Brides of Idaho by Ford Linda;

Author:Ford, Linda; [Ford, Linda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 4683613
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2012-12-14T05:00:00+00:00

Trace studied his face in the tiny mirror. Shaved, his hair combed back, he looked his very best. But what did Mandy see? A man with a secret, certainly. But did she see the man he’d once been? A man with normal hopes and aspirations? He touched the edges of his damp hair. Maybe he should get Cora to trim the ends. He jerked his hands from his head. Why had he agreed to go to the stopping house for dinner? “I should have told her I changed my mind.”

Cora peered over his shoulder, checking his every move, pointing out a missed whisker, an untidy bit of hair. “Can’t see any reason why you would.”

He faced her. “I don’t like leaving you alone.”

“You aren’t. I have Goliath with me.”

“Some protection that is.”

“If I hear anyone approaching, I’ll slip away and hide.” She patted his arm as if he needed reassuring. “Don’t worry. I’ll be fine. Besides, don’t you think it’s time you met Mandy’s family?”

“Why?”

“Seems the next logical step.”

“To what?”

She chuckled softly. “Your growing fondness for her.”

“Fondness?” He sputtered. “How can you say that? All we do is fight. Or at least spar. So far we haven’t resorted to fisticuffs. Or gunfights.” Though their first meeting had involved him wrestling her to the ground. But then he didn’t know she was a woman, so he could be excused.

“You’re both dancing around what you feel. Not quite certain if it’s real. Or if you want it to be. I think she is as cautious as you about letting herself care about someone. But she is sweet, don’t you think?”

“No. She’s anything but. Try sharp, annoying—”

“Once the two of you decide to trust each other, that will all be nothing.”

“Cora, you’re sixteen years old. I hardly think that qualifies you as an expert on romance.”

“Almost seventeen, dear brother. And I don’t have to be an expert to see what’s right in front of me.” She patted his arm in a motherly gesture that made him want to gnash his teeth. “Now you go meet her family and make a good impression.”

He slammed his hat on his head, but his anger had already burned itself out. “I won’t stay long so—”

“I am not worried. I am not afraid. Bye.”

He paused to kiss her cheek and pat Goliath on the head. “Take care of her,” he murmured to the cat. But as he strode down the path toward town, he fought his doubts. Having Cora turn this into—what? Romance? Well, what did he think it would be? A business meeting?

No. He knew it was more. But he couldn’t say what. Or if he welcomed more. All he knew was he longed to know about Mandy Hamilton.

He approached the town as the ferry crossed the river with men and horses on board. More prospectors seeking gold in the Kootenais. He had no such aspirations. All he wanted was peace and solitude.

He chuckled. Mandy had made both impossible, but he found he didn’t object.

This being the first trip to Bonners Ferry since he’d passed through on his arrival, he glanced about.

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