Free Amon by Kit Morgan Page B

son, he was a lot more than that!”
    “Has anyone heard from him?”
    Jefferson shook his head. “We hear from Duncan now and then, of course, but none of us have heard from Mr. Berg and Maddie. We did get a letter from Mrs. Duprie, though.”
    “The Countess?”
    “Yeah, wasn’t that somethin’? To find out that woman was a countess and her daughter a princess? At times I still don’t believe it.”
    “I can’t believe I took Harrison and Colin’s offer …”  Amon shook his head.
    Edith came out of the house. “Here’s your coffee, and I brought some cookies too. Now if you men will excuse me, I need to go help get supper ready. Shall I set another place?”
    Jefferson looked at Amon. “You’re here and supper’s only an hour or so off, you might as well stay.”
    Amon smiled and took the cup from Edith. “Thank you – don’t mind if I do.”
    “I’ll let Sadie and Belle know we have company,” Edith told them, then left Jefferson and Amon to themselves.
    They chatted about nothing much until Harrison and Colin rode into the barnyard. “Mr. Cotter!” Colin said as he reined in his horse at the porch steps. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”
    “Well …” Brace yourself. “… I’ve decided to take you up on your offer.”
    Harrison and Colin exchanged a quick look. “Splendid!” Harrison said and jumped off his horse. “Glad to hear it, man!”
    “Yes,” Colin agreed. “Our wives will be ecstatic.”
    “I haven’t seen any sign of them since I arrived.”
    “They were out back in the vegetable garden, weedin’, when you arrived,” Jefferson informed him. “Now they’re likely workin’ on supper. They probably won’t even know you’re here until Edith tells them.”
    “He’s quite right,” Colin said. “Once they get busy in the kitchen, there’s no stopping or distracting them …”
    Sadie suddenly ran onto the porch. “Mr. Cotter! Oh, thank Heaven!”
    “… though I could be wrong,” Colin quipped.
    Sadie hurried to the porch swing. “I’m so glad you changed your mind!” she said as she took one of his hands and shook it. “I’m sure Mr. Whitman will be pleased.”
    “He was agreeable enough,” he said.
    “Agreeable? You mean you’ve already spoken with him?”
    “Yes. It’s all arranged.”
    “What!?” Everyone except Jefferson said at once.
    “Yes, I spoke with the man earlier and we came to an agreement. So I decided to come out here and tell you.”
    “Well, I must say, this is a pleasant surprise,” Harrison chuckled.
    “And to think we planned another trip to town to convince you,” added Colin.
    Sadie smacked him on the arm and turned to Amon. “We think you and Miss Whitman will make a fine match. When’s the wedding?”
    “Wait, wait,” Amon said, holding up a finger. “We’re not that far along.”
    “You mean you haven’t set a date yet?” Sadie asked in surprise.
    “We’ll court first and see if we suit. We may not.”
    “Oh, that’s all right then,” Harrison said before his wife could object. “After all, our other cousins courted their intended, why not Amon and Nettie?”
    “What about chaperones?” Sadie asked.
    “Let’s work out the details later,” suggested Colin. “Right now I think we need to wash up for dinner.”
    “All right,” Sadie agreed reluctantly. “Won’t you come inside?”
    Jefferson and Amon stood and followed the others into the house. But Amon was already pondering two questions – which one of them was going to ask what made him change his mind? And what would he tell them when they did?

Seven
     
    Cutty went into the hotel dining room, stopped, stretched and yawned. Seth Jones had been kind enough to let him spend the night, but after breakfast he’d have to figure out where he should go. Out to Ryder’s place? Up into the hills? Of course the real question was, should he? Or maybe could he? If he did, he’d be labeled a coward, even if only by himself.
    “I was wondering when