Chapter One

Laura looked out the window. Across the street, in front of the Colter Canyon bank, the first rays of morning sunlight shone on the back of the man who made her weak and foolish. The man who set her heart pounding. She stilled, her hands wrist-deep in a mass of bread dough.

Seth Travis had to be the most handsome, gallant and charming man in all of Colter Canyon. She’d never spoken to him. She wouldn’t dare. She swallowed hard and watched him tie his horse to the hitching post. He turned slowly and faced her, giving her the chance to take in his strong, heroic build. He was tall and broad-shouldered. His powerful chest tapered to a narrow waist. Chaps molded to his legs.

Often, she wondered how old he was. A hint of graying around his temples suggested mid-thirties. That was her best guess. She once asked Clarice, the saloon madam, what she thought, but she didn’t have much to offer. Clarice knew many of the men in Colter Canyon, some more than others, but she barely knew Seth Travis. Thirty-four, that was her guess, and Laura saw no reason to disagree.

At nineteen, barely, Laura wondered if he would regard her as a mere girl. She had no plans to ever do more than spy on him from the safety of her kitchen, but she liked to daydream that she was actually talking to him. In her imagination, she was carefree and confident, impressing him with some trait she’d never in a hundred years possess.

An odd awareness prickled her skin and with a jolt of mortification, she realized he was watching her while she watched him. He took off his gloves, a slow smile curving his lips. Her heart climbed to her throat.

“No,” she said softly. She was alone in the kitchen of the Magnolia Saloon, working on breakfast for Clarice and the girls. His gaze made her feel vulnerable and guilty, an odd mix, and she tried to tear her eyes from him but couldn’t. After what seemed an excruciating eternity, Seth nodded and went into the bank.

Laura let out a trembling breath. She closed her eyes and tried to tell herself Seth Travis hadn’t just caught her gaping like the fool that she was. Wasn’t it bad enough that she was already talked about amongst the people of Colter Canyon? Did she have to make it worse by pining for the same man every other woman in Colter Canyon desired?

She let out a small whimper of distress but assured herself that a man like Seth Travis would soon forget about the incident. He probably caught girls staring at him a dozen times a day. She shook off her humiliation and finished kneading the bread. When she was done, she set the dough in an oiled bowl and covered it with a tea towel. The kitchen was cold, even for a February morning, so she set the bowl near the stove to rise.

One by one, the saloon girls wandered into the kitchen. Of the four, not one had ever said an unkind word to Laura. Even if they were feeling poorly from too much whiskey the night before, they always appreciated her cooking, especially breakfast. Laura rarely spoke to them, or anyone for that matter, but she relished listening to their conversations.

The breakfast discussions between the girls always centered around the cowboys they’d entertained the night before. Laura prayed she wouldn’t hear Seth’s name. In the two months she’d worked at the Magnolia, his name never came up.

The girls ate unhurriedly and returned to their rooms for a bath or a nap, or both. Clarice was the late-comer, arriving after the girls had left. She swept into the kitchen, dressed in an emerald gown, and set a few coins on the counter where Laura peeled potatoes.

Laura gave her an inquisitive look.

“I got lucky last night. I won every hand and wanted to share a little with you.”

Laura’s face warmed with gratitude. She smiled and dropped the coins in her apron pocket.

“That lavender gown suits you,” Clarice said. “Can’t believe I ever fit into something so tiny. I found another this morning. A sky-blue summer dress. You won’t be able to wear it till May at the earliest, but it will show off your pretty eyes. I hung it in your room.”

“Thank you,” Laura said softly.

Clarice drew close and brushed a lock of hair from Laura’s eyes. “You got that pretty Irish coloring. My mother had that coal-black hair, fair skin and the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen.” She fluffed her own hair. “I never cared for my father’s red hair, but when I was your age, half the men of Fort Worth were in love with me. They all said it was my hair that made them run to propose, but my smart mouth made them run the other direction.”

Clarice poured herself a cup of coffee and strolled to the kitchen door. “That’s all right, isn’t it Laura? Who needs a husband anyway?”

With that she left, murmuring a few words about talking to the piano player about his bar tab, and the kitchen was quiet.

Laura tidied up her breakfast mess and began working on lunch, doing her best to keep from looking out the window. When she finished peeling the last potato, she stole a quick look and saw that Seth’s horse was gone. She felt a little bereft and chastised herself for her silly notions.

A man’s attention was the one thing she should avoid. In Boston, she’d worked as a cook. Time and again she had to give notice when the master of the house would demand favors. Four months had been the longest she’d worked in one place.

Her parents had died of influenza when she was seventeen. With no family to speak of, she decided to leave Boston. She summoned her courage and answered an ad for a mail-order bride.

The man who sent for her dismissed her the moment she stepped off the train. She couldn’t remember that day without cringing. Melvin Campbell railed against her as soon as she stepped off the train, shouting that if she couldn’t say more than few words without stammering, she wasn’t fit to marry him. He was so scary, spit flying from his mouth as he hollered at her, her mind just felt frozen, and her feet were rooted to the spot.

He’d been so angry, Laura was sure he’d strike her. The man towered over her and unleashed a torrent of insults and obscenities. A woman stepped in front of her, a stranger coming to her aid, and snarled at Melvin. He’d backed away, stunned. Laura had been stunned too. She’d never heard such language from a woman. After Melvin fled, the woman turned and hugged her.

“Darlin’, I’m Clarice. Welcome to Colter Canyon. If Melvin Campbell, that drunkard, ever bothers you again, I’ll shoot his privates to kingdom come.”

In a single, pivotal moment, Laura lost a fiancé but gained a friend. She also landed a job, cooking for the women of the Magnolia. Laura had come to Texas to be married and start a family, but wound up working in a brothel kitchen. Her past employers would laugh to see her now. The prude, chaste girl cooking for a houseful of harlots.

Laura rarely left the Magnolia, only to shop at the butcher’s and mercantile every other day. Colter Canyon farmers delivered milk, eggs and produce.

She was lonely, yes, and still felt the sting of Melvin’s vitriol, but she was content. And for the first time since her parents passed, she felt truly safe. Which hadn’t come easily, not with the way Melvin behaved.

In the beginning Melvin came to the saloon every day, telling anyone who would listen that Laura was his to do with what he wanted, and he wanted her gone. The fact that she’d stayed in Colter Canyon, after he’d told her to go home, made him furious.

Clarice told Melvin he was no longer welcome at The Magnolia, and Melvin knew well enough to leave the saloon. But then he stood just outside and yelled at Laura, such obscenities like she’d never heard before.

That too didn’t last long. Clarice went to her room and came back with a shotgun. Laura watched as she stepped outside and spoke a few words to Melvin, holding the gun in one hand, barrel pointing down to the ground. Laura couldn’t hear Clarice, but she saw Melvin’s mouth fall open, then saw him nod, turn and walk quickly down the street.

All that happened just three days after Laura had arrived in Colter Canyon. She hadn’t seen Melvin since, and hoped she’d never see him again.

The girls later told her that Melvin was crazy, likely a drunk, and still ranting to anyone who would listen about how Laura was his. He didn’t come around the saloon, but he seemed obsessed with Laura, from what the girls said.

Laura thought back to the day Clarice carried the gun outside. She’d thanked Clarice and hoped to know what Clarice had told Melvin, but she was too shy to ask.

Laura smiled as she finished making lunch. Clarice was a force to behold, and the best friend anyone could ever hope for.

The rest of the day passed much like all the others. Laura had dinner ready by four o’clock, as always, so the girls could eat before attending to any gentleman callers. Today, though, the girls came to the table with their eyes red and tear-filled. They ate, talking quietly amongst themselves. Every so often one would glance up at her and Laura yearned to ask them what troubled them, but she didn’t. The girls finished their meal and left together, thanking Laura for the food but not saying anything else.

Dusk settled in Colter Canyon as Laura scrubbed the last of her cooking pots. The Magnolia was utterly quiet. No music. No raucous laughter. No arguments from the poker games. Laura moved to the door and pushed it open a few inches. The saloon was empty except for one table. Clarice sat with Sheriff Holden. Each had a glass of spirits and spoke solemnly.

Had someone died? Her heart lurched. What if it was Seth?

Aside from the women who lived and worked at the Magnolia, she knew no one in Colter Canyon. She didn’t claim Melvin as anyone she knew or cared about, but she would claim Seth, which was a lark. Seth Travis knew nothing of her and couldn’t know the hold he had on her heart, but she still felt a kinship with him. It was nothing more than a girlish longing, but she held it close, and kept it hidden.

After she dried the last of the dishes and put them away, she peeked out the door one last time. Usually, before heading to bed, she would ask Clarice if she needed anything more. If Clarice was done with her, Laura would go to bed. She wasn’t sure what to do. Should she interrupt Clarice, when, clearly, she was having a serious talk with the sheriff?

She decided against it and quietly left the kitchen. Her room sat at the back of the Magnolia, a modest but comfortable bedroom with a washroom and small sitting area. It would be cold tonight. Even if she could rekindle the fire, it would take some time before she felt warm. Snow swirled around her as she hurried around the building.

Through the windows, a warm glow lit the inside of the cottage. Puzzled, she opened the door and stepped inside. A fire burned in the fireplace. Candles flickered on the mantle.

And sitting on the hearth was Seth Travis.

A scream died in her throat. She swayed on her feet and clutched the doorframe for support.

“Come in. Close the door. I’m not going to hurt you.”

She nodded slowly and moved without thought, closing the door and sinking to the nearby chair. Her throat was dry and tight. Her difficulty speaking came and went, but finding Seth in her room had frightened her voice away completely. Her thoughts spun with confusion. For a moment she wondered if she were dreaming.

Seth Travis was in her room.

Sitting before her.

Only a few paces away.

His scent hung in the air, strong and masculine, adding to her faintness. On the table in front of her lay a stack of money. She couldn’t tell how much was there, but it was more than she’d ever seen before.

“That’s for you, Laura.”

She trembled and looked from Seth to the money and back to Seth. Clasping her hands, she bit her lip. He seemed to struggle with what to say as well. It wasn’t possible that she was sitting in the same room with Seth. The astonishment faded with a new realization taking its place. She eyed the money with growing alarm. He offered the money because he wanted her to lie with him. Her heart squeezed with pain. Of course, he did. She worked for Clarice, after all.

“I don’t do that,” she whispered.

“Do what?”

His voice was gruff, edged with irritation. He leaned forward, setting his elbows on his knees. Terror filled her mind. When Melvin flew into a rage at the train station, it had broken something inside her. The trip from Boston was difficult, not knowing what her new life would be like. And then Melvin had broken her into a thousand pieces with the way he treated her, humiliating her in front of hundreds of strangers. She’d recovered. Mostly. But if Seth were to do the same thing, he’d break her heart.

She drew a deep breath. “I don’t take gentleman callers.”

He frowned. “I know that. You work in the kitchen. You’re saving your money for train fare to leave Colter Canyon.”

A small huff of surprise fell from her lips. A weight inside her chest melted. He wanted to give her money? When she first began working at the Magnolia, she told Clarice she intended to leave Colter Canyon when she could. But that was months ago. She’d grown fond of the girls and loved Clarice. The thought of leaving had lost its appeal.

She shook her head. “I don’t want to leave, Mr. Travis.”

His eyes darkened. He looked even more handsome in the firelight. Later, when she sketched a picture of him, in her small pad, she’d draw his image just as he was now. Sitting on her hearth, framed by the glow of the fire. She would finish the drawing with the shadow of a beard that darkened his jaw.

“I’m not asking if you want to leave. I’m telling you. You’re leaving.”

Laura reached down to grip her chair, fearful she might fall off.

“In the last three weeks, four girls have been robbed in Colter Canyon. Some of them have been knocked down by the robber and hurt. He’s getting more brazen with each attack. You don’t belong here. Three of the four girls used to work for Clarice.”

Three of the four girls robbed and hurt…

So that’s what had happened. She hadn’t heard any of the details, but it made sense to her now. The news was frightening, but people got robbed in Boston too.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said quietly. “It’s awful. But I’m not leaving.”

“I will take you to the station myself if I need to. I feel bad for you, I really do, and I’d offer for you myself if I thought you’d accept, but I’m sure after Melvin Campbell you don’t want another man.”

He’d offer for her? Now she was certain she was dreaming. But did he think she’d been intimate with Melvin? The thought repulsed her. “After Melvin?”

His mouth twisted. “I don’t want to hear another word about you and him. Make your plans. On Monday, I’m coming to collect you and your things. That should be enough for a first-class ticket to anywhere you want to go.”

He wanted her to leave. The notion unleashed a small wave of ire. Her anger gave her a newfound bravery.

She got to her feet. “I don’t want your charity, Mr. Travis. And I don’t need you to offer for me out of sympathy.”

He rose and towered over her. His imposing build and his scent made her want to both step back and draw nearer.

“It’s not charity. I’m paying for a service. I want to borrow this.” He tugged her sketchpad from his pocket.

Her jaw dropped. He had her sketchpad which meant her humiliation was complete. He’d take it home and probably laugh at her drawings. Half the book was drawings of him and for a moment she hated him. He wanted her gone. He was taking her cherished drawings. Seth Travis might not be as big a bully as Melvin Campbell, but he was still a bully.

She stepped away from him and tried to ignore the sting of tears. Never again would she look at him with admiration in her heart. She vowed that from that day forward she wouldn’t allow herself to feel a shred of affection for Seth Travis.

He nodded. “I had a bolt installed on your door. Make sure you lock up at night.”

Any response she had now, lay silent inside her.

“Sweet dreams, Laura. I’ll return your notebook on Monday, when I take you to the train station.” He closed he door behind him and she head his footsteps fade into the cold, dark night.