daring and courage. Whoever she was, she wasn’t short on gumption.
“My, that’s a fast-acting potion.” Natalie frowned when Bart stopped talking in midsentence and slumped on the bed.
“Peyote,” he informed her with a wry grin. “It affects people in varying degrees. I used it on Bart after those hooligans beat him to a pulp. He reacted the same way, then he slept the night away in total oblivion.”
“Well, I suppose I should return to my room,” she said as she tucked the quilt beneath Bart’s chin. “It has been a hectic day, what with last-minute plans for the ceremony and the unnerving bushwhacking ordeal.”
Warily, Van watched Natalie shift from one foot to the other. She refused to meet his gaze, just kept casting concerned glances at Bart. He wondered if she was apprehensive about their supposed wedding night or upset because she thought the ambush was her fault. Which it wasn’t. It was his. Men shot at him all the time. It was a hazard of his assignments. He was accustomed to it. She wasn’t.
He had to admit the prospect of having Natalie in his room on their wedding night—whether anything intimate came of it or not—held tremendous appeal. But this was a marriage in name only, he reminded himself. Under the circumstances, it was probably best if all three of them stayed in separate rooms, in case the Harper Gang came gunning for him again.
Bart had been shot because he had been standing too close to Van. Bullets had flown over Natalie’s head. It was a wonder one of them hadn’t hit her. The thought of stitching up wounds on her flawless skin made him grimace is distaste.
“You can return to your room if you want,” he murmured. “You’re a woman of independence now. Just stay off the streets, lest you get shot and I have to patch you up.”
She finally met his gaze. “I do have my freedom now, don’t I? Well then, I’ll bid you good night. And thank you for seeing that I am free to go where I want and do as I please. I will always be indebted to you for that and I will pay you tomorrow.”
“No rush,” he said with a nonchalant shrug.
She swept across the bedroom in her grass-stained white gown. Van got up and followed her into the sitting area. “Stop right there, sunshine.”
She glanced at him as she reached for the door latch.
Van shook his head warningly, then pulled her sideways. “Never open a door while you’re standing directly in front of it. Especially after a near brush with bushwhackers. They could be lying in wait.”
“Good advice. Is that Rule Number One in Crow’s Survival Handbook?”
“Top ten at least.” He eased open the door to ensure no one lurked in the shadowed hallway, waiting to gun him down.
She hesitated momentarily, then pressed a kiss to his lips. “Thank you for coming to the wedding.”
He smiled. “Thank you for inviting me to be your groom.”
She opened her mouth and then clamped her lips shut, as if she’d decided against voicing whatever thought was racing through her mind. “Well, good night, Crow.”
He watched her cling to the shadows and noted which room she entered, in case he needed to come to her rescue. He strode quickly to the bedroom to check on Bart, who hadn’t moved a muscle. Van decided this was the perfect time to change into his everyday clothes, run the important errand he had overlooked after the shooting and then look around town. If the Harpers were lurking about, hoping to shoot the right man the second time around, he vowed to stop them in their tracks so Natalie wouldn’t be caught in the cross fire—like Bart.
Chapter Five
Natalie scurried around her room, gathering her belongings and cramming them into her satchel and carpetbag. Disguised in the men’s clothing she’d purchased for traveling, she checked that no one was waiting in the hall to pounce on her. She slipped outside the door, then inched down the hall to the metal fire escape and into the alley.
She planned to be long gone by morning and the two bastards and their hired assassins could chase her and leave Crow and Bart alone. No one else was going to suffer because of her, she vowed fiercely.
Leaving her luggage behind the livery stable, Natalie scampered around the corner of the building, then ducked inside. She surveyed the string of horses in their stalls. One powerful-looking gelding caught her attention. He was solid black,