Ellie thought about Clayton Scott’s role in this reenactment of history. Because of the type of man he was, she had known it wouldn’t be hard to garner his interest, even before she understood Elizabeth’s relationship with him. Now, however, it would take real acting to keep him interested and at the same time at a distance.
As the carriage bumped over the uneven road towards the outskirts of town, she pretended to study the passing landscape. Peavine was situated in a little valley with the Sierra-Nevada Mountains on its west side. The lower range where the town sat was covered with trees and Ellie knew alot of that timber was used in the mines.
She wasn’t well versed in tree types, but did recognize pine, fir and juniper as they drove closer to the wooded area. She realized that the trees also helped keep the temperature from extremes, since the breeze over the mountains remained cooled as it wafted through the trees.
She would have continued to tune Clayton out as he rambled on about his mining interests and the bank, but then he began talking about the sweet music they could be making together, and she had to interrupt.
“Really, Clayton, you shouldn’t be talking like that.” She scooted to the outside edge of her seat, trying to put some space between them. Ellie sure didn’t know where Elizabeth had found this one, but he was slick. For every inch she moved, he moved two. When she reached down to scoot her dress over, he grabbed her hand and brought it to his thigh, driving the single horse rig with only his left hand.
“My talk didn’t used to bother you.” His jaw tightened as he shot her a glance and his hand squeezed hers. “You’re different, Elizabeth, and I’m not at all sure I like the change.”
Of course she was different, but she wondered how Clayton could have ascertained so much in so little time. When Jesse had told her that, he had smiled and said he liked the change.
She glanced around for something generic to talk about. Apparently Clayton was heading for the mines on the east slop, north of where the Nightingale stood. Thank goodness. Ellie didn’t want Jesse to see her with Clayton, even though her earlier wish had been to use him to make Jesse jealous.
She only hoped she could pacify Clayton, increase Jesse’s interest in her, find out the scheme behind the accident, and not go insane all in the same month! Her head started pounding just thinking about it, and she didn’t realize she had groaned out loud until Clayton pulled the carriage to a stop.
One arm snaked around the back of her shoulders, pulling her close against him. “Are you all right, my dear? You look flushed.”
Using the opening he gave her, she touched the back of her hand to her forehead, fluttered her eyelashes, and moaned, “I do feel somewhat faint. Perhaps it would be best if--” She hadn’t even finished the sentence when he bent his head, stopping her words with his mouth.
His kiss wasn’t at all what she expected from Clayton, whom she felt had an evil core. She thought he would be hard, but while his lips were firm and hot, he kissed her with the expertise of someone who practiced, and apparently put a whole lot of time into that practice.
Somewhere in the back of her mind, Lucky lectured that she shouldn’t be kissing Clayton, and especially not enjoying that kiss. Ellie mentally gave him the look, and relaxed in Clayton’s embrace. It might be fun having two guys chasing after her in Peavine, Nevada, because she definitely didn’t have any aversion to kissing. At this rate, it wouldn’t be hard to continue her masquerade. She’d just have to keep her dance card straight.
Those thoughts, and kisses, were interrupted when Clayton began to move. While his mouth nibbled its way down her neck, his hand conveniently wandered over her hip, down her leg, and was in the process of hiking up her skirt. Now that, Ellie figured, was not part of the little game they played.
Grabbing his wrist with one hand, she brought her other palm up flat against his chest. “Oh, my.” She really didn’t have to act, for she found herself short of breath from his kisses. “I do believe you should take me back to town.”
“Elizabeth, quit being a tease. You can only tease a man so much.” He murmured the words, his voice still soft and caressing, but Ellie could feel the tension in his arms as they tightened around her.
This time, she more forcefully pushed him back. Damn, every time someone called her Elizabeth, it just ruined the game. However, in this case, it helped clear her mind and made her realize how foolish she had just acted. Where did she draw the line between welcoming his advances in order to ferret out the information they needed, and being true to Jesse?
That thought stayed with her on the ride back to town. Though he acted the gentleman, she sensed the increased tension in Clayton and hoped she wouldn’t have to spend much time with him. If push came to shove, she knew she didn’t have the strength if he wanted to overpower her. And who would come to her rescue -- Zeke and Lucky?
She poured herself a glass of lemonade when she got home and sat at the kitchen table contemplating the day. She almost choked as she reflected on her emotions. She just hadn’t expected to enjoy kissing Clayton. But while his kisses were breathtaking, somehow the little tingles and fevery aches she had felt with Jesse had not been there with Clayton.
So, it was a worthwhile experiment, she told herself. Having kissed both men, Jesse definitely aroused more erotic sensations, which only seemed right to Ellie, since she had more intense feelings for him. Besides, they already knew Clayton was the evil one, and would do whatever it took to get rid of Jesse. That thought made her feel guilty for having kissed him, but more determined to resist him the next time.
None of this should matter, she fumed, because neither man was hers. Not that she wanted them, she sternly reminded herself. She had a life in a different century, and would be out of here soon enough. She crushed out her cigarette and cursed Zeke and Lucky, who had gotten her into this mess in the first place.
* * *
The next day, she covertly watched the bank from the corner. When she saw Clayton leave, she scurried across the street and through the bank doors, determined to check out the books for possible discrepancies in the records.
“Mr. Scott’s not here, Miss,” Henry stated politely as she hurried through the gate and behind the counter.
“Oh, that’s OK, Henry, I’ll just wait for him in his office.” Ellie didn’t give him time to reply but quietly closed the huge oak door and headed right for the back side of Clayton’s desk. It had to figure that if something were fishy, he wouldn’t keep the records with the rest of the bank’s books. Any bank examiner worth his salt would find a problem within the hour.
It took Ellie less time than that. The bottom drawer to the desk was locked, but the key was in a tray in the middle desk drawer. Foolish man, she thought, as she pulled out a ledger and a cursory glimpse at the pages showed it to be some kind of payment book. Both Jesse’s and Elizabeth’s fathers’ names were at the top of each page.
Hoping to find some dates or description of what the amounts of money were for, she quickly flipped to the front, but in the process, an envelope fluttered out from between the pages.
The front of the envelope had Jesse’s name on it, and she quickly took out the papers, scanning the spidery writing. Though some words were impossible for her to decipher, it looked to be some kind of codicil where someone’s ownership in the Nightingale mine reverted back upon death. Did that say Wendall or Warren? Whose death?
She shook her head, trying to unravel the words, when she heard Clayton’s voice through the door. She grabbed the book, shoving it back into the drawer and slamming it shut just as Clayton came in. His surprise at seeing her seated in his chair behind his desk couldn’t be any greater than her surprise at seeing him standing there.
She swallowed, trying to moisten her suddenly dry throat. Under cover of the desk, she stuffed the paper and envelope into her handbag, speaking to cover the sound of rustling paper.
“Hello...Clayton. I’ve been waiting for you.”
His brows rose in an expression of d
isbelief. It wouldn’t do at all for him to find out what she had really been up to. “Two days in a row, my dear? After yesterday, I wouldn’t have thought to see you again quite so soon. Or did you remember that my advances were to your liking after all?”
Had he deliberately spoken loudly so people in the outer office could hear, since the door remained slightly ajar? Ellie decided she didn’t have to take that kind of behavior, but before she could stand, he had rounded the desk and moved behind her, pushing her back down in the chair with rough hands on her shoulders.
He bent forward, his breath hot against her cheek as he slid his hands up and down her bare arms. “Seeing you here like this, I have this erotic picture in my mind of you laying naked on my desk,” he kissed her ear as he spoke, “begging me, not for a loan, but for--” The last word was lost as his tongue darted out and licked her ear, but Ellie couldn’t mistake his meaning.
She jerked backward, sending the chair into Clayton’s stomach and slamming him into the wall. Yesterday she could handle, but this, she hadn’t planned on. Regardless of whether Elizabeth had already given herself to Clayton, Ellie knew with a certainty it wouldn’t happen in this reenactment.
Clayton’s fingers dug into Ellie’s shoulders. “You little bitch,” he swore under his breath, then surprisingly, he laughed. “Ever since your father died, you’ve turned into a cold fish, and while I might have accepted it for awhile, I won’t anymore. We’re two of a kind, Elizabeth, so if you want to play rough--”
His words were cut off when a verbal scuffle and stomping boots grew louder just outside the door. Before Ellie could remove Clayton’s hands from her shoulders, Jesse stormed into the office, his beautiful mouth an angry slash and fire in his blue eyes.
He stopped just inside the door, his gaze turning dark and stormy as he took in the scene. Ellie groaned as she realized what it must look like from his viewpoint. Again, she struggled to free herself, but Clayton’s grip was totally possessive and Ellie immediately realized his intent.
“Well, well, my dear, look who’s here. We really didn’t want an interruption, but as long as you don’t bother knocking, what do you want, Cole?” Clayton’s words were snide and insinuating, and Ellie’s heart twisted when she saw the look of anguish that crossed Jesse’s face as he watched Clayton’s hands caress her.
How could she ever make him understand this wasn’t what he thought? And why on God’s green earth had she ever found Clayton attractive? Even if the two men hadn’t been in the same room, she wouldn’t have chosen Clayton over Jesse. Elizabeth might like the bad guy attitude, but the evil emitting from him burned straight through the padded chair and into Ellie’s back. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment that Jesse would think she had thrown herself at Clayton. Especially after he had accused her of doing the same to him. What must he think of her?
“Let the lady go, Scott. Then you and I will talk.” Jesse waved a fist at them, a crushed paper in his hand.
There was that word lady, again, Ellie thought; and as before, she wasn’t too sure that Jesse meant it in a nice way.
“I don’t think so. Elizabeth, here, has a direct interest in the bank, don’t you, dear?” He squeezed her arm to get a response, and though Ellie nodded only slightly, her gaze beseeched Jesse not to listen to the evil words.
“I want to know what the hell you mean sending me this mortgage notice and saying I’m behind on payments. I don’t owe you any money!” Ellie had never seen Jesse mad before. The anger in him was an almost palatable thing, and it was aimed straight at Clayton. He wouldn’t even look at her when he spoke.
“It’s really quite simple. Your father was buying out Elizabeth’s father’s interest in the Nightingale mine.”
Ellie could feel Clayton give an indifferent shrug, but she never took her eyes off Jesse. She kept hoping he would look her way so she could express -- what? With Clayton’s hands all over her, how was she to convey anything to Jesse so that he would not hate her?
Jesse frowned. “I thought that agreement became null and void upon their deaths.”
“Ah, well, if that was their intent, they should have put it in writing, because I have the ledger showing there is still money owed. Therefore, Elizabeth’s father still held an interest in your mine. Until the note is paid, I have that share, because I bought out the loan before Wendall died.” The gloating in Clayton’s voice caused Ellie’s stomach to drop to her toes.
Ellie watched as red crept up Jesse’s neck and into his cheeks. For reasons she hadn’t determined yet, these two men didn’t like each other, and Jesse especially didn’t like the fact that Clayton held something over his head.
“I’ll buy out the note, then. How much is left?” Jesse’s voice was determined, but Ellie wondered where he’d get the money.
Clayton just laughed. “Why would I let you do that? You keep telling everyone who’ll listen that you’re close to the motherlode. If you can’t make the loan payment, I can take over the mine. Even if you make the payment, I still hold the rest of the note, so if you do strike pay dirt, I’ll collect a tidy sum for my investment.”
“You bastard,” Jesse cursed. “If you think I’ll let you have one speck of dirt from the Nightingale, you’re crazy. I’ll shut the mine down first.”
“Tsk, tsk. Then I’d get it all, wouldn’t I, because you wouldn’t be able to make your payments. It would seem that little loan has become a real nice investment for me. Unless, of course, you can come up with a paper that says the loan was canceled, as you seem to think.”
Clayton’s hands had relaxed on Ellie’s shoulders, and now he stroked her with an absent-minded touch. Ellie had the eerie feeling his thoughts weren’t on her at all, but on the money he would have and the riches within reach if Jesse forfeited on the loan.
She looked at Jesse as he stared Clayton down. She could see his hands clinched at his sides and realized what control it took for him not to hit Clayton. A vein throbbed in his neck and he swallowed convulsively, as though taking a bitter pill. How she longed to soothe the wrinkles from his brow and bring a smile to his face once more.
Yet even knowing she would rather leave with Jesse and try to kiss away his anger, she decided for the sake of the game, she’d better stick with Clayton. She definitely didn’t want to kiss him into submission, but his role in this mystery was more important than Jesse’s -- at least right now. They already knew what would happen to Jesse if she didn’t help. How could she go with one man and not make another angry? Before she could announce her decision, Jesse balled the paper up, threw it across the room, and stormed out of the office.
Ellie sat in the chair where she’d been since Jesse first burst into Clayton’s office, too stunned to move, even though Clayton had since let go of her.
“What is that noise?” Clayton asked, eyeing her suspiciously.
Ellie glanced down at her lap and found her hands nervously snapping and unsnapping her purse. She forced herself to sit still and not tuck the handbag under the edge of her skirt as her brain screamed to do. As calmly as she could, she stood and moved to the door.
“Well, that was certainly exciting. If you don’t mind, I think I’ll go home now.” She reached for the door knob, but Clayton’s fingers circled her arm.
“I thought you had come to see me. It seems we have unfinished business.”
She shrugged off his hand, anger seething through her at his callous manner. “I think I’ve seen quite enough of you for one day, thank you very much.” At the look of incredulity on his face, she added, “Regardless of what you may think, I do not like to be manhandled.” With that parting remark, she sailed through the door and had almost made her escape when he again caught her elbow, at least gently this time.
“Henry, I’m taking Miss Calhoun to supper and then seeing her home,” he told the teller as he opened the door for her. That was the last thing she wanted, but somehow it seemed prudent to accept his offer. Ellie inclined her head slightly and proceeded him out of the
bank.
However, when he moved to her side, his hand brushed her purse, and again she felt the weight of the stolen documents inside. There could be only one thing to do. She had to dump the purse, but where?
“I must stop at Murphy’s for a few things. It’s really not necessary for you to take me to supper. I’m sure you’re very busy and I’m perfectly capable of getting home myself.” She tried unsuccessfully to remove her elbow from his grip.
“Nonsense. It is my duty as a gentleman.”
“Excuse me if I disagree with your personal assessment.” Ellie was still angry with his treatment of her, and angry at herself for enjoying that first kiss.
Her comment stopped him on the boardwalk, and he pulled her aside from the other people walking along, his fingers painfully pinching her arm. “It seems to me you are the one being disagreeable, Elizabeth. It wasn’t that long ago your attitude was much more pleasing. As I already told you, I won’t tolerate it anymore.”
Nothing else was said as they crossed the street and he opened the door to the store. As quickly as she could, she collected a few cans of food and hurried to the counter. She just hoped Sarah would play along with her.
“Hello, Sarah. Would you ring these up for me, please?” Since there were several other people in the store, Sarah didn’t take the time to visit with Ellie, for which she was glad. However, when she had totaled the purchases, Ellie knew the hardest part was to come, and she only hoped Sarah was preoccupied enough with her customers not to notice Ellie’s lie.
“I want to thank you for letting me borrow your purse, Sarah, and I’m sorry it took so long to return it.” She pushed the beaded bag toward the young woman.
“But--” Sarah started to protest.
“I know. It’s been so long, you probably forgot it was yours.” Ellie stared intently at Sarah until the girl seemed to mentally absorb her thoughts.
Slowly, she took the purse, glancing from Ellie to Clayton and back. “Oh, uh, you’re right. I had completely forgotten.” Then, almost as an afterthought, she added, “Will you come to coffee tomorrow, Elizabeth? Mrs. Carter says our dresses are done and she needs one final fitting.”
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