Free Kansas Courtship by Victoria Bylin Page A

“Do you think I like working sixteen hours a day?”
    “No, but—”
    “It’s necessary, Cassandra. Winter’s not far away. People need houses. I said the town hall would be done by the jubilee and I meant it.”
    “I know, Zeb. It’s just that I’m so confused. Dr. Mitchell says—”
    “What?”
    “She came to the schoolhouse yesterday. We talked about Clint and Percy. She’s smart and she has such lovely clothes. She says—”
    “Hold on,” Zeb ordered. Why was Nora Mitchell visiting his sister? And what kind of nonsense was she spouting? He got impatient with Cassandra, but he loved her and wanted her to have a good life. They just disagreed on what counted as “good.” Considering Dr. Mitchell’s background, he felt certain she’d side with Cassandra.
    He crossed his arms. “Why were you talking to her?”
    “Haven’t you heard?”
    “Heard what?”
    “She’s visiting everyone in town and introducing herself. I figured you knew.”
    Zeb only knew she’d winked at him, and in his dreams he winked back. “I don’t know what she’s up to. I thought she’d leave by now.”
    “Why would she do that?”
    He said nothing.
    “Zeb!” Cassandra scolded. “What did you do?”
    “I didn’t do anything.” Now he sounded pouty. Annoyed, he lowered his arms and struck a more casual pose. “She needs a place to practice. Doc’s office is a wreck, and she can’t work in our parlor. I told her she’s on her own. I can’t help her.”
    “You mean you won’t help her.”
    “I’m busy.”
    His sister shrugged. “It’s all right. She doesn’t need your help. I told her I’d ask Percy to find an office for her.”
    That figured. The Easterners were ganging up on him. “What’s he going to do?” Zeb sneered. “Give her his office?”
    “I don’t know,” Cassandra replied. “But he’ll be polite about it, which is more than I can say for you. The whole town knows you yelled at her.”
    “Did the whole town tell you she yelled back?”
    Cassandra’s eyes twinkled. “I hear she put you in your place.”
    Zeb said nothing.
    “You deserved it,” she added. “Why would you show her Doc’s place? It’s a mess.”
    He’d hoped to run her out of town, but he couldn’t admit that foolishness to Cassandra. She had him cornered. He couldn’t lie and the truth condemned him again, so he took a side road. “She deserves to know what she’s up against. Another tornado could hit. Indians could strike. You know the risks.”
    Her eyes misted. “You’re thinking about the twins.”
    Those lost children were never far from his mind. Everyone in High Plains had helped with the search, to no avail.
    Cassandra stood and lifted their plates. “I think about them a lot. Tornadoes don’t hit in Boston. Sometimes I want to go home so badly—”
    “I know, Cassie.” He used the pet name she’d asked him to forget. “Just don’t do it with Percy, okay?”
    “I don’t know what to think.” She scrunched her face as if she were five years old again. “Percival treats me like a lady. He likes music and sometimes he quotes Shakespeare. But then there’s Clint…He doesn’t know about any of those things. He’s gruff and tough and barely talks.”
    “A man doesn’t need words to show what he means.”
    Cassandra looked at him as if he were crazy, but Zeb knew what he meant. He understood Clint just fine. The man loved Cassandra. He was working extra jobs to be able to marry her. That said “love” to Zeb. He knew because he’d loved Frannie with the same intensity. He’d never love like that again. He rubbed his jaw and felt bristles. Shaving took time he didn’t have. So did speaking with Cassandra, but he wanted to know more about the lady doctor. “What else did Dr. Mitchell say?”
    “About Percy and Clint?”
    “About everything.”
    “Mostly we talked about clothes.” Cassandra sounded dreamy. “She has wonderful gowns.”
    “I didn’t notice,” he said in a mocking