Rose by Jill Marie Landis

Author:Jill Marie Landis [Landis, Jill Marie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance, Historical, General, Fiction
ISBN: 9780515103465
Google: gOqmRSMTgykC
Amazon: 0515103462
Publisher: Jove
Published: 1990-09-01T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter

Twelve

The golden glow from the hanging chandelier in the Ruffled Garter could not match the radiant gleam in Flossie Gibbs’s eyes as she gazed at the crowd that had assembled at Paddie’s to celebrate her birthday. Laughter and applause followed shouts of surprise as hoots and hollers fairly shook the walls of the saloon. Rosa joined in the celebration, clapping as wildly as the others, while Flossie beamed and preened, a riotous vision of flaming hennaed hair, chartreuse satin, and black lace.

“Thank you, one and all!” Floss yelled above the ruckus. With a flourish, Paddie handed her a tumbler full of his finest whiskey, and she held the glass aloft in a toast to the crowd. “I don’t know how you all found out about my birthday”—her eyes sparkled with innocent mischief—“but damned if I’m not glad you did! Here’s to me, here’s to you, and here’s to more birthdays!”

Despite Flossie’s feigned surprise, Rosa knew that everyone in the room—aside from a few cowboys new to the surrounding ranches—had known for weeks about the birthday. The madam herself had let the “secret” slip at least once a day for the last three months.

The morning of the big event, as she had done in previous years, Flossie purposely kept herself occupied in her room while Chicago Sue, Mira, Felicity, and Satin oversaw preparations for the gala at Paddie’s. Rosa volunteered to bake Flossie’s favorite birthday cake—chocolate with berry filling— when she learned about the annual celebration undertaken every October twenty-third. What amazed her the most was the expression of absolute astonishment Flossie enacted when she entered the saloon on Slick Knox’s arm and found them all gathered and shouting “Surprise!”

The melodic notes Slick now milked out of the little-used piano standing against the far wall added a festive touch to the atmosphere, and moved by the contagious revelry, Rosa found herself enjoying everyone’s antics. Flossie insisted there be games, and so, like obedient children, even the roughest cowhands lined up to bob for apples. Between the bobbing and the drinking, the cowhands became pleasantly tipsy, and Rosa, dressed once again in the rose-patterned skirt and jacket she had worn to the barbecue at Mountain Shadows, soon found herself the object of their more amorous attention. Firm but patient, Rosa brushed aside a squeeze here, a pinch there, and found herself grateful for Zach, who always seemed to be hovering somewhere nearby. His quelling one-eyed stare served her well that evening whenever any of the men became too forward.

Paddie put Rosa to work behind the bar after a brief discussion between him and Zach in which they determined it was the safest place for her. Sheltered by the stout barricade of the long bar, Rosa observed the goings on in relative safety. She could not help but admire the ease with which Flossie’s girls handled the advances of the men. Where she had blushed and skirted shy of wandering hands, she noticed that even young Chicago Sue was adept at swatting the men playfully aside.

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