the mare’s back and brushing her softly. The calming motions she applied to the horse also allowed her to calm her thoughts. Basil’s bank wasn’t the only business in town, and she would be willing to place bets that some of the others had never seen a woman’s touch with the cleaning. She could find another place to take care of — it just might take some time and diligence on her part.
But she would miss Basil’s company. She was not brave enough to call him by his given name in person yet, but in her head, he was now Basil, not Mr. Fitzpatrick. He stayed after hours at the bank during her visits, claiming it was only to be able to open the locked back door for her, but, more than once, he had kept her entertained while she worked, telling her stories about his family, and prying bits of information from her about her background. It had made her work go faster, and she appreciated his company.
She also enjoyed seeing him when he was in a more casual setting, when he loosened his string tie, took off his shoes, and propped his feet on the desk while he smoked a cheroot and talked to her. The scent of tobacco would forever more remind her of these stolen minutes of time when she didn’t have the weight of her entire family resting on her shoulders. She let out a small moan as she ran her hand down the mare’s back. Now, even that small pleasure was denied her because she couldn’t control her impetuous actions.
She was wildly attracted to Basil, and had been fighting it since the first day, when she witnessed his kindness in dealing with her mother and father. She had even told him about Jeremiah in an attempt to arouse some jealousy from him. A futile effort on her part, she’d soon realized. He had no amorous interest in her, and telling him about a man in a far away state had done nothing to make her more desirable. So, at the first opportunity, she’d flung herself into his bed, and he drew the obvious conclusion about her intentions towards him.
It wasn’t as if he’d forced his kiss on her. She’d put up little resistance to him, and even moaned in dismay when he returned to his senses and removed his lips from hers. Blood rushed to her face as she remembered the circumstances surrounding the kiss. He’d broken things off first, not her, before they had a chance to get carried away. If it had been left up to her, they would not have stopped until he’d made love to her. She wanted to experience all that lovemaking had to offer, but he was the one who stopped. Perhaps he wasn’t such a scoundrel as she’d been led to believe. And perhaps she was more of a saloon girl than she thought. Her cheeks burned in embarrassment, and she put her hands to them, as if to tamp down their fire.
Vowing not to tell her mother about her abrupt departure from the bank until she had something else lined up, and never to reveal the circumstances behind the departure, she quit dawdling. She put the brush away, smoothed her skirt and hair, and washed her hands in the bucket outside the stables before heading into the back of the restaurant to begin her evening’s work.
Chapter Eight
Basil put the paperweight on top of his stack of business mail. It could wait until tomorrow. He rubbed his eyes and turned off the green bankers’ lamp on his desk. This had been one of the longest days of his life, waiting until this evening when he could see Temperance and apologize again for his outrageous behavior toward her.
His hope was that she would at least return this afternoon to talk to him, but he wouldn’t blame her in the least if she didn’t. He had behaved in the manner of a wild, lustful, uncontrollable heathen last night. Propping his elbows on the top of his desk, he tented his fingers in front of him. Resting his forehead on his hands, he took a quiet breath as he mentally kicked himself once again. The knock at the back door reminded him of his boot kicking his backside. With hope in his heart, he rose and
But she would miss Basil’s company. She was not brave enough to call him by his given name in person yet, but in her head, he was now Basil, not Mr. Fitzpatrick. He stayed after hours at the bank during her visits, claiming it was only to be able to open the locked back door for her, but, more than once, he had kept her entertained while she worked, telling her stories about his family, and prying bits of information from her about her background. It had made her work go faster, and she appreciated his company.
She also enjoyed seeing him when he was in a more casual setting, when he loosened his string tie, took off his shoes, and propped his feet on the desk while he smoked a cheroot and talked to her. The scent of tobacco would forever more remind her of these stolen minutes of time when she didn’t have the weight of her entire family resting on her shoulders. She let out a small moan as she ran her hand down the mare’s back. Now, even that small pleasure was denied her because she couldn’t control her impetuous actions.
She was wildly attracted to Basil, and had been fighting it since the first day, when she witnessed his kindness in dealing with her mother and father. She had even told him about Jeremiah in an attempt to arouse some jealousy from him. A futile effort on her part, she’d soon realized. He had no amorous interest in her, and telling him about a man in a far away state had done nothing to make her more desirable. So, at the first opportunity, she’d flung herself into his bed, and he drew the obvious conclusion about her intentions towards him.
It wasn’t as if he’d forced his kiss on her. She’d put up little resistance to him, and even moaned in dismay when he returned to his senses and removed his lips from hers. Blood rushed to her face as she remembered the circumstances surrounding the kiss. He’d broken things off first, not her, before they had a chance to get carried away. If it had been left up to her, they would not have stopped until he’d made love to her. She wanted to experience all that lovemaking had to offer, but he was the one who stopped. Perhaps he wasn’t such a scoundrel as she’d been led to believe. And perhaps she was more of a saloon girl than she thought. Her cheeks burned in embarrassment, and she put her hands to them, as if to tamp down their fire.
Vowing not to tell her mother about her abrupt departure from the bank until she had something else lined up, and never to reveal the circumstances behind the departure, she quit dawdling. She put the brush away, smoothed her skirt and hair, and washed her hands in the bucket outside the stables before heading into the back of the restaurant to begin her evening’s work.
Chapter Eight
Basil put the paperweight on top of his stack of business mail. It could wait until tomorrow. He rubbed his eyes and turned off the green bankers’ lamp on his desk. This had been one of the longest days of his life, waiting until this evening when he could see Temperance and apologize again for his outrageous behavior toward her.
His hope was that she would at least return this afternoon to talk to him, but he wouldn’t blame her in the least if she didn’t. He had behaved in the manner of a wild, lustful, uncontrollable heathen last night. Propping his elbows on the top of his desk, he tented his fingers in front of him. Resting his forehead on his hands, he took a quiet breath as he mentally kicked himself once again. The knock at the back door reminded him of his boot kicking his backside. With hope in his heart, he rose and
Similar Books
