Free Summer Breeze by Catherine Anderson Page A

have no way of knowing if Darby actually sent you. "
    With a sweep of his hand, Joseph cleaned dust from the far end of the table and sat down facing her. "Why would I lie about it?"
    "To gain my trust?"
    Joseph fleetingly wished that his brother were present to handle this. A little sugarcoating was definitely in order. "If I meant you harm, Miss Hollister, I already would have done my worst, the devil take your trust. " He inclined his head at the barricade. "Do you really believe a few boards would keep me out if I was bent on coming in?"
    She stiffened. "You'd run the risk of getting shot. "
    "Not with an empty gun. "
    "It isn't empty now. "
    "But it was, and I knew it. What was stopping me, then, do you think?"
    She only stared at him.
    "And what stopped me from grabbing your wrist just now when you handed out the food?" He snapped his fingers. "I could have had you then, easy as anything. "
    She drew the blanket closer. "Are you threatening me, Mr. Paxton?"
    "No, I'm making a point. You say you have no way of knowing if Darby actually sent me? I think you do. "
    "Darby never so much as mentioned your name. "
    "Yeah, well, Darby's not much of one for small talk. We met at the south end of your ranch when the fence between your place and mine was in sore need of repair. We worked on it together.
    When it came time to eat, we shared some shade while we had lunch.
    Nothing notable happened. Maybe he didn't count it as being important enough to mention. "
    "You met only the one time?"

    "We've run into each other a few times since. "
    "If he knows you only in passing, why does he trust you?"
    Now there was a question Joseph wasn't sure how to answer. "I've got an honest face?"
    She didn't smile.
    Joseph was starving and wanted to dive into his meal. The stew and cornbread smelled so good that his mouth watered.
    "You can learn a lot about a man by mending fence with him, " he offered. "If he whines over the bite of barbed wire, you know he lacks grit. If he leans on his shovel a lot, you know he's lazy. If he picks the easier of two jobs more than once, you know he's inclined to be self-serving as well.
    If he neglects his horse—" Joseph broke off and sighed. "I can't say why Darby trusts me, Miss Hollister. Maybe he liked what he learned about me that day. Or maybe it's because he knows I come from good family. Only he can say. "
    "Good family? Do your folks live around here?"
    "My older brother, Ace Keegan, owns the spread northeast of here. "
    "The piece of land that Patrick O'Shannessy sold?"
    "That's right. " Joseph glimpsed a thoughtful look in her eyes. "Ace married Patrick's sister, Caitlin. He also built the railroad spur into Denver. "
    "Caitlin?"
    Joseph nodded. "Know her?"
    "She's older than me, but we went to school together for a number of years. "
    "Did you now?" Joseph picked up a chunk of corn-bread and took a bite.
    Questions still lurked in her eyes. "How can Ace Keegan be your brother? You don't have the same last name. "
    "We're actually only half brothers. When his pa died, our ma married my father, Joseph Paxton, senior. Back in sixty-five, he bought the piece of land that Ace owns now and moved our family out here from Virginia to make a fresh start. Unfortunately, things went sour, my ma took us boys to San Francisco, and none of us returned to No Name until four and a half years ago. "
    Light dawned in her eyes. "Joseph Paxton, " she repeated softly. "I remember the name now. " A frown pleated her brow, and her blue eyes sharpened on his face. "He was hanged. "
    Joseph winced, thinking that she'd picked a fine time to put all the pieces together. If she hadn't heard the entire story, which was a strong possibility, she might panic for certain. "Wrongfully hanged, " he stressed, gesturing with the spoon. "My father was accused of squatting on the land he'd paid good money for and also of murdering Camlin Beckett, an upstanding citizen of No Name. " Joseph's mouth went as dry as dirt. To this day, it