Read The Irish Devil for Free Online Page B

automatically steadying her against the windowsill. Lennox, of course, dressed for a walk down Fifth Avenue and smirking like Alice in Wonderland’s Cheshire Cat as he stroked his muttonchops. He was a very impressive figure of a man, if you didn’t look too closely into his eyes or catch the reek of his pomade. At least he wasn’t wearing his gunbelt.
    He’d been back in town for almost a month; he’d proposed and been rejected twice. What did he want now? “Mr. Lennox. You startled me.”
    “My apologies, Mrs. Ross.” He tipped his hat with a flourish. “May I come in?”
    “As you will.”
    “My dear lady, you look magnificent in that dress.” He swept his hat off to bow over her hand. She retrieved it as soon as possible, her skin prickling at his flattery. “You are a vision of civilization, a reminder of a better world.”
    “You are very kind, Mr. Lennox,” Viola murmured politely, and wished she hadn’t seen him in a barbarian’s bloodstained clothing.
    “Kind, Mrs. Ross? You are my dearest wish, the pinnacle of everything I plan to gain from this barren desert.”
    Why did that particular statement ring true?
    “Soon I will be the governor of New York and you will be the envy of the world as my wife. We’ll give parties for society’s elite at my new mansion, next door to Roosevelt’s estate. They will dine and dance with us all night long above the Hudson, free from the stench of those Vanderbilt parvenus.”
    Ballrooms have pianos. Dear heaven, to play a piano again…
    “I shall be elegantly outfitted by London’s best tailors, while Paris will send its finest gowns to adorn you.”
    A Paris wardrobe again? For that and a piano, a woman could consider marrying Lennox. Lost in the vision, Viola barely noticed how close he now stood.
    “Do you remember when we first met, in New York during the recent unpleasantness? You were an enchanting young lady from one of the finest families, while your mother was the very picture of American beauty. Such a charming woman,” he mused. “She could shop from sunrise to sundown then sparkle brighter than the Northern Lights over dinner.”
    Viola stiffened. Wasn’t that trip when Mother had bought the rifles?
    “Marry me, Mrs. Ross,” he continued, heedless of her silence, “and the world’s merchants will be your devoted servants, as they were for your mother.”
    “No.” The word was little more than a croak, uttered by a mouth dry with the ashes of lost dreams. “No, no, no,” Viola said more strongly as her throat muscles worked to repudiate the nightmare. She would not, could not, be blackmailed into another marriage.
    Lennox blinked, then cocked his head and crossed his hands on his walking stick, the image of a man who fully appreciated his own superiority. “My very dear Mrs. Ross, I’m afraid I didn’t quite hear you. You must comprehend the advantages we bring each other.”
    She gathered herself together to speak in terms he might understand. “I’m afraid you misunderstand my circumstances, Mr. Lennox. Captain Lindsay disinherited me when I married Edward, so I can offer you neither grand associations nor a rich dowry.”
    His smile deepened as he wagged a finger at her. “My dear lady, Ross also objected to any rapprochement with your family. But I am convinced that when you arrive on Captain Lindsay’s doorstep, properly contrite and with a well-bred husband at your side, forgiveness and riches will flow like the Niagara.”
    Roses brushed her arm as a phrase caught Viola’s attention. “When did you speak to Mr. Ross about my father? He never mentioned such a conversation to me.”
    “At the Oriental Saloon, my dear. I happened to catch him just as he was departing.”
    Lightning flashed again in Viola’s memory. “My husband visited the Oriental only once in his life,” she said slowly, feeling her way through the implications.
    “Indeed? He must have forgotten to mention it.”
    Edward’s roses nudged her again.