the sight of the curious crowd beginning to form in the hallway. The room was empty of anyone but Evie. With a few curt words, he ordered Phil to close the door and go find what remained of the law in this town.
Tyler caught Evie and looked her over. She was slightly disheveled, her usually orderly curls falling lopsidedly over her face, and one of her flounces was badly torn, but fire and not fear burned in her eyes. He pulled her close and planted a kiss on her lips. He deserved that much reward for causing his wildly pounding heart.
Evie allowed it for a few minutes. Tyler could feel her collapsing into his embrace, turning to him for reassurance, welcoming his kiss with parted lips and arms that clung to his shoulders. He held her tighter, concentrating on the taste of her and not what had led him here. He didn't want to think about the fear racing in his heart. She wasn't his to lose, and that's the way he wanted it
But as if sensing Tyler's inner thoughts, Evie shoved away from him a moment later.
"Unhand me and go after that cad! I want him strung up by the neck. So help me, if he ever lays another hand on me..."
Tyler placed his hand over her mouth and glanced at Ben who was checking out the window.
"Went out this way, all right. There's a bit of a roof down there, over the back door. He just jumped down and slid to the ground, I reckon. Must have had a horse waiting. I don't see nothin'."
Someone pounded on the door. Tyler waited until he was certain Evie had silenced, then released her mouth. She glared at him but held her tongue.
"Good girl. Did you get a look at him?"
Evie wanted to smack Tyler's face for that patronizing tone, but she was too glad of his arm around her to do anything that would cause him to release her. She glanced down at her lovely gown and tried to shove the flounce at her neckline back where it belonged.
"No, he had a gunny sack over his head. I don't think I've ever seen him before." Her voice shook, and she hated that. The pounding on the door increased.
"Better let them in." Tyler put his gun back in the holster and gently pushed Evie into a chair while Ben went to let in whoever Phil had fetched in the name of the law.
The scrawny youngster didn't look any older than Evie, but he wore a badge and a gun and a certain familiarity to the rest of the Powells. He frowned, as if that was expected of him, but his eyes lit with admiration as his gaze fell on Evie.
"Miz Peyton, ma'am! Are you all right?"
"Of course she's not all right. She's been abducted and dragged up here like a sack of corn, and she's half scared out of her mind. Why don't you just stand there and listen instead of asking stupid questions?" Tyler was getting damned tired of seeing that look in men's eyes when they saw Evie. But he blamed his irritation on the scrawny lawman and not the fear of these last few minutes.
Evie sent him an admonishing look. Holding her flounce, she turned back to the boy. "I don't suppose you have a pin on you? I must look a complete disaster."
Tyler thought he would strangle her. The boy was patting his pockets as if he were in the habit of carrying straight pins, and his eyes were wider than saucers as they noted the place where the gown was torn. To Evie's credit, she wasn't wearing one of her low-cut evening gowns—she'd probably sold all those—but the respectable walking gown still had a less than modest neckline that would reveal more than was necessary should she remove her hand. Tyler shrugged off his coat and threw it around her shoulders.
"Tell us what happened, E—" He corrected himself and finished, "Mrs. Peyton."
Evie pulled the coat around her, let her gaze flicker over the men pushing through the bedroom door, and waited.
Tyler sighed, gestured at Ben, and between the two of them, they shoved the sightseers back out into the hall and slammed the door.
"The children are waiting, Mrs. Peyton, if you could hurry?" Tyler prompted politely.
That did the trick. Evie was on her feet and heading for the door. "Some donkey grabbed me in the alley, covered my mouth with his nasty hand, stuck a rag