Cooper's Woman (13 page)

He halted in front of her and Alexa pirouetted around, allowing him to survey the rose-colored gown that displayed her figure to its best advantage. The streaming colors of sunset poured through the window, spotlighting her. She had his attention. Too bad she couldn't hypnotize him and get him to divulge the name of his mysterious informant.

“You look positively enchanting,” he breathed appreciatively.

She twirled in another circle, smiling as if her greatest aspiration in life was to become the goddess of high fashion. “Do you really think so, Elliot?”

He swaggered forward to bow over her hand. “Your beauty puts all other women to shame, Alexa.”

She resisted the urge to jerk her fingertips from his grasp before he slobbered on them. Pretending to preen beneath his flattery, she batted her eyelashes and tittered. Inwardly, however, she compared Elliot to Coop and found him sadly lacking in every way imaginable.

Alexa allowed Elliot to escort her from the store. She scanned the street while he locked up shop. Miguel was leaning casually against the carriage that he'd parked in front of The Collins House, the hotel next door to Webster's store. Miguel had volunteered to keep an eye on the other dry goods store after Coop informed him of Elliot's spiteful scheme to smoke out his competition. Hopefully, the scoundrel took Coop's advice and didn't start any devastating fires this evening.

“I know I put you in an uncomfortable position last night,” Elliot remarked as they strolled down the boardwalk. “I was upset when my cattle went missing and some of my men thought they had seen Hampton's cowboys on my property.”

“I do hope you locate your missing cattle,” she replied with just the right amount of concern in her voice. “But I still cannot imagine my friends being involved.” She flicked her wrist and smiled. “But that is over and done and we shall forget all about it.”

“If it were only that easy,” Elliot countered. “You cannot wave your arm and magically clear the air. I'm afraid you will have to pick sides, Alexa.” He halted to bow over her hand again. “I'm hoping you will choose me. You know how fond I am of you. And I'm anxiously awaiting your answer to my proposal.”

Alexa inwardly tensed. “I shall make my decision soon. I promise. But let's just enjoy our evening, shall we?”

“Whatever you wish, my dear,” he said smoothly. “I want to spend the rest of my life making you happy.”

Alexa smiled brightly, even though she knew what a liar and cheat he was. She sat at the table and ordered the most expensive item on the menu. The man was going to pay for all of his transgressions eventually. In addition, sharing her company was going to be expensive. Her first preference, however, was to dump a plate of food on top of his blond head and storm off.

 

Coop stepped from Valmont Saloon in time to see Webster and Alexa stroll across the town square to reach Donovan's Café. Lord, she was lovely, he thought admiringly. Her rose-colored gown, trimmed with pearls and lace, made her appear surreal. The pastel colors of sunset seemed to form an aureole around her that captivated and beguiled.

Possessive jealousy stung like a wasp.

Coop cursed himself soundly. He was too emotionally attached to Alexa and that made him vulnerable. She symbolized everything he wasn't—well educated, well connected and well accepted. Plus, she was all tangled up in his personal and professional life and he couldn't separate one from the other because of his intense feelings and obsessive desire for her. He'd never had that problem before.

“Buy you a drink,
gringo?
” Miguel questioned.

Coop cursed his preoccupation with Alexa. Ordinarily he was attuned to his surroundings and to potential danger. But he hadn't heard Miguel walk up beside him. Worse, Miguel knew what had distracted him because he glanced pointedly from Coop to Alexa then smiled wryly.

“Not to fret,” Miguel murmured as he sauntered down the street toward one of the many saloons. “You are not the only man who has trouble thinking straight when Lexi is in the vicinity. She has scores of hopeless admirers in her social class.”

“I know where I belong,” Coop assured him. “So don't preach.”

“So do I,
gringo.
I believe a man is much happier if he accepts his limitations and restrictions. Don't you agree?”

“I'm not sure happier is the right word,” Coop replied. “Maybe the best a man can hope for is to accept what cannot be changed.”

“I'll drink to that,” Miguel said before he entered the swinging doors of the saloon.

 

“Dinner was delicious,” Alexa gushed as she and Elliot trotted off in the carriage toward his ranch. “For such a small community, the cuisine is amazingly good.”

“If you don't mind, I'd like to discuss a more serious topic,” Elliot said, glancing at his watch.

“Yes, of course, how silly of me, going on about the meal.” She offered him a contrite smile, for appearance's sake. But she knew what was coming. It wasn't too difficult to second-guess Elliot.

“You were placed in an awkward situation last night because of your loyalty to Kate,” Elliot commented. “Whether you believe it or not, Percy lacks integrity and I don't trust him.”

Alexa yearned to tell Elliot that she thought
he
was the untrustworthy scoundrel who lacked integrity, but she held her tongue and played her role.

“I don't want you placed in potential crossfire again so I want you and your bodyguard—” he glanced over his shoulder at Miguel, who trailed a short distance behind them in the rented carriage “—to take rooms at the hotel. I couldn't bear it if you were injured.”

“But how will I explain that to my dearest friend without hurting her feelings?”

Elliot checked his watch again. “I'm sure you'll think of something appropriate to say. You have years of experience in dealing with such matters since you've been your father's hostess. You can be diplomatic if need be.”

Alexa gnashed her teeth. Her hands curled into fists. She wanted to tear into this arrogant chauvinist. However, it was his narrow-minded perception that enabled her to outsmart him so she kept silent. For now.

“You're right, of course,” she patronized him. “When I have time to sit myself down and think about it, I can come up with a logical reason to move into town. But I still don't believe Percy—”

“Believe it,” he interrupted harshly.

Alexa feigned a startled gasp. “Really, Elliot, I'm not sure I know you as well as I thought. Perhaps my consideration of your proposal should be postponed a while longer.”

The comment forced him to change his tune, as she knew it would.

“So sorry, my dear Alexa,” he cooed. “Last night's unpleasant incidents, and my concern for your safety, have put me on edge. Forgive me?”

Alexa patted his arm. “There, there, it's all right, Elliot. I know you care about me.”
Care about my money and connections,
she silently amended.

“Then perhaps you will put me out of my misery and end the suspense. I would like to announce to all of Questa Springs that you have agreed to be my wife.”

Alexa had planned to accept. Temporarily. But the ruggedly handsome image of Coop popped to mind and refused to let her agree. Heavens, it wasn't as if she and Coop had a promising future together. She had assured herself a dozen times that she didn't need a man to lead a productive, rewarding life. Her father had managed to function without a woman since her mother boarded a train for Boston and never looked back.

“Alexa?” Elliot prodded.

“You know I am fond of you, too.” She forced the lie from her lips and manufactured a smile to go along with it. “Nothing would make me happier than to live nearby Kate. Of course, if there is a long-standing feud between you and Percy that might put a strain on our friendship.”

“You have to choose, Alexa,” Elliot insisted. “Me or them.”

Alexa sighed dramatically. “Well, I suppose the time will come when Kate takes a husband and moves away from the area. So I cannot rely too heavily on my friend indefinitely.”

“No, you cannot. I'm the one you can rely on to take care of you, to support you,” Elliot purred.

“All right then, Elliot, I will send a telegram to my father after I move to the hotel.” Staying in town would make it easier to come and go without the Hamptons's servants and cowboys seeing her, she reminded herself. “If Papa gives his consent we'll announce our betrothal….”

Her words trailed off when Elliot leaned over to kiss her full on the mouth. His scent, his taste, the feel of his thin lips were all wrong. It was all she could do not to shove him backward and send him cartwheeling off the seat.

“Then it's settled,” Elliot proclaimed triumphantly then checked his watch—again. “I know your father will approve because I told him of my interest in you when I attended your party in Santa Fe. We can arrange a town-wide celebration and you can see to all the details.”

“That will provide me with the perfect excuse to stay at the hotel,” Alexa said with more enthusiasm than she felt—which was none whatsoever. “I do love to hostess parties. We shall invite everyone.”

“That's a grand idea. Perhaps the party will assure my neighbors and customers that I don't want last night's incident to divide our community and drive off my business.”

“I have so much to do and to arrange that it's giving me an instant headache. I do hate to cut our evening short, Elliot, but I'll have Miguel take me back to the Hamptons to inform them of my change of plans. I'll move into town tomorrow.”

Before he could accept or reject her plans, she twisted on the seat to wave at Miguel. He pulled up beside them immediately. She made a mental note to see that he received a monetary bonus for preventing her from spending another moment with Elliot.

“Yes, Miss Alexa? Is there a problem?” Miguel asked.

“I have a headache.”

Miguel's discreet glance indicated that he could see why that might happen, given the company she was keeping. “Shall I take you back to the Hamptons' now?”

“Please do.” She stood and waited for Miguel to jockey the carriage beside Elliot's buggy so she could step easily across from one to the other.

After she listened to Elliot carry on about what a memorable evening it had been, she urged Miguel to rein toward Hampton Ranch.

“What the devil was that all about?” Miguel murmured confidentially.

Alexa pulled a face and whispered, “I was forced to accept his marriage proposal to shut him up.”

“Congratulations. You're betrothed to a despicable sidewinder,” he teased. “That should make you happy.”

“Of course, what woman wouldn't want to wed a snake?”

Five minutes later, while they drove down the path, Alexa reached beneath the carriage seat to retrieve her carpetbag then began rooting into it.

Miguel groaned in dismay. “Now who is coming out of hiding? Mr. Chester or the midnight rider?”

“Mr. Midnight,” she replied. “Elliot has been keeping track of the time all evening. He has a meeting with either his informant or his harlot. I will be at his house to take advantage of his absence.”

“Oh, no, you won't. Not if I have anything to say about it!”

Alexa and Miguel jumped simultaneously when a deep voice boomed like thunder in the darkness.

“A
t long last,” Miguel said, grinning. “The voice of reason.” He glanced at Alexa. “By the way, Coop told me last night that he knows who Mr. Chester and Mr. Midnight really are.”

Alexa glanced disparagingly at Coop. “That goes to show how well you can keep a secret, doesn't it?”

He shrugged lackadaisically. “Since we're all on the same side, what does it matter?”

“None, I suppose. And I guess I should inform you that I was forced to take Kate into my confidence last night.”

Miguel scowled. “If she becomes as daring and inquisitive as you, I will never be able to stop worrying about her safety and welfare.”

“Then why don't you go check on her safety and welfare right now,” she suggested flippantly. “Coop and I will keep surveillance on Elliot.”

“
We
will?” Coop smirked. “There is no
we
in Cooper Investigations. It's just me. I thought I made myself clear on that point last night.”

Alexa bounded from the carriage with carpetbag in hand. “No, you'll have to explain it to me again, after I change into my disguise. If Elliot ventures out for the evening I intend to search his office for incriminating evidence.”

“Damn it, Alexa—”

She ducked into the bushes before he could read her every line and paragraph in the riot act.

 

Coop blew out his breath and glanced at Miguel for support. But the Mexican shook his head and shrugged.

“You try being her conscience for a change,
gringo.
I'm going to check on Kate. Alexa corrupted her when they were roommates at boarding school in Albuquerque. Kate has a few adventurous tendencies herself and I don't want her involved in this fiasco.”

A few minutes after Miguel drove off, Coop was still waiting for Alexa to change into her masculine disguise. “I'm considering leaving you afoot if you don't hurry up,” he called out impatiently.

“Go ahead and leave me here,” she called back, undaunted. “I'll swipe one of Elliot's horses from the stable after I sneak in the office window to check his financial ledgers.”

“Last time you peeked into his office you nearly fell flat on your face,” he reminded her as he mounted his horse.

“That didn't count. I was dressed in a cumbersome gown at the time.” She stepped into view, garbed in form-fitting breeches and shirt that accentuated her alluring curves. “Now I'm appropriately dressed as Cooper Investigations's top-notch detective.”

Coop ground his teeth. “
You
hired
me,
remember? Let me do my job.”

She halted beside Bandit and stared up at him. “I also fired you, remember?”

He leaned out to grab her arm and hoist her up behind him. Then he twisted sideways to kiss her. He'd wanted to do that since he'd watched Elliot kiss her earlier and jealousy had taken a vicious bite out of him.

“What was that for?” she asked after he faced forward once again. “You have the darnedest way of ending an argument. And thank you. Short of eating dirt, I didn't know how to rid myself of Elliot's repulsive taste and scent.”

Coop smiled as he trotted Bandit through Webster's pasture. It didn't dawn on him until a few minutes later that, instead of sending her packing, she had him doing her bidding. “You're too smart for your own good, woman,” he muttered.

“Which should prove that I am good detective material.” She slid her arms around his waist and trailed her hand provocatively over his belt. “You're lucky to have me.”

Desire coursed through Coop and he made a mental note to pick up a white flag while he was in town. It looked as if he'd need one. Hell, he couldn't seem to say no to this adorable, but maddening, female—and make it stick.

 

“While I'm checking Elliot's financial ledgers you could follow him and see where he goes,” Alexa suggested as she opened the garden gate then made a beeline toward the office window.

“I'm not leaving you here alone,” Coop insisted sternly.

Alexa smiled to herself. She let him win this argument because she liked working with him. Besides, he was the expert in such matters and she wanted to learn what she could from him.

She gestured toward the elevated window that had given her fits during her previous surveillance. “Any suggestions?”

“Give me your foot and I'll boost you up.”

She placed her foot in his cupped hands. He lifted her up so she could peek inside. “The coast is clear.”

Coop heaved her up higher and she stood upside down on her hands momentarily before tucking and rolling across the carpet. When she opened the window wider, Coop's head and shoulders appeared. Then he thrust a leg over the sill and came agilely to his feet.

“I'll stand watch while you search the desk.” Coop tiptoed back and forth between the window and door while she checked each drawer.

“Find anything interesting?” he asked a few minutes later.

“Two love notes from Lily,” she reported. “Wait! Here's something curious…Norville Thomas…” She frowned pensively, trying to recall if she remembered the name from previous guest lists at dinner parties or from somewhere else. “The name sounds vaguely familiar but I can't put a face with it.”

Alexa picked up the handgun in the top drawer, emptied out the bullets and tucked them in her pocket.

Coop smiled approvingly. “Good thinking. You do have a knack for detective work, after all.”

Alexa wanted to hug the stuffing out of him for the compliment. At last, someone realized she had potential beyond making party arrangements and seating assignments.

Her thoughts trailed off when she found a note in the bottom right drawer. “Sure enough, Elliot is expecting a conference meeting at the line shack. Eleven o'clock.”

“Which means he is probably enjoying Lily's company until his rendezvous,” Coop predicted. “We should have enough time—”

His voice dried up when footsteps echoed through the foyer. Alexa and Coop dived to the floor behind the desk. A moment later, Oscar Denton's husky form filled the doorway. He scanned the dark room then lurched around to lumber down the hall.

“Let's go,” Coop whispered in her ear.

“I'm not finished.”

“You are for now.” He surged to his feet, dragging her along with him. “I'll go out the window first, then I'll help you down.”

Coop crawled silently through the opening. He hung by his fingers on the windowsill until he secured his feet on the stones protruding from the outer wall. Alexa glanced longingly toward the desk. She knew there was more to learn about Elliot's activities. If she could have gotten her hands on his ledgers, she might have discovered all sorts of interesting facts for the investigation.

“Come on,” Coop demanded impatiently.

Alexa slung her leg over the window casing. Then she lowered the window to the same position she'd found it. She let go when she felt Coop's hand on her rump and the other one round her ankle. He carefully lowered her to the ground.

“Thank you for the help.” She looped her arms around his broad shoulders and kissed him soundly.

“You're welcome.” He grinned and kissed her back. Then he grabbed her hand and weaved around the shrubs and flowers to reach the garden gate.

This partnership was working splendidly, she mused. She had found her true calling and she had engaged in the kind of action and adventure she had craved. She wished this could be the beginning of her career in Cooper Investigations. But Coop insisted that he didn't want or need a partner. She would have to strike out on her own after she gained experience and guidance from her mentor. She glanced discreetly at Coop and smiled to herself. Unless she found a way to convince him that he needed her a lot more than he thought he did.

 

A half hour later, Coop tethered the two horses in a grove of trees near the line shack. He smiled reluctantly at Alexa who scurried ahead of him to find the perfect lookout position. He had never met a woman so anxious to involve herself in the danger and intrigue of investigation. Alexa didn't shy away from difficulty. What she lacked in experience she more than compensated for with intelligence, ingenuity and enthusiasm.

“When all is said and done, I hope your father appreciates your efforts,” Coop remarked as he scanned the empty shack.

“I hope to make a good impression,” she replied. “I want him to realize that I have useful skills and talents so I can begin a career in which I can make a positive difference in people's lives.”

“Are you competing with a brother or sister for your father's approval?” he asked curiously.

Alexa shrugged nonchalantly. “Yes and no. When I was ten my mother took my younger sister, Bethany, and returned to Boston to live with my grandmother.”

Coop frowned, bemused. “Why didn't your mother take you, too?”

He saw her stiffen, as if battling down long-held resentment. She didn't change facial expression, but he heard the emotion filtering into her voice. “Because she said I was my father's daughter and she'd had more than enough of both of us. She was tired of the lack of social opportunities in the West and of my father, who was making his way up the ranks of the railroad echelon at the time. We had to move from one new railhead to the next while he organized work crews, inspected construction sites and dealt with the legalities of land permits and right of ways.”

She smiled fondly. “Bethany was only six the last time I saw her. She has my mother's dark eyes and dark hair. By now, at eighteen, I'm sure she is so attractive that she's the toast of the town, as my mother was before she married an upstart and went with him to connect one side of the nation to the other by rail.” Her smile faded as she stared into the distance, as if gazing through a window to the past. “I haven't been allowed to see my sister in twelve years. Neither has my father.”

Coop wondered if Alexa had battled feelings of rejection since her mother chose one daughter over the other. Most likely so. No doubt, Alexa had devoted herself to her father and attempted to prove her worth to the one parent who hadn't cast her aside because of her blond features and her strong-willed personality.

“Since we are trading dark secrets, while keeping surveillance, tell me what made you the man you are,” she suggested. “What of your family? Brothers or sisters somewhere? Where are your parents?”

Coop rarely spoke of his past. He had put it behind him long ago. “There's not much to tell.”

“Come on,” she insisted, giving him a nudge with her elbow. “We're partners now and—”

“We are not…” His voice fizzled out when he noted the look of rejection on her bewitching features. Considering her mother's abandonment, he didn't have the heart to protest too long or too loudly. “Okay. Partners…temporarily. For this one case,” he stipulated. “But don't start making plans to have your name printed on my office door in Albuquerque.”

She threw her arms around his neck and nearly squeezed him in two. “Thank you, Coop. I know I have a lot to learn but I'm eager for you to teach me what I need to know so I can become a good detective.” She stepped back a pace, still grinning from ear to ear. “Now tell me about your family. Please? I'd really like to know.”

Coop found himself staring off into the darkness, too, fighting emotions that he swore were buried and forgotten a lifetime ago. “My mother died of complications two weeks after giving birth to my younger brother, Phillip. My father owned a small farm in Kansas. He stayed busy working the land and planting crops. It was my job to do the domestic chores, tend to our livestock and watch over my brother.”

He felt the tension rising inside him, as if it had been months rather than years since disaster struck and tore his world apart. “I was fourteen when confederate raiders descended on our farm to take what little food and livestock we had. They shot my father, even when he made no attempt to resist them.”

“Oh, Coop, I'm so sorry for your loss,” Alexa murmured as her fingertips glided comfortingly around his clenched fist.

“Phillip panicked. Before I could grab hold of him, he dashed from the cabin, yelling and screaming my father's name. They killed him, too.”

She sidled closer, as if to bear the burden of pain and anger he'd carried with him for almost two decades. There had been no one to turn to. Now he found solace in Alexa's strength and presence. He wrapped his arms around her and confided things that he had never told another living soul.

“I made a solemn pact that day while I buried my father, brother and staked a grave for myself beside them. I promised a reckoning for those cutthroats who murdered and raided,” he gritted out. He looked down at her grimly, knowing he was about to invite her disgust and disapproval, because she would know what kind of man he'd become that fateful day.

“I learned to handle a knife, pistol and rifle and I practiced faithfully every spare moment. I went after the four men who were responsible for taking my family away from me. For three years I followed in their wake of death and destruction through Missouri, Arkansas and finally to their hideout in Indian Territory. By then I had learned to survive efficiently in the wilderness. I had become exceptionally skilled with weapons and I learned to track and hunt like an Indian warrior.”