Chicago. The whys of all that are kind of complicated."

"That is all very fascinating, young man," Vanessa commented at this point, "and I don't mean to be rude, but we are in a bit of a hurry to leave this. this location. The duchess, I am sure, will be delighted to continue this conversation, but in quieter surroundings. You may accompany us, if you like, back to our hotel—"

"Much as I would enjoy that, ma'am, I'm afraid I can't. Colt's waiting for me" — his quick glance across the street said where Colt was waiting—"and, well, I just wanted to explain about his behavior this morn-ing and let you know it had nothing to do with you personally, Lady Fleming. He has these set ideas, you see, and…"

Billy's words trailed off, for the lady was no longer listening to him. She had followed his look across the street and was still looking there, staring at Colt, who was likewise staring at her. But it was obvious he wasn't going to do anything more than that. He didn't nod to acknowledge her, didn't move a muscle, just stood there holding the horses' reins, patiently wait-ing for Billy to finish his socializing and join him.

Patiently? Not likely. Colt was probably furious. You just couldn't tell it by looking at him.

"He's not leaving town, is he?"

It wasn't hard for her to have drawn that conclu-sion, with both horses Colt was leading packed for traveling. The alarm in her voice and expression took Billy by surprise, however. He couldn't figure out what possible interest a woman like this could have in someone like Colt. She barely knew him, certainly not enough to generate such concern.

Billy grew uncomfortable, knowing the answer he had to give, and guessing the reaction it would bring.

"Colt doesn't like towns much, ma'am, especially those he doesn't know. He only came to this one to find me, and now that he has, he can't wait to be on his way. We would have been gone already if my horse hadn't thrown a shoe."

"Mr. Thunder has the right idea," Vanessa re-marked. "I'm all for leaving this town myself—

immediately."

"We don't have a guide yet," the duchess replied absently to her friend.

"Where were you heading, ma'am, if you don't mind my asking?"

Jocelyn hesitated only a moment before saying, "Wyoming," and Billy wasn't the only one surprised by that answer. But he was the only one to comment on it, and without the least suspicion.

"Imagine that," Billy said with boyish delight. "That's our destination too, or at least Colt's, since he hasn't said yet whether he'll be shipping me back home somewhere along the way or not. It's too bad we can't all…"

He didn't finish that thought, realizing just in time that he had no business inviting anyone along, especially not a woman Colt had done everything possible to avoid. But he had said too much as it was, and she pounced on the idea without giving him a chance to correct the mistake.

"But that's a splendid notion, Mr. — Blair, is it?"

"Ewing," he replied with a distinctly unpleasant feeling curling in his belly. "I took my stepfather's name."


"Well, Mr. Ewing, you really are a lifesaver," she rushed on. "I agree with the countess that we can no longer remain in a place of such violence. And it will take us no time at all to be ready to leave."

"But—"

"Oh, you needn't feel that we mean to take advantage of your good nature, sir. Not at all. Since we are in need of a guide, you must allow me to hire you and your brother for that purpose. I can pay you extremely well to make it worth your while to put up with us for however long it takes to reach Wyoming."

"But—"

"No, no, you can't refuse payment. I really must insist. I wouldn't feel right about imposing, otherwise.

So if you will meet us in front of the Grand Hotel within the next hour, we won't delay your de-parture any longer than that. Until then, Mr. Ewing."

She passed by him with a nod of farewell and was gone before he could get another "but" out, not that one more would have done any better than the others. He was left standing alone on the boardwalk — and facing Colt across the street. Christ! What the hell had just happened? He hadn't actually agreed to es-cort the duchess and her party to Wyoming, had he? But he hadn't refused either.

His thoughts whirling, Billy didn't move from his spot. But now that he was alone, Colt crossed to him, still leading their horses.

"Mount up, kid."

Just like that. He wasn't even curious about Billy's conversation with the duchess, or if he was, he wasn't going to appease it. It would have been easier on Billy if Colt had yelled at him and called him ten kinds of fool for going near the woman. He certainly felt like a fool. The lady had talked circles around him, and now he had to try and do the same to Colt.

"We, ah… we can't leave just yet, Colt."

"Wanna bet?"

Billy groaned inwardly but plunged ahead. "I sort of agreed to take the lady to Wyoming with us."

There was a long silence crackling with tension as he waited for the explosion. When Colt did comment, his voice was barely a whisper. "As in, you sort of agreed to hire on with the Clantons?"

"Well, actually, she never gave me a chance to agree or not. She sort of took it for granted."

"Get on your horse, Billy," was all Colt said to that.

"But this is different! She's gone to her hotel to pack. She expects us to meet her there out front in the next hour."

Colt calmly mounted his horse before he replied, "Then she'll realize she's made a mistake when we don't show up, won't she?"

That was true enough, and the easiest way to get out of it, except.

"You don't understand, Colt. Those ladies are scared to remain here after what they witnessed. They mean to leave town today, with or without a guide. Would you really let them cross this country alone when they don't know anything about it, don't know what dangers to watch for, how to recognize Indian signs or anything else? They'll end up getting lost, or drowned crossing a river where they shouldn't, or robbed. You know there's hundreds of petty outlaws who operate in this area alone. All it would take is their asking directions of the wrong people to end up in a trap. They're tenderfoots, Colt, a hundred times worse than I am."

Something must have gotten through to Colt, for he lost his temper at that point. "Dammit, I told her I wasn't for hire!"

"But did you know she was going to Wyoming? And she says she pays very well. You might as well get something out of this trip for the trouble I've put you to."

Bringing Colt's thoughts back to the reason for his being there perhaps wasn't the wisest thing to do.

Billy felt flattened by the look he got, but then Colt yanked his horse — and headed for the Grand Hotel.

Chapter Eleven

Billy should have known that Colt wasn't so easy to talk around. He had no intention of seeing the duch-ess and her entourage north. As he put it, while they waited for her to appear outside her hotel, she'd been traveling for three years and was still in one piece. She had all the protection she needed in her own little army, and there were stage lines they could follow to keep from getting lost. If they had to have a guide, they could probably locate one in a matter of hours and still be on their way out of town today. What they did not need, and were not getting, was him, and he was there to make sure the lady was left in no further doubt of that.

How he intended to do that, Billy didn't know. Colt had said his piece and then said no more. But as they sat their mounts in front of the Grand Hotel, watching the baggage and trunks being loaded in the wagons that had been pulled up in front of the building when they got there, Billy was afraid that Colt was not going to be pleasant about it. And Colt could be very unpleasant when he wanted to be. But he also wasn't behaving in a normal fashion. As they waited, his jaw kept working as if he were gritting his teeth, he changed the angle of his hat a half-dozen times, and he seemed to tense each time the hotel doors opened.

If Billy didn't know better, he would think Colt was nervous, but that just couldn't be. There wasn't a thing alive that could intimidate Colt, as far as Billy knew. He just didn't have the same reactions to things as other men did.

Inside the hotel, there was no doubt about ner-vousness. Jocelyn was nearly trembling with it when she neared the hotel entrance. She had been told that Colt Thunder was outside waiting with his brother. She hadn't really let herself believe he would show up, but that he had didn't mean she would be getting what she wanted. Far from it. He had every right to be furious with her for the way she had manipulated his brother. He wouldn't have let her get away with it, and was likely there only to tell her what he thought of her high-handedness.


"Stop a moment and take a deep breath before you make yourself sick," Vanessa said in a stern voice, putting her hand on Jocelyn's arm to make sure she did halt, and motioning their guards back. "What's done is done. All you can do now is apologize."

"I could beg."

"You will do no such thing!" Vanessa snapped in-dignantly. "We aren't desperate for his help, and you aren't desperate for his body, not yet anyway. You're suffering a powerful attraction, but out of sight, out of mind. You will forget him sooner than you think."

"And remain a virgin forever," Jocelyn sighed.

Vanessa couldn't help it. She had to smile at such a forlorn expression. "That isn't likely to happen, dearest, and you know it. You forget that you have only just decided to take a lover. You were not actively seeking one before, but now that you are, you will be surprised how many men you will find appealing that you otherwise wouldn't have noticed."