Her Heart's Desire NH2 Read online

  “I’m telling you she’s my sister,” the man next to her told the men at the table. “She’s not married.”

  “You can’t put her up for a bet,” another man said. “It’s not right. You lost all your money. Count your losses and go.”

  “Let’s go,” she pleaded with her brother, her long brown locks falling gently over her shoulders.

  “I got a good hand,” her brother told her. “I can win this one.”

  “Oh, let him try to win,” the leader of the group growled out in his gruff voice.

  Mitch’s eyes narrowed at John Meyer. He’d never spoken to John, but he’d seen him before and heard enough about him to know the man was up to no good. At this point, John hadn’t noticed him, but that had to change since he needed to help his brother. Steeling his resolve, he sauntered forward and slapped Boaz on the shoulder.

  Boaz looked up at him and relief crossed his face. “Mitch,” he slurred, “I’m glad you’re here.”

  Leaning forward, Mitch whispered, “I’m not coming to save your sorry butt in the future.” Before he had to bear the smell of alcohol on his brother’s breath, he straightened up and turned his attention to John. “I came to get my brother out of here. How much does he owe?”

  “$50,” John said. “Doesn’t have enough in the pot to cover it either.”

  Mitch stopped himself from swearing because the young woman was watching him. $50? That was nearly a month’s worth of wages! “I don’t have $50.”

  “How much do you have?” John asked, scanning him up and down, probably looking for whatever was of value on him.

  “I brought $30.” And that was all the cash he had to his name.

  Though he was drunk, Boaz managed to slur out, “I don’t have $50 either.”

  “We already established that, but he’s got it covered,” John barked. “Now stop delaying the game.”

  “What else did he bet, John?” Mitch demanded, not willing to show the older man he intimidated him as much as he did everyone else.

  “His horse.”

  “His…?” Mitch slapped his brother on the back to sober him up enough so he’d understand what was going on. “Do you realize what you’re doing? That horse is all you got.”

  His brother turned sorrowful eyes in his direction. “Sorry. I thought I could win.”

  John chuckled as if that amused him to no end, and knowing John’s reputation, Mitch didn’t doubt the man loved to take everyone’s money—and property.

  “You can’t do this, John,” Mitch growled.

  “He’s a grown man. He put up the bet. It’s up to the cards to decide if he’ll keep the horse or not.”

  For a moment, Mitch debated whether he should just walk away and let Boaz lose everything.

  John motioned to the man and woman sitting next to Boaz. “So, you gonna stay in and offer her up or fold and walk away?”

  She shook her head, but her brother nodded to John. “I’ll bet.”

  Mitch couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Let them all go, John. Take the money on the table and get out of here.”

  “Stay out of this game,” John growled. “You aren’t a part of it.”

  Mitch grunted. “Well, maybe I ought to be.”

  The silence that followed was in stark contrast to the rowdy men in the joint. John turned his steel gray eyes in Mitch’s direction, and Mitch noted the challenge in them. Refusing to back down, he kept his gaze level despite the fierce pounding in his heart. He didn’t often give himself to confrontation, but even he could only take so much.

  Finally, after a very agonizing minute, John motioned to the empty chair across from Boaz. “$30 gets you in the game.”

  Mitch scanned the others who sat at the table. His brother’s hopeful expression indicated that he expected Mitch to bail him out of his bind. The woman made a move to leave, but her brother grabbed her wrist and forced her back into the chair. She winced and tried to pull away from him, but she was no match for him.

  “Let her go,” Mitch snapped, hating this even more than the thought of his brother possibly losing his horse.

  “I’m going to win,” her brother growled through gritted teeth.

  Beside him, she broke into tears, and Mitch’s heart went out to her. Turning to John, he said, “Fine. I’m in. Put my horse into the pot and let her go.” She didn’t need to be a part of this. If he lost everything, so be it, but he couldn’t stand here and watch a man sell a woman in a poker game.

  “I’m not giving up my hand,” her brother said.

  “I’m not telling you to,” Mitch replied, not hiding his disgust that the man was so insistent on selling his sister. “I’m offering my horse in exchange for her.”

  Her brother glowered at him. “You think you’re going to walk out of here with her?”

  “No. I just don’t want her to go home with the likes of him.” Mitch pointed to John.

  “Ah now, what’d you take me for?” John grunted and tapped the cards in his hand. “Ante up there, boy.”

  It was on the tip of Mitch’s tongue to point out he was twenty-five but decided it’d be a waste of time to do so. He put his money in the middle of the table and told John, “She’s not in this. We’ll use my horse.”

  “Like hell we will!” her brother yelled, slamming his fist on the table.

  “The woman stays,” John said as he dealt Mitch five cards. “I already have a horse from Boaz over here.”

  Mitch glanced at Boaz whose head remained bowed so Mitch couldn’t see the expression on his face. With a look at the poor woman who continued to softly cry then a look at her resolute brother, Mitch knew he didn’t have a choice. His only hope was to win the game. Then the woman could go back home where she’d be safe, and his brother could go home on his horse.

  John motioned for him to check his cards, so Mitch did. He had nothing. No pairs or partial straights. Nothing. If he hadn’t been watching John, he’d swear the man set it up so that he’d have to lose. But John hadn’t shuffled the deck or anything. Trying not to give away the fact that he had a bad hand, he saved a jack and king of hearts. Might as well pretend he had a pair.

  He tossed the other cards face down on the table and held his two cards. “Give me three.”

  As John handed him three more cards, he glanced at the woman and prayed she wouldn’t have to end up doing whatever John planned to do with her. The possibilities of that scenario made him sick to his stomach.

  He turned his attention back to the three new cards that sat in front of him, face down. Well, this was it. He was either going to win or lose.

  ***

  Look for Mitch’s Win in the Fall or Winter of 2012

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Her Heart’s Desire - Smashwords

  List of Ruth Ann Nordin’s Books

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  New Book Coming Soon:

  Chapter One

 

 

 
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