Kate's Outlaw (Steam! Romance and Rails) Read Free

left of the door and pulled a knife from a sheath in his boot.
    Growing nervous, Jake shook his head. No bloodshed . That was the deal.
    The knob turned and a woman stepped inside, one with hair as bright as a sunset.
    Redbird .
    Recognition jolted through him. Even though he'd only seen her from afar, there was no mistaking her fiery crown. It was the same woman who’d been following the railroad for months, mostly on the arm of the chief.
    Fear flickered across her face, but instead of screaming, she raised her chin and leveled a stern look. "What are you doing in here? This is a private office."
    Charley eased up behind her, his eyes glittering with grim intent. Surely, he wouldn't harm a woman.
    The knife flashed.
    " Tsali , no!" Jake shouted.
    Confusion flickered across Redbird’s face a second before Charley clapped one hand over her mouth and jerked her back against him, putting the razor-sharp blade to her throat.
    She froze, her eyes huge with terror.
    Jake placed his palms on the desktop, prepared to leap over and grab the knife. But he checked himself. If he startled her, she might bolt, and the glint in Charley's eyes made it clear she wouldn't get away.
    "Don't hurt her," Jake continued in Tsa-la-gi.
    Charley scowled and jerked his chin toward the door. "See if someone followed."
    Taking care to be quiet, Jake looked outside. No one lingered by the car and the only sounds were the strains of music and drunken laughter. He shut the door.
    Redbird hadn't moved a muscle. Good thing she was smart enough to keep her wits about her. Now he had to calm Charley down.
    "Don't see anybody, but we can't risk staying long enough to find the money. Let's tie her up and get out of here."
    Charley flicked a dark glance at the petrified woman in his arms. "She's seen us. It'll ruin our cover."
    "Only if they connect us with the other theft."
    "You know they will if she squawks."
    Redbird's frightened eyes darted back and forth and her brow knitted with confusion. Better she didn't understand.
    "I’ll cut her throat and we can run. No one will be the wiser." Charley made the remark as casually as if he were discussing the weather.
    Horror thundered through Jake, and in a burst of protectiveness, he moved closer. Charley might be right about the danger of letting her go, but killing her was out of the question. "I've got a better idea. Give her to me."
    "You?” his cousin made a sound of disgust. “What are you going to do with her?"
    Jake met a pair of frightened eyes as blue as the summer sky. Light freckles were sprinkled like sand over her pale skin. And her hair, he’d never seen the like, tight coils of fire that she’d tried, without success, to subdue into a thick knot. She was exotic, foreign…forbidden.
    His mouth went dry. What was he going to do with her?
    He blurted out his first thought. "I'll make her man pay us to return her.”
    Charley's obsidian eyes filled with respect. "Good thinking, Wa-ya ."
    Good idea? It was a terrible idea, the worst he’d ever had, and only marginally better than Charley’s suggestion. But it appeared this was the only way he’d keep Redbird safe.
    Jake tore off the bandana around his neck and gagged her. Using a leather strip from his hatband, he tied her hands. His thumb brushed the smooth skin on the inside of her wrist. Male awareness buzzed through him. He tried to ignore it, and refused to analyze it.
    Whipping out his gun, he stuck the barrel into her side and dragged her to the door. He didn’t want to frighten her, but he couldn't risk having her break and run. His cousin would sink a knife in her back before she got five feet.
    The lively music still played, but no one appeared to be paying attention to the last car on the train. Charley doused the light. Jake nudged Redbird down the metal stairs, retracing his steps. As they neared the engine, he veered into the high grass.
    She balked, making a distressed sound in the back of her throat.
    He moved the gun's barrel