Courting Trouble by Deeanne Gist Page A

it.
    Handing her the camera, he sighed. ‘‘All right, but you’re in charge of that serpent. I’m not cleaning its cage or feeding it or running this contest. You’ll have to do it all. And if it upsets my customers, it goes. Is that understood?’’
    She grabbed his lapel, gave him a quick peck on the cheek and then released him before he could blink. ‘‘Oh, thank you, Hamilton. You’ll not be sorry, I promise.’’
    Scurrying out of the storage room, she returned to the counter and placed the camera underneath. ‘‘Now, Mrs. Lockhart, I believe you were wanting to order Only One Sin by Mrs. Bertha Clay, is that correct?’’
    But Mrs. Lockhart ignored the catalog. ‘‘Is everything, um, all right, dear?’’
    ‘‘Why, yes.’’ Essie glanced at the other customers eyeing her curiously. ‘‘Oh, you mean back there ?’’
    Mrs. Lockhart gave her a nod.
    ‘‘Yes, ma’am. We have everything all settled now.’’
    ‘‘Do you, indeed?’’
    ‘‘Yes, ma’am.’’
    ‘‘Splendid, splendid!’’ She patted Essie’s hand. ‘‘Now, I should like to order Only One Sin, Beyond Pardon, and A Mad Love, please.’’
    ————
    The following morning, Essie arrived at the store before Hamilton came downstairs. She slipped in the back door, lit a candle and set it down beside the king’s crate.
    After the initial shock of his capture had worn off yesterday, the snake had settled down and not rattled his tail at all. He’d even begun to nose around his new home of wood, tree limb, and newsprint. The final test would be whether or not he would eat. She’d had snakes before that had been so shocked by captivity, they’d refused to feed.
    Opening her drawstring coin pouch, she lifted out a live white mouse by its tail and placed it in the crate.
    Soon as it hit the newspaper, the mouse scurried to the corner, quivering. The snake poked its head out of the cracker box, forked tongue searching the scented air. Essie nodded, willing him to strike. The king stiffened, then shot forward and grabbed its prey, swallowing it whole.
    Praise the Lord, Essie thought. All will be well .

chapter FIVE
    HAMILTON WRAPPED UP two dozen finishing nails. ‘‘That’ll be ten cents, George.’’
    The young carpenter reached into a deep pocket of his brown duck overalls and pulled out a handful of change, all the while keeping his gaze on Essie.
    Boys of every size and shape stood shoulder to shoulder, surrounding her like staves in the side of a barrel. She held the snake in her hands, letting it coil around her wrist and slither up her arm and onto her shoulder.
    The boys watched wide-eyed as she took the snake by the neck and held it out for them to touch. A couple of the braver ones ran their fingers along the smooth, dry scales.
    ‘‘That’s one strange woman,’’ George said. ‘‘Ain’t natural the way she’s so brash.’’
    Hamilton agreed but refrained from saying so. The snake had definitely created an uproar, which had been good for business, but not so good for Essie. He wondered how a girl with so much smarts could have no sense of propriety. Her mother was well-known for being socially correct in every way. The poor woman must succumb to vapors on a regular basis over the behavior of her daughter.
    Still, the snake brought in crowds of children and with them came their mothers, milling around, gossiping and shopping. So as long as customers came to watch, he’d ignore the unseemly side of the spectacle.
    He glanced back at George, surprised to see the man’s face bright red.
    ‘‘Meant no offense,’’ George said.
    ‘‘None taken.’’
    The man quickly paid for his purchase and hurried out the door just as a stranger entered. A tall cowboy. He stood inside, taking a quick survey of the store. The snake caught his eye immediately, but he soon pulled his gaze to Mrs. Tyner and her maiden daughter, Miss Sadie. Approaching them, he doffed his hat, laying it across his chest, and bowed