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The man couldn’t be serious. He’d gone along with everything she’d said in front of the other men…just so she’d feed him?
“You want me to feed you and then let you go on your merry way? And what am I supposed to tell everyone when they wonder where my new fiancé is?”
He shrugged. “Not my problem.”
She narrowed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. Like it or not, she needed this rumpled-up old has-been. Though she’d never met anyonelesslike an infamous gunslinger in her life. The man almost fell asleep the second he sat down, and if he did happen to move, he did so at the pace of a glacier going uphill in January.
But his name alone had gotten Josiah and his men to back off. Hell, the sheriff had nearly wet himself. Then again, Josiah was a persistent man, and Mercy doubted even Gray’s presence would keep him at bay for long. Maybe she could pick up a few tips from Gray so she could at least defend herself next time the posse came around. She certainly couldn’t depend on Gray himself to help out. If he stuck around longer than the next hour, that was, and she needed him to. Which meant she needed to find out his price. Everyone had one.
“What are your plans in Desolation, Mr. Woodson?”
“Gray.” He frowned a little. “Don’t see what concern that is of yours.”
She pinched her lips together to keep from cursing at him, then forced a smile. “Maybe we can help each other out. If I know what it is that you’re after…”
“I don’t know why you don’t believe me. All I’m after is a moment or two of silence so I can get some sleep,” he said, pushing his hat farther down over his eyes. “And supper.”
This man would drive a saint to drink. She tried again. “I meant in Desolation. What brings you to this town? Nobody comes here.”
Gray snorted softly. “I can see why. A bit out of the way, isn’t it.”
“Maybe. But we like it that way. How did you find us, anyhow, if you weren’t planning on coming here?”
Gray shrugged, watching her from under his hat. “Got on my horse and let her ride west. Useless animal probably followed the scent of apples,” he said sardonically.
Mercy’s lips pulled into a small smile. “We do have plenty of those. Are you just passing through?”
Gray shrugged again, a gesture that was beginning to get on her nerves. Then again, shrugging was the most movement she’d seen him make. Without the shrugs, she could easily mistake him for a dead man.
“I haven’t decided yet,” he said. “I’m looking for a place to settle. Could be here. Could be somewhere else.”
Mercy watched him again for a few more moments, her jaw popping as she gritted her teeth. Gray’s lips twitched a bit, as if he knew exactly how vexing he was being. And enjoyed it.
“Let me be plain, Mr. Woodson. There’s nothing here. The town is small, most folks live farther out in the countryside. There’s no inn, no hotel. Just a saloon. The only lodgings available in town are at Madam DuVere’s parlor house. And if you want to sleep there, you’ll be paying for a bedmate. You might not object to that, but Madam DuVere isn’t known for taking on long-term lodgers. Even if she agrees, you’ll be paying a pretty penny. You want her to feed you, you’ll be paying even more.”
Gray sat forward and leaned his elbows on his knees. “What are you gettin’ at, Miss…”
“Douglas. Mercy Douglas.”
Nopleased to meet youfrom him. He just grunted.
She waited for him to say something else, but he only stared at her. She resisted the urge to squirm under the direct gaze of his surprisingly lucid brown eyes. Fine. She’d say what she had to say, then.
“What I’m getting at, Mr. Woodson, is that if you want a place to sleep and food in your belly for an affordable rate, I’m your best shot.”
“Is that so?”
She nodded. “I’ve got a bungalow out back. And I’m willing to throw in meals with your lodging.”
She was a horrible cook, but he’d find that out soon enough.
“This is a small town. I’m sure by now everyone’s heard that Quick Shot Woodson is here. And let’s face it, men of your…”
He raised an eyebrow, and she swallowed down the spark of fear that zinged through her.
“…your reputation, aren’t always the most welcome in small towns that value their peace and quiet.”
He studied her for a few moments and then sat back, a half grin tugging on his lips that sent a spark of a different, and far more surprising, kind zinging through her now.
