The Frenchman's Revenge Read Online Free PDF

handsome head of yours ? Christ , I think the women like that even better than the solid b l ack. At least it seems so. I‘ve never seen a man attract as much attention from the ladies as you do. Hell, you walk down the street and every head turns. ”
    Wyatt grinned and his eyes twinkled.
    “That’s what I mean, there’s that famous twinkle . Course you and I know that sparkle hides a hell of a lot of mischief . M ore than your share of danger, right, g overnor?” He added with a grin, “But whether they’ll admit it or not, the ladies love a dangerous man.”
    “ You oughta know, Charlie. Y ou have almost as many kills under your belt as I do . H ell, what are you on ? Y our fifth or your sixth wife? ”
    Charlie’s wrinkled up face cracked in a wide smile . He said with mock dismay, “Never did figure out to bed ‘em, not wed ‘em.”
    Wyatt laughed and threw another bill on the bar. Charlie picked it up with a grateful nod and stuffed it in the drawer. He looked at Wyatt with a knowing smile.
    “ T hat your oldest son, g overnor?”
    “Yeah, Charlie. That’s Alex, Elena’s twin brother. He just got back from six months in China.”
    “ Just in time for th e big wedding ?”
    “ Yep, Charlie . J ust in time for the wedding. ”
    “ It d on’t seem like your boy is real happy about the wedding, g overnor.”
    Wyatt sighe d , then grinned at the old man.
    “You know how brothers are, Charlie. Possessive as hell. They think no one is good enough for their sisters.”
    Charlie nodded in sympathy.
    “Ain’t that the truth, Wyatt . A in’t that the truth.”
    Wyatt nodded in return and clapped his arm around the old man’s shoulder . He gave him a friendly hug then walked out to the wharf to help Alex and his men load Alex’s trunks in the waiting cart.
    ~~~
    Wyatt and Alex rode up to the v illa that Bai was renovating for Elena. It was on the outskirts of San Francisco , bordering the vineyards Wan and Bai bought five years earlier. Bai bought the magnificent v illa as a wedding present for Elena. F or mo nths , scores of workmen frantically work ed to ready the Spanish hacienda and surrounding grounds according to Bai’s exacting specifications. The t wenty thousand acre compound stretched from the edge of the city t o the rolling hills surrounding the vineyards . It included desert flatlands, grassy mesas , rocky canyons , and v egeta tion of every variety , from towering pines to desert scrub .
    Alex was overwhelmed by the beauty of the v illa. It was extraordinary. He was accustomed to wealth and opulence , but this was beyond even his father’s Wyoming ranch and Wan Chang ’s palatial home. Everything about t his complex spoke to superb craftsmanship and sophisticate d understanding of the marriage between beauty, comfort , and understated elegance. P lagued with resentment , Alex knew it was Bai’s vision and taste that made it what it was . K nowing that Bai created it for Elena , h e tried to choke down his jealousy , s tifle the rage that threatened to consume him.
    ~~~
    Alex saw his grandfather, Wan Chang , standing in the courtyard waiting for him. Nearing seventy , the only sign of Wan’s age was his head of steal gray hair. A lifetime of daily k ung fu practice had kept his body as lean and strong as a twenty year old. Alex took a deep breath when t he legendary Tong leader’s normally stern face softened and his eyes misted when he caught sight of him. Alex had been a serious child, vulnerable to his outrageous sister’s every whim . He had always looked up to Wan with adoring eyes – hoping for his approval .
    Alex remembered the first time he had dared to look to the imposing Tong leader for approval. When his father and Lei married , their son, Deshi , crawled up on Wan’s lap and said in his two year old lisp , “ I lover you granfatter . ”
    Alex had stepped back, not able to hide his tears. But his ever irrepressible sister , Elena , stared at the stern Chinese man and ,