Posted November 26, 2020 | Charlie Wentworth | With: Clara, Arabella and Brendan

For the rest of the dance, Charlie found himself concentrating more on Clara and the steps. He would have time to quiz the newcomer afterwards.

A few minutes later and it was over. Charlie let one hand drop and while he held the other, he took one step backwards and then bowed. Standing upright, he smiled, "Thank you for being such a wonderful partner."

While he waited for Clara's response, he could see Arabella and her partner approach them. Now he would find out who this jasper was and why he was so interested in Clara.

Posted November 26, 2020 | Arabella Mudd | With: Brendan, Charlie, Clara

"Yeah, she's nice. Good at waltzin'."

“Well course she is, I taught her!” replied Arabella with her usual air of showing off, but with enough of a glint in her eye to indicate that even she took her own boasting with more than a pinch of salt.

When they got to the "walky part," Arabella had another idea. "Just ignore them! I mean, let’s pretend to be snooty!”

"Good idea." He grinned before adopting a haughty expression, jutting his chin out and puffing up his chest as they neared their opposite couple.

Arabella was impressed by Brendan’s snooty act and it tickled her so much that she could barely keep her side of it up. But then, oh dear: there he was peekin’ again! Nobody likes to be second best, but she hid her jealousy under a lie to herself that she was concerned about Bridget’s chances with the handsome young cowboy.

"She could give us lessons on bein' snooty," he whispered to Arabella, breaking out into a grin before putting on his haughty expression again.

“Oh, I know!” agreed Arabella, feeling a slight pang of guilt at bad mouthing the girl whom she had always declared to be her ‘bosom friend’ (one-sided arrangement though that was!).

“Not like Bridget Monahan, she’s just the sweetest natured person this side of heaven. Ooh, and I just thought, she’s got an Irish name, just like you! Say, I don’t suppose you happen to be a Catholic do you?” she asked with a double purpose: one, they needed an escort to take the pair of them up to Father Ignatius’ Catholic Mission house the next day, and two, for the little matchmaker to find any points of similarity between the ranch hand and the crippled girl.

Once the dance had finished, Arabella tried to steer Brendan back to the pie table and to Bridget, but the way they were placed, there were Clara and Charlie in between, the former looking … no! … was that almost happy?!

As for Charlie though, he was staring at Brendan with a curious look that Arabella couldn’t totally fathom, but made her tummy jump up and down in foreboding and the hairs on the back of her neck stand up to attention, like soldiers on a parade ground.

Posted November 26, 2020 | Barnabas Pike | With: Ryker, Blakesley & Monahan

"Bear sign?" Emeline mused, "I'm not certain what that is...I've heard of bear claws." She shrugged and smiled. "Well, we'll just have to ask, and then see what we can come up with!" Then she laughed and playfully nudged Barnabas. "And we have a skilled, brave taster to let us know if what we make is good."

“Yes ‘em, and I can do that, quite well in fact.” He replied. “I’ve had my share of bear sign I have. Cowboys get word of it, you'll have trouble keepin' it on hand!"

Bridget seemed to be distracted, though, and whispered something to Barnabas, then moved away from them toward Jay. "What did she say to you?" she asked, "she seems to know him, maybe he'll convince her to dance?" He was a fine young man, she'd known that when he'd helped them rescue old Mrs. Anderson in Whitefish, even though he'd been injured himself, and besides, Addy liked him, and she was an excellent judge of character. "Goodness, I fret so much over a stranger, I pity our children!"

“Her? Somethin’ about bear sign an’ me bein’ the judge of what was baked. Why?” He asked, then added, “Bein’ fretful about strangers ain’t necessarily a bad thing, Em. Good instincts like you got about folks is good defense most times.”

Introductions were in order. She’d already pointed Jay out to Pronto as the man who “Mended” her, but introductions were due the other way, and Bridget summoned all her courage and practice with the Chinaman Fa to say them out loud, perfunctory as they were.Mrs Blakesley was introduced, when she could eventually get the words out, as “M… Miss Em” and Pronto was just “… Pike!” Which might have sounded a little short and rude, but the big smile on her face as she introduced them illustrated the great affection she already felt for the affianced pair.

“Howdy.” Pronto said extending his hand to the young man. "Barnabas ‘er Pronto which ever comes to mind first.”

Posted November 26, 2020 | Leah Steelgrave

"What would you suggest?"

“Well, as tempting as that sounds, it’s better than two hundred miles by any means possible. Like four days each way. Maybe we can interest some of the locals to form a, ah, ah, community theater,” Was her response. “Not the same, granted, but what fun, especially come next winter when there’s so little for everyone to do.”

She smiled at him, “Without the upcoming Women’s League Tea, the possibility of the Town Council taking up the matter.” She laid her gloved hand over his, “Honestly, Jonah, I’d much rather be in Helena or Boseman or anywhere but here dreading what’s coming. We would have a time of it, I promise you that. Maybe when this is all passed us we should go.”

Posted November 27, 2020 | Clara Redmond-Lutz | With: Charlie, Arabella, Brendan approaching

A few minutes later and the music stopped, the dance was over. Charlie let one hand drop and while he held the other, he took one step backwards and then bowed. Standing upright, he smiled, "Thank you for being such a wonderful partner."

Clara was impressed with the gesture, the posture, as much as she had been with his smooth dancing - he hadn't been making it up, he had known exactly what to do. Charlie had turned out to be quite the gentleman, on the other hand, he wasn't drunk this time.

"My pleasure, Charlie, it was most exhilarating indeed," there was a spark in her eyes and the smile unforced, very genuine.

Just then Arabella and Brendan came up to them, Clara hurried to get in a word edgewise because, after all, this was Arabella.

"Quite the dance! You two looked good out there," she declared, in a thoroughly good mood (for once).

Posted November 28, 2020 | Arabella Mudd

“My pleasure, Charlie, it was most exhilarating indeed," there was a spark in her eyes and the smile unforced, very genuine.

Just then Arabella and Brendan came up to them, Clara hurried to get in a word edgewise because, after all, this was Arabella.

"Quite the dance! You two looked good out there," she declared, in a thoroughly good mood (for once).

“Oh I know!” beamed Arabella putting her hand through Brendan’s arm “Mr. Connolly was simply wonderful, a perfect gentleman and such a divine dancer!” she gushed, then turned to the man himself and slapped him on his arm with her free hand “You sure get steppin’, don’t y’pard? Why I could just kiss ya. In fact, think I will!” she yelped and jumping up, gave him a peck on the cheek.

She didn’t know why she did it. Perhaps just because she could, with no real consequences; her heart belonged elsewhere. Or perhaps she was showing off in some way to Clara: look at me and my partner, look how well we danced together, look how well we got on. Two handsome men standing there, and the person that she was trying to impress was the standoffish girl who had nursed her back to health but never really returned her overtures of friendship.

“You and Mr. Wentworth seemed to get along pretty fine, too.” She said, smiling at him. She knew Charlie from the saloon, where he was known as something of a lush. Charlie Barleycorn she called him. It was only lately that she had realized the connection between him and the apple of her eye, Mike Wentworth. But what went on in the saloon, stayed in the saloon, and it was a point of professional etiquette to her that she treated him here with all the respect and dignity any other gentleman might deserve.

Posted November 29, 2020 | Charlie Wentworth | With: Clara, Arabella and Brendan

Charlie's only contact with Arabella in the past had been at the saloon where she worked. She would have seen him at his worse, especially after he had a few drinks inside of him. Arabella probably would have seen him do or say things that weren't gentlemanly. He was partly relieved and glad to see that she was treating him nicely.

His problem was not getting drunk all of the time, far from it, he was usually sober. His problem came when he started drinking as he tended not to stop until he either passed out or one of brothers dragged him away from the bar. Most of the time it was Sam as Mike tended to avoid the Stardust as much as possible.

Clara had seen him a few times when he hadn't indulged too much but thankfully, she didn't know how bad and how rude he could get. Alcohol seemed to make him lose all sense of propriety. He knew one day he would do or say something he would deeply regret or get him into trouble. It was a problem he needed help with and it was going to take some time.

At the mention of the other man's name, Charlie acknowledged the other man, "You must be new to these parts as I don't recollect seeing you around."

Posted November 29, 2020 | Brendan Connolly | With: Arabella, Clara, and Charlie

Brendan smiled indulgently as Arabella chattered about Bridget. He certainly didn't need her to talk the quiet girl up any to him. He liked her all right; maybe more than he should. But he was trying to convince himself that he needed to forget about Bridget Monahan. For one, they'd likely never see each other again after this dance, and two, even though he was good with hurt animals he wasn't sure how he'd do with a girl like Bridget.

"Nah, I'm Baptist," he said in answer to her question about his religious leanings. The thought crossed his mind a second later that he should have asked what Bridget was, but it was too late for that.

They were approaching Clara and her partner, and Clara complimented Arabella and Brendan with a...was that a smile? It was. He felt a sudden stab of envy at whoever this man was who could make Clara smile.

And then Arabella was gushing over him, saying how well he had danced and what a gentleman he had been. Take that, Clara, he thought vaguely, while hunching his shoulders a little bit at Arabella's overdone praise and...she kissed him!?

He blinked and drew back a little bit, but thankfully Arabella had moved on to introducing Clara's partner...or partway introducing him. Wentworth? Wasn't that the name of the folks who ran the Lost Lake Ranch?

"You must be new to these parts as I don't recollect seeing you around," Wentworth said.

Brendan nodded, his eyes flicking from the other man to Clara and back again. He wondered how much Clara had told this man from the rival ranch about him. The man's appraising glance was setting him on edge - if Brendan had been a horse, his ears would have been laid back slightly. What the hell, he thought. Might as well wade in right now.

"Pretty new. Been at the Evergreen spread since August." He held out his hand to shake. "Brendan Connolly."