Page 49 of Love’s Silver Bullet

Brows raised in question, Clay ducked his head toward Sheridan, grinning when she gave him a dumb nod. “All right, ladies, then can you meet me at the front gate tomorrow morning at nine sharp?”

“Yes, yes!” Poor Kathy Jean actually hopped in the air with a clap of hands while Sophia tossed Sheridan a wink.

Clay questioned Sheridan with a jut of his brow. “Is that good for you, Sheridan?”

“Oh, absolutely!” Kathy Jean assured, apparently the new spokesman for the group. “Sheridan can ride in to town with her uncle, Mayor Finn, and her sister-in-law, Maggie, who works at St. Mary Louise Hospital, can’t you, Sher?”

Sheridan’s head slowly bobbed up and down, obviously her new mode of communication.

At least around Clay Morgan.

Until the kiss.

Her body went numb as all the blood in her limbs converged in her cheeks.

Clay chuckled and pushed in his chair, eyes fixed on Sheridan with enough heat to melt both her and all the ice cream in Mr. Lambert’s ice cellar. “Well, then ladies, I will see you tomorrow. And let’s keep this our little secret.” He gave them a wink. “Don’t want to make any of the other town folk jealous since we can’t go giving tours to everyone, now can we? So, mum’s the word, okay?” He tipped his hat to the ladies and then at Sheridan with a wink.

All Sheridan could do was blink, begging to differ with Mr. Morgan on one minor point. ‘Mum’ was definitely not the word of the day. She slumped back in her chair, lashes dropping as if weighted with lead.

That would be ‘terrified.’

CHAPTER THIRTY

“Whoa!” Jake said as he pulled the reins of the wagon, slowing it to a stop in front of the train station. The warning whistle for the V&T Truckee Railroad’s 8:10 to Carson City shrieked into the air along with a belch of smoke. “Right on time, Boss,” he said with a smile to Finn, who was heading out on a three-day government business trip to the state capital of Carson City.

Finn checked his watch and nodded. “I can always count on you to be punctual, Jake,” he said with a grin, grabbing his suitcase. He gave him a wink. “Now if you can just rub off on Blaze and Dash in that area, I will be one happy man. Particularly Dash, who won’t see the sun for several hours or so with his crazy schedule at the Ponderosa.”

Reaching into the back seat, he gave a quick squeeze to both Maggie’s and Sheridan’s knees. “Have a good day at work, Maggie, and Sheridan, enjoy your time with your friends. Oh, and I’d appreciate it if both of you would help take care of Libby for me, girls, because you know how restless she gets when I’m out of town.”

Sheridan chuckled. “You mean help keep her out of trouble, Uncle Finn, don’t you?” she said with a mischievous gleam in her eyes that reminded Jake of her Aunt Libby.

Finn jumped out and tipped his Stetson with a wide grin. “Exactly, Sher, so mum’s the word, okay?”

“Yes, sir,” Sheridan said, a blush suddenly swamping her cheeks. “Oh, and Uncle Finn?” She sat up on the bench with hands clasped in her lap and hope in her eyes. “Is it all right if I stay in town with Kathy Jean a few times a week for a while?”

The blush deepened as she picked at her nails, making Jake wonder why in the devil she was so nervous today. “Sister Fred was looking for volunteers, so I promised her that Kathy Jean, Sophia, and I would tutor the girls at the orphanage in math and grammar this summer.”

Finn smiled and hefted his bag. “I don’t see why not, as long as you clear it with Libby, all right? And I’m proud of you, darlin’.” He gave a quick salute to Jake. “You’ll pick me up on Saturday on the 2:10, Jake?”

“Yes, sir,” Jake said with a return salute, “and once I drop Maggie off at the hospital and Sher off at Kathy Jean’s, I’ll head on over to the blacksmith to get the wagon wheel repaired because it’s not long for this world, I don’t think.”

“Thanks, son. Goodbye, all.” With a smile and a wave, Finn headed toward the train.

“Yah!” Jake said with a snap of the reins, steering the wagon in the direction of St. Mary Louise Hospital while Maggie and Sheridan chatted nonstop in the back. When Jake pulled up in front of the hospital, he hopped out to assist Maggie down. “I’ll be by to pick you up at five, Maggie. Then once we get this wagon wheel fixed, you’ll be able to drive yourself again, all right?”

“Thanks, Jakie.” Maggie pinched his cheek with a playful smile. “You’re a gem, you know that? Just like the brother I never had.” She hurried around the wagon, blowing kisses to Sheridan. “Have fun today, Sher. See you both tonight.” Sprinting up the hospital steps, she held a hand to her nurse’s cap to secure it as she ran, obviously anxious to start work. Blaze said that she absolutely loved being a nurse, so much so that he worried how she’d feel once she had a baby and had to quit.

“Next stop, the Edwards’ house on Sixth,” Jake bellowed like a conductor on a train, so very glad his good moods were back.

“Good morning, Sheridan!”

Or were.

Jake bit back a scowl when Clay Morgan shouted out as he spotted their wagon from the boardwalk, obviously on his way to the post office given the stack of mail in his hands. Sheridan waved, and the dandy winked, pinking her cheeks all over again.

Anxious to clear her mind of Morgan, Jake glanced over his shoulder with a crooked smile, reins in hand. “I know you’re top drawer when it comes to math, Half-Pint, and Kathy Jean with grammar, but I have to admit, I’m a wee bit nervous over what Sophia might teach them.”

More color blasted her face as she jutted her chin in defense. “If you must know, Jake Sullivan, Sophia won second place in the math verbal quiz, so she’s very smart.”