Desperate Hearts by Rosanne Bittner

Author:Rosanne Bittner [Rosanne Bittner]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Western
ISBN: 9781492602781
Google: tegUBAAAQBAJ
Amazon: 1492602787
Goodreads: 21996372
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc.
Published: 2014-09-01T23:00:00+00:00

Twenty

Elizabeth opened the parlor door after seeing through the curtained window that a woman and young girl stood outside. “Yes?”

“I’m Anne Henderson,” the woman greeted Elizabeth with a very strong Southern accent. “My husband, Charlie, runs a general store up the street. I saw your poster about teaching, and I wondered if you’d teach my girl here. Her name is Tilly. She’s seven.”

Elizabeth welcomed the chance to finally have a purpose here in Alder. “Yes, come in!” she told Anne, stepping aside.

The woman and her daughter entered hesitantly. Anne Henderson was very thin, with ash blond hair and pale brown eyes. Her hair was drawn tightly back into a bun and her dress was a plain dark blue. Tilly stared at Elizabeth wide-eyed, but smiled when Elizabeth said hello to her.

“Are you a trained schoolteacher?” Anne asked Elizabeth after they sat down.

“Well, not as far as having a specific certificate to teach, but I…” She told herself to be careful about her background. “I went to a women’s finishing school in St. Louis, and I am quite well educated—enough to help teach reading and basic math to youngsters. When I arrived here I thought it might be a way to make a little money. I thought ten cents a day for each child would be fair. I would of course furnish the books. Do you think that’s reasonable?”

Anne smoothed the back of her daughter’s hair. “In a gold town, suppliers like my husband do well enough to afford that. We came out here from Alabama. We lost our home and farm in the war. Luckily my husband had saved some money nobody knew about. We used it to buy a wagon full of supplies and headed west. We didn’t know what else to do.” A sadness came into her eyes. “I miss our home, but a man has to do what he can to feed his family, so here we are.”

“I understand. I miss my home, too.”

Anne nodded. “You do seem well-bred, so some of us can’t help wondering what brings a fine young lady like yourself to a place like Alder. After all, a lot of people come here with questionable pasts, and we will be entrusting our children to your care.”

Elizabeth wondered how much longer she could avoid the truth. “It’s a long story, and I prefer not to share it for now. I assure you that I am reputable and well educated. I just thought I could use that in places like Alder, where there are no schools yet.”

Anne scrutinized her warily. “Well, I suppose that’s good enough for now. At least you live here at Ma’s and not above one of the saloons.”

“I assure you, I am not of that sort,” Elizabeth answered. She was growing tired of the constant reference to the town prostitutes, but she supposed it was a natural curiosity in a place like Alder. “You said earlier ‘we will be entrusting our children to your care.’ Are there other children you think might be able to take advantage of my teaching?”

Anne nodded.

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