Free Misty's True Love (Mail Order Brides of Pioneer Town, Book 2) by Ruth Hartzler Page A

in some ways, but the smile on the old woman’s face seemed
more sincere than any Misty had seen on Rosamund’s face since she
arrived in Wyoming. She hadn’t realized that she had stopped
moving, entirely captured by the image of the woman.
    “ There you are,” said a
familiar voice.
    Misty turned, her heart falling as she
saw Rosamund. “I’m so sorry, Miss Swire. I didn’t see you
there.”
    “ Oh, there’s no reason to
apologize,” Rosamund said, an exaggerated smile creasing her lips.
“I see you are admiring this particular painting. This was my great
grandmother. She is said to have ruled this family with an iron
fist for decades. Of course the men will never admit to such a
thing,” she added, laughing loudly at her own remark.
    Misty smiled out of courtesy, but she
must have left her sense of humor at home, because nothing about
Rosamund seemed funny to her in the slightest. Rosamund stood there
beside Misty, talking to her as if they were friends, but Misty
knew otherwise. There had to be a reason that she was
invited.
    “ Shall we retire to the
parlor for tea and cakes?” Rosamund asked, still smiling
brightly.
    “ That would be splendid,”
Misty said with a forced smile. It was a tiresome game to pretend
to be so happy all the time, but it was a routine to which she had
grown accustomed.
    Rosamund now stood at the end of the
hallway, only a few feet away from the portrait of her great
grandmother. She motioned for Misty to enter as the butler walked
by, and then walked toward a setting of chairs.
    Misty sat in the chair opposite of
Rosamund, placing her purse on the floor beside her. She was unable
to keep her eyes from wandering around the room. The far end was
lined with two pillars at its entrance, while a large, beautiful
fireplace stood front and center on the wall. “This is quite
lovely,” she said.
    “ Thank you,” Rosamund said
“I just wanted to meet with you to welcome you to town. Are you
finding it suitable?”
    “ Yes, it is much different
to San Francisco, but a refreshing change of scenery
nonetheless.”
    On the table sat a small tray of
cakes. They were small, square-shaped pastries with four smaller
squares on them which alternated between red and white.
    “ You must try one,”
Rosamund said.
    Misty wondered what Rosamund was up
to. She knew the woman had her heart set on Cody and that Cody’s
mother was encouraging the match. Cody had told her so at the ball.
And while she trusted Cody completely, she did not trust Miss
Rosamund Swire, not one little bit. Still, the woman was hardly
likely to poison her, so she reached out for a cake.
    The cakes, however, were set on a
table out of her reach. Rosamund picked up a single cake already
deposited on a fine porcelain plate and extended it to Misty. As
Misty touched the plate, it fell to the ground. It was clear to
Misty that Rosamund had deliberately dropped the plate
    “ Would you call for a
maid?” Rosamund asked. “The bell is on the wall just outside the
parlor.”
    Misty swallowed hard. What was
Rosamund up to? There was a bell next to Rosamund, after all.
Still, Misty could hardly point that out, so she walked out of the
room to ring the bell for the maid.
    Misty returned and was about to take
her seat, when Rosamund stood up abruptly. “Our meeting is over. I
do have another pressing appointment.”
    “ Thank you for your
invitation.”
    “ My pleasure, my pleasure
entirely,” Rosamund said, looking smug and pleased with herself.
“Carson will show you out.”
    Misty was unsure what to
make of such an odd encounter. Misty picked up her purse and
followed Carson to the door. She was increasingly anxious.
Something about the entire meeting had felt wrong, but she couldn’t
quite put her finger on the reason. Perhaps it was nothing , she
thought.
     
     

Chapter 13

    Even hours after she had returned to
Indiana and Morgan’s ranch, Misty’s mind was still clouded with
thoughts about her meeting with Rosamund.