Free Hell's Belle by Shannah Biondine Page B

Del wanted to throw a little extra in, if
he could, to foster good will.
    Problem was, he
wasn't seeing a whole lot of excess to throw anywhere. Still, he'd always been
as good as his word. If it meant doing without a few small luxuries—like poker
games and liquor at Minerva's the next few weeks—he'd cut back and scrimp. But
first he had to go into town and see what kind of agreement he and Bell could
reach. He was reviewing the numbers one more time when he heard a question from
the doorway to his office.
    "You going
over to that bewitched Bell place alone? Might be safer to have somebody ride
with you…you know, in case there's trouble," Jordy observed.
    "Fletcher
Bell's a storekeeper," Del reminded tightly. "I think I can hold my
own with him, even if things get heated. Which they won't. I'm there to make
amends."
    "Ain't him you
need to worry about," Jordan muttered half under his breath.
    "I told you what
I think about the talk of hexes and spells. It's bull crap," Del snapped.
    Jordy's manner was
casual. "Kind of touchy on the subject of gossip about the Bell girl,
aren't you?"
    Del huffed in
exasperation. "Look, Jordy. Leon and I both explained to you, Sandy, and
half the crew that the whole accident didn't happen like folks are saying. To
blame some female who just happened to have a broom in her hands is plumb
crazy."
    "Her cousin's
the one who started telling it that way," Jordan countered.
    Del's eyes
narrowed. "You sure about that? Or is this just another of your little
digs, a way to provoke me into picking a fight, cause you're looking for some
free entertainment? You'd love for me to go over to that emporium and kick up some
more dust."
    "I swear, Del,
I was in the barber shop and I heard him tell the tale myself. He swore his
cousin waved her broomstick and said some mumble-jumble, and the next thing he
knew, he flew off that ladder and the horse was snorting and pawing, out to
kill him."
    "That pony's
beginning to sound more like a fire-breathing dragon than four hooves with a
tail," Del noted in disgust. "The animal wasn't within six feet of
him once they both fell inside that store. Pony went left, he fell right. Can't
believe he'd say his cousin waved her broom and put a hex on the beast."
    Jordy shrugged.
"If you think she's getting the short end of the horn due to her cousin
lying about what happened, maybe you should say so to her uncle while you're
there. He probably doesn't know what his son's been saying. If you're going to
settle things, maybe it's best to settle them all the way round."
    Del hated to admit
that for once Jordy might be right. Del grabbed his hat off the table and
crossed to the front door, stepping out in the sunshine beside Jordan.
"Reckon that's just what I should do. I heard the locals are even giving
her the cold shoulder at church . Now how neighborly is that? Ain't
right, especially if it's cause her own cousin's been poisoning people against
her."
    "Maybe he
wishes he was as good-looking as she is."
    Del paused on his
way to the barn. "You think she's nice looking? You barely got a glimpse of
her."
    Jordy grinned.
"She had a right decent figure, shiny hair. I'll just bet she's got those
big, soulful brown eyes I like, too.
    "You lose.
They're not cocoa brown. Lighter, more like bottled honey. Golden."
    Jordan snorted in
derision. "Now how the hell can anybody figure her for a witch, then?
Everybody knows witches have dark eyes. Black. Fathomless, like pits."
    Del kept walking
toward the barn. Jordan trailed along, chattering about nothing. Del saddled up
his favorite mount, a big palomino. He'd just led Caramel out of the barn when
Jordy struck pay dirt with his next remark.
    "Well, you
done put a whole new coat of paint on things from what I'd been thinking. Since
everybody knows you were figuring to get hitched months ago, maybe you ought to
talk to her uncle about courting her, too."
    One minute they'd
been speaking reasonably about Del removing a blot on the girl's