In her white cotton nightdress, her hair loose and tumbled around her face and shoulders, she looked impossibly young and innocent. He brushed a curl back from her cheek, just grazing her skin, and she sighed, murmuring his name.
Case felt something twist in his chest and he quickly stepped away, going into Emily’s room to check on his daughter. Satisfied she was sleeping soundly, he tucked the blankets up around her and gently kissed her forehead before leaving her to her dreams.
At Katlyn’s side he again hesitated, then touched her shoulder and softly said her name.
Her eyes fluttered open and she blinked sleepily. When she focused on him she bolted upright in the chair. “Oh, thank heavens you’re back. What happened? It sounded so awful down there, I’ve been having nightmares.”
Case gave her a brief, humorless smile. He sat heavily in the chair next to her, leaning his head against the chair back. “Everything is quiet, and that’s the best I can say for it right now.”
Fully awake now, Katlyn took in how tired and battered he looked. A bruise was beginning to darken the side of his jaw, and the knuckles of both his hands were scraped and bleeding.
Any awkwardness she might have felt, being alone with him, dressed only in her nightgown, after what had happened between them earlier, instantly vanished.
“Case—” She knelt beside his chair. “What happened?”
He shifted in his chair to look at her and she saw his involuntary wince of pain. Katlyn frowned but he shrugged it off.
“It’s nothing. I need to learn to duck.”
“You’re a bad liar. I hope whoever did this looks worse than you.”
“Gar. He decided to pay us another visit.” Case told her as briefly as possible, skimming over the damage to the downstairs rooms, although he knew she guessed from what he didn’t say how bad it was.
“The sheriff has them now,” he finished. “But they’ve shut us down for a few weeks at least. The saloon is the worst, which means we’re both out of business.” He shoved a hand through his hair, shaking his head. “I just hope we can survive this. It’s going to take a helluva lot of time and money to repair everything.”
Case looked at her fully, trying to gauge her reaction. Her face told him nothing. She remained motionless beside him, her hand on his arm. “Look, I’m sorry, I know you didn’t expect any of this when you agreed to come here.”
He waited and still she stayed silent, her eyes abstracted as if she were lost in thought. “Katlyn—”
“Yes, I was thinking…there’s probably space in the dining room, although it would take some maneuvering,” she said more to herself than him. “Tuck will probably complain but that can’t be helped. If we—”
She broke off as Case started to laugh, holding a hand to his aching ribs. “What is it?”
“I’m sorry.” Though it tasted bitter, the laughter eased the tight knot of tension in him enough for him to appreciate Katlyn’s stubborn optimism. “But only you would start making plans to renovate the dining room sitting here in your nightgown at 3:00 a.m., with the downstairs of my hotel practically in ruins. You truly are a treasure, Katlyn McLain.”
“You need a drink,” she said, secretly smiling to herself as she went to pour him a generous measure of whiskey. She waited until he’d drunk it back before insisting on tending to his various scrapes and bruises.
“I’m only just beginning to realize how talented you are,” Case said, as she finished binding up his ribs.
“My half sister is a healer. I guess I learned a thing or two when I lived with her,” she said, pulling snug the last wrap of bandage. She tried to keep her mind on nursing and not how good it felt to put her arms around him. Without his shirt, the sleek, hard muscle she’d pressed herself against just a few short hours ago was clearly defined, inviting her exploration.
She sharply reprimanded herself for her straying thoughts, especially now, and focused on completing her task as quickly as possible. “I’m hardly as talented as either Isabel or Dr. Garrett. You’d be much better off with either of them. But I’m all you’ve got tonight.”
“I’m not complaining.”
When she straightened to move away from him, Case caught her hand and with a quick tug, pulled her into his lap.
He covered her mouth with his, silencing her yelp of surprise as he took advantage of her parted lips to kiss her deeply. The feel of Katlyn in his arms, warm and vibrant and responsive, kept at bay the black despondency he felt weighing on him, knowing the worst of what waited for him downstairs.
He wanted to bury himself in her sweetness, to forget for a few hours that, this time, nothing and no one might be able to rescue the St. Martin.
Caught defenseless, Katlyn tried to slow her slide into complete surrender. But with the feel of him under her hands, skin to skin, she knew it would be like trying to stop a runaway train.
“Case,” she gasped as he worked free the first buttons of her high-necked gown and pushed the material aside to kiss her bared shoulder.
Case released two more buttons. He kissed the hollow of her throat, spellbound by the enticing whisper of lilac that clung there. “I need you, Katlyn. My beautiful songbird.”
His words tore Katlyn’s heart.
To know he needed her evoked a sweetness so intense it almost hurt.
To be reminded of her duplicity stabbed her with shame.
She put her hands between them, stopping his tormenting caresses. “I—I can’t…Case, not here. I’m not—and Emily…”
Floundering for the right words, she couldn’t meet his eyes when he pulled back to look at her. “I want…but not now. Not with everything—” Katlyn stopped, finally giving up. There was no way she could explain without telling him the truth. Her eyes pleaded for understanding.
Case stared at her, still bemused by the lingering sensual haze. He let her slip out of his arms and take a few unsteady steps away. “Katlyn—”
She turned her back to him as she fumbled with the buttons of her gown. When she looked back at him the misery on her face brought Case up out of his chair to her side.
“I won’t apologize for wanting to make love to you,” he said bluntly. “But this was the wrong time and place.”
Color stained her pale cheeks but she held her ground. “Maybe it will never be right. I’m not who you think I am.”
“I know the woman I want. And it will be right.” He touched her cheek as if memorizing the curve of her face. “I promise you that. Because no matter how much you try to run from it, you want this as much as I do.”
The first pale tendrils of dawn threaded through the cracks in the saloon windows as Case heaved a heavy oak table back onto its pedestal leg. He straightened and tried to ignore the ache in his ribs. Raking a hand through his hair, he took a long hard look at the remains of the saloon.
The damage was bad enough. It would take every cent he had left and far more to make repairs.
Worse, he didn’t know if he could put the St. Martin back together and pay his staff at the same time. Becky and Bucky, Sally, Tuck, Bat—they all depended on the salary he paid.
And Katlyn, his songbird who sacrificed to save every penny to help her friend. What would she do when she discovered the full scope of the ruin?
One way or another, he would make certain that she and the others wouldn’t have to worry. Righting a chair beside the table, Case decided the long night, toiling in the stench of sour whiskey, the wreckage of broken glass and splintered wood, had at least made one thing clear. If he had to sell his soul, everyone who depended on him would be paid and paid on time.
Katlyn stood in the doorway of the saloon, watching Case test the unsteady balance of a damaged table, her heart in her throat. A dark bristle of beard shadowed his jaw, partly concealing the bruise there, and he looked disheveled.
She could tell he hadn’t slept. And she knew why. Even from a distance, she read his thoughts as though they were her own. It wasn’t the broken table at his f
ingertips or even his hotel commanding his attention now.
He was worrying far more about his daughter, and about everyone who worked for him, everyone who counted on him, everyone he was responsible for. Her eyes blurred with tears. The success of the St. Martin meant everything to him yet his concern was for the people he had adopted and given a place to belong, a purpose, a reason to be proud.
“Oh, Case…”
She hadn’t realized she’d spoken his name until Case turned toward her voice. “Katlyn.” He glanced around him, then gave her a twisted smile. “Not exactly a setting for respectable guests.”
“I didn’t realize this was so—” She followed his gaze around the broken room and couldn’t keep the dismay from her face.
Sidestepping the debris around them, Case moved to her side. He reached out and touched a gentle finger to her lips. “Don’t. There’s nothing to say.”
“But there is.” Katlyn put her hand over his and brushed a kiss against his palm. “There’s a great deal to say, and do.”
“Yes, and I’ll find a way to get it done,” Case murmured, distracted by her enticing caress. “I promise you that.”
“I don’t need a promise. I know you will. You’re a rare man, Case Durham. The sort of man I didn’t think existed.”
“Careful, or I’ll start to believe you.”
“You should. I’ve never known anyone like you.”
It was true. Her mother had warned her she couldn’t trust any man to act with his heart, but Case had proven Penelope wrong time and again.
From his loving care of an abandoned child to his concern for everyone who relied on him, he showed her daily the kind of man he was.
And, looking at him now, his hair ruffled as though he’d just rolled out of bed, his shirt carelessly unbuttoned and revealing a tempting mat of dark curls, his broad shoulders straining the material, he was so much more. He was everything male.
Everything any woman could want.
Everything she did not deserve.
“Don’t worry, Katlyn,” Case said, mistaking the emotion filling her eyes as fear. “I’ll take care of everything. You don’t have to wonder about your future, now or ever.”
“My future is the least of my worries right now. We’re going to start rebuilding, all of us.”
“Today?”
“Right now. I’ve looked at the damage to the rest of the hotel. This is by far the worst.”
“Can’t argue there.”
Squaring her shoulders and lifting her chin, Katlyn nodded briskly. “Then let’s not waste time reminding ourselves how terrible it is. We have more important things to talk over. I have an idea.”
Case laughed despite himself. “Why am I not surprised? Don’t you always?”
“Hear me out, please.”
“Do I have a choice?”
Hands on her hips, Katlyn raised a brow. “Do you still need to ask, Mr. Durham?”
Chapter Eleven
A loud gasp interrupted Katlyn’s explanation, and both she and Case turned to the door, where Becky and Bucky stood gaping at the destruction.
“It looks like a cattle drive come through here,’’ Bucky blurted. “Who got into a fight this time?”
He yelped when Becky dug her elbow into his ribs. “They don’t want to talk about fightin’ right now. Anyone with a brain can see that.”
“What anyone can see is we got us one helluva mess here,” Tuck said, he and Bat coming up behind the twins. Tuck pushed between them and gave the room a sweeping look. “Seems the devil had a party and invited all his friends. Everyone all right, Mr. Durham?”
Case waved the group inside. “As right as we’re going to be under the circumstances.” Briefly he told Tuck, Bat, and the twins about the night’s events. He’d barely finished when Becky asked to go check on the still-sleeping Emily. Case let her go with a nod, then turned back to the others. “And now Katlyn is about to reveal her master plan for putting us back in business.”
Katlyn glared at him, irritated at the sarcastic edge to his words. “Maybe you should save your judgment until you hear me out.”
“Maybe.” He looked at her a moment, then shoved a hand through his hair and offered her a tired smile. “Sorry, it’s been a long night.”
“I know,” Katlyn said softly. She touched his arm in understanding before facing the others again. “Okay, here’s what I have in mind. We can’t use the saloon, maybe not for weeks. But that doesn’t mean we’re out of business.”
“Could’ve fooled me,” Bat muttered, glancing around.
“It’s not going to be easy, but the dining room is more or less intact. If we all pitch in, we can have it back in decent shape by Friday night. I propose we offer a dinner show, like the big hotels in St. Louis and San Francisco do. Granted it’ll be quite a change, but my instincts tell me there are plenty of people who’ll be willing to pay a fine price for a fancy dinner and a fine show.”
Pleased with her spur-of-the-moment solution, Katlyn looked at the faces of the others in anticipation. Their expressions weren’t encouraging.
Bucky stared at her as if she’d lost her wits. Bat frowned and Tuck scratched his ear and made a harrumphing sound indicating his reluctance to tell her straight-out she was crazy.
Only the thoughtful expression in Case’s eyes offered any hint that at least he saw possibilities in her idea. “A dinner show. In Cimarron.”
“Well, yes. Why not?”
“Why might be a better question, Miss Katlyn,” Tuck answered for Case. “I never heard of such a thing in these parts.”
“It’s just a fancier way of entertaining people, that’s all. And it means we can ask for more money when they come in for the evening. Or, better yet, if we can draw from surrounding towns, they might stay the night. And it would only be temporary,” Katlyn quickly added in hopes of convincing them all, “until we can get the saloon opened again.”
“There are a lot of wealthy ranchers living outside this town whose wives rarely come to town because they don’t think there’s a decent place to go,” Case said, turning the idea over in his mind. “They’re the kinds of folks I’d hoped to appeal to when I bought this place. Lots of money and nowhere to spend it that’s less than a day or two ride.” Somehow, when Katlyn talked about it now, it didn’t seem as outrageous, as if the suggestion had come from someone else.
“Well, I’ve heard ’em say their women complain there’s no place around here worth dressing up for,” Bat added.
Katlyn nodded. A growing enthusiasm for her project fizzed through her veins. “We can change that. But we’ll need to get the word out to bring them in, advertise in the newspaper and post handbills. And we’ll have to work on some special menus.” She looked appealingly at Tuck.
“Now, Miss Katlyn, fancy food ain’t exactly my strong point.”
“You can do it, I know you can,” Katlyn said. “I’m no cook, but I’ve seen enough elegant dishes prepared to show you how to present them. With your wonderful cooking and my decorating, we can’t go wrong.”
Tuck gave up trying to resist her and grinned. “Well, if you think puttin’ ribbons and frills on my beans’ll bring ’em runnin’, then I’m willin’ to give it a try.”
“They take one look at this and they’ll be running for cover,” Sally said from the doorway. She pulled off her bonnet and picked her way around the overturned tables and chairs to stand next to the others. “What in the Lord’s name happened here?”
“Them rustlers happened,” Bucky said as she approached.
Briefly, Case told her about the fight.
Sally tsked, patted Bucky’s shoulder as if to assure herself he was all right. “I can’t say I’m surprised. That one fella was a mean-spirited sort. I saw it the minute I laid eyes on him. So what are we going to do now, Mr. Durham?”
Case looked at the people who were depending on him, one by one. All eyes fixed on him, waiting. Katlyn held her breath.
Leaning over slightly a
nd planting his hands on the back of a chair, he faced them all directly. “None of you should worry,” he began with a confidence he hoped sounded more far convincing than it felt. “You all have a place here. We may have to shut down for a while, but you’re still on my payroll.”
Katlyn watched him, her heart filled with an aching tenderness. His caring made her long to tell him here and now she would work for him without pay, help him rebuild his dream simply for the reward of seeing him succeed.
But her love for and duty to her mother put her in the most agonizing quandary she’d ever faced.
Beside her, Tuck slapped a hand down on a nearby table, nearly toppling it. “Well, you can count me in for the work but I ain’t gonna take a cent from you ’till there’s money comin’ in. I expect with Miss Katlyn behind us, that won’t be long.”
“We were doin’ fine before this,” Bat said. “Tuck’s right. Folks’ll be back just to hear Miss Katlyn sing.”
Bucky nodded a silent agreement. “Becky and me don’t need nothin’, either, Mr. Durham. We’ll get by. Just means Pa’ll have to find his own whiskey money fer a while,” he added with a laugh. “We’ll do just fine long as Tuck keeps feedin’ us.”
Case held up a hand. “No, I can’t let you—”
“Yes, you can,” Sally interrupted. “I’m with the others. Times have been lean before, and they’ll be lean again, we just make do. You’re a good man, Mr. Durham. There isn’t anyone else I’d rather work for. And my boys feel exactly the same way.” She laid a hand atop his and smiled. “At least we all know we always have a place to sleep if we need it.”
Katlyn wished the floor would open and swallow her whole. The others’ willingness to sacrifice for Case, and their belief in her should have been inspiring. Instead, she felt guilty and ashamed.
She so wanted to belong but any sense of her being a part of the family of the St. Martin was a charade, just like her singing and her reputation as Penelope Rose.
She realized everyone looked at her expectantly and hot color flowered on her face. Obviously they all expected her to echo them in refusing Case’s money until the hotel was back in business.
Cimarron Rose Page 12