Elspeth looked away from the swinging doors to see Andre Marzonoff standing before her table. His plump face was sober and his hazel eyes concerned. “You made him very angry. For a moment, when he first saw you, he reminded me of my cousin, Nicholas. It is not safe to make such men angry.”

Elspeth tried to smile and found her lips were trembling. Her heart pounded jerkily with a queer sort of panic. Dominic’s eyes had been so… strange.

“Well, it’s done now.” She rose to her feet. “I can’t turn back the clock. We’ll just have to see what comes of it.” She glanced around the room and suddenly shivered with uneasiness. She couldn’t locate the reassuring face of Ben Travis in the crowd, but the other men in the room were looking at her with curiosity, insolence, even anticipation. There was none of the amusement she had recently encountered on any of the faces surrounding her, and she had a sudden memory of Dominic Delaney’s remark regarding the line no lady could venture to cross. She turned toward the swinging door. “I believe I’ll go back to the hotel. Good night, Andre.”

“I will accompany you. I have no further interest in this place at present, and you should not be on the streets alone.”

She would feel safer outside on those streets than in here, she thought nervously. The atmosphere as well as the attitude of the men gazing at her held a vague element of menace. “Thank you, that would be kind of you.” She knew it was no real sacrifice for Andre to leave the saloon now that the object of his almost boyish hero worship had left the premises, but she appreciated the courtesy. She had no desire to be unescorted at this moment.

The hot stillness of the night hit her with renewed force as she went through the swinging doors. She heard a sudden release of conversation and laughter in the saloon behind her.

“He has been most patient with you,” Andre Marzonoff continued as he helped her from the wooden sidewalk to the dirt of the street. “You must realize a lady has certain limitations she must observe. In St. Petersburg a woman who acted as you have would be ostracized, not only by society but by her own family.”

“Then it’s fortunate that I am not in St. Petersburg, isn’t it?” Elspeth was beginning to be a trifle annoyed by Andre. The incident in the Nugget had been upsetting enough without having to contend with his sermonizing. Over the past few days she had developed a half-impatient fondness for the young Russian. He displayed an almost pathetic eagerness for acceptance from these rough westerners which touched even as it bewildered her. Why didn’t he go home to Russia where he belonged, instead of attempting to be accepted in a society that was so foreign to him? If he stayed a dozen years, he would never be a man of Dominic Delaney’s ilk, no matter how much he strove to emulate him. And it was more than obvious he was trying to emulate him in every possible way. He had discarded his elegant city apparel, and was dressed in the close-fitting trousers, white shirt, and black string tie that Dominic favored. Even his gray waist-length suede jacket was similar to the one she had seen Dominic wear when she first had been introduced to him.

“Why do you not go home?” she asked gently. “You’re a man who is accustomed to a different way of life from the one they live here. Wouldn’t you be more comfortable with people and places and customs that are familiar?”

He shook his head. “I was never… comfortable in St. Petersburg.” He didn’t look at her. “You don’t understand. At home there was always Nicholas. He was everything I could never be. He is a dead shot, a magnificent horseman. He can drink any man under the table and lure any woman into his-” He altered the course of his words to finish lamely, “I mean, he gets along very well with the fair sex.”

“I see.”

“Nicholas was… everything. I thought if I could get away from him, I might have a chance of becoming-” He stopped again. “I heard a man has the opportunity to become whatever he likes out here.”

But Andre could never hope to become the man this Nicholas seemed to be, or what Dominic Delaney was, she thought sadly. How strange that in escaping from one overpowering presence, he would encounter yet another. Indeed, it appeared he had not only encountered but actually sought out a man as formidable as his cousin. How bewildered and unhappy he must be to be attracted to the very qualities in Dominic he had run halfway across the world to escape in Nicholas. “I hope you find what you’re seeking, Andre.”

“Oh, I will,” he assured her quickly. “In no time at all I will be perfectly acclimated. I practice with my pistol every day and listen and watch. I’m learning a great deal.”

“I’m sure you are.”

Why was she worrying about Andre when she had such monumental troubles enough herself? He was wealthy and fortunate enough to be a man, which placed him in a considerably better position than she was in. She had been so sure her venture into the Nugget would bring a positive response. Well, she had most certainly wrung a response from Dominic Delaney, but the nature of it had bewildered as well as frightened her.

The hotel was only a few yards away, and unconsciously her pace quickened. She would face the possible consequences of her actions tomorrow, but now she wanted to escape upstairs to her room and shut-out the fear gnawing away at her confidence.

There was someone in her room!

She could see nothing in the darkness, but as soon as she shut the door she was aware of the light sound of breathing and assailed by the unmistakable aura of presence. Her heart gave a leap and then started pounding wildly. She whirled, her hand searching wildly for the china knob of the door.

There was a low laugh from the rocking chair in the corner of the room. “You mustn’t run away now.” Dominic Delaney’s voice was mocking and slightly amused. “It wouldn’t be polite. I’m merely returning your call. I decided you must have wanted to see me very badly to ignore the warning I gave you at Rina’s.”

She froze with her hand on the knob. Dear heaven, she was frightened. She mustn’t let him terrify her like this. He was here and no longer ignoring her. She should boldly take advantage of the opportunity to speak to him, but she didn’t feel in the least bold. She felt small, nervous, and completely inadequate to meet this sudden challenge. “I did want to see you, Mr. Delaney.” She tried to keep the quaver from her voice. “You must know why I…” She trailed off. The darkness, the knowledge that he was sitting there looking at her, suddenly made it hard to breathe much less speak. “Perhaps we’d better light the candle.”

“I like the darkness. It creates a certain intimacy.” She heard the creak of the rocking chair as he rose to his feet. “Though candlelight has its advantages too. A woman’s skin always has a lovely soft luster in candlelight.” He moved so silently she wasn’t aware he was beside her until he spoke again. “I remember your skin as being very soft, Elspeth. I remember how smooth and warm your throat was beneath my hand that morning. I remember how fast your heart was beating and I remember your eyes looking up at me. What do you remember?”

She could feel the heat emanating from his big body and caught the scent of whiskey and tobacco that surrounded him. She moistened her lips nervously. “Nothing. I don’t remember anything.”

“Then perhaps I’d better refresh your memory. I was naked, Elspeth, and you were fully clothed. You had me at a disadvantage, and I don’t like to be at a disadvantage.” His voice was only a level above a whisper, but every word was spoken with mocking clarity. “This time I think it’s only fair we’re on an even footing.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think you know what I mean. We’re merely going to conclude what you invited that day at Rina’s. Hold out your hands.”

“Why should I- What are you doing?” He hadn’t waited for her to obey but gathered her wrists with a lightning-swift motion, slipped a loop of rope over them, and drew the loop taut. The panic rose as she felt the loops tighten, rendering her helpless. “Let me go!”

“That wouldn’t be reasonable, and I’m usually a very reasonable man. It’s only when I’m pushed that I have a tendency to become impulsive.”

“I’ll scream.”

“I understand it’s the accepted thing to do, but I really wouldn’t if I were you. Then I’d have to knock you unconscious and I’ve been taught never to strike a woman.” His tone became silky with menace. “However, I might learn to enjoy violence in your case, Elspeth. You seem to arouse that emotion in me without the slightest effort. I could gladly have strangled you in the Nugget tonight.”

“Why are you doing this?” She wished she could see his face. Perhaps he was only trying to frighten her. If so, he was certainly succeeding. She was trembling and she couldn’t think of anything but how helpless she felt bound and sightless in the darkness. “Please, untie me.”

“Presently.” He moved away for a brief moment, and when he returned he had her cloak. He draped it around her shoulders and fumbled in the darkness for the button that fastened it at the collar. His fingers brushed her throat and she inhaled sharply. He heard. She could sense him grow still. He paused for a moment, his knuckles pressed against the soft flesh of her neck, letting her feel the hard warmth of his fingers. “I think you lied to me, Elspeth. I think you remember a great deal about that morning.” Then, just when the touch of his fingers was beginning to cause an odd hot sensation, his hands fell away. “This will be a little warm, but it will hide the rope if anyone should see us riding out of town.” He drew the hood up over her head. “You’re taking this very calmly. Are you accustomed to being abducted, Elspeth?”

“No.” She could barely force the word through the tightness of her throat. “I’m not calm. I’m not a very brave person, and I’m frightened.”