Free Mail Order Josephine - A Historical Mail Order Bride Novel (Western Mail Order Brides) by Kate Whitsby

her own breast at separating from him. She leaned across the gap between the two horses and laid her hand over his where it rested on the pommel of his saddle. “I know. I feel the same way. But we’ll spend tomorrow together, and we have five more days before I leave. Maybe you might even like to wear your fancy clothes in town and take me out to dinner sometime.”
    He brayed with laughter. “Not on your life! I wouldn’t be seen in these clothes in town if you were the Queen of England!”
    She laughed heartily in reply, and they urged their horses back into a lively canter across the meadow toward the gate leading out to the main road back to town. When they reached the road, however, they both slowed to a steady walk in order to delay the moment of separation as long as possible. The closer they drew to the town, the more dampened grew their conversation until, when the first houses and buildings sprang into view, all discourse between them ceased, and they rode into the streets of the town in subdued silence. They wound through the back alley to the rear step of the hotel, where Josephine slid down from her saddle and placed her reins in Andrew’s hand.
    “Thank you so much for inviting me out,” she gushed. “I had such a wonderful time. I can’t wait until tomorrow to do it all again.”
    “I’ll be here bright and early,” he assured her. “As soon as you finish breakfast, you can come out here and find me waiting for you. I’ll leave it to you to handle your Aunt Agatha.”
    “Don’t worry,” she grinned. “I’ll take care of her.”
    “I knew you would,” he twinkled his eyes. “She looks like a battle axe, but she’s really a soft meringue underneath.”
    “You’re exactly right,” she chuckled, jumping up the steps.
    He tipped his hat. “Good afternoon, Miss Parker.”
    “Please, call me Josephine,” she instructed him.
    “Alright,” he consented. “Good afternoon, Josephine.”
    She beamed at him. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” and she disappeared inside.

Chapter Four
    To Josephine’s chagrin, Aunt Agatha joined her for breakfast the next morning.
    “What do you have planned for today, Aunt Agatha?” she chirped.
    “Planned?” Aunt Agatha repeated. “I don’t have anything planned. After breakfast, I plan to go back to the room. That’s what I have planned.”
    “Do you intend to stay in the room for the rest of the week?” Josephine challenged.
    “As a matter of fact, I do,” Aunt Agatha confirmed.
    “Well, I don’t!” Josephine snapped. “I’m going out again today. I don’t care what you say!”
    “I don’t care if you do go out,” Aunt Agatha growled. “I hope you go out. You’ll leave me in peace.”
    “Aren’t you even marginally interested in where I’m going or what I’m going to do?” Josephine persisted.
    “Not very much,” Aunt Agatha sniffed.
    “But I could be meeting strange men alone,” she suggested. “I could be meeting them in secret places and doing highly questionable things with them.”
    “Like what?” Aunt Agatha asked.
    “Oh, I don’t know,” she pondered. “I could be doing any number of things you might not approve of. I could be wearing men’s clothing and riding horses astraddle.”
    “Well, you’re twenty-two years old,” Aunt Agatha commented. “You’re a bit too old to have me watching your every move and controlling you like a little child. I suppose I’ll just have to trust your judgment not to do anything as objectionable as that in my absence. If that’s the sort of behavior you engage in when I’m not around, then there probably isn’t much that I can do to correct you. But somehow I think I can trust you not to do that. You’re too smart and too well bred. You’ll have a good look around the town and see whatever it is you want to see, and that will be the end of it. You won’t be marrying into the Stockton family, and we’ll be leaving here in a few days. I don’t imagine there’s much you