Savage Thunder

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."

"But I've made my choice."

"Your choice isn't being cooperative, dear, or did that escape your notice?" Vanessa said dryly, only to regret her words when Jocelyn flinched. "Now, none of that. There's probably a very good reason why these American Indians are called savages, you know. It's doubtful you would have liked his form of lovemak-ing, so be glad it hasn't worked out."

"He's not a savage, Vana."

"Reserve that opinion until after you face him. And best we put it behind us, so come along."

As they continued forward, the four guards Vanessa had motioned back moved up behind them again, and the two who had been stationed in the lobby fell into step beside them. The remaining six were already outside. They would have thoroughly checked out the area, even the buildings across the street.

If there was even one person of a suspicious nature anywhere around who couldn't be warned away, Jocelyn would not be allowed to leave the ho-tel. Hours could be wasted, and had frequently been wasted, on just such precautions. If Longnose ever hired a decent marksman, those precautions would be pointless, but fortunately, none of his hirelings had ever been competent with firearms, at least not from a distance.

Sir Parker was there to open the door for them with a ready smile. He adored Jocelyn, but only from afar. She was like an ideal to him, safe to worship, but he would never presume to make his feelings known to her. As if everyone didn't know, including Jocelyn. She was the stuff of dreams, whereas earthy creatures like Babette were reality, and Parker and half the guard frequently took advantage of the French maid's brand of reality. But it was amusing to watch Parker and Jocelyn both take such pains not to acknowledge his feelings for her.

It really was too bad he felt that Jocelyn was beyond his reach, Vanessa thought, for his age was per-fect at thirty, he owned considerable property in Kent, and he was quite the most handsome of the guards with his black hair and dark green eyes. The trouble was, he would never settle for just being her lover, even if she would consider him as a candidate. He wasn't ready to settle down — the reason he so enjoyed the job the duke had offered him — but if he thought Jocelyn would have him, he would offer for her in a minute.

No, Jocelyn would never consider any of her own men for her first experiments with amour, for that would defeat her purpose of protecting the duke's memory. But Vanessa's misgivings about her Mr.

Thunder had grown considerably today, and she was now firmly of the opinion that he was not right for her either.

A virgin needed gentleness and sensitivity for her first sexual experience, and it was highly doubtful that Mr. Thunder possessed either of those qualities. They had assumed, given his appearance and speech, which was easier to understand than that of most of these Westerners, that despite his ancestry, he had been raised in what passed for civilization here in the West. It had been a surprise to hear his brother state other-wise. If a man was raised by savages, didn't that make him a savage? Colt Thunder's civilized veneer was very likely only skin-deep, which was why it was a blessing he didn't return Jocelyn's interest.

Vanessa was forced to change her opinion yet again when they stepped out onto the walkway fronting the hotel and saw the man, still mounted on his horse. Skin-deep? Not even that. There was nothing civi-lized about the look he directed at Jocelyn. It said more clearly than words that she would have been in serious trouble if they were alone just then. Did she realize that, or was she still blinded by the dark hand-someness of the man? And he was that. Vanessa had not gotten a good look at him before, but it was easier to understand now why he had affected Jocelyn so strongly.

Jocelyn did not mistake the meaning behind the look Colt gave her, but then she had been expecting something like it. The man was angry with her and wanted her to know it. Still, he wasn't shouting at her, not yet anyway, when she had expected that too. Of course, she wasn't alone with him this time. She had her guard surrounding her. But somehow she didn't think that would stop him if he wanted to shout at her.

The silence stretched on as he continued to stare at her, shredding her nerves. She ought to apologize.

That was what he was probably waiting for. But the words wouldn't come, and then his did.

"Fifty thousand dollars, Duchess. Take it or leave it."

It was fortunate that Jocelyn couldn't see the expressions of the men behind her just then, or she would have thought there was going to be bloodshed. She did hear Vanessa's gasp and was aware that the countess put a hand on Parker's arm to restrain him from reacting to the insult Jocelyn had been dealt.

And she did realize she had been insulted, not only by the words, which implied nothing short of a for-tune could get him to work for her and that he didn't care one way or the other, but also by the tone in which those words had been delivered.

Oh, he was clever, was Colt Thunder. He fully expected her to be outraged at such a fee. He was counting on it. He was also positive she would refuse; had named such a high figure so she would be forced to refuse; otherwise he wouldn't have made the offer. She had to bite back her smile. She could hire a hun-dred guides for that price and they both knew it, but what he didn't know was that that wasn't what she wanted him for. He would likely be the most expen-sive lover anyone had ever bought, but what else did she have to spend her fortune on?

"Done, Mr. Thunder," Jocelyn said with a good deal of pleasure. "You now work for me." She had to turn away quickly before she laughed aloud at the expression of utter disbelief that appeared on his handsome face.