GoldLust (3 page)

Especially with a man like James. His views were just too
conventional for her. He would expect her to start spending more time with him,
and cooking for him and cleaning his house, and it would eventually end badly.
She would save them both the trouble.

“We shouldn’t be doing this.” She forced herself off him,
and the effort was a lot more difficult than it should have been.

“What?” He stared at her, eyes narrowed as she moved toward
the clothes and gathered them in her arms.

“We shouldn’t be doing this,” she repeated.

“Don’t tell me you don’t want it. I can see that you do.”

“Here.” She tossed his clothes beside him on the blanket.
She couldn’t say with any sense of honesty that she didn’t want him, so she
said nothing.

Emma put her clothes on quickly. She had to get dressed, get
out of there before she lost her nerve and jumped back into his arms.

When she had all her clothes on, she looked over at James.
He hadn’t moved, just sat silently, completely naked, his thick cock pointing
toward the sky as he watched her. His eyes held a mix of anger, lust and
confusion, but she couldn’t stick around to talk about all that. If she did,
she might do something she would definitely regret.

“See you around,” Emma said as she walked away. She had to
leave. It would never work out. They were just too different.

“Yeah.” He snorted. “See you around.”

Emma didn’t turn around and she didn’t hear any movement
from behind her as she walked away, but she could sense his eyes still on her.
Wanting, watchful eyes making her want to run away as fast as she could and run
back to him at the same time.

She wouldn’t do either.

One week later

Emma had successfully avoided James while she worked her
claim for the past week and was back in the little town of Ketchikan. She
didn’t want to be here. She wanted to be out in the hills, searching for gold.
But two passenger ships came in today, and she needed to rent out the upstairs
rooms in her house. The first possible renter stood on the boardwalk in front
of her.

“I assume you are a prostitute then?” Emma wasn’t going to
pussyfoot around the topic. She wanted everything out in the open just to make
sure they both understood the situation.

“I prefer sporting woman, but yes, I plan to exchange the
pleasure of my body to men in return for a fee.” Opal Stewart didn’t back down
one bit with the bluntness of Emma’s question. She readjusted her dress, breasts
practically falling out of the low-cut purple material.

Opal knew exactly what she was getting into, and wasn’t
ashamed. Good. Not that Emma agreed with prostitution enough to partake in it,
but she didn’t condemn the girl for choosing this lifestyle either. Desperate
times called for desperate measures, and Emma wasn’t here to judge anyone. A
girl had to do whatever it took to survive, but it seemed that Opal was proud
of her chosen career.

“I didn’t buy this house to become a madam. You’ll have to
take care of all
business
on your own.” Emma stood with her hands on her
hips and an unexpected tenseness in her muscles. She didn’t want to have to
share her house.

By letting a prostitute live there, she would probably earn
the reputation of one as well, but Emma didn’t care about that. She had no
desire to consort with the town folk, and she didn’t give a damn what they
thought of her. She needed the money to survive.

“I don’t have a problem with that.” Opal looked Emma in the
eye as she spoke, giving Emma a little bit of comfort in the situation.

River water rushed below the boardwalk. Emma never loved the
fact that her house was built practically over the water, but it provided a
spectacular view. She also didn’t love that she would now have to rent out rooms
to keep her house. But she was doing what she had to do. There was no shame in
that.

“Your customers will need to use the side entrance, and your
rent will be due at the beginning of each month.”

Opal stood with her head held high. She had the mannerisms
of a girl who’d been through finishing school, definitely not the typical
prostitute.

“When I find another girl to rent the other upstairs room,
you will have to work out business details together, if she happens to be a
prostitute too,” Emma continued.

There wasn’t much chance a woman of any other profession
would be coming alone to Ketchikan, Alaska. Prospectors, fishermen and
prostitutes made up most of the population of the growing little town

“Sounds good.” Opal nodded then pulled a wad of cash from
her corset. She counted the appropriate bills out and handed them to Emma.

“Well, welcome to Ketchikan, Opal Stewart.” Emma squeezed
the cash in her hand. It would be enough to get her through for a while. She
wouldn’t have to leave this place just yet. A sense of relief that came with
that knowledge helped her to relax a little.

“Thank you.” Opal lifted her bag and carried it up the
staircase to the side entrance. She didn’t look back, but opened the door and
disappeared inside without the slightest bit of hesitation.

Emma went through the front door and plopped onto the couch
with her legs spread wide like a man, and knew if she were in a relationship
with James he wouldn’t think it was appropriate of her to sit like this. Why
did men get all the comforts in life?

The sounds of Opal moving around upstairs putting her things
away was vastly different from the silence that usually consumed Emma’s
surroundings.

Her life was a little bit lonely, but Emma liked silence. In
her view, silence was much better than chaos. It was the life she chose, the
life she loved.

Out her front window, she had a view of the stunning dark
waters of the bay and the fishing boats coming and going, but the best view was
behind the house. Mountains rose from the sea, covered with lush, green
foliage. It wouldn’t be long before they were submerged in white again. Summer
never lasted long enough, and she shouldn’t be sitting on the couch wasting the
day.

Twenty minutes later, a knock at the door eased her
irritated soul. If this was another renter, she would be able to relax with the
knowledge she would have enough money to make it through another summer, and
she could be done wasting her time in town.

Emma walked to the door and was greeted by a blonde girl
with bouncy curls and a freckled face. Beside her stood a skinny red-haired boy
who couldn’t be much older than eighteen.

“What can I do for you?” Emma had to work to keep from
showing her disappointment. She needed another prostitute, someone who knew
exactly what Ketchikan, Alaska, was all about. Not some young couple with no
idea what they were getting into.

“I was wondering if you could take care of my girl, Kate,
for me while I’m up making my fortune?” His accent held a hint of Ireland, but
he’d definitely been living in America for some time. The girl looked at him in
adoration, and then smiled at Emma.

“I am not in the business of taking care of anyone. I do
have a room for rent, but this is not a boarding house. You will be responsible
for your own meals.” She turned her focus to the boy. “What’s your name?”

“Sean O’Riley,” he answered with enthusiasm.

She obviously wasn’t being serious enough, wasn’t giving
them a glimpse of the hardship they were in for by coming to Ketchikan. Most
people were a little disillusioned after they came here, thinking it was going
to be easy living and easy money. Neither one of those things were real. Not
here anyway.

“Well, Sean O’Riley, how do you propose to make the
payments?” Emma didn’t have the resources to support some lovestruck couple with
unrealistic expectations.

“I can pay for the summer now, and I’ll bring my earnings
down whenever I can. Just need to have my girl waiting here for me with open
arms.” Sean grinned that carefree grin that only the young were capable of.
Those who had been alive for a while, who knew how the world really worked, had
no time for such nonsense.

Emma could wait for someone else, someone who would be more
likely to spend the winter months here and not run away at the first sign of
hard times, but if she took this girl in she’d have the money she needed and
she could be done dealing with people. Kate looked as if she would be an easy,
responsible renter.

“Do you have the money on you?” They were dressed as if they
could afford the rent, but Emma wasn’t going to take any chances.

Kate had on a fancy light-blue dress with ribbons and lace.
She was carrying a matching parasol. Sean wore a top hat and a vest that you
would see on a banker. They were both well dressed and clean, but that was
probably going to change soon, at least for him.

“Yeah. Yeah.” Sean continued to smile at Kate as he dug into
his pocket, pulling out the money and counting it before handing it to Emma.
She almost felt bad, taking the kid’s money, but he would at least get what he
paid for with her. She could guarantee that. There would be plenty of people
out there trying to take whatever he had left and giving him nothing of value
in return.

Kate stood silently, her eyes moving from Emma to Sean as
they spoke, waiting patiently.

It was likely that Kate had a naive view of the world and
was about to be struck down hard. Hopefully all her dreams would come true and
the boy would come down with bags full of gold, but Emma knew firsthand that
the chances of that happening weren’t as good as people believed.

Sean bent down and picked up the two largest suitcases. He
was obviously eager to get his girl settled.

“Okay, I’ll show you to your room.” Emma was just as eager
to get her errands done in town. She needed to get prepared so she could head
back out to her claim as soon as possible.

She led the couple through the center of the little house,
up the staircase and gestured to the room on the right.

“This will be your room.”

Sean followed behind, carrying the bags full of Kate’s
things. Had to be a struggle getting both bags to fit through the narrow hall,
but Emma didn’t look back. If she saw him struggling, she would feel obliged to
help him, and this couple needed to learn real fast how to make it on their
own.

It was obvious that Kate was used to having things, and
having people to help her. It was going to be an adjustment for her, living
here, but it would only make her stronger. Alaska would give Kate strength, if
she stayed.

“Good luck on your search for gold, Sean,” Emma said over
her shoulder as she walked away.

“Thank you, ma’am.” She could hear the grin in his voice,
but again, she didn’t turn around to look.

Emma went back down the stairs and out the door. As much as
she hated being in town, at least now she had plenty of money to buy the things
she needed. When she did get back out to her claim, there wouldn’t be a need to
worry about survival, for a while anyway.

The young couple was still upstairs when she walked out the
front door. It would be the last time they saw each other for several months,
and quite possibly ever. They likely didn’t see all the risks just as she and
Ben hadn’t when they first arrived. Emma was a realist now, and Alaska’s
wilderness took lives. Most people needed to see that for themselves before
they believed it.

James tossed the empty shot glass from hand to hand along
the smooth wood of the bar. The place was brand new, barely even been broken
in, but this bar was definitely a welcome addition to the town. At least the
gold rumors had brought something worthwhile.

“I’ll take another shot of whiskey, Frank.”

“Sure.” Frank was a damn good bartender and he quickly
grabbed a bottle of golden liquid that James needed, poured a shot and slid it
across the bar.

The guy was missing half his teeth and rough-looking even
for this town. But Ketchikan wasn’t a place for the weak of heart. Alaska would
eat anyone but the strongest of men alive. Exactly why Emma shouldn’t be here.
This wasn’t a place for a woman. Yeah, she saved his life, but if it wasn’t for
the goddamn distraction of her in the first place, he probably wouldn’t have
fallen into the creek. And she’d continued to be a distraction, at least to his
mind, for the whole damn week. She was trouble, plain and simple.

“You find any gold today?” Frank asked.

Small groups of men had taken up seats in the little
building, but it was still early. Frank was just trying to start up a
conversation because he had the time and it was part of his job, but hunting
for gold was a piss-poor choice of topics.

“Nope. I don’t think there’s any goddamn gold up there.”
James ground his teeth together and sipped at the whiskey, enjoying the burn as
it went down his throat.

“That’s not what them papers say,” Frank replied a little too
cheerfully.

“Yeah. Well, I ain’t seen any gold.” James swallowed the
rest of the shot and didn’t say what he was thinking about a particular
newspaper reporter.

It wasn’t in good taste to curse the dead. Even if he was
the bastard who lured him into buying the worthless claim, wasting his money
and the last two years of his life searching for a treasure that didn’t exist.

“Emma Smith still working up by you?” Frank refilled James’
glass without him having to ask.

“Yep.” He took a sip off the top. Forgetting about her was
the reason he came here tonight.

“Crazy woman anyway,” Frank muttered.

“She’s not crazy.” Why the hell was he defending Emma? She
was crazy for staying here after her husband died, crazy for risking her life
to save James and crazy for letting him touch her like he did.

“Yeah? Well, that’s not what you said the last time you were
in here.”

That was before he had seen her naked, before he had touched
her soft skin, before he had seen a different side of her. His goddamn cock
went half-hard just thinking about it.

“She’s just a little too independent.” A little too
independent just like his mother, the woman who left his father for “more
adventure”. That’s how his father put it when he was sober enough to make any
sense. Now he was doing the same thing. Falling for a goddamn crazy,
independent woman.

The smart thing to do was stay away from her.

“Whatever. It just ain’t right for her to be out in the
woods alone like that. Woman’s too delicate for that kinda thing.”

“Just try to tell her that.” James slid the money for his
drinks across the bar and moved his stool back. Its legs scratched loudly
against the wooden floor but no one cared enough to even look in his direction.
They were all too busy with their own issues and drinking them away.

James needed to go and at least talk to Emma. He needed to
find some way to get the sight of her naked body out of his mind. Preferably by
satiating that need.

Sitting here talking about the woman wasn’t going to help.
He had to discuss the things that went on between them last week and find out
whatever the hell it was that caused her leave.

Every sensible bone in his body said to stay away from her,
but his gut wanted to go back so damn badly. Maybe it was his cock. Fuck, it
didn’t matter. He needed to see her again either way.

“I’ll take one for the road, Frank.” James threw down
another dollar.

Just a little more liquid courage was what he needed. It was
pitiful that he needed courage to go talk to a woman. Especially the one woman
he knew he couldn’t keep.

* * * * *

The town was alive with the movement of people tonight. Many
of the prospectors had come back to get supplies from the ships that had come
into port today, and stayed for the camaraderie. Men walked up and down the
boardwalk, and Emma sat on a bench in front of her house watching all the
action.

The night air was starting to get brisk, but it didn’t seem
to impact Opal’s choice of clothing. She was attracting plenty of attention
with her low-cut dress and promises of pleasure.

“Hey there, good looking.” Opal smiled as a man approached
her.

He grinned back, and within a few minutes Opal was leading
him up the stairs.

It was interesting, watching her work. There wasn’t any
doubt she would be able to pay her rent. Opal was already raking in the cash.
It would be good for both of them.

There were a couple girls in the same profession as Opal a
few houses down. They couldn’t compete with Opal’s beauty and charm, but there
were plenty of leftovers for them. Opal was choosy, she didn’t take the first
man who made her an offer, but picked her favorite from the herd. Somehow the
rest of the men weren’t offended at not being chosen. They kept walking up the
street to the next house offering services, or they stayed waiting in a group
outside her house laughing and drinking and hoping to be the next on Opal’s
list.

Men were strange creatures. She could understand the primal
instinct to mate, but just waiting around, hoping to be the next one chosen
seemed somewhat humiliating. The men, however, didn’t seem to see it that way.

A man in a top hat and vest approached her. “How much for
the girls upstairs?”

Emma glared at him. She didn’t need her beautiful evening
interrupted for this. “Only one of them is a working girl, and I am not her
madam. You’ll need to wait over there,” Emma motioned to the group of men on
the boardwalk at the bottom of Opal’s steps, “and conduct your dealings
directly with Opal.”

Living with the two women was already making life more
interesting. Alone was the life she chose, but that didn’t mean she always
enjoyed the quiet times.

The last rays of sun disappeared into the ocean, but Emma
wasn’t ready to go inside yet. She didn’t want to lie alone listening to Opal
and her men rocking the bed upstairs. And her body was still tormented from the
encounter with James a week ago.

Emma wrapped a blanket around her shoulders, and leaned her
head against the wood siding of her house. Stars popped up in the darkening
sky, and the men that moved along the boardwalk were starting to get rowdy.

The echo of Opal’s footsteps as she came back down the
staircase was muffled by the crowd, but the voices quieted when they saw her
flaunting her assets. That girl knew how to get men to stop and pay attention
to only her.

Hell, Emma sat only ten feet away, and the only man who even
looked in her direction thought she was the madam. Not that she cared. The last
thing she needed was the attention of another man. James was enough trouble.

Speaking of the devil, there he was, walking down the
boardwalk in her direction. James’ footsteps weren’t exactly steady as he made
his way closer, and the drink in his hand made the reason obvious.

One of the men in the group surrounding Opal’s area of
business slapped James on the back in greeting. A little booze splashed out of
his glass when he stopped abruptly to talk to the man.

Opal was moving through the crowds, and Emma could see that
the girl had set her sights on James. She made her way through the group and
stood right in front of him.

“What’s your name, handsome?” Opal stuck her chest out and
smiled brilliantly at him.

Jealousy hit Emma hard. She had no right to be jealous. If
she had wanted the man, she should have taken him the week before. But that
didn’t stop the feeling from settling deep in her gut.

“James,” he answered Opal gruffly, barely looking at the
ample cleavage she flaunted.

Emma didn’t want James, so why did she feel the need to run
up and object to what was about to happen?

“Would you like to join me upstairs, James?”

“Thank you for the offer, ma’am, but I’ve got my eye on
someone else.”

“Oh.” Opal looked distraught for a second, but she quickly
recovered with a hearty laugh and focused her attention on another man.

Emma let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding
when James turned Opal down. Her relief was quickly replaced with nervousness
because she knew she was the other person he had his eye on.

“I guess I’ll have to take your friend here upstairs,” Opal
said as she grabbed the arm of the man beside James.

“Your loss is my gain.” The man grinned and slapped James on
the back again before Opal led him up the stairs.

James zigzagged over to Emma and plopped down beside her on
the bench.

“Hello.” He looked down at his drink then took a sip and
grimaced before looking back in her direction.

“Hello.” She wrapped her blanket even tighter around her
shoulders. Physical attraction already starting to buzz through her body, a
physical attraction that she had to ignore. Not that the blanket could protect
her from anything.

“So.” He paused uncomfortably and took another drink. “How
much for you?”

She stared at him, blinked and shook her head in disbelief.
He didn’t really just offer her money for sex.

“Are you serious?” Emma squeaked out the words.

“I don’t know.” He didn’t look at her, kept his focus on his
feet.

“I’m
not
for sale.”

Emma owned a house where a prostitute lived, and the rumors
were no doubt flying, but James knew her better than that.

Any traces of guilt for what she had done to him up on the
mountain suddenly disappeared with his obnoxious offer. What nerve. He expected
her to sell her body to him?

“Isn’t this a bawdy house?” His eyes narrowed, his
expression serious. “I can’t believe you would turn me down in the woods and
then sit out here selling yourself to any man who walks by. I would have paid
you a lot of damn money that day if I knew it was what you wanted.”

Yes, his words were slurred, but she wasn’t going to forgive
his stupidity just because he was drunk.

“There happens to be a sporting woman renting out a room in
the upstairs of my house. It doesn’t have any effect on how I conduct my own
affairs. I am not for sale to anyone. I was merely enjoying the beautiful
night, but I think it’s time for me to go to bed. Alone.”

Emma got up and stomped into the house, slamming the door
behind her. Out her front window, she glanced out to see James, still there,
holding onto the railing and looking down at the docks.

She couldn’t believe the nerve of that man. And still her
body hummed for him. The way the moon reflected on his face, his broad
shoulders as he stared out at the endless water, it was all so very alluring.
He turned down his chance with Opal because he wanted Emma, but her heart was
stupid for thinking she should have anything to do with the man.