“If you wanted a stroll in the moonlight, why didn’t you say so?”
That familiar mocking drawl made Danny cringe. She lifted her head from the ground and looked up at him. He stood silhouetted against the darkness, feet braced apart, hands on hips, eyes blazing down at her. With a defeated sigh, she got to her feet.
“Why can’t you just let me go?” she whined.
“I can’t do that. You’re my ace in the hole. Which reminds me, you got me away from a good hand of poker to come after you. And look at you. You’re a mess.” He reached for her hand. “We’re going back in there, Danny, and I want you to behave yourself.”
As they neared the saloon and were about to turn into the back alley, he said, “Don’t ever try to run away from me again.”
“Run away?” a voice echoed from the shadows. “Well now, whoth that runnin’ away?”
“It’s nothing,” Alex said to the man who staggered toward them. “Go back to your whiskey, old timer.”
“Young fella, don’t you worry ‘bout a thing. No, thuh, I won’t tell a thoul.” He smiled at them with a mouth of missing teeth. “No, thuree, why iffen you two wanna go runnin’ off to git hitched, then no thur, I ain’t gonna tell a thoul, not old WillardThpree.” He slapped his thigh and cackled. “Hey, I know. Oh boy, ain’t thith gonna be thomthin’.” Without warning, he let out a holler that made the hairs at the back of Alex’s neck stand on end.
“Hey, Judge,” he yelled into the crowded saloon, forgetting his promise as easily as he’d made it. “Judge, you got yourthelf thom customerth who wanna get hitched. Come on over.”
Alex cursed under his breath and turned quickly to Danny. “No tricks now,” he warned through gritted teeth.
Unity pushed her way through the others who crowded around outside. “Honey,” she said to Danny, “I gotta hand it to you. I always said the lady who lands this handsome devil has to be something special.”
“Oh, but there’s been a mistake,” Danny began, but Alex’s fingers dug into her waist, staunching the rest of her objection. She looked at him disbelievingly. Surely he wasn’t going to go through with this charade?
While Judge Decker led the others into the saloon, Unity leaned close to Alex and said, “I got me a gut feeling this ain’t something you two planned on doing. Not tonight leastways. But for your sake you’d better go through with it. Those people in there are getting ready for a wedding, and if they don’t get one, there’s bound to be trouble.”
Alex looked into the crowded saloon, then at Danny whose complexion was as white as cow’s milk. He kept his arm around her waist to keep her steady on her feet. “Unity, is there anyone here tonight I should know about? A backroom game of poker is one thing, but a crowded saloon—”
“Don’t think so, but I’ll keep my eyes open.” Turning away, she called to the man behind the bar. “Sam, set up a round for everyone.” As she suspected, they all moved to the bar to claim their free shot of whiskey.
Alex led Danny into the hallway and placed her with her back against the wall. “I know what you’re thinking,” he said, “and I want you to know I didn’t plan any of this. I never figured myself for the marrying kind.” Her hard, accusing stare made him uncomfortable. “Well, you can see the kind of life I live. How could I expect any woman to—“
“Is that supposed to be a proposal?” she cut in with an angry whisper. “Because if it is, I do not accept. I wouldn’t marry you if you were the last man on earth. And furthermore, I’ve never heard a proposal like that in my life, and you can be sure I’ve heard many.”
“What the hell do you want me to do, get down on my knees and beg you to marry me?” His own outrage was evident in the crimson flush all over his face.
“The only time I want to see you on your knees, Alex Coulter, is when you are finally caught and have to beg for your life.”
Almost instantly she regretted her harsh words when she saw the stab of pain in his eyes. But it disappeared quickly behind a callous look when he sneered, “That’ll be the day.” He reached for her roughly and yanked her into the saloon.
In her state of numbed confusion, Danny tried to focus her attention on Judge Decker, noting the tiny moisture-laden beads of sweat dripping off his stubbly chin onto the front of his shirt, and the jacket he wore that looked like it might have fit him once but now hung loosely about the shoulders, one sleeve longer than the other, the collar frayed and stained yellow.
Alex fidgeted nervously, his eyes darting across the nameless faces, searching for a sign of recognition from one of them. He found Danny’s hand and grasped it tightly in his, while his other hand brushed lightly over the gun in his holster, just in case. It was a damned fool spot to be in, just what he didn’t need. If his name rang a familiar bell to just one person, there’d be a lot of trouble. Any one of them could be a bounty hunter or a U.S. marshal or just some fool kid hoping to make a name for himself.
The ceremony was a mockery. Danny saw the judge’s lips moving but she barely heard his words. “By the power vested in me by the Territory of Colorado, I pronounce you man and wife.”