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Her reply almost made him keel over.
“That’s just an estimate,” she said. “Portia and I own a portion of the hotel of course, but we also own stock in mining, railroads, shipping, and land here in America, Mexico, and Europe. Aunt Eddy, Portia, and I grew up terribly poor. Uncle Rhine wanted to make sure we’d never go without ever again.”
Colt found that admirable. That she had access to more money than he’d have in five lifetimes gave him pause.
“Is my being an heiress something else I should have revealed in my letters?”
“Not necessarily. A less honest man may have married you just for that.”
“I know. It concerned me.”
Any man she married would gain access to her funds, with or without her consent. It made him think back on his insistence that Anna marry. What type of man might she choose? She wouldn’t inherit much of anything from him as her father, but married she’d have no more rights than she had as a child. Would her husband have her best interests at heart? Colt had never thought about her future in quite this way before. His unconventional new wife was making him view the world through a new set of eyes. “Are you going back to the store?”
“I’d prefer not to but since he’s the only choice, I suppose I must.”
“He can be a pain in the rear.”
“How long have he and Lacy been married?”
“Since I was young. Her father founded the place. Chauncey came in as his clerk from back East and her father married her off.”
“So, it wasn’t a love match?”
He shook his head. “To be truthful, she’s never liked him very much.”
And as if speaking about her caused her to appear, Lacy stepped through the door. “Regan, I heard what happened with Chauncey. I told him he could have handled it better, but of course, he disagrees. Do you still want to shop at the store?”
“I do.”
“Then come, and while you do, I’ll tell you about your invitation to the next meeting of the Paradise Ladies Society. The members all want to meet you.”
“I’m honored.”
Colt didn’t show a reaction. He knew some of the ladies to be as sanctimonious and judgmental as Minnie, who was also a member.
“Doc, I’ll return your lovely wife to you as soon as we’re done at the store.”
He nodded.
Regan said, “Thanks for your help, Colton.”
“You’re welcome.”
He watched them depart and wondered what the Paradise Ladies Society would think of his gun-toting heiress wife. More than likely they’d never met anyone quite like her either.
With Lacy’s help, Regan shopped for spices, cake pans, flour, cornmeal, and sugar. She purchased lemons and oranges, coffee and tea, along with frying pans, roasters, and furniture polish. Spying a display of scented soaps, she picked out a lavender bar for herself and one of lilac for Anna. She knew Colt might consider it an inappropriate indulgence for a six-year-old, but after living with Minnie, Regan thought Anna deserved to be indulged. With Anna in mind, she added hair ribbons, paints, two pairs of little boys’ denims, boots, and shirts to the growing pile of items on the counter. Chauncey Miller viewed it all skeptically and Regan ignored him. Paging through a catalog, she found a new stove to replace the ancient one at the Lee home and had Lacy order it along with a new icebox.
“It may take a week or so for them to arrive, Regan,” Lacy pointed out, writing down the order numbers. “It has to be shipped from Cheyenne.”
“That’s quite all right. I can wait.” She couldn’t really but had no choice.
“And since this is their top model, they’ll send some men to install it and take away the old one.”
Regan noticed the other customers watching her shop. The more items she picked out, the more curious they became. Some even casually stepped up to the counter to get an up close look. Word must have gone out because the store became increasingly crowded as more and more people arrived. Some gave the pretense of browsing while others flat-out stared.
A man called out to her, “Doc know you’re spending him into the poorhouse, Mrs. Doc?”
Regan offered a pasted-on smile and added a Bloomingdale Brothers catalog to the pile of goods on the counter and stacked on the floor beside it.
