Page 3 of A Soft Kiss in Summer
“What?I’m just trying to clarify your statement.”
She glared at him a moment before looking back outside.“I’m asking.”
“Okay.Well, what do you want to do?”
“I want to run him out of town.”Her eyes brightened.“Hey.Go make him leave.You can do that, right?You’re the town Marshall, so everyone has to do what you say and since he’s here, he has to listen.”
He watched her chew on her bottom lip until it was red and puffy and the moment he wondered what it would taste like, he turned to the window again, putting her at his back.
“I can’t run him out of town for no reason, so I don’t know what to tell you, Violet.You’re going to have to go out there and see why he’s here.”
He heard her sigh and long minutes later, she walked to the door.“You’ve been no help at all, Josiah.”
He grinned.“My apologies, Violet.”
She gave him another scowl and left.He watched as she stood on the small porch in front of the jail, but instead of crossing the street like he thought she would, she turned and started walking in the direction of her house.She couldn’t have taken more than three steps when Rose stepped out of the store and yelled her name.
Through the open window, he heard Violet spit out a string of curse words he wasn’t even aware she knew and grinned, watching as she stomped across the road, her steps slow, her back stiff.She looked as if she were marching to the gallows.
He supposed if some man she didn’t even like was waiting inside that store thinking he was coming to fetch his bride, then that’s probably exactly how Violet felt at the moment.He knew that trapped feeling all too well, so Violet asking him to run some random man out of town made him want to do it for no other reason than he knew how she felt but, it wasn’t his business so he’d stay out of it unless someone broke the law.
Standing, he grabbed his hat from the nail by the door and stepped outside, resisting the urge to cross the street to the mercantile to meet the fellow Violet claimed was here to marry her and ignored the fact the thought of it made him angsty for reasons he didn’t want to examine.
He looked for her through the windows instead and stilled when he saw her.She was staring right at him.
Violet watched Josiah stare back at her through the window and wished she could start the entire day over.She would have never stepped foot out of her house.
Standing by her front gate as the stagecoach barreled through town hadn’t been anything new.Why she’d even stopped to watch it, she’ll never know, but seeing Edwin hanging out the window and yelling her name would forever be etched into her brain.
She turned from the window and heaved a breath before pasting on a fake smile, her irritation growing when Edwin stood there grinning at her as if his world were perfect.
Maybe Josiah was right and Edwin was just passing through town.Or he had, in fact, come to learn some things about the business management of the store.
She knew both of those assumptions were wrong the moment his gaze traveled the length of her body and back a few times, the look in his eyes glossing over a bit.
“You’re prettier than I remember, Violet.”
“Um, thank you.”She threw a look at Rose, who was standing behind the counter now.At least her sister looked remorseful at having to call her to come into the store.Rose knew why he was here and that look alone told her Josiah was wrong.
She cleared her throat and looked back at Edwin.“I’m surprised to see you here.What brings you all the way to Silver Falls?”
He straightened, throwing his shoulders back, and grinned.“You did, Violet.”
Something died inside of her at his words.Images of her ma popped into her head, her lovely face beaming down at her as she said, “Nice girls aren’t rude regardless of the situation.”
She’d done as told growing up, but her ma was gone now and those rules didn’t apply in her adult world.They couldn’t.
“I’m afraid I don’t, Edwin.I must say, seeing you here is a complete surprise.”
He stepped toward her and it took everything in her not to run.When he stopped way too close to her, she held her breath when he opened his mouth to speak.
“My pa’s doing poorly,” he said.
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.”
He nodded.“Thank you.”He inhaled a breath and gave her a tiny smile.“His health is getting worse, and he wants me married and with a family, so I won’t be left here all alone when he’s gone, so…here I am!”
His grin was so wide now she could almost see every tooth in his mouth.She knew what he meant by that statement and it was exactly as she’d expected, but played dumb.“I’m not sure I follow, Edwin.What does your being here have to do with your pa’s dying wish?”
