Free Small Treasures by Kathleen Kane (Maureen Child)

he wasn't actin' like he was sparkin' her. Looked more like he wanted to hog-tie her!"
    "Well, if not yet… then soon." Minerva laughed quietly. "Whether the big fella knows it or not!"
    "Hmmmm… " Charity stared thought fully at the now empty road. "You could be right, Minerva." Suddenly she turned and locked a steady gaze on her friend. "Now, are you gonna tell me just what in the blue blazes a bundling board is?"
    Minerva chuckled and took the other woman's arm to pull her back inside the store. "I surely will. Over a cup of coffee. This is gonna take a spell."
    # # #
    Samuel's big hands gripped the reins as if it meant his life. His knuckles white, his jaw tight, eyes grim, Abby knew without a doubt that something was bothering him. She just couldn't understand what it might be.
    Surely he wasn't upset because she'd made some new friends. She threw a quick glance at him. No. That wouldn't bother him. If so, he'd never have taken her to town with him. Quickly her mind ran back over everything she'd done and said that morning, looking for the reason behind his anger. After a few minutes she frowned. For the life of her, she couldn't think of a thing.
    Then she remembered. Of course. The judge. He must have found out something about the court that had upset him. She fought down a smile. Maybe that meant it was good news for her!
    "Samuel," she said.
    "Yeah?"
    "Did you talk to anyone about the circuit judge?" His fingers tightened again around the reins, and she watched as his jaw muscles worked.
    "Yeah," he finally answered. "The sheriff says it'll be at least five or six weeks till the judge gets back to Rock Creek."
    "Five or six weeks?"
    "We just missed him. He was through here only a week ago."
    "What a shame," she offered, then turned her head away. Her lips curved into a satisfied grin. Five or six weeks. Anything could happen in that length of time! Abby felt as though a crushing weight had been lifted off her shoulders.
    "Yeah," Samuel agreed under his breath. "A shame."
    He didn't have to sound so disappointed, she told herself. After all, he'd already made it quite clear that he didn't want her at the cabin. There was simply no need to be rude about it. Unconsciously she straightened the hang of her skirt over her knees, then ran her hand over the brown paper package containing the shirt material she'd gotten for him.
    Well, she would show him how useful she could be. Now that she knew for certain that she would have at least five or six weeks before facing a judge, Abby could relax a little. Take the time to plan a campaign that would win Samuel over. She flicked a quick glance at him from the corner of her eye.
    His expression hadn't changed. He still looked as if he'd bitten into a rotten apple. Abby smiled softly and looked away. If he had to sulk for a while, that was all right with her. Because no matter what he did or said, the next six weeks still stretched out ahead of them. And they would be spending it together.
    # # #
    Abby crooned meaningless words in a soft, singsong tone as she crept ever closer to the wounded wolf. From behind the wood slats of his cage, the animal watched her through attentive, cold gray eyes. The huge gray wolfs body hardly moved. If not for the slight rise and fall of its ribcage and the steady gaze it directed at her, Abby would have sworn it was dead.
    As by all rights it should be. Even at a distance Abby could see that the wound it had suffered must have been a nasty one. The strips of cloth wrapped around its middle covered a large part of the animal's body, and Abby could only guess at the damage that had been done.
    Only a few steps away now. She kept up the nonsensical murmurings, hoping to reassure the animal that she meant it no harm. Steadfastly keeping her gaze away from the other animals in different-size cages, Abby concentrated solely on the wolf. There was something about him that seemed to call to her. Perhaps it was his beautiful coloring… perhaps it was the