Sturgill - Give My All to Jessie

Nicole Sturgill

Dream Big Publishing

Byron Center, MI

This book is a work offiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or reallocales are used factiously. Other names, characters, places, andincidents are the product of the authors imagination, and anyresemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead,is entirely coincidental.

Dream Big Publishing

A publication of Dream BigPublishing

Byron Center MI

Copyright 2015 by NicoleSturgill

All rights reserved, including the right ofreproduction in

whole or in part in any form.

Dream Big Publishing is a registeredtrademark of

Dream Big Publishing.

Text of this book is set inGaramond text size 13.

Manufactured in the United States ofAmerica

All rights reserved.

Summary: Langley wantedadventure when he left home with his Uncle Jeremiah and he gotmore than he bargained for! He ends up alone before partnering upwith a rough around the edges, outlaw woman named Jessie Burke.Shes beautiful but her walls are high and Langley can only hopethat someday shell let them down.

The duo end up on an adventures that hasthem facing rocky canyons, deadly snakes and dangerous gangs. Thereare poker games, five finger matches, shootoutsand a fiery passionthat rises up and refuses to be denied.

Jessie doesnt want love.Its not for people like hershes heard that her entire life. Shedoesnt want to give that much of herself to one person butLangley awakens something inside her and she finds herself unableto resist him. She realizes shed give him anything he wantedevenher heart.

[1. Historical Fiction 2.Romance ]

9781310613807

Nicole Sturgill

Copyright 2015 by NicoleSturgill

Smashwords Edition

All rights reserved.

Chapter One

Texas April 1880

Wow! A real outlaw camp! Ive readabout these but Ive never actually seen one, Langley admitted ashe looked around with a bit of trepidation and a whole lot ofawe.

There were dirty cloth tents spread out onthe muddy ground and small fires sat here and there. Filthy, trailworn men lounged about on the ground and on logs. They were doing anumber of things. Sleeping. Smoking. Chit-chattinga few were evenentertaining scantily clad, equally filthy women who giggled atwhatever the men were saying.

The women were wearing blouses that hung offtheir shoulders and showed their bare midsections. Their skirtswere split clean to their hips and their garters were showingbeneath them. Jeremiah chuckled when he caught the directionLangleys gaze had gone.

Those are called mans best friends,Jeremiah informed him.

Are they whores? Langley whispered, thoughnot quietly enough to keep several men from glancing in theirdirection and snickering.

Keep your voice down, Langley, Jeremiahscolded. Youre supposed to be an outlaw, not some wet behind theears kid.

Langley flushed and tried to sit upstraighter in the saddle. Jeremiah sighed. In answer to yourquestion, yes theyre whores. But you aint gotta pay these onesfor their services. Their payment is a warm meal and a place tosleep.

Langley grinned. Mama would shit a brick ifshe knew where we were.

Jeremiah shook his head. You better notever tell her or your damned pa! Id like to not be shot dead onthe spot when I get you home.

Pa wouldnt really shoot you dead, Langleyassured him, but Jeremiah merely shrugged.

Langley couldnt seem to wipe the happysmile from his face. The last three months or so had been the mostexciting of his life. Hed had the most fun hed ever had before.He and his Uncle Jeremiah had traveled lots of miles. Theyd campedfor days at a time beneath the stars, spending their times hunting,playing poker and enjoying having zero responsibilities.

Theyd spent some time in towns along theway and Langley had gotten his first taste of a real saloonwhiskeywas dangerous, he had decided.

Jeremiah always had more fun than Langley inthe saloons and brothels because he sampled the womenlots ofwomen! Langley would not ever lay with a working woman even if theydid seem more than willing. He figured that no woman grew up hopingto one day be a whore and after what had happened to his mama andhis sister, Langley would never take advantage.

Jeremiah! A booming voice called outbehind them.

The two men turned atop their horses andLangleys eyes widened at the sight of the large man who hadhollered. He was close to six and a half feet tall with a belly torival the largest of bellies. The man was an Indian and his longblack hair whipped in the breeze as the beads adorning some of thestrands clanked against one another.

He had a white owl feather sticking in hisbowler cap and his wide face was covered in pock mocks and scars. Afriendly smile was on his face, however, and his brown eyes didntseem mean.

Hawkins! Jeremiah greeted. How are youdoing? he asked, jumping from his horse. Langley followed suit,happy to stretch out his aching legs.

Im doing good, Jeremiah. Doing good.Hawkins glanced around. Wheres Duke? You two are usuallyconnected at the hip.

Pa always said it was the backside theywere connected at, Langley countered with a chuckle.

Hawkins turned his amused smile in Langleysdirection. And who might you be, kid?

This is Langley. My nephew, Jeremiahreplied for him as Langley held out his hand.

Hawkins eyed the polite gesture withamusement before shaking Langleys hand. I didnt know thatMarston had a youngin.

Three actually, Langley admitted. Headopted me and my sister Kaitlyn and then him and mama hadLucy.

Thats enough, Jeremiah snapped sharply.When both Langley and Hawkins eyed him curiously, Jeremiahshrugged. The man doesnt care about your life story.

Hawkins turned back to Jeremiah. Ill tellyou what. Ive got some things to take care of but why dont youall come over to my fire and join me after a while. Its been along time since we found each other at the same camp.

I reckon we should have time, Jeremiahagreed.

Jeremiah walked off and Langley quicklyhopped over the legs of a sleeping man with a handlebar mustache ashe took his black geldings reins and chased after his uncle.

You need to learn a few things, Langley,Jeremiah warned. Not a single man here is your friend. Every oneof them would gladly sacrifice your ass in order to keep their ownnecks out of a noose. Dont be playing friends and telling them allabout your life or your family. There are men here that would takepleasure in hunting them down, murdering the men, raping the womenand burning everything you own to the ground.

We aint that bad, a white-haired men witha gleaming bald spot on the center of his head countered.

Jeremiah shoved the man out of his way as hecontinued walking. Maybe not all of them, but most of them. Itsbetter to take zero chances. Trust no one.

So, trusting is a no-no, Langley noted ashe jumped sidestepped a small brown dog that was crisscrossingbetween his legs. What are we doing here if you dont trustanyone?

Because I enjoy that, Jeremiah repliedwith a grin.

Langley followed his gaze and saw the tall,big breasted, brunette wearing nothing but a corset and petticoatwaving her fingers at them.

Oh, Langley mumbled.

Thats what makes a boy a man, Jeremiahboasted.

Langley just shook his head. He happened tobelieve there was more to being a man than chasing after taintedwomen, but his equally tainted uncle sure didnt seem to share hisopinion.

He followed Jeremiah through camp and tookin everything around him. Men were laughing, cracking vulgar jokes,cursing, spitting and playing poker and a bloody game called FiveFinger. Masculine grunting and feminine moans could be heard behindmany of the dirty panels of cloth that made up the tents.