“I’d like to go home now.” She nodded toward Susannah and Valentine. “Actually, I think we all should go home.” Disappointment showed on the women’s faces, but no one argued. Whatever fun they’d been having had disappeared.
“Of course. I assume you walked here?”
“Yes. It wasn’t far.”
“My mother’s buggy is just over there.” He pointed toward the dirt road. “I’ll take you all home. Let me just tell her and Royce.”
She watched him skate toward his mother and Royce, who were skating in the middle of the pond, their gracefulness catching her attention for a moment. Then she made her way, awkwardly, toward the bales of hay where she and the other girls had placed their belongings.
“Wyatt is going to take us home,” she announced, as she started removing her skates. “I’m sorry this happened.” She looked at Barrie, who still had tears in her eyes.
“I am, too. George is a nice boy. He was only being kind, asking me to skate.” Barrie drew in her breath. “Thank you for standing up for me. You reminded me of Josie. She would have done the same.”
The statement brought a fresh wave of pride. Wishing once again that she had known her mother, her throat closed, so she simply nodded and waited for Wyatt to take them home.
A short time later, Wyatt brought the buggy to a halt in front of the parlor house. He stepped down and extended his hand toward Susannah, helping her to alight, then did the same with the other girls. Sheridan watched him, a little confused as to why he hadn’t helped her after Susannah, since she’d been sitting between them.
Finally, he smiled and held out his hand. “I had a good time tonight.”
Sheridan took it, feeling the warmth through her gloves. “I did as well.” And she had. Spending time with Wyatt, learning how to skate, coming to know him better, had been perfect, until Samantha made a scene.
“Maybe we can do it again.”
“I would like that.”
He let go of her hand, a bit reluctantly, she thought, then touched two fingers to the brim of his hat. “I’ll just wait until you’re inside.”
She climbed the porch stairs, then stopped with her hand on the doorknob and turned to face him. “Thank you, Wyatt.”
“My pleasure, Sherry.”
She let herself into the house just in time to hear Lily exclaim, “Oh, Mrs. Gallagher! You should have seen our Sheridan tonight!”
“Why?” Mrs. Gallagher rose from the chair where she’d been reading, curiosity dancing in her eyes. “What happened?”
“Mrs. Graves was trying to bully Barrie, and then when Sheridan came to her rescue, she tried to bully her, too.” Lily looked at her with something akin to pride. “Sheridan took her down a peg or two without even raising her voice.”
“It was like watching Josie,” Susannah chimed in and quickly told Mrs. Gallagher every detail of what happened.
Sheridan pulled off her gloves and shoved them in the pockets of her cape. She didn’t feel like she deserved any praise. She merely did what was right.
“Are you all right, Barrie?” Mrs. Gallagher turned toward her and rested a gentle hand on Barrie’s shoulder.
“I’m embarrassed, but it’s not the first time.”
“No, an’ it probably won’t be the last, but a nice cup of tea will fix you right up.”
Barrie laughed, though it was a bit on the rueful side. “You always think a cup of tea fixes everything.”
“An’ doesn’t it, lass?” Mrs. Gallagher laughed as well, then prodded the girls toward the kitchen. She turned toward Sheridan, her eyes glowing with…was that pride? “That was a nice thing you did for Barrie. It’s what your mother would have done,” she said, then pushed through the kitchen’s swinging door.
Sheridan watched the door slowly stop swinging and hung up her cape on the coatrack near the front door. Mrs. Gallagher’s comment was sweet, and it did thrill her that she seemed to be becoming more like her mother. She was proud of herself for standing up for someone else, but one thing remained clear. As Samantha said, she didn’t belong here.
No matter how much she liked the girls her mother had employed, no matter how much she liked the town. Or Wyatt. She just wasn’t cut out for the drama of owning a brothel. Her original plan still made the most sense. It would be best to sell the business and go back to New Orleans.
And yet, she really didn’t want to leave Serenity. There was nothing for her in New Orleans, not now that she knew her family had lied to her about her mother. Even before knowing they lied, she’d been lonely and oppressed by the rules Odette,Estelle, and Bouchard’s had imposed on her. If she went back, she’d be under their rules again and she was beginning to enjoy her freedom.
She joined the girls in the kitchen and listened to the conversation around the table. To know she was welcomed here, despite Samantha’s rudeness, warmed her heart. And then there was Wyatt MacLean, whose welcome was especially warm, even if they did start off on the wrong foot. She had to admit she enjoyed his company, though she didn’t have much to compare it to.
