Sixteen Decades

Trish Jensen

To Chris White,

for making me laugh even during thunderstorms, and for helping me brainstorm the funny.

One

Little Fork, Nevada, 2010

"Okay, who's missing?" Sheriff Ty Coltraine asked.

Fannie Mae, the madam of Little Folks claim to fame. The Rooster Ranch, scowled up at him, her smudged lipstick and caked-on makeup not doing her scrawny little eighty-year-old butt any favors. Tonight she was wearing a hot pink chiffon number that clashed a little with her flaming red Farrah wig hair. "Like Fm going to name names."

"How am I supposed to find this person if I cloiv't know who I'm looking for?"

Fannie laughed. "Fm guessing you'll figure it out right quick."

Ty sighed. "One of your gills, a client, your dog, what?"

¹¹ Let s just say it was a friend who dropped by to say howdy."

"Was this friend male or female?"

¹¹ Don t get many female callers. Oh, a few now and then but—"

"When's the last time you saw him?" Ty interrupted, before she could elaborate.

"Around eight." She pointed at the chalkboard that held the evenings menu. Each of the ten bedrooms were numbered and named; names like Little Bo Peep, The Dungeon, Room Service, and—

"Ten Little Indians? Good Lord, Fannie."

She shrugged. "Different strokes. Anyways, he was heading to six, The Court Room, but he never showed. None of the girls have seen him, so he didn't take any detours."

"How do you know he didn't just change his mind and go home?"

"Beemer's still in the lot. And his clothes are still in the dressing room."

"I know I'm going to regret asking this," Ty said. "But what was he wearing the last time you saw him?"

"Judge's robe."

"Excuse me?"

The Couit Room? Duh, Ty. If you'd come around once in a while, blow off some steam, you'd be a much happier sheriff. And a handsome man such as yourself? Stunningly handsome, if my old eyes do say for thei i selves." When he just raised an eyebrow, she added, "He was wearing a judges robe. Nothing else."

Ty glanced up the Gone with the Wind-type staircase just in time to see Little Forks mayor, Tony Fitch, starting down the steps. At the sight of Ty the mayor made a U-turn and hauled his hefty ass back up, as fast as his black stilettos could carry him.

Good Lord! Well, if nothing else, Ty's hometown certainly wasn't boring.

He shook his head, knowing fora fact that the next town council meeting would be interesting. "Okay, you and the staff scour the house top to bottom. I'll have a look outside."

"You really need to take a good look inside, Sheriff. Yer Pap sure did."

Ty chucked heron the chin. "Which is why, Fannie darliiv, I'm avoiding it at all costs."

« V Kb

Ty was about to open the Dumpster when he heard it.

"Help!"

His head jerked around at the sound of the weak female voice. He glanced around the dusty, sandy backyard of the Rooster, but no weak female in need of help jumped out at him. He shook his head, figuring it might have been a fake cry coming from one of the windows above. From what he'd heard, many a customer of the Ranch enjoyed the helpless female fantasy. He was pretty sure that was what the Little Miss

Muffet room was all about.

He went [jack to using his Hag lite, searching the grounds around the Dumpster, hoping to find any clue to help him discover what had happened to the male "friend" who'd disappeared earlier.

"Please, sakes almighty, might anyone be of some assistance?"

Same voice. And he could have sworn it dropped to almost a whisper and ended with, "You filthy cretins."

Definitely didn't sound like a man.

He swept the yard with his light, landing on the shed at the far left corner of the Roosters property. Moving slowly, trying to keep his boots from crunching up too much noise, he approached the shed.

From prior experience dealing with the Rooster, he knew the shed was where they kept many, many different outfits for the ladies. It certainly didn't hold gardening equipment. Neither the front nor the back of the mansion had a speck of greenery, save for the huge Don't Come Again cactus in the front yard. He was sure that wasn't the real name of that monstrosity, but it certainly fit its job description.

Little Fork Medical Center could attest to that.

Ty swept the area one last time as he neared the old wooden shed that truly looked like it had been here since the beginning of time. Nothing moved. The evening was amazingly windless, cloudless, and cool for early May, although the moon was a tiny sliver, offering no help whatsoever.

He reached the shed and noticed the padlock on the door. It was rusted beyond rusty, as if it had been there forever. And yet, the last time he'd been here it had looked brand spanking new. Nevada weather was harsh, but that harsh?

He knocked on the door. "Hello?"

He heard scrambling and rustling and finally a woman saying, "Oh, praise be! Please, help me."

"Who are you?" he asked, as he tried the lock. It didn't budge. "What's your name?"

"I . . . I . . ." the woman said, voice growing weaker. ". . . am so hungry."

Hungry for what was the question. "Are you one of Fannie's gills?" he asked. "Is this like a rescue game? 'Cause I'm not a client. And I'm not playin."

He popped a couple of Skittles in his mouth.

"Fannie? No, no my mothers name is Elizabeth. Please, get me out of here."

Ty pulled out his cell and punched in the number to the Rooster. He, unfortunately, knew the number by heart.

When one of her male bouncers answered, he said, "This is Ty. Who's this?

¹¹ Hi, Sheriff. It's Boner."

Of course. "Well, Boner, I'm in your backyard. I mean, the Rooster s backyard. And I need the key to the lock on this shed back here."

"The shed ain't locked."

"I'm standing in front of it. I know a padlock when I see it. Get me the key."

"I swear, Sheriff, the shed ain't been locked for weeks. Fannie got tired of always having to open it for people, so she took it off and threw it away."

"Well, someone put it back on. And they stuck a girl in there before they locked it. Any of your girls missing?"

"None that was scheduled to work tonight. Cant rightly say about those who have the night off."

"Okay, well, thanks, Bo ... thanks."

"Any day now would be wonderful," he heard from the other side of the door.

"Okay," he said. "Hold on, darlin'. We 11 get you out of there. Other than hungry, are you hurt?"

"My head seems to be pounding a bit."

Ty got on his phone again and called his deputy. "Jinx, I need EHT at the Rooster. Backyard shed. And I need a bolt cutter. 911-like. For both."

& o

After surveying the entire perimeter of the shed, hoping to find another way in, Ty returned to the door

"Darlitr, you still hanging in?"

"Darlin? I'm not your darlin'."

"Okay, what should I call you instead?"

There was a long hesitation. "Who are you?" the woman asked.

"Youi white knight, come to rescue you. What's your name?"

¹¹H. . . . Magg . . . uhmm. Margaret. Margaret Prescott."

"Are you in there alone? M . . . mmm . . . Margaret?"

"I have no idea, Sir Lancelot. And I'd prefer not to know." Ty squinted his eyes. The woman had an accent, but lie couldn't place it for anything. It was stilted and just plain weird. Sort of British, but not.

"Do you know how you got in there, Margaret?"

"Indeed."

Her voice was growing fainter, and lie called again to find out the status of the bus and the cutters. Five minutes out, both ways.

"How would that be?" he asked.

"What?" she whispered.

"Hang with me here, dar . . . Margaret. Who locked you in here?" The sheriff."

"Excuse me?"

"The sheriff. At least, that's what lie claimed to be."

"What did this sheriff look like? Do you remember?"

"How could I forget? Well, he was wearing all black. Which, if you ask me, was not a good look on him."

So someone was dressed up as a slier iff. Hed have to discuss that little fantasy with Fannie. That definitely wouldn't do.

"Okay, Ms. Fashionista. What else?" he asked.

"He . . . was quite tall. Well over six feet."

"Fat? Thin?"

"He was . . . well muscled but most assuredly not stocky."

"Okay, a tall dude. How about his features?"

"His features. On first inspection, he was spectacularly handsome. Stunning, actually."

Ty groaned. Fannie's words almost exactly. This is a joke, right? Fannie put you up to this? Trying to lure me in?

"Do I sound like I'm joking, White Knight? I think I'm bleeding. My head feels sticky. This bad man was not joking, either. I'm scared. And c-c-cold."

And she sounded like she meant it. Her teeth had started chattering.

"Tell me more about him so I can find him."

"He . . . had dark hair."

Ty held a hand up to his head. "Long or shoit?"

"Shoit, compared to the others. Cut behind his ears. Oh, and he had a freckle on his left earlobe."

Ty's fingers immediately went to his left ear. The one with the freckle on it.

"Eyes?" he asked.

"The most striking feature. A very deep green."

Check. This had to be a practical joke. Although the woman didn't sound like she was joking.

"A-a-a-and he had a dimple in his chin. Unmistakable. Does this sound like youi sheriff, sir?"

It sure as hell did. It sounded like him. But he knew for a fact he hadn't put this woman in this shed. "Not really," he said, because he was afraid to scare her even more. "But well find the SOB. I promise." Because I want to find out who's impersonating me, too, "You're sure he said he was the Little Fork sheriff?"

"He said he was the law around these parts. And he was very arrogant about it, I might add."

Shit Ty had used those words before when he'd had to. And hed been called arrogant more times than he could remember. Except for the people who knew him well, many others misconstrued his shyness as arrogance. Which hed allowed to happen, because no one in Nevada wanted a shy sheriff.

And he smelled like a spittoon. That man jawed on tobacco until the smell was coming out of his skin."

Ty almost yelled "Hallelujah." He'd smoked exactly one cigarette in his life, when his father forced it on him. He felt sick for two days running. Chewing on it? Even his father hadn't been that bad.

"Margaret, you are a dang good witness/" he said, wishing he could hug her right now, whether she was a prostitute or not. Strange thing was, he hadn't seen a spittoon anywhere except in those houses that recreated the old west. Even Fannie had a huge sign on her front door warning customers they weren't allowed to bring tobacco of any kind into her establishment, or they'd get the cactus.

"I . . . I'm hungry."

Considering the circumstances he was impressed she had an appetite at all. "Sorry, all I have on me are Skittles. But well get you out and be stuffing Big Macs down you in no time, Margaret."

"Big who's? Macs? The rumors were true then? I didn't believe it, but ... oh, my Loosie! You're . . . you re cannibals?"

Oh, my Loosie? Ty would have laughed if he hadn't heard a distinctive thump behind the scarred wooden door. "Margaret?"

No answer. He knelt down. "No cannibals in this town, Margaret," he said. "I mean, we aren't going to make you eat a Mac! How about a Whopper?"

"Oh, my Loo . . ." he heard. And then there was nothing.

Apparently not a fast-food fan. Depending on her condition, he could bring her to Fanny at the Rooster to fill her up, except it seemed that it was a good bet someone from the Rooster had dumped and locked her in this shed. But why?

This was no game. He heard the fear and desperation in her voice. But someone—who looked uncannily like Ty—was running around impersonating him. And assaulting women. That someone was in fora very big comeuppance when Ty got hold of him.

Ty knew Little Fork was fairly loose. He should. He'd lived here his entire life, except for the three-year break to jam in that degree at Oregon State in public safety and law enforcement. And then back to his

hometown to do what his forefathers had been doing since Little Fork was pa it of the Utah Territory: enforce the law in what had mostly been a lawless town.

His father, his grandfather, and all the fathers before that had sucked at law enforcement, in his opinion. Brutal, crooked, and too full of themselves. It would break their hearts to know that their progeny was actually trying to bring real law and justice to their honky town.

Good. The bastards.

^uPizza?" he asked, just to try to get her talking again.

Nothing.

"Margaret, my name is Ty. Tell me where you re from."

"Philadelphia/" she whispered.

"Hey, Philly! How about those Eagles?"

"Eagles? What eagles? I've not seen any eagles in Philadelphia. Except in paintings, of course."

¹¹ Not big on football, eh? How about the Phillies?"

"Phillies?"

"Not a sports fan, are you Maggie?"

"I'm ... a teacher."

"Oh, well, that's great. What subject?"

"Subject? I teach them all of the subjects."

"Oh. What year?"

"Year?" she said, so softly he almost missed it.

"What year do you teach? Kindergarten? First grade?" He figured if she was teaching all subjects, she must be teaching the little crumbciunchers. Which for some dumb reason he found endearing. Hed always admired anyone who could stand to put up with thiity or so restless kids for an entire day. Even though he coached Little League softball, and truly enjoyed it, he was darn ready for the parents to take the kids home after practice or games.

Now that he thought of it, his very first crush was on his kindergarten teacher, Ms. Taylor. Man, she'd been so pretty and shed smelled like heaven.

Ty shook his head. Now wasn't exactly the time to wax nostalgic. "Look, help is coming, I promise. Just stick with me here. Tell me something about yourself. Talk about anything."

Silence. Tell me about your students. Tell me a joke. Something."

There was a pause, and then he heard her take in a deep painful-sound ing breath. "Urn, well, okay. Ben Franklin walks into a pub . . ."

Ty lifted his head. "You went with the joke?" he asked, chuckling.

"Ah, you've heard it then. I thought perhaps that one hadn't made it out to the territories yet."

The territories?

"But I suppose jokes travel as fast as the Express."

The Express? As in Federal?

"Nope/' he said,"haven't heard that one. So old Ben walks into a pub. Strange, seems to me I learned in history that he pretty much lived in pubs."

She laughed softly, but it got cut shoit by a low moan. "My . . . head."

"Posse's on its way, Ms. Prescott."

"Posse? But . . . but, I'm not a criminal, sir! I know the sheriff said so, but it's not true. I just came to take possession of property that is rightfully mine."

Ty sat back on his haunches. "Property?"

She either didn't hear him or was on a tear and decided to ignore him. "I thought I was inheriting a ranch. I mean a real ranch. Cows and chickens and land. Imagine my horror. A bawdy house! Of course, knowing my father, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Still, I was looking forward to that ranch . . ." she trailed off. Ty's head was spinning. This woman was either batty as hell or had sustained one helluva whack to the noggin.

Senior Deputy Jinx Davis, Ty's best friend since they shared space in the Hed Center's nursery thiity-two years ago, came racing from around the mansion, bolt-cutter cradled in his arm like a long football. Which of course made sense. Jinx should have been a pro football player. He was even drafted in the first round out of college. Only a body dropped from a hotel room seven floors above and landing right on top of him changed his plans drastically.

"What the hell?" Jinx asked, as he stopped shoit in front of Ty. "And get that damn light out of my face."

"Someone locked a lady up," Ty said, nabbing the cutters from Jinx. He knocked on the door again. "You still with me, Hags?"

"If you're speaking to me," a scarily weak voice answered, "I'm not you're darling and I'm not Mags. Well, Maggie, if you must. Miss Prescott would be preferable."

Jinx turned to Ty and raised his eyebrows. "Well, lafreaking-da!"

"Definitely a little uptight," Ty said in a loud voice as he worked the lock. "Aren't you, Miss Prescott?"

The only sound greeting him was a ladylike sniff.

It took longer than he liked, and shed gone totally silent by the time the lock snapped. He shucked it and pulled open the door, shining his light on the lump on the gritty ground.

They both staled at the woman passed out dead and then back at each other.

"She's wearing petticoats," Jinx said.

"I see that. And how the hell would you know what a petticoat is?"

"I pride myself in knowing all about female fashion."

"Since when did petticoats come back into fashion?" They didn't," Jinx said as they both staled down at the unconscious woman.

"Holy shit," they whispered in perfect unison.

» *

"Okay, Fannie, tell me right now what's going on around here."

"You tell me, cowboy," Fannie Mae said. "You just cost me a nights woith of business. What with all those sirens blaring up to my place. You'd think the Rooster was on fire or something."

¹¹ Who beat the hell out of your new girl and then locked her in the shed out back?"

"New girl? What new girl?"

"Little school inarm? Calls herself Margaret Prescott? Pretty? Blonde? Except for the red covering her head from all the blood."

Fannie stared up at Ty in shock, which was a brand-new look for Fannie. He'd never seen anything faze her. She was four feet nothing and skinny as a stick, but he'd lay odds on her anytime against anyone. Including himself.

Her real name was Stella Pruce, but shed recently taken on the moniker of Fannie Mae because she figured she took clients' money, made sure they were screwed, then kicked them out.

^uTy, I'm sure I don't know what the hell you Ye talking about. I haven't taken on a new girl in months. And the school inarm thing just doesn't attract that many of . . .my friends."

"She looks like she walked straight out of Little House on the Prairie."

Fannie shrugged. "I'm sure I dont know who she is, and I'm sure I dont know who locked her in my shed. I take it there were no signs of Lester?"

"Lester? Lester Pipps? That's who your missing friend' is?"

"That's privileged information, sonny, so keep your trap shut."

Oh, he'd keep his trap shut all right. Especially for Lester, who up until right now had been his dentist. "No sign of Lester. Maybe he got lost in one of your secret passageways."

"You know, that's a possibil—hold it, how did you know about the secret passageways? You haven't come farther into this house than the foyer in your entire life."

"Rumors," he said, not wanting to tell her the truth. That his father had told him all about the place when he tried to bring Ty here for his sixteenth birthday.

She looked him up and down. "You re looking a little disheveled, sweetmeat."

He knew that. Once over the shock of the sight of the woman all dressed up in old west attire, lied fallen to his knees, making sure Margaret still had a pulse. And then checked her for injuries. Other than dust smudges all over her forehead and cheeks, he'd only found one problem. A bad and bleeding abrasion to the back of her head. Someone had whacked Miss Margaret but good.

"Fannie, someone assaulted a woman and locked her in your shed out back."

"I swear I know nothiiv about it, Ty. And I know eveiything that goes on around here."

"Anything unusual happen tonight? Other than Lester going missing?"

"Every night is unusual. Its why I love this joint. But this kind of thing," she said, putting a fist to her temple, "does not happen at my establishment. You know I'm clean and a straight shooter."

That I do, Fannie. But something bad happened here. I'm going to need to talk to all of your people working tonight."

"Fine."

"And a list of all the clients—"

"Not a chance in Hades, Sheriff/" she said, straightening to almost four-one.

"I can get a warrant before you can say French maid or baby doll?' "

"And I can lose my accounting files before you can say Please Fannie, let me keep at least one testicle/

If Ty wasn't so upset for that pretty blonde, he'd probably chuckle. He was not in a chuckling mood.

"She claims that the sheriff was the one who locked her in the shed. I don't take kindly to anyone imitating a law enforcement officer, Fannie. Especially a woman beater. Have any friends with a cops and robbers fetish?"

"A couple of inquiries. I always send them over to Lacie in Reno. There s just not enough interest to devote a room to that one."

"Do you keep an old-time sheriff uniform around? An all-black one?"

"Yes," she said slowly. "But its not for customer use. Its hung behind the bar in the Founders room.

Framed and under glass. But I was just in there having my nightly constitution. And it was there, untouched." Suddenly she laughed. "Hatter of fact, Ty, it belonged to one of your great-grandpappies. Jesse Coltraine. He was the one who took over possession of the Rooster in the early days. Then sold it off to a private concern."

Great. Another stellar point in his family's history.

"I don't see much funny here, Fannie. Don't you care that someone assaulted a woman on your premises?" he asked softly. He knew he was playing the ace card, because one thing Fannie would never abide was physical harm to anyone in her domain.

She wilted back down to four feet nothing. "Is she going to be all right?'

"Seems like a fighter to me. I think Miss Prescott will be okay. Jinx says Doc Sanchez came right away."

Fannie gave him a weird look. "Prescott? Her name is Prescott?"

^uSo she said before she passed out. Why?"

"The Rooster was opened by a Prescott. James Prescott. When he passed in 18 50, he left the place to his daughter. But she disappeared within hours of arriving to stake her claim. At least that's the legend. And that's when Jesse Coltraine took over the property.'

Ty got a very strange, hot sensation in his stomach. "Do you know the daughter's name?"

Fa 11 n i e sta red u p a t h i m. " Ye p. It wa s M a rg a ret. M a r g a ret P i escott."

Ty swallowed. "Fannie, as strange as it sounds, looks like Hiss Margaret just returned to Little Fork."

Two

Two

Maggie knew she was in a very strange dream. But something of a wonderful one at that. Shed never seen all the doodads this dream had before, a bunch of whining things and tube tilings and needle tilings. But for some reason she didn't care so much. After so many months of crossing the continent in that horrendous coach, and then minutes or even hours of being locked up in that awful shed, she was finally warm and comfortable. Even though shed been poked and prodded in this dream like some kind of pin cushion.

Everything in her dream looked clean as her mamas linens. And very, very strange. In a most fascinating way.

Tliis needle in her arm for instance. It was attached to a long tube that led up to a big bag of something liquid that the nurse had said the doctor ordered.

"Hiss Prescott?" a mans voice said.

"Hmmm?" she said, knowing the very last thing she should be dreaming about was a man in her room. So what? It was her dream and she was sticking to it.

After all, everything else was so odd. Her doctor was a womanl Imagine that. And a Mexican to boot. Her mother would be so proud.

"Ms. Prescott?"

Okay, that voice was real. Unfortunately, her dream seemed to be over.

She squinched one eye open, then the other. Standing beside her bed was about the best-looking Negro man she'd ever laid eyes on. Okay, not only a man in her room, but a black man at that. What a scandal this would cause back home. Apparently not so much here, seeing that Dr. Sanchez was standing beside him, smiling. "Am I still dreaming?" she asked.

The exotic, pretty woman laughed softly. "No, I think you re quite awake. Ms. Prescott," the dream doctor said. 'This is Deputy Jinx Davis."

Maggies gaze slid back to the man. "Deputy?"

"You can call me Jinx/" he said, flashing a smile that could melt Philadelphia snow. He had a badge on his shirt, which made her shudder. But he was nothing like the brute of her nightmare. He wore beige-colored, neatly pressed pants with a matching beige shirt that, the sleeves of which he had folded up to right below his elbows. And his face was kind. And somewhat dizzying.

"Deputy Davis?"

"Jinx," he said.

"You re a free man then, Jinx?" she asked, feeling suddenly shy.

He winked at her. He actually winked! "No woman's been able to shackle me yet. Why? You want to try?"

"Certainly not!" she said. "I don't believe in that barbaric practice."

The doctor and the deputy glanced at each other. Maggie wondered what shed just said that warranted such a reaction.

The deputy pulled up a chair and sat down. "If you don't mind, I need to ask you some questions, Miss . . . oh, hell, may I just call you Margaret? Formality's not my thing."

"Nor mine, Deputy. I mean Jinx. I'm Margaret." She pulled the covers up closer to her chin, because it was obvious she was in some kind of strange sleeping garment and not her traveling clothes. "Maggie, actually."

"That's good," he said, smiling again. "Because Ms. Piescott is a mouthful."

That was about the third time shed been called a Mizz. Probably a regionalism. "What questions do you have for me, Jinx?"

The doctor put up a hand. "I have some other patients to be looking in on. III be back to check on you later, Maggie. Is that all right with you?"

"Yes ma am."

The doctor laughed. "Its Sonia."

And with that, the doctor left her alone in her bedroom with a man. Forward thinking, indeed. She didn't think even her mother would approve of this. But she felt strangely comfortable. The deputy had warm eyes. Unlike that green-eyed monster who'd dragged her from her rightful home and into a shed. "I don't know what more I can tell you, Jinx. I . . . already told that other man everything I knew."

He pulled out a strange little notebook and a writing utensil unlike any shed seen. "First, hows your head feel in'?"

Her hand went to her head, and she felt the scratchy cloth wrapped around it. "It doesn't seem to hurt at all. As a matter of fact, nothing seems to hurt. I feel kind of ... like I'm in a very strange dream." She eyed him. "You aren't a dream, are you?"

"I've been called a dream once or twice/" he answered, grinning again. But not tonight. Tonight I'm on business. And III try not to keep you too long, okay?"

"Yes, certainly. I have so many questions of my own. But too confused at the moment to make sense of any answers you might provide."

"Plenty of time for that." He pulled the chair even closer to her strange bedside. It had metal bars on it. And buttons with strange symbols on the sides. *Ty tells me you said a sheriff was the one to toss you in that shed. And was probably the one who whacked you, too. Is that what you re saying?"

"That's right."

"Did lie identify himself as the sheriff of Little Fork?"

¹¹ He did indeed."

"Is it possible that he was just playing one of Fannies games at the Rooster?"

"That's the second time someone lias mentioned a Fannie. Ive never met a Fannie here. And I'm sorry, but I dont know what you mean by games. He wasn't playing a game when he dragged me from the house. Or if he was, it was a horrible one."

"Did he assault you?"

Maggie laughed, even if this was no laughing matter, and laughing hurt like the devil. "Deputy, is this

bandage wrapped around my head not proof enough? Do you think I did this to myself?"

"I mean sexual assault, Maggie."

Her mouth dropped open. "Sexual assault? You mean, did he force unwanted attentions on me?"

"Yes, that's what I mean."

She laughed again. "Oh, Jinx, that's so silly. I mean, look at me. Who would want to do that to me?"

He sat back in his chair. "Just about any sick bastard around, that's who. Other than that god-awful outfit you were wearing—"

"It was my traveling gown! And Id come a very long way, sir. And III have you know I sewed it myself."

His lips quirked. "Sorry, no insult intended. Are you with a historical wild west traveling troupe or something?"

Correction, her head was beginning to pound. It was like they were talking two different languages. "I was traveling alone. I came to claim my inheritance."

"Which is what?"

"The Rooster Ranch, just as I told the other man."

'The Rooster Ranch is owned by Fannie Mae Tip well, Maggie. As it has been for as long as I've been alive, and then some."

She shook her head, then immediately regretted it. "No. My father left it to me. I have the papers right here." She looked around for her clothes. And then it hit her. She sure as Hades hadn't undressed herself. And the papers had been tucked in her garter. "Where are my belongings? There are papers. I swear. Legal papers."

Jinx's brown eyes probed hers. "Okay, we 11 deal with that later. Right now I'm more interested in catching the person who did this to you. This is real important, Maggie. What did this man look like?"

"Hi, folks, how's our patient?"

They both turned to the doorway of the room and Maggies head swam. She pressed one hand to her temple and pointed a shaking finger with the other. "There's your man, Deputy. Its him. Shoot him."

bandage wrapped around my head not proof enough? Do you think I did this to myself?"

"I mean sexual assault, Maggie."

Her mouth dropped open. "Sexual assault? You mean, did he force unwanted attentions on me?"

"Yes, that's what I mean."

She laughed again. "Oh, Jinx, that's so silly. I mean, look at me. Who would want to do that to me?"

He sat back in his chair. "Just about any sick bastard around, that's who. Other than that god-awful outfit you were wearing—"

"It was my traveling gown! And Id come a very long way, sir. And III have you know I sewed it myself."

His lips quirked. "Sorry, no insult intended. Are you with a historical wild west traveling troupe or something?"

Correction, her head was beginning to pound. It was like they were talking two different languages. "I was traveling alone. I came to claim my inheritance."

"Which is what?"

"The Rooster Ranch, just as I told the other man."

'The Rooster Ranch is owned by Fannie Mae Tip well, Maggie. As it has been for as long as I've been alive, and then some."

She shook her head, then immediately regretted it. "No. My father left it to me. I have the papers right here." She looked around for her clothes. And then it hit her. She sure as Hades hadn't undressed herself. And the papers had been tucked in her garter. "Where are my belongings? There are papers. I swear. Legal papers."

Jinx's brown eyes probed hers. "Okay, we 11 deal with that later. Right now I'm more interested in catching the person who did this to you. This is real important, Maggie. What did this man look like?"

"Hi, folks, how's our patient?"

They both turned to the doorway of the room and Maggies head swam. She pressed one hand to her temple and pointed a shaking finger with the other. "There's your man, Deputy. Its him. Shoot him."

"I'll let Doc fill you in," Jinx said. "I'm not sure youd believe me if I told yon."

"Oh, goody," Ty said. "Where is she?'

"Right here, Ty/" Doc Sanchez said. He hadn't even heard or noticed her walking down the hallway, which just went to prove he was off his game. She was a beautiful woman, with hair as dark as his, but long. As usual, she had it up in a bun as she always did in the hospital. When shed come to town a few years back, they'd dated for almost three months. But by mutual and happy consent, they'd decided they made better friends than lovers. And as far as he was concerned, she was the best doctor LF Med had. Which is why he'd been very happy when hed learned she was on call tonight.

"So what's the news, doc?" he asked, standing.

"Sit down, Ty. I don't want you falling over like a big old oak."

"She's not dying, is she?" he asked, dropping back into his chair. The thought of that poor girl ex piling made his stomach do somersaults. Especially while she still believed he was the one who'd assaulted her.

Sonia laughed. "No, although why not is something of a mystery."

"The wound was that bad? She lost too much blood? What?"

"Nope, other than needing a transfusion and fluids, she's completely healthy. All of the tests—CAT scan, MRI, X-rays—show her brain is perfectly normal. Sort of."

"Sort of?"

"Either she's confused from the head injury, or we've just entered The Twilight Zone."

Ty was getting frustrated. "Spit it out, Sonia!"

"I asked her the usual questions. Her answers were a little strange."

"Such as?"

"Such as I asked her what year it was. She told me it was 1850."

"Okay, she was in costume. Maybe she was still playing a role."

"I don't think so. I asked her who the president was, and she told me it was, of course, Zachary Taylor."

"Oh boy. Was Zachary Taylor the president in IS50?"

"Did you flunk history, or what? Yes, he was the president. Until lie died in July of that year. So in her mind she's living during Taylor s presidency."

'That whack on the head did a real number on her," Ty said. "Riglit? She's an actress and is still working her role?"

Sonia shook her head. There's more/" Jinx said.

"I asked her what her birthday was, and she told me it was Hay seventh. A week from now. So she has her days right."

"But . . . ?" Ty asked, dreading the but.

"She says she was born in 1828."

Ty swallowed. "Well, she's aged well."

"She has indeed. Every single part of her confirms that she's what she thinks she is. Twenty-two years old."

"She has to be faking something.'

"If you say so," Sonia said. "But when Danie and I undressed her, I found these on her garter belt. A garter belt, Ty! No woman in her right mind would be wealing one unless they were working for Fannie. Look!"

Ty stared at the papers Sonia handed him. A copy of a will of a James Prescott, and the deed to Prescotts ranch. The Rooster Ranch.

"Holy shit, right?" Sonia said.

Ty and Jinx looked at each other. "Holy shit," they said in unison.

tt & &

Ty wasn't allowed to see Margaret the rest of the night. So he spent it looking for Lester, which was a waste

of time. Lester had come face-to-face with his wife having a good old time with someone in the Bo Peep room, and had been so upset, he'd fainted in the back elevator. Since Lester's wife was Ty's accountant, Ty was figuring he now needed two new professionals, one for his teeth and one for his taxes. Hake that three, since he also apparently needed a lawyer.

Finally the doc gave him the go-ahead to visit Miss Margaret at noon the next day. As Sonia said, her brain was just peachy.

Except she kept insisting that Ty was her attacker.

And she thought she was born in the nineteenth century.

And he was beginning to believe it. Which pretty much meant that he was probably the one who needed that CAT scan.

He felt a little strange as he approached the room. He was damn sure he was mad at her for fingering him for something he was obviously innocent of doing, but he was also sure shed been attacked by someone who she thought looked like him. He hated the thought of upsetting her.

So he brought a nurse, Louise Led better, along with him.

Louise went in and fussed over her, then said, "I have someone who needs to talk to you, Margaret. I'll stay here a few seconds, okay? But I do need to make med rounds shoitly.'

"It appeals the entire continent has been in to see me. What's one more?"

"How about me?" Ty said.

"You!" she breathed, sitting up stiaighter in her bed. "I thought Deputy Jinx shot you!"

"You hopedhe shot me. Unfortunately for you, he works for me. Wouldn't have looked good on his resume."

"His . . . what?"

Damn, she was so pretty. And damn, so scared of him.

He looked back at the nurse. "Louise, would you ever allow me to harm your patient in any way, shape, or form?"

¹¹ Id shoot you first, Sheriff."

Ty looked back at Maggie. "See? You re safe."

"Id feel safer if she'd just go ahead and shoot you."

"You re a bloodthirsty little thing, aren't you?"

"And you are an awful brute."

^uOf course I am. I only saved your life. For which you have yet to thank me." Thank you! I'll be my mothers uncle before you get a—"

"Margaret, I need to make my rounds with other patients/" Louise said. "Do you want me to make him leave?"

"I want you to shoot him."

"Since I cant do that, would you like him to leave?"

Margaret glared at him for several seconds, then said, "No. I'll kill him myself."

Louise backed out slowly, looking back and forth between them like they were aliens. Which one of them just might be.

"How comforting to know," Ty said. "And I'm shaking in my Nikes, you tiny little wimp."

She apparently took offense. Her face went beet red and she made fists. "I will see you in jail before I leave here.'

"Possibly, but you II be the one behind bars for fraud."

Her anger died. "Fraud? What are you saying?"

Ty felt like a total shit. So he switched gears. "By the way, you never finished your joke. Ben Franklin walks into a bar ..."

She stared at him. 'That was you? At the shed? Why did you hit me and then help me? It makes no sense. Just like none of this makes sense. Everything here makes no sense. Sir, what is going on? Fraud? What kind of fraud?"

"Maggie, darlin', you tell me."

She opened her mouth, but he stopped her with a hand. "I know, I know, don't call you darlin'. I'm still

calling you Maggie, though, so get used to it. So tell me, pretty Maggie, why have you come to my town? And why are you accusing me of something I absolutely didn't, and could not have done? I was at Bar by s Blue Moon watcliing the Rockets game right about the time you were assaulted. I have at least twenty witnesses."

Shaking her head, she said, "Once again, I don't understand most of what you re saying. But I understand accusation and I understand alibi, but I saw what I saw."

"It wasn't me, Maggie. You have to believe that. I've never hurt a woman in my life. And I sure as hell wouldn't hurt someone as pretty as you are."

She gave a shoit snort. "Do not even try to appease me with false flattery, Sheriff."

"It's Tyler. People call me Ty, though."

"Among other things, I imagine."

The quirk in her lips was heartening, even if she was trying to insult him. It meant progress. Ty Coltraine. Sheriff of Little Fork. And I don't fake anything."

She cocked her head a little. "That's not what you said your name was when you met me at the Rooster."

"What did this impostersay his name was?"

"Imposter, maybe, but you are the spitthv image."

"Another conundrum."

"When you met me inside you said your name was Jesse."

Ty tried to keep the shock from showing on his face. But his heart was thumping something fierce. "Since my name isn't Jesse, and I don't have a twin named Jesse, then it wasn't me. But Jesus . . ."

"Jesse, not Jesus. And don't try to call on Him now. Your goose is cooked, Jesse." Ty. My name is Ty."

She held her arms around her shaking body. "I might be in a very strange dream that I can't seem to get out of. I mean, a TV? With moving pictures? What in Hades is that all about?" She seemed to shore up a bit and get her courage back up and running. "But when I get out of this dream, you are going to be burnt bread, mister lovely looking Sheriff." She started punching the call button.

Louise came running into the room, puffing. "What's wrong?"

"Arrest this man!"

Ty sighed. "Louise, what's my name?"

Louise glanced worriedly back and foith between law enforcement and out-of-her-mind patient. "Sheriff Coltraine."

"Hah!" Maggie said, then held a hand to her head.

"What's my first name, Louise?" Ty said, just about seeing why his imposter bonked Hiss Prissy Prescott.

"Ty/ Louise said.

¹¹ Not Jesse, right?" Ty barked.

"No . . . although I dont know your middle name."

"And no one ever will/ he said, completely irritated now, no matter how pretty the patient who he'd saved was. "But it sure as hell isn't Jesse."

"Do you need anything?" Louise asked glancing back and foith between the two of them.

"A bottle of whiskey," Ty said.

¹¹Ma ke that two," Maggie said.

Til look into it," Louise said. And then ran from the room.

Ut'I

C & C'

"Maggie, look at me closely," Ty said. "Do I really look exactly like your attacker?"

Maggie took her time, because looking him over was no hardship. As it hadn't been the first time shed laid eyes on him back at her father's ranch. Well, brothel.

He had the most amazing green eyes. They were hard to forget. His hair was the same gleaming black, but cut much shorter than before. The strong cheekbones were the same, the lips just as hard, and of course there was that dimple in his chin.

"You re sure you don't have a twin?" she asked, for some stupid reason wanting to believe that he was, indeed, innocent.

^uNo twin."

"An older brother, perhaps?"

"A younger sister in California. No brothers."

"Well, then this imposter did a mighty fine job, Sheriff."

"My name's Ty. Now look closer."

With pleasure. She didn't know why she believed him, but she did. Or she wanted to. Or she was out of her mind.

¹¹ Well, your hair is much shorter. When was the last time you've been to a barber?"

"Two weeks ago. And my barber is my mother. She can verify this. What else?"

"You . . . look a little younger than you did yesterday. I would have guessed your age at late thiities if someone had asked. Now you appear to be more like thirty."

^uThirty-two. What else?'

Maggie opened her mouth, then shut it again and looked away.

¹¹ What else, Hiss Prescott?'

"My students call me Miss Prescott. You're welcome to call me Maggie, seeing as you already took that liberty."

She snuck a peek at him, and the smile on his face was fairly breathtaking. Her heart started drumming even more than her aching head.

"I appreciate that, Maggie. I'm honored. Please help me some more. I want to find the man that did this to you."

"Well, your teeth are much whiter. And . . . and your smile is different. It's nice. You don't smell like a spittoon. And, really, youi eyes are kind. His weren't."

"Beginning to believe I'm not the bad guy, Maggie?"

"Grudgingly."

He chuckled, and that pretty much changed Maggie's mind. His chuckle was nothing like the mean man's chuckle. It was warm and rich. The mean mans laugh was . . . evil. She shuddered at the memory.

¹¹ Maggie?"

He cupped her chin and gently turned her face toward his. Their eyes met, and just seeing the concern in his was her undoing. "I'm so confused/" she whispered. "Everything, everything is so different here."

"Different how?''

She took a deep breath. "When I arrived, all was as I'd expected. Rugged. Wild. But I look around now and things are so strange in here. Your medical facilities are so much more advanced than even Philadelphia. And we have always prided ourselves on being ahead of other cities. How does no one know what is happening in the territories?"

He pulled up a chair. "What's different here?"

"Look around! That TV thing! What is that all about? Who are all of those people and how do you get them in that little box? By the way, I'm especially taken with those people on something called Days of Our Lives, But, oh, my Loosie, the clothes those women wear! And what are those little metal things they use to talk to people who aren't even there?"

He pulled out his little metal thing. "Like this?"

"Yes, what are those?"

"Cell phones.''

"See? I have no idea what those are." She gestured around her. "All of these new-fangled boxes that beep at you. You seem to be so far ahead of us Easterners."

"You have no idea."

"Excuse me?"

He took her hand. "Maggie, something very weird is going on here. If my theory's correct, prepare for a little shock."

Maggie put her free hand to her heart. "How much of a shock?"

He hesitated. "About sixteen decades woith."

"Excuse me?" she said again.

"What year do you think this is?"

She frowned. "What year do you think it is? Why is everyone asking me about years and presidents and birthdays?"

"How old are you, Maggie?"

"Where I come from, that's an insulting question, Sheriff. A gentleman never asks a lady her age."

"You're really cute when you frown, Maggie. Glaring, not so much. I apologize. But thank you for even calling me a gentleman. Never been called one before."

"My shock at that news is overwhelming."

c- ti

Okay, he was falling for her. There wasn't a good reason on Gods green earth, but there you had it. He was falling fora smartass nutcase.

Ty loved women. But he'd never loved a woman. Other than his crush on his teacher when he was a kid, there d never been a single girl who made his heart go bang. Lower pa its went bang a lot, but never in his heart or his head.

Suddenly, his heart was pounding in a way he'd never felt before. It was soit of uncomfortable, and wildly exciting.

And it was the most stupid thing he could possibly imagine. Why her? Why now? Why so hard? It made absolutely no sense. None of this made sense.

Ty shook his head. "I'm guessing you're about twenty-two," he said.

"So why are you asking me? You've obviously been speaking to the doctor."

^UI have. I just wanted to hear it from you."

"Yes, I'm twenty-two," she said, looking exasperated. "I'm unmarried because I'm not marriageable. I haven't been happy, as much as I love to teach children. I wanted to find a new life, a new dream. So when I learned the news that my father had left me a ranch out west, I thought my hopes and dreams had come true. Instead I've landed into a nightmare. Happy now?"

Ty's pounding heart dropped straight to his toes. "No, Maggie, that doesn't make me happy. Who the hell told you that you re unmarriageable?"

She looked away, out the window. "No one needed to tell me. A spinster knows these things."

^UA spinster? At twenty-two? Around these pa its that seems almost too young for marriage."

She glanced back at him, her whiskey-colored eyes wide. "Is that true? Or are you humoring me . . . Ty?"

"Cross my heart," he said, making the gesture.

She watched him for a second. "What was that?"

"You've never heard the phrase, cross my heart and hope to die, stick a needle in my eye'?"

She pursed her lips for a moment, then obviously couldn't help it and burst out laughing. Her laughter was light, sweet, and genuine. 'That's silly. Why would you hope to die? Or stick a needle in your eye?"

Ty couldn't help it; he grinned, too. "I think it's a children's saying. It just means that someone is very sincere about what they're saying."

^uOh, I see," she said, her lips still twitching. "So are you married, Ty? Seeing as we've become familiar enough at this point to be rude and nosy."

She was taking to this nosy notion rather quickly. "Nope."

"Do you have a sweetheart?"

"Yep, her name is Josie."

^uOh."

She glanced out the window and he realized her profile was just as pretty as her face straight on. And with her head bandaged, her long lashes, cheeks, nose, and stubborn-looking chin were all the more pronounced.

And her lips were a mans dream. He didn't know if it was wishful thinking, but she looked disappointed.

"Josie and I have been together for four years/" he continued. 'Ever since I rescued her as a puppy."

She turned back to look at him and once again wishful thinking had him seeing happiness where it probably didn't exist. "Your sweetheart is a puppy?"

"Well, she's four, so technically not, but she hasn't seemed to have read the memo yet."

She smiled. "What kind of dog?"

"Heinz 57."

"What?"

"She's a mutt. I have no idea. But she's big and shaggy and her favorite food in the world is hot dogs."

"Hot dogs? You mean she—"

"No/" he said quickly, wanting to kick himself for forgetting she was still in this 1850 amnesia fog. "Hot dogs are a kind of sausage. Not one real dog is harmed in the making of this product."

"Oh! Do people eat them, too?"

"Are you kidding, they are the staple of foot—err, spoiting events."

"I would like to try one sometime."

"I'll make dang sure that you do." He took her hand again. "You know, maybe you can still find that dream you came out here looking for."

"How would that be, Sheriff?"

"Ty."

"How would that be, Ty?"

He took a breath. A deep, deep breath. "By recognizing you're not just in a different place, but also in a different time."

"Excuse me?"

"Maggie, do you honestly believe it's 18 50?"

"Of course. What do you believe?"

"Take a dee[3 breath, sweetheart."

She began to protest but then just huffed and sucked in a deep breath. She blew it out slowly and then said, "Okay, I'm ready. What should I believe?" ¹¹ That it's the year 2010."

Three

Three

Maggies laughter was adorable. Or possibly hysterical. Ty wasn't sure which.

"Two thousand and ten what?" she asked. "Bottles of beer on the wall?"

"I dont know how, I don't know why, Maggie, but this is definitely not 18 50. This is the year 2010."

"You . . . you people are playing with my mind."

^uOr you re playing with ours."

¹¹ You re a twit."

"And you re batty. Do you think we made up all of these gadgets to make a fool of you?"

She looked around. "I dont feel so well."

"I dont blame you. You're like a zillion years old if you really believe what you're saying. None of us know what to think."

Her eyes filled with tears. "You dont believe me?"

Ty stood over her and grabbed her shoulders. "We believe you. I want to believe you. But nothing you're telling us makes any sense, either."

She stared into his eyes. "Which one of us is right, Sheriff?"

He shook his head. "The strange thing is, Maggie, I think we both are."

"How is that possible?"

He let go of her, because she felt too good under his fingers. Sitting down, he kneaded his forehead. "You know how you said your attacker was named Jesse?"

She shuddered. "Yes."

^uMy great-great-great-grandfather's name was Jesse. Jesse Coltraine. And he was the Sheriff of Little

Fork-"

"—in 18 50/" she finished for him.

"Yes. The man who attacked you died about one hundred and thhty-five years ago. '

^uSo I've been locked in that shed for sixteen decades?"

"So it would seem."

"I've aged fairly well, then."

^uSo we've all noticed."

She swallowed and was silent for several long seconds. Finally she looked up at him. "Do you know the last thing my mother said to me, before she disappeared?"

"What, Maggie?"

"She said, Maggie you re going to go far/

"She sure was right about that one."

Her laughter was shaky. "I don't think this is what she meant. She was hoping I'd live to see the day when a woman had the right to vote. Do women have the right to vote now?"

"Not only allowed, last election," he said, showing less than an inch between his thumb and forefinger, "we came this close to electing a woman president."

Her mouth dropped open, and then she did something he totally did not expect. She staited laughing, and then looked up at the ceiling. "Wish you were here, Mama."

^ « ^

"Dr. Sanchez says I'm free to go/' Maggie told Ty the next mom ing. "That's terrific!"

"Yes, terrific," she said, looking like someone had just kicked her puppy. Ty pulled up a chair and sat down. "What's wrong?"

"You re kidding, rig lit?"

"Umm . . .no. Most people are thrilled to get out of the hospital."

"Well, most people don't wake up in a strange world with no place to go and no money to buy clothes that closely resemble the ones people on the TV wear/" she said, waving vaguely toward the set that appeared to be tuned in to Dr. Phil.

^uOh . . . of course. I hadn't thought of that."

"Are you positive my moneys worthless?"

"Well, you might be able to get a good price for it on eBay," he said. And before she could say, "What in Hades is eBay?" he held up a hand. "I'll teach you that later."

Her eyes filled with tears. "I'm frightened."

He felt gut-punched and moved to her, sitting down on the edge of her bed and taking her shoulders. "Who wouldn't be? If I were in your situation, I'd be terrified. But honey, we'll figure it out."

"Where am I going to go?"

He grabbed a tissue from the bed stand and wiped her tears as gently as he could. "Well, lets see. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't agree to bunk down at my place."

She smiled briefly. "You'd be correct, cowboy."

"Josie will be there to chaperone."

"Josie's a puppy.

"Adult dog. Very responsible."

"Who didn't get the memo about growing up."

"Do you remember everything people tell you?"

^uOf course. If its interesting enough to pay attention."

"Josie will love you."

"Probably, because I love animals. But I'm certain that Josie is very much loyal to her daddy. She 11 either eat me or turn me over to you on a platter."

He couldn't help but grin, even if disappointment was stabbing at him. He'd really hoped shed take his offer to stay with him. "YouYe an amazingly resilient woman, Hags. And you're going to find a way to get through this. But whether you like it or not, for right now, you need to accept help."

In the couple of days shed been here, he'd witnessed her soaking up everything around her, including some of the lingo. She was a little sponge and it was quite a sight, not to mention tiring, to be around her as she questioned everything and tried to reconcile it with all shed known.

Dr. Pendergrass, their local shrink, had come to see her the night before and had left, shaking his head. His analysis was that she truly believed everything she was saying, that she gave details of her life in Philly that even the most astute historian wouldn't know. The doc was as mystified as everyone else who'd come in contact with her. And just as taken with her. Which was soit of irritating.

He'd been thinking a lot the last couple of nights about just what he was feeling for her. And why. It wasn't just her beauty, although he'd be lying to himself if lie didn't consider that a huge plus. It was more like she was a puzzle. And every piece of her attracted him. Her unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Her brutal honesty. And if what she was telling him was the truth, her courage in traveling to the "territories" to forge a new life for herself. That had to be one bold move for a woman in the mid-nineteenth century.

And now her vulnerability. She was alone, penniless, in a strange new world. She needed him, whether she liked it or not. And he needed her. Whether lie liked it or not. Or understood it.

"I'm guessing that bedding down at the Rooster wouldn't be acceptable, either," Ty said.

^uYes. Very kind of her to offer," Maggie said, "But I think not."

"Fannies been here to see you?"

^uOh, yes. She's . . . quite unique. But very nice. And she was so concerned that someone had hurt me on her property."

"Which might still be your property, too. Well talk to Neil Douglas. He's the property lawyer in town."

"There's no way I'm taking the Rooster from her, Ty. What happened was not her fault. And obviously happened a year or two before she was born." She smiled behind her sniffles. "Sorry, that wasnt kind. She's

adorable."

Ty felt himself falling even more. '"True, but I still think we need to straighten matters out about that."

"Want to hear something funny?" she asked, but didn't wait for an answer. "Except for the blonde hair, she I oo ked aim ost e x a ctl y I i ke M i sty."

"Who's Misty?"

The woman who was . . . managing the Rooster when I first arrived. She was also tiny, up in her years, and wore lots of that easy, breezy beautiful makeup stuff."

"Too much TV, Maggie."

"I don't think so. It's all so fascinating. Do you know there's this tiny little green lizard animal who talks and sells insurance?"

"Maggie . . ."

"And I discovered a news channel. And you're right, it's the year of our Lord, 2010."

"You mean you didn't believe me?"

"Lets just say I like independent verification."

Ty was a little insulted but shrugged it off. After all, if he'd been knocked in the head and then told that it was the year IS50, he'd want more than one person saying so.

He also knew she was stalling, scared to death, probably. But they needed to decide on her next move. "If you refuse to stay with me," he said, "you're refusing, right?"

"With some regret, because I love dogs, yes."

"Fine," he said, and sounded disappointed even to himself. "Then we have a couple of nice hotels in town, but they're all casinos, and I'm not sure you're ready for that yet."

"I've seen betting houses before."

"Not like these, you haven't, darlirt'. Trust me, you re not ready."

She took the tissue from his hand and wrung it, staring down at her hands. "I do."

"You do what? Feel you re ready?"

"No, not that. I'm probably barmy, but I do. Trust you."

Ty cleared his throat to get the choky feeling out of it. "I'm glad."

"Don't go thinking its because of your charm or anything/" she added.

"Oh, I'd never presume such a thing, ma'am."

"And don't call me ma'am/' she snapped. "I'm not that old."

¹¹ Well, if we did the math—"

¹¹ No math!"

"Then if I cant call you ma am, Im heading right back to darlin'."

"Seems I couldn't stop you if I tried."

"You have tried. Darlin' is a term of endearment."

She huffed. "I said I trust you, not that I find you endearing."

He sure preferred the spark of annoyance in those big blown eyes over fear. "Im pretty sure most women find me endearing."

"As if"

He stared at her for a couple of seconds before bursting out laughing. "Where d you learn that one?"

"Last night. A moovee channel. It was actually quite funny."

"You are amazing, Ms. Prescott.'

She pointed at him. "I now know what Mizz means, too! It denotes a woman who might or might not be married and doesn't consider her marital status anyone's business. Correct?"

"Correct. I still prefer darlin."

"I'm sort of getting used to it."

And he was getting used to her. Quirky, weird, whatever. She was so cute and wacky and beautiful. "Anyway, back to the trust thing. You're sure? You realize I'm not the bad guy?" He so did not want to be the bad guy in her mind.

She waved her hands in the air. "It's just that everyone I've met here seems to think you're trustworthy,

so I'm taking their word for it."

"But not mine?"

"You . . . look too much like the bad guy. But I'm going to be down with that. He wasn't you."

She apparently had been watching MTV, too. "I'm so glad you re down with that. Because it sure as hell wasn't me." He stood up trying to think. "And I'm taking care of you, sweetheart."

"Why cant you just call me Maggie? Do you hate my name? Or are you just trying to insult me?"

Ty plopped his hands on his hips. "I doiv't know. Maybe because Maggie's so personal. Its your name."

"More personal than darlin' or sweetheart?" Those are the overall kind. Those are the I think you re really pretty' kind."

^uOh, really? Ya think?"

Ty reached over and grabbed the remote control, clicking the power button. "You are watching way too much TV, Maggie."

"There you go. You managed to call me by my name. Was that so hard? Oprah says—"

"Maggie . . ."he growled.

"I don't want to go, Ty/" she said softly. "Where am I going to go?"

Ty didn't know. He had a couple of ex-girlfriends who might take her in, but he was a little afraid of what they'd tell her. Not that he'd been a bad boyfriend, just not real attentive. He had a tendency to forget about them for days or weeks at a time as other things occupied his mind. No, he didn't think he'd want to let her get an earful from any of them.

And then it struck him. He snapped his fingers. "Of course, I have just the place."

"Which is?"

"My mother's house.'

"Your mother lives here? In Little Fork? Of course. She cuts your hair."

Man, this woman had amazing recall. "Sure does. Well, she lives right outside of town."

Maggie shook her head. "I couldn't impose."

"Impose? Believe me, shed be thrilled. She loves having company."

"But ... I need to repay her somehow. I cant just let her care for me without some recompense."

"Believe me, she 11 find a way for you to pay for your keep. How would you like to learn how to use a

computer?"

"Computers I already know/" she said, with a blase wave of her hand. They use them all over here. But

the Inter . . . net? I hear that all the time, but don't know what it means exactly." "Live with my mom, you'll learn it for sure. That's how she's shoring up her income." Maggie's eyes lit up like shed just been handed a million-dollar winning lottery ticket. "I believe I'll enjoy

your mother very much. Does she have a TV?"

Four

Four

"I cant do this!" Maggie yelled.

"You can/" she heard Ty bark back at her. "Maggie, it was the best I could do on the spur of the moment. Jackie was the only gi . . . friend who seemed about your size."

Maggie took a deep breath. She could do this. After all, the women she'd seen on that TV wore much less than this. But these jeans things? This top wasn't so bad. It was a sweater-type thing, and more comfortable than any shed ever known, but it had a neckline that allowed much of her chest to be exposed. "My grandmother would have a cow!" she yelled.

"I'm betting your grandmother did have cows. And chickens. And sheep."

"And goats. Like that commercial where the guy marries one. You people are weird. My mam had goats but never presided over a wedding with one. Oh, wait, there was that time—"

'Too much information!" Ty yelled. Then, "Maggie, we need you to come out already. Unless you want to wear what you came in with." As if\

"I'm suing the producers of Clueless/' she heard Ty say. "Get out here!"

Maggie took a deep breath and then threw aside the curtain. The first person to make a comment gets your ass blued."

No one made a comment. Not one single person. Standing outside her hospital room were Ty, Jinx, and Doctor Sanchez. They all stared at her like she was a ghost or something.

"Well, happy now?" she asked.

^uHoly shit," all three said in unison.

V V

Yes indeed, Ty was happy. Miss Margaret Prescott was one beautiful one-hundred-and-eighty-two-year-old woman. And she wore a pah of jeans as if she were modeling for them. Her legs were longer than he'd have guessed, her hips slim, waist even slimmer. Ty didn't dare stare at her chest, but he got a good enough eyeful as his gaze moved quickly up to her flushed face to know she should be right proud of her breasts, too.

"Well?" she said.

"You look"—Jinx hesitated—"very nice, Maggie."

Ty cleared his throat. "Yes . . . nice."

Sonia backhanded both of them in the stomach, then stepped forward. "What the Neanderthals are trying to say is you look fabulous. How do you feel?"

"Very strange. In my day women didn't wear breeches."

"Are you uncomfortable?"

"No. But why are they staring at me?"

"Because they're men. And because the last time they saw you dressed, you were looking a little Laura Ingalls-ish."

Maggie made a mental note to write down Laura Ingalls and research what that meant. "Is everyone going to stare at me like this . . . outside?"

Sonia winked. "Well, I'm pretty certain you 11 have people staling at you, Maggie, but not because you're out of place."

"Then . . . why? My head is no longer bandaged."

"Because/" Sonia said, handing Maggie over to Ty, "this is a small town. And you're a new face in town. So people are going to wonder who you are."

"Oh, no!" Maggie looked up at Ty imploringly. "We mustn't tell them. They'll think I'm straight out of the lunar bin."

V V

Yes indeed, Ty was happy. Miss Margaret Prescott was one beautiful one-hundred-and-eighty-two-year-old woman. And she wore a pah of jeans as if she were modeling for them. Her legs were longer than he'd have guessed, her hips slim, waist even slimmer. Ty didn't dare stare at her chest, but he got a good enough eyeful as his gaze moved quickly up to her flushed face to know she should be right proud of her breasts, too.

"Well?" she said.

"You look"—Jinx hesitated—"very nice, Maggie."

Ty cleared his throat. "Yes . . . nice."

Sonia backhanded both of them in the stomach, then stepped forward. "What the Neanderthals are trying to say is you look fabulous. How do you feel?"

"Very strange. In my day women didn't wear breeches."

"Are you uncomfortable?"

"No. But why are they staring at me?"

"Because they're men. And because the last time they saw you dressed, you were looking a little Laura Ingalls-ish."

Maggie made a mental note to write down Laura Ingalls and research what that meant. "Is everyone going to stare at me like this . . . outside?"

Sonia winked. "Well, I'm pretty certain you 11 have people staling at you, Maggie, but not because you're out of place."

"Then . . . why? My head is no longer bandaged."

"Because/" Sonia said, handing Maggie over to Ty, "this is a small town. And you're a new face in town. So people are going to wonder who you are."

"Oh, no!" Maggie looked up at Ty imploringly. "We mustn't tell them. They'll think I'm straight out of the lunar bin."

"Loony bin/" Ty said, who appeared to have finally regained his vocal faculties. "And no they wont. You're Maggie Prescott, formerly from Philadelphia, and you've come to visit an old friend of your mother. Having taken to the place, you've decided to stay. Well, stay until you decide you want to move on, at any rate. I'm assuming you'll want to . . . return home?"

She laughed. "Return to what?"

"Philadelphia?"

"Do I want to return to Philadelphia? I'm sure it isn't anything like I've known."

"Ben Franklin still hangs out around just about every corner in Center City/" Jinx said.

"He's an imposter.

"Of course he is, darlin'. But he's the most popular man in town. Except, maybe, the next coach who brings home the Lombardi Trophy/" Jinx said.

"The . . . what?''

"Look it up on Wikipedia," Ty said.

He put an arm around her shoulders, and even though she should have, she didn't shrug him off. It felt too safe, secure.

He pulled her closer to his warm, wonderful-smell ing body. "We'll figure out what you want to do in time, sweet. Right now, let's get you home."

a <* a

\\Tf

I've never felt so ... so ... exhilarated!" Maggie told Ty, as they whipped down Main Street in his automobile. "There's just ... so much to see! I mean, I've seen places like this on the TV, but in person they're just . . . amazing."

"Want me to slow down?" he asked, glancing over at her with one of his half grins.

Maggie stared at him for a second, everything else around her not nearly so interesting. How could she

ever have mistaken him for the filthy brute who'd dragged her from the main hall of the Rooster? Even his hands on the round steering thing seemed gentle.

"No/" she said, wrenching her gaze from him back to the vibrancy of this new world. "We'll return later and walk the streets, like those people are doing."

"We will, will we?" he asked.

"Unless you don't want to. I could ask Jinx to escort me."

"I don't think so."

¹¹ Why not? Its apparent that there's no crime in coloreds and whites spending time together any longer."

'The color of his skin has nothing to do with it," Ty said, stopping when one of those hanging lights turned red. "And color eds is not a politically correct term any longer, Hags. You need to figure that one out."

"Yes, you re right. I must learn how to describe people differently."

"Actually, describing people by their race or color just doesn't do anything good, Maggie. People are people."

"Oh, my mother would have loved you. Sheriff Coltraine."

The light turned and he shifted into gear. "I wish I'd met your mother, too," he said, glancing into the mirror stuck to the glass window in front of them. "I'm sure I'd have loved her."

"Not many people loved her. She drove most crazy."

"Ah, so you take after her."

She scowled at him, even though he was looking everywhere but at her, so missed her displeasure. "And do you take after your great-great-great-grandfather?"

Instead of sticking it to him, she seemed to have amused him instead. Which was irritating, because she was definitely going for the punch in the stomach.

"Sure as hell hope not, Mags. I admire your mother. Don't have a speck of admiration for my male ancestors."

"How do you know you'd like my mother?"

"She created you, didiv't she? Sounds to me like she was working for a better future for women and the world in general. My male ancestors would have hated her, because they wanted to keep everyone but themselves and their friends down."

Maggie felt that wonderful warm, melting sensation flow down her body. "So then, why should I not invite Jinx to stroll down the streets of Little Fork? Maybe have lunch in Tinas Diner back there?"

A muscle jumped in his jaw. "Because he's my best friend, and I would really hate to have to whoop him to a pulp."

Maggie smiled, swinging her head the other way so he wouldn't see it. She wasn't exactly clear on the ways of men, but she was fairly certain that statement meant that he felt possessive of her. Which made her feel a little giddy. As they'd made their way out of the hospital, shed seen many of the female nurses look at him as if they'd like to eat Ty up. A jealous streak unlike anything shed ever known had welled up in her. But it was overcome by her happiness that he'd been holding on to her possessively. So many emotions. So many new and exciting sights. So many adventures yet to come. Or so she wished. Wished profusely.

They turned onto a road called This Way and within minutes had left the town behind and were heading into the beauty of the country. There were mountains all around them, some still snowcapped. And the plant life all around them was so erotically sparse compared to the lush greenery of Philadelphia. Which made it so different and lovely.

This is beautiful country."

"It is," Ty agreed. "So is Pennsylvania. Just in a different way. We're mostly considered deseit here."

"How do you know what Pennsylvania looks like?"

"I've been there before," he said, then pulled up a hidey hole in between their seats and plucked out a pair of dark glasses, shoving them over his eyes. "I took several training seminars on CSI at Penn State."

Maggie took out one of those little pads Jinx gave her and added CSI and Penn State to her growing list of things to check out on the Internet. Louise had told her all about how to find out any information you wanted on the superhighway. She wasn't certain what all of those things were, but shed be damned if she didn't

learn them. "Did you fly to Pennsylvania on one of those airplane things?" she asked.

"I did."

"Like a bird in the sky."

"No, like a big machine in the sky. But it lias wings. They just don't flap like a birds wings do." He glanced over at her, the small smile still in place, but his eyes were completely covered by the glasses. The Wright brothers. Kitty Hawk. Write those down."

She did. "Would it be okay if I go strolling or taking lunch with Sonia?" she blurted out.

He chuckled. "Sure."

'But not Jinx."

"Right."

"The difference being?"

The difference being lies my deputy. And he could get called to work at a moments notice and leave you stranded."

"And Sonia, the doctor, wouldn't have that same problem?"

Ty hit the stop pedal on his car pretty hard, and for once Maggie understood the necessity of having this strap over her body. He turned to her and pulled off his glasses. "I don't want you going out with another man, okay? If you're going strolling with anyone, it's going to be me."

"But you said you didn't want to."

"I changed my mind."

"Why?"

His green eyes bored into hers. "Just because."

"Well, now, that's understandable."

"Maggie, you're starting to piss me off."

^uTell me the truth, Ty."

He hesitated. "You've been abused by men in the past. I don't want any man to hurt you again."

"And Jinx would? I have a hard time believing that, seeing as he's been nicer to me than—"

Ty took her face in his hands and kissed her. She didn't know all that much about kissing and kept her lips tightly closed. But, oh, it felt good anyway.

He pulled back for a second, looking at her with smoke in his eyes shed never seen before. "Relax, Maggie. Relax your mouth."

She did, and before she knew it her insides were exploding. His mouth moved over hers, their lips connecting in a way she'd never known. His lips were alternately hard and soft. He pushed them against her, and then he stepped back some and just kissed parts of her. Not just her lips, but her face, too. She was in heaven.

Before she wanted him to, lie ran his thumbs over her face and then let her go. "That is why I don't want any other man strolling you around town."

Dizzy didn't even begin to explain her feelings. While he seemed so normal, putting those glasses on his face again, and moving that stick to put the automobile into motion, she was holding on to anything she could grab to keep her steady. "Oh, my Loosie/' she whispered.

Ty felt like a total shit. He'd never lost control like that before. He just hated her egging him on about spending time with Jinx. Or anyone, besides him.

He'd love to believe that it was purely protection for a person who'd been battered in his town, but that would be stupid. A jealous monster had risen up through him, and he wanted to imprint himself on her. He wanted her. Exclusively, totally, he wanted a woman who by all he knew shouldn't even be here.

It wasn't even how pretty she was. He'd had pretty. It wasn't that she was smart and curious. He'd had smart and curious. It wasn't even that she was vulnerable. Or maybe it was. He'd felt something of the same protectiveness with Josie, his dog. But he sure as hell had never wanted to make love to his dog. Rig lit now

he'd give anything to make love to Miss Margaret Prescott.

Make love. Another strange thing. He should be thinking "have sex." He wanted to have sex with her. Except that didn't seem right, either. He wanted to make love.

"I'm really sorry about that, Maggie. I don't know what I was thinking."

"I'll take a wild guess/" she said. "You wanted to kiss me."

Leave it to Miss Margaret to cut to the chase. "Yes, I wanted to kiss you."

"Good, because I wanted to kiss you, too. But I think I need better practice."

Ty almost lost control of the car. "You do? I thought it was pretty damn good once you chilled."

^uOnce you chilled, cowboy. I didn't know how to kiss. You had to chili to teach me."

He let his blood stop boiling before he said, "There's much more to kissing than what we did. That was just step one."

He shoved the left turn signal on.

"How many steps are there?"

He looked to her. "At least six."

"Before we arrive at your mothers, might I learn at least step two?"

Ty had never shifted his car from four to neutral before, but he did it now.

■:- ct <}

Tylers mother's home was stunning in its simplicity. It was a sweeping, white, one story with large, black shutters, but the roof was unlike any shed ever seen. It had windows in it. And the shingles weren't shingles, really. At least, not like any shingles Maggie had seen before.

Ty apparently had noticed her interest because he said, "Solar power."

¹¹1 m sorry?"

"My moms house runs on solar power."

Maggie got out her little notebook and wrote the term down. Shed noticed that sometimes her constant questions got on people's nerves, including Ty's, so she'd made it her mission to stait learning all of these things by herself.

She pointed to what looked like a long glass house to the left and rear of the house. "Hot house?"

"Or greenhouse. Yes. My morn also grows all of her own vegetables and flowers. Shes big on gardening."

"And it shows/" Maggie said. "The landscaping around the home is scrumptious."

"Scrumptious, huh? Louise teach you that one?"

"Yes. That's what she called you. I liked the sound of it."

"You realize scrumptious implies loving the taste of something? Wanting to just eat it up?"

"What's your point?"

Ty chuckled as lie took her elbow and guided her down a clay-colored walkway. As they got closer to the door, Maggie started getting nervous. The house seemed so elegant, and she was dressed in these jeans things with her hair pulled back in a ponytail. She felt like the house itself, and its owner, deserved the respect of her guests wealing something much more formal.

Ty reached for the knob, but the large black door swung open before he could touch it.

"About time!" said a woman, who must be Ty's mother. And she couldn't have been further from what Maggie had expected if she'd been a goat. About the only thing she and Ty had in common was that twinkle in the eyes that threatened mischief at any moment. But her eyes were a stunning blue. Her hair was light brown and cut around her face in that wispy style Maggie had seen on TV. It suited her. And she was at least three inches shorter than Maggie's five-seven, and about a foot shorter than her son.

But what really stunned Maggie was what Mrs. Coltraine was wearing. She had on what Maggie could only describe as very tig lit black britches, tucked into very tig lit, shiny black boots that came rig lit up to her knees. Her white shilt looked like a man's, with buttons holding it together top to waist where it was tucked into the pants. The scary part was, in one hand she was holding a hard, black hat and in the other she was tapping a short whip against her thigh.

Mrs. Coltraine eyed her from the sandals on her feet right all the way up, but stopped abruptly at Maggie's mouth. Tyler Isaiah Coltraine! You've been kissing the poor girl! And from the looks of her lips and cheeks, it was no step-one kiss. It was at least a step-two, maybe even a three, yes?"

Maggie felt more mortified than she'd ever been in her life. "I'm sorry, ma'am, I asked him to. Its not his fault, Mrs. Coltraine."

Thanks for the great welcome, Horn/" Ty said. "And you might want to lose the riding crop. I'm betting Maggie's scared to death that you II be using it on her."

Ty would win that bet.

^uOh, please, honey," his mom said, dropping the whip and the hat onto a table beside the door and dragging Maggie into the house. "I sure as hell didn't mean to embarrass you. And forgive me. I was out working the horses."

"You have horses?" Maggie asked.

"Eight of them. Do you ride?"

^uOh, yes!" And then she looked at the woman's outfit again and said, "But only sidesaddle."

^uOh, honey, if you can ride sidesaddle, you can ride dressage. If you ask me, I don't know how women ever managed to stay on a horse sidesaddle."

"I'll teach you if you teach me," Maggie said.

Mrs. Coltraine's face lit up, and Maggie almost gasped. How she hadn't realized before that Ty's mother was utterly lovely she couldn't imagine.

The woman took her arm and started dragging her farther inside. "You're forgiven for kissing this girl, Tyler," she threw over her shoulder, and Maggie giggled.

She turned back to Maggie and said, "Come on in. We'll fix up that scratched face rig lit quick. Tyler, go away.'

/ay."

"I'm not going anywhere until she's comfortable." "Are you comfortable, Maggie?"

"Do you have a TV, Mrs. Coltraine?"

"My names Bree. And yes, TVs in almost every room in the house, including the bathroom. Don't want to miss NCIS during my bubble baths."

"Oh, I think I've seen that one. The very good-looking but grumpy secret agent?"

"Special agent, but yes, that's it. I'm totally hooked."

"Do you have a computer?" Maggie asked.

"One desktop, three laptops."

"Do you know about the Internet?"

"Who doesn't these days?" Mrs. Coltraine stopped. "Well, except for a few people, I suppose. But if you re interested, III teach you all about it."

This was just getting better and better. "Do you like to go shopping, Mrs. Coltraine?"

"What woman in her right mind doesn't?"

"Do you know how to sell things on a place called eBay?"

"Do lever!"

"May I please work for my room and board while here?"

"You don't need to do that."

"I can't stay unless I pay you back somehow. I can clean. I can cook. I can bathe the horses. I can help in the hot house. Please?"

"Well, if it's that important to you, you have a deal, Maggie."

Maggie looked back at Tyler, who had the dazed look of someone who'd just been knocked upside the head. "I'm comfortable."

"But-"

"But nothing, son of mine," Ty's mom said. "You don't get her back until you actually deserve step four.

"Do I get supper?"

"Only if you plan to take her out. I've got a date."

"With who this time?"

^uIs it any of your business?¹

¹¹ Yes."

"Fine. I'm going out with Trevor Witheispoon." Tliis is your third date with him. I don't like it." Tough noogies. Now are you taking this poor girl out?"

"I'll take her out'

"You re taking her to Le Duex, so dress appropriately."

^uNo!" Maggie said. "I have nothing to wear."

Mrs. Coltraine—Bree—gave her about a five-time over. "Think I've got just the thing. Ty, go home and dress up."

^uOh, but what if it doesn't fit me?" Maggie said.

"What size is she Ty? Four? Six?"

"The clothes were Jackie's," Ty said. "I eyeballed it. I don't know sizes."

"By the time he gets back here/" Bree said, "it'll fit you. Ty, skit."

"Right/" Ty said, still looking a little out of it to Maggie. Ty_r you don't have to do this," she said.

"Of course he doesn't," Tys mom said. "I can set you up with—"

"I'll be back in three hours/" Ty said, giving his mother a look that Maggie couldn't even name. It wasn't anger exactly. Maybe more like exasperation? But when his mother winked at her, she stopped worrying and felt excited about it all. She was going on an unescorted date! With a man Louise called a dream boat I

Five

Five

When Maggie opened the door that evening she totally forgot about how self-conscious shed been while Bree had made it her mission to turn Maggie into a "sex kitten." Another term shed scribbled in her notebook to look up at the first opportunity.

He was dressed in what apparently was a modern-day mans gray suit. Underneath it was a white shirt she now knew was called Oxford style that brought out the swarthiness of his skin. And a gray, navy, and black striped necktie. The word scrumptious didn't even begin to cover it. She could, quite simply, gobble him up.

Unlike this morning, he appeared to be freshly shaven, and emanating from him was a fresh, masculine scent.

And then she realized that while shed been staling at him, he'd been staling at her right back. And it suddenly occurred to her that lied fixated on her legs, which, for the first time in her life were bare from just above the knee to her toes. She had an immediate desire to cover them. A man had never seen her legs before.

As Bree had been hemming the dress—which she referred to as the perfect little black number that was a must for every woman's wardrobe—Maggie had protested that she couldn't possibly wear something so, so revealing, but Bree had kept assuring her that this dress was more demure than shed see on any of the other women in the restaurant tonight.

Maggie had stared at herself in a full-length mirror. Bree had been rig lit that it was quite demure up top. At least from the front. The neckline actually came up to her neck, and the sleeves were long. That was the good news. The bad news was that the back was made up only of crisscrossed strips light down to the waistline. And then, of course, there was the issue of her legs.

Shed seen, of course, as they'd driven through town earlier that day, that many, many women were wearing shoits and exposing much more of their legs than she was now. The problem was, these were her legs, and she had no idea if they were good legs or bad legs.

Shed also wanted to put her hair up in a bun, as she was so used to wearing it back home. Bree had insisted she wear it down.

Back home. So much had happened, she hadn't really thought of Philly as home the last few days. And she didn't have time to think of it now, because a scrumptious man was standing in front of her, staring at her legs.

"You look . . . very nice," she said, giggling inside at the understatement.

It looked like it took him effoit to drag his gaze from her legs to her eyes. "You look beautiful," he said, his voice sounding a little grainy.

"I feel a little self-conscious."

"Please don't, Maggie. I'm going to be the envy of every man in that restaurant."

She smiled, feeling a little better. "You exaggerate, sir."

^uNo exaggeration, Mags. You ready?"

"No."

"You hungry?" Starving.

"Well, were not going to put anything in your tummy standing here."

"Will there be those hot dogs things at this restaurant?''

He laughed. "I sincerely doubt it." The disappointment must have shown on her face because he added, "But I promise, I will get you those hot dogs real soon. Okay?"

He stepped aside and waved his hand. "After you."

Maggie took a deep breath. "Here we go," she said, and walked over the threshold. Hearing his swift intake of breath, she turned back. "What?"

"Oh, Maggie, trust me, I will be fighting off every man in Little Fork."

Foitified, she smiled up at him. "Aren't women of the twenty-first century supposed to do their own fighting?"

"I'm making an exception for you/" he said, putting his hand on the small of her back as they walked to the car. "Because you haven't had enough practice."

"You're full of it/" Maggie said.

"Louise again?"

"Sonia."

He held open the door and she felt awkward a moment while slipping into the seat, because the dress slid up her thigh a little as she settled in. But as he pushed closed the door, she distinctly heard him say, "Thank you, Mom."

& t-.- &

"Oh, that was simply wonderful!" Maggie said, slipping a little more gracefully into the car this time. Which Ty thought was a shame, because her thigh stayed hidden from view.

He tipped the attendant, then jogged around to his side of his Miata and into the driver's seat before some other guy tried to jump in first and kidnap her. Hed been right on the money. Shed charmed every single man in the restaurant, from the maitre d^r to their waiter to the ten or so acquaintances who'd stopped by to say hello. Normally on a date he didn't mind disruptions from people who wanted to say hello. Tonight he'd wanted to tell them all to eat dust.

Very unusual foi Ty. His male ego, of course, usually enjoyed the idea that he was the envy of other men. Not tonight, no, sir. Hed simmered with jealousy every time Maggie had turned her thousand-watt smile on another guy.

"Glad you liked it," he said, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice. Of course he was happy shed

had such a good time and was willing to try foods so new to her. The problem was, her delighted laughter had enchanted every man in the place. And if she hadn't noticed a few of the glares from women at other tables, he certainly had.

"I want to thank you," she said, laying her small hand on his arm.

"You already have. About fifty times, but who's counting?"

"No, I don't mean for the meal, although that was wonderful. I mean for the way you smoothly answered the questions about who I was and where I'd come from.'

It had been more like, "Where d you find this little beauty?" accompanied by the occasional leering wink. He'd wanted to punch every single one of them.

^uSo what was your favorite part?" he asked.

She laughed. "The truth?"

^uOf course," he said, praying she wasn't going to say it was all the men trying to fliit with her right in front of him.

"All of the jealous looks I was getting from all the women/' she said. "I've never been envied before."

That surprised and flattered the hell out of him at one and the same time. And it was really cute. "Well, honesty deserves honesty, Hags, so I have to tell you they weren't jealous of you being with me; they were jealous of their dates being more interested in you than them."

"Men are so dumb," Maggie said on a sigh.

"We are not dumb. You're just a little . . . naive."

"I might not have a lot of practice, cowboy, but I know when a woman is wishing that she was sitting in my seat. That blonde with . . . Digger, I think his name was . . . looked like she wanted to eat you. And wanted to poison my meal."

"That would be Shelley. She owns the flower shop in town."

"Well, Shelley has the—what did Louise call it?—the hots for you. "

Ty groaned. "Remind me to kill Louise."

"Are you denying it?"

"Shelley's been dating Digger for months," lie said.

"Wow, that was the worst way of not answering a question."

"Let's go on to your second-favorite part?"

"My second favorite is that I'm in this car, with you, and Shelley's not."

Ty took his hand from the gear shift and threaded his fingers through hers. "That makes two of us."

Her soft, soft hand squeezed his. "So where are we going now?"

Ty glanced over at her, and by the light of the street lamp saw the wide-eyed excitement in her brown eyes. "I figured you'd want to go home to my moms."

"Oh. Okay."

"But if you don't," he added quickly, "we can do something else."

"I would love to! That is, unless you re too tired. I mean, I realize you've had some trying days."

"I'm not tiled at all," he said, happier than he could say that she didn't want the night to end. "Want to catch a movie?"

"You mean, in a real theater?"

"Sure. Miller's has late showings."

"But that would involve just watching a movie, rig lit? We wouldn't be able to ... talk ... or anything?"

'The other people in the theater might take offense at us talking ... or anything"

"Then, no, I don't think I'm in the mood for the theater."

'Want to get some ice cream?"

"After that flambe thing? I couldn't eat another bite."

"Okay, what sounds like fun to you?"

"Maybe someplace where you could show me step three?"

Ty nearly ran a red light, staring at her instead of the road. He screeched to a halt and reluctantly disengaged their hands to shift. "Really?"

"I know its so very forward/' she said, "but I really don't care." "You hussy!" Ty said, grinning to make sure she didn't take offense.

"Maybe so/' she said, lifting her chin and meeting him eye to eye. "Seems to me there's only one way to find out."

¹¹Well in that case," he said, "howd you like to meet my dog, Josie?" Her smile was breath-steal ing. "I'd love to."

Ty flipped the switch that turned on the gas fireplace and then returned to the couch. He poured them both a glass of cabernet then sat back and watched what the light from the fire did to Maggie's hair. There were about fifty shades of blonde in it, and if he didn't know better, he'd think that someone had just done the most perfect color job on her.

Shed kicked off the heels shed been wearing, tucked her legs under her and rubbed her feet. Those shoes . . .take some getting used to," she said, then took a sip of wine.

"I was actually surprised at how well you took to them," he said. And them to you. What those heels had done to her legs should be illegal.

"Expecting me to fall flat on my face?" she asked.

"Let's just put it this way," he said, "I wasn't just holding on to you because I love the feel of you under my fingers. But it was kind of nice to have an excuse."

She laughed softly, then sipped again. "Mmmm, this is delicious."

Oh, how he wanted to taste that wine on her lips. But something was bothering him, and before he or they did anything shed regret, he wanted to clear the air. "Can I ask you something?"

"Certainly."

"What do you see for your future?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean . . . have you given any thought to trying to go home?"

'To Philadelphia? I'm fairly certain I no longer have a home in Philadelphia." I meant home to 1850."

Her mouth dropped open. "Is that even possible?"

"I don't know. Hypothetically, lets say that it is. Would you want to?"

"I ... I dont know. Im here for a reason, Ty. I dont know what it is, but I know that I'm here. I'm supposed to be here."

You're here for me, is what he wanted to say. You're here because I need you. You're everything I didn't know I was looking for. Instead he asked, "Do you miss it? Any of it?"

"I suppose I miss the familiarity. I knew who I was then. I knew my place. But ... I burned bridges in Philadelphia when I quit my job and sold my family home. But Little Fork in 1850 was not so kind."

"I hope you re finding us a much friendlier bunch now."

"Oh, most definitely. But do I belong here? Or should I try to return to Philadelphia? See what the city is like now."

"It's filthy."

She eyed him. "Is that so?"

¹¹ Well, not all of Philly. But parts are."

"Which parts?" she asked, sounding more suspicious by the second.

He waved. "I dont know exactly. But the point is, neither do you."

^UI could find out on the Internet."

He was beginning to hate computers. "I suppose. But you II need money to get back there and find a place to live,"

"Didn't I tell you?" she asked, sitting up straighten "Your mother took photo-paintings of my money and clothes and then put them up for action—"

"Auction/" Ty corrected, now not feeling so grateful to his mother, suddenly.

"Yes, auction. And before she left she checked and told me that people had already placed bids. She said even she was shocked at how quickly the bidding had started. She said there must be a huge demand for pre-Civil War mementos."

She cocked her head and looked at him a little sadly. "Imagine that. I missed an entire war."

"You've missed several of them, darlin¹.

"So Ive heard. But one that abolished slavery? I so wish my mother had lived to see that. She so hated slavery, Ty."

"Its gone, Maggie."

"But she never got to see that/" she said, and Ty hated the sadness in her eyes.

"You told me she disappeared. Do you know what happened?"

"My mother made a lot of people angry. I can think of any number of people who would want to quiet her. But she was never found, and no one was ever brought to justice for her disappearance."

He could tell she was becoming melancholy, and he didn't want to go there. "I'm so sorry." He searched for some seamless way to change the subject but was stymied. He knew what it was like to lose a parent, but he hadn't exactly liked, much less loved his father, so he definitely couldn't claim that he could relate.

"But you know what?" she added, after another sip of wine. "Even going back in time, if its possible, my mother would still be gone. Id be going back to a time when I was trying to change my life, to find something new and exciting."

Excellent segue. "Well, youve certainly found that here."

"To say the least! Then again, its an entire new world everywhere."

Uh-oh. "Well, I know Little Fork might not be as exciting as other places, but it does have its moments."

"It certainly does," Maggie said and set down her wine. "Like right now," she said, crawling over to him and coming nearly nose to nose. "What is this thing that I feel whenever I'm around you?"

"I don't know," he said. "Describe it."

"You make me feel all tingly. Do you feel tingly, too?"

"I feel like my insides are going to explode/" he said, because he didn't think telling her that she made him horny as hell whenever she was near him was a great idea. Is that a good thing?"

"It can be. Or it can get damn uncomfortable."

She sat back on her ankles. "Uncomfortable? That doesn't sound good."

He threaded his hands through her silky hair, cradling her face. "Its only not good if you don't want me to touch you. Because I really, really want to touch you."

"You re touching me now/" she said, in a bare whisper.

"I want to touch you all over, Maggie. Every inch of you."

She sucked in a small breath. "I think . . . no, I know I want you to. But is it okay if we stait with you teaching me step three?"

"My pleasure," Ty said, and kissed her.

After several incredible moments of tasting her, smelling her, feeling her, he sat back. "Maggie," he said, his voice an almost croak, "I don't understand any of this. All I know is that I want you. But I cant do this."

Her eyes looked kind of foggy. Her lips looked deliciously swollen. "Why?"

"You're a ... you're . . . innocent. It scares me."

"I doiv't feel innocent, Sheriff. I feel ... I don't know how to describe it. Louise would know."

"Were not consulting Louise on this matter."

"Maybe I could look it up on Google?"

He officially hated computers. "Mags, this is just you and me. You are not going to learn about making love on the Internet."

"Actually, your mother showed me this page that had—"

"Nothing you needed to see. And nothing to do with this moment." He was going to confiscate his mother's computers. "What do you feel about me?"

Maggie looked directly into his eyes. "You saved my life. You gave me this new life."

¹¹ So you're gratefi11? "

^wOf course."

He sat back and away from her, his heart killing him. "Then this cant happen, Maggie. Gratitude is a bad reason to have sex."

"What if the reason is I want it to be you?"

He looked at her, sitting there with her eyes pleading, her lips half open, and her body almost quivering. "You're sure?"

"I'm not certain about anything right now, Sheriff, except that I would very much like to see you without clothing. I just don't know if I want you to see me without mine."

Ty started slowly, pulling off his shirt first. She stared at his chest for a long time, and Ty had to keep himself from fidgeting.

"I have figured out what scrumptious means. You are scrumptious, Ty," Maggie said, still staring at him.

"Maggie, I don't know about this. I don't want to hurt you."

"Do you want to make love with me?"

"Oh, God, Maggie, yes."

"I'm a little scared, Ty."

"So am I Mags. I think I love you. But I don't want to hint you."

"You wont hurt me. Will you, Ty? Make me learn how to love."

Ty stared at her for a moment, then pulled her to her feet. "My bedroom and bed are this way, Mags. You can let me take you there, or you can stop right here. I could also make love to you right here, but I want your first time to be in my bed. It's your choice."

Maggie looked around. "I think I'd like the first time to be in your bed. The next time I could have rug buns."

He opened his mouth to correct her but decided her description might just be more accurate than she

knew. "Come with me. Hags/' he said, meaning that in more ways than one.

He led her into his bedroom. She looked around and said, This is so like you. So ... just made for a

man."

Not in the mood for a description of what exactly that meant, Ty sat her on his bed.

"Are you afraid to let me see you?" Ty asked.

"Are you afraid to see me?"

"Hell, no. Id give anything, Maggie." Then see me. But I'm not all that good to see."

"Says who?" he asked, dying to see her.

"Urnmm, says me?"

"May I be the judge of that?"

"You may."

"Then take off that dress, Maggie. Please."

She hesitated, but then shimmied out of the dress like an honest-to-god stripper. And what he saw left him breathless.

"The rest/" he whispered.

She was hesitant, but then pulled off her bra over her head, instead of unclipping it

"You are so beautiful. The panties please."

She hesitated for a second, and then pushed down the black matching panties and stood before him, naked and stunning, and not able to look at him.

"Your turn," she said, eyes still studying the floor. "I want to look at you, too."

He was very certain that his cock was going to scare her. "Lets lie down and just let me touch you for a while."

"No, not fair. I'm standing here completely unclothed. You have to be the same."

"Maggie, I want you so much. Im afraid of worrying you."

"I'm not worried, Ty," she said softly. "I'm very certain of what I want. I would not be standing here like this if I didn't know."

He started unzipping his slacks. "I don't want to hint you. You won t.

"How do you know?" he asked, as he kicked the slacks aside and moved to her.

She finally peeked downward and whispered, "Oh, my."

"Say no now, and we're done."

"Hows that going to ... fit inside me?"

"Because I'll make sure your body wants it to."

He saw the fear in her eyes and reached for his pants. "Okay, not tonight, Hags. No way am I going to scare you."

She reached for his arm. "But . . . you didn't say anything about hurting me."

^UI can't guarantee not hurting you. I can guarantee trying not to. But scaring you is different. I'm already doing that, and cant live with it."

She grabbed his arm. "It has to be you, Sheriff Coltraine."

His insides dumped all over themselves. "Why?"

"Because for whatever reason, you love me, Ty. I want to be with the man who loves me, not the one who leers at me."

And he did. He loved every inch of her. She was so soft and smelled so good and had a body that was every man's fantasy.

He pulled her to him, and every part of him was touching every part of her.

Not only that, but she apparently loved being touched. As he kissed her skin and touched her, she made soft noises. Gasps. Lovemaking sounds.

He picked her up and laid her on the bed. Then fell down beside her and began worshipping every inch of her.

"I love this/" she whispered. "I never want you to stop."

"Maggie, I need to be inside you. But I want you to need me inside you, too."

"I want it. I know what this is. I want it."

"Let me help you get used to it, okay?"

"Please. But hurry up, okay?"

He buried a finger inside her, then two, while stroking her with his thumb. She looked at him with such pleading eyes, and then cried out when he ran his tongue across her.

"Are you sure, baby?"

^uOh, my, yes."

He moved up and spread her legs even farther. He felt her and knew her body was ready. So he did what he'd wanted to do for a long few days. He made love to her. She came first, with an orgasm that was obviously new to her. He had an orgasm just watching her. The rest of the night was so much the same, and so much different. And Maggie loved every difference. Ty was too dazed to know anything but he never wanted this to end.

Six

Six

Two days later Ty left his office to pick Maggie up at his mothers house. After forty-eight hours of not seeing her, he'd been miserable. He'd checked in on her plenty, but he'd been so busy, he hadn't been able to be with her. And he desperately wanted to be with her.

But she'd never given any indication in any of those conversations that she was missing him. In fact, she'd always been impatient to get back to her new next adventure.

And then this mom ing after his shower hed emerged to find a text message on his cell.

I have just discovered what a one-night stand is, cowboy. If you doiv't want me to believe that's what happened, you better find a way to get your ass over here.

Even as he dialed the phone in a panic, he was definitely kicking himself for thinking ensconcing Maggie at his mother's house had been a good idea.

This morning hed announced to his deputies at their weekly meeting that he was going to take a few days of vacation. They'd all looked at him like hed gone over the edge. In the eleven years he'd worked for the Little Fork PD, hed never once taken a day of vacation.

But Helen, one of his two female deputies, had piped up while the others just stared at him, speechless. "I think that's an excellent idea, Ty. You might not have noticed, but you've been awfully grumpy the last few days."

"I have not," hed barked. Then took a deep breath. "Well, maybe. Which is why I think a couple of days of vacation is in order."

"He's in loooooove," Jinx had chinned in.

"You re fired," Ty responded.

Jinx just grinned.

"In love, huh?" Mar lie his deputy, second in seniority only to Jinx, said. "Could it be that pretty girl he rescued from the Rooster ?"

"Meeting over. Jinx, you're in charge of the roster."

"I no longer have a job, I believe.'

"You re re-hired until after I get back."

And with that Ty had stalked out of the room, and thank the Lord and pass the butter, no one said another word.

So now Ty had at least a couple of days to convince Miss Margaret Prescott that she belonged in Little Fork. Little Fork 2010, not Little Fork 18 50.

And she belonged to him.

After the other night, one of the best of his life, he'd had to do some true soul-searching. He had to realize that as impossible as it seemed, he'd fallen hard for a woman who'd dropped into his life from two centuries ago.

The woman who he'd instantly pegged as a prissy, smartass pain-in-the-ass was anything but. Well, the smartass part still held true. But he liked that about her.

Actually, he loved that about her.

He also loved her mouth. The woman was one fast learner. And her body. And her scent and her greedy need to explore new territory. Including making love. He was almost certain shed loved making love.

Ty shook his head and jumped out of the car, jogging to the front door.

Normally he walked right into the house, but for some reason he felt the need to ring the bell instead.

She answered with a wide smile on her face, her hair up in a high ponytail and . . . "Wow," he said.

She had on a pair of pale pink shorts and a white tank top. She was barefoot and her toenails were painted

pink. She looked flushed and extremely proud of herself.

^uHi," she said. "You're not in your cop duds."

"And you're in my mothers shoits."

"Nope, these are mine! Come in!"

"Where's my mom?" lie asked.

"She and Trevor went to Reno for the day."

His eyes were glued to the back of her legs and her amazing butt. "Umm, well, that's nice."

"It really is. I don't know why you disapprove of him, Ty. He's a very nice man."

She turned suddenly and, not paying attention to anything but that swinging backside of hers, he ran right into her. She almost fell back, but he grabbed her anus just in time.

They stared at each other for a moment, and then he pulled her to him and kissed her before she could protest. His mind and body both exploded, responding to her obvious welcoming kiss.

She nipped his lips, demanding entrance, and then sucked softly on first his upper, then lower lip. Ty held her closer and engaged her tongue in mouth foreplay. Her arms wrapped around his neck and she broke the kiss, then began nibbling on his ear. Her breasts pressed against his chest, and it was all he could do not to pick her up and carry her over his shoulder to her bedroom.

"God, Maggie," he rasped in her ear. "What you do to me."

"I feel what I'm doing to you," she said, laughing softly against his neck. But then she stepped back and looked him over. "You look very, very good. I've decided I love you in jeans."

"Good," he said and tiled to pull her back to him.

But she stopped him with a finger to his sternum. "You seduced me. And then you never called me. Your mother and I agree that you re a brat."

The fact that shed told his mother about their night was kind of scary. "I was going to. I was on duty the last two nights. I told you that."

"But you didn't ask me out again."

"I'm asking you out right now/" he said desperately.

"Oh, sure/" she said, turning her back and walking up the three steps from the foyer into the living room. "After I had to threaten you."

"I'm on vacation now, Maggie. I took a few days off so I could be with you/" he said, following her.

She flopped onto the couch. "Your mother says you never take a vacation."

His mother talked way too much. "Exactly!" he said, holding his hands out wide. "See? That's how much I wanted to spend more time with you."

Her frown turned into a smile. "Is this true?"

"Have I lied to you yet?"

^uYes."

"When?"

"When you promised you'd feed me a hot dog."

¹¹ Want to go have a hot dog with me, Maggie?"

She jumped up. "Yes!"

Ty checked his watch. "You know, if we leave now, we can catch a baseball game. The Nevada Forkers are playing the Spikes in about twenty minutes."

"Do they have hot dogs at these games?"

"Only the best in Nevada."

¹¹ Wei I then, let's go!"

Ty eyed her. "Do you want to get dressed?"

She laughed. "I am dressed, silly man. In shorts."

"Yes. As just about every other woman in this town wears at this time of year."

"But youi legs."

She looked down at herself. "What's wrong with my legs? I thought, after the other night, that you liked

them."

"And so did every other man who saw them. And that tank top." The problem with the top is what? Im wearing a brawzeer."

"But . . . aren't you uncomfortable with . . . you know . . . your arms and shoulders exposed?"

"As your mom says, when in Rome.'

"I might have to kill my mother."

Maggie laughed. "Suck it up, cowboy."

He didnt want to suck it up. He preferred when she was too shy to allow an ounce of skin showing. Unless it was for him. But if he was going to talk her into staying in this year, in his town, lie was going to have to get used to her catching up with the twenty-first century. He just sort of wished she wasn't catching up so damn fast. "At least put on some shoes. You wont be allowed into the stadium barefoot."

"Stadium? Do I need to write this one down?"

"Put on shoes and learn for yourself."

a <t <$

"So those clothes are yours?" Ty asked, as they headed down toward the Forker's stadium.

"Yes!" she said, smiling. "At least they will be officially mine when the bidding on eBay ends. Biee was sweet enough to lend me some money, which III be able to pay back when PayPal pays up."

"So the biddings going well?"

^uOh, Ty, as it stands now, III have more money than I ever dreamed possible."

"Well, good," he said, not meaning it for a moment. With money, she could go anywhere, do anything. It was a totally selfish feeling, wanting her to be tied to Little Fork. And yet he couldn't help it. "And what are you going to do with your new-found fortune?"

She was quiet for a few too long seconds. "I . . . haven't decided."

"Buy a house?" he asked. "I have a friend who's a real estate agent. I'm sure she could find you the perfect place."

^uOi . . . I could travel."

"Or you could travel/' he said. Not without me you won't, he didn't say. He had no right to try and tie her here. Not when she was discovering an entire new world. But as long as she was here, he could damn well try to show her the benefits of making Little Fork her hometown.

This is amazing!" Maggie said, licking mustard from her fingers, then wiping her hands with a paper napkin.

"I take it you like the hot dogs," Ty said dryly. "Want a fouith?"

"Oh, I couldn't possibly. Not for at least another inning."

"The way this game is going, that means about another ten minutes."

"Sounds about right," she said, lifting her new sunglasses and smiling at him. "I'm having so much fun."

She took another sip of soda, then grabbed his hand as the sound of the bat cracking a ball filled the air, and she followed the ball soaring over the stadium. It hit the stand at the far end of the field. "Home run! But why isn't that man running around the bases?"

"Foul ball," Ty said. "They have to get them in between the posts for it to count as a home run."

"And you say you teach this sport?" she asked, trying to draw him out. He'd been unusually quiet the last couple of innings, and she wasn't quite sure why. When they'd first arrived, he'd been answering her questions and seemed to be enjoying himself. But in the last minutes, he'd gone almost mute.

Did he hate wasting his vacation time on her ? Did he wish he was somewhere else?

^UI coach Little League softball to kids. This is semi-pro ball."

"Do you enjoy coaching them?"

He smiled for the first time in innings, and all she wanted to do was touch the dimple in his chin. "I enjoy

it a lot. I love watching them learn and work hard to improve. I love being there the first time one of my kids makes a base hit. Or an out."

"I bet watching the first home run is pretty freakhv cool, too/" she said.

He finally laughed. "Yep, it's pretty freakhv cool." That's how I felt about teaching."

He turned his head to face her. She regretted the glasses that hid his amazing eyes. "Do you miss teaching?"

"I do."

"You could teach again."

"On, Ty! Teach what? It will take me years to catch up with modern schooling, with the world."

"I bet you could teach pre-Civil War history just about better than anyone could."

"Yes, I suppose so. But I researched, and teachers now have to have college degrees and certificates to be hired."

True. I don't suppose your resume would qualify/" he said, and then went silent again. Ty," she asked, laying a hand on his muscular thigh. "What's wrong with you? Do you . . . want to be somewhere else? Because if so, just tell me."

"Jesus, Maggie," he said, his head dropping.

"You do. That's all right," she said, cursing herself for the catch in her voice. Then go. Please. III find a way back home. III hire one of those car taxis."

She pulled her sunglasses down over her eyes, so he wouldn't see the moisture she felt gathering there.

He grabbed her hand. "No, I don't want to be anywhere else, Maggie."

"Then what's wrong? Tell me, please. Am I embarrassing you? I mean, I know people have been looking at us a little strangely. 111 try not to ask so many questions. Or I wont ask any at all.

"Dummy," he said, putting his arm around her and pulling her against him, making her almost spill her drink. "The problem is, I don't want to be anywhere else."

"But you'd rather be here without me."

He lifted his sunglasses and then hers, so they were looking straight into each other's eyes. "I'd rather be anywhere as long as its with you. '

She blinked. "And this is a problem how?"

An organ started playing, and there was no way he'd be able to say something without shouting. So she watched him glare up toward the loudspeakers, then back at her, swallowing hard several times. Everyone around them stood up for some reason she couldn't fathom. So they seemed alone down on the bench, cocooned in the bodies surrounding them. Finally he leaned over and whispered, "Because I don't know what I'm going to do when you leave me."

Seven

Seven

"Where are you taking me?" Maggie asked, laughing. "Are you kidnapping me, Ty?"

"Sort of."

It was the day after the baseball game, and Ty had shown up at eleven o'clock in the morning at Brees house. Before Maggie could say "Boo!" Ty had swung her around and tied a silk scarf of some soit over her eyes.

Shed panicked and tried to fight him at first, but hed said, "Shhh, sweetheart. This is a fun surprise."

"But why must you blindfold me?"

"Trust him, Maggie/" Tys mom had said. "You'll like this surprise."

"Are you sure?"

"Have I steered you wrong yet?"

"Well, Ty wasn't as happy with the shoits I bought as you said he'd be/' Maggie replied.

^uOh, he was happy/" Bree said. "He just didn't want to share how booty-licious you looked in them with other eyes."

¹¹Booty—" That's a good thing, Maggie/" Ty said. "Come on, you adventurous little soul, just go with the flow."

And she had. Because after what Ty had said to her at the baseball game yesterday, after an evening of sharing Chinese food and lovemaking in front of his fireplace, how could she not?

The man was amazing. Admittedly, as gentle as lied tiled to be their first night together, the making love pait had been painful. But also wonderful. She had not had any idea how special it could be to have a man be part of her, inside her. And the way hed touched her and tasted her had been magnificent. Last night had

been even better. It amazed her that she felt so free with this man.

In her time, making love before marriage made a woman a very, very bad person. But she didn't feel bad at all. It was so ... freeing. So ... right. Her mother had always told her that shed know when the time was right. She'd known even then that what her mother was saying was a scandalous opinion. One not shared by very many people. But if her mother was here right now, Maggie knew shed approve. Just as Tys mother had approved when shed confided in her.

Oh, how she wished her mother had come on this journey with her. Then again, she was certain her mother knew about this. Maybe even orchestrated it somehow. Shed wanted so desperately for Maggie to have freedom. Joy. Choices. And Maggie felt like she had all of these things right now. Not to mention a very handsome man who seemed to like being with her. As much as she lovecJ being with him. Imagine that? Morn, you'd like him.

"I have to tell you/" she said, as the wind whipped through her hair, "being blindsided—"

"Blindfolded." Fine, being blind folded is not my idea of a good time."

^uOh, you'd be surprised. Ever made love with a blindfold on?"

She snorted. ^AAs if" I hate to tell you Mags, but that little saying is so twentieth century."

"Meaning what?"

"Meaning it's outdated. Nobody says that anymore."

"Oh. Well, the point being, you know darn well we've never made love blindfolded."

¹¹ We might have to try it sometime."

"I don't think so. I like looking at your body."

"And how glad I am of that."

"Ty?"

"Hmm?"

"Why didn't you let me answer you yesterday? After the sweet thing you said?"

"Because I wasn't ready to hear your answer. And I'm pretty darn certain you weren't ready to give me one."

"But-"

"No buts, okay? Lets just enjoy today.'

"How can I enjoy it, when I cant see it?"

"You II see it soon enough/" he said, bringing his car to a halt and yanking on the brakes.

The air was suddenly still and quiet, except for the sound of birdsong. "Are we here?"

"We're here."

"Where's here?"

"You, Hiss Prescott, are about to find out."

She heard him come around the car, his shoes crunching against some kind of gravel.

He opened her door and helped her out. She punched him lightly in the gut. "Ow! What was that for?"

"It's Ms. Prescott to you."

He laughed and started guiding her to their destination. "Step up."

She did, and they were now on concrete or something solid. He guided her, his one hand on her waist and the other on her shoulder, and Maggie reveled in his fingers on her body. In just a few shoit days she'd grown to love his hands on her. All over her.

Finally he stopped her and said, "Ready?"

"Im not sure."

He chuckled, and then whipped the silk from her eyes.

"Surprise!" a bunch of people yelled, and Maggie boggled at the sight before her. About thiity people were standing around the pool on the back patio of Bree's house. There were colored balloons everywhere and a big sign that read, Happy Birthday, Maggie!

"Oh, my!" she said, her hand going to her heart.

Ty grinned at her and kissed her cheek. "Happy birthday, sweetheait.

"I . . . Id forgotten."

She didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Among the people smiling at her were Jinx and Sonia and Louise, several other nurses from the hospital, Biee and her boyfriend Trevor, Fannie Mae from the Rooster, and a dozen or so others she didn't recognize.

Jinx approached, a lovely Asian-looking woman on his arm. He handed her a glass of what looked like champagne. "Happy birthday, Maggie/" he said and kissed her on the cheek, also.

"I dorrt know what to say/" she said.

"How about, let the party begin' ?"

"Well first, thank you. Thank you all," she said.

"And?" Ty nudged.

"And . . . let the party begin!"

o c* o

Ty sat in one of his moms pool lounge chairs, watching Maggie. She looked so damn pretty in a flowery sundress and sandals, an outfit, he was certain, his mother had coerced her to wear for the day.

After her initial shock, Maggie had embraced the celebration in a way he hadn't expected. Shed switched roles from invited guest to party hostess in a flash and was walking around thanking everyone and chatting with them.

People migrated to her like lemmings to a cliff. Just as he had. Only he was afraid he'd be the one to jump off.

Yet every so often shed look around until she spotted him, then shed toss him a heart-melting smile before returning to the guest who was trying to soak in her aura.

Jeez, he was out of his mind. Her aura? Man, hed listened one too many times to his mothers view of the

world.

The afternoon slowly melted into evening, and yet only a few had left Maggie s party. It seemed they couldn't get enough of her. He had that in common with them.

"Earth to Ty/' he heard.

He blinked and dragged his gaze from Maggie to Jinx, who pulled up a chair beside him. "Hey," Ty said. Thanks again for helping my morn pull this together so fast."

¹¹ Not a problem. The problems you."

"What? How so?^r

"You've been grilling for most of the afternoon, and then you just plunk yourself down. You've been sitting here star ing at her for the last half hour straight. Shouldn't you be mingling? Maybe by her side?"

"I want her to have fun."

"Well, I see your point, because you sure as heck aren't a barrel of laughs these days. What's up with that?"

"I'm PMSing," Ty said.

"Very funny, pretty boy."

Ty took a swig of beer, then made a face. It had grown warm since his last sip, which was probably at least thiity minutes ago. "I want her to be happy."

Jinx glanced over at the crowd surrounding Maggie. "She looks pretty happy to me. Glowing in fact."

Ty suppressed a snail. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Not a thing. Just that she's having fun. So why aren't you?"

Ty looked at the man who'd been his best friend since they'd been in diapers. "Because it's not fair to ask her to stay here."

"Why not?"

"Are you serious?" he asked, dropping the beer bottle on the table beside him. "Look at her. This is a whole new world. She deserves to see it. She's insatiable about learning it all. I have no right to try to keep her

here."

"Have you asked her to?"

¹¹ ' Course not."

"Maybe you should."

"Do you have fuzz in your ears? I told you, she wants to explore the world."

"So go explore it with her."

"My job is here. My life is here. I cant just pick up and go galivanthv, J."

"I'm thinking you've built up enough vacation time to take a trip around the world and have enough left over to see it again."

"What if she doesn't want me with her while she explores?"

"Again, dipshit, ask her."

"I'm afraid of her answer."

& #

Maggie glanced over at Ty again, wondering what was wrong with him. As far as she was concerned, this had been such a perfect day. Nobody had ever had a birthday party for her. Her mom always did something special, of course, but never an actual paity.

Her heart panged. Her mother would have loved this. She would have been initially shocked at the scandalous attire, maybe, but shed have adjusted quickly, Maggie was sure.

She would have especially loved that a man had cared enough to do something so wonderful for her daughter. Maggie glanced over at Ty again. Their eyes met, and he smiled at her. But the smile didn't quite make it up any further than his lips. What could possibly be bothering that man?

Determined to find out, Maggie excused herself from the crowd and began marching over to him.

"Margaret?"

Maggie stopped in her tracks and looked over her shoulder. Fannie was standing there, holding a brightly colored gift that almost matched the sundress-type thing she was wealing. Today her hair was blonder than Maggie s, in what shed told Maggie was her Marilyn Monroe do. Maggie had made a mental note to search the Internet for Marilyn Monroe later to see what that meant.

"Oh, Fannie, that's not for me, is it?"

Fannie grinned up at her. ^wIt is, although I need to give a little background, so you understand it."

Although Maggie had loved all of the gifts shed been given today, a gift that needed background sounded intriguing. "Cool!" she said.

"I've been doing a little research, Margaret, because I wanted to figure out how much I owe you."

"Owe me?"

"It might be a little late, but I'm thinkiiv your claim to the Rooster is legit."

"Oh, Fannie, I have no desire to stake—"

"Well, missy, I'm stakiiv it for ya, then."

"But-"

"No buts about it. Although I'm not a dummy. I'm not just handin' it over to ya. But I most surely am going to pay you a sum. Just haven't figured that sum out yet."

"Honestly, Fannie—"

"No arguiiv. The Roosters a right profitable little business, and I'm an old lady who doesn't believe in taking so much money with me. I can afford it, and you deserve it."

Maggie stared down at her. "I . . . don't know what to say."

"Say I can buy out your share. And we'll all be happy." Fannie tapped the gift. "But this is something different. While I was researching the history of all this I came across something interesting. You say your mama's name was Elizabeth, yes?"

"Yes, it was."

"Did she have any kin? Besides you?"

"No. None. It was just the two of us. Oh, and my father. But he ... died."

"Oh. Then maybe this isn't quite the gift I thought it would be. In my research in' I came across an Elizabeth Prescott who lived during the twenties. I thought maybe shed be a relative. When did your mama pass on?"

"I . . .1 don't know. She disappeared. I always thought that maybe shed made some folks really mad and they kidnapped her. She was ... a bit of a hell-raiser/" Maggie admitted, smiling at the memories. 'I've been meaning to try to look for an obituary somewhere, but there just hasn't been time."

"I found one. For Elizabeth Prescott."

Maggie s heart flip-flopped. "Is it in there?" she asked, looking at the present.

"Yes. But this one died in 1945, Maggie."

Any hope Maggie had that it was her mothers vanished. That wouldn't have been possible. She couldn't possibly have lived that long."

"I'm sorry. Mebbe this was a terribIe idea."

"May I see it anyway?"

Fannie seemed reluctant to hand it over, but she finally did. "I was hopin' this might be a relative, but it doesn't sound like there's much chance of that."

Maggie carefully undid the wrapping. It was so pretty she didn't want to destroy it. She opened the box and, sure enough, it was an obituary from the Philadelphia Enquirer, dated July 21, 1945. Maggie staited to read it, but then was caught by the picture. This woman had been the spitting image of her mother. Only . . .

"What is this outfit she's wearing/" Maggie asked in a whisper, lowering the box so Fannie could see.

"Why, that's a flapper outfit. That picture must have been taken during the twenties. She look familiar?"

"Yes, she does. This is my mother, Fannie. But how is that possible?"

"How is it possible you're standin' here, missy?"

Ty watched Maggie hug Fannie tightly, jump around with what looked like utter elation, then almost run around the pool toward him. Hell, she seemed so high as a kite that he guessed she could have walked right over that water.

She skidded to a halt in front of him and Jinx, her eyes dancing and a little watery all at the same time. That must have been one helluva present, Mags/" Ty said.

"Oh, it is. Unbelievable even. But I ... don't want to talk about it until I research a few things." She put the box behind her back with a nervous, excited laugh. "Your girlfriend's very nice, Jinx. I approve." In which case, I might marry her, Maggie."

She laughed again. "I'm never wrong about these things, you know."

Jinx stood up. "I'm betting that's the Gods honest truth. So I best get back to her before some bozo tries to horn in. See what you can do about this lump."

"I'll do my best." She took the seat Jinx had just vacated. "Thank you for the party, Ty."

"I was just responsible for driving you around while everyone arrived. My mom and Jinx did the rest."

"It was your idea."

He looked at her. "Who told you that?"

"Your mom."

"Blabbermouth."

"She just wanted to give credit where credits due."

He couldn't help it. He reached out and took her hand. "You've got me real curious about what's in that box. But I'll respect your privacy until you re ready to show me."

'■That's just one of the reasons I lo . . . like you so much, Ty."

His heart swelled a little. "Having fun, sweet?"

"I'd have more fun if you'd join me."

"I wanted to give you space."

She tilted her head. "Why?"

"So you could enjoy yourself without me suffocating you."

"Suffocating me? How would you being by my side suffocate me? It would have helped. I'm not all that great with names."

"Bull. That brain of yours soaks up everything you see and hear."

"It doesn't when all I'm thinking about is where you are."

Ty swung his legs over the side of the lounger. "I'm a jerk."

"No comment."

"Im so sorry, darlhv. Lets go circulate."

Her smile beamed. "Excellent. Would you like a hot dog?"

"You mean there are some left?"

She slugged him in the arm. "I've only had three."

"How your tiny body manages to handle all the food you—"

About six pagers went off at once, and Ty looked around to see all of his deputies checking their messages. Then Jinx came trotting over to him. "Trouble at the Rooster. We've got it covered."

"What is it?"

Jinx glanced at Maggie, then back at him. "We 11 take care of it."

"What is it?" Maggie asked.

Jinx sighed. "Seems someone's been locked in the shed."

Maggie gasped.

Ty grabbed her and hugged her. "I'm so sorry, Maggie, but I'm going to have to go check this out.

"I'm coming with you."

"No way," Ty and Jinx said at the same time.

¹¹ Wa y," M a g g i e sa i d.

o ?.>

"You arent getting out of this car/" Ty told Maggie for about the tenth time since shed strapped herself in.

"I know, I know/" she said, sounding exasperated.

¹¹ Why would you want to come, Maggie? You were having fun at your party."

"I don't know. I just . . . had to." That shed holds nothing but bad memories for you."

"I know, but . . ."

When she didnt finish, he said, "But what?"

"I was thinking. If I want to go back to where I came from, maybe that shed would hold the key to getting there."

Ty's heart dropped out of his chest. "So you've decided? You want to go back?"

"Its not a matter of want. It's a matter of whether I'm meant to."

"How do you figure?"

"Do I belong here? Or back there? Or maybe some other time altogether."

"I figure since you landed here, then here's where you re supposed to be."

^uOr maybe, just maybe, I was meant to glimpse the future so that I could go back and maybe ... I don't know, work to make it happen. Maybe even sooner. Maybe without so much bloodshed."

"Maggie, much as I respect you, I don't think you alone will be able to change the world."

"I know, sounds presumptuous, doesn't it? But who's to say? My mother worked all of her life to change things. And she did make a difference. Small perhaps, in the scheme of things, but she did. And shed wanted me to carry on with her work. I didnt see it that way then. But maybe that's what this whole thing is all about."

"Would you be happy back then now? Now that you know what you know?"

"Not happy, perhaps. Not as happy as I have been here. Especially if I go back after my mother disappeared."

"So ... what? You want me to conk you in the head and lock you in the shed and see if that sends you

back? I couldn't do it, Maggie. Not just because there's no way I could hurt you. But I cant stand the thought of living in this world without you.

"Why, Ty?"

"You came here for a reason. I honestly believe that. And I'm selfish enough to believe part of that reason is that you and I were meant to be together. Part of it is that I believe you re meant to teach children the history of the woman's movement. Your mother was a pioneer. What better way to honor her than to teach kids about her struggles? About women's struggles?''

"Or maybe go back and teach children about the possibilities for the future."

He felt shattered. "Would you miss me?"

"Incredibly."

They pulled up in front of the Rooster, amazingly the first to arrive. Ty turned to her. "I won't stop you if you want to try. But I can't help you do it, Maggie. Please don't ask me to."

^UI won't."

He took her head in his hands and kissed her hard. ^uStay here. Think about it some. Don't make any rash decisions. That's all I'm asking. Okay?''

"Yes, I'll think about it."

"Thank you.''

He got out of the car and strode to the front steps of the Rooster, not looking back. He couldn't stand to look back.

'■\: K '■■.:

Maggie waited until Ty had headed inside this mansion that at one point in time was supposed to belong to her. And then, her heart breaking, she got out of the car and started making her way to the backyard.

She didn't know if she was plumb nuts or what, but she had to see that shed. She had a very big decision

to make. And she couldn't do it without seeing where this strange, wonderful adventure had begun

O V t

Once again, Fannie had no idea who'd locked someone in her shed, or where the lock had come from. All she knew is that one of her girls had come to work, claiming she could swear Lester was locked up back there.

So Ty waited for Jinx and the bolt cutters and called for a bus. He realized lied forgotten to grab his flashlight from his trunk, so ran back to the car to get it. The car was empty.

"Shit."

a «

Maggie stood in the shadows, only the light of the moon illuminating the shed that had been her hell . . . or her salvation.

She could hear a man yelling for help, banging on the door. At least lie didn't sound like lied been smacked senseless as she had been.

Maggie's mind was in a jumble. She wished, so much, that her mother were here to tell her what she should do. Lord knew she didn't want to leave this place, this time. And the thought of leaving Ty was almost unbearable.

And if she did go back, at what point in time would she land? She was almost positive that with a little more research shed find that somehow, remarkably, her mother had also gone forward in time. If this was what she thought it was, her mother had lived to see women get the right to vote. Shed seen women begin entering the work force into jobs that had always exclusively been for men only. "Oh, Mama, tell me what to do," she whispered.

She walked slowly toward the shed, thinking maybe if shed just touch it, she would get answers. But she

was so dang afraid of what the answer would be.

She reached the shed and heard the man's angry demand for help. "Shh," she said. "Help is coming. Sheriff Coltraine is on his way."

"Oh, thank the Lord. When I get my hands on Beitha—"

She lifted her hand to touch this magical shed.

"Maggie, no!" Ty yelled, running to her, his light shining ahead of him. "Maggie, please wait!"

Her hand dropped away from the shed. And she stepped back.

He skidded to a halt in front of her. "You promised you'd wait."

He looked so scared, so upset, that she put a hand to his face. "I . . . thought maybe if I touched it, and I go, then I'm meant to go."

"Sheriff?" the man yelled. "Get me the hell out of here!"

"Help's on its way, Lester. Just hang in there." He placed himself between Maggie and the shed. "You hurt, Lester?"

"Just my pride, Sheriff. But cant rightly say how healthy Bertha's gonna be when I get hold of her."

"Don't do anything I'd have to arrest you for, Lester."

Ty took Maggie s arms and pulled her farther from the shed. "If you re going to experiment, I'm coming with you," he said in a low growl.

Her mouth dropped open. "You'd do that? You'd come back with me?"

"My life is wherever you are, Maggie."

"Oh,Ty!"

" Who d have thought it. A couple of weeks ago I was thinking Id probably die a bachelor, because I couldn't seem to fall in love. And then you . . . dropped by. Now I cant imagine my life without you in it. I know I'm not much, but—"

"Not much? Oh, Ty, you so underestimate yourself. You're an honest, upstanding man. With your paternal history, you could have turned into your father, but you didn't. You saw him for what he was and you went

the other way. I admire that so much about you."

"Excuse me," Lester yelled. "Prisoner here!"

"Hold youi pants on, Lester/' Ty yelled back. "If you had in the first place you probably wouldn't be in there!"

Maggie giggled. "You re funny, as well. I love that about you, too."

He looked into her eyes. "Do I ... make you happy, Maggie?"

"More than I ever expected in my life, Sheriff."

"Then please don't touch that shed unless I'm holding your hand. Whatever the future or the past holds, Maggie, I want to spend it with you."

She staled at him. "Are you saying . . ."

"I bought the ring two days ago. I just wanted to wait until I knew for sure you felt the same way. If I asked you to marry me, what would your answer be?"

"Oh, Ty!" She threw herself at him. "Yes, most definitely yes!"

"Then we need to go back to my place to get it before we ... touch the shed.'

Maggie looked over her shoulder at the place where this strange, exhilarating journey began. "I see no need to tempt fate, Ty. I belong here. With you. I believe my mother would have loved you. Not as much as I do, but she'd be happy."

"What makes you think so?" he asked, his heait near to busting out of his chest.

"As soon as you get Lester out of there, I have something very interesting to show you, Ty."

Ty glanced at the shed. "Jinx II be here soon enough for Lester. It's time to stait our life together. I'm taking the rest of your birthday off."

"Why, Sheriff," she said, fanning her face. "I'm flattered."

"Yeah, well I've heard tell men in love tend to get goofy. Is that true?"

"I wouldn't know. But I can't wait to find out.

They started walking toward his car. "So what's this big surprise?"

"Tell me everything you know about flappers/" Maggie said, threading her fingers through his. "Right after you tell me you love me." "I love you." "And I you, Ty. Now, about flappers . . .