A Lady in Defiance by Heather Blanton Read Free Book Online

the bank,” he flung the door open
and ushered the group inside, “we can sign the papers and conclude our
business.”
    She slid past him without meeting his gaze. “That would be
fine.” The sooner she was done with Mr. McIntyre, the better.
     
     
    Hands in his pockets, McIntyre watched the sisters stroll
around the large, empty room. Attempting to take his mind off their feminine
curves, he tried to guess what they might see in this empty room. Could they
imagine dining room tables covered with red check table cloths, politely
chatting customers, the sound of klinking silverware? Hugging the far right
wall, L-shaped stairs led to the second floor. He could envision the hotel desk
sitting right below the landing, a few red velvet chairs and a settee gathered
to create a small lobby. At least that was how he imagined it in a few years.
To get started, they would have to be satisfied with log benches and mismatched
furniture gathered up from everyone in town who owed him money.
    “Were you raised by wolves, Mr. McIntyre?” Naomi’s haughty
tone and impatient glare perplexed him, until he realized she was looking at
his hat. Memories of being chastised by his mother bombarded him and he
snatched the Stetson off his head. Huffing, Naomi went back to surveying the
new real estate.
    The group made their way back to the apartment in the rear,
but McIntyre saw Naomi consider the marshal who had stayed by the front door,
arms folded across his chest as if he was standing guard. He was impressed with
her awareness of her surroundings, a skill he’d learned to appreciate during
the war. The marshal had been ordered to keep an eye out for trouble as
McIntyre wasn’t completely convinced O’Banion was through sulking over his
humiliation. McIntyre suspected, though, that if the annoying little Leprechaun
tangled with Naomi again, the outcome would be the same.
    Naomi stepped into the small back room and McIntyre heard a
sigh of disappointment. He joined her in the doorway and watched as she and her
sisters assessed the dirty, dusty little room. Barely larger than a generous
parlor, it had one small buck stove anchored against the back wall, a cot
shoved up against the far wall, a few cabinets hung entirely too high on the
left wall and a dry sink situated underneath them. Pretty much nothing in it
was usable for a commercial kitchen.
    After the girls spent a few minutes inspecting the apartment,
however, he decided it was time to spell out their next steps. Burning daylight
was not something he ever did on purpose. “My architect, Ian Donoghue, has the
finished blueprints for the hotel. I’ll send him over tomorrow. Feel free to
make changes as you see fit.” Naomi crossed her arms and tapped her foot.
Ignoring the message her stance screamed at him, McIntyre casually rocked on
his heels and addressed her sisters. “All the carpenters in town work for me,
of course.”
    “Of course,” Naomi echoed under her breath.
    “So I’ll round up a crew to get the renovations started in
here. I’ll have them build some tables for the dining room until we can get
decent ones from Pueblo or Denver. We’ll need to draw up a building plan and
create a list of supplies for the restaurant.” He looked over at Naomi. “I
don’t have enough in my other store to provide for that, but there is a freight
wagon that comes up daily from Silverton and a larger one that comes from
Gunnison. I’ll get you the names of some reliable grocers, farmers, etc.”
    He wandered over to the one dirty window in the room and
looked out on the backyard. His leg was weary already and, without thinking, he
dropped his hand down to rub his thigh as he considered the yard. Whicker had
added a small corral and a lean-to, but there was still a roomy hundred feet or
so of grass that rolled down to the banks of the La Plata, the local tributary
to the Animas River. “If you don’t wish to sell your mules and horse
straightaway, you can keep them back there