Free Wild Lilly by Ann Mayburn Page B

tried to pull her skirt off her head, and started laughing. With wounded dignity, she untangled herself and gave him a sharp glare that any wise man would have heeded.
    Instead of being intimidated, Paul popped a strawberry in her mouth. The sounds of shoes clomping up the wooden steps brought her to her feet in a rush and she smoothed her dress back in place with a nervous gesture. With a wicked grin, Paul held the picnic basket strategically over his groin.
    “Well, Miss Brooks, I hope you found our lunch...educational.”
    She almost choked and rubbed her lips, sensitized by the scrape of his stubble. “Indeed. Thank you for the instruction, Mr. McGregor. But I must teach class now.”
    He tipped his hat and ambled out of the classroom. Owen watched him with narrowed eyes, and the older girls stared after Paul with a dreamy expression that probably matched her own. Patting her hair, she turned to the chalkboard to hide her wide smile.

Chapter Six
    Your Permission

    It was an overcast Saturday morning, and the line of shops in the center of Caldwell bustled with activity. Covered wagons and carriages competed for room, and ladies and their gentleman strolled the sidewalks at a leisurely pace. Adjusting the soft peach silk shawl over her shoulders, Lilly raised a hand in greeting to one of her students riding by in a covered wagon.
    She had just completed her order for schoolbooks at the general store. They’d had enough chalk and chalkboards for the children, but didn’t stock the other items she needed. Most of the morning was spent pouring over the Montgomery Ward catalog and comparing its contents to the list of materials in one of her teaching books.
    She wanted to stop by the dressmaker’s to order some more aprons and a new lilac dress. Paul had complimented her on how the color brought out the gold in her hair and lilac had suddenly become her favorite color. Twirling her parasol, she wondered if they sold lilac bloomers as well. The sight of the teeth marks in the wood of her parasol reminded her to stop by the butcher’s and get Sampson a bone. Or, if he kept eating her things, to find out if the butcher bought dog meat.
    It seemed like everyone in town knew who she was. Parents of her students stopped her to talk about the school, and local merchants offered their services as soon as they saw her enter the door. Evidently, news of her shopping spree in town last week had spread. She had to buy enough to restock the cabin, and ended up leaving town with three wagons full of merchandise. Maybe she had indulged herself a little more than necessary, but it was so fun to shop without her mother telling her everything she liked was utterly impractical.
    She paused to look in the window of the apothecary and examined the bars of soap stacked in the window next to the bottles of tonics. Her thoughts turned back to Paul again. She had replayed their kisses a thousand times in her head, as well as the feeling of his hard cock in her hand. The memory of his voice whispering seductive things into her ear still made her ache.
    “Are you Miss Brooks?” A sultry voice with a thick accent interrupted her indecent thoughts.
    Lilly startled at the intrusion on her erotic daydreaming and turned around. A dusky beauty dressed in a purple-and-grey silk gown stood on the sidewalk, with her hip cocked and her arms crossed beneath her impressive breasts. Rouge gave her cheeks a pink tint and her wide, dark eyes were outlined in black pencil. Full lips twisted into a small sneer, the woman returned her head-to-toe examination.
    “I am, and I’m pleased to make your acquaintance, Miss...?” Something about this woman made her edgy. It wasn’t just the fact that she was obviously a saloon girl. There was something about the way she glared that made the hair on Lilly’s arms stand up.
    “My name is Estrella.” The way she said it made it obvious that she thought Lilly should know who she was.
    Lilly arched her brows. “How