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meant it.
As Hawk ushered her out the door, Martha and the girls followed them. "Why, we haven't done
anything but be neighbors," Martha said. "We've enjoyed having you."
As Hawk helped her up on the wagon, Ralph came over from the barn with the two boys trailing
after him. He actually smiled at her. "You come back whenever you can."
Hawk climbed beside her. "Well, thanks again, folks. We'll be seeing you soon."
The wagon began to roll and Victoria looked back and waved. The wind or something made
her eyes water, and she had to dig out her handkerchief and wipe away the moisture.
Hawk cleared his throat. "Well, it looks like you got along with the Bensons all right."
"They're very nice people."
"They seem to think you're pretty nice, too."
The Silver Heiress Sarah Winn 338
Victoria looked at him in confusion. She didn't know exactly how she'd expected him to behave
this morning, but it certainly wasn't to be so smilingly pleasant. "Aren't you mad at me anymore?"
she asked in a small voice.
"Mad? Oh, you mean about what you told me on Sunday. Well, after I cooled down and
thought about it, I was glad--I mean--relieved that you hadn't been hurt as much as I'd thought."
"But I deceived you."
"I can understand why you did that."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You can?"
"You thought our marriage would be in name only. When you discovered I didn't share your
opinion, you must have been horrified."
"Not exactly horrified--but I didn't want us to make a mistake that we'd both have to suffer for."
"That was smart of you."
She watched him carefully for some sign of insincerity, but his profile was rock-steady. "So,
what are we going to do now?"
"You'll stay at my place until after the roundup. Then I'll take you back to your father."
The Silver Heiress Sarah Winn 339
Just like that with no argument? She should have felt relieved, but didn't. Maybe she dreaded
having to live in that awful cabin again. "Why can't you just take me to Magdalena and put me on
the train?"
"T. J. Chandler would nail my hide to the barn door if I let you travel alone, especially after your
kidnapping. The time'll go by quicker than you think."
The little cabin came into view, and Victoria took a deep, resigned breath. As they drew nearer,
she noticed a rough hewn bench standing against a side wall. Two laundry tubs hung from pegs
above it. She guessed that meant Hawk intended for her to do his laundry during her stay.
Victoria untied her bonnet as she entered the cabin, then stopped and looked around in
amazement. Could this be the same room she'd left just a week ago? All the dust and cobwebs were
gone. Shelves covered the wall nearest the stove, forming both storage and counter spaces. Cans
and bags of food lined many of them.
A wooden screen, with an opening large enough for a person to pass though, enclosed one
corner of the room. Near the screen, and dominating all other furnishings, stood the new bed. The
white paint on the iron posts and connecting rods gleamed cheerfully. Victoria stared at it as
uneasiness spread through her.
The Silver Heiress Sarah Winn 340
Hawk had followed her into the room, carrying her valise. "The mattress came in just
yesterday."
She looked at him, accusations roiling in her mind.
"My cot's still here," Hawk said and pointed at the narrow structure not two feet from the foot
of the double bed. "That bed's just for you, and you can change clothes behind the screen. I made it
big enough to get the tub back there."
"My goodness," Victoria exclaimed as she continued her inspection, "curtains!" Green and
white checked gingham framed the cabin's four windows. She moved to the nearest window and
pulled on one of the panels. It moved on the wooden rod. Now she could cover the windows.
"Alice, the widow Jack's gonna marry, made 'em. She's a seamstress. The table cloth was her
idea."
Victoria turned to examine the table cover made from the same material as the curtains. In the
center of the table, yellow and white wildflowers filled a tin can that's label had been peeled away.
"Did she bring the flowers, too?"
Hawk grinned sheepishly. "That's a little welcome home present from me."
The Silver Heiress Sarah Winn 341 [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]