At home later, Charlie put her tack away, and brushed Gurth, thinking all the while. Fretting. Wondering. She went inside and was
greeted by Maria, who gestured to the snack waiting on the table.
"I'll go change," Charlie told her, gesturing at her school dress. Upstairs, in her bedroom, Charlie changed to her overalls and
older shoes, and took time to hang her dress up, instead of leaving it in a heap on her floor. Back downstairs, in the kitchen,
Charlie ate her cookies and fruit, and drank her milk, watching as Maria bustled around the kitchen. Charlie found herself
feeling suddenly curious about Maria, and her marriage.
"Maria?" she asked, tentatively.
"Si?"
"Have you been married a long time?"
"Casadas?" Maria asked.
"Yes. Casadas," Charlie said, stumbling over the Spanish word.
"Nosotras estamos casadas veintidos anos," Maria said. "Twenty-two."
"Twenty-two years?" Charlie asked, thinking that seemed like a very long time.
"Si," Maria verified, with a smile.
After that, Charlie wandered back outside, and went to tend to the pups and gather the eggs. She saw men riding in
from the west. Usually, if she happened to be outside, and saw men approaching, she would walk out, to see if Scott was
among them. Then he would hoist her up behind him on the saddle, and give her a ride back to the house. She'd told herself
that today she wouldn't, but then, when she thought about it, Charlie found it too tempting to not go to meet him.
She began her walk out, telling herself that she would just ask him about the previous Saturday evening. About Miss Lyons. See
what he said, or if she might be able to tell anything by the way he answered.
The family had, the day before, asked Scott if he'd had a good time the previous evening. That was what they generally did, or sometimes
Murdoch would, and Scott would say something about where they'd gone or what they'd done, or such as that.
But now, Charlie wanted more in-depth answers.
So, since she'd hesitated about walking out to meet Scott, she wasn't waiting on the tall rocks as was usual, but only, instead, halfway
between the barn and rocks.
When Scott pulled to a stop beside her, and the other hands rode on around and past, he said, "Hey there, kiddo."
"Hi."
Scott held out a hand and Charlie grasped it, and he swung Charlie up behind him, with practiced ease. They'd done it
so often that it was done with grace.
Riding back towards the house, Charlie wrapped her arms around his waist. Scott patted one of her hands that rested
there, around his middle. "How was school?" he asked her.
"It was fine," Charlie said, and then felt a prickle of conscience, remembering the mistakes at spelling recitation, and that Miss
Susan had questioned her.
"That's good. Anything interesting happen?" he asked.
"Not really," Charlie said. And then, she said, "There's a new girl."
"Is there?"
"Yes. Carrie Moore. Her family has only been here about a week."
"Well, that's good," Scott said, and patted her hand again. "Another friend, maybe, hmm?"
"No. I don't think so," Charlie said, with spirit.
Scott turned his head just slightly to take her in. "You sound very definite," he said.
When Charlie was silent, Scott faced forward again. "What's wrong with this girl?" he asked.
"I just don't think we could be good friends," Charlie said. "She's-well, her and Lucy are best friends now. And, I don't want to
be friends with anybody who's a friend to Lucy Stone." Her tone was adamant, and peeved.
"What's Lucy done now?" Scott asked, sounding slightly amused.
"She's despicable," Charlie said.
"Despicable, huh? That's quite a handle to pin onto somebody," Scott said.
"Well, she is," Charlie said.
"Have you had a quarrel with Lucy?" Scott asked.
"No," Charlie said, flatly. And then, she added, "Lucy's not kind. She's always trying to stir up trouble, and bad
feelings."
"Mmmm," Scott said. "Well, Lucy might be a bit spoiled-"
"More than a bit," Charlie interrupted.
"It's rude to interrupt," Scott said.
"Sorry," Charlie said, to the center of his back.
"With some people, you just have to do the best you can to get along. Even those that are spoiled," he advised.
Charlie got quiet after that, and, back at the corrals, Scott lowered her to the ground, and then dismounted. Beginning to
unsaddle his horse, Scott felt rather than knew, that there was more to this than Charlie was saying. She stood, quietly,
beside him as he loosened the cinch. "Is there something else troubling you?" Scott asked, glancing at her. "Besides Lucy being
despicable?" he added, with a hint of a smile.
Seriously, Charlie met his eyes, for only a moment, and then let her gaze drift away, going to pet the horse's nose. She had the words formed to
just ask him, straight out, if he was feeling more for Miss Lyons-
"Charlie?" he prompted, and Charlie realized that she was standing there, her mouth open, but not saying anything.
"I was wondering if you had a good time Saturday evening," Charlie said, rubbing her hands over the horse's neck.
"Yes. I did," Scott said. He wrinkled his forehead a bit, puzzled. He remembered Sunday morning's breakfast table discussion.
Murdoch had inquired the same, whether Scott had had an enjoyable evening. Johnny had made a teasing remark about how
attractive Hallie Lyons was. And Charlie had been present to hear all of that. Scott searched thru the memory of it, but
he couldn't recollect that Charlie had appeared apprehensive in any way. Yet now, she was edgy, and seemed to not want
to look directly at him.
"You went to eat at the hotel restaurant, didn't you?" Charlie asked.
"That's right."
"With Mr. Val, and his-friend? I don't remember her name," Charlie said.
"Clarice," Scott said. "And, no, Val and Clarice weren't there with us for supper."
"Oh," Charlie said, feeling the small knot in her stomach tighten. She licked her lips.
Scott turned, his hand resting on the saddle horn, to give Charlie his full attention. "Charlie, what is it?" he asked.
"I just wondered about it," Charlie said, still not meeting his eye. "The Stone's were eating there, too, Saturday night. That's
what Lucy said."
"That's right-I remember seeing them there," Scott said, feeling totally perplexed at this point by her demeanor. He began
to put two and two together. He reached out and lifted Charlie's chin with his hand.
"Did Lucy say something to upset you?" he asked. "About me?"
"It's what her mother said."
"And what did her mother say?" he persisted.
"She said you looked like a man in love," Charlie admitted, with a hint of accusation in her tone.
Startled, Scott hesitated, and dropped his hand from her chin. "She did, huh?"
Charlie nodded.
Scott blew out a breath. "Well," he said. He paused, thinking. Into that pause, the supper bell rang out, calling them
in to the evening meal. Teresa, sighting the still-unsaddled horse, and Scott and Charlie standing there, by the corral, called
out, "Scott! Supper!"
"We'll be in after a bit!" he called back.
And then, he took Charlie's hand, and walked her the few feet to the corral fence, where he lifted her up to sit
on the wide top rail.
"Shouldn't we go to supper?" Charlie asked him.
"We will. When we're finished talking this thru."
"We can talk about it later, Scott," Charlie said. She found, suddenly, that she wasn't certain she wanted to discuss it
after all. It was unnerving to think about-
"No. We'll talk now," he said. Scott, instinctively, knew this was a matter that needed to be settled now. Not put off. Otherwise, Charlie
would simmer inside, and worry, and be anxious and wondering. All of those things.
It struck him in that moment, just how well he knew the little girl sitting just in front of him. So, therefore, he began
the discussion strongly. He put one hand on either side of her, and met her eye to eye.
"I'm sorry that Mrs. Stone got that impression, and I'm sorrier for the fact that she made a comment like that in Lucy's
hearing. I don't think I was acting any certain way, other than polite, and enjoying Hallie's company," he began.
He hesitated, choosing his words. "I do enjoy her company. We have things in common with one another. I find her
interesting to be with. But, I'm not in love with her, Charlie."
Charlie ran those large brown eyes of hers over his face. Scott didn't miss the look of relief that passed over her own
expression.
"You're not?" she asked.
"No."
Charlie nibbled at her lower lip, and said, "Do you want to be? In love with her? Or somebody else?"
"Sometime, yes," he said, honestly. "I hope I meet somebody that I'd like to share my life with."
"Do you think you might feel that about Miss Lyons sometime?"
"I think Hallie and I will continue to be friends, and spend time together when we can, but no, I don't think we'll have the
sort of feelings that people should have to marry one another," he said.
"Oh," Charlie said, in a small voice.
Scott gave ample moments for his words to sink in, and then he said, "I remember that we talked about this another time, and I made
you a promise then. Did I not?"
Charlie nodded, somewhat tremulously.
"What do you remember that I said?' Scott prompted.
"That you would tell me if you began to feel special about a lady," Charlie admitted.
"That's right. What else?"
"That-we would talk about it, and that she would know about me, and that I would be part of it for her, along with you."
"Yes, ma'm," he said. "So, did you think I'd forgotten that promise? Or that I wouldn't follow thru with it?"
"I didn't think that," Charlie protested. "I knew you'd keep it. I just-" she hesitated.
"You just listened to what Lucy had to say, and let it stir you up," Scott finished for her.
When Charlie showed him a guilty expression, he said, "You could have just asked me, straight out, about it, instead of
dancing all around the subject, and getting yourself worked up unnecessarily. Am I right?"
"Yes, Scott," Charlie admitted.
He gave Charlie an intent look, and then said, "I can see how it would have bothered you, though. Hearing something like
that," in acknowledgement.
Encouraged by that, his validation of her feelings, Charlie gave him a tentative, small smile.
"I'd much prefer that you ask me something, instead of worrying over it to yourself," Scott said. "Don't you think that
would be a better choice, all the way around?"
Charlie nodded again. He still looked serious. Sort of stern.
"Are you angry with me?" she asked him. She didn't think that he was, but, still-
"No," he said, and immediately Charlie felt lighter.
Scott cupped her chin in his hand again. "Are you angry with me?" he countered.
At first, Charlie was surprised by that. Then she saw the beginnings of a smile from him, which she returned.
"No," she told him.
"Well, that's fine, then," Scott pronounced, teasing. "We're neither one angry at the other. Should we go in and eat our supper, before
Johnny leaves us with nothing?"
Charlie wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him.
Lancer