Renegades and Stubborn Pride (sequal to Renegades and Pretty Women)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

                “Forgive me for asking, ma’am, but is there a reason why lady such as yourself would need an entire fort?” Sheriff Phillip’s asked and Scarlett shrugged one dainty shoulder as she leaned to the left and let her hand caress his forearm. Joe saw the bumps cover his skin and she rolled her eyes. Even the good Sheriff was attracted to the devil woman. Candied clit. That had to be the secret.

                “I like to have my privacy, Jackson.” She practically purred. Joe cleared her throat delicately and laid her napkin back across her lap.

                “Jackson, my love, you should not ask such personal, and potentially offensive, questions of the woman who was kind enough to open her home to us.”

                “Of course I opened my house to you.” Scarlett stated with a wave of her hand. “It seems so nice to actually meet those with good breeding out in this wasteland. Most around here are backwoods mountain hicks with no real brains to speak of and even less social class.”

                Joe nodded and smiled with understanding while in her mind she had killed Scarlett ten different ways in the time it took the woman to speak those few sentences.

                Joe let her eyes go back to Clayton. The boy had cleaned himself up while she and Sheriff Phillips had been cleaning up and now he was sitting beside Bear and picking at his food. Joe noticed that his eyes kept being drawn to her own.

                Oh how she wished she could just pull her gun, shoot Scarlett, Bear and that man lounging beside the dining room door and carry her son out of this place. It could be easily done if not for all those armed men outside.

                “Sir…” Joe asked as she motioned toward Bear and the big man seemed surprised. He quickly swallowed the ham he’d been chewing and his eyes widened when he looked at her.  

                “Yes, ma’am?”

                Joe offered a sultry smile and leaned toward him, placing her cleavage on nice display. “May I ask what happened to your head? That is quite the lump you have!”

                Bear grumbled loudly and Joe saw his fists clench. “I fell.” He growled, sitting up a little straighter and rolling his massive shoulders.

                Clayton giggled quietly as he rolled his fork around in his eggs. “Yeah. Old Mister Bear Bear’s clumsy.”  

                Bear grabbed Clayton by the collar of his shirt and raised his hand as if to hit the boy. Joe slid her hand over the knife beside her plate, fully prepared to lunge and drive it through Bear’s temple before she let him hit her child when a sudden commotion at the dining room door drew everyone’s attention.

                Joe stared in shock as two guards entered, dragging a man with them. They were holding him beneath his arms and his long, stingy black hair hung over his face. His shaking legs seemed to be struggling to stand.