“Seems to meyou are. Son, I hate to break it to you—”
“I’m not yourson.”
“—but youain’t got nothing noteworthy about your demeanour or your stance.Why don’t you run on home, son? Leave this job to themen.”
“Don’t callme son!” The gunslinger shouted, and drew his gun.
Time slowed, and then agunshot split the air.
The gunslinger cried out,falling backwards as his hand clutched his shoulder.
Heart pounding in hisears, Jake holstered his gun. The boy—he weren’t much more than aboy—thrashed about, whimpering and moaning.
A boy. Christ.
A man with a tin starpinned to his chest approached. “This part of yourbusiness?”
Blinking, he focussed onthe sheriff. “Not as such.”
“I told youwhen you rode into town trouble tended to find those who wanted tooutrun it. This your trouble?”
“Not assuch,” he repeated.
“Well, reckonit is it don’t matter none. The boy was seeking trouble and seemsto me he found it. You hit his shoulder?”
Jake noddedsharply.
“The doc willtake a look and can’t see any pronouncement being anything but theboy will live.” The sheriff glanced at the gunslinger. “Don’treckon I’d want to get on the wrong side of you. That were aprecise shot.”
Jake went to wipe hisjaw, only to stare at his hand in surprise. It wereshaking.
“Well, anyonewould tell you that were a fair fight. All the same, I’d appreciateit if you stayed out of sight a few days. Don’t need more of thelikes of him in this town.”
“Yes, sir.”Nodding, he turned to make his way back to Hope. She watched himapproach, her already pale skin paler and her colourless eyeswide.
What had he been doing,goading the gunslinger? Usually, he would find a way to talk mendown. His draw was quick, and it were unlikely he would lose ifforced to it. He had no desire to see another in pain, especiallyby a wound he’d caused. But this time, with this boy, in thisplace....
Hope. Pale skin paler.Colourless eyes wide.
Hope could have beenhurt. She was why he’d goaded that man, why fear had run throughhis veins a split second before he’d forced himself tofocus.
Reaction clouted him. Hisknees buckled and he staggered toward her, his limbs suddenlyweighed down. She could have been…He didn’t know what he would havedone. If she had been harmed… He would have killed the man, and ifhe’d tried to run, he would have stalked him to the ends of theearth and then… and then…
Hope would still havebeen gone.
Christ. She could have soeasily been gone.
She caught him, panicwrit on her face, her slight frame bearing him as they stumbled toan abandoned alley. A pained keen came from her as she franticallyran her hands over him, rifling his clothes. He stood beneath herministrations, a roaring in his ears.
“You’re notshot.” Her hands stilled, resting on his chest. Closing her eyes,her throat worked. Then, she jerked his head down and took his lipswith hers.
Lust stormed through him,sudden and desperate. Hitching her to him, he wrenched control,devouring her mouth with his. Hands twisting in his shirt, she gaveback to him in spades, her tongue duelling with his as she hauledhim closer and closer still. Her taste sat sweet upon him as fireburned through his veins, and he hauled her closer still, wishingthere was nothing between them and his skin was againsthers.
Feral hunger took him.Never taking his mouth from hers, he walked them until her back meta wall. She moaned, her tongue fierce as she tangled with his, herhands now in his hair and almost tugging it from hisscalp.
Grabbing her thigh, hepushed himself between her legs, cursing the fabric keeping fromher. It took nothing to drag her skirts up her legs, and her handsscrambled down his back, hooking under his jacket to tug the shirtfrom his trousers.
He hissed when herfingers met his bare flesh, as her nails dug into his skin.Dropping to his knees, he cupped the soft skin of her inner thighsand set his mouth upon her. She was already wet and scorching hot,her hands tangling in his hair as he lapped at her. Keening moansfell from her lips as he licked and sucked, the salty-sweet tasteof her going to his head, his cock so hard he hurt. Urging her legover his shoulder, he entered her with a finger, and then two,working them in her as he worked her with his mouth, teasing hersweet bud with his tongue, finding that place inside her that madeher pull his hair as she shattered.
