On Saturday, Charlie went along with Scott to town, and one of the stops they made, after the bank and post office, was to

Val's office to visit.

The two men sat in the office, at the desk, and played a game of checkers together, while Charlie sat nearby, watching.

After awhile, Charlie grew weary of just sitting there. She asked Scott if she could go and walk around a bit.

"Where to?" Scott asked, without looking up from the checkerboard.

"To see if Rebecca's home, or maybe to the mercantile to buy some candy," Charlie said.

"I suppose," Scott said, and reached into his pocket, pulling out some coins. He counted out thirty cents and handed it to

Charlie, who took it and said, "Thank you."

"Handing out money now, are we, Scott?" Val asked. "If so, I'll take some."

"It's my allowance day," Charlie told Val, with pride in her voice.

"It is, huh?" Val asked, smiling at her.

"Yep."

"No need to spend that all on candy," Scott told her.

"No. Not all of it," Charlie agreed, and then added, "Just part of it," with an impish grin at him.

"Remind me, where does Rebecca live?" Scott asked her.

"They live beside the stone church," Charlie said.

Scott gave the clock on the wall a look. "Be back here within the hour, alright?"

"Okay," Charlie said, and ran out with a backward 'goodbye!' and a wave.

As they returned to their checker game, Val said, "She's really a great kid."

"Yeah," Scott said. "She is." His tone was warm.

"What a difference the last few months have made, huh?" Val said. "You and the rest of the family have done wonders with

her."

Scott paused, a checker in his hand, to look at his friend. "She's had a little bit of trouble, getting accustomed to having rules,

and having people to answer to."

"Only natural," Val said. "Even young ones that have had rules all their lives stretch the limits a bit at times."

Scott nodded in agreement.

"Have you been out, at all, since Charlie's been here?" Val asked, studying Scott.

"I'm out. Right now," Scott said, with a very slight smile. He knew very well what Val was getting at.

"I'm talking about being out with a female. One that's not Charlie," Val said drily. "You remember those, don't you, Scott?

They're soft, and they smell real nice. They like to go dancing, and have you tell them how pretty their new dress is?"

"I seem to remember parts of it," Scott said, with humor.

"Do you have any plans along those lines?" Val persisted.

"I imagine one of these days I'll take a pretty lady to dinner, and dancing," Scott said. He gave Val a level look. "I've been a little

busy the last few months, you know?"

"I know that. Hell, I think it's great about Charlie," Val said. "But, you've got to have a life of your own, too, my friend."

"Like I said, I expect that I'll get around to it," Scott said.

"Well, no time like the present," Val said, and Scott gave him a raised eyebrow look.

"You know I've been seeing Clarice Lyons?" Val began, and at Scott's nod, he went on. "Well, her sister's visiting her

this week, and I think it'd be real neighborly of you to come along with me tonight, and meet her. We could have a nice supper,

and then go back to Clarice's for a bit to play a game of cards."

Scott gave Val a look, and began to speak, but Val held up a hand.

"Just a minute, before you refuse. Her name is Hallie, and she's a real pretty girl. Nice, too. It would mean a lot to Clarice, and to

me, too. And, it would do you good to get out," Val finished.

Scott sat back a bit in the chair, surveying Val. "Done?" he asked.

"Yeah. I'm done," Val said.

"Alright. I'll come," Scott said, and Val grinned.

"Well, damn, if I'd known it would be that easy, I would have asked you when she first got to town," he said.

7

Charlie was back at the sheriff's office, before the ordered-upon time. Just barely before, but she still made it.

Scott was standing outside by now, still talking to Val, when Charlie came running up the side street.

She told Val goodbye, and got into the buggy, and after Scott got in, and they were driving out of town,

Charlie held out a sack of jellybeans, offering him some of them.

"Shake me out one or two of the red ones," Scott told her, and Charlie obligingly did so, dropping three red jellybeans

into the palm of his hand.

"Are you coming back to visit Mr. Val again tonight?" Charlie asked him, popping a black jellybean into her mouth. "I heard you

tell him you'd see him at six o'clock."

Scott wondered if Charlie would react in a positive way to the news that he was going out to dinner with a woman, or if she

might be upset by the news. Murdoch had warned him that Charlie might be resentful if he was to begin distributing time and attention

elsewhere besides to her. Still, it was only a supper engagement, and it wasn't as though she'd be alone for the evening. Murdoch would

certainly be home, even if Johnny and Teresa were not.

"I'm going out to supper with Val and two others," Scott said. "Val's friend, Clarice, and her sister that's visiting."

"Oh," Charlie said, regarding him seriously, and chewing on a jellybean. "Well, that's nice," she said then. "I'll bet you

have a good time."

Relieved. That's what he was.

"I hope so," he said, with a smile at Charlie.

Charlie held out two more red jellybeans to him, and Scott took them.

"Will you be home by the time I go to bed?" she asked then.

"I don't think I will be," he said.

"So, we won't do our reading together, then?"

"Well, no. But, I'm certain that Murdoch would be glad to read with you," Scott said.

Charlie looked as though she was considering. "Maybe I'll read something else with Murdoch," she said. "I wouldn't want

you to miss out on what happens next in 'Little Men'."

"That sounds fine to me," Scott said.

After they'd ridden along for a few minutes, Charlie spoke up. "Scott, sometime could I spend the night at Rebecca's house?"

"You can't invite yourself to someone else's house, Charlie. That's not polite."

"I didn't. I wouldn't. Rebecca asked me today. I mean, she asked me today if I'd be able to, sometime. And, I told her that I'd

ask you," Charlie said.

"Well, Rebecca's mother would have to approve it first, but, yeah, I imagine that would be alright. Sometime," Scott said.

"Yay!" Charlie said, in excitement.

"Sometime you might want to think about having Rebecca come over to the ranch to visit," Scott said.

Charlie sat up very straight, looking at him in excitement. "You mean to spend the night?" she asked, her eyes

shining. "For truly?"

"Sure."

Charlie hooked her arm thru his, and squeezed it. "Just like the other girls," she said, more softly.

"What?"

"This is what other girls do. They get to stay at each other's houses sometimes," Charlie explained. "I never got to do

it before. But, now I do!"

"I want you to have a normal childhood, Charlie," Scott said. "Do the things the other kids do. The good things, I mean."

"You mean, not like what I did in Stockton," Charlie supplied.

"That's right. I want you to be safe, Charlie. And happy."

Charlie squeezed his arm again. "I want you to be safe and happy, too."

"I figure as how that makes us quite a team, then, seeing as how we want the same for one another," Scott said.

"Quite a team," Charlie echoed, savoring the words.

L