“You?” Colt’s voice sounded far away. “I never took you down for the domestic type.”
“Oh, yes. I was raised on a ranch, don’t you know? I always thought that, someday, I’d like to be around animals again.”
“Mmm...” Colt sounded almost asleep. “You’d like this ranch. Down near the river, with a right pretty view of the lake. I’d like...”
It seemed as if Mel was putting the man to sleep. Mary didn’t blame him. Despite her own discomfort, the melodic sound of Mel’s voice was almost hypnotic. Relaxing. The warmth of Will’s body next to hers, comforting.
And, as she burrowed closer to Will, Mary couldn’t help but notice that he smelled far better than whatever she’d been smelling. He smelled of clean, of good soap and something a little tangy.
Colt let out a long, loud snore, jerking Mary out of her reverie.
What had she been thinking?
She tried moving away, but wedged between Will and Jasper, Mary had no place to go. Why had she been thinking these things about Will? After all, Jasper was right on the other side of her. True, he’d just married her friend. But why couldn’t she have moved closer to Jasper instead?
It was as if she had some kind of invisible connection to Will, always drawing her closer to him. And if she had any room for fancy in her life, she might have allowed herself to entertain thoughts about him. But fancy, and thinking that she could find happiness for herself with a man and a family of her own, was exactly what had landed her in this predicament to begin with.
Mary squeezed her eyes shut. She was not going to think about Will. Not in that way. Not in any way that brought her comfort or made her think that she could have anything more than what she had.
* * *
Mel was good; Will had to give her credit for that. But did she realize exactly what Colt had given away? The pretty plum was Daisy, Mel’s sister. He wished he could get Mel to ask more about the ranch’s location, but as Colt’s voice trailed off into a snore, Will knew it was probably hopeless.
At least they knew something. Daisy was alive and well. Living on a nearby ranch. True, she was with child, but at least she was all right. Will waited for the expected pang at the thought of Daisy carrying another man’s child. But as Mary’s head rested gently at his back, he found he couldn’t resurrect any of those old feelings.
If anything confirmed that Will didn’t love Daisy, it was the woman next to him.
Will’s reality prevented him from being the kind of husband a respectable lady deserved. He’d seen the pained look on her face as the other ladies at the wedding had snubbed her. Once her sister was safe and time had passed, people would forget the scandal, and Mary would be one of society’s darlings. The man on the other side of her would make sure of that. Jasper might have married in scandal, but the Jacksons were too wealthy and powerful for people to remember long.
Mary would be all right.
As for Will, well, he would get his man. Ben Perry had ruined too many lives. And now, knowing that poor Daisy was carrying the miscreant’s baby, it was just one more reason the man didn’t deserve to live. She’d been a good girl, too. But now, like Rose, her life was ruined because of one man’s greed.
Will supposed he should pray, but what good would that do? He’d prayed for so many things, and the Lord hadn’t provided. Not selfish prayers, but things about bringing Ben to justice, keeping people safe, and none of them had done any good. Yet the pastor’s earlier words rang in his head. No one was beyond the Lord’s aid. Not an exact quote, but enough to make Will sigh. All right, Lord. I’m asking. Help us.
Mel’s face appeared at the edge of the screen. “Come on. Colt’s asleep.”
Will scooted out from behind the screen, then offered Mary his hand to help her out.
“What if he wakes up?” Mary’s voice trembled. As Will felt her hand in his, he realized that it was colder than the mountain air in the dead of winter.
Mel chuckled. “I gave him enough laudanum to knock out an elephant for a week. Colt’s not going anywhere.”
Will looked over at the sleeping man. For a hired gun, he looked almost childlike and innocent.
Mel seemed to know the direction of Will’s thoughts. “Colt’s been a friend to me for a while now. If a customer gives me any trouble, Colt takes care of it. He just...” Mel turned her gaze on Mary, and for once it didn’t look as hostile as it usually did.
“Folks don’t understand that we don’t choose this life. It chooses us. You do what you have to do to survive, and sometimes, you become something you never thought.”
Would Mary understand Mel’s words? Probably not. But if she sat and talked with Mel as a friend, she’d realize that the two women had far more in common than she would have guessed. Will looked around the simple room. Mel had done all this for Daisy. Though he suspected the idea turned Mary’s stomach, if living this life was what she’d need to do to save Rose, she wouldn’t hesitate.
The thought of Rose and Daisy brought Will back to the task at hand. He forced his attention back on Mel.
“Do you know the pretty plum Colt was talking about?”
Mel shook her head. “I’m surprised Ben is taking care of her. He just threw a girl out for finding herself in the family way.”
“Be glad.” Will swallowed the
