Read Online Bride School: Mary (The Brides of Diamond Springs Ranch 4) by Bella Bowen - Free Book Online Page B

are eleven men waiting breakfast on you all. And they'll have twelve women to keep
them company for the next few days.”
    Mary swallowed a large lump that had been building
in her throat. “ Eleven men?”
    Fontaine smiled a rather unflattering smile even
for a female gunslinger who didn't seem to care what she looked like most of
the time. “Yes,” she said. “You knew Mr. Hermann wasn't a customer. You
couldn't have been expecting an invitation to tea with him, could you?”
She watched Mary's face. “Besides, he left town this morning.”
    Mary couldn’t stop her distress from showing. Her
chin might have been only an inch or two from the floor by the time her
disappointment was complete.
    Why couldn’t the snow have kept him here too?
    “Said he had a train to catch, so he set out a day
early.” Fontaine watched her closely for a few seconds, then moved behind her,
headed to the door. “The men all met in the saloon early this morning while you
all were lying in. Hermann lit out as soon as their business was done.”
    As the woman was reaching for the doorknob, Mary's
voice returned. It held much less emotion than she expected.
    “You should have let me go find him last night,”
she said.
    Fontaine looked into her eyes. “Would it have made
any difference this morning? Other than ruining you, would it have made him
stay?”
    Mary gasped. The women behind her were suddenly an
unwelcome collection of ears.
    “Be careful, Fontaine,” she warned, “laying shame
where there is none.”
    Fontaine snorted. “Yeah. And just remember it was
me who kept you from it.” She took a step back to face Mary head on. “I won’t
allow you to shame Mrs. Carnegie. So, for the rest of our stay in town, you are Alexandra Campbell, available for courtin’. No one is going to tell
those men they've been cheated out of a twelfth option. No one is going to do
anything that might shed Diamond Springs in a bad light, do you hear? After
Mrs. Carnegie comes back from Denver, you can complain all you like.” She
addressed the others. “But for now, everything by the rules. Weddings can take
place on Saturday. The roads should be clear enough by then. If yer smart, a
good number of you will be able to settle on one man and wheedle your way into
his heart with the extra time.”
    “You can't force me to marry anyone,” Mary
whispered.
    Fontaine smiled that nasty smile again. “Course not.
But I can make you hate that dress…”

CHAPTER ELEVEN
     
    Strange. The morning air gave a clear, stinging
warning to anyone who dared go outside that day. But there was something else—if
not the actual smell of sunshine, then the promise of it. John would bet the
farm the sun would appear by noon and he'd be shedding his coat before he ever
reached the train for Denver.
    He'd already said good-byes to his parents, but he
figured hugging his mother one more time wouldn't hurt a thing.
    He climbed the steps.
    His mother's brow furrowed. “Did you forget
something?”
    “Yes.” He gathered the small woman into his arms
and pulled her tight. “Just thought one more of these would help me stay warm
until the sun decides to show up.
    He pulled back and she worried at the scarf around
his neck. “You promise me you won't freeze to death? Your horse is sound?”
    “He's sound, Mother.” He and his father exchanged
a look of perfect understanding. A tear appeared on the old man's cheek, but he
didn't bother pushing it away.
    “Next time, son.”
    John nodded. “Next time.”
    With a pair of snow shoes secured to the saddle
just in case, John set out through town. It was so much easier leaving when he
knew for certain he'd be coming back in a matter of months, not years. And when
he did return, all the rough memories that had piled up between himself and his
father will have melted with the snow. Nothing unpleasant would be waiting for
him.
    With mothers, a simple embrace could make things
right again. But with men, it wasn't so easy. With