TheSurrenderofLacyMorgan (20 page)

They were testing her.

Lifting her gaze, she looked into Quinn’s eyes, then
Dakota’s, then back at Quinn again.

“Your lives are connected, not by some twist of fate, but by
choice.” She slid her thumbs over the healed scar lines. “Long ago you swore to
join your lives and your fates. I suspect it was a very grievous occasion. One
that marked you both deeply. It is why you trust each other thoroughly and are
willing to share so many things.”

Holding his gaze with hers, she lowered her voice to just
above a whisper. “Even me.”

“We are blood brothers. Our secret is bound by our blood.”

“Someday, maybe you will tell me what caused you to make
this oath.” Quickly she slid her hands back into her lap and lowered her eyes.
“But I do not understand what this has to do with me and how you plan to
capture Devil and his men.”

“Given your history, Devil won’t believe you’d come back to
him willingly, much less into his bed, correct?”

The idea made her threaten to toss up her dinner. “I’d
rather bed down with a rattler.”

“And he knows that,” Dakota said, sitting back in his seat.
“We’ll have to convince him that there’s a way around your mother’s prediction.
Another way for him to believe he can have you without him forcing you.”

And at that moment she knew. They weren’t just going to use
her to get into the camp or as bait. They planned to let Devil use her body.

The blood drained from her face and the room spun. God, she
was going to be sick.

“Come here, darlin’.” Quinn took her hand and gave it a
little tug.

Stunned by the realization of what they had planned, she let
him pull her onto his lap there in a public place, for everyone and anyone to
see. She should protest, return to her seat, but all she really wanted was to
be held close in his strong arms.

“The only way for Devil to believe you’d bed him is to convince
him you belong to me and you’ll do whatever I tell you.” He smoothed aside the
curls clinging to her neck and leaned in to kiss her lightly just above the
lace covering her collar.

How could they ask her to do this? She’d trusted Quinn with
her heart. Something she swore she’d never do again after Santos. And again she
was going to be used for a man’s advantage. Stupid, stupid woman.

“You won’t ever be out of my sight.”

“You don’t know what he’s capable of.”

“I promise you, I’ll be there. You won’t actually have to
fuck him. We’ll stop him long before that happens.”

Sleeping with Devil wasn’t the only thing that scared her.
She could hear the whistle of the whip again. When he learned what she’d done,
he’d kill her, no matter who stood beside her.

“How will giving me to Devil help you capture him and get
away in one piece?”

“You will be the distraction.” He snuggled her up against
his shoulder.

“A distraction?”

Dakota stroked one hand down her arm. “While Devil is busy
lusting after you, I’ll be busy plying his men with whiskey.”

“Whiskey?” She snorted. “They drink it like water.”

“Ah pet. They’ve not had my special whiskey, laced with
herbs that should render them unconscious in minutes.” He winked and sat back
in his chair. “It will also give them the trots the whole next day.”

She giggled, then noticed several men staring at her through
the café window. She hid her face against Quinn’s shoulder and whispered, “May
we leave now?”

“They making you nervous?”

“Yes.” Heat filled her face.

“Good. Let’s use it as practice.” He gently pushed her
forward until she sat perched on his lap like some common doxy, his hand draped
around her hips. “Kiss me.”

“Here?” She looked around, seeing censure on the faces of an
older couple sitting across the room.

“We want everyone to believe you’ll do anything I ask. Allow
me to touch you in any way I wish, no matter where or when.” He slid one hand
beneath her skirt, gently rubbing her calf just above her boot.

He was right. If she couldn’t do this in front of strangers
she’d never see again, how would she convince Devil of the ruse in the camp
among men she’d threatened to shoot more than once to keep her virtue intact?

Tracing her hand up Quinn’s chest, she slowly leaned in and
kissed him. Pressing deeper, she slipped her tongue out and caressed his lips
until they parted. A deep moan filled her ears and as quick as that she was
lost. He gripped her hip with one hand as he took control of the kiss, sliding
his tongue into her mouth, probing, tasting.

Heat consumed her.

Whimpering softly, she tried to wriggle closer, parting her
legs to allow him more access to her thighs and the hot core of her sex.

“Well, I never!” a pinched female voice said from the corner
of the room.

“Some people have no shame!” an equally outraged masculine
voice chimed in.

Quinn nipped at her bottom lip then slid his tongue over the
tender spot. Lacy couldn’t get enough.

Footsteps clicked and thudded against the café’s wooden
floor, followed by the closing of the door.

“They’re gone,” Dakota said with a hint of laughter. “Took
them a few minutes of staring though.”

Quinn eased his lips from Lacy’s and his hand from beneath
her skirts.

When she opened her eyes, she expected to see triumph or
mockery in his eyes. Instead all she saw was the heat of desire in his crystal
blue gaze.

“You did just fine, darlin’.”

“I’ve ruined my reputation in this town.”

“Don’t worry about it. You’ll not be seeing that couple
again.” He stroked her cheek with his thumb. “You did what I asked, no matter
who was watching, and that’s the important thing. The thing all our lives may
be hanging on.”

“I know.”

He winked at her. “Then smile for me.”

Hearing his pride in her performance, she lifted her lips in
a small smile, wishing the woman’s words didn’t still ring in her ears.

“Good.” He eased her off his lap then laid money for their
meal on the table. “Let’s take a walk to the mercantile and order supplies for
our trip.”

They waited for her to precede them out the door, and
outside on the plank sidewalk they flanked her. Quinn took her hand and slipped
it inside his elbow once more. Gone was the wanton doxy from the public kiss,
the respectable lady once more walked with her two gentlemen.

But she and her escorts knew the truth. She was nothing more
than an outlaw-bank-robber-murderer playing a deadly game in which she was the
bait.

* * * * *

Inside the mercantile, Dakota leaned against the counter
while the storeowner measured out flour, coffee and ammunition to replenish the
supplies they’d need for their trip.

“You from around these parts or just passin’ through?” the
storekeep asked as he stacked rifle bullets onto the counter. “That’ll be two
dollars.”

“Just passing through,” Dakota replied as he shelled out the
coins. “I’d like to leave these here until tomorrow, if that’s all right with
you.”

“Sure thing, mister. Heading out early?”

“Probably just after sunrise.”

“I’ll be sure to tell the missus to have a few biscuits
ready if you be wantin’ some for the trip.” The man grinned, his white
moustache twitching as he cut a slab of bacon. “She makes some mighty tasty
biscuits.”

“I’d be much obliged.” One hand on the counter, Dakota kept
his other on the butt of the gun tied to his thigh. Out of the corner of his
eye, he watched Lacy move around the store. Quinn had left him in charge of the
supplies and protecting Lacy while he’d gone to the telegraph office to look
for replies from Will, Ian or Nicco.

Twice she’d come up and stared at the twists of peppermint
candy. Apparently, she had a sweet tooth. Did she know how intense peppermint
felt when applied to certain parts of the body?

She moved over to the bolts of fabric and stroked the
materials as if she were caressing the coats of newborn kittens. He remembered
how soft her hands felt on his flesh.

Heat surged straight to his loins.

“Beautiful lady. Your wife or your friend’s?”

“She belongs to my partner.”

And damn if he didn’t wish it were the other way around. Oh
hell, he knew Quinn would share her with him anytime, but in the end she’d
always be his brother’s woman.

The storekeep moved away to wrap their purchases in brown
paper and string.

Just the way she looked at Quinn told him where her heart
belonged. He hadn’t needed any vision to tell him so. Besides, he’d never had
any control over the visions. The night before the Cheyenne Bank robbery, he’d
seen Cap walk into the bank, watched them open fire. But he’d been too far away
to help. All of them had. If he’d only had the vision sooner, he could’ve
prevented his adopted father’s death.

“You’re looking mighty sad, Dakota,” Lacy said, standing
beside him.

When had she snuck up on him?

“You would’ve made a good scout.”

“Growing up among outlaws, it paid to learn to move around
as quiet as possible. Life was safer that way.”

Lacy glanced at the peppermints once more, then smiled back
at him. “So, what had you looking so sad?”

“Just thinking about home.”

“What was it like living on the ranch after the Captain took
you and Quinn in?”

“For a few months I wasn’t sure what to expect, and it took
a long time for me to heal from my wounds. But once I was well and felt safe, I
learned about ranching, horse breaking, how to muck out stalls, build corrals.”
He grinned. “Chopped a lot of wood. Cap taught us about justice and doing
what’s right.”

“How many of you were there?”

“Five total. Quinn first, then me. Not long after, Cap
brought home Will.” He shook his head. “Now that took Quinn some getting used
to.”

“Why?”

He reached past her, his arm lightly brushing her breasts.

She sucked in her breath and her nipples puckered in her
bodice.

Damn, the pet was so responsive.

He opened the glass jar containing the sticks of hard
peppermint candy. Taking out several, he motioned to the storekeep to add them
to his tab, then laid the coin on the counter. Slipping one in his mouth, he
sucked on the end and handed another to Lacy before putting the remainder in
his coat pocket.

“Let’s talk outside.” With the courtesy Juanita had drilled
into each of them, Dakota led Lacy to the door and held it open for her, then
offered her his arm. “Will was the son of a freed slave and her white master.”

“And Quinn didn’t like freed slaves because he’s from the
South?”

“No, he’s from Missouri and his daddy and mama actually
helped escaped slaves get further north. That’s what got them killed. Right
before the end of the war, they got caught helping a family cross through rebel
guerillas’ territory. They lynched them all. The kids, the parents and Quinn’s
daddy and ma.”

“Oh, how awful.” Lacy stopped and turned to face him, tears
filling her eyes.

“It’s worse. Quinn was hiding in the woods with the horses,
and came to see why his parents hadn’t returned. He found them all swinging
from an oak tree.”

“Dear God.”

“Cap found me sitting in the woods near the bodies about
three days later,” Quinn said, coming down the plank walk to stand beside them
just outside the saloon. “He helped me cut them down, bury them, and the rest
is history. Mind telling me why y’all are discussing my family?”

Lacy laid a hand on Quinn’s arm. “I asked Dakota about your
other brothers.”

Dakota shrugged. “I started with Will.”

“I did have more trouble than you letting new boys into the
circle, didn’t I?”

“Will and Nicco were easier than Ian.”

“The Duke.” Quinn snorted. “Took him a long time to come off
his high horse. Still has trouble sometimes. Speaking of them,” he pulled
telegrams out of his pocket, “both Ian and Nicco will be in the area in a few
days. Will’s got trouble out at the ranch.”

“What’s happening at Los Hombres?”

“Apparently Cap had a family back East. His heir arrived at
the ranch.”

“We’re his heirs. His will said so.”

“A blood relative can fight that will.”

Damn. They didn’t have time to fight over the ranch with an
outsider, especially not a city dude who didn’t know the first thing about
ranching. Will would just have to handle things until they got home.

“We can’t wait that long for your brothers to arrive,” Lacy
said over the tinny piano music coming from the saloon door.

“Why not?” Quinn asked, moving them slightly away from the
door. Even though he and Dakota had already decided to move out in the morning,
he wanted to hear her reasoning for protesting the delay.

“I fled the camp half a day ahead of a blizzard.” She looked
at him then over at Dakota. “If you ran into someone looking for me, that means
the pass to Devil’s valley is no longer snowed in. Which means Devil will be
itching to rob another bank.”

“Why another robbery if he hasn’t had the time or anywhere
to go and spend the loot from the last job?” Dakota asked.

Before she could answer him, the saloon door burst open
behind her and two drunken miners slammed into her, nearly knocking her over.
Quinn turned to reach for her, but one of the men snatched her around the waist
and hauled her back against him.

Lacy screamed.

Quinn saw red.

“Well, looky what we have here, Duffy,” her captor said.
“The lady from the café window.”

“Think she’ll sit on yer lap, Pete, like she did that
feller’s?” his friend asked, leaning in to leer at her.

“Let me go!” Lacy struggled against the burly man holding
her.

“How about a kiss first?” The man grabbed her by the hair,
trying to turn her face to his.

In a split second, Quinn had palmed his Colt and pressed it
against the man’s temple at the same time Dakota mirrored his movements with
the other drunk.