Wyoming Lawman (19 page)

Until he crossed that line, he had no business kissing a preacher's daughter. When she'd kissed his cheek, he'd almost kissed her back. But then she'd told him she loved him and he'd come to his senses. He had to get her home and out of reach, but first he had to know about Jasper. Something had sent Pearl running into the rain without her cloak. “Tell me,” he repeated. “Why were you in the alley?”

She stared at him for five seconds, then sighed. “I asked Jasper if I could leave early because of the rain.”

She told him how Jasper had followed her into the storeroom and trapped her. With each detail, Matt clenched his jaw tighter. Whether Jasper meant to scare Pearl or harm her, he couldn't say and it didn't matter. The shopkeeper had meant to frighten her.

She raised her chin. “I didn't panic until afterward. That's when you found me. I have to thank you. That kiss—”

“Pearl, don't.”

“Don't what?” She said, scolding him. “Don't thank you for finding me in the rain? For being good to me?”

“I'm not good.” Hadn't she been listening? Talking about God and Amos McGuckin in the same breath had Matt all churned up. Even if he stopped the Golden Order, he'd never forgive himself for what he'd done. He'd never forgive God, either. With that hate burning in his belly, he'd never be the right man for Pearl. She deserved to hear the decision from him.

“About that kiss,” he said. “Don't read too much into it. It was nice. That's all.”

She looked at the fire, then spoke in a voice he could barely hear. “It was more than nice.”

He tried to sound bored. “I don't mean to be harsh, but you don't know about such things.”

Confusion clouded her wide eyes. “The kiss was special. I felt—”

“Forget it, Pearl. It's over.”

He'd told the truth and lied in the same breath. The kiss was over but not the memory of it. He wanted to kiss her again. He'd make that one
nice,
too. Nice and long. Nice and slow. So full of
nice
she'd feel loved and cherished until death did them part. As much as he wanted to tell the truth, he couldn't. Unless he could be a husband to her in heart, soul and deed, he had no business courting her. He'd been half-hearted with Bettina. He wouldn't repeat that mistake with Pearl.

He crossed the room and added a log to the fire. Sarah's doll caught his eye and his belly lurched. His little girl still needed a mother, and they both loved Pearl. Toby needed a father, and Matt wanted to be that man. With the flames
bright, he looked at Pearl. The misery on her face nearly broke him, but he had to protect her from false hope. “I enjoyed kissing you, but it
was
just a kiss.”

“I see.”

“You didn't panic. That's what counts.” He felt like a two-faced liar. What mattered was that they loved each other.

She looked at him with a fresh glint in her eyes. “You're making excuses.”

“It's the truth.”

“I don't believe you.”

How could he escape this mess without lying? “Forget it happened. No matter what's going on between us, I'm not the right man for you.”

She jumped to her feet. “But you are. I love you.”

Her hope rubbed salt in his wounds. “I can't love you, Pearl. Not like you deserve. What happened just now— It's not what you think. It's not love.”

“Then what is it?”

“Just…stuff.”

“Stuff?”

“Yeah.” He latched on to the one thing he knew for sure. “Life isn't a fairy tale, darlin'. You're not Cinderella and I'm not Prince Charming.”

“I know that!”

“Do you?”

“Yes.” She looked him in the eye. “I also know a lie when I hear one.”

He put grit in his voice. He had to stop this before he found himself on his knees begging for her hand in marriage. “Let me make this clear. The kiss meant nothing. If you had more experience, you'd know that.”

She turned abruptly to the fire to hide her face. He imagined tears streaming down her cheeks, mimicking the rain
that had coursed down them in the alley. He'd never felt lower in his life. He couldn't leave her hurt and confused, so he stepped closer. As he raised his hand to touch her hair, someone pounded on the door.

Pearl shot to her feet. “Who could that be?”

“I don't know.” He went to the window and peeked through the curtain. He saw two men. One he welcomed. The other scared him to death.

P
earl desperately needed a moment to collect her thoughts, but Matt had already opened the door. Dan strode into the room with rain dripping off his slicker and the brim of his hat. Behind him she saw her father. A heavy coat protected him from the rain, but his face had lost its color. She hurried to his side and hugged him. “Papa, I'm fine.”

He squeezed her tight, then looked at her from head to toe, taking in everything from her wet hair to the muddy hem of her gown. His cheeks changed from pale to ruddy. “What happened?”

“I'm not hurt, but Jasper—”

“What did he do?”

A bluish vein bulged on his temple. She thought of his weak heart and wished they'd never come to Cheyenne. She wished she'd never set eyes on Jasper Kling or Matt Wiley. They'd both hurt her today, Jasper with the threat of violence and Matt with his bitterness. Pearl didn't want to believe the kiss had been “just stuff” to him, but his arrogance about it shook her confidence. Had he meant it? Or was he protecting her from the man he believed himself to be? Pearl didn't see a murderer when she looked at Matt. She saw the man she loved.

“What happened?” her father said again.

She told the story with complete calm, but his expression turned murderous. When she finished, Dan explained how Tobias had come to the sheriff's office and together they'd gone to Jasper's store.

“We saw him leave in the rain,” Dan explained. “He went to the bank. Troy Martin, Howard Moreland and Gibson Armond walked in right after him.”

“Everyone but me,” Tobias said quietly. “We all know what that means.”

“They no longer trust you,” Matt answered.

Tobias's brow furrowed. “I was told to be at Martin's place Saturday afternoon at three o'clock.”

Far from town…far from witnesses. Pearl shuddered at the implication.

Tobias looked at Matt. “I'm afraid I'm not cut out for this kind of work.”

“You did fine, sir.”

He looked chagrined. “I have to admit, I spoke my mind at the last G.O. meeting. The way Jasper was talking about those women from the Silver Slipper had to be stopped. He took offense.”

“I didn't help,” Pearl added. “I let them in his store. Today he'd treated me like one of them.”

“Don't blame yourselves.” Dan crossed his arms. “Wiley and I have been questioning members of the G.O. for days now. We expected trouble, just not this soon.”

Matt looked at her with a fury she hadn't seen in him before now. “You're both targets.” He turned to Dan. “What time does the train leave for Denver?”

“Denver!”
Pearl gaped at him.

“That's right.” He put his hands on his hips. “You and Toby and your father are getting on a train
tonight.
”

“You can't send us away,” she protested. “You don't have that right.”

“Oh yes, I do.”

No, he didn't. Not if he didn't love her…not if he thought the kiss was “just stuff.” She opened her mouth to argue, but her father cut her off.

“Pardon me, Deputy. But I have a say—”

“Not anymore.” Matt tapped his own chest so hard she heard bone hitting bone. “This is
my
fight.”

“I won't go,” she argued.

“Yes, you will,” Tobias insisted.

“But Papa—”

“You'll do it for Toby.”

If she returned to Denver, she might never see Matt again. How did a woman choose between her child and the man she loved? Even as the question formed, she knew the answer. A mother protected her child. She ran in front of freight wagons, and she got on trains for Denver even if it meant leaving her heart behind. She turned to Matt. “My father's right. When's the next train?”

Dan answered. “Tomorrow at nine.”

“We'll go then,” Tobias replied.

With her heart breaking, she focused on the tasks at hand. She needed to pack and say goodbye to Carrie. Sarah, too.

Matt let out a breath as if he'd been holding it. “The G.O. knows where you live. A night at a hotel would be wise.”

Tobias's brow furrowed. “If we act out of the ordinary, they'll know you're on to them.
We
might be safer, but you'll be in more trouble.”

Dan looked at Matt. “He's right.”

“We'll stay at Carrie's,” Tobias said firmly.

Matt turned to the window. “I don't like it. Things have a way of getting out of control.”

“It's the best choice,” Tobias argued. “We'll stick to the plan and trust God for protection.”

Matt looked back at Tobias with a sneer. “Trust whoever you want, Reverend.
I'm
trusting my instincts. I'll stand guard tonight.”

Tobias nodded. “Fair enough.”

Pearl saw a problem. “What about Sarah?”

“She can stay with Mrs. Holcombe.”

“I need to say goodbye,” she said softly. “If I just disappear, she'll be hurt.” Sarah would recall her mother leaving the same way. Tonight would leave another mark on her tender heart.

Matt looked as if he'd been kicked. “You can say goodbye at Carrie's. I'll take her to Mrs. Holcombe's, then come back.”

Pearl dreaded saying goodbye to Sarah. She'd do it gently, but how did a woman
gently
break a child's heart? Pearl couldn't change the facts, but she'd try to soften the loss. “I'll be careful with her,” she said to Matt. “I promise.”

“Thank you.” His eyes held gratitude and something more…something sharp and painful. She didn't want to leave him, but the Golden Order had given her no choice.

Her father watched her thoughtfully, then spoke to Dan. “Would you take Pearl to Carrie's? I'd like a word with Matt.”

“Sure.”

“I'll wait with you,” she protested. Her father knew how she felt about Matt. She didn't want him interfering.

Matt indicated the door. “Go on now. Your father and I have business.”

When the men traded a look, Pearl knew they had a secret. She didn't like it, but nothing would break her father's will and Matt had the same stubbornness. When she looked at Matt, his eyes were as bitter as ever. Tomorrow
she'd be on that train to Denver. There would be no tender goodbyes, only the memory of a kiss and a drawer full of ribbons. With her heart aching, she headed for the door.

 

As soon as Pearl left with Dan, Matt faced Tobias. For one crazy moment, he'd wondered if the old man was going to give him another Bible lesson. Tobias sincerely believed God would be watching over them, but Matt knew otherwise.
He'd
be watching.
God
would be sleeping like he'd slept that night in Virginia. “What's on your mind?”

“They want you dead, Matt.”

“Figures.” He'd asked a lot of questions and pushed some high-powered people. Chester Gates and Howard Moreland had been among them. “How do you know?”

“Martin's having second thoughts.” Tobias described how he'd run into the rancher and they'd had a chat. Martin didn't mind hanging a horse thief, but he'd balked at taking down a lawman for doing his job. “The man's got blood on his hands and he knows it. Under the right circumstances, I believe he'll turn on the others.”

“Would he testify in court?”

“Possibly,” Tobias replied. “Moreland's the one who's leading the push to see you dead.”

“I talked to him last week.” Matt had seen craziness in the rancher's eyes, the kind of rage that fed on violence. “The man's got a mean streak.”

“So does Jasper.” Tobias grimaced. “He said terrible things about those women who hassled him about the mirror. Why he turned so hard against you, I don't know.”

“He's got a secret.” Matt stared at the dying embers. “I know what it is, and I let him know it. What about Gates?”

“He goes along with Jasper.”

“And Armond?”

“He got robbed again. He says you should've stopped it.”

“I wish I could have.” Matt wished a lot of things. He wished Amos McGuckin was still alive, and that Pearl hadn't been attacked. If he were God, she wouldn't be in danger. “I'm sorry for what happened to Pearl today. It's best that she leave. You, too.”

“I didn't go into this blind,” Tobias replied. “I knew it was dangerous, possibly for both of us. I have no regrets, but I
do
have a question.”

“What is it?”

“I just walked in on you and my daughter alone in a dark house. I'm not questioning your honor. I know the need that brought you here. I'm questioning your intentions.”

“Pearl and I have no future, sir.”

“She loves you, Matt.”

“She shouldn't.”

“That's not your call.”

Matt didn't want to be having this conversation, but he respected Tobias. “I'd never do anything to hurt her, and that's why I'm sending her away. Pearl and I…” He shook his head. “She's too good for me.”

“We agree there,” Tobias said drily. “My wife deserved better than me, but I'm the man she chose.” He looked at Matt for a long time, giving him time to speak. Matt refused. If he opened his mouth, they'd be talking about psalms and night lunacy and men standing watch like he'd do tonight.

Tobias finally broke the tension. “We'll be on the morning train, but I have another request.”

The old man had a lot of requirements. “What is it?”

“Be straight with her before we go.”

“That's not wise, sir.”

“Why not?”

“It just isn't.”

“You're being stupid again. Prideful, too.”

Matt took the insult. He'd hurt Pearl and had it coming. Eager to be done with the conversation, he crossed the room and lifted his hat. “Let's go.”

Tobias frowned. “We shouldn't be seen together.”

“There's more risk to you walking around alone,” Matt countered. “We're headed to the livery. I have to get my horse.”

Side by side, they walked across town. The rain had stopped, but massive puddles mirrored the clouds in a way that made the world seem huge. Matt felt that weight on his shoulders. If he blinked, it would crush him. Tonight he'd stand watch. Tomorrow he'd make sure Pearl got on the train to Denver. Once Jasper and the Golden Order were brought to justice, he'd sleep. If the dreams didn't come, he'd take Sarah and find Pearl. Until then, he'd stand guard. He'd be the watchman, sleepless and alone as he protected the people he loved.