Priceless Treasure(54)

It wasn’t until they were on solid ground again that Savvy took her first full breath in what felt like hours.

“Man, that was terrifying, but it was also a rush — a serious rush,” she said. “I can’t believe I just did that.”

“It would have been nice to enjoy the view,” Ashton grumbled.

“Go back and enjoy it all you want. But I’m going to the rental car. I’m done with the bridge.”

“I wanted to get a picture of us in the middle,” he told her.
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“Haven’t you been here before?” she asked as the two of them strolled toward their car.

“Many times,” he said. “But never with you.”

And just like that, her heart thudded in her chest. Maybe he was seriously good with feeding lines to all his women, and maybe she was just vulnerable, but this man did make her feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Savvy could tell herself all day and night that this was just a fling, and that she wouldn’t be affected by it. But she knew herself, and she knew she wasn’t going to get out of this unscathed. Each moment she was spending with Ashton, she was giving him a little bit more of herself.

She’d known forever that he was dangerous. But she was in too deep now to change directions, so she might as well just hold on for the rest of the wild ride. Hey! She was really facing a major fear of hers!

Once they returned to Skagway, Ashton surprised her by pulling up to a place called the Red Onion Saloon. She threw him a skeptical look.

“What was that look for?” he asked when he’d come around to her side of the car and opened the passenger door. She still wasn’t quite used to having a man do that for her, but she liked this gentlemanly side to him, so she’d take it. And he’d insisted.

“I just don’t picture you hanging out at a place called the Red Onion,” she said.

“Hey. I know this place well, and they have excellent food,” he told her as they approached the double doors. “Besides, this once used to be the classiest dance hall and saloon in Skagway — well, and the finest brothel,” he added with a wink. “And since you are now a woman of the world — thanks to me, of course — I thought you’d enjoy it.”

The leer he sent her made her laugh instead of slug him. “Are you now saying I’m a lady of the night, since I’ve allowed you to do naughty things with me?”

“Hmm, a few of those things you’ve picked up on pretty dang fast,” he told her.

“You are terrible.” She was slightly worried about how much she did love sex. But there was no way she was going to think ill of herself because of it.

“Is this really an old bordello?” she asked before they entered the building. She wasn’t quite sure if he was teasing her or not.

“Yep. It was built in 1897, during the Gold Rush days. The upstairs still has the ten cribs, or rooms, that were once used by the ladies.”

Now she wasn’t sure what she was walking into.

“Wow. I’ve never been in a real bordello before,” she finally said as she looked around wide-eyed at the waitstaff. The women were dressed in vintage outfits right out of the Old West. Savvy was instantly in love with the place.

“I haven’t been to a working one,” Ashton assured her with a laugh.

“That’s in your favor,” she said with a sigh of relief. “One thing at least …”

They were seated and Ashton filled her in on the background.

“Ah, a weary man could stop by the place for some whiskey and a dance. Then he would step up to the bar, where they had ten dolls lined up. The customer would choose his woman by selecting the doll that represented her. If the woman was with another customer, the doll would be lying down. When she was finished and ready for business again, her doll was set back up.”

“They did it with more than one guy in a night?” she gasped.

Ashton laughed, making her squirm in her seat a bit. “Sorry. I’m not laughing at you. I just love history, so I know a lot about this stuff.”

“I love history too, but I guess I haven’t gotten much into the Old West or gold-mining times,” she told him.#p#分页标题#e#

“Okay, some of this is just idle curiosity from my wacky bartending days, and you can find out everything about this on the Web. But things are a little different from what you see on the TV show Gunsmoke. Yes, the ‘good-time girls’ took as many men a night as possible. It was more money for them and more money for the house of ill repute. Wait until I tell you about prostitution during the Second World War.”