Chapter Twenty
When they got into Bozeman, Gray and Jessie made their way to the nearest inn. They didn’t stay in the same one as last time. Gray wanted to change up the locations they stayed in so if anyone was looking for them, there was no pattern to their movements.
Jessie fumed as they walked up the wooden stairs to the second floor of the inn, irritated that Gray had once again taken the liberty of ordering them one room. After a few minutes of arguing, he left her alone to take a bath, which she was grateful for.
She hurried to prepare to take a bath, not wanting him to return and find her naked. She didn’t even want to imagine what liberties he thought he might be entitled to after last night.
The room was similar to all the others—bare, with nothing much in it other than a bed, table, and the tub. People didn’t stay very long in the inns, so most of them were bare-bone affairs. Most of the people who stayed in them were drifters on their way through town, and the sparse furnishings did the trick.
She locked the door and dragged the privacy screen in front of the bath, just in case Gray had another key to get in.
Stripping down to nothing, she inspected her body and frowned at the bruises that peppered her stomach and sides from the fall she’d taken. She checked her bandage for blood, and relief coursed through her that there was minimal bleeding. She probably wouldn’t get an infection. Her body didn’t hurt much anymore, but the familiar soreness from riding a horse all day had returned.
Lowering herself into the hot water, she let out a moan of pure pleasure as the heat enveloped her. Nothing felt as good as a hot bath after a long day of travel. Well, almost nothing. She blushed, thinking of last night, but a smile covered her face.
She should be ashamed by what they had done. Most women in her situation would be. But she had enjoyed herself and was happy that it had happened, even if it couldn’t happen again. She couldn’t deny the spark of excitement last night had been, but she was even more grateful that she was in a bath and could clean his scent off her body. She wanted to wash it away, so she could move past it and wouldn’t be tempted by him again. It was only one night that they’d been together, and she needed to move forward.
She was thrilled to see that this inn also carried the rose-scented soap. She rubbed her body clean with a fresh scented bar and smiled at the familiar aroma.
She thought back to their conversation at the cabin after they’d woken up. She had been happy that Gray had accepted her dodging his questions and brought the conversation back to Casey, but now she wasn’t so sure she should be so relieved.
Did it make her naive that she thought they would talk about it? She had thought that maybe while they were on the ride to town, it would come up at some point. With an odd twinge of disappointment, she wished he had fought harder to talk it through with her or fought harder to be with her. Maybe it had been his plan all along to take advantage of her, and she’d given him just what he’d wanted.
Frustrated and confused, she finished her bath. It was time to stop thinking about it and get out of the room as soon as possible. It felt nice to be clean again for the first time in a long time. She was growing tired of living on the road. She wanted to have a bath whenever she felt like it, and not have to wait until she reached a town to do it.
Peeking around the privacy screen, she saw that the door was still locked and it gave her the courage to step out from the bath to get dressed. She wasn’t going to let Gray see her in the tub because after last night, she wasn’t sure what his reaction would be.
Fully clothed, she thought about their situation again. Now that Casey was aware someone was after him, he’d go into hiding. He’d been asking bounty hunters all over the territory to come after Luke and Gray, and by this point he must have asked at least twenty people. She hoped that Luke had found a good place to hide and stay there until it was safe. Even though she’d only spent a few days with him, something about him told her he was the kind of guy who didn’t like to sit around and wait for someone else to save him.
If Casey got out of Bozeman, it would be harder to find him. During the eight years that she had spent in hiding, she’d pretty much stayed in roughly the same area of the West. If only she hadn’t gotten hurt falling off her horse, this would all be done and over with by now.
She blushed at the thought though, because if she hadn’t fallen off her horse, she and Gray might not have had their passionate night of lovemaking. But maybe it still would’ve happened. She’d been intrigued by him from the moment she met him, and they had been spending a lot of time together on the trail. She wasn’t sure exactly when the attraction had started for Gray, but after last night, she knew he felt the same way.
She’d fallen for him hard. He’d gone from being a bullheaded and annoying man to someone she enjoyed spending time with.
He made her feel safe, and he gave her hope for her future.
She frowned as she realized she had feelings for him, but she knew he didn’t have true, lasting feelings for her. He was attracted to her, sure. But that was it. Before their lovemaking, he had never shown he cared for her.
She sighed as she brushed her hair and tucked it back up into her hat to hide it. She should probably cut it, since it was so long and getting harder and harder to hide. But if she was going to pretend she was a man, she wanted at least one thing that didn’t make her feel like one. Her hair made her feel like she was still her old self, even if she had to hide it from everyone.
Gathering her gun and sliding it into the holster under her vest, she set out to leave the room. She wasn’t going to let Gray have all the fun out there. What if he’d already found Casey and needed her help?
Jessie stepped out of the inn, her boots padding against the wooden planks as she walked. The covered porch provided shade from the sun, and several townspeople were sitting on the porch, chatting with one another. The chatter was soft, and Jessie instinctively listened in to see if there was any gossip she could use to find Casey. There were two old men facing each other, and their hats covered most of their faces. But they weren’t talking about anything of use, so Jessie quickly moved on.
It didn’t take her long to find Gray making his way back to the inn. He was walking back toward the inn when she was walking out, so they met in the street. His powerful and well-muscled body moved with grace, and other people moved out of his way as he walked toward her. A few of townspeople gave him apprehensive looks before scurrying away.
An easy smile played at the corners of his mouth when he saw her, and her stomach fluttered. He didn’t smile often, and she wondered if after their night together, he might do it more.
“Figured you’d want a bite to eat since it’s coming up on lunchtime,” he said when they were close enough to talk.
She smiled, happy that he was thinking about food since her stomach had rumbled at the mention of it. Something warm and tasty sounded like a good idea. She desperately wanted a warm meal that wasn’t one they had whipped together on the trail. It had been hours since she had eaten, and she was ready for warm food.
“Yes! Let’s go,” she said.
Before they could take a step, Jessie saw something out of the corner of her eye that drew her attention. As she turned to look at it, a gunshot rippled through the air, a deafening sound. She felt a stinging in her arm as Gray tackled her to the ground.
The breath was knocked out of her, the pain in her chest sharp as she hit the dirt. Gray grabbed her arm and yanked her up off the ground, shoving her toward the inn. She was stunned, unable to comprehend what was happening as her ears rang.
“Run!” Gray yelled at her as he shoved her in the direction of the inn again. “Get inside!”
Snapping out of her stupor, she took off and ran for the inn. She ripped open the door and rushed inside, turning around to let Gray in with her, but he wasn’t there.
She hadn’t felt fear at the first gunshot, but now her mind was spinning in bewilderment as she tried to piece together what was happening. Her heart beating painfully in her chest, she stepped back outside onto the porch, ready to go after Gray.
Another shot rang out and hit the doorjamb. The frame splintered into pieces, and several nicked her face. She threw her hands up to protect herself and felt blood drip down her cheek from where she’d been hit.
She rushed back into the safety of the inn, slamming the door shut behind her.
Wait. Were they coming after her instead of Gray?
The innkeeper screamed at Jessie to take cover and ducked behind the counter. Jessie didn’t pay her any attention as she went over to a window, peering outside by drawing back the curtain slightly with a finger. In an instant, she took in everything she saw outside.
She heard people scream and saw them scramble in the streets, running into various buildings.
She couldn’t see Gray anywhere. A pit formed in her stomach with worry. Why hadn’t he made it inside with her?
The streets emptied in an instant, except for abandoned horse-drawn carriages and horses tied to hitching posts. She saw movement on top of the saloon, directly across from the inn. There was a man on the roof who must have been shooting at them—his rifle was in hand as he looked down at the town beneath him.
Another man was hiding behind a horse and carriage in front of the saloon. She caught sight of him as his head popped out from behind the carriage, and he pointed his gun at the inn.
She didn’t recognize either of their attackers, and unease moved through her at not knowing whether they were skilled hunters or amateurs.
Hands trembling, she removed her gun from the holster. She cursed under her breath. She’d never been in a gunfight before and had never had to kill another person. She hoped she didn’t have to now either, but she was worried about Gray and would do whatever it took to protect him.
She grasped her arm where the bullet had hit her; a small amount of blood came away and coated her fingers with red. It wasn’t a deep wound.
Another gunshot rang out, and her head snapped back to the streets in time to see the man on the roof hunch over and tumble over the edge of the building.
Gray must have gotten him.
She seized the moment and darted outside, ducking behind the porch railing so the man at the bottom of the saloon across the street wouldn’t see her. Her breathing was short and labored, coming in staccato beats.
More gunfire sounded nearby. Most likely, the man on the roof had spotted Gray and they were firing at each other.
Every time she heard a shot, she used it to her advantage and crept closer and closer to the front of the saloon, hiding behind carriages and horses. The dust in the air from when people had run for cover rose up and nearly choked her, and partially blocked her vision.
Finally close enough to the attacker hiding behind the stagecoach in front of the saloon, she rounded the coach and came up behind him, gun drawn and pointing directly at his back. Gunpowder filled the air now, stinging her nose and confirming her thought that he was the one shooting at them. His head darted back and forth, unaware that she was only a few feet away.
He held a pistol in his hand, and a rifle was down at his side within reach.
She hesitated, suddenly unsure of what to do.
She’d never taken a life before, and she didn’t want to start now. Before, she had only shot to wound, not to kill.
But she needed to protect Gray—and herself.
The man stiffened, then spun around to face her as she was thinking of what to do.
She froze, paralyzed, staring into his crazed eyes. She squeezed her eyes shut and fired, not wanting to see someone lose their life.
Another gunshot rang out and she knew that she had missed, and this was the end for her.