carried responsibilities with it. He couldn't act on his impulses, no
matter how irresistible they were.
Caleb began to fidget in his arms then, pulling Cole back from his
fantasies. The baby was wet. Cole quickly found his nappies and lay
him on the side of the bed close to Jessica.
"No, " Caleb chanted over and over. He swung his leg up, kicking Cole
in the arm, and tried to flip over so that he could slide down on the
floor.
"Oh, no you don't, " Cole whispered. "You're going to get changed, and
then you're going to sleep." He tied the straps securing the nappy,
picked up Caleb, then grabbed his baby doll and shoved it into his
arms. The baby was grinning and chattering away as Cole carried him
over to the narrow cot the manager had sent up, tucked him in, and
quietly left the room.
Caleb was right behind him. Jessica heard Cole mumble something under
his breath and covered her mouth with her hands so he wouldn't hear her
laugh. She had been horrified to find him in her room, but then she'd
heard him whispering to her son and realized his intentions were quite
honorable. Cole was a good man, and she and her son were perfectly
safe with him.
She fell asleep with good intentions of rescuing Cole.
Caleb ended up sleeping on Cole's lap for a couple of hours, woke up
chattering, and then fell asleep on Daniel's shoulder. Needless to
say, the marshals didn't get much rest.
Xaniel was summoned to the telegraph office at seven the following
morning.
Cole met Sloan in the lobby and ordered him to hire two deputies to
help guard the women. He waited at the hotel until the sheriff
strolled in a few minutes later with Robert York and John Carver. The
two men were heavily armed and looked dangerous. They convinced Cole
they knew what they were doing, and he quickly filled them in on what
was expected of them. Jessica and Rebecca were to stay in their rooms
until the marshals returned to meet with them. Grace had been ordered
to stay in bed until the doctor looked in on her that afternoon.
"Don't let anyone but Dr. Lawrence go upstairs, " he ordered. "York,
you stand outside Jessica's door. Carver, you take Rebecca's, and
Sloan, you watch Grace's."
"But I haven't had my morning coffee yet.
Couldn't I go into the dining room and get something to eat? " Sloan
moaned.
"No, " Cole answered. "You're going to stay outside Grace's door. t}
Lack of sleep made Cole more surly than usual, and Sloan was smart
enough not to provoke him.
Cole took the key to the jail from the sheriff and headed across
town.
The office was stuffy, and so he left the door open to get some fresh
air. Everything smelled like smoke to him, which was probably why he
didn't have an appetite.
It was almost eight when Daniel arrived. He carried a pot of coffee in