Annabelle Weston Read Free Page B

tell me nothin’ and those no-accounts are long gone.”
    “ Seems this town is in need of a sheriff,” Jed said with a wry smile.
    The barkeep raised his brow. “Maybe. Don’t seem like a sheriff does any good anyhow.”
    “ You just may be wrong about that, my friend.”
    The barkeep narrowed his eyes. “What are you saying? Who are you?”
    Jed smiled wide. “Jeddah Poole, new sheriff of Tucson.”
    The barkeep wiped his hands on the feed sack tied around his waist. “Mighty glad to make your acquaintance, Sheriff.” He extended his hand.
    Jed shook it. The silence within the saloon was deafening.
    The barkeep spoke up, “This here is the new sheriff.”
    Jed turned to address the crowd. They were all staring at him with mouths open.
    Time he laid down the law.
    “ You boys can have your fun but I won’t have anyone shooting in the streets on their way home. I’ll confiscate your weapons if you do.”
    The men looked at each other. A few grumbled. Others scrambled to their feet.
    Jed rested his hand on his six-shooter.
    A man with a scraggily beard collected his winnings into his hat. “Seems like this party is over.”
    With a glance at Jed, he pushed through the swinging doors. Others followed.
    The big-breasted woman put her hand on her hip. “Now look at what you’ve done.”
    Jed held his ground. “It was their choice to leave, not mine.”
    She cast him a scowl. “Having a sheriff in town is gonna be bad for business. You just wait until Carly finds out.”
    Jed shifted his gaze to the saloon owner. Her head had fallen back and she appeared to be sleeping without a care in the world.
    A woman dressed in plain gingham hurried down the staircase. Her mouse-colored hair was pulled back in a twist at the nape of her neck. She knelt by Carly Buchanan’s side and patted her cheek.
    “ Come on upstairs,” she said. “Let Ester put you to bed.”
    The saloon dolly slumped further in the chair. Her arms hung limply at her side. Jed had seen plenty of folks tired of life. Miss Buchanan would be at the top of the list.
    The woman calling herself Ester straightened. She scanned the room, wringing her red, chapped hands. “Will someone help me?”
    The remaining card players ignored her. The other dollies kept their attention on their customers. The barkeep was busy with a cowhand.
    Jed swore to himself. He couldn’t turn away from Ester’s anxious pleas.
    He stepped forward and Ester backed away. He placed a hand underneath the crook of Miss Carly’s delicate knees and the other around her thin, white shoulders. He picked her up.
    She was as light as goose down. Her head lolled toward him and rested on his neck, exposing her lace-topped corset. The garment didn’t hide the ample curve of her breasts or the pucker of dark nipples. His first instinct was to look away, to not take advantage of a woman in her condition.
    The scent of her hair grabbed him by the short and curlies. Something earthy, something carnal. He couldn’t help but be enthralled by her. How was it possible? Must be the fact that he’d been without a woman for more days than he could count.
    Ester waved him to follow her. He carried Carly up the creaking stairs, her warm body pressed against him. Her breathing was soft and innocent. Temptation wasn’t far from his thoughts.
    The door to the first room was open. He crossed the threshold. The scent of sex and perfume was strong. Ester pulled down a clean satiny sheet—looked like it had yet to be used. The mutterings from Ester about how the last of Miss Carly’s customers had gone and ruined her good sheets confirmed his opinion. He laid her on the bed as if she was broken. His lip curled into a snarl when she turned her head and he saw more clearly the ugly bruise and her lip swollen from a cut that must hurt.
    “ Thank you, sir,” Ester said behind him. She poured water into a basin and moistened a cloth. “I’ll just clean her up now if you don’t mind.”
    Jed realized