Wilderness Courtship ; Courting Miss Adelaide by Valerie Hansen

Author:Valerie Hansen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2018-07-05T19:10:31+00:00

* * *

Charles watched Miss Crum cross the street and enter her shop. As the door closed behind her, he detected a little twinge of disappointment. Silly. The lady was a client, nothing more.

Beside him, Fannie cocked her head. “Promise you won’t forget to take the jam home. I put it on your desk.”

“How could I forget?”

She giggled, and then jiggling her fingers at him, she flounced down the walk.

Charles let out a gust of air. He needed to help Teddy get the presses running, but he stayed at the door, thinking not about Fannie, but of Miss Crum.

With his office directly across the street from her shop, he’d noticed since the interviews how little she went out. When he worked late, he’d observe her lamp lit well into the night. After seeing her today, he guessed Miss Crum was a workhorse or an insomniac. Under her pretty blue eyes, dark smudges marred her creamy skin. If he was any judge of people, and in this business he made it a point to be, Miss Crum still suffered from the committee’s rejection.

“Miss Crum’s a looker, though kind of standoffish.”

Charles hadn’t heard Teddy come up behind him. For a burly man he had a light step. Charles purposely turned a cool eye on his assistant, hoping to stop what was coming.

“Yes, sirree, she’s one fine-looking woman. Thinking about courting her?”

Charles scowled. “Where did you get that idea?”

Teddy smiled, putting his whole face into it, annoying Charles. “Oh, I’ve seen you watching her comings and goings. It’s time you quit thinking about asking her and do it.”

“My priority is to get this newspaper in shape.”

“Which you’ve done. Since you’ve taken over, the paper comes out on time and has another section. Why, it looks downright citified.” Teddy swept his arm over the room. “You’ve made this your life. A lonely way of living, that’s sure.”

The truth slammed into Charles. He was lonely. Since he arrived in town, Fannie had come by the paper with one excuse after another. But her giggling and incessant chatter put a knot in his stomach. From what she’d said, she didn’t even read the newspaper.

No, he liked the appearance and manner of Miss Crum. “I’ve considered asking her to dinner,” he said before he thought.

“Miss Whitehall or Miss Crum?”

“Miss Crum.”

Teddy raised his brows. “So, what’s stopping you?”

“A woman who applied for an orphan would have only one thing on her mind—getting married and having babies of her own. I’ve no intention of tying that knot.”

Teddy scratched the back of his neck, peering at him with mild hazel eyes. “You running away from matrimony, boss?”

Shoving his hands into his pockets, Charles studied the floor, and then raised his gaze. “In my experience, Teddy, if you smile twice at a woman, she starts planning your wedding.” His hand left his pocket and pushed through his hair. “What makes women think they know a man better than he knows himself?”

Teddy hooted. “They do, that’s a fact.” His eyes disappeared in a lopsided grin, a grin fading faster than morning glories at noon.

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