Whiskey Rose (Fallen) (3 page)

“
Oh Mr. Harriso
n
…” Isaiah called and he stopped.

“
Call me Matt
.
”

“
Matt, she runs the show around here. This is her place
.
” Matt frowned slightly not sure what the other man was getting at
.“
Her husband would know that
.
” Matt nodded his understanding
.“
Also, you can call me Izzy. Everyone else does
.
”

Matt found Rose waiting in the hall. When she saw him she simply turned and started walking expecting him to follow and he did. She opened a door at the end of the hall. She entered the room and he followed. He was surprised to find it was a bedroom. The bed was
n’
t very big and left room for a vanity and a sofa.

“
As I said you will not be sharing my bed however I suppose I ca
n’
t avoid you sharing my bedroom if this story is to be believed. The sides fold down on that sofa. It will still be too short but it will have to do. I really do
n’
t like to share space so if you could make the evidence of your presence as minimal as possible I would appreciate it
.
” He stared at her for a moment. He did
n’
t think he had ever used speech that was quite so formal
.“
What
?
” She asked noting his strange expression.

“
Nothing
,
” he said quickly. He was surprised at how practical she was about allowing him into her life and her bedroom, though not her bed. He supposed she was probably used to having men in and out but he still thought she would put up more resistance.

“
We will tell the girls that you are recovering from some injury, that way you wo
n’
t be expected to leave after a set amount of time
.
” His brows rose slightly she was almost as good at fabricating a cover as he was.

“
Ho
w‘
bout a disciplinary action
.
”

“
Would
n’
t they just put you in the stockade
?
”

“
Not if they are deciding whether to discharge me. Plus it will be better for my job as an enforcer if people do
n’
t think I have an injury that could make me vulnerable
.
”

“
Fair enough
.
”

“
So what have you done for protection up till now
?
” he asked as he followed her back to the saloon.

“
I can take care of myself
.
”

“
I am sure you can
,
” he smirked.

“
I bet you think that gun on your leg makes you invincible
.
”

“
No
,
” he said
,“
I have a knife too
.
” He pointed at his belt on the opposite side from his gun.  She did
n’
t laugh she just rolled her eyes.
 “
A gun makes a good peacemaker
.
”

“
How so
?
”

“
Because it might be worth it to try it if yo
u’
re only going to get thumped but probably not if yo
u’
re going to get dead
,
” she smirked at that.

“
This is my peacemaker
,
” she reached under the bar and took out an axe handle with no head.

“
Tha
t’
s an alright deterrent. You crack many sculls with that
?
”

“
Just enough to keep the peace
,
” she said and he laughed.

Meeting the ‘girls’ as Izzy and Rose called them was much more unnerving than he expected. Each of the women looked him up and down evaluating him from head to toe.  He would have loved to know what they were looking for, or what they saw for that matter.  Some of them gave him blatantly inviting looks while others simply looked curious. There were seven altogether. Every hair and eye color was represented though he had seen two blond wigs in Rose’s room and he suspected there was a third on her head. So it stood to reason that a few of the other women were wearing them as well. They were all beautiful. He had never seen quite so many beautiful women grouped into one place. He might have thought he’d died and gone to heaven except that he was sworn to be as chaste as a priest. So it was possible he had died and gone to hell.

People started showing up at the Saloon in the early afternoon.  Rose was behind the bar and her soft Texas drawl was back in place. He wasn’t sure what it was about the way she was talking that interested him so much. They were in Texas, everyone had a Texas drawl. There was just something about the way she talked that made him want to listen to her.  Apparently she had that effect on a lot of men because they were lined up around the bar. They all knew her by name and she talked with each and laughed at their bold flattery or attempts at humor. He simply leaned against the end of the bar waiting and watching.

“
Have a drink with me Rosy
.
” One man slurred

“
You know I am working Henry
,
” she said slightly chastising.

“
Ahh come on just one
.
”
 
She sighed and looked at the other men lining the bar.

“
Alright
,
” she relented
,“
just one
.
”
 
The men cheered. She placed a shot glass on the bar then took a flask from her pocket and filled it with dark liquid. She held it up in toast and the men returned the gesture. She threw the shot back and they cheered again. She walked along the bar getting new drinks for those that needed them and accepting payment. When she returned Henry was waiting for her.

“
Why do
n’
t you let me take you upstairs, Rosy?I got paid today
.
” He whispered so loud that it really was
n’
t a whisper
.“
You are the most beautiful woman in this place
.
”

“
Oh Henry, now I know you say that to all the girls
,
” shelaughed
.“
Go ask one of the other girls
.
”

“
I do
n’
t want one of the other girls I want you
.
” He insisted and Matt was a bit surprised by his determination.
 “
Marry me Rosy
.
” The man slurred and Matt nearly laughed aloud. The man was clearly drunk and very enamored with her but he doubted that it was marriage that he really had in mind.

“
I am already married Henry, you know that
.
”

“
I’
ve never seen your husband
.
” Rose looked down the bar at him and he smirked, he knew what was coming. She lifted her finger and pointed at him. His smirk turned to a fully-fledged grin when all the heads at the bar swiveled as one and looked at him. A few of the men looked embarrassed, Henry looked embarrassed and a bit annoyed.

Matt was suddenly a little uncomfortable as the men looked at him as if he just rained on their parade. He stood up straight and cleared his throat.

"Think
I’
ll go make the rounds." he stepped away and he saw Rose smirk. She was enjoying this, enjoying trying to make him squirm. Of course it wasn't going to work. Not really, because he didn't care who she flirted with. He wasn't really her husband.

He did have a job to do though. Two of them actually. One for himself and one for his cover.  He made his way through the smoky room. It was a Wednesday, not nearly as crowded as when he had been here on Friday but still a thriving business. Izzy was dealing poker in the corner he only saw three girls circulating in the room. Two blonds and a raven haired beauty. The Ranger in him had begun cataloging details the moment he met them. They all had nicknames. He didn’t believe for a second the names he had been told were their given names. Just as an example the woman with the black hair was aptly named Raven. She was the shortest of the women. Matt guessed that she was less than five feet. Everything about her was tiny and delicate. She gave him the impression that he could just pick her up and put her in his pocket. He was fairly certain she stirred the protective instincts of every man in the room, along with their lusts.  Dixie, one of the blondes
, was the polar opposite of Raven she was almost a foot taller, blond, and what he could only describe as a 'sturdy' build.

"Can I get ya a drink Hun?" Dixie asked him. She smiled at him and he smiled back. She had a pretty mouth. As kissable mouth Benji would have said. Unfortunately, he couldn't find out how kissable because that would blow his cover.

"No thanks Darlin."

"Let me
know if you change your mind." She smiled at him and his eyes followed automatically as she walked away. He took a deep breath and forced himself to focus. He was here to find Benji's killer. He scanned the room everyone here was a potential suspect. He just didn't know what the potential motive was. After he made a slow circuit of the room he returned to his perch by the bar. Some of the same men remained. The intoxicated man that had proposed was gone. Rose was still chatting with the men at the bar. She was friendly and fun loving with them. Not at all the freeze out she had given him. He watched her, she was very efficient as soon as one man finished his drink she was there to get him another she was continually wiping down the bar and washing glasses while she was chatting with the men. He was so used to hearing her voice talking to others that it took him a minute to realize she was talking to him.

"What did you say?" he asked when she had been staring at him for a moment.

"You're up slugger."

"What?" He said again not understanding her meaning. She pointed and he followed the line of her finger and saw Dixie. There was a drunken cowboy trying to get his arms around her she was pushing him off but he wasn't getting the point. He straightened up and approached them.

“
Do we have a problem
?
” He asked, the drunken man glanced at him then turned his attention back to the girl.

“
Mind your own business
.
” The man muttered.

“
Yo
u’
re bothering the lady
.
”

“
I said get lost
.
” The man growled.

“It’s time for you to go.” Matt said and grabbed the man’s arm. The man released Dixie and swung at him. Matt ducked dodging the punch and immediately retaliated burying his fist in the man’s gut. He fell back landing heavily on the chair and the legs buckled sending it crashing to the floor. He stepped forward to haul the man up but before he could someone barred his path.  He was surprised to see Rose. From this distance he could see her eyes weren’t blue but a deep smoky grey and very angry. She put her hands on his chest and pushed him back several steps. She turned back and helped the man to his feet.

“
Come on Lewis, time to go sleep it off. Mabel will be looking for you
.
” She escorted him to the door and nudged him out. The people around him returned to what they had been doing moments before. She walked to a door beside the end of the bar and looked pointedly at him. He sighed and followed her. It was clearly a store room, there were crates full of bottles stacked along the wall

“
What was that
?
” she demanded the second he closed the door.

“
What? I was just doing what you told me too
.
”

“
I need you to defuse the situation, show him the door. Not act like a jealous lover
!
”

“
If I were acting like a jealous lover I would have just hit him, instead of trying to talk to him
.
” She huffed and crossed her arms. He could see that argument did
n’
t appease her. 

“
When one of them starts fighting they all start fighting. When they fight, they break things
,
” she said very calmly as if she were explaining something to a child. The tone grated on him.