Ruby by Lauraine Snelling & Alexandra O'Karm

Author:Lauraine Snelling & Alexandra O'Karm [Snelling, Lauraine & O'Karm, Alexandra]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: General, Fiction, Historical, Religious, Christian, ebook, book
ISBN: 9781402572418
Google: kezbmCcGaaAC
Amazon: 1402572417
Publisher: Bethany House
Published: 2003-08-01T05:00:00+00:00

“You’re going fishing? Ugh.” Cimarron made a face.

“Have you ever gone fishing?” Opal stood at the dry sink washing the breakfast dishes while Milly tidied up the rooms of their guests.

“No, but my brothers used to. You can believe they scaled and cleaned them too—I wouldn’t touch them.”

“But you like to eat fish?”

Ruby looked over to her sister. What was going on in that head behind the innocent face?

“If I go catch the fish, can we say I am repaying you for making my skirt a divided one?”

“If you’d like.”

“And if I caught lots of fish, you might be willing to fix another skirt?”

Cimarron laughed, an unmistakable laugh with half a horse whinny in it. “Opal, you don’t have to pay me for sewing for you. Your sister is doing that.”

When she can. The thought sent Ruby’s mind off on the track of trying to figure out a way to bring in enough money to stay in business.

Cimarron glanced out the window overlooking the hen house and garden. “I see Charlie is hard at it. Since you came, Ruby, he’s been going like a barn a’burning.”

“You mean he wasn’t always this way?”

“Nope.” Daisy flipped the bread dough over and kneaded from the other side. “He did a garden last year but not with all the hummin’ and whistlin’ I hear goin’ on.”

“Why do you suppose that is?” Ruby asked.

“No idea, unless he feels like all of us do. You make us feel needed, even important.”

“Oh.”

“Whole place feels different.”

Yes, it feels empty. But the men had played cards until long after she went to bed and seemed to be having a good time, even without the liquor. Charlie had dealt at the second table.

Opal took her dishpan to dump the water in the barrel outside. “Charlie is ready to plant, and I’m going to help him.” She clattered the pan onto its nail on the wall behind the stove. “Milly, you want to come help me?”

Milly glanced at Ruby to catch her nod.

Cimarron watched the girls leap from the porch, calling to Charlie. “You know, I think that Milly likes Charlie.” She raised her brows to indicate her meaning.

“Nah.” Daisy shook her head as she thumped the bread over again. “He’s too old for her.”

Ruby looked up from her writing to catch Cimarron’s raised eyebrow. “She’s too young to be interested in men.”

“She’s fifteen.”

“But that’s . . .” Ruby stopped to think. Back east Milly would still be a schoolgirl, but out here, she’d heard of girls marrying by fifteen. “You think Charlie realizes it?”

“Nope, he’s been eyeing me for the last two years.” Cimarron snipped the thread with her scissors. “He hides it well but a couple of times I caught a look in his eyes. Shame, ’cause I don’t feel that way about him at all.” She held her needle up to the window to see the eye better.

Daisy was silent but was kneading the bread with a little more gusto than Ruby thought was necessary. And Daisy has feelings for him too.

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