“WELL, WELL! WOULD YOU look at that!” Pete McGregor blurted out as he looked at something across the street.

Colton was leaning against the post in front of the sheriff’s office, watching the town. When he heard the remark, he followed Pete’s gaze. Across the street, Dallas King was helping Ella Raines into his carriage. She looked over at Colton, but quickly averted her eyes.

Dallas King looked up and frowned, then said something to Ella.

“What a fine woman,” Pete gushed as he wiped a hand under his nose. “Makes me want to go out and buy another woman of my own. Of course, the first time didn’t work out, but I’m still working on it.”

“What are you talking about, McGregor?” Colton asked, clenching his fists at his sides.

Pete McGregor propped his foot on the watering trough in front of the sheriff’s office. Colton noticed that he was dressed a little bit better than he usually was. “Well, I just came from lunch with that fine young woman and Mr. King! He bought her, you know.”

Around them, a crowd was gathering. Two women had their heads together, talking, and one had her hand over her mouth.

“What the hell are you talking about, McGregor?”

“Her!” he exclaimed loudly, obviously having had too much to drink. “She’s a mail-order bride! Mr. King bought her in New York.”

Colton shook his head. “Slavery is over. You can’t buy people in America anymore.”

Pete laughed obnoxiously. “Yeah. Well, that may be true. But if you have money like Dallas King, you sure can buy a wife!” He laughed as he turned around, thinking he’d made the funniest joke ever.

When he turned back around, Colton doubled up his fist and punched him right square in the face. Blood suddenly gushed from his nose, down his face, and covered his shirt.

“Ah, hell!” Pete grunted, his voice muffled under his hands. “What did you go and do that for?”

“You’re drunk! Maybe that will teach you not to speak of a lady like that,” Colton stated as he grabbed his arm and proceeded to pull him toward the jail. “You need to cool off!”

Pete pulled back. “No! I’m not going in there. You can’t arrest me. I own the Whiskey River Saloon.”

Colton bit his upper lip and placed his hands on his hips as he stepped up in front of Pete. “Well, if you won’t cool off in the jail, then you might want to cool off here.” With that, he flipped him around and shoved him into the trough, head first.

Everyone laughed as Pete floundered and pushed himself up to a sitting position.

“That’s for Ella!” Colton yelled as he pointed at him. “She’s a lady, and she will be respected as such.” Then, he turned and pointed to the crowd. “Everyone will respect her! Got it?”

A murmur resounded through the crowd as everyone nodded. The two women scoffed and stormed off.

“I’ll have your job for this!” Pete screamed as he got to his feet and climbed out of the watering trough, dripping wet.

“Oh no you won’t.” Sheriff Clark intervened, grabbing Pete’s arm and twisting it behind his back. “I agree with Colton. You need some time to cool off.” He walked Pete into the sheriff’s office, pushed him into one of two jail cells, and locked it. “Who knows? Maybe you’ll learn to have a little more respect for women.”

“You heard?” Colton asked as they walked back outside.

Daxton chuckled. “I think the whole town heard.” He turned toward the crowd. “Okay, everyone! Show’s over! Time to go home.”

Everyone walked away, murmuring to themselves and to each other as Pete yelled from inside the jail.

Daxton walked over and sat down on one of two rocking chairs and propped his boots up on the rail. “So, what is that girl to you?”

Colton sat down in the rocking chair beside him. “Is it that obvious?”

Daxton nodded as he looked over at him. “Then why don’t you go after her?”

Colton scoffed. “She doesn’t want me. She wants to be ‘respectable.’”

Daxton laughed. “Well, there sure are other ways to be respectable than marrying Dallas King.”

Colton nodded then noticed his clothes. “Why are you so dressed up?”

Daxton nodded to the restaurant across the street. “I was invited to a lunch hosted by Dallas King. I can tell you, the lady is having second thoughts.”

Colton’s head snapped up. “What makes you say that?”

Daxton chuckled. “Let’s just say that when asked, she wasn’t in a hurry to set a date for the wedding.” Daxton pulled his boots down from the rail and propped his elbows on his knees, looking Colton straight in the eye. “Man-to-man, if you’re going to make a move, you’d better act quickly. I doubt that Dallas King will wait long.”

Colton nodded as he thought of Ella and the time they’d shared, unable to see how this could ever work out... as long as she was with Dallas King.