The Redemption Of Jake Scully

by Elaine Barbieri

• ISBN13: 9780373827909
• ISBN10: 0373827903
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-06-10
• Publisher: Harlequin

Summary

Saloon owner Jake Scully knew his rough frontier town was no place for a delicate lady like Lacey Stewart. Once, he'd sheltered her from harm. Ten years later, Lacey was no longer a frightened girl, but a woman grown. She deserved a respectable man, not a jaded rogue like Jake.And Jake's "delicate lady" had a mind of her own-- with ideas that included introducing Jake to a life of love and faith, no matter how hard he tried to keep his distance. But when danger began stalking her again, Jake realized the only safe place for Lacey was by his side.

Excerpts

New York City 1882Yes, her hands were trembling.Lacey stared at her hands, at the long slender fingers with well-tended nails, and at the smooth skin and soft palms reflecting the total absence of physical labor. They were "a lady's hands," which she realized was part of the reason for their shaking.Lacey did not need to look at her reflection in the dressing table mirror to know that the image there further perpetuated that description of herself. She was no longer eight years old. The neat pigtails she had worn when she first arrived at Mrs. Grivens's Finishing School had given way to a graceful upsweep of hair that was still a brilliant platinum in color; her childish features had matured into a finely sculpted countenance in which clear, blue eyes hid uncertainty behind a downward sweep of surprisingly dark lashes; and her slender, adolescent proportions had developed feminine curves that went undisguised by the ladylike cut of her simple, gray traveling dress.Lacey glanced toward the hallway door at the sound of a soft knocking. It opened at her response to reveal a small, dark-haired girl who rushed sobbing into her arms."I don't want you to go, Lacey." Tears streamed from her eyes as fourteen-year-old Marjorie Parsons drew back and rasped, "I'll be so lonesome here when you're gone."Her reassuring smile aimed as much at boosting her own confidence as it did comforting the motherless girl who had become almost a sister to her, Lacey replied, "I can't stay in school forever, Marjorie. Everyone graduates when they're eighteen years old--even me.""Maybe so." Marjorie brushed away her tears and continued almost pleadingly, "But Mrs. Grivens would gladly let you stay on as an instructor if you wanted to. Everybody knows that."An instructor.Lacey was almost amused by those words. She could read, write and cipher. She could "play the piano with considerable finesse,""embroider beautifully," was well versed in the rules of etiquette, knew the proper protocol and manner to address any member of a titled aristocracy and had committed to memory the correct placement of every piece of silverware that could possibly be needed at a formal dinner party. Those accomplishments aside, she was at a complete loss when it came to cooking or maintaining a household without a battery of servants. She was also totally ignorant as to how a "young lady" was supposed to earn a decent living in a society where the only choices open to her were a good marriage or sensible spinsterhood.Yes, she'd be good at teaching young women to be as clueless as she."Please tell Mrs. Grivens you'll stay.""I can't do that. Uncle Scully sent me tickets for my transportation home. He's expecting me, and I owe him that."She did not bother to tell Marjorie she had decided that the chaperone Uncle Scully had arranged to accompany her was unnecessary, or that she had cancelled the arrangements he had made and cashed in the extra ticket he had provided so she might return the funds to him when she arrived. Yes, she owed him that...and so much more.Lacey blinked back unexpected tears, then continued kindly, "I'm not like you, Marjorie. I have...obligations. I don't have a wealthy father ready to introduce me to society so I can get properly married after I graduate.""Pooh! Papa would introduce you to society, too, if you wanted. I'd make him do it. And you're so pretty that you'd find a husband in no time.""That wouldn't work for me, Marjorie."Marjorie stared at her, uncomprehending."It's time for me to pay Uncle Scully back for financing my schooling and supporting me all these years." She smiled sadly. "He must be pretty old by now. I know he never married. He probably needs somebody to take care of him.""But he never came out to see you--not once!""He wrote to me faithfully and made sure I always had whatever I needed." Lacey felt no need to explain that Uncle Scully's letters h