Read Online Payton's Woman by Marilyn Yarbrough - Free Book Online

“Excellent champagne.”
    Gerald Baxter leaned
closer and lowered his voice. “Dunbar’s mother arrived here a while ago, but I
haven’t seen her. And I haven’t learned anything new about her, or her son.”
    “Neither have I.” He
took a sip of champagne. “I tossed around a lot of money at the poker table,
but no one seemed eager to talk about them. Evidently, Betsy Collins and Lawrence
Dunbar aren’t popular topics in Sacramento. I didn’t want to press too hard—not
yet anyway.”
    “Once he turns up in
California, there’ll be plenty of gossip about him. A man like Dunbar won’t be
content lurking in the shadows. He likes living high and spending money.”
    “That’ll be difficult to
do. From the information I gathered, Hennigan had the bulk of the money hidden
away somewhere.”
    “Dunbar’s mother may be
the only person who can help him now that his partner is dead. She’ll lead you
to him, one way or another, but you may have a long wait.” Baxter’s bushy gray
eyebrows furrowed together. “What about command of your ship? How much time off
will the steamship company allow you to take?”
    “I had to give up the
coastal run, but once I’ve finished with the business here, they’ll give me
command of another ship. It runs out of San Francisco and goes to Hong Kong and
Japan.”
    “Let’s hope the wait isn’t
too long.”
    “It doesn’t matter. I’ll
find him no matter how long it takes,” he ground out through clenched teeth. “I’m
a man of patience.”
    “I know you are, but you’re
also a young man. This party shouldn’t be all work.” His smiled returned, and his
voice rose to its normal level. “You should be dancing. There are some very
attractive young ladies here tonight. If you see one that strikes your fancy, I’d
be more than happy to make the introduction.”
    “I’ll be sure to let you
know.” He glanced around at the females in the room. After the angel he’d met a
week ago, no other woman appealed to him.
    Suddenly, he shoved his
champagne glass onto Baxter. “Will you hold this for me?”
    “What is it, Tyler? You
look like you’ve seen the Devil himself.”
    “Just the opposite.” His
lips curved into a smile. “I think I’ve just seen an angel.”
    As Payton edged his way
toward the young woman who’d captivated his soul several nights earlier, he noticed
a subtle difference about her. She looked calm, serene, almost aloof, but he
knew the woman standing on the far side of the room was his angel.
    She wore her honey-blonde
hair gathered up into an elaborate coil. Spiral curls cascaded down her back. Those
incredible eyes of hers sparkled with reflected light from the crystal
chandeliers. Her mouth, with the soft little peaks, glistened with a natural
blush that closely matched her rose colored gown.
    With something that felt
like possessiveness, it pleased him that her gown wasn’t cut too low. The demure
bodice denied the other men an immodest view of her breasts, but the short
sleeves draped off her shoulders and displayed a wide expanse of creamy white
skin.
    ****
    Sylvia Morgan raised her
champagne glass to her mouth in an effort to cover her lips when she spoke. “Julia
darling, don’t look now, but there is a very tall, very magnificent looking
gentleman walking directly toward us. Do you happen to know him?”
    Slowly, she turned in
that direction so her movement appeared casual. Several tall men milled around the
room, but she immediately spotted the one to whom Sylvia referred.
    “No, I don’t believe I
know him,” she said, but a fluttering sensation stirred in the pit of her
stomach.
    Although she didn’t
recognize him, something about the man approaching them made her instinctively
cautious. He had a predatory look. Definitely carnivorous. And she felt as
though he intended her to be his next meal. He stared directly at her as he wove
his way through the couples on the dance floor.
    He stopped in front of her.
The gaze from his