Gunsmoke: Never Wanna Live Without You
Part 1
"Kitty's gonna be upset," Matt said to himself as he walked briskly to the Long Branch. He and Kitty were supposed to take supper by the creek later on, but he had just received a telegraph stating that his presence was needed in Garden City. If he left soon and rode hard, he would get there by the end of the night.
Stopping at the double doors, he looked inside and spotted her at a table in front, chatting and laughing with some cowboy. She was a beautiful sight in a red, satin dress with black, lace trim and black heels. Kitty had been in Dodge for six months already, but whenever he saw her, it was like he was seeing her for the first time. She was absolutely breathtaking. He snapped himself out of it and walked inside.
Kitty noticed him right away and excused herself. "Hello, Matt," she said with a smile, meeting him over at the bar. She was very much looking forward to dinner with him later on. From the moment she first laid eyes on the huge man she was smitten. Her attraction to him was immediate and she was glad to find that the magnetism was returned.
She had begun work at the Long Branch almost immediately and he and Chester would come in almost every evening to have a drink with her. She was often invited to dine with them, including Doc Adams, but it took a whole three months before Matt had finally asked her to eat dinner with him alone. It was also that night that he had kissed her for the first time and it was by far the most amazing kiss she ever had. No man had ever affected her the way he did.
"Hi, Kitty," he said as he pushed his hat back. His eyes took a quick scan of her body.
"How about a beer?" she asked.
"No, thanks, Kitty. I actually came to talk to you about tonight," he said lowering his voice to an intimate level.
"What about it?" Kitty asked even though she could probably guess.
"I don't think I'll be able to make it. I just got a telegram from Garden City and they need me up there right away," he told her, watching her closely to gauge her reaction. This wasn't the first time Matt had to break a date with her and so far she had been understanding. He couldn't help wondering when she would get sick of it though and maybe sick of him. It happened with past girlfriends and even though Kitty was like no woman he had ever met, he couldn't help wondering how long this thing they had would last. Sometimes it seemed too good to be true.
Kitty only sighed. She was disappointed, but she wasn't upset with him. She knew from the beginning that his job kept him busy and she knew that she couldn't expect him to drop everything for her all the time. "It's alright, Matt. I understand. You just go on and be careful," she told him seriously. "I just found you and I'm not ready to let you go yet," she smiled. Matt returned her smile and reached over to take her hand.
"Thanks, Kitty." He wanted very badly to kiss her lips goodbye, but not in front of a room full of people. Instead, he opted for the back of her hand. "I'll see you when I get back." She gave him one last smile and he watched for a moment as she walked back over to the cowboy from earlier, then he headed out to the stables.
MKMK
Two days passed before Matt got back to town. He was beyond tired and in need of a bath and a shave, but above all that he wanted a nice cold beer and to see Kitty. He dropped his horse off to Moss Grimmick and headed toward the Long Branch. Stopping just inside the double doors, he looked around, but didn't spot her.
"Welcome back, Marshal. What can I get you?" Sam asked as he approached the bar.
"Thanks, Sam. I'll have a beer," Matt ordered, figuring Kitty would be back before he was done. He took his drink and went to stand at the far end of the bar. He was about halfway through with it when he heard the unmistakable sound of her laughter outside. Looking toward the door, he saw her enter with the cowboy from two nights ago right behind her, his arms full of packages.
"Thanks for carrying my things, John," he heard her say. "You can just sit them on the table here." Matt watched as the man did just that and smiled at Kitty. He stood about two inches taller than her with black hair that was a little on the long side. He had a handsome, chiseled face and hazel eyes.
"It's no problem, Kitty," he said with a smooth, deep voice. "Anytime you need anything, all you got to do is ask." Matt continued to watch as they talked for a few more moments. He immediately noticed the way John looked at Kitty and he knew what that look was. He had noticed it a couple of days ago, too, but a lot of men looked at her that way and he certainly couldn't blame them. She looked absolutely stunning in a green and gold dress with matching hat, handbag and parasol. The dress hugged, dipped and flowed in all the right places. Matt imagined that quite a few of the men in Dodge got cricks in their necks when she walked down the street. It didn't bother him that other men looked at Kitty, but something about the way this John fellow stared told Matt that he was interested in more than just carrying Kitty's packages.
Matt didn't know why he was worrying over it though. Despite the fact that he and Kitty had had some fun together over the past three months, he hadn't asked her to be his girl and wasn't sure that he was going to. Not with a job like his and not after the disaster with Leona. So far, in his days as marshal, he hadn't met one woman who didn't have issue with his job. He tried to make it work with them, but eventually they became impatient with him and it would end badly. Kitty had been good about things, but he was still pretty sure that it was only a matter of time.
Kitty watched as John left. She had been walking home from the dress shop when he approached her and asked if he could help her. He seemed to be showing up a lot lately, when she least expected it. She'd turn around and there he was. He was always nice and polite though and he never tried anything. It seemed as if he was genuinely a nice man and she'd be lying if she said he wasn't attractive. But still, her heart was set on Matt and that wasn't changing anytime soon.
Turning around to the bar, she finally noticed him standing there. "Hey, Matt," she said giving him a big smile. "I didn't see you there. Why didn't you say something?" she asked walking over to him.
"I didn't want to interrupt anything," Matt said as he took another swallow of his beer. He would never admit that he was just a little jealous.
"Oh, that was just John. He caught me on the street and offered to carry my packages for me," Kitty explained. "I sure could use some help getting them upstairs though," she said innocently.
"Well, I think I can help you out with that," said Matt. They walked over to the table and each gathered up a handful. Kitty led the way up the stairs and handed her load to Matt while she unlocked the door.
"You can just sit them on the bed," she told him as she shut the door behind them. This was the first time that he had ever been in her room. It was decorated in dark green wallpaper on the top half of the walls, and dark wood paneling on the bottom half. There were a few pictures hung and an empty vase was sitting on the mantle of the fireplace. "When did you get back?" she asked as she took her hat off and sat it on the bed.
"Just about twenty minutes ago. I dropped my horse off and came straight here."
"Oh, well, I'm glad you made it back safely. Did everything go okay?"
"Yeah, everything was fine," Matt told her as he walked over to where she was standing. "Do you think you'll be free for dinner tonight?" he asked. Kitty looked up at him and smiled.
"I think I can manage to get away." She stepped closer and took his hands. "Aren't you gonna give me a proper hello?" she asked looking up at him suggestively. Matt stepped even closer still and placed his hands on her waist. He leaned down and kissed her tenderly. It was such a nice feeling to come home to someone who missed you. His tongue lightly teased her lips and then he slowly pulled away.
"That better?" he asked, his hands now clasped behind her back.
"Much," Kitty smiled as she laid her head on his chest, her arms wrapped as far as they could go around his middle. Oh, how she could love this man forever.
"Listen, I need to go on over and get cleaned up and get some rest. I'll be back around six to pick you up, alright?"
"I'll be here," she said. Matt leaned down to give her one last peck and then left.
As he walked along, he thought maybe he was being silly to worry about this John person. If a few minutes ago were any indication of the way Kitty felt then he knew he had nothing to worry about.
Matt walked into the jail and was glad to find it empty. It would be noon in a few minutes and all he wanted to do was sleep. Hopefully, the town would stay quiet, Chester would stay busy, and he could catch up with him later. He plopped down onto the cot, pulled off his boots and laid down, practically asleep before his head hit the pillow.
MKMK
Three hours later, Matt woke up to the sound of Chester fumbling around in the office. "…fly in the sugar bowl, shoo shoo shoo, skip to my Lou, my darlin'…" he sang. He slowly sat up on his thin cot and rubbed his gritty eyes.
"Chester?" he called, his voice thick with sleep.
"Oh, howdy, Mr. Dillon," he said with a toothy smile. "Goodness, I didn't even see ya over there. Were ya sleepin'?"
"Yeah, Chester, I was sleepin'," Matt said, amazed at his friend's simplemindedness. He grabbed for his boots knowing that it would be pointless to try and get back to sleep with Chester around. "Say, what time is it?"
"It's gettin' ta be about three fifteen," Chester answered as he poured them both a cup of coffee.
"Anything happen while I was gone?" He took the proffered cup and went to sit at his desk, taking a healthy swig to try and wake up his still drowsy mind.
"Ya know, fer once, Mr. Dillon, I can actually tell ya that ain't nothin' happened while you was gone," Chester said.
"Good." Matt finished his coffee and stood up. "Look, Chester, I'm gonna head over for a bath and shave. Keep an eye on things while I'm gone, will ya?"
"Sure thing, Mr. Dillon. I just got me a new dime novel and I've been itchin' to start readin' it," he smiled. "I'll see ya later."
MKMK
Matt sat in the barber's chair with a hot towel wrapped around his face giving an occasional "Mmhm" as Teeters talked on and on.
"Ya know that there barn dance is next week, Marshal. Half of Dodge is probably gonna be there. I hear the ladies from the church are gonna be providin' the food this year. That Widow Harper sure makes a mean batch o' fried chicken…and Mrs. Jakes' cornbread…I can hardly wait." Teeters unwrapped the towel from around his face. "You're all done, Marshal."
"Thanks," Matt told him as he stood up and began straightening his collar. He pulled out the correct amount of money and placed it in the jar and then walked over toward the door, grabbing his gun belt from the hook. Looking up at the sound of approaching footsteps, he saw the mysterious John coming in the door.
"Well, hello there, Marshal. I don't think we've actually met. Name's John Luff," introduced. The man didn't look like a gun slinger, but he looked a little too clean cut to be just a cowboy.
"Luff," Matt said with a tilt of his head.
"How long of a wait, barber?" John asked.
"'Bout ten minutes, fella." Teeters said, already started on the next man. He turned back to Matt.
"Maybe I'll see ya 'round, Marshal. I'll probably stop by the Long Branch later on." He gave a smug smile and walked over to a chair to wait. Matt watched him for a few seconds and then headed out. He didn't like him. Maybe it was because he didn't like the way he looked at Kitty or maybe it was just the feeling he had about him. Later on, he would go through the wanted posters and make sure he wasn't in there.
Matt's thoughts drifted back to what Teeter's had said earlier about the barn dance. He had yet to ask Kitty and surprisingly she had said nothing about it. He figured that by now she would be hinting at it or making preparations for a new dress. That's what Lee always did, and Cara, and they would throw some sort of fit if he wasn't able to make it, especially Cara.
Matt thought about all of the good food that Teeter's had mentioned, as well, and he almost wished the dance was tonight just so he could have some. While he was in Garden City, one of the deputies at the jail had cooked them a supper of chicken, fish and corn on the cob, directly over an open flame and the taste was incredible. It had been a long time since he had any food cooked that way. Maybe he and Kitty would skip Delmonico's tonight. He had something much better in mind.
To be continued...