Silver Linings

toes. The lady always did have lousy timing. One of these days he hoped she would get it right.
    He forced himself to keep his eyes on the widening crack of light in the doorway. First things first.
    A familiar figure was revealed briefly in the weak light that entered the room from the hall. The figure crept stealthily into the room, easing the door shut behind him.
    Hugh pulled the hammer back on the revolver. The soft, deadly click was as loud as a cannon in the small room. The figure near the door froze, obviously recognizing that particular sound at once. A man of the world.
    Mattie's hand shifted slightly on Hugh's chest at that moment, her fingertip grazing his flat nipple. Hugh stifled a groan and watched his quarry.
    “I knew I was going to regret taking you off Purgatory, Rosey.” Hugh kept his voice to the level of the softest of whispers, but he knew Rosey heard him.
    “What the hell…?” Rosey's muttered exclamation was nearly as soft as Hugh's words had been.
    Mattie murmured in her sleep and her fingers began to slip gently through Hugh's chest hair to his belly, which went taut at the caress. He held himself as still as Rosey.
    “Wake her up and I'll be real pissed, Rosey.”
    “I thought you was sleepin' down the hall. Desk clerk said so.” Rosey sounded peevish, but he obediently kept his voice low.
    “You thought wrong.”
    Mattie's foot came into contact with Hugh's leg. He could feel her toes nibbling at him like tiny little fish. The delicate, unconscious caress sent a ripple of electricity through him.
    “Look, no hard feelings or anything, okay? It was all a mistake, see.” Rosey started to edge backward to the door.
    “A big mistake. What were you after?”
    “Just a few bucks. I know she's got a wad in that fancy purse of hers. You can always tell by the purse and the shoes, y'know? Real leather. High-quality stuff.”
    Hugh relaxed slightly, aware of the ring of truth in Rosey's whining voice. His initial annoyance had been generated by the certainty that Rosey must have seen Mattie in the red sarong earlier this evening and had come to her room with something more reprehensible in mind than simple motel theft. “You're lucky I'm feeling in a good mood tonight, Rosey. I'm not going to blow your head off. At least not right at the moment.”
    “You wouldn't do it anyway,” Rosey declared with rash insight. “ She wouldn't like it. Just like she didn't approve of you threatenin' to cut me and Gibbs' throats on Purgatory. Like she wouldn't let you leave us behind.”
    “She might not approve, but she couldn't stop me. Get me mad enough, Rosey, and I won't give a damn what she thinks. Keep that in mind and we'll get along just fine.”
    Mattie sighed softly and her hand moved lower, her fingers sliding inside the opening of Hugh's briefs and tangling lightly in the thick, curling hair there. A distinct bulge appeared in the sheet that covered his thighs. Hugh stifled another groan and through monumental willpower managed to keep most of his attention on Rosey.
    The wiry little man had sidled back to the door and was starting to open it.
    “Hold it,” Hugh ordered quietly just as Mattie's thumb gently trailed across the base of his heavy erection. He realized his manhood had come free of the briefs. His muscles were all violently taut, and the hand that held the gun trembled faintly.
    With great care, Hugh uncocked the revolver. No sense accidentally spraying Rosey's few brains against the wall in a moment of uncontrollable passion. “I want to talk to you for a second, Rosey.”
    “Look, I told you, it was all a mistake. I wasn't gonna hurt her. Just needed a few bucks. Me and Gibbs didn't have much with us when you stole our boat, y'know. We're kinda short.”
    “Something tells me it wasn't the first time you've had to leave town in a hurry. Rosey, before you go, I want to make certain we have an understanding. First, come anywhere near Miss Sharpe again and I'll be very, very annoyed. Clear?”
    “Yeah, yeah. Clear. Now, don't get up or nothin'. I'll see myself out.”
    “One more thing.”
    “Sheesh. Don't you ever stop givin' orders?”
    “Not until I get what I want.”
    Rosey hovered near the door. “What the hell do you want?”
    “A name. A friend of mine died on Purgatory.”
    “Yeah? Who?” Rosey sounded vaguely interested now.
    “Paul Cormier.”
    There was a small pause. “I knew Cormier. He was okay, him and his white shoes and all. Made me a