Kitty was in bed felling tired, ill and unhappy. Her right arm hurt if she moved it even slightly, and she had a headache. The only positive was that the pain in her head was a dull throb, not the intense pounding she often felt.

There a knock on the door, and Claire walked in with a note, "Excuse me Miss. This is from Mr. Towers."

Kitty took the note with her left hand, and read it as Claire quietly left.

Dear Kitty, the doctor said that some sunshine and fresh air would do you good. I promised to keep you warm and comfortable. I'll be there to carry you to your carriage at 2PM.

With Affection,

Corey

Kitty smiled brightly, feeling happier that she had in days. She immediately decided to defy the doctor's orders to stay in bed, and started to get up to dress. She was surprised at how weak she felt when she stood, but was determined to be in nice clothes when Corey arrived. Slowly making her way to the closet, she spotted the blue silk blouse that Matt had given her and fingered it with a slight smile on her face. Then she sighed, and looked through the rest of closet. She chose a white cotton blouse. Putting it on was a challenge because of her arm, but she managed to take the sling off, slip her bandaged arm into the arm of the blouse and put the sling back on. Next came her dark blue skirt. When she buttoned the waist, she was amazed and appalled to see how loose it was. She pulled it tight, closed it with a safety pin, and vowed to eat more, no matter how nauseous she felt. Then she sat on the side of the bed to wait.

Corey arrived promptly at 2:00. When he saw her waiting expectantly, he smiled and gently lifted her in his arms. Holding her close, he carried her down the stairs, "Your chariot awaits you, fair lady." When they got outside, she felt the sun and fresh air on her skin, and smiled in enjoyment. Corey set her in the carriage, covered her legs with a blanket and sat next to her. He took the reins and they started off, "Let's drive around a bit, so I can show you some sites you haven't seen yet."

As they drove along, Corey pointed out various churches, plazas and homes, and had an entertaining story to tell about each. They turned a corner and came to a beautiful garden beside large pond. Corey pulled the carriage to a stop at the edge of the water, "This is one of my favorite places in New Orleans. It's lovely, peaceful and quiet, and best of all never crowded. They sat side by side with the sun warming them as they watched the ducks swim about and dive for food. Kitty felt calmer and more content than she had in some time. Corey put his arm around her as he leaned over to point to some baby swans.

She didn't resist his touch, but didn't snuggle closer the way she would have with Matt. Confusing thoughts raced through her mind. She liked this man, and he had been the only bright spot in her life for days. He seemed to be the only one in the world who cared about her, but she didn't love him, she loved Matt. Matt, the man who hadn't written, the man who seems to have forgotten about her.

Corey tucked the blanket around her, "Let's make sure you're not getting cold." He took her hand, kissed it and held it to his cheek. "Kitty, I know it can't be a secret that I love you. I love you and I have a lot to offer. I can give you a wonderful life."

Kitty looked into his eyes. Corey saw she was deep in thought and decided to press on, "Kitty, make me a happy man, and say you'll stay in New Orleans when you recover. I want to marry you. I want us to have a beautiful life together. Kitty you haven't heard a word from Matt Dillon. It's obvious that the marshal doesn't care about you. He's a fool. I do care, and I can give you everything."

Kitty eyes widened and she spoke rapidly, "How do you know I haven't heard from him, how do you know his name, and how do you know he's a marshal?"

Annoyance crossed Corey's face, annoyance at his own misstep. He tried to cover it with a smile as he answered lightly, "Actually, I can't remember how I came to know those things, but it doesn't matter, does it?"

Kitty put her hands in her lap, "Corey, please take me back to the house."

Corey smiled solicitously, "Of course. I don't want you to get tired. I'll get you home and back to bed."

When they reached the house, Corey carried Kitty up to her room. Kitty couldn't help but note that his smile seemed forced as he lifted her hand and kissed it, "I'll see you tomorrow, lovely lady. I meant what I said. I want to marry you, and give you a wonderful life. Think about it."

Kitty sat in bed staring into space, as she tried to sort things out. She had told Marie she was in a relationship, and Corey that she was not available, but she had never mentioned Matt's name or the fact that he was a marshal, and she had never spoken about not hearing from him. The fact that Corey knew those things made an alarm go off in her head. Something was wrong, very wrong.

Feeling more isolated than ever, tears welled up in her eyes. She was so buried in her thoughts, that she didn't hear Claire come in.

"Miss Kitty, here is your medicine and your dinner." Kitty didn't respond and Claire repeated herself.

Kitty looked up, "I'm sorry Claire. I don't mean to ignore you. I was just deep in thought."

Claire nodded, and set the tray down. She too was preoccupied. She had just brought the mail in and again there was no letter from Matt, a fact that caused her to be both disappointed, and surprised by her disappointment. Of course she couldn't know that Matt had stopped writing when he got the goodbye letter that he believed had been written by Kitty. There would be no more letters.

She was thinking hard about the letters and the man who had written them, when before she knew it she blurted out, "What does he look like?"

Kitty was puzzled, "Excuse me Claire, what does who look like?"

Claire's hands flew to her mouth as if she could stuff those words back in. Her hands slowly went back to her sides. The words were out. She had to make a decision, and make it on her own. Something she had little experience with. At the age of 15, she married the man her parents told her to. She worked for Miss Marie's mother, because her husband arranged it, and she remained in the job after her husband died. Miss Marie kept her on after her mother died, and that was that. Now she had a decision that was hers to make. Silence hung in the air for a moment, and then Claire decided. To her surprise it felt good. "Miss Kitty, I know it's late, but I want to show you something. I have to go home, to fetch what I'm talking about, but I can only do it if you promise me that when you leave here, you'll help me find a job, because if I do this I'll be fired."

Sunned and puzzle, Kitty nodded, not knowing what to say, and Claire raced out. Kitty couldn't imagine what Claire could possible have, that would be of importance or get her fired. Feeling more tired and confused than ever, she closed her eyes and hoped for answers.

A little over an hour later Claire rushed into the bedroom without knocking. She was breathless, and carrying a bag.

Kitty watched in amazement, as Claire frantically pulled letter after letter from the bag, until they formed a large pile on the nightstand next to bed. Still perplexed, Kitty pulled herself to a sitting position and picked up the letter that was on top. As soon as she looked at it, she recognized Matt's firm, strong handwriting and her heart began to pound. She started reading - Dear Kitty…

TBC