Page 345 of Conveniently Wed
“Yes, that small one in the case by the door,” Aundy said, walking to the case and pointing to the one she wanted.
Reluctantly the man took out the one she indicated and handed it to her.
“That’s a Baby Hammerless pocket revolver,” the proprietor explained, pointing out the gun’s lack of a visible hammer.
Aundy liked the light feel of it in her hand as well as the lovely pearl grips. It would fit perfectly in her reticule or a pocket. She warmed to the idea of having a gun on hand if she needed some protection without having to carry a bigger weapon.
From her lessons with Garrett, she knew to open the chamber and check to make sure there weren’t any bullets inside. She pointed the gun at a display of traps across the store and asked the storeowner to give her details about how it worked. He answered her questions and told her the gun was only a few years old, having had one previous owner.
“What happened to the owner?” She balanced the gun on her palm.
“Got shot.”
That bit of information, unsettling as it was, didn’t deter Aundy’s determination to purchase the weapon. The proprietorstarted to ring up the sale, but Aundy asked him for several boxes of cartridges. While he retrieved them from the back room, she walked over to where Nik gazed fondly at a display of harmonicas.
“Do you play?”
“No,” Nik said quietly.
Aundy wondered who in his past had played. From the wistful expression on his face, it must have been someone he cared about deeply. The boy seemed to whistle and hum all the time, so she wondered if he’d appreciate his own instrument.
“What harmonica would you recommend to a new student?” Aundy asked the storeowner when he returned with her cartridges. He pointed out what he thought was the best model and Aundy added it to her purchases.
“You can’t buy me the harmonica, too,” Nik whispered as they walked toward the counter.
“Yes, I can.” Aundy patted Nik on the back, much like she would a small child. “Just promise you’ll play it for me some winter evening when I’m bored out of my mind and tired of the snow. I’ve heard the winters out here are dreadful.”
“They can be bad.” Nik’s eyes fastened on the shiny new harmonica in his hands. “I promise to play for you any time you want.”
“Very well, then,” Aundy said, putting the gun in her reticule and picking up the boxes of cartridges. She turned to the proprietor, gave him a polite smile, and tipped her head. “Thank you, sir. Have a lovely day.”
After talking Nik into eating lunch with her at a restaurant, they headed out of town toward home. Aundy drove while Nik played the harmonica. With a natural musical talent, he was already starting to play a tune instead of just making random noise.
“You’ll be an expert at playing in no time.” Aundy parked the buggy by the side gate of the yard so it would be easier to carry her purchases to the kitchen door.
Nik shoved the harmonica into his pocket and began lugging in the loaded boxes. Aundy held the door for Nik to carry in the last box when she heard the distinctive jingle of a harness. She walked around the side of the house as Nora stopped her buggy at the end of the front walk with Li Hong beside her.
“Nora! What a surprise!” Aundy hurried over to give the woman a hug as she got out of the buggy. Li Hong stepped down and bowed to her then watched Nik approach.
“Nora, Li Hong, this is my shepherd, Nikola Zorian Gandiaga. We call him Nik.” Aundy placed a hand on Nik’s shoulder, drawing him forward as she made introductions.
“Hello,” Nik said, doffing his hat to Nora and reaching out to shake Li Hong’s hand. When the man bowed at him, Nik grinned and mimicked his motions. “I better get back to the sheep. Lem will be tired of watching them.” Nik climbed into Aundy’s buggy and drove it to the barn.
“What brings you two out today?” Aundy asked, looping her arm around Nora’s and motioning Li to follow them up the porch steps.
“I wanted to see your sheep and Li thinks he is ready to begin his duties as cook. I brought him over to see your place and make sure that’s what he really wants to do.” Nora looked over her shoulder at Li with a smile.
“I ready to cook. Make good food.” Li grinned at both women while nodding his head enthusiastically.
“Why don’t we plan on you starting in the morning, then?” Aundy led the way into her house. “Please, have a seat and I’ll be back with some tea.”
Nora and Aundy visited with Li making occasional comments to their chatter while they drank tea and ate cookies.
Dent marched to the house, set to ask Aundy what she thought she was doing buying a gun after Nik told him what she’d purchased, when he noticed the Nash’s buggy parked out front. He entered through the back door and held his hat in his hand as he walked into the front room.
Not surprised to see a Chinese man drinking tea with Aundy and Mrs. Nash, he smiled in greeting.
“Afternoon,” Dent said, tipping his head toward Nora.
