Tempting the Marshal: (A Western Historical Romance) (Dodge City Brides Series Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page B

situation that would grate across his nerves—and his conscience—until he caught that gunman and brought him to justice.
    One way…or another.

Chapter Four

    Hearing footsteps in the hall outside her room, Jo felt her pulse quicken. Had she left another clue somewhere? A trail of blood perhaps?
    The doorknob turned, the door slowly squeaked open, and there stood her darling, dark-haired boy. He wore a plaid shirt with suspenders, and duck trousers that had recently become too short and now showed off his loose socks pooling almost comically around his ankles.
    “Leo,” she said with a rush of relief that could not compare to anything she’d ever known. The pain in her shoulder seemed to disappear momentarily as she regarded her son.
    He ran in, his loosely laced work boots stomping noisily across the floor, and gave her the hug she so desperately yearned for. “Ma, are you okay?”
    She loved him so much, her heart ached with it. She squeezed his slender body and when she felt his boyish weight upon her chest, she wished that life could go back to what it had once been.
    As she considered it further, however, she knew she could never go back, even if Leo’s father could somehow return from the dead and take over his duties on the ranch. After what she’d gone through, nothing would ever be the same again: she was not the same person she was, not the trusting woman who took safety and well-being for granted.
    She began to wonder uneasily how the change in her personality would affect her relationship with Edwyn, if he actually did come back from the dead. Would he even notice? Then she swept the thought away and squeezed Leo tighter. It was a foolish, foolish notion to imagine Edwyn ever returning to her.
    Leo withdrew from her embrace. Reluctantly, she let him go and noticed Matilda standing just inside the door. The older woman smiled warmly, her concern showing. She hadn’t known what Jo had set out to do, only thought she was running errands, and she must have been devastated to learn what had happened. “We’re very glad to see you,” Matilda said.
    “I’m happy to see you, too,” Jo replied, wishing she could confide in Matilda about all of this, but afraid the knowledge might put her at risk. Matilda was a friend Jo could not do without.
    “When can you come home?” Leo asked.
    “The doctor says I’ll have to stay here for another day, so he can keep an eye on me.”
    “But you’re going to be all right, aren’t you?”
    “Yes, I’m going to be fine, but I don’t think I’ll be gathering any eggs for a few weeks. I’m going to need you to take over some of my chores.”
    Leo considered that a moment, then sat up straighter. “I can do everything. Don’t you worry about a thing, Ma. I’ll take charge.”
    “Thank you, Leo. Matilda and I will be sure to depend on you.”
    He smiled proudly, then his dark brows rose with excitement. “It must have been some gunfight. The marshal got shot, too, and he’s all bandaged up.”
    “You saw him?” Jo asked worriedly, then she tried to sound casual and unperturbed. “What in heaven’s name did you talk about?”
    “I asked him if he saw you get shot, but he said he didn’t.”
    Matilda gazed at a framed sketch on the wall. “I didn’t like the look of that lawman. There was something about him…”
    “Oh?” Jo questioned.
    “I’m not certain what it was. Perhaps the way he asked my name. As if I were some sort of criminal.”
    Jo shifted, trying to ease the pain in her back from lying still for so long. “Don’t fret, Matilda. I believe he’s suspicious of everyone. He told me quite plainly that he was inflexible and that Dodge would soon learn he was in charge.”
    Matilda adjusted the small, round spectacles on the bridge of her nose. “Just what our town needs—another power-hungry man running things. What’s his background?”
    “All I know is that he’s Zeb Stone’s brother-in-law. That’s how he got the job.” Jo