Ethan watched Amelia gather up her winnings to add to her growing pile and knew he was looking at a ringer. Someone who came off as being less skilled at something than they were in reality and Amelia had that in spades. The men around her were growing more bug eyed with each round as she won more and more of their money.
Pierce had fleeced them for all their cash through cheating at poker but Amelia hadn't done anything like that. Ethan had been watching all of her moves carefully and saw nothing dishonest or shifty. What he saw was sheer brilliance and she deftly used it against her opponents. Not that she was rude about it either; she smiled at each man as she pulled the money towards her thanking them.
They weren't mad yet more like amused at her, that a mere woman could outplay them all but Ethan worried that this joviality might fade and turn into something more akin to frustration and resentment.
"I'll take two more cards," Amelia said cheerfully enough.
Tiny handed her two more cards and she didn't betray any emotion when she examined them before slipping them with the others in her hand. Damn the woman could bluff like a pro too. Ethan's own hand didn't look that promising and Tiny's offerings couldn't fix that much so he folded out early and watched Amelia and Amos dispatch Tiny and Charlie before they were the only two left. Amelia put some more money in the pot.
"I'll take two more…"
Tiny gave her two cards and took hers. Amos bit his lip examining his own hand wondering what to do.
"I'll…take one."
He did and Ethan saw the hint of a smile on his face. Amos never had been good at bluffing himself. Amelia just took one and then looked expectantly over at her opponent. Waiting for him to make his next move.
Amos just smiled and said, he was ready to stand. He slapped his hand on the table and showed off two pairs. He looked triumphant so sure that Amelia wouldn't be able to beat that.
She furrowed her brow and studied her own hand for a while and Ethan couldn't tell if she liked or hated it, whether she'd lose the round or take the money. She finally put her hand down and Charlie saw it first.
His eyes widened.
"Damn that's a straight."
She nodded with a twinkle in her eye.
"I believe it is Charlie."
She collected her money while they all stared at her. Ethan saw her glance up at him and he smiled. She just pursed her lips and then Tiny started dealing again.
Margaret and Matilda kept checking up on the poker match when they thought the men weren't looking.
"I can't believe that," she said, "Those men allowing a woman to beat them."
Matilda nodded, looking equally disgraced. After all, the women in town who were left were supposed to come to their Valentine's Day party not fraternize with the men. Not to mention that Amelia was a married woman whose husband could have fallen upon some serious misfortune and she didn't seem to be worried about poor Pierce.
Mary smiled after bringing in some more punch.
"It looks like she's just playing better than them," she said, "Scotty took in some cupcakes in there and she'd had a stack of money that she won from them."
Matilda shook her head.
"What's she going to do taking the men's money?"
Mary shrugged.
"Buy herself something nice, put it away to save," she said, "Amelia's been through a rough time with her husband disappearing like that."
Margaret hissed in obvious disapproval.
"She should be at home missing him," she said, "This just isn't proper behavior for a lady."
Matilda sighed deeply.
"You're obviously forgetting what she was like when she and her husband arrived," she said, "Amelia obviously didn't have much training in being a lady."
Margaret nodded.
"She rode horses, carried a gun and she bossed her husband around," she said, "when she was barely grown herself."
Mary had heard the stories about how Pierce and Amelia had ridden into town and he'd already had a golden tongue and a head filled with plans to make Paradise a boom town. But the town had seen better days back then and had been rising on its own with the price of gold. Still, people looked at him in amusement first while Amelia managed the bank they had purchased. She'd quieted down for the most part working long hours and not attending many social functions at first…until her husband had wanted to be seen to make connections with other people in the town with money to spend. He of course had plenty of ideas on what to do with that money. Mary didn't quite trust him though she'd liked Amelia on sight. She knew there had to be more to Pierce's leaving then Amelia even told the marshal when she'd reported him missing.
He'd not been seen since in nearly two years and Amelia had appeared to have been resigned to the fact that she might never see him again. Time to move on, and make a life for herself in Paradise because the bank tied her to this town…because she couldn't legally sell it. Wives didn't own property only their husbands did and unless he turned up dead…but he hadn't turned up at all.
"It's not easy being her," she said, "People gossip about her all the time when they have nothing better to do or say about anything."
Margaret looked taken aback when she said that.
"Well I never…you really think that Amelia will ever fit in here," she said, "I see her when I'm working at the bank and she wears fancy dresses but she's not a lady. She does business like a man."
Mary understood that being a businesswoman herself, wearing the pants in her family so to speak and having a difficult time being accepted on her merits rather than just as Scotty's wife. She'd had her own hardships to bear, been subjected to gossip too about a man who had left town much like Pierce had done some years ago.
"She's very intelligent, she works hard and contributes to this town," she said, "and she's beating the britches off the men…"
Matilda recoiled.
"Oh that's just so improper," she said, "Scandalous… to say such things."
Mary wanted to laugh at the old spinster thinking she just needed to relax. Maybe she should have put some whisky in the punch bowl.
They took a break from the poker match hoping to break Amelia's momentum and throw her off her game.
Amelia went to get herself some scotch. She'd been enjoying herself immensely playing the game that she loved and forgetting everything else for a while. The men hadn't complained too much that she was winning though she sensed more tension in the room than when they had started. They had thought she wouldn't be able to keep pace with them but they'd been wrong.
Only Ethan hadn't looked all that surprised and she caught him watching her in interest. Probably because he might think a woman playing poker a novelty at least one who wore expensive dresses. She'd stood by the bar watching as Rosie and Scarlett two of the saloon girls were sidling up to two men including the one who had accosted her earlier. But she'd just ignore him and given that he seemed more focused on Rosie, she knew he hadn't seen her.
Ethan walked up to her.
"You play a good game," he said, "Surprised more than a few of them."
She looked straight at him.
"What about you?"
His face looked lean and handsome, dressed in a mustache and beard but his eyes were expressive and betrayed his emotions in ways that maybe he didn't guess.
"I seen your husband play and you're just as skilled but not a cheat."
She processed that assessment thinking it pretty apt. She harbored no illusions about Pierce anymore.
"Thank you…so did you send your gift to Lucy your sister?"
Ethan's face changed and she saw then how much he cared about his sister. Maybe his only one, she didn't know anything really about his background other that he was a gunslinger who'd killed men in his line of work.
He looked down at his drink almost shy but she didn't think that fit him.
"Not yet…she travels a lot with her children," he said, "I know she has a house in St. Louis but she might be on the road."
"She'll still see it when she gets back," Amelia said, "She'll still enjoy it just as much. I imagine she misses you."
Ethan nodded slightly.
"Maybe…it's been years since we were close."
"She's your sister," she said, "That'll never change."
"You miss him?"
His question came so suddenly she almost caught her breath.
"Miss…you mean my husband," she said, "I'm not certain that's the right word to use."
"I didn't really know him well," Ethan said, "but I'm sure he's alive out there somewhere."
She chuckled.
"I know he's alive," she said, "He's not able to face things head on Mr. Cord. He runs away from confrontation. Something that must seem foreign to you given your line of work."
She tried not to sound judgmental but couldn't hide it. But sometimes she didn't understand him at all. No need to do so really, he didn't spend much time in Paradise.
Still she found herself wanting to understand him.