He shrugged. “I can see where I came on a little strong.”
A little strong? A cavalry troop charging into battle would have exhibited more restraint. “I suppose that’s all that needs to be said.”
“Since I have no intention of climbing back out the window, you won’t mind if I move that dresser?”
The sudden change of subject caught her off guard. Her gaze swung to the massive piece of furniture. “Of course not. But let me assist you. It’s extremely difficult to maneuver.”
“That’s all right. I can handle it.”
And he did. She scarcely had time to appreciate his display of muscular strength before the deed was accomplished.
He opened the door. The cat bounded down the stairs. Instead of imitating the feline’s speedy departure, Burke propped his shoulder negligently against the door frame and studied her with disturbing intensity.
“So what have you decided?” he asked.
“About this place?”
“For starters.”
She looked around regretfully. “I suppose I’ll have to sell the building and find another.”
“That could take a while.”
“July is almost gone,” she’d said unhappily. “I’d hoped to open my school for a fall session.”
“It’s going to be tough to make that deadline.”
“I know. The only bright spot on the horizon is the bank draft I’m expecting from Uncle Clarence.”
It seemed odd to share her feelings with a virtual stranger. And yet something about Burke’s implacable strength encouraged a confidence or two. Despite his shocking lack of manners, she sensed in him an astute mind capable of untangling complex problems. What would it be like to call such a man friend and benefit from his store of knowledge?
The direction of her thoughts astonished Jayne. The last thing she wanted or needed was an ally as domineering as Burke Youngblood. At the first opportunity, he would become a tyrant.
Loud male voices poured through the window. Jayne winced. She was getting used to being awakened during the night by rowdy revelers.
Burke rubbed his jaw. “After I left today, I did some checking.”
“Checking?”
“About possible sites for the kind of school you want to open.”
He had her undivided attention. “And?”
“I might have found something that will work for you.”
When he failed to elaborate, Jayne assumed he’d devised a new way to torture her. He was going to force her to pry the information from him. Pride tempted her to send him on his way without making any inquiries.
Strange, she hadn’t realized before that an overabundance of pride was a flaw with which she had to contend.
She thought she detected a hint of amusement in his dark eyes. He knew, blast his black heart, that he’d baited his hook with an irresistible lure. Her desire to maintain control over her life warred violently against the untenable situation in which she’d inadvertently placed herself. No one was going to send their daughter to a school that had formerly been a brothel.
From the street below, another spate of rude laughter filled her chamber. Postponing the moment of surrender, which was how she viewed soliciting any information from him, she walked to the window. It appeared that, even after she rid herself of Burke Youngblood’s presence, another raucous night would prevent her from getting a decent night’s sleep.
She stared down at the street. Wild and woolly men seemed to come alive after dark. While under the influence of intoxicating spirits, they weren’t reticent at whooping their nighttime jubilation at the top of their lungs.
Her gaze dropped to the narrow ledge. It was a miracle that Youngblood had reached her in one piece. She frowned. Technically speaking, she supposed the safe arrival of Burke Youngblood in her bedchamber ought not to be termed a miracle. It should be called a catastrophe.
She turned. It was time to forget pride. She would pump him for all the information she could drain, get him to vacate the premises and maintain control of her destiny.
“I’m very interested in hearing about the building you’ve found.”
She was shocked at the physical and emotional distress the moderately expressed words caused. Her skin burned, her throat tightened and her hands shook. Her discomfort sprang from more than the simple act of swallowing her pride. Something about making herself vulnerable to this man sent out a war cry that she don a full coat of armor.
Somehow, on a battlefield utterly alien to her, she and Burke Youngblood had become engaged in a compelling conflict, the scope of which was shrouded in mystery. For a panicky moment, she wanted to run. Reason intruded. Surely it was only her imagination fostering these fanciful images of swordplay, of victors and losers, of...absolute surrender.
“I’ll show you the building in the morning.”
She rubbed her forehead. It made sense to see the location by light of day, but she was uneasy about spending more time in his disturbing company. “All right.”
“Have you packed the things you’ll need to stay at a hotel?”
The blandly asked question made her head snap up. She’d assumed he’d forgotten his demand that she sleep elsewhere. This was it, the one issue upon which she wouldn’t compromise. It was one thing to accept business advice from him. She had to draw the line, however, at letting him dominate her personal life.
She drew a deep breath. “Mr. Youngblood—”
“Burke,” he corrected quietly, straightening from his casual stance at the doorway. “Since we’re going to be working together to get this school of yours established, we. might as well be on a first-name basis.”
Again she experienced the sensation that he was taking over, but calling him by his first name was no grave hardship. “Burke, I’m not staying at a hotel.”
He stepped toward her. “I know you’d rather remain here, but it’s Friday night. The saloons are brimming with miners, cowpunchers, gamblers and fancy women. Tomorrow will be even worse. This building happens to be sitting in the middle of all the excitement. You aren’t safe here, Jayne.”
“I haven’t had any trouble.” She tried to ignore the music, laughter and quarrelsome voices that kept intruding upon their conversation.
“It’s blind luck that trouble hasn’t already found you. Be sensible. Cut your losses and spend the night where you know you’ll be safe.”
“I’m not going anywhere until you explain why you’re determined to involve yourself in my life.” She hadn’t planned on demanding an explanation for his forced entry into her world, but she needed to know what was motivating his sudden concern for her and her school.
A half smile slanted his narrow lips. Her heart performed a most peculiar maneuver—something between a flip and a twist.
“I guess I have been a little high-handed,” he drawled.
High-handed? Again she was put in mind of a military confrontation. Forget the cavalry. He’d thundered into her sphere with the jarring force of barbarian hordes sweeping across ancient Europe.
Doubting he would appreciate the comparison, she searched for words that wouldn’t further inflame his domineering tendencies. “You’ve been acting as if you were the most tyrannical of fathers.”
He flinched, but the smile remained. “Believe me, I have no intention of acting like your father.”
Jayne decided he was. deliberately trying to charm her. She hardly knew how to react.