Outlaw Hearts(20)

Jake frowned. “I’m not so sure I do.”

“Oh, you’ll like this one. Everyone is convinced you died alone somewhere and your body will never be found. They say you might have made it to Indian Territory, in which case you most certainly will never be found, except perhaps by wolves and buzzards who will do a fine job of consuming what is left of your body.”

Jake grinned. “That so?” He took another drink of tea. “Well, as long as I’m supposed to be dead, we’ll just leave things that way. It will be easier getting out of here. If I’m lucky, a certain gang of outlaws will believe the rumor and will stop looking for me.”

“Bill Kennedy?”

Jake studied her eyes. “How did you know?”

“Sheriff McCleave told me you rode with him. Why is he after you?”

Jake rubbed at his eyes. “I think I told you I don’t like questions.”

Miranda folded her arms. “And I think that after all I’ve done for you, I deserve some answers.”

Jake sighed, setting the cup on the tray, feeling ridiculous trying to handle the delicate little thing in his big hands. He thought how the thin china cups reminded him of Miranda Hayes. “Don’t you have some good whiskey? That would do me a lot better than this tea.”

Miranda walked around to the foot of the bed. “Tell me why Bill Kennedy is after you, and I’ll let you have a couple of shots of whiskey.”

He grinned a little. “So, now we’re up to blackmail, are we?”

“Call it what you want.”

He rubbed at his stomach, thinking how the tea did make him feel better. “The things that bounty hunter said, about me being wanted for rape. I wasn’t with Kennedy’s gang that day they robbed that bank back in Missouri, and I didn’t have anything to do with them taking that woman customer off with them. But because I usually rode with them, rumor spread that I was a part of it. I didn’t even know about it until I rode into Kennedy’s hideaway that night and found him and the rest of them—” He glanced at her, saw her growing a little pale. “I don’t think I need to go into details. Suffice it to say most women would rather have been shot, and this one wasn’t even a woman. She was young, maybe only seventeen or so.” A look of anger and outrage moved into his eyes. “It’s like I said before, Mrs. Hayes. I’ve done a lot of things, but not that. And because of something that happened when I was younger, I’ve never been able to tolerate watching a man abuse a woman. I got her out of there, but not without a hell of a gun battle that left a lot of Kennedy’s men dead. They aren’t going to forget about it anytime soon, if ever. I took the girl back to town and left her off. I don’t even know if she realized who helped her. Apparently she didn’t, or she would have told the law I had nothing to do with abusing her.”

Miranda watched his eyes. They were dark, compelling, and at the moment she believed they told the truth. The man emanated power and danger, and at the same time he had shown such vulnerability when he was sick, had again spoken the name Santana. When he had muttered about his father, it had been as though in agony, with an almost begging tone to his voice. This man carried some kind of deep hurt, and for some reason she wanted to find the good in him. She told herself to be careful, not to let his powerful personality and handsome qualities make her do something foolish. Those dark eyes had a way of making her forget all reason. She had been alone too long, that was the problem, so long that she was allowing herself to enjoy the company of an outlaw.

“What happened in your life that made you feel so defensive of women? Did it involve the one named Santana?”

He looked away. “All you need to know is that I didn’t do the things I’m wanted for now. By the way, where’s my gear? I need a smoke with that whiskey.”

Miranda sighed. He was through talking about himself for the moment. “I’ll see if I can find your tobacco, and I’ll get the whiskey, but only if you promise to eat something.”

“I’ll try.” He met her eyes again. “And I still want my guns. Anyone could come by at any time.”

“That’s right, Jake. And anyone who might come by would be one of my friends checking on me. Do you really think I would allow you to shoot an innocent person who might come out here just to see if I’m all right? I have betrayed my friends enough already just by saving your life and keeping you here secretly. I’m not about to let you turn around and hold a gun on them.”

Jake rolled his eyes. “Mrs. Hayes—”

“Randy.”