Hearts in Hot Springs Read online

  “I only have the one sister to worry about. I hope, for her sake, there will be some other man in her future, besides me, that will care.”

  As much as he loved Katy, she just wasn’t happy with him. She needed someone else. Then he could work on his own heart. He could find someone to fill his home, since his heart wasn’t available.

  Perhaps a tiny blonde, with pretty blue eyes, could whisper words he longed to hear…

  Nora’s heart raced along with her thoughts as she watched Mr. Horton pry open her crates. If she tried quite hard, she could almost convince herself she was excited about what was hidden beneath each slatted wood box. No matter how hard she tried, that wasn’t the source of her excitement. She could now watch Mr. Horton without guilt. He wasn’t married to Katy. But she was still there, a part of every bit of his life. And Katy didn’t like Nora one bit. That was evident. While Nora had taken a moment to watch Mr. Horton open the crates, Katy approached her from behind.

  She made a false attempt to whisper that was more like a breathy yell, “Don’t they teach you manners when you’re out there training for a job you have no business doing? It’s still rude to stare.”

  Her hissed words were loud enough for Mr. Horton to hear and his slight stop as he worked said he’d heard. Nora sighed and turned to Katy, unwilling to even pretend embarrassment. If Katy was going to bait her, she wouldn’t give her the satisfaction.

  “Would you like a tour of the rest of the building while we wait?” she asked, no matter how much she wanted to stay with Mr. Horton for another few minutes. He had an easy way about him, strong without being commanding, that immediately put her at ease. He made her feel as if she’d already known him for years.

  “Why don’t you show me where your room is, so I can sit there like the dutiful chaperone I’m supposed to be. As soon as you two are finished, I can go home.”

  Though Mr. Horton had invited her to come and share a meal, she would no longer be tempted to join them. Not with Katy there. The barbed comments would be far too much for her to handle without returning them in kind. Having seven sisters had prepared her well for society that was less than pleasant. She’d go down to the hotel once more. What was one more tasteless meal alone amid all the others?

  Instead of taking her to her private quarters, Nora led Katy across the room and offered her the rocker she’d freed earlier. Katy sat and scowled at everything around her as Mr. Horton opened the remainder of her crates and staged them in order, so he could move them to her room.

  Mr. Horton glanced up from his work, his brow glistening. He unbuttoned his sleeves and rolled them to just below his elbows, exposing strong arms. She’d seen her brothers in law do that all the time but watching Mr. Horton do it gave her a sense of pleasure she couldn’t quite account for. It was just his arms … but heavens, she needed a breath of fresh air. Nora opened the door and propped it with her heavy jug of water.

  He smiled at her and kept his voice low as she approached him. “I’m sorry. My sister can be a little persnickety. She got a bad impression of you when you came into the store. No matter what I said, she wouldn’t give it up.”

  They had talked about her? The slightly giddy feeling she’d had a moment before died a rapid death. “Well, thank you for trying anyway. I daresay it’s strange to think of you two sitting across the way discussing me.”

  Now it was his turn to look flustered, with a sheepish smile and a glance that didn’t quite meet hers.

  “I had to tell her I’d planned to come over here. She almost didn’t agree. Then I’d have had to cancel after making the plan to help you. I didn’t want to do that to you. Didn’t seem like the town has welcomed you much. It would’ve been rude not to.”

  The only people in town she’d met thus far had been Mr. Horton, Katy, and of course, Mr. Neader, her lawyer. Others had passed by the front and looked in on her scrubbing the walls or floors but hadn’t bothered to knock or inquire about her little store. She hoped they would once it opened. Hot Springs was fairly bustling with churches, hospitals, various stores, and of course, three hot springs. However, the people themselves were used to visitors, not those who planned to stay.

  “This used to be the place where all the wealthy men in town gathered in the evening. There was a bar over in that corner.” Mr. Horton pointed to the corner where Katy sat. “They would pick out their cigars from the room in back, then get a drink and sit in plush chairs over in front of the bar. I was only in here once, but the room where they kept the cigar display was interesting. I guess the owner had visited many tobacco farms and even lands far away where tobacco is grown. He had that room built to keep the tobacco fresh. It has a special heater in it where you can add a little water to the coal to keep the moisture level up, make it steam.”

  Nora nodded and remembered the force she’d had to use to get the sticky residue off the wall in that corner. “Yes, I’d been certain when I cleaned that most of the smoking had to have been done in that corner.”

  “It would get so smoky in here in the winter that you couldn’t see anyone inside if you walked by the front windows. They didn’t want to keep the door open and there aren’t any windows that open. The smoke couldn’t escape.”

  As he chatted with her, he’d been putting her furniture together. Everything was now ready to be moved, except her bed. That would have to be assembled in its final resting place. She’d decided that if she had to sleep alone the rest of her life, she would at least give herself a little more sleeping room, so she’d gotten a frame and mattress the largest size possible. Now, she was regretting that decision. Mr. Horton would probably wonder about the morals of a single woman with a bed that size.

  “Can you show me where you want me to put all of this, so I can move it?” He inventoried all the pieces, pointing to each one with his finger as he made note of it.

  She bit her lip. Best get this part done with. While she trusted Mr. Horton, she wasn’t foolish. She slipped her hand into her pocket and through the slit she’d manufactured in her petticoat, all the way to her thigh holster. She strode to her room, ready to draw if necessary. Mr. Horton followed close behind. Their chaperone didn’t bother to get up from her chair.

  She’d decided to make the cigar room her own personal room and the remainder of the storage area would be her kitchen and sitting room. There wouldn’t be many people who came to visit her, so she needn’t bother with anything overly proper or comfortable.

  “The sofa and chairs can go in this back room, anywhere you like. I can move them if I must once they are through the door.”

  She bit her lip and opened the wooden door to her bedroom. “The head and footboard can go in here. I think that’s all the help I’ll need. I’ll manage from there.”

  Though Mr. Horton had been very pleasant to look upon and certainly nice to talk to, she didn’t want him in her room. Assembling her bed was far too personal, especially the mattress. She felt heat creep up her neck just considering it.

  He nodded and turned back toward the front of the store, only taking a few moments before he slid her headboard to her bedroom. He glanced at her as he held it in the middle of the room.

  “Which wall do you want it on? You don’t have any windows to worry about blocking.”

  She appreciated his attempt at humor, but he was still in her room. “The far wall there.” She gestured where and he leaned it against the wall then went back and dragged in the footboard.

  “I’ll move your mattress in here, but if you get the base woven and can’t get it in place, I’ll help you.”

  More heat flushed her face to the tips of her ears. He was kindly saying her bed was far too big for her to handle on her own. Maybe he was right, but it didn’t matter now. It was hers and it would never be anyone else’s.

  The mattress proved to be a little harder to move, but he managed to heave it in and against the wall. The final item was the stove and, since it wasn’t winter and she had no desire to cook yet, he begged to come back and work on it on Saturday when his store was closed.

  Done with his tasks for the night, Mr. Horton returned to the front of the store with Nora trailing behind him. Katy stood from her rocker and harrumphed deep in her throat as she strode out into the darkness.

  Mr. Horton smiled down at Nora for a moment. “I’m so sorry about Katy. Ever since she lost her husband, she’s been closed to anyone. I’m the only person she talks to anymore.” He hesitated for a moment and shuffled his weight back and forth on his feet. “Did you still want to join us for supper?”

  He sounded so hopeful, she hated to disappoint him. Finding out more about Mr. Horton would be a highly pleasant way to spend an evening. Much better than any other plan she could make. But, spending any further time with Katy wouldn’t be enjoyable in the slightest.

  “No, thank you. I do need to tie my mattress ties and get everything finished. I hope I can do it myself. I don’t want to ask you back here again.”

  A hint of hurt washed over his eyes for a moment. “I hope you don’t mean that. I have to come back for the stove…”

  Would she ever speak to this man without putting her foot in her mouth? She bit her lip. “I meant back to my room.” Now she couldn’t hold his gaze, which was too bad. He had such gorgeous green eyes.

  He reached out and touched her arm, just briefly. “If I didn’t have to go home or face the wrath of Katy, I’d offer to take you to the hotel for supper. Can I ask you to come with me at a later time?”

  His sister wasn’t going to like her any more later. Spending time with Nora would only make things worse. He had to live with her, and she might make things difficult for him at home if he took her out to dinner. She wanted to go, more than she’d wanted to be with a man since Roger Paisley. If Mr. Hort
on could help her heal from that wound, she’d give him the chance.

  “If you can get her to understand, I’d love to.”

  Chapter 4

  Four days before, when Mr. Horton had placed everything Nora needed to build her bed so neatly in her room, she’d been sure she could do the job of getting her bed set up herself. Her back now told her she should’ve eaten her pride and asked for help once again. After fighting with the ties on a bed built for two that she’d been unprepared to handle, then trying to maneuver the heavy mattress, she could now barely walk. Pain in her lower back radiated from the center of her spine to her hips and down her legs.

  She’d finally succumbed to the pain and just flipped the mattress to the floor, making her bed there. It had been better than sleeping in the rocker where she had been, but not what she’d hoped for. Trying to get up off the floor that morning and then wiggle into her stays had put her not only in a foul temper, but in torturous pain. At least she’d managed to get dressed.

  As Nora crawled across her floor, unable to hold her spine up long enough to walk, Mr. Horton walked in and rushed to her, kneeling at her side.

  “Miss Arnsby! What’s the matter? Have you lost something?”

  She held back her unruly tongue from admitting she’d lost nothing but her dignity.

  “I’m afraid I wrenched my back a little—” She took a deep breath that stabbed her back like a knife, “—fighting with that mattress.”

  He sighed heavily as if he’d known all along. Though he’d not seemed condescending before, the sound ignited her ready anger.

  “I told you to come ask me if you had any trouble with it. I should’ve guessed you’d be too stubborn to ever actually do it. It isn’t a mark of weakness to ask for help when it’s needed.”

  He leaned over and looped his arm through her elbow. “Let me help you off the cold floor.”

  She wanted to protest, she’d tried standing numerous times and the pain had driven her back to her knees every time. “I can’t. It really is quite bothersome…” She wasn’t allowed to use the words she’d like to.

  “If you’re in that much pain, I should take you down to the doctor. Maybe even one of the hot springs, if you aren’t willing to see the doc. We have a mineral spring bath and swimming house. It’s been known for healing, and the Indians have been using it for longer than we’ll ever know. The hot spring has been there for at least ten years, and people come from all around to swim in it and get healed in the warm water. It’s really just like a big indoor swimming hole.”

  Mr. Horton got back down on his knees, then sat down so he wasn’t towering over her.

  Despite her appreciation that she didn’t have to crane her neck, he was still sitting on her floor and it was mortifying.

  “Mr. Horton—”

  “Please. Let’s dispense with calling me that. Even the children in town call me Mathias. I think after a man has sat on your floor with you, that makes him close enough to call by his Christian name, don’t you?”

  She could argue the point, but it wouldn’t matter much in the long run. She and her family had never been much for rules or conventions. Her family wasn’t wealthy and had never followed all the social commands. Although, not all of them were poor. Lula and Barton were quite well-off as cattle ranchers in Belle Fourche. Eva and her husband George were both scholars and, though no one could say exactly what they did, they lived in a very well-appointed home in Lead. Francis and her husband Clive lived in Deadwood and wrote romance novels. He was also a reporter. Two of her other sisters were married to ranchers and lived on the Ferguson ranch in between Lead and Deadwood.

  “Mathias, I would appreciate it if you would get up off my floor and go. I’m in no condition for company at the moment.”

  She’d forgotten all about her stove until he’d shown up at her door, since it hadn’t mattered to her. She hadn’t been able to think much beyond getting the little bit of work done that she could manage in the last few days.

  “No, miss, I won’t. Now, do you have yourself a swimming dress, or should I go over to the store and see if I can find one? Or, will you let me take you straight to the doctor?”

  She’d spent far too much time feeling embarrassed with Mathias. “I do not have one and I’ll not be getting one. I’ve never gone bathing before, and I don’t plan to start on a day when I can’t even make myself walk.”

  Mathias hopped to his feet like a spry rabbit and draped his arm about her waist. “Wrap your arm around my shoulders. I’ll help you.”

  Put her arms around him? She hesitated a few moments, not that it would be bad, but more personal than she’d expected to be so soon with the handsome store owner.

  For the first time in her life, she thanked the Lord that she’d had to learn to do everything right-handed. Since her holster and everything else in the world was built for people who used their right, she’d been forced to learn. Since there were no left-handed holsters, Mathias wouldn’t notice it’s bulk. She sucked in the pain as she reached for his strong shoulders and tried to push herself to her feet. Her knees shook with the pain and, when she was only about half of the way to her feet, Mathias reached down and scooped her up as easily as he’d moved her furniture.

  He set her gently in the rocker she’d slept in for a few nights, right where Katy had been almost a week before.

  “There. I’ll get you sitting here with your feet up while I put your stove together. I’ll get you a little something to eat and once that’s settled, we’ll go to the hot springs to see if it doesn’t make you feel better. You can’t open your store if you’re forced to crawl around.”

  He owed her nothing and she couldn’t begin to understand why he would care. “Men don’t take care of women. It’s just not right.” She clenched her teeth. Her sister Ruby had always been independent, working harder than anyone she’d ever known. She hated that she couldn’t manage all on her own.

  He leaned over her and rested his hands on either arm of the chair, looking her in the eyes and setting something deep in her belly ablaze. When Roger had done just that back in Pierre, he’d left her frightened as he’d towered over her. Though Mathias was strong and capable, his sturdy arms trapping her in the chair only made her focus more on the man. He’d already shown her he wouldn’t hurt her. Unlike Roger.

  “This one does.” His green eyes bore into her own and a feeling passed between them, a spark, like lightning, and it jolted her to awareness. She had to think hard to remember what she’d even said… Right, that men didn’t take care of women…

  “Now.” He left her for a moment and returned with a foot stool. “You rest here for a spell while I get your stove all fixed and ready to work. It won’t be cold for a while, but you might want to make some coffee or…” His gaze wandered over to the large tin bath that she’d leaned against the wall.

  Was he saying she needed to bathe? Was that why he was so insistent about the hot spring?

  “I assure you, Mr. Horton—”

  “Mathias,” he interrupted.

  Nora growled and pursed her lips for a moment to regain her composure. “I assure you, Mathias, that I can handle using the stove once it’s assembled.”

  His eyes lit on her once again, with playful lines bunching at their sides. “Just like you handled that mattress?”

  If she had anything heavy, she’d have thrown it at him. “Do you have to be so…” She couldn’t think of any appropriate words. How could he stand there examining her stove and tease her so when she was stuck in the chair and couldn’t even stomp on his foot for his insolence?

  “Your stove won’t take long. What would you like for lunch? I’ll run down to the hotel and have them deliver it here, so I can get to work.”

  “I don’t need anything.” She sulked. So much for making a life on her own. Mathias had just taken over. Just like the milliner in Pierre, and just like her teacher’s other protégé Roger Paisley. Would she be controlled forever?

  “I’ll order for you then. Last chance.” His eyebrows rose in a challenge. “No? I’m sure I can find something you’ll like.” He plopped his hat on, the first she’d ever seen him wear, and he was off. If only she’d wanted to be rescued, then he would be perfect.