Cole had a gun in his other holster, which made him armed and
dangerous, and Spencer had his hand on the hilt of his gun.
'I can't make up my mind which one of you I'm going to shoot first. '
Spencer glanced at Cole to see what he was going to do about her
threat.
Cole ignored the deputy and kept his gaze on Jessica.
'Please leave before I do something you'll regret.'
'Spencer, ' Cole said, 'close the door. Jessica and I are going to
have a private talk.
' 'We are not, ' she whispered.
'Are you sure you don't want me to stay, Marshal Clayborne? ' Spencer
asked as he reached for the doorknob.
'I'm sure.' Spencer looked disappointed. Cole waited until the door
was shut and then told Jessica to sit down. She shook her head and
continued to stand there glaring at him.
He smiled at her. In fact, he couldn't take his eyes off her. She'd
changed her dress and looked even prettier than she had an hour
before.
She wore an old, faded honey-colored dress that had probably been the
color of gold at one time. The dress, noticeably threadbare at the
elbows and frayed at the cuffs, was probably a hand-me-down, but on her
it was still beautiful. Her hair was tied back behind her neck with a
thin white ribbon. Strands had worked free of the confinement and
curled around her ears. She defined sensuality and femininity, and
when she took a step toward him, the light scent of lilacs came with
her.
Damn, but she was something else.
'What are you staring at? ' she demanded.
'You, ' he answered. 'You're a very beautiful woman, Jessica.' The
compliment took the wind out of her. He didn't order her to sit down
this time. He asked.
'I want you to listen to what I have to say, and when I'm finished, if
you still want to shoot me, I'll let you.'
'You know I won't shoot you, }' she muttered as she handed the gun back
to him. 'I'd like to, ' she hastily qualified. 'But I won't. The
