An Impassioned Redemption: A Defiant Hearts Novella by Sydney Jane Baily

Author:Sydney Jane Baily [Baily, Sydney Jane]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cat Whisker Press
Published: 2015-06-02T18:00:00+00:00

Jo let him lead her to a private table in the lathes’ cabin at the rear of the boat, and they talked as if old friends while they ate. She learned about his childhood in Montana and told him about her own in Chicago. She could tell he was impressed with her ingenuity of making the jump from seamstress to saloon owner. And in truth, she was rather glad he’d left behind the extreme danger of being a hired gun to run a riverboat gambling operation. Two hours went by in the blink of an eye.

“I’m going to powder my nose,” she told him.

“Your nose is perfect, as is the rest of you.” His glance swept over her and heated her from head to her toe.

“Nonetheless.” She stood up, still warm from his compliment and went to the ladies’ washroom.

A few minutes later, Jo made her way back along the short hallway only to stop dead. In front of her was Lucille Strong, peering through the drawn curtain to the main gaming room. At first, Jo figured the girl was simply too timid to go out and handle the gamblers the way she was being paid to. But then Jo saw something in Lucille’s hand, and she felt the skin on the nape of her neck prickle. Silently, she waited and watched, just as Lucille was doing.

In another moment, the girl raised her hand, and Jo caught her breath, feeling her heart thump in her chest. Was that the barrel of a gun? Perhaps Carter was the target.

Without further hesitation, Jo rushed forward and tackled the girl. They went tumbling through the curtain and onto the soft patterned carpet of the gaming room. People gasped and screamed as the ladies rolled and knocked over a chair, before crashing into a man’s legs where they finally stopped. Jo landed on top, pinning Lucille to the floor by her shoulders.

“Christ!” Jo heard Carter exclaim, and then his hands hauled her off his hapless employee. From her place of restraint, clamped to Carter’s side, Jo watched as Ben helped Lucille to her feet. In an instant, the brunette’s face crumpled from shock to misery, and then she started crying hysterically.

“What in the hell is this about?” Carter asked. Jo looked up at his stern face.

Before she could answer, he turned to the now-hushed crowd gawking at the spectacle. “It’s all right everyone. A free beer per customer,” he added, giving a nod to his bartender across the room.

As most of the clientele either sat back down or moved toward the bar, Carter looked to the disheveled women. “Well?”

“She attacked me,” Lucille blurted out between high-pitched sobs, “like an animal.”

“Jo?” Carter asked, his voice dropping a notch with concern as he looked at her.

She smoothed down her bodice and skirt, making sure everything was in place. “Your Miss Strong was loitering suspiciously behind the curtain, spying on people, and she may have a gun.”

“A gun!” Lucille exclaimed at the same time as Ben, who still stood beside her.

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