Free Fort Laramie by Courage Knight

object she feared most: a spinning wheel. Mrs. Burt would have spent many evenings either doing needlepoint or spinning wool into fine yarns, to knit socks for her husband and son. Here Carrie was expected to deliver spinning demonstrations all summer long! She sat down on the little backless stool next to the spinning wheel, still rather uncomfortable from her recent spanking, but she was absolutely clueless how to proceed from there.
    Julie was right - she never should have lied! She'd tried to learn how to spin since getting her acceptance letter into this program. She had watched dozens of YouTube videos! But without a spinning wheel or access to rovings or sheep wool, she couldn't practice. There was a big wheel that was supposed to turn, causing a smaller spindle to twist, which would put a twist into narrow strands of roving as the spinner expertly pulled those strands. On video it had looked both beautiful and simple. In real life, it was complicated.
    A large basket sat on the floor next to the wheel, filled with soft fluffy balls of what looked like thick wads of hair. It was what the videos called "rovings" - what happened after taking raw sheep wool and combing it. A single pedal was on the floor. She tapped it with her left foot, and the wheel made a turn. That was it! Her temporary excuse! She couldn't possibly spin until the stitches came out! She grinned, momentarily elated. Of course, it was just postponing the inevitable. One day he would find out she had lied, and the longer she waited to tell him, the angrier he would be. And of course, he would have to spank her again.
    She flushed, feeling her heart rate increase, and something pooled low in her belly. There it was again... she wanted him to spank her! Oh, not really - not as hard as he had last night. But laying over his lap had been oddly erotic.
    Carrie slapped herself across the face. "Wake up, girl," she scolded herself. "You are not ready for that!"
    She grabbed her crutches and hurried into the hallway. Next was the formal dining room, the table already set as though six people would gather around it. She wondered briefly whom the colonel's wife would have been expecting. Maybe some pioneers passing through on their way to Oregon or California? The colonel's wife would have been hungry for news of what was going on back east, what the current fashion trends were, or maybe just to have another woman to talk to and share recipes.
    Behind the dining room was a kitchen, a lot smaller than Carrie would have imagined, but behind the kitchen was a pantry that was nearly the same size. The pantry shelves were lined with dishes and pots and pans, and bins for flour, sugar, coffee and rice. There was a large tub on its side, the family bath tub, no doubt, a washboard and smaller tub for doing laundry.
    She returned to the kitchen and glared at the stove. All of the items in this room were meant to be used - the more valuable antiques were stored at Old Bedlam. Carrie was to put a fire in the stove so she could cook lunch for the colonel and his men. If Julie wasn't busy with a tour group, then she could come to help her. Vicki would be giving several presentations a day at the schoolhouse, but was to come over after lunch to help with clean up. This was Carrie's main duty - that and the spinning, of course. It was a good thing that she actually did know how to cook, or more than just Tom would be angry with her!
    She opened the cookbook and studied the simple recipes. Today she would make stew.
     
    One student blew on the bugle, calling the soldiers to attention. He had been practicing that since February and wasn't half bad. Tom had worked with the boys a few times during the spring semester, teaching them how to march, salute and act like a soldier, but they were a far cry from the well-trained soldiers the fort had once housed. What they lacked in skill, though, they made up for in enthusiasm. They had each been assigned a different area of the park.