Tender Trust

by Tanya Stowe

  Small again. Most of the men were regulars who were gathered around the bar where Alex served drinks.

  He wore black garters to keep his loose sleeves tight against his arms. The low collar of his shirt was buttoned all the way up and his dark hair combed straight back. He didn’t look anything like the gentleman who’d walked into her saloon last night. He looked just as comfortable behind the bar as he’d looked in white tie and tails.

  Jewel walked towards her.

  “You look better than you have in a week,” Penny said.

  Jewel fingered some glasses on her tray. “I feel better. Max hasn’t showed and I’m glad he’s gone. He made me uncomfortable. But the idea of tending bar made me more uncomfortable. The temptation to drink was strong.”

  Penny touched her hand. “I would never have put you in that position, Jewel. I’m sorry you even had to think about it.”

  “Don’t be sorry. You’ve done more than anyone else to help me get back on my feet. The least I can do is stay sober when you need help.”

  “You’ve done all the work. I’ve just been a shoulder to lean on once in a while.”

  “Yeah, sure.” Sarcasm hung heavy in her tone. “Well, thanks to your—to him,” she said with a chin-jut towards the bar. “All I have to do is serve.”

  “How’s he doing?”

  “He’s good. The men seem to like him. He’s better company than Max.”

  “Anyone is better company than Max.”

  Jewel allowed a smile to ease over her lips. “That’s the truth, but Alex has a sense of humor and he talks. You know how men love to drink and preach politics. Max doesn’t even know what the word means. Alex is good at it.”

  Just then, Jann hurried towards them with a tray full of glasses. When he saw Penny, a grin swept over his features.

  “Look at me, Aunt Penny,” he whispered. “Look at what I’m doing. Alex says I’m the best helper he’s ever had.”

  “Good for you, Jann. Good for you.” Overwhelmed by his happiness, Penny bit her tongue and patted his arm.

  As he hurried back to his job, Penny met Jewel’s gaze. “How does Inga feel about this?” she asked.

  “How do you think?”

  “Wonderful.” Penny’s tone indicated the opposite. “I guess this means I’m in for it tomorrow morning.”

  “Don’t let her get to you, Penny. Jann has been a big help to Alex and me. The less contact I have with the drinks, the better.”

  “Does this mean you approve of Alex being here?”

  “I know it’s hard on you, but look at Jann’s face. Have you ever seen him happier?”

  She hadn’t. And she’d never seen Jewel so relaxed.

  Alex made everyone happy. The dangerous thing came after…when he was gone. Penny rubbed her forehead. “I guess I’d better go talk to him.”

  Alex walked towards her from the other end of the gleaming mahogany counter. His gaze covered her, from the top of her head, to where her hands rested on the polished wood. He looked at her as if he had the right, as if he knew every detail of her features and checked for changes.

  Penny squirmed beneath his gaze and desperately hoped no one else observed it.

  “You look…nice.” His voice was pitched low so only she could hear. His tone held no pretense, no games. Alex enjoyed looking at her.

  Some deep core of feminine awareness sparked to life inside her. It fluttered and flared, and she was aware of it instantly. She hadn’t felt it in years, thought it dead and burned out. Other men found her attractive, had tried to make her feel something—anything—and failed. She’d believed herself incapable of experiencing it again. Now Alex had awakened it with one look.

  “Your hair’s loose,” he murmured.

  Flustered, she lifted a hand to the dragging coil at the back of her head. “I…I can’t find my pins.”

  His tilted smile was so knowing, so compelling, it made Penny want to know his secret.

  “I like it loose,” he said. “In fact, I like to see it down.”

  “Don’t get any ideas. That won’t happen.”

  Alex paused and looked around. They were at the end of the bar. No one was close. He leaned towards her.

  “Are you warning me off…again?”

  “You know I am. What happened before was a mistake. I was in shock. It won’t happen again.”

  A man further down the bar slapped a coin on the counter. “Can I get a refill here?”

  Alex emptied the last of the bottle into the man’s glass. “I’ll have to get another bottle.”

  “I’ll get it.” Penny jumped at the chance to do something, to get away. Grabbing the lamp on the bar, she hurried towards the store room, unlocked the door and slipped in, searching for the case of whiskey. As she lifted the bottle from a straw-filled crate, the door clicked.

  Alex came in and shut the door.

  “What do you think you’re doing? People will notice.”

  “Let them. I’m not going to keep up this farce for much longer, anyway. You’re my wife, Penny—a woman, not a walking, living saint.”

  “If you knew anything, you’d know I need to be a saint. I have to be an example for my daughter. I have a reputation to uphold and a past to live down. I can’t afford to be anything but a saint.”

  “You can be a child of God, Penny. Created to be loved.”

  Penny stared at him, startled, bemused. Laughter burst from her. “A child of God? I’m the daughter of a whore, created in a San Francisco whorehouse by one of many men. My mother forgot to get his name.”

  “God doesn’t care.”

  “Tell them that.” She pointed outside the door. “Tell them God loves me. Or better yet, tell your banker friend Ardmore I’m a child of God. Then we’ll see how your business grows.”

  Grasping the bottle of whiskey, she pushed past him, but he stopped her.

  He gripped her waist with his bad arm, wrapped his other around her and dragged her to his chest.

  She was shocked by the strength of his injured hand.

  “I don’t care about my business or what they think. I know I’m loved and my God wants me to have what I need. I need you and my daughter.” He gave her a little shake and the tight coil of her hair tumbled down her back. “You can go on for a little while longer pretending you’re Saint Penny, the prettiest piece of marble I’ve ever seen. You can wear your collars buttoned up and your hair bound tight to your head so men won’t see the fire and gold and yearn to touch it. You can even wear brown every day to honor a dead man. But I’m alive, Penny. We’re both alive and I’m going to prove it to you!” He bent towards her.

  Penny made a small sound as she realized he was going to kiss her, but that didn’t stop him.

  He was surprisingly gentle for someone so determined. After his harsh words, he touched her tenderly, as if her lips were a gift, a treasure.

  Still, she sealed them tight and stood rigid in his embrace. But it had been a long, long time since Penny had felt like a treasure, really felt as if a kiss was a gift from a man to a woman. The tenderness of his lips on hers eased her rigidity. Her body loosened.

  Alex cradled her close to his chest. He kissed her again in a soft, wanting way that made Penny feel as if she was cherished and alive. So very much alive.

  Against her will, she leaned in to him.

  His hold tightened; the kiss deepened.

  She should have shoved him away, but she couldn’t. She sensed if she wanted him to stop, he would. He held himself under tight control. She ran her fingers over his shoulders and upper arms and could feel the taut set of his muscles just above the garters.

  Garters. Black garters with lace. Her missing garters!

  Alex had worn her garters to tend bar. Everyone in the saloon had seen him wearing her undergarments.

  Outrage exploded inside her and she shoved him away.

  “How could you?” She stumbled back. “How could you wear my garters in front of Jann and Jewel and my…my customers!” />
  He grinned. “Now just how would they know these lovely little things belong to you?” He flicked the lacy edge of one with his finger. “Someone else been seein’ your garters, Miz Penny?”

  It was the first hint of Alex’s Southern accent Penny had heard since he’d returned. It jolted her like lightning. She refused to give in to it. “No, of course not.”

  “Well, if no one has seen them, then no one will know they’re yours. It’ll be our secret, yours and mine. One of many to come, from the sounds of it.” All humor and pleasure left his tone as he said the last. He took the bottle from Penny, turned, and walked out.

  ****

  As Alex walked towards the bar, he tore the paper off the cap and twisted. He couldn’t hold back his frustration as he tossed the paper to the floor and tilted the bottle over the glass. Liquor splashed out onto the hand of the man with the glass.

  “Easy, boy, easy. No point in wasting good whiskey.”

  Alex took a deep breath, eased his emotions into place, and smiled.

  “A smiling face is a welcome change from Max’s sour trap.” The man leaned heavily on the counter in front of Alex. He’d just walked in the door but his breath was already liquor-laced.

  “Max, the old barkeep?” Alex asked.

  The man rubbed a chin heavy with unshaved gray stubble. “Yep. He was the worst. He couldn’t remember my drink, and I’m one of Penny’s best customers.”

  Alex studied the frayed edges of the man’s shirtsleeve and the grimy union suit beneath his unbuttoned collar. Frequent customer? Probably. Best? Alex seriously doubted it. “Well, I guarantee I’ll remember if you give me a name to go with it.”

  “Brady Calhoun.”

  He was the man Jann had called mean. Curious, Alex studied Brady. His eyes were blue, but filmy. His nose was red and bulbous from too much drink. As Brady talked, his gaze slanted around the room.

  Puzzled by his actions, Alex grabbed the bottle and unscrewed the cap for a drink on the house. “So tell me, Brady, if this Max was such a lousy barkeep, what kept you coming to The Copper Penny?”

  A sly, almost predatory look slid into his gaze. “Clean glasses. Good whisky and the finest lookin’ women in town.” As he spoke, he turned. With one elbow on the bar, he leaned back and sipped his drink as his gaze drifted across the room.

  Jewel was bent over a table. Her black gown was modest by saloon standards, but still the high neck revealed the curves of her breasts as she set glasses on a wooden tray. She didn’t smile or even talk to the men, but her movements were slow and inherently graceful. Her fragile eloquence was compelling.

  “Just watching her does things to you, don’t it?”

  Alex didn’t reply.

  “I been watchin’ her since she first came to town. ‘Course, she was Holloway’s woman then, and he’s one mean cuss.”

  Alex gave a start, but quickly controlled his surprise.

  “Once,” Brady continued, “I seen him slice a man’s face just for tryin’ to touch her. But he sure liked us to look. He’d dress her up in them fine, sparkling gowns and parade her around on his arm, darin’ anyone to come close. I used to think it might be worth the risk to feel her sweet little body up next to mine.” He inhaled with a slow whistle.

  Alex clamped down the anger building inside him. Brady’s attitude was exactly what Penny had talked about. The last thing Alex needed was for Brady Calhoun to confirm her point. Alex glanced around to locate Penny. She was all the way across the room, her hair woven back into its tight bun.

  “If Holloway was so protective, why’d he let Jewel go?” Alex’s tone was quiet.

  “Didn’t. She ran off. Straight into the arms of Miss Copper Penny herself.” Brady laughed and the sound of it grated on Alex. “Weren’t no safer place than those arms, neither.”

  “What do you mean?” Alex recognized the low, dangerous tone in his own voice.

  But Brady had had too much to drink to be cautious. He glanced up, his features sly. “Miss Penny keeps herself and everyone around her on the straight and narrow.” He studied Alex over his uplifted glass. “Everybody knows that. Unless, maybe you know somethin’ we don’t.”

  Alex had had enough of Brady. Screwing the lid on the bottle he placed it back on the shelf. “I know how to pour drinks and mind my own business.”

  Brady chuckled again. “Just the same. A good lookin’ fellow like you shows up and just steps into a job some men in town would give anything to have.”

  “What’s so special about this job?”

  “Two things. A brunette and a redhead all in one night. It makes a man’s head reel just thinkin’ about it.”

  Alex’s jaw clenched. “Not mine. I’m not so hard up to waste time dreaming about things that aren’t going to happen.” He turned his back as if the conversation was over.

  “I ‘spect that’s true. But it does make for a pretty picture,” Brady said in a low wistful voice. “But then, there’s the money.”

  Alex paused. “What money?”

  “Holloway’s. He wants to know everything about Miss Penny and her place, and he’s offerin’ cold hard cash to anyone with somethin’ to tell. I figure someone in your position could find plenty to tell.”

  Shock filtered through Alex. Holloway paid anyone on the street for information about The Copper Penny. No wonder the women here were so mistrustful.

  But why? What was Holloway looking for? Or worse, trying to do? His gaze narrowed as he studied Brady over the counter.

  “So tell me, if I do have some information, where would I go to get the money?”

  “Holloway’s place. The Crown Jewel, just down the street.”

  Alex gave another start. He’d wondered if Jewel had been precious to anyone. Obviously, he was closer to the truth than he knew.

  “Or…” Brady didn’t notice Alex’s silence. “I could deliver it for you, so’s not to rouse suspicions here.”

  “What’s in it for you?”

  Brady’s gaze drifted across the room, back towards Jewel. “Well now, I’m sure we could think of somethin’ if we put our heads together.”

  6

  Penny closed the door behind the last customer and turned the lock. She took a deep breath, thankful that this night had finally ended.

  She’d seen Alex talking to Brady and since then, Alex had been shooting daggers at her with every look. The last thing she wanted was to be alone with him. She’d purposely stayed away from the bar area, spending her time socializing with the customers and sending Jewel after their drinks. As a result, Jewel was exhausted.

  A pang of guilt swept over Penny as she watched her beautiful friend wipe down a nearby table. She was so weary, she stooped over the table like an old lady.

  Penny’s gaze shot to the bar where Alex washed the last of the glasses. He’d sent Jann to bed an hour ago and now worked at his own, slow pace.

  Penny took a short, shallow breath. “I’ll finish up, Alex. Why don’t you head on back to the hotel?”

  Alex looked at Jewel. His gaze returned to Penny. “I’m fine. Why don’t you send Jewel to bed?”

  Penny bit her lips. Outmaneuvered, she took the washcloth from Jewel’s hand. “Let me do this.”

  Jewel hung on to the cloth. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, I’m sure. Go on.”

  Jewel went up the stairs and Penny heard the click of her door as it closed.

  Penny bent to wipe the closest table.

  Alex was beside her before she could even finish. “Exactly what’s going on with Holloway?”

  He stood so close, Penny was forced to step back. “I don’t know what you mean.” She skirted around him to the next table.

  He grasped her arm and spun her around to face him. “We have enough problems without these games, Penny. Now tell me why Holloway’s paying men on the street for information about you.”

  Startled, she stared, a little afraid now that she had the truth confirmed. “Who told you that?”

 
“It doesn’t matter. What matters is why is he doing it. What does he want?”

  “What does any man like him want? More money and power.”

  “Why has he targeted you and The Copper Penny?”

  “Maybe because he thinks I’m a woman and vulnerable.”

  “You are vulnerable. You have a child to protect.”

  She couldn’t hide the surprise that swept through her.

  Alex grasped her arm again. “Has he said something about Lexie?” His tone was dangerous, low.

  “No…no.” She shook her head. “He just knows I want to leave Bodie, to sell. He claims he’s the only buyer I’ll get.”

  Alex studied her for a long moment. “Do you believe him?”

  “I think he can do it. He has that kind of power here on Bonanza Street.”

  Alex stepped back, putting a chair between them. Carefully he placed his hands around the top knobs and twisted, striving for patience.

  Penny had the distinct feeling he wished it was her neck in his hands.

  “Why didn’t you want to tell me any of this?”

  “Because it’s my problem. My saloon.” She paused. “Alex, you need to understand. I left everything for you. You wanted to provide for me, and I let you. And then suddenly, you were gone. I didn’t know how to take care of myself, what to do. I was lost, just like I was when my mother left.” She could see by his expression that she’d surprised him with that comment.

  She let the words sink in before she said very carefully, “I felt alone and helpless. It happened to me twice, Alex. It’s never going to happen to me again. I’ve worked hard to build this place. Just because you showed up doesn’t mean I’m going to hand it over to you.”

  “I wouldn’t ask you to do that. You don’t know me if you think I would.”

  “That’s the point, Alex. It’s been five long years. I don’t know you anymore. I’ve changed. You’ve changed.”

  A tilted smile twisted his lips. “Your feelings have changed, that’s pretty obvious, but I’m the same.”

  She wasn’t going to tell him how she really felt, that he could still shake her world and make her want to believe. Instead, she stood her ground. “You’ve changed.”