Which was long enough to capture Dinah’s attention. Embracing her Madam Ruby persona, she yelled, “Dinah! Where do you think you’re going? Get back here right now.”
West kept ahold of Dinah’s arm as he marched her through the crowd toward Ruby. “If it isn’t the town whore. Business slow today that you’re out recruiting schoolteachers to work on their backs?”
Her hand tightened on the parasol handle. She could whack him with it if it came down to that and she’d enjoy every hard blow. “I don’t believe Miss Thompson appreciates your vulgar sense of humor any more than I do.”
When Zeke reached her, he said, “How much will she cost me?”
“Let go of her,” Ruby said sharply.
“Give me a price range. Let’s say I want her mouth, cunt and ass. I’d also want to fuck these sweet titties. How much?”
“She’s not a working girl, Zeke, which you’re fully aware of. Stop being a pain.” Ruby thought maybe she could get the upper hand and get Dinah away from him if she acted annoyed rather than petrified.
“Not a working girl? Then why did I see you two laughing and talking together? And don’t try and convince me you’re friends.” He sneered at a silent Dinah. “Ruby don’t have any friends. Most people would like to see her strung up.”
“What are you getting out of causing a scene?” she demanded, stalling for time in the hope Jonas would soon arrive and put a stop to this.
Dinah opened her mouth to answer and then a look of pain crossed her face.
“No talkin’ out of turn, Miss Thompson,” Zeke chastised her. Then to Ruby he said, “Me’n my friend Dinah were about to have a private celebration.”
“I’d think you’d want to hide your face in shame, not celebrate. Losing the sheep competition to a couple of cattlemen.”
“You shut up.”
“Let the girl go and I will.”
“What do you say?” Zeke mock whispered loudly to Dinah, ensuring that Ruby heard every word. “Shall we share the details on the private celebration I had planned? You. Me. Alone in the woods. All the time in the world to explore our urges. No one to bother us. No one except me to hear you scream with pleasure…or pain. No one will ever find—”
“You just threatened to kidnap, rape and kill her,” Ruby snapped. “Now it’s her word and mine against yours—”
“What’s the word of a whore worth?” He shrugged. “Not as much as one of your holes, that’s for damn sure.”
His malicious gaze flicked to something behind her. Immediately his expression turned self-satisfied and Dinah’s face drained of all color. “Now it’s about to get interestin’,” Zeke said. “Look who I found keepin’ company with a whore. You should thank me for tryin’ to save her reputation, McKay.”
“Get your fuckin’ hands off her,” Silas snarled.
“Certainly.” He shoved Dinah away from himself with such brutality that she skidded across her hands and knees in the dirt several feet away.
Silas flew at Zeke, knocking him to the ground.
They exchanged words and a few punches until Dinah gasped. “No, Silas, don’t! He has a knife!” as Ruby helped her upright.
That did get Silas’s attention.
He pushed to his feet and stormed over to her. “Did he hurt you?”
Dinah shook her head.
Silas looked as if he didn’t believe her. “You’re sure?”
She nodded.
He pulled Dinah into his arms, trying to control her trembling before he focused on Zeke. “If you ever come near her again, I’ll kill you. Do you hear me, West? I will motherfucking kill you.”
“Oh, I heard you.” He gestured to the crowd gathered around them. “So did everyone else.”
That bastard. That’s what this drama had been about.
And Silas had played right into his hands.
Silas continued to glare at Zeke.
Dinah had her face buried in Silas’s chest, refusing to look at anyone.
Zeke West sat on the ground in his fine clothes, the embodiment of pure evil.
That’s the scene Deputy McKay arrived at.
Ruby ached at the reality that she couldn’t go to him. She had to watch him weigh his fear for his brother with his anger that Silas hadn’t learned anything from his previous altercations with Zeke and balance that with his responsibility as the law.
Jonas had to listen to Zeke whine and spew lies about feeling threatened by Silas when he’d been trying to do the man a favor. She hated that it wouldn’t make any difference in the way Deputy McKay had to handle this, if she told him that Zeke had intended to