Read Online Patrick's Charm (The Bride Train, #2) by E.E. Burke - Free Book Online
Authors: E.E. Burke
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Mrs. Fry twisted around, looking surprised. “Oh, Miss LaBelle. I didn’t hear you come in.” The older woman set aside the rolling pin and wiped her hands on her apron. Her gaze darted away, communicating discomfort.
How strange. Usually she was friendly and very chatty.
Charm’s instincts quivered like a divining rod sensing water. “Where is everyone?”
“They’ve gone to visit Mrs. Valentine.”
That wasn’t a disaster. Although it did seem a bit odd, considering her friends hadn’t mentioned the excursion earlier. They might’ve known she would like to go along. She hadn’t seen Rose in over a week. She released a sigh, and crossed to the cookstove. Using a dishtowel hanging over the handle on the oven door, she lifted the lid on the pot and sniffed the creamy mixture. Heavenly. “I wish they’d waited on me.”
“They weren’t sure you’d be returning.”
“Not returning? Why would they think that?”
“We heard you were leaving.”
The lid clanged as Charm dropped it on top of the pot. She’d gotten distracted by the food. That must be why this conversation didn’t make sense. “Leaving? I’m just starting a job.”
“Yes, well, Mr. Fry assumed you would be moving out.” Mrs. Fry’s tone seemed a mite cool. They must be worried about not getting paid.
“I don’t know where he got that impression, but I plan to stay; and what’s more, I’ll have enough money to cover our room and board.”
That should’ve made the old woman happy. Her frown deepened, sending a warning. “I am sorry, dear. Mr. Fry worked out an arrangement with the others. They’ll be moving to a room on the third floor and helping us out. You understand why we can’t offer the same arrangement to you, what with you working in a saloon. That would be bad for business.”
The sanctimonious old witch picked up the rolling pin and went back to work on the dough.
Charm’s stomach churned again, this time with anger. She had dealt with scorn before. But to be kicked out set a new low, and to toss her out while her friends weren’t around...utterly craven. Come to think of it, her friends should be here, supporting her.
Unease prickled her skin. “Do the others know you’re evicting me?”
Mrs. Fry paused in her work without meeting Charm’s eyes. “They thought it would be best if they weren’t around when you returned. Less embarrassing for you.”
The betrayal tore a hole through Charm’s heart.
Too hurt and humiliated to argue, she left the kitchen and went upstairs. She’d change for the performance, pack her bags and leave. Even if the other women changed their minds and begged her to return, she would not. She wouldn’t remain friends with people who could abandon her because her choices embarrassed them.
For once in her life, she’d risked putting her faith in people outside of her close circle. Desperately lonely, aching for companionship, she hadn’t seen the falseness in their friendship.
She wouldn’t give her trust again so easily.
Charm lugged the heavy suitcases down the sidewalk, ignoring the men who passed by in wagons and on horseback, especially those who called out to get her attention. She could more than imagine what they wanted.
The weight of the cases dragged her shoulders lower. Tightening her hold on the leather handles, she kept her eyes trained on a quadrangle of businesses that formed the heart of town: Appleton’s mercantile, Middaugh’s dry goods store, a blacksmith and livery, and the largest building, the railroad depot. Other stores lined the sidewalks, as well as numerous saloons, which were the only places besides the hotel that rented out rooms—for men. Women didn’t take rooms above saloons unless they were engaged in the oldest business in the world.
Charm’s spirits sank. Where she could find a room, she had no idea, but that was something she would have to figure out later. She had a show to put on first.
The sound of creaking wheels
Mrs. Fry twisted around, looking surprised. “Oh, Miss LaBelle. I didn’t hear you come in.” The older woman set aside the rolling pin and wiped her hands on her apron. Her gaze darted away, communicating discomfort.
How strange. Usually she was friendly and very chatty.
Charm’s instincts quivered like a divining rod sensing water. “Where is everyone?”
“They’ve gone to visit Mrs. Valentine.”
That wasn’t a disaster. Although it did seem a bit odd, considering her friends hadn’t mentioned the excursion earlier. They might’ve known she would like to go along. She hadn’t seen Rose in over a week. She released a sigh, and crossed to the cookstove. Using a dishtowel hanging over the handle on the oven door, she lifted the lid on the pot and sniffed the creamy mixture. Heavenly. “I wish they’d waited on me.”
“They weren’t sure you’d be returning.”
“Not returning? Why would they think that?”
“We heard you were leaving.”
The lid clanged as Charm dropped it on top of the pot. She’d gotten distracted by the food. That must be why this conversation didn’t make sense. “Leaving? I’m just starting a job.”
“Yes, well, Mr. Fry assumed you would be moving out.” Mrs. Fry’s tone seemed a mite cool. They must be worried about not getting paid.
“I don’t know where he got that impression, but I plan to stay; and what’s more, I’ll have enough money to cover our room and board.”
That should’ve made the old woman happy. Her frown deepened, sending a warning. “I am sorry, dear. Mr. Fry worked out an arrangement with the others. They’ll be moving to a room on the third floor and helping us out. You understand why we can’t offer the same arrangement to you, what with you working in a saloon. That would be bad for business.”
The sanctimonious old witch picked up the rolling pin and went back to work on the dough.
Charm’s stomach churned again, this time with anger. She had dealt with scorn before. But to be kicked out set a new low, and to toss her out while her friends weren’t around...utterly craven. Come to think of it, her friends should be here, supporting her.
Unease prickled her skin. “Do the others know you’re evicting me?”
Mrs. Fry paused in her work without meeting Charm’s eyes. “They thought it would be best if they weren’t around when you returned. Less embarrassing for you.”
The betrayal tore a hole through Charm’s heart.
Too hurt and humiliated to argue, she left the kitchen and went upstairs. She’d change for the performance, pack her bags and leave. Even if the other women changed their minds and begged her to return, she would not. She wouldn’t remain friends with people who could abandon her because her choices embarrassed them.
For once in her life, she’d risked putting her faith in people outside of her close circle. Desperately lonely, aching for companionship, she hadn’t seen the falseness in their friendship.
She wouldn’t give her trust again so easily.
Charm lugged the heavy suitcases down the sidewalk, ignoring the men who passed by in wagons and on horseback, especially those who called out to get her attention. She could more than imagine what they wanted.
The weight of the cases dragged her shoulders lower. Tightening her hold on the leather handles, she kept her eyes trained on a quadrangle of businesses that formed the heart of town: Appleton’s mercantile, Middaugh’s dry goods store, a blacksmith and livery, and the largest building, the railroad depot. Other stores lined the sidewalks, as well as numerous saloons, which were the only places besides the hotel that rented out rooms—for men. Women didn’t take rooms above saloons unless they were engaged in the oldest business in the world.
Charm’s spirits sank. Where she could find a room, she had no idea, but that was something she would have to figure out later. She had a show to put on first.
The sound of creaking wheels
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