by Anna Schmidt
“I’m sorry, what did you say?” he asked, realizing she was waiting for his response to something.
“I asked if you’ve always lived in the area.”
“I grew up in Arizona Territory,” he replied. “You?”
“Chicago.”
“City girl?” He studied her. “Yeah, it fits.”
“I’m not sure if that’s an insult or not,” she said, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
“Not at all. You just have that way of being with people. Like you’re used to having lots of them around. Folks out here are more spread out, and that makes us more cautious, less comfortable with strangers.”
“I never thought of it that way.” She stared out at the horizon. “Sometimes Emma chides me for coming on too strong—that’s how she sees it. I’ll admit I don’t quite understand what that means. Maybe it is being used to people. Lots of people unafraid to state their opinions.”
“I like the way you speak your mind,” Cody said. “In my line of work, I have a lot of conversations where people are trying to figure out what I want to hear from them or how best to hide the truth.”
“Oh, so you think because I don’t hold back, you know everything about me?”
He could hear in her tone that she was teasing him. He grinned. “Well, maybe not everything. I’m hoping to change that though.”
She looked away, evading his smile. “Everyone has secrets, Cody,” she said softly, then brightened. “Why, I’ll bet even you have things you’d rather no one discovered.”
“Not me, Miss Travis. I’m an open book. Ask me anything.”
“All right. Here’s the question on every single girl in Juniper’s mind: why aren’t you married?”
He shrugged. “I might ask the same of you.”
In a split second, the lighthearted mood between them shifted, like a sudden thunderstorm rolling over the mountains. Her body tensed, and she made a show of brushing her skirt free of crumbs and gathering up the remains of their picnic. “We should get back,” she said, replacing the lid on the tin pail without looking at him. Then she glanced his way with the smile he’d seen her use while on duty in the hotel—the smile that never reached her eyes. “Shall we?” she said.
He hopped down from the log onto solid land, turned, and held out his hand to her. She hesitated before accepting his help. As she landed, the heel on one of those ridiculous boots snapped, and she faltered. He caught her before she could fall. They stood for a second—a kiss apart.
“Are you hurt?” he asked, stepping away without releasing her.
“Only my pride,” she replied as she made a show of examining the broken boot. Her cheeks had turned a rosy pink, and her breathing was uneven, same as his.
“Let me see,” he said, bending to have a look at the damage. “Pretty sure Mick over at the livery can fix that. Couple of nails…”
She made a sound that at first he thought was one of derision but then realized was laughter. “What’s so funny?”
“Couple of nails—like shoeing a horse?” She was laughing hard now.
He ducked his head and chuckled. “I am not comparing you—or your boot—to a horse, Lily.”
“Still, if the shoe fits…” And that set her off on a fresh round of giggles. She was laughing so hard that when he stood, she rested her hand on his arm to balance herself.
Without hesitating to consider the right or wrong of it, Cody scooped her up into his arms and carried her back to the buggy. It was only steps away, but by the time he set her down, neither of them was laughing.
She stroked his cheek. “It seems I may have misjudged you, Cody Daniels,” she murmured. “You are a kind and caring man.”
It would have taken little for them to kiss, but something in her eyes held him back. He couldn’t put his finger on what he saw there, but it was enough to know kissing her would be a mistake—not for him but for her. “We’d best be getting back,” he said.
Neither of them said much on the ride back to town. He pointed out a hawk soaring toward the sunset. She told him about the party planned for Nick and Grace, and he told her he’d also received an invitation. And all the while, he tried to put a name to what he’d seen in her eyes. It wasn’t until he had left her at the kitchen entrance to the hotel and returned the buggy to the livery that he found his answer.
Regret.
Lily Travis had wanted that kiss as much as he had, but something important had stopped her.
* * *
Lily hurried through the kitchen and on into the reading room just off the lobby. Thankfully, it was deserted. She stood at a window that gave her full view of the plaza and Cody’s office. She wasn’t ready for their time together to end—not yet. Even if being with him for real was impossible, she’d cling to the memory of the afternoon they’d shared.
Fun, she thought and smiled at the memory of their banter. Maybe she had misjudged him. Maybe…
“Hello, Lily.”
That voice! She wheeled around, searching the shadows for the source of the intruder on her reverie. The room was large and illuminated by only one lamp positioned near the window, leaving the rest of the space in shadow. Lily felt her breathing quicken as she saw a large man wearing a black sack coat and a hat that covered his features step into the weak light. “Good to see you, sweetheart. It’s been a while.”
Victor Johnson grinned at her. He reached out to touch her cheek.
She backed away.
“What are you doing here, Victor?” Her voice was drowned out by the pounding of blood in her head. Surely, this was a nightmare.
He chuckled. “Now, is that any way to greet your long-lost husband, Lily?”
There was no way out. Victor stood between the open door and her. Beyond him, she could see guests passing on their way out of the hotel or up to their rooms. Aidan Campbell stood at the main desk. She considered calling for help, but she could hardly afford for the hotel manager to find out she’d lied—that she was not the single, pure young woman the Harvey Company thought she was. She needed this job. It was her only ticket to independence. To freedom.
Victor apparently guessed her thoughts. “Now, Lily, let’s just you and me have a nice visit without involving other people. You’ve got secrets and so do I, but together—”
“There is no ‘together’ for us, Victor. I don’t know what game you’re playing at, but you gave up the right to have anything to say about how I live my life when you decided to walk out in the middle of our wedding night.”
She saw her mistake in challenging him the minute he covered the distance between them and grabbed her jaw. “You’re my wife, Lily, so let’s have no more talk about ‘rights,’ shall we? Don’t tell me you’ve turned into one of those women trying to change the natural way of things.”
She jerked free of his hold and turned away. Through the window, she saw Cody on his way back to his quarters. Please come in, she thought, but he kept walking. “Why are you here, Victor?”
Victor struck a match and lit a cheroot. “I’m in town on business. Honestly, Lily, I had no idea you were here. Last I heard, you were working up in Kansas City. But then the other night, I happened to be sitting near the bandstand when I saw you crossing the plaza. Couldn’t believe it was really you, but there’s no mistaking the way you move. The sway of your hips, that brought back memories that have kept me awake more nights than I care to count. Those long legs of yours wrapped—”
“Stop it,” she whispered. She clenched her fists and tried to think what to do. Her mind was a tangle of fear and impotence. Through the door, she saw Emma and several other girls returning from evening vespers at the church. They laughed and chattered as they made their way through the lobby. Jake was with them, along with other members of the kitchen staff. They headed around the closed lunch counter and on into the kitchen where they would share glas
ses of lemonade and continue talking until curfew.
“I have to go,” Lily said.
“No, you don’t. You’re off duty until noon tomorrow, and curfew isn’t until ten, so we’ve plenty of time.”
“Time?”
“For catching up.” He put on his hat. “What say we take a walk—somewhere we might not be interrupted?”
She started to step back and realized Cody had taken her boot with him to the livery, promising to have it repaired and returned. “I broke my shoe, so I’ve only got one on. I’ll just go change,” she said, hobbling toward the door.
Victor stepped in front of her. “Nice try, sweetie.” He glanced at her feet, saw she was telling the truth, and sighed. “I’ll be in touch, Lily.”
“I have to work,” she reminded him.
“So do I,” he said, turning to leave.
“And what if I have no interest in seeing you ever again?” It was a bluff, and he saw right through it.
Pivoting and taking a long draw on his cigar, he blew the smoke in her direction. “Then I’ll have to start asking questions of your boss out there, and maybe get your friends in some trouble. I can do that, Lily. You of all people ought to understand that I always get my way.” He stepped closer and kissed her temple, then left. As he crossed the lobby, she heard Aidan Campbell say, “Good evening, Mister Johnson. Is everything to your satisfaction?”
“Getting there,” Victor replied.
And that was the moment Lily realized he was staying in the hotel.
Chapter 3
Juniper was a railroad town, so it wasn’t unusual for Cody to see new faces. Some stayed around, while others were only there for a few days before moving on. Either way, he paid attention. Life in the West was a lot less rough than it had been even five years earlier. Towns had grown up from the squalid mining camps and trading posts, there were schools and churches and civic organizations now, and supposedly there was law and order. That was where he came in.
Still, outlaw gangs continued to roam the territory, robbing banks and holding up trains. Cody had recently received word of just such a gang operating across the border in Arizona. Odds were they’d head south to Mexico once they’d gotten what they wanted, but they might also move on, seeking a new, closer target. Juniper was small but prosperous—the perfect prey. So on Monday when Cody observed the stranger in the black sack coat headed for the mercantile, he decided to follow him. The man had come to town a few days earlier. Word was he’d taken a room at the hotel and not given a date for departure.
“Said he liked to get to know a place before deciding to stay or move along,” Aidan Campbell had told Cody while the two of them were waiting their turn for a shave and haircut at the barber shop.
“What’s his line of work?” Cody had asked.
“He didn’t say, but he flashed a roll of bills and a gold pocket watch when he checked in. Paid in advance for a week’s stay.”
“Name?”
“Victor Johnson. He said he was from out east—didn’t offer specifics.” Aidan had frowned. “Funny thing is he takes all his meals at the cantina at the edge of town. He hasn’t once patronized either the lunch counter or the dining room.”
After leaving the barber shop, Cody had stopped by the Sagebrush. Sally had no information to add. “He’s been here twice,” she had said. “Sat alone at that table in the corner—nursed two shots for the next hour and left. Big tipper.”
Cody had seen the type before. He would bet his badge Victor Johnson was either a professional gambler looking for an easy mark or he was casing the town. Maybe deciding whether to rob the bank or pull a heist at the saloon. Some nights, the poker tables saw a significant amount of cash changing hands.
So when he saw Johnson enter the mercantile, Cody waited a minute, then followed him inside.
“Be right with you,” Frank Tucker called out from his position behind the counter in the rear of the store.
Cody picked up a fresh notebook and new pencil, some beef jerky, and a calico bandana before approaching the counter. “Frank,” he said by way of acknowledging the shopkeeper. He nodded to the stranger, all the while taking stock of the man now that he was near enough to notice details. Victor Johnson was a big man, tall and out of shape. He had the look of a man who did not do his own dirty work. His clothes were expensive and well-tailored, but Cody saw the bulge of a shoulder holster and knew he was armed.
When Johnson glanced at him, his eyes widened in surprise and just as quickly narrowed with suspicion. “Sheriff,” he said, nodding toward Cody’s badge.
“You two have met, then?” Frank wrapped a dress shirt in brown paper.
“Not exactly,” Cody replied.
“Victor Johnson,” the stranger said, thrusting out his hand.
Cody accepted the handshake, taking note of the smooth palm, the garish gold ring on the man’s little finger. “Welcome to Juniper,” he said. “What brings you to town?”
Johnson broke the handshake and laughed too loud and long. “Gets right to it, does he?” he said to the store owner.
Cody smiled. “Just doing my job, Mr. Johnson.”
The man turned his attention to Frank. “What do I owe you, sir?”
Frank named a price, and the man pulled out a roll of bills and peeled one off. He laid it on the counter and waited for Frank to punch in the amount of the sale on the cash register and retrieve the change. Then, still not talking, he prepared to leave.
“You didn’t answer my question,” Cody said quietly.
“I have some business here,” Johnson replied. “Personal business.” He picked up his package, nodded to both men, and walked down the aisle to the door.
“Mr. Johnson,” Cody called. “The food at the hotel is top-notch. You might want to give it a try before you move on.”
The stranger had not turned around, and he didn’t make any response other than a slight tensing of his shoulders, but Cody had made his point. Johnson now knew the sheriff had been making inquiries.
Once Johnson left, Cody waited while Frank tallied his bill. The two men didn’t speak. There was no need. The storekeeper knew what had just happened, and Cody knew Frank Tucker would tell Cody about anything he observed should Johnson return. He handed Cody his purchases. “I’ll put it on your tab,” he said.
Cody nodded and left. The truth was he didn’t have time to worry about what Victor Johnson might be up to. His conversation with Jake a few nights earlier had been less than satisfactory. Although he’d led Lily to believe he knew everything, the truth was Jake had refused to say exactly what he was mixed up in, assuring Cody that he could handle himself. He’d implied the problem had to do with money he owed, but that didn’t ring true. Jake rarely frequented the saloon, and he never joined a card game. And when Cody pressed him, Jake insisted all he needed Cody to do was make sure Lily kept her distance.
Lily.
Ever since they’d returned from their ride in the country, she’d had this way of popping into his thoughts at odd moments of the day and night. And the worst of it was the way he ended up watching for her as he went around town attending to his job. It didn’t help that he often heard members of the hotel staff as they sat together at one end of the hotel’s long veranda after work. And it didn’t help that he’d learned to pick out Lily’s laughter from the general chatter. Mostly, it didn’t help that one night after checking shops up and down the street on his evening rounds, he’d seen her sitting alone in one of the rocking chairs on the veranda, wrapped in a shawl to ward off the cool night air. It had taken every ounce of willpower he possessed to go on about his business instead of stopping to speak to her, sit with her.
So when later that day he found himself thinking seriously about having supper in the hotel dining room just to be near her, he decided it was past time to put a stop to such foolishness. Instead, he chewed on a piece of
the jerky he’d bought earlier at Tucker’s, finished some reports he needed to send off to territorial headquarters, and then headed to the Sagebrush.
As he had hoped, Jake was there.
And so was Victor Johnson.
Cody ignored the stranger and joined Jake at the bar. “We need to talk,” he said, gesturing toward a table. Cody didn’t miss the way Jake’s gaze skittered in Johnson’s direction before he pulled out a chair and sat.
“I just wanted to let you know I can’t be watching out for Miss Travis. I’ve got other things needing my attention.” Cody glanced at the man in the far corner.
“But if Lily—”
“Admit it, Jake. You’re in love with her, so figure out what you need to do to win her. I’d say giving her a life where she didn’t have to work double shifts and such might be a good start. Your position at the hotel is secure, and surely you can support a wife on what you make there. Lily doesn’t need to work if you two—”
“I love her,” Jake interrupted. “She doesn’t love me.”
“She told you that straight out?”
Jake nodded miserably. “And Emma confirmed it. She said Lily worried she would end up hurting me without meaning to, and she said that would break Lily’s heart. I can’t be responsible for anything that gives her pain, Cody, so I’ve accepted that we’re going to be really good friends—and nothing more.” He let out a laugh that sounded more like a snort. “Truth is, one of the reasons I asked you to look out for her is I think the two of you… I just want her to be happy.”
Although he’d known his share of matchmakers, they’d all been women—his mother and his sister, mostly. “I don’t need you arranging my life,” Cody grumbled.
“You could do a lot worse than Lily—and certainly not any better. Think about it. She’s far too good for waiting tables the rest of her days. She’d be a wonderful mother—and wife. Not sure she can cook, figured I could handle that, but I know Lily would keep a man guessing and laughing the rest of his life.”