Charity House Courtship - Renee Ryan

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alone, with all that money, at this late hour, didn’t sit well with him. He—

      A loud rap against the doorjamb knocked Marc out of his musing.

      “Mr. Dupree, I’m sorry she got away.” Hank’s gaze tracked through the room. “She...I mean, I never thought she’d climb out of the window. I thought—”

      Marc lifted a hand to stop the stilted flow of words. “I know, Hank. She fooled us both.” Remembering the way she’d toyed with his vest, drawing his attention away from the situation, then unceremoniously kicking him in the chest, he shook his head. “In more ways than one.”

      “She seemed, I don’t know, honest.” Hank visibly cringed as his gaze landed on the open safe. “I never would have taken her for a woman of such questionable...character.”

      The same thought had gnawed at Marc from the start, but he’d learned long ago that people were rarely what they seemed. He shouldn’t have been surprised by Miss O’Connor’s deception. But he was. Shockingly, profoundly, inexplicably shaken to the core.

      “The world is full of dishonest people,” he said for Hank’s benefit as well as his own.

      All sin and fall short of the glory of God.

      His mother’s favorite Bible verse and a truth that pertained to Marc far more often than not. Despite his efforts to remain above reproach, he made mistakes. Perhaps knowing he often fell short explained why Marc still wanted to believe Miss O’Connor wasn’t what she seemed. That she was...somehow...more.

      “I wonder how she figured out the combination,” Hank said, still eyeing the open safe.

      Marc rubbed his palm over his chest. “She watched your fingers.”

      “You...” Hank blinked at him. “You knew?”

      Marc nodded. Pearl had pulled a similar stunt.

      The abrupt silence that fell over the room stood in stark contrast to the noise echoing from the main part of the hotel.

      In the ensuing hush Marc came to a decision. “I’m going out. While I’m gone, switch that,” he pointed to the safe, “with the one in my rooms upstairs.”

      “Sure thing, boss.”

      Marc paced to the doorway. Hank stopped him before he could leave. “Where you headed? In case I need you.”

      Taking a deep, calming breath, Marc stated the obvious. “Hollady Street.” Where the bulk of Denver’s brothels were located.

      “The Row? You think Miss O’Connor lives...there?”

      “It’s the most logical place for a woman like her.”

      Not that Marc thought she was a regular, run-of-the-mill prostitute. Considering her mode of dress and impeccable speech, he feared she was something far worse. A madam. One who employed the kind of girls Marc hired away for their own good.

      This was no longer about money. In truth, his clash with Miss O’Connor had never been about the contents of her reticule. But rather, how and why she’d acquired the large sum.

      Marc wasn’t through with the woman.

      Once he located her on The Row he would explain to her, in excruciating detail, why she could not use his hotel to conduct her unsavory business ever again. No matter how discreet or desperate she might be. He would then seek out Judge Greene and explain the situation to him as well.

      This wasn’t personal. Hotel Dupree’s sterling reputation was at stake, a reputation Marc had spent three years honing to perfection.

      “One thing’s for certain, Hank. I’ll root our little fox out of her lair before daybreak. And when I’m through with her, she’ll be sorry she ever strayed into my hotel.”

      Hank’s smile bowed with the same grim determination Marc savored in his own heart. “Happy hunting, boss.”

      Chapter Four

      Home at last, Laney stood at the bottom of the front steps and admired the three-story house glowing golden under the streetlamp. She couldn’t help but smile at the house that was now a home for nearly thirty abandoned children.

      After four lean years, and two strapping loans, Laney had turned the ordinary structure into an enchanting brick mansion. The result was as fine as any house owned by her fashionable neighbors in the Highlands of North Denver. She’d come a long way from the grubby mining camps and saloons of her childhood.

      In her overzealous attempt to provide more than a roof and bed for the children, she’d left no detail to chance. She’d furnished the twelve bedrooms, two sitting rooms, and three parlors with tasteful furniture. She’d hung expensive wallpaper, ordered rugs straight from Paris, and purchased assorted fineries for every room.

      Perhaps she’d gone a bit overboard.

      How could she not? What better way to demonstrate God’s majesty than by providing the children with unspeakable beauty and grandeur in their everyday lives? Lives that had been filled with far too much squalor and despair prior to arriving at Charity House.

      An image of Marc Dupree splintered through her thoughts and a sudden, ugly dose of conscience whipped through Laney. She hadn’t behaved completely without fault tonight. In fact, she’d been intentionally misleading, deceptive even, practically lying to the man. Just how far was she willing to go to save Charity House from foreclosure?

      The front door opened a crack, rescuing Laney from further reflection on the consequences of her behavior this evening. Katherine Taylor, the young woman she’d left in charge, came out onto the porch. “Well? What happened?”

      Laney skipped up the steps. “We did it, Katherine.” She pulled her friend into a fierce hug. “Our worries are finally over.”

      “You got the money? He gave you all of it?” Katherine pulled back and searched Laney’s face. “All five hundred dollars? How did you convince him?”

      “The details aren’t important.”

      Stepping farther back, Katherine scanned Laney from head to toe. “What happened to Sally’s dress?”

      “Plans changed.” Laney held up the gold silk bundle. “I had to switch clothes at the last minute.”

      Katherine planted her balled fists on her hips. “You didn’t do anything unlawful, did you?”

      “Of course not.”

      The truth, up to a point. She’d only allowed Dupree to think she’d planned to conduct a shameful act with Judge Greene. Her actions had been misleading, but not criminal.

      Considering how Katherine would worry herself sick if she knew the full story, Laney decided to keep the details of her encounter with Dupree to herself. “I have in my possession the money we need to save Charity House. Now stop with the questions and enjoy our moment of triumph.”

      “Oh, I’m thrilled. But why won’t you look me in the eye? I’m almost twenty. Plenty old enough to handle whatever it is you’re hiding from me.”

      Laney squared her shoulders. But to her chagrin, she couldn’t hold Katherine’s gaze longer than a second or two. It was no use pretending all was well. She was going to have to tell her friend at least part of what had occurred this evening. “Don’t start making judgments before you hear the whole story.”

      “Oh, Laney, what did you do?”

      “Only what was necessary.”

      “No, I’m sure you did more, as always. Look at this place.” She wound her hand in a circle. “It’s a mansion. Orphanages are usually full of filth, misery and despair, especially for the likes of us, the unwanted children of prostitutes.”

      Uncomfortable with the turn in conversation, Laney grimaced. “I didn’t do anything special.”

      “No,

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