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Chapter Four
When Eddy awakened next the room was shadowy but faint lines of sunlight played along the edges of the drapes. A look over at the clock showed its spindly hands set at twelve and six and she hoped it meant six in the morning. She didn’t want to know she’d slept away the balance of yet another day. She paused and listened for sounds from the saloon below but heard nothing. Back home in Denver saloons were usually closed during the early hours and she assumed the same to be true here. The chair Fontaine had been sleeping in during her stay was empty, and although she wondered about his whereabouts, she was glad to be alone. She felt better than she had in days and was determined to make it to the facilities on her own this time. Moving the blanket aside, she drew in a deep breath, swung her legs over the edge of the bed, and eased her bare feet to the floor. Her legs shook a bit but held her weight. Pleased, she took a few steps. To her disappointment she was still weak, but decided if she went slowly she could make it to the washroom and back without collapsing.
The plan went well, sort of. By the time she made it back to the bedroom, she was sweating profusely, her breathing was labored and Rhine Fontaine was standing in the room looking like a parent ready to scold his child.
“You have to be one of the most hardheaded women I’ve ever met.”
Using the edges of the furniture in the room to guide her back to the bed, she said, “I’m sure that isn’t true, but thank you for the compliment.” Because wrapping herself in the blanket would have impeded her movements, she’d left it behind. The hem of his long-sleeved white shirt fell past her knees but the bottoms of her legs and her feet were bare. “And no looking at my legs.”
“They are quite lovely.”
She turned to glare at him but the ghost of a smile playing across his lips made hers peep out of its own accord. “You are no gentleman.” She slowly climbed back onto the bed and fell back. “Mercy.” She felt like something newly born.
“Learned your lesson?”
“Probably not.” After catching her breath, she angled her head his way. “I’ve worked six days a week since I was twelve years old, and I’ve never been bedridden in my life. This lying around is hard for me.”
“Your recovery will take longer if you don’t let your body rebuild its strength.”
Frustrated, she turned her eyes to the ceiling and blew out a breath. “I suppose.”
“Are you hungry?”
“Famished.”
“That’s probably a good sign. Jim’s in the kitchen. I’ll be bringing you breakfast shortly.”
“Thank you.”
“In the meantime, let’s get you a fresh shirt.”
She watched him open the large wooden wardrobe. The number of shirts hanging inside was impressive and spoke to his wealth. He took down one and a dressing gown and walked them over to her.
Sitting up, she took the garments from his hand. “May I have a basin and some soap so I can wash up a bit before I put these on?”
“Would you like me to run you a bath?”
“I’d love a bath, but as weak as I am, I’m likely to slip beneath the water and drown.” The dream she’d had of being in a tub swam up from her memory, but she refused to share it. He didn’t need to know he’d been in the dream and she didn’t need any whispering this morning.
“I’ll get you the basin.”
He returned promptly with a pitcher of warm water, a clean porcelain basin, soap and towels. He set everything on the bedside table.
“Thank you. This shouldn’t take long.”
“I’ll be back with your breakfast in about thirty minutes. Enough time?”
She nodded.
Once she was as clean as washing in a basin would allow, she donned his shirt and then the dressing gown. It was made of black silk and the most expensive article of clothing she’d ever worn. She rolled back the too long sleeves then ran her hand over her hair. It was such a mess. She wished she could do something about it but doubted he’d have anything she could use to dress it, so she’d have to let it be until she moved into the boardinghouse. Waiting for him to return, she picked up the small jar of aloe, undid the lid, and sniffed the contents. Finding it pleasant enough, she rubbed some on her face and pushed up the sleeves to do the same with the skin on her arms and hands. Her blistered hands ached, and if this would help dull the pain, she was all for it. She was recapping the jar when he entered. The Colored man with him made her pause.
“Eddy Carmichael. This is my business partner James Dade.” Although she had expected the partner to be White, he was a tall muscular dark-skinned man with a kind smile.
She nodded shyly. “Good morning. Pleased to meet you.” She did her best not to think about how appalled her late mother would be knowing she was entertaining two men while in bed.
“Same here,” Dade replied. “Thought I’d come up and see how you were faring. Rhine says you’re feeling better?”
“I am. Thank you for the rescue and for feeding me. The food has been delicious.”
