if I can avoid it, she thought, but she said, “I’ll look forward to it. However, I must tell you that I have a busy schedule. Obligations to Papa take precedence.”
Elliot’s hazel eyes crinkled at the corners and a lock of thin blond hair tumbled over his forehead as he glanced sideways. “Of course. I understand that your father is a busy man. Invaluable to the citizens of this territory.”
“Extremely invaluable,” she confirmed.
She all but collapsed in relief when Elliot released her hand then lurched around to swagger through the door. “He is going to make some woman an annoying husband,” she said under her breath. “I pray to God that it won’t be me.”
“What do you think of Elliot Webster?” her father asked as he came to stand behind her.
Alexa spoke plainly, just in case her father had ideas about marrying her off to that cocky gent. “I don’t think much of him. Pretentious. Calculating. Premeditated charm so sticky sweet that it gives me an instant toothache and—”
“By all means, don’t hold back, dear,” Harold chuckled. “Ah, where is that tact and diplomacy that I’ve tried so hard to drill into your pretty head?”
She spun to face her father directly. This was a crucial moment and her future might be at stake. This was no time for diplomacy. “You asked for my opinion and I gave it to you. I don’t like Elliot Webster and I can’t imagine that I ever will.”
She stared through the open door, watching a man in a military uniform, whose slight, lean physique seemed familiar to her, approach Elliot. The two shadowy figures spoke briefly before Elliot bounded into the carriage to return to his hotel.
“Webster expressed an interest in you, Lexi.”
“It is not returned,” she reiterated. “We are two entirely different people. At least I like to think I’m not that aloof and annoying.”
Harold’s brown eyes narrowed pensively. “He claims that he’s taken an instant liking to you and that he would like to begin a courtship that leads to marriage.”
Just as I thought, she mused uneasily. “I’m sure his supposed interest in me has everything to do with the prospect of becoming your son-in-law, not my devoted husband.”
And there was the crux of her problem with men. Alexa could never be certain if men liked her for what she was inside or because her father was powerful and influential in the territorial government. She had learned early on that she was viewed as a tool to gain favors from Harold Quinn. She had never forgotten that humiliating lesson five years earlier. Back then, she had been naive and idealistic. Now she understood that love was an illusion and that men saw her as a pawn.
Turning, Harold motioned to Maria Gomez, the housekeeper. “Please bring Lexi and me some coffee. We’ll be in the parlor.”
The Mexican housekeeper strode off as Harold guided Alexa to the tuft chair. “Actually, I’m glad you have no romantic interest in Webster. I don’t know what he’s up to or where he is getting privileged information, but it disturbs me that he knows things the rest of the public doesn’t,” he murmured.
Alexa perked up. Her father seldom took her into his confidence when it came to his business. He was usually too distracted and too busy to notice her in any capacity besides his hostess.
She savored this rare moment and vowed to do whatever was necessary to ease his concerns. She loved her father dearly, even if he had little time to spare her.
“What is it, Papa? You know I will help in any way I can.”
Harold plunked down on the sofa, then expelled a frustrated sigh. “Thank you, honey. But I’ll muddle through. No need to bother you with my concerns.”
Bother me! Include me in your life! Notice me! Please stop overlooking me! “What has Elliot Webster done to draw your concern?” she prodded. “And it best not be entangled with a scheme to marry me. I don’t want him.”
Her decisive tone drew Harold’s attention. He blinked, as if just realizing he had raised a daughter teeming with spirit and fierce independence. “When did this happen?” he mused aloud.
“About twelve years ago when Mama took Bethany and headed back East,” she replied, then wished she’d kept her trap shut. The comment caused her father to wince and shift self-consciously on the couch.
“That fiasco wasn’t fair to you, Lexi. I loved your mother, but I swear I will never understand why she left you behind.”
Alexa clasped her father’s hand, giving it a fond squeeze. “If I had been given a choice I still would have remained here with you,” she insisted. “Now tell me what Elliot Webster has done to upset you.”
Harold blew out his breath and set aside the troubled past. “In addition to his expressed interest in you, he asked about the government contracts to sell livestock to the forts and Indian reservations in the territory. The fact that I’m not satisfied with our last contract with him and have considered finding new suppliers is not common knowledge. I mentioned it at our last meeting. I fear that one of my trusted confidants has been compromised. I’d like to strangle whoever betrayed our policy of keeping such information quiet.”
“I’m not surprised to hear that Elliot has found a mole and that he might be paying for information,” said Alexa. “I don’t trust that man because I get the feeling he always has an ulterior motive.”
She also had a hunch about who might be willing to relay private information for a fistful of money. Ambrose Shelton headed up her short list of suspects. She predicted Ambrose believed himself far more capable of holding a powerful position in the territorial government than her father. Undermining Harold Quinn’s work on various government boards and committees might allow Ambrose Shelton to move up the political ladder. It was speculation, of course, but Alexa would eagerly volunteer to investigate.
“Elliot Webster will be leaving Santa Fe at the end of the week,” Harold continued. “Until he heads south to Questa Springs I will have someone shadow him.”
“Good idea. The sooner you find the snitch the better,” Alexa agreed.
“I also intend to hire an investigator to monitor Elliot’s activities when he returns to Questa Springs,” Harold confided. “I can’t entrust this inquisition to any of my associates, in case one of them is involved. That means I must enlist the help of an outside agent.”
Her father was frowning so intently that Alexa swore he was going to give himself more wrinkles. She could understand his dilemma. Everywhere Harold Quinn went the press followed. He lived under a microscope…Which made the solution to his problem so simple that she could resolve it over their evening coffee.
Excitement bubbled through Alexa while she waited for Maria Gomez to set the silver tray on the coffee table. After the servant retreated, Alexa turned to face her father directly.
“This situation can be resolved easily,” she declared while she watched her father sip his coffee.
Harold sniffed in contradiction. “I hardly think that is possible, my dear. I’m not sure who I can trust.”
“Thank you so much for the insult.”
Harold
