“I don’t understand. I sent a written message to reserve a room and a detailed itinerary of when to expect my arrival. I received a confirmation. Why don’t you have a room available for me?” Annabel glared at the clerk, hoping the intimidation factor would help him see reason.
The clerk swallowed hard and stuck a bent finger inside the collar of his shirt, presumably to loosen it. “Well, ma’am, since the stagecoach was late, and because there are quite a few extra folks in town, well, it seems your room was mistakenly given away.”
“Given away? To whom?” Annabel shook her head deciding she didn’t want to know the identity of the person who’d mistakenly gotten her room. She just wanted them to leave. Now. The lengthy, bone-jarring travel in the stagecoach was enough to send any sane person screaming into an asylum. Annabel had held her sanity with the lone thought of a nice bed waiting for her upon her arrival. And now it had been given away?
“Never mind. I suggest you send someone to my room and oust them.”
“We can’t do that, ma’am. He’s already paid for the night and retired with his wife. It’s late, you understand?”
“Yes. I understand. The stagecoach got stuck several times in long, dried-up ruts along the trail today, and I arrived much later than I anticipated. However, I expected that my room would still be waiting for me. Besides, it’s not that late.”
“The policy is to rent the room if no one shows up as expected.” A righteous gleam came into his eyes. “What if you hadn’t shown up at all? Then we would have lost a perfectly good room rent.”
“And you didn’t think to check to see if the stagecoach had arrived first?” She threw her hands into the air in frustration. “Well, what am I supposed to do now?” She’d be sleeping on the dusty streets outside the hotel if they couldn’t find her a bed somewhere.
The clerk glanced over one shoulder at a doorway behind the polished wooden counter. The opening was covered with a dark curtain and pulled closed. “I don’t know, ma’am. All I know is that all the rooms are spoken for tonight.”
“Are you sure? There isn’t one single room available in this entire hotel?”
His cheeks suddenly turned red. Likely, there was a room available but not at the price she’d agreed to pay. If she were royalty and had the clout to back up a threat, the clerk would find her a room in no time.
She dug in her satchel until her fingers brushed against the edge of the paper inside and pulled it out. She held up the letter confirming her reservation. “This letter states a room would be waiting for me. If you won’t give me one, then I want to talk to the proprietor.” The nervous clerk bobbed his head in agreement and scurried off to find the man in charge. He ducked behind the curtain and pulled it closed again.
Such a bother. At her feet rested her oversized bag containing her weapons. She refused to let them out of her sight. If she didn’t get a room, she suspected the only place left for those travelers without a place to sleep included the church, if this town even had one, or impromptu camping outdoors. It wasn’t that she couldn’t sleep outside. She’d spent lots of nights in her life sleeping beneath the stars but simply hadn’t prepared for it on this particular trip.
Annabel rested an elbow on the waist-high counter and surveyed the lobby. The scent of linseed oil emanated from the wooden counter. The place seemed very clean and had come highly recommended by a friend from home. She would amend her own recommendation to include her reservation problem.
It wasn’t as if an overabundance of hotels existed in this town. It was fortunate they boasted even one. The only other “establishment” in this small township, a bordello at the opposite end of the dusty street, would not suffice. Given rumors she’d heard about such places, sleeping did not top the list of amenities. Rather, loud, rutting noises during the night through the paper thin walls transpired instead. If a house of ill repute would even admit her. They probably only allowed men through the doors.
The wide open entry to the dining room and bar area caught her attention as a very handsome blond man passed through the opening and headed to the counter where she waited. Well over six feet tall by her estimation, the man had hair the color of late summer wheat. As he walked closer, she got a look at his eyes and noticed the bright blue shade.
She wasn’t a short woman, but as he stood next to her, she was dwarfed by his size. She also couldn’t help but note his masculine scent. He smelled of leather, smoke, and a musky fragrance unique to desirable men. Alone for nearly four years now since her fiancé died, Annabel hadn’t ever been enticed by any males from her hometown. This man, however, ignited a long-forgotten feeling. The first man to stir her passion in so long, she’d almost forgotten it existed.
A shameful thought occurred in the form of a question. Would this man let her stay in his room if the hotel manager failed to find her one? If ever there was justified temptation, he defined it.
His smile revealed straight, white teeth and a surge of desire encompassed her, body and soul. She couldn’t seem to tear her gaze away from him until he asked, “Are you all right, ma’am?”
“I’m actually not. The hotel clerk gave away my room because the stagecoach was late, and I even had a reservation.”
His expression changed immediately from engaged to concerned. “I’m sorry to hear that.” He glanced at the curtained opening.
“The clerk went to retrieve the proprietor, but I don’t expect they can conjure a room out of thin air. The man who got my room is already sleeping in it with his wife. I live in hope that they might find a space for me on the roof.”
The blond man smiled at her joke and cleared his throat. “That’s unfortunate. If they can’t find a suitable room for you, and you don’t want to sleep under the stars on the roof, perhaps you’d allow me to offer you my room instead.”
Annabel wanted that more than anything else but only if he stayed. It was too bad she’d already decided that course of action would be inappropriate. She shook off the folly of spending the night with a stranger. She couldn’t possibly do that, could she?
No.
She couldn’t allow herself to get a reputation on this trip. Being labeled a disreputable woman along the way wouldn’t help her case once she got to the competition. She couldn’t take the chance that her fellow travelers weren’t headed to the same destination she was.
As much as she regretted it, she needed to sleep alone.
She shaped her lips into a frown. “No. I couldn’t let you do that. Where would you sleep? I can’t imagine the roof is very comfortable.” She offered a timid smile and tried to keep calm. It was also inappropriate to speculate over where a kind gentleman would sleep after offering her his room. Perhaps he could get into the whorehouse down the street, but the visual of him traveling there and away from her made her unhappy.
“Actually, I have a friend I can stay with in town. I only secured a room in case he was gone.”
“So your friend is in town?”
“I was just about to go and check, but even if he’s gone, I couldn’t enjoy my room knowing you were stranded without one and on the streets. Or on the roof.” His engaging smile made her heart flip over.
Annabel grinned. “But you don’t even know me.”
He leaned closer, and she got another whiff of his arousing scent before he extended his large hand. “My name is Dane Larsen.” She placed her hand within the warmth of his grip.
“I’m Annabel Wallace.”
“Now that we’re acquainted, please allow me to offer you my room tonight.” His mesmerizing gaze drilled through to her soul and with the added inducement of his touch, Annabel’s insides heated.
Reluctantly, she removed her hand from his grasp. “Perhaps the manager will discover a room, and you won’t have to relinquish yours.”
Dane moved closer. They practically touched. She didn’t have the wherewithal to ask him to move away, even though the meager distance between them was very indecent. “Regardless, I hope you’ll agree to
have dinner with me this evening. Then we can get to know each other even better.”
Annabel’s hunger had nothing to do with food but she nodded. “Thank you. I’d love to have dinner and get to know you even better.”
“Excellent.” He suddenly backed away a full step and as he did, the curtain parted to emit the nervous clerk and a red-faced, rotund man with a bushy dark mustache who’d obviously been pulled from his bed.
The proprietor didn’t mince any words. “Madam, we do not have any more rooms available. I don’t see what rousting me out of my bed accomplishes.”
Annabel held up the letter. “You promised to hold a room for me. It’s only eight o’clock in the evening. You shouldn’t have given my room to someone else. Now if I were someone important, like the city mayor or the governor of the state, I have no doubt you’d find a room suddenly available. Therefore, you can give that room to me.”
The manager smirked. “Are you the city mayor or the governor of the state?”
She pushed out a frustrated sigh. “That, sir, is not the point, and you know it.”
“We don’t have any rooms. Not even for someone important.” His gaze ran from her head to her hips and back again, and the expression on his face told her he didn’t find her important in the least. He looked back at Dane.
“Are you with the lady, sir?” His head tilted backwards to look her champion in the eyes.
“No. However, I’d like to relinquish my room for Miss Wallace, if you have no objections.” Dane towered over the two behind the counter. “I haven’t even taken my belongings up there as of yet.”
“I have no objections at all. Anything to get back to the comfort of my bed and back to sleep. Percival, tend to the details. If you’ll all excuse me.” The grumpy proprietor exited through the curtains, leaving Percival alone with them.
He quickly turned the registration book around for her to sign in. Dane reached into his pocket and handed her the room key.
“Thank you so much, Mr. Larsen.” Annabel signed her name in the book two rows beneath where Dane had signed in. Next to his strong signature was a line with the room number listed as eighteen.
“Please call me Dane.”
“Dane. I certainly hope your friend is in town. I’d hate to think of you sleeping out in the dusty street because of me. Or on any roofs.” She was actually more worried that he’d end up at the town’s brothel. And in the arms of another woman. If he needed a room, she would love to find a way to offer to share. Without anyone finding out, that is.
“I’ll find a place to sleep. Would you like to freshen up before dinner?”
“Yes. Thank you. I’ll be just a few minutes.”
Percival came around to take her bags and escort her to the room. Annabel left the delectable Mr. Dane Larsen by the front counter. She ascended the steps to the second floor and glanced to see him watching her with what looked like decided interest. Perhaps there was a way to discreetly invite him to her room for an after dinner conversation. Or better yet, an after dinner action without conversation.
No one who knew her would ever find out at any rate.
If no one saw him enter or exit, she should be safe to entertain a gentleman in her room tonight. The seductive idea took root in her mind.
It had been so long since she’d been in the arms of a man, she relished the idea of throwing caution to the wind on this one of a kind trip and engaging in a short love affair.
* * * *
Dane waited for Annabel in the lobby and judged his chances of inviting himself up to her room for a late drink and whatever else she’d allow. Given the searing look she’d given him after he’d donated his room to her, perhaps his odds were better than average.
She didn’t take long to refresh and soon they were seated at a private table in a back corner of the hotel’s dining room, making polite conversation and enjoying a rich, well-cooked meal.
Daintily wiping her mouth with a napkin, Annabel replaced it in her lap, sat up straighter in her chair and aimed her focus in his direction. “What do you do beside rescue damsels in distress?”
He laughed. “My brothers and I own a ranch where we breed, raise, and train horses.”
Her eyes widened in surprise. “You’re one of those Larsen brothers? My, my, you do have quite a reputation in Colorado.”
“You’ve heard of us?” Dane lifted his head as if in interest. At her nod, he then asked, “What have you heard? Is our reputation a good one or a bad one?”
She put her fork down, matched his stare with a seductive one of her own, and said, “I’ve heard only excellent things about the horses coming out of the Larsen Brothers Ranch.”
“Good to hear.” Their eyes remained locked. “Where are you headed, Miss Wallace?”
Her expression changed slightly, as if she were closing off, but soon brightened. “I’m on my way to visit a friend. She grew up in the town I’m from but moved away shortly after she married. I haven’t been able to visit since my father became ill a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, he died last winter, so I thought it would be nice to take a trip and get away.”
“I’m sorry about your father.”
“Thank you. I miss him very much. It’s just me now. My mother died twelve years ago when I was ten.”
“And you aren’t married?” Please don’t be married.
Her eyebrows went up briefly. “I was engaged to be married four years ago, but a month before the wedding, my fiancé caught lung fever and passed away.”
“I’m so sorry, Annabel. I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.”
“It’s all right. But let’s change the subject, shall we? So what is it that you do specifically on your ranch? Do you breed, raise, or train horses?”
He felt his mouth automatically shape into a smile meant to entice. The vision of the breeding pen and watching a stallion mount his mare came screaming into his mind for some reason. “My job is to break wild horses to a saddle, and then train them for sale.”
Gaze still boring through him, Annabel licked her bottom lip. Dane’s cock thickened in his pants. He wanted so much more than a simple meal tonight. Her voice lowered to a whisper. “Tell me, Dane, if I were a wild mare, what’s the first thing you’d do to break me?”
“Take you to dinner.” The words came out of his mouth before he realized what he’d said.
Annabel’s eyes widened for only a moment before she burst in to lyrical laugher. His cock had stiffened to an uncomfortable level, and his new goal was to do whatever he could to invite himself up to her room. Perhaps she needed a discrete escort to see her safely to her room and tucked in bed.
“Very interesting. Perhaps you could come up to my room later. I’d love to discuss your work with horses further.” She broke the gaze to glance around the near empty dining room. “Using the back stairs I noticed next to the room you so graciously donated to me, of course. I wouldn’t want anyone getting the wrong idea about your visit. Since we’ll be discussing the breaking and breeding habits of wild mares.”
Dane sincerely hoped he had the right idea about what she expected once he came to her room. And he planned to be there as soon as prudently possible. “Of course not. Perhaps I could bring a late night libation for our discussion. Do you like brandy?”
“That would be lovely.” She smiled, sipped her coffee, and kept her rapt attention on his face. Once she lowered the cup, Dane used every bit of will power to keep his cock from rearing up to full size. Even though there were few people about, leaving the dining room with his cock sporting a raging erection wouldn’t be prudent.
After trading several lustful looks while she finished her coffee, he studied her lovely form. She was taller than most females he encountered, but standing next to her at the counter, the top of her head barely came to his shoulder. Her trim figure was ensconced nicely in a lacey blue dress. Her hair was dark brown but that description didn’t do it justice. In the candle light, he saw hints of a rich mahogany red glinting in t
he brunette curls atop her head. By far, her emerald eyes were her best feature, second only to her bright smile. The freckles across the bridge of her nose were an added bonus to her beauty as well as being completely irresistible.
Annabel took the last sip from her cup and sat straighter in her chair. Time to go. He stood and offered his arm. She rose and placed her hand in the crook of his arm. He paid the bill and led her to the lobby. Percival still lingered behind the desk.
“I’ll bid you good night. Thank you for a lovely meal and for giving up your room.” She squeezed his arm once with her final word. Dane hoped to be visiting that room very shortly.
“You’re welcome.” He glanced at the clock to note the time and sent his gaze deeply into her glorious green eyes. “I’m sure you’ll be comfortably asleep in less than an hour.”
The smoldering look she returned made his heart pound even harder. “Yes. In less than an hour, I hope to be very relaxed.”
Dane kissed the fingertips of one hand and walked out of the hotel without a backward glance. He headed straight for the saloon across the street and ordered a whiskey at the bar. After downing it and another fairly quickly, he requested a small bottle of brandy.
Forty-five minutes later, after securing his horse at the local stable and sneaking up the back stairs at the hotel, Dane tapped lightly on Annabel’s door. She opened it a crack and peered out at him before he’d counted to two.
Dressed in a lacy nightgown with her bare toes peeking out beneath the hem, and with her lovely hair down around her shoulders, she motioned him inside. He glanced down either side of the hallway to ensure he remained alone, stepped into her room without anyone seeing him, and closed the door quickly.
“I suppose you think I’m terribly improper.” She slid close to his side and placed a hand on his arm. Her gentle touch sent a virulent pulse down to his already stiffening cock. He wanted her with a passion he hoped he could control.
Annie Gets Her Gunmen Page 2