by Lily Reynard
"Their services?" Emma supplied. She stood in front of her range, gently stirring a pot that was beginning to steam and issue a wonderful savory scent.
Abby nodded. "I was surprised at—well, how openly…" Again, polite vocabulary failed her. She had never expected that she would need to discuss prostitutes with anyone, least of all a minister's wife.
Emma sighed. "I suppose this will horrify you, but I have befriended most of the women living in Twin Forks. I invite them over for meals or for afternoon tea when I can."
It took all of Abby's self-control not to gape at Emma. Such a thing would have never been possible in the sheltered, socially segregated world of Philadelphia's middle class.
Her new friend continued, a defiant edge creeping into her tone as she continued to stir the soup. "It's hard, thankless labor they perform, day in and day out, offering the men here a temporary surcease from the loneliness of living far from their homes and families. And these women rarely if ever receive any comfort of their own, despite the constant perils they face from disease and rough or intoxicated clients. Is it any surprise that many of them drown their sorrows and loneliness in alcohol and laudanum? And that many of them lose their lives by over-indulging in those escapes?"
Emma's voice rose angrily at this last.
Abby shook her head. "I had no idea—I never really thought about it," she confessed. "You clearly see more than I do. Is that because of you're the minister's wife?"
Emma shook her head. "It's not merely compassion that drives me." She blew out a long sigh. "What you must think of me now, Abby! But I am compelled to tell you that I came perilously close to being forced to live as a soiled dove, myself."
Chapter 11
Emma turned to Abby, head bowed, clearly waiting for Abby to repudiate her.
Instead, Abby felt nothing but wonder. She had come to town today prepared to find herself judged and found wanting by her new friend. Instead, she now realized that Emma had been fearing the same judgment from her.
Abby put down her knife and embraced the other woman. "What happened?"
Emma clung to her, and Abby felt her trembling as she bent her head and buried her face in Abby's shoulder.
"I fell in love with a man and made a very foolish choice in hopes that he would do the honorable thing and marry me." Emma's voice was muffled. "My parents were furious when they discovered what I had done. They disowned me on the spot and kicked me out of the house. I had nothing beyond a few dollars in my purse and a single change of clothes."
Abby drew a shocked breath at the revelation. "Oh, Emma!"
For the first time, she realized how lucky she had been. After what happened with Arthur, Mother and Father were angry and disappointed with me, but they never threatened to cast me out.
Emma shook her head and clung to Abby. "If I hadn't purchased a newspaper, and if Reverend Kottinger hadn't advertised for a helpmeet when he did, well, I don't know what might have happened to me, my reputation ruined, friendless and without a husband or family to support me." She lifted her face from Abby's shoulder, her eyes shining with unshed tears. "I confessed everything to Albert upon our first meeting. And he has never held my past against me. I do not deserve such a good man."
"I—I made a mistake like that, too," Abby choked out. "Back home. I had a fiancé. He convinced me to, ah, grant him my favors before the wedding. Then he had a change of heart. And broke off our engagement—" Even now, months later, the memory made her chest ache. She still couldn't bring herself to speak of the worst of it.
Emma's arms tightened around her, communicating sympathy and understanding. Mercifully, she didn't press for details.
Abby continued. "My parents were so disappointed when they found out—" Now, that's so understated it's practically a lie "—but I never thought that they were going to make me leave home. In fact, they didn't want me to take this job. But I couldn't stay in Philadelphia, not after what happened."
Twin Forks was supposed to be Abby's chance at a fresh start. She wondered if she was making a huge mistake by even hinting at the scandal that had driven her to this frontier town.
But Emma had been honest with her, and she felt that she owed Emma a little honesty in return.
Emma nodded and squeezed Abby's shoulders before stepping back. "So you understand what it's like! To tell you the truth, I had wondered why someone like you was willing to come so far from home and live in a place like this."
"Someone like me?" Abby asked, puzzled. "You mean, a single woman?"
Emma shook her head, and a smile appeared. "A real lady. The way you speak…your manners…it's apparent to me that you were raised in a genteel household." She shook her head wryly. "And here you are, in this town!"
"My father is a doctor," Abby said, impressed with Emma's power of observation. "And…Twin Forks isn't so bad. It's a little rough around the edges, but everyone's been very kind so far. And the Pronghorn Springs Ranch is beautiful."
Emma brightened. "Speaking of which," she said, "I've been dying to find out how you're getting on at the ranch!" She took the basket filled with bread slices and carried it to the table, pausing to hand Christopher the crusty heel of the loaf to gnaw on.
"The soup is ready," she said over her shoulder. "And the shepherd's pie will be ready to come out of the oven soon. Please, have a seat and let me pour you some iced tea."
The next few minutes were occupied with Emma bustling around the kitchen, pouring their drinks, serving up the beef-and-barley soup that had been simmering on her stovetop, and heating up a bottle of milk for Christopher.
Abby lifted Christopher onto her lap. She blew on spoonfuls of soup to cool them down, and offered them to him in between sampling it herself. He seemed to enjoy Emma's excellent cooking as much as Abby did.
Emma kept up a steady flow of chatter and questions about Christopher's progress until the shepherd's pie came out of the oven. The earthenware casserole dish stood cooling on the counter, and Abby saw that the pie sported a crown of mashed potatoes baked a deep golden brown.
Then Emma finally took a seat opposite Abby and began to eat her own luncheon.
"So," she said, "how have you found life at the Pronghorn Springs Ranch so far?"
Having confessed part of her deepest, darkest secret to Emma and received a confidence in return, Abby was desperate to talk to someone about the too-attractive brothers.
"Better than I thought it would be," Abby replied frankly. "The ranch house is downright luxurious, especially after seeing the houses here in town. I adore Christopher, and everyone's been very kind to me."
"And what is your impression of the extremely handsome Brody brothers?" Emma pressed, her gray eyes sparkling with mischief.
Abby's cheeks heated. She looked down at her soup. "I like them very much," she confessed in a low voice. "But there are some things—I'm so confused, Emma. And I don't know what to do!"
Emma sobered immediately. "Perhaps I can offer some insight. Their sister Clara was a dear friend of mine. Her passing—well, I've seen how much it affected both of the brothers. If you'd met them before…well, my father would have said that they were 'sowing their wild oats.' Since then, though…" She shook her head and sighed.
"Tell me about Clara. Please," Abby asked.
She had been eager to learn more about Christopher's mother, but her employers' pain at the loss of their older sister had been so stark that she had shied away from asking many questions.
Emma looked stricken and put down her spoon. Abby instantly regretted her curiosity.
"I'm sorry if I asked anything that—"
Emma shook her head and interrupted Abby. "Oh no. Not at all. Clara deserves to be remembered. She was lovely and full of life, and she did so much to make me feel at home in Twin Forks when I first arrived here."
"I'm sorry for your loss. I remember you mentioned that she was your friend."
Emma nodded. "Thank you." She looked out the window, frowning thoughtfully. "What can
I tell you about Clara? Well, she was a person of extraordinary warmth. I often thought that for her, there were no strangers in this world, only friends that she hadn't yet met."
Christopher made a happy yelp and tried to grab the soup spoon out of Abby's hand.
Emma smiled at the sight. "And she was so happy when Christopher finally came along. He was truly the joy of her life."
"And it seems that she was the joy of many people's lives," Abby commented, trying to maintain her hold on the spoon. Christopher was getting stronger every day. "I wish I could have known her…but of course, if she were still alive, I wouldn't have had any reason to come here."
"You remember that I mentioned the cholera epidemic this past spring?"
"Yes," Abby replied. "When we first met, you told me that she and her husband both fell victim to the illness."
"We had a lot of deaths this past spring." Emma's expression looked haunted now. "My husband and I did everything we could to help the afflicted, but half of the sick died." Her outward appearance was melancholy but calm, but Abby noticed how her hands gripped her apron and twisted the fabric mercilessly. "I didn't even hear that Clara had fallen ill until it was far too late!"
Abby heard the guilt and anguish in Emma's voice. She reached across the table and patted her friend on the shoulder. "I'm so sorry."
Emma wiped at her eyes. "I've been so worried about her brothers. They've changed so much since losing her. They matured into fine men, and they've done an admirable job of caring for poor orphaned Christopher out on that ranch of theirs, but…"
Her voice trailed off.
"They're still mourning their sister," Abby said. "They try to hide how much they're hurting."
Emma's glance turned sharp. "Yet you can see it?"
Abby nodded and realized that she might be betraying herself.
Emma's next question, though, took Abby by surprise. "If there any chance that you might want to marry one of them?"
"W-what?" Abby sputtered, shocked to her core. Is my attraction to them so obvious? How much has Emma guessed?
Suddenly, the good-natured mischief was back in Emma's expression. "They're both good men, and it's past time that they settled down with wives of their own. Especially since they insist on raising Christopher. Is it possible that you might develop an affinity for either James or Daniel?"
"It's possible," Abby admitted. Then she couldn't help herself. She blurted, "Actually, I seem to be developing feelings for both of them!"
She instantly regretted her impulsive words. And yet, she felt relief at having finally spoken aloud the root cause of her dilemma.
Her emotions had been put through the wringer for the past three days, ever since she had kissed them…and more.
To her relief, Emma smiled radiantly. "I can't tell you how glad I am to hear that!"
Abby blinked. Wait, the minister's wife is actually encouraging me to form a romantic attachment with my employers? Both of them?
Twin Forks was a very different place than Philadelphia! It seemed that behavior that would have scandalized her friends and acquaintances back home barely merited a raised brow here.
Emma's smile deepened. "I wish you luck in trying to choose between the Brody brothers. I know that I would have a difficult time, were I still on the marriage market."
Chapter 12
"Abby, you've sure got the magic touch with the little nipper," Jim drawled.
Startled, Abby looked up to see him leaning against the doorframe between the kitchen and dining room. Even without his characteristic grin, he was the very picture of appealing masculinity.
She remembered her shock earlier in the day when Emma had urged her to marry one of the brothers.
With an effort, she shook off the spell Jim was casting on her. "You've just come by at an opportune moment," she told him. "He's been fussing since we returned from town."
Now, Jim's grin appeared, white and devilish. "I reckon Dan and I should be grateful that we had all those chores to do in the stables."
"I was nearly ready to offer my service in sweeping out stalls," Abby replied. "Your nephew was a perfect angel during my visit with Emma. But once we returned here, he refused to take a nap and he's been fussing ever since. I was hoping that a nice warm bath might calm him enough to send him to sleep."
She indicated the tin sink, half-filled with warm water, and his nephew, propped up waist-deep. Christopher chose to make a liar of her by returning his uncle's grin, pink gums proudly displaying all three of his teeth.
"Look, we didn't want to scare you away before you and Chris had a chance to meet," Jim said. "But there were two nannies before we hired you. Neither of them was possessed of particularly good character, as it turned out, but more importantly, Chris didn't cotton to any of 'em. He's been a lot happier since you showed up, Abby." His gaze heated up. "We've all been happier."
"That's very kind of you to say," Abby managed. It is so trying to what's left of my virtue for a man to look so good doing nothing more than standing there! "Ah, did you want something to eat? I'll be done here in a few moments."
Jim shook his head. "Nah, Isaiah always leaves the icebox well-stocked on his days off. We can forage for supper fixings in a while. I actually came here to see if you wanted to go for a ride with me and watch the sunset. There's a hill not too far away with outstanding views."
Abby badly wanted to say yes. Especially since it didn't seem that anyone in town was actually going to be scandalized if word got out that the brothers were courting her.
"I would like that," she said. "But it's too late to take Christopher out, and I don't want to leave him alone in the house."
"Aw, don't worry about that. When I left the stables, Daniel was just finishing up with Thunder. He can watch Chris or pay Mukki to do it…and it is still your day off from work," Jim reminded her.
Christopher was finally beginning to look sleepy. Hoping that he would go to sleep now, Abby lifted him from the bath and dried him off before putting a clean diaper and a nightgown on him.
Jim followed her upstairs to the nursery.
"C'mon, Abby," he said, as she put Christopher down in his crib. "It's going to be a beautiful sunset and a nice warm evening. We could pack a picnic dinner."
Abby imagined the two of them, seated side by side on a blanket, watching the sunset together. The thought was very appealing.
"But I don't know how to ride a horse!"
Jim chuckled. "Don’t worry. We can ride double on Castor—he's the big Belgian draft horse who usually pulls our wagon. He's gentle as a lamb."
Abby shook her head, trying to wrestle down temptation. "I—I don't want you to get the wrong idea about what kind of woman I am."
She remembered Dan's wickedly delicious caresses, imagined Jim touching her in the same way, and swallowed hard.
"Oh, you're exactly the right kind of woman," he said softly. "I sure enjoyed kissing you the other night, Abby. You were sweet as honey. And you liked it, too. I could tell."
"I did like it," she confessed. "More than I should have. But I don't think it should happen again." Especially in light of what happened with Dan…
Jim's sudden smile, so different from his usual grins, made her breath catch.
“So you liked kissing me, hm?” His voice dropped to a deep rumble that shot through her and warmed the pit of her belly like a shot of brandy. "How much did you like it?"
He crossed the nursery in two quick steps and took her by the shoulders, turning her to face him.
Her heart began pounding. She ought to step away and tell him to stop, but his proximity was intoxicating. Every part of her came alive and demanded further contact.
He leaned in slowly, giving her plenty of time to back away. Her breath came faster, and she swayed towards him.
"Oh, yeah," he whispered, an instant before his mouth descended on hers.
His kiss was rough and urgent. Heat shot through her. She desperately wanted more.
She
wound her arms around his neck and drew him closer. His tongue licked into her mouth, seeking entrance, and she eagerly yielded.
They kissed for a long, heated time. When Jim finally drew back, Abby felt flushed with heat. An aching throb of desire had kindled between her legs.
Thanks to Dan, she knew what she needed now—Jim's touch on her most private parts, preferably as rough and urgent as his lips had been against hers a moment ago.
She needed it so badly that she was ready to abandon all propriety and let him have his way with her right there on the nursery floor.
