An Agent for Hope Read online

  However, every day after that, he couldn’t stop from staring at her luscious lips, wondering if she would ever allow him to kiss her passionately. In the six months they have been married, that opportunity never presented itself.

  Jesse also found her hair mesmerizing. He’d lost count how many times she had styled it, and it was rarely the same as the day before. Today, she had kept it in a ponytail, but braided some strands from her forehead to the lacky-band wrapped around her silky hair. He had always wanted to ask why she’d use that band to tie the bulk of her hair instead of using a leather tie.

  She reached behind her and rubbed the back of her neck. Jesse peeked at Frank once again and noticed when the outlaw’s attention moved to Hope. Thankfully, however, it didn’t last very long before Frank was once again, talking with Kate.

  When Jesse moved his gaze back to Hope, her eyes were closed as she massaged her neck. He suspected it was stiff and sore by now, especially because of the position he’d found her in when she was hiding in the grove of trees, lying on her belly as she peered through the binoculars. He’d love to take over by rubbing her neck, but then that was too personal for Hope. She never liked a lot of touching between them.

  Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a movement from her hair. The bulk had been released and fell on her neck. Trying to keep her movements small, she pulled the lacky-band from her hair and hid it in the palm of her hand as she rested it on her lap.

  During the evening was the only time he was able to see her hair long, which of course, created strange flutters in his belly. She was breathtaking, and he couldn’t get rid of the urge to caress her hair. Of course, he never followed through with these urges, which at times, drove him out of his mind.

  “Jesse,” she whispered. “Follow my lead.”

  He snapped out of his hazy thoughts and back to reality. They were going to escape, and he was determined to do all he could to make sure her plan worked. Perhaps she’d even reward him with a kiss when all of this was over.

  At least he could dream... But for now, he’d concentrate on what she was going to do since it would be difficult to follow her lead if he didn’t know where she was leading them to.

  FOUR

  Hope glanced at Jesse and scowled. He was looking at her that way again. Over the past few months, she’d noticed that dopey look on his face several times. When she’d first noticed it, she wondered if he’d been taking Opium, but then he snapped out of his daze quickly, which told her that he had not taken the drug. Now, she wondered if he was slowly losing his mind. That wasn’t a good thing at all, especially when she counted on him to use his brain, just as she needed to do in times like these.

  She looked down at her bunched hands sitting on her lap. She didn’t quite know when she was going to use the rubber band, but she hoped it would be for something clever. A few moments ago, she’d had the urge to take it out of her hair and use it for a weapon. Naturally, she went with her gut feeling, but now she wished she’d know exactly how to use it to her best advantage.

  Taking a deep breath of courage, she said a silent prayer that her plan would get them out of this place without being harmed.

  Swallowing down the knot of fear in her throat, she prepared herself as she mentally climbed into her role as the brave and brilliant Pinkerton agent.

  Hope tilted her head and glanced up at the nearby window. The night was dark, and the moon must be masked by clouds at the moment because all she could detect was a black canvas, keeping her from seeing any shadows. Her heart sank. Maybe her idea wouldn’t work after all, but since she hadn’t thought up a plan B, she had no other choice but to continue with the first option.

  She peeked over her shoulder again at Frank. He was still shoveling stew into his mouth like a starving man. Some of the sauce had dribbled down his chin, and the ill-mannered outlaw was too lazy to wipe it off. She hoped he’d watch her and become suspicious soon.

  Quickly, she returned her gaze out the window. After a few moments, she glanced at Frank again. He still hadn’t noticed.

  Inwardly, she growled. This time when she looked out the window, she purposely moved her body more, over dramatizing the fact that she was peering out the window and that she had seen something curious outside.

  Finally, the noise of the chair’s legs scraping the floor as Frank moved it back, pulled her focus to him for a brief moment. Frank’s gaze narrowed on her and his lips were pulled tight. He picked up Kate’s rifle as he took slow steps toward Hope.

  “What’cha doing?” he asked.

  Keeping in character, she quickly straightened and sat back against the wall. “Nothing,” she said in a hurried breath.

  Just as she’d hoped, he took the bait, and curiosity deepened in his expression. “Liar. I saw you looking out the window.”

  “I... was looking at nothing. After all, it’s dark and hard to see anything outside.”

  Frank stepped closer. “Is someone out there?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

  Beside her, Jesse leaned against her. She didn’t have to look at him to know he was pretending to look out the window, too. Thankfully, he had caught on to what she was doing.

  Frank’s expression hardened and he pointed the rifle at her. “Tell me, woman!”

  She clutched her hands against her waist, mainly for show. Although, she couldn’t ignore the way her heart hammered against her chest in fear. “I thought I saw a shadow move across the window from out there.”

  Frank’s shoulders relaxed and he chuckled. “Mrs. Slade, I’m not sure how many times you’ve been outside after dark, but I can guarantee, you’ll see many shadows.”

  Hope turned her head and glanced out of the window again. This time, she purposely sucked in a quick air and jumped before leaning back against Jesse. “Did you see that?” she asked Jesse softly, but made sure that Frank had heard her, too.

  “Yes, I think I did see someone outside.” Jesse shifted on the floor, moving closer to her.

  “Hogwash!” Frank grumbled. “There ain’t nobody out there.” He stepped closer to the window.

  Unfortunately, the outlaw still wasn’t close enough for what she had in mind. “Are you sure?” She looked at Frank. “I mean, if we were able to find this cabin, what makes you think other Pinkerton agents won’t find it, too?”

  “In the dark?” Frank snapped. “Impossible.”

  Jesse cupped his hand over her shoulder as she lifted up slightly, peering toward the window. Suddenly, he gasped. She swung her head to look his way, and a smile stretched across his face. Her heart flipped, happy to know he was playing along perfectly.

  “Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news,” Jesse told Frank, “but it appears we will be rescued very soon.”

  Frank’s glare landed on Kate. He motioned the rifle toward the door. “Go out and check.”

  Kate rolled her eyes. “They’re just tryin’ to scare ya, Frank. Don’t listen to ‘em.”

  “Do as I say.” Frank raised his voice at his wife. “Now!”

  Grumbling, Kate picked up the gun on the table and moved toward the door. Cautiously, the other woman opened the door. Silence filled the cabin as she poked her head outside.

  Hope knew the moment of their escape was within reach. Only a few more minutes...

  She took another look out the window. This time when she hitched a breath, she grinned. “Yes, my dear husband, I do believe you’re correct. I saw someone over by that tree.”

  “Kate, they are by the tree,” Frank said. His steps were faster this time as he neared the window. His guard was lowered – along with the rifle.

  Hope didn’t need to tell Jesse when to jump, because just as her mind repeated the word, Jesse was on his feet, lunging toward the outlaw. Frank didn’t have much time to react, and he stumbled back against the wall. Jesse grasped the rifle, and the two men fought over control of the gun. Hope scrambled away from them, before standing.

  Robert’s worried cr
y squeaked through the cabin as he called for his mother. Hope sprang in the direction of the door, knowing she needed to stop Kate from entering... or at the very least, from allowing the outlaw’s wife from using her gun.

  As Hope neared the door, she hooked the rubber band around her finger, getting it into position. At that moment, Kate hurried inside. Hope aimed the rubber band stretched on the tip of her finger toward Kate’s eye... and let loose. The band hit its target, causing Kate to yelp and slap a hand over her eye – which also made her drop the gun.

  Hope snatched the gun just as she pushed Kate out of the way. The woman tripped and fell to the floor, still groaning with her hand over her eye. Robert dashed toward his mother. Hope allowed him to do this for the older woman since he was no threat.

  Stepping back until everyone was in view, Hope pointed the gun toward Frank. As she opened her mouth to tell him to drop the rifle, Jesse ripped it out of his hands and turned the weapon on the outlaw. Jesse stepped away from Frank, keeping his eye on the man as he moved back.

  “Hope?” Jesse’s voice filled with exhaustion, and yet there was a touch of relief.

  “Yes, I’m here, and I have Mrs. Hinchee and Robert covered.”

  Frank moved, out of breath, toward the fireplace. He leaned an arm against the hearth and bent over, gasping for air. He threw a glare at Jesse.

  “You’re not going to get away with this, you know.”

  Jesse’s chest shook with a deep laugh. “I think I already have.”

  Clip-clop of horses’ hooves pounded on the ground outside of the house. Guarding herself for more trouble, Hope swung the gun toward the door. She didn’t dare look at Jesse, but she figured he was on alert as well.

  A man with short, brown hair hurried inside, holding a gun. Immediately behind him was a woman with pretty chestnut hair, also holding a gun. Jesse’s gasp broke through the room’s stillness.

  “What took you two so long?” Jesse moved closer to the new couple in the cabin. “I hope you brought a wagon. Looks like we’ll be taking not only Frank to jail, but his wife, Kate.”

  The handsome man arched an eyebrow. “She’s coming along, too?”

  Jesse nodded. “She was hiding an outlaw, and she assisted in taking two Pinkerton agents hostage.”

  The lovely woman hurried to Kate and pulled her to a standing position. Immediately, she cuffed the bands of steel around the woman’s wrists. The man sauntered over to Frank and repeated the same process.

  The new man looked back at Jesse and nodded. “Are you and your wife all right?”

  Jesse lowered the rifle, moving toward Hope. She wished he would introduce her to his friends. Obviously, they were also Pinkerton agents or had a similar profession.

  Slipping his arm around Hope’s waist, he stared into her eyes. His expression was different this time, but she couldn’t quite decide why she’d think that.

  “Are you all right?” he said softly.

  She nodded. “Are you?”

  “I am now.” He smiled and tightened his hold around her waist. “Hope, I don’t believe you’ve met Pinkerton agents Graham and Evelynn Morgan.”

  The other couple smile and gave her a nod. “It’s nice to meet you both,” Hope said.

  Graham and Evelynn pushed the prisoners outside toward the wagon. Hope’s focus was on the outlaw’s son. Her heart clenched and she frowned. “Robert? How old are you?”

  The scrawny young man looked at the floor as he wrung his hands against his middle. “I’ll be eighteen next month, ma’am.”

  Eighteen? He certainly didn’t look that old. “Will you be able to make it on your own while your parents are in jail?”

  He shrugged, still not meeting Hope’s gaze. “I suppose.”

  “Well,” Jesse sighed, “you’re too old for Foster Care, but if you need me to—”

  “No.” Robert’s gaze lifted to Jesse. “I’ll be fine by myself.”

  Jesse nodded. “I’m sorry we had to separate your family this way, but when you break the law, that’s the consequences.”

  “I know,” Robert mumbled, looking down at the ground again.

  Jesse’s hand moved up and down Hope’s back in a gentle caress as they took a few steps toward the front door. “Shall we go, Mrs. Slade?”

  Hope nodded. “I think we should follow the Morgans as they take our outlaws to jail, just in case Frank tries to escape again.”

  “Great idea.”

  The moment they stepped outside and Robert closed the door behind them, darkness enveloped them. The moon was hidden, and the only light came from the cabin’s window and a small lantern that Graham had hooked to the wagon.

  Panic filled her and she stopped. Where was her horse? Could she find her way back to the hiding spot in the grove of trees?

  “What’s wrong?” Jesse asked.

  “I don’t know if my horse is still tied to the tree or not.” She stepped away from him, but didn’t dare go very far until her vision adjusted to the night.

  “I’m sure the horse is still there, but I have Zeus.”

  She tilted her head and looked up at him, even though she couldn’t see much of his face. She never understood why men liked to name their horses. “You didn’t bring Zeus down the hillside when we approached the cabin, so I’m sure the animal ran away, too.”

  He lifted two fingers to his mouth. A loud whistle ripped through the night air. As they waited to see if the animal would come, a small wind tousled Hope’s hair and a loose piece of hair blew across her cheek. She hadn’t noticed the wind during the day because the weather was warm, but now she felt a cool chill.

  Hope rubbed up and down her arms, trying to get warm. Graham had chained the outlaws to the back of the wagon before climbing in the seat next to his wife. His head turned toward Jesse.

  “Is everything all right?”

  She opened her mouth to tell him that they were without horses, when she heard the snort of a horse, following by the hoof beats on the ground. Seconds later, the horse had stopped in front of Jesse.

  Hope groaned silently. She’d never hear the end of it from Jesse now. “I’m glad your horse comes when you whistle. Unfortunately, my horse isn’t trained to do that.”

  “No need to fear, my sweet wife, you can ride with me.”

  Jesse’s hand slipped on her elbow as he guided her toward the animal. Although she didn’t want to be that close to him, she wasn’t sure how else to get home. There was no other choice. She must perch indecently on his lap as he took them back to town.

  He helped her up first, sitting her sidesaddle on the animal – even though she wore trousers – before mounting behind her. His arms slid around her as he reached for the reins. Once he shifted against her a few times, he urged the animal forward, following the wagon.

  His masculine smelling cologne made her weak. She always loved a man who didn’t smell like a barnyard. And, to make it worse, they were sitting entirely too close. The ride back to her hotel in town would be extremely difficult.

  After a few minutes, he sighed and his arms relaxed, blowing out a heavy breath that brushed against her face and neck. Chills ran over her, yet she wasn’t cold. Just the opposite, in fact.

  “I haven’t had time to tell you,” he began in a deep voice, “but I think you did great back at the cabin. You were the one who got us out of that mess.”

  Happiness filled her and she couldn’t keep from pulling her shoulders straight and puffing her chest with pride. She turned her head to look at him, still not seeing much. “I suppose I had a good teacher.”

  Quickly, she stopped her thoughts. What had she said? Was she really complimenting him? Oh, no... She didn’t want him to get the wrong idea, because she definitely didn’t want to work on their marriage. She didn’t think she’d ever feel that way about him, especially since they argued constantly.

  “Thank you,” he replied, “however, I doubt my training had anything to do with your clever mind.”

  Before she said someth
ing she’d regret later, she pondered on his words. Why was he suddenly flattering her so much? There had to be an underlining purpose for his compliments. The funny thing was, she really didn’t want to argue right now. She actually enjoyed his words and the light banter between them.

  Perhaps, just this once, she’d play along to see what he’d do next.

  FIVE

  There was only one word for the way Jesse felt right now – elated. He didn’t know why Hope was acting so sweet and agreeing with most everything he said. That wasn’t like her, but he wasn’t about to question her, either. He was sure her odd temperament was because of being kidnapped for a little while since that was her first time.

  The ride back to town had been very pleasant. A few times, he caught himself sighing too heavily as he listened to her soft voice. He hadn’t even been watching the Morgan’s wagon to make sure the outlaw wasn’t trying to escape. Thankfully, they delivered Frank and Kate to the jail safely.

  After saying goodbye to Graham and Evelynn, Jesse escorted Hope back to her hotel. She had grown quiet, which was totally opposite from the chatterbox who had ridden into town with him.

  The rhythm of his heart accelerated, and for a moment, he wondered if she would kiss him – or at least allow him to kiss her. He prayed she had felt the sparks between them this evening, either in the grove of trees while they were hiding, or inside Frank’s cabin as she nearly cuddled beside him.

  As they climbed up the stairs toward her room, it was as if his legs were having a difficult time moving. His steps were slow, but then... so were hers. He didn’t touch her, but their shoulders bumped against each other a few times, which caused his heart rate to climb. By the time they reached the stairs, he felt as if he’d been running for over an hour without stopping.