Hearts Out of Time by Chris Lange Read Free Book Online Page A

Mister Jake Cooper. A gunslinger and agent of the United States.”
    The man working for the government deepened his smile while he bent over her extended hand.
    “Well now, If His Highness starts throwing my titles around, we should spend a quite pleasant evening.”
    The slightest hesitation stalled her as his tone verged on irony, but he looked so foxy that she let it go.
    “I’m pleased to meet you, Mister Cooper.”
    She couldn’t believe she was meeting a real gunslinger from the Old West. If she hadn’t been so anxious about her dad, she’d have fully enjoyed all the fantastic things happening to her, from the noisy, muddy streets of 1899 San Francisco right down to this fabulous mansion and its guests.
    “The pleasure is mine.”
    He raised her hand to his mouth again, letting his sensual lips linger a little too long on her skin.
    “My friends call me Jay, and I can already say without a doubt that you and I are going to be very good friends.”
    Letting go of her hand, the bad boy winked at her before proffering a devilish smile. She felt a tightening in Garrett’s grip on her forearm. He didn’t appear to like this warm greeting in the least.
    Or maybe being called His Highness by a cheeky cowboy wasn’t his idea of a good joke. Whatever, anyone in a one mile radius could have figured out the two men were at daggers drawn.
    “Good God, Jake.”
    Weedon’s exclamation interrupted the stare down. He set his glass down on the table and motioned at her.
    “Tracy has just arrived. Don’t start on her.”
    “Where are your manners, Welsh? A beautiful lady must be treated with the utmost respect. I wouldn’t dream of—how did you put it?—starting on her.”
    The handsome gunslinger sounded offended, but she had a hard time telling if the tone was real or teasing.
    “I take it you don’t think I’m beautiful? That isn’t very flattering.”
    Startled, Tracy shifted her gaze to the young woman standing beside Jake who seemed displeased and pained by the gunslinger’s flirting behavior.
    Jake Cooper pivoted toward the slighted lady, took her chin between his fingers, and raised it a little.
    “Don’t be jealous, dearest. You know you’re the one and only.”
    His words might have passed for romantic if not for the mocking tone that prompted the girl to stretch her neck. Garrett continued his shortened introductions, probably to lighten the bizarre atmosphere lingering in the room.
    “Miss Richardson, this is Jessica Harring. She’s a private agent as well as daughter of the infamous vampire hunter Gabriel Harring.”
    A vampire hunter? Did vampires really exist in this parallel world? Given that none of them seemed shocked at the mention of fictional creatures of the night, she finally understood her dad’s reference to unlikely characters .
    “Will you stop teasing me, Garrett?” Jessica said. “I’m glad to meet you, Tracy.”
    “Likewise.”
    The girl’s direct gaze moved off her to settle on the men, with the exclusion of Jake Cooper.
    “Father can’t be here tonight,” Jessica said, “so I’ll act as his representative. He sends his regards and wishes he could be with us, but he must remain in London for the time being. The last I heard, Count Dracula was on the move again, and Dad’s about to follow his trail.”
    Count Dracula? Tracy mentally scoffed. Seriously? Her own father rightly assessed this universe, without doubt filled with extravagant and colorful characters. Adoring the idea of mingling with them, she paid attention to the hunter’s daughter.
    Dressed in a similar fashion to herself, Jessica’s long, pink dress flowed in sparkling swathes around her, encrusted with tiny stones. She was a stunning young woman, although she oozed strength and harshness. Watching her speaking to Garrett, Tracy felt an alien pang of jealousy stab through her.
    They all talked over dinner, the locals getting to know her while becoming reacquainted with each other. When Jake Cooper