Whippoorwill Read Online Free PDF

day his daddy had unexpectedly died. After the bank had reclaimed the land on unpaid debts, the offspring of Conrad Worthy were suddenly homeless and began scattering to the four winds.
    At the age of seventeen, Alfonso hired out as a driver to a sickly couple who were leaving with a wagon train heading West. They died in mid-trip, leaving Alfonso with a wagon full of dry goods. It would amount to the beginnings of a small store that would be his grubstake.
    After that, it seemed as if his good fortune continued to rise. It had taken him several years and several territory towns to get where he was today, but as the only banker in Lizard Flats, he had the world by the tail. Only now and then did he ever wonder what had become of his six brothers and sisters, but the thought never stayed with him long enough to pursue it. Except for the absence of a woman in his life, Alfonso was as satisfied with himself as he knew how to be. He had steak when he wanted it, a bath every other night, and could afford the pleasures of Letty Murphy, the only easy woman within two day’s riding distance. But life wasn’t perfect. What he wanted but had yet to achieve, was his heart’s desire. He was in love with a woman who barely acknowledged his existence.
    In the midst of that thought, a flash of yellow caught his eye. He turned to look and then jumped to his feet. He didn’t have to look twice to know who he’d seen. Sophie Hollis stirred his blood. The fact that she begrudged him so much as the time of day hardly mattered. When he thought back to where he’d been and how far he’d come, changing an unwilling widow’s mind had become his next and, hopefully last, challenge. Determined not to let the opportunity to speak to her go to waste, he took his hat from the hat rack.
    “Greeley, I’ll be out for a bit,” he told the teller, and hurried out to the street.
    He admired Sophie’s attributes greatly; those long, blonde curls and that sweet baby-face, her wide, blue eyes, and the way she filled out a dress. He smiled as he called out.
    “Sophie! I say… Sophie Hollis!”
    Sophie stopped in mid-step, wondering if it would be possible to ignore him, yet when she heard the rapid beat of his footsteps behind her, she sighed. She knew who it was. She recognized the voice, but ignoring Alfonso Worthy was like trying to ignore a tick stuck fast to your skin. No matter how small and unsightly, the little thing would persist, sucking and chewing and drinking you dry. She stifled a sigh and turned around.
    Alfonso swallowed twice in rapid succession as their gazes connected. Hers wavered as she found herself staring at his Adam’s apple. It was bobbing up and down on the inside of his neck like the float on a line with a fish on the hook.
    “Good morning, dear Sophie. I must say, you look positively beautiful.”
    Sophie twirled her parasol in absent fashion. She would have to speak. He’d put himself directly in her path again. The quick once-over she gave him was out of habit. As often as she looked and as close the inspection, his appearance did not entice her, but she managed a smile in response to his praise.
    “Why, thank you, Alfonso.”
    He shuffled nervously as he stood, manfully tried to lift his gaze above her breasts, but for a man Alfonso’s size, it was nearly impossible. Sophie’s bosom was too close to his eye level and she’d left too much of it bare to ignore.
    Sophie fanned herself as Alfonso’s eyes glazed over. She thought of how long it had been since she’d had a man in her bed and fanned a little faster.
    Alfonso frowned. “Sophie dear, are you all right?”
    “It’s just the heat. I’d best be on my way. I want to finish my errands before the day gets any hotter.”
    Alfonso offered her his arm, his accounts and the bank quickly forgotten.
    “Allow me.”
    Sophie slipped her hand beneath his elbow. Gentlemen were few and far between in Lizard Flats and manners forbade her to ignore his offer. She