A Moment in Time by Deb Stover Read Free Book Online Page A

force to make her ample bosom put on quite a show.   "You'll probably get scales like a trout."
           Jackie shrugged and prayed for her head to stop its ceaseless pounding.   Then a terrifying thought barged into her mind–one that might possibly explain the pain in her head.
           She was in a coma.   I'm not crazy.   She had to wake up and maintain her sanity long enough to put Blade behind bars.   What happened after that was anybody's guess.
           "That's it."  
           "What's what?   You really got scales?"  
           Jackie sighed and thought, maybe, her headache eased a little.   She frowned, trying to ignore Dottie's continued staring.   But what if she wasn't in a coma?   How could she be certain?
           Simple.   She couldn't.   "Damn."
           "Rupert don't cotton to his girls swearin'."  
           "I'm not one of Rupert's girls."   Jackie waved her hand in dismissal, trying to convince herself this was all part of her coma.
           "We'll have to wait and see what he has to say about that."   Dottie turned and sashayed toward the door, her round backside swinging like Mae West at her finest.   "Zeb'll fetch your water."
           "Wonder how clean it'll be by the time it gets here," Jackie muttered.
           "What'd you say?"
           "Nothing important."  
           Dottie opened the door, then paused.   "If I was you, I'd start prayin' real fast."   After a moment, she looked over her shoulder, a crooked grin twisting her painted lips.   "Either that, or ask that snake oil salesman on the edge of town if he's got somethin' that'll grow you a big bosom real fast."
           Jackie summoned her fiercest gaze and directed it at Dottie.   "Yeah, and maybe he has something to cure jealousy, too.   Hmm?"
           "Jealousy?"   Dottie's smile vanished and her nostrils flared.   "You might have Rupert fooled, honey, but I see right through you."
           "Yeah, right."   The urge to blurt out the truth invaded Jackie, making her stomach clench and her adrenalin-laced blood sing through her veins.   Instead, she chose silence, knowing she had to sort through all this herself before sharing it with the world.
           "Suit yourself."   Dottie slipped through the door, pulling it shut behind her, and Jackie seized the opportunity to visit the water closet.
           After putting the facilities through their paces, she returned to her room–for now, at least.   She walked slowly to the window and peered out at the bustling little town.   It was still there–Devil's Gulch, Colorado.   "What the hell happened to me?"
           Wagons and horses, men in work clothes, a few women in long dresses, and an abundance of dust filled the street below.   Incredible.   "Yeah, a coma."   She nodded, trying–and failing–to convince herself again.
           It was possible, though.   If this was all part of a coma, then she'd either come out of it...or die.   Eventually.
           Lovely thought.
           And if this was real...?
           Jackie swallowed and turned to look around the room again.   Could she really have traveled back in time?
           It was a possibility she had to face.
           "Think, Jackie."   She shuffled over to the bed and flopped onto her back, gripping her head with both hands.
             If she had truly traveled through time, then she had to make the best of her situation...such as it was.   Rupert P. Goodfellow thought she was the famous Lolita Belle– sans Guinness Book of World Record -sized breasts.   At least Jackie's mistaken identity had secured her temporary shelter.   Besides, if she forced herself to think logically about all this–a greater challenge than getting Aunt Pearl into a male strip joint, for sure–it made sense for Jackie to stay put and play along.
             Maybe she was no rocket scientist,