done together, and realize that for the ones who’d died, it had been all in vain.
“Of course I’ll help.” She tried to sound cheerful, but the look on Joseph’s face told her that he didn’t believe her.
Joseph held up a hand. “Don’t put yourself out on account of me.”
“I want to,” Annabelle said quietly. She wanted to add that she was sorry for not being more welcoming, but that would only serve to get a scolding from Maddie.
Surely he would be able to accept her peace offering after explaining her feelings last night. This was as much as she could give, and he had to be gentlemanly enough to know that.
The door opened, and her father walked in. “The soup smells delicious, Maddie.”
Maddie beamed. “I’ll get you a bowl, and for everyone else. Joseph is going to look at his father’s cabin, and Annabelle fainted dead away on Harrison Avenue. A bit of soup will perk everyone up.”
“I did not faint dead away.” Annabelle met her father’s look. “I got too warm, that’s all.”
“She did, too!” Nugget piped up. “Fell on the ground and everything.”
The worry on her father’s face nearly killed her. After having so much illness in the family, the last thing he needed was to be concerned about Annabelle’s health. Especially if what Lucy had said was true. He’d never let her leave if he thought she was taking ill.
“I’m fine. It was just warm, and my dress was a bit...tight.” She whispered the word, knowing that ladies of her acquaintance often said that they sometimes got a little dizzy if their corsets were too tight. She would have easily said such a thing to her mother, or Maddie, if they were alone. But her father, being a man...still, if it eased his worry, a little diminished modesty would be worth it.
“Well, land’s sakes, child!” Maddie set the bowl in front of her with a thud. “Why didn’t you just say your corset was too tight? No sense in suffering misery for the sake of fashion. I told you I thought that dress was too much. I don’t care what the other girls are wearing. We’re getting you upstairs and changing out of that monstrosity and into that nice calico where you don’t have to be laced so tight.”
Annabelle’s face heated. She’d at least been discreet in her words. But for Maddie to be so free in front of... She stole a glance at Joseph, who winked at her.
Annabelle looked down at her bowl. Of all the...
“It’s all right, Annabelle. I have sisters. I never did see the point in those contraptions making a woman miserable.”
She opened her mouth to say something, anything, to make this man know that such talk was completely inappropriate. But Maddie was tugging her out of her chair.
“Let’s get you changed.”
If only a change of clothes was enough to fix the woes in Annabelle’s life.
Joseph watched Annabelle leave with a smile. She was like a wet cat when she got all riled up. And even though he assumed he was supposed to take her seriously, it only made him want to laugh. Someday, she’d figure out that she didn’t have to pretend with him.
Wait. What was he talking about, someday? As soon as he finalized his pa’s estate, he’d be taking what he could and going back to his family in Ohio. There he wouldn’t need to worry about getting closer to Annabelle Lassiter.
Frank coughed, and Joseph looked up. He probably shouldn’t have said all that about corsets. At home, that’s all his sisters ever talked about. But in polite company, it was highly inappropriate.
“I’m sorry. I should have been less frank with your daughter.”
Frank smiled. “No need for apologies. When her mother was alive, she had a woman to tell her these things. Poor Maddie isn’t equipped for the society Annabelle runs with.”
“It must be hard on her, losing her mother.”
Joseph took a mouthful of soup, pleased that the flavor was every bit as good as the aroma that had been tantalizing him since this morning.
“I’m sure it’s just as hard for you and your sisters,” Frank said in a pastorly tone.
Joseph looked around the large table. “We at least have each other.”
He continued eating his soup, remembering Annabelle’s confession from the previous night. Yes, he’d lost his parents, but he had his siblings left. People to care for, people who counted on him, people who cared about him.
Who did Annabelle have other than Maddie and her pa?
“You must miss them.” The knowing smile warmed him even more than the soup. How could Annabelle be devoid of the same warmth?
“I do. But I’ll wrap up things with my pa’s estate, then return home.” Hopefully with enough money to get by until he could support them all. As his ma’s sister, Aunt Ina would surely refuse to help their pa’s out-of-wedlock child.
“I hope you find what you’re looking for,” Frank said, then continued eating his soup.
It was too bad there weren’t more men like Frank Lassiter in Ohio. He would never forget Frank’s kindness. Someday, he’d take Frank’s challenge and help someone else in need.
Annabelle returned, wearing a faded dress and an equally faded expression on her face. The wet cat look had been replaced by the look the cat would have after being dried off—slightly more comfortable, but still resentful.
“There you are, Annabelle. And looking just as pretty.” Her father’s flattery did nothing to erase the scowl on her face.
“You’ll feel much better once you get some soup in you. Since Joseph is going to need help finding his father’s cabin, you could go with him. It’s near Greenhorn Gulch. You know where that is.”
“Of course, Father.”
She sat down and ate the soup placed in front of her, her face expressionless and her gaze completely on the bowl.
Joseph should learn to accept Annabelle being distant, but she was like a burr under his saddle. He wasn’t going to be satisfied until he fixed it and fixed it good. His sister Mary would tell him it was his failing. Having to get to the bottom of things and solve the problem. They’d always thought he’d become a lawman for that very reason. But the pay wasn’t enough to support the family and run the farm.
So instead, he was here, chasing down his deadbeat father’s estate, and trying not to be attracted to the lovely woman sitting before him. He’d admit it, even in the dress she looked none too happy about wearing, Annabelle Lassiter was still a beautiful woman. And when she forgot herself for a moment, she brought so much light into the room.
But those were thoughts he needed to do his best to temper. Though Margaret’s defection had hurt, she’d been right. Joseph could barely provide for the family he had. He needed to focus his attentions on caring for his siblings, not courting a lady.
After lunch, Annabelle took him and Nugget to the livery. They saddled up her family’s horses, then rode out of town toward a place her father had called Greenhorn Gulch.
Rocks jutted out around them, and stumps showed where trees once stood. The sure-footed paint Joseph rode had no trouble keeping up with Annabelle’s blue roan. The mare was perfectly suited to Annabelle, who seemed completely out of place in this desolate land stripped of what had probably once been a beautiful forest.
“What happened to all the trees?”
“Cut down to make support beams for the mines and places for the miners to live.” Her voice had a coldness to it.
“You don’t