easily. Rather than take her fingers away, she rubbed tiny circles around the little nub of her clitoris and moaned softly.
Clint drove into her a few times before sliding his hand along her leg. When he got close to her right knee, he saw Janie snap her eyes open and lean forward.
“Not there,” she insisted in a breathy voice. Taking his hand in hers, she guided him back up to the bare skin between her legs. “There.”
Allowing himself to be guided by her, Clint watched her expression change as his fingers brushed against her pussy. It would have been more accurate to say the expression she’d been wearing before melted into one of complete ecs
tasy.
Once Clint’s hand was rubbing her the right way, Janie peeled down the front of her dress to reveal her breasts. They were small, but nicely curved. The skin of her nipples was so pale that it barely stood out. Her nipples were standing out plenty, however, and were hard to the touch.
Clint began sliding in and out of her in long, slow strokes. He pulled back until he was almost out of her before sliding all the way in again. When he buried himself in her, he moved his hand up along her belly to feel every one of her quick, excited breaths. From there, he moved his hand down again to feel her thigh.
Janie lay back and enjoyed what he was doing until she felt Clint’s hand drift toward her knee. She immediately wrapped her legs around him and pumped her hips in a way meant to drive any man out of his mind.
While Clint couldn’t ignore the effect she was having on him, he was intent on peeling down her stocking. Janie stopped him with a quick hand and a stern tone in her voice.
“I hurt my knee, Clint,” she said while guiding his hand back between her thighs. “You touch me so good right there.”
But Clint grinned and pulled his hand out of her grasp. He pumped into her once more, driving deep enough to take her breath away. Before she could fill her lungs again, he pulled down her right stocking to reveal the slender knife sheathed close to her knee.
“What about there?” he asked.
THIRTY-SIX
Janie made a grab for the knife that was almost quick enough. Despite his current situation between her legs, Clint was able to think straight enough to rip the knife away and tear the top of her stocking in the process.
But Janie wasn’t through. She pulled in both legs and planted one foot against Clint’s chest. After shoving him back, she attempted to drive her heel into Clint’s chin. All Clint had to do was lean forward and a bit to one side in order to avoid the incoming kick. Once he was in between her legs again and pinning her against the hay bale, there wasn’t a whole lot for her to do.
“Is this how you need to get a woman?” she snapped. “Force yourself on her in a dirty stable?”
Clint laughed and shook his head. “It wasn’t my idea to come in here, and you seemed pretty happy about it a little while ago.”
“Yeah, well a lot can change in a short amount of time.”
“Yes,” Clint said as he looked at the knife he’d found. “It sure can.”
Scowling at him, Janie tried to scoot back but was stopped when her shoulders bumped against the wall. “Are you going to give me some space or are you going to force me to lay here while you finish?”
Clint stepped back slowly. “So long as you behave, we can both make ourselves a little more presentable.”
“And after that?”
“After that, we talk.”
Janie nodded. “Fine.”
True to his word, Clint stepped back a little more until he was just out of her kicking range. He kept his eyes on her as he pulled his jeans back up and she got her skirt situated properly. When Clint bent down to pick up his gun belt, he saw Janie start to move like a bird that had been flushed from its hiding spot.
Clint was just fast enough to reach out and grab her arm before she could pluck the Colt from its holster. This time, he tossed her back with more force. Most of that force was still absorbed by the hay bale when Janie landed with a thump on her backside.
“Damn,” Clint said. “That was impressive. I’ll bet that kind of speed has gotten you out of plenty of bad spots.”
Janie didn’t say anything. Instead, she just locked her eyes on him with a venomous glare.
Clint kept one hand on his gun and flipped Janie’s knife in the other. “So,” he said, “how long have you been working with this killer?”
Janie didn’t flinch. She blinked a few times, but it seemed forced and put on for Clint’s benefit. “What killer?”
“The one who lit that fire.”
She laughed once and started to get up. Stopping when she saw the warning look on Clint’s face, she shook her head and said, “I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”
“You’re working with him,” Clint stated. “I know it, so there’s no reason to hide it.”
“You don’t know anything.”
Nodding as he settled himself against a wall, Clint said, “All right, then. I’ll tell you what I do know. First of all, you knew my name when I didn’t ever introduce myself properly.”
“You did when we first met. You just don’t recall because of everything else that was happening.”
“Fine. Second, you’re still alive.”
“And you’re holding that against me?” she scoffed.
“After what I’ve seen of that killer, you’re damn right I am. I’ve tangled with that animal more than once and I can tell you he’s not the sort who takes prisoners. He doesn’t need to.”
“I walked by and saw what he was doing,” she explained. “That’s why he grabbed me.”
“He wanted folks to see that fire, and you weren’t enough to keep him from lighting it. I wasn’t even enough to stop him from doing that much. That man fears nothing, and he surely isn’t the sort to hide behind an innocent woman. Besides, he only grabbed you after I showed up. What were you doing before then?”
Janie shook her head. “You’re crazy. To think I would ever want to touch you.”
“What did you say he said to you?” Clint asked.
“That he wanted to see me burn.”
“Then why didn’t he knock you out and throw you onto the pool of kerosene he’d just made?”
“You’ll have to ask him that,” Janie replied.
“I will. But first, I’d like you to tell me where I can find him.”
She shook her head again and muttered, “You truly are crazy.”
“Then why don’t you just go home?” Snapping his fingers, Clint added, “That’s right. Because you don’t live here.”
“And whatever made you come up with that?”
“I followed you after we parted ways the first time.”
Janie blinked and did a good job of looking confused, but she wasn’t quite good enough to hide the mix of surprise and panic in her eyes.
“And before you spout off some more lies,” Clint said, “I’ll have you know I saw you go to that house on the other end of town.”
“And how do you know it wasn’t mine?”
“I didn’t. At least, not right away. I was a bit suspicious after I saw how the killer treated you, so I followed you. It seemed odd that you would lead me in one direction and then go in another, but I figured you might just be cautious. Then, I saw the killer standing at one of the windows looking outside like he was wishing upon a star. After all the hiding you two must have done, I would have thought he’d know enough to stay out of sight.”
Janie shook her head, but couldn’t think of what to say. Her eyes darted to the gun at Clint’s side and then fixed upon the knife in his hand.
“You want this blade so bad you can taste it,” Clint said. “Not exactly fitting for an innocent woman, now is it?”
“Go to hell,” Janie hissed.
Now Clint shook his head. It was the only part of him that moved. Just as she was starting to look away from him, he lunged forward to grab her chin in one hand and hold her knife to her throat with the other.
“What are you . . . ?” she shouted.
Clint’s eyes were narrowed to fiery slits. All he needed to do was cock his head a bit to let her know that she needed to quiet down.
In a whisper, she asked, “What are you doing?”
“You’re a good liar,” Clint said. “You’re also not a bad fighter. Those kinds of talents don’t just sprout up from nowhere.” He pressed the blade to her neck at an angle that put more of the flat portion of it against her skin, but stared at her as if he was about to open her throat. “And this knife isn’t the sort of thing someone carries around in case of emergencies.”
“You won’t kill me,” she whisp
ered.
“I saw you with him,” Clint said. “I couldn’t hear what you were saying, but you two were friendly enough. We’re looking for more than one killer, and you may just be the other one we’re after. That means you’re already dead. After all those deaths in all those fires, you’ll hang for sure.”
Janie sneered at him as if she was about to spit. “Then why should I say anything to you?”
“Because you’ll pray to take your chances with a judge the moment I get started in on you if you don’t start telling me everything I need to know about who you are and who that big fellow is.”
Janie glared defiantly at Clint, but couldn’t find the first hint that he was lying. In fact, the longer she stared at him, the more she wanted to look away. Finally, she did look away.
“My real name is Elizabeth,” she said and sighed.
Clint nodded and eased up on the blade a bit. “That’s a good start.”
THIRTY-SEVEN
There was a knock on Bower’s door.
The Texas Ranger was slow to answer it, but he eventually opened the door just enough for him to look outside. Seeing the man standing there, he let out a tired sigh. “I just got through watching that street, Adams. Can’t you let me get some sleep?”
“I’ve got a present for you,” Clint said with a smile.
The statement was just odd enough to make Bower think he might be dreaming. “What did you say?”
Clint stepped aside a bit, allowing Bower to see that he was dragging something along with him. Actually, he was dragging someone, and that someone wasn’t very happy. Elizabeth’s arms were tied behind her back by shreds of velvet. Her dress was also missing several inches off the bottom of the skirt.
“This little lady is one of the killers you’ve been chasing,” Clint said.
Bower pulled his door open and stepped aside so Clint could enter. “She’s the one that was being held prisoner, isn’t she?”
“Yes,” Elizabeth said with half of a sob in her voice. “And I’m still a prisoner. Please—”
“She’s also the one who tried to kill me,” Clint cut in as he held out the knife he’d taken from her. “With this.”
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