Page 16 of Mail Order Misprint

Sydney cut off a little piece of a dumpling with her spoon, and got some gravy and a bit of chicken, wanting to try all the flavors at once. She took one bite and smiled happily. “This is wonderful! I’ve missed out on so much with my mother hating chicken.”

“Don’t worry. You’ll have all those experiences here with us,” Lewis said with a grin. Well, unless she married someone else. He found he was already feeling bereft at the thought. He needed to get her to agree to marry him before they went to church on Sunday, and she met all the cowboys who would wander in for the service.

“There’s a church social on Saturday night,” Albert pointed out, nudging his brother.

“Would you care to go to the church social with me?” Lewis asked.

Sydney nodded, a smile transforming her face from merely pretty to absolutely beautiful. “I would love to. I’ve never been to a church social.” She didn’t know what was supposed to happen at a church social, but she’d wear a pretty dress and enjoy herself no matter what happened.

Alice frowned. “Your mother was dragging you everywhere to find you a husband, and she never took you to a church social? That’s how I met all the young men in the area.”

“My mother didn’t want me to marry just anyone. She was looking for a rich man who came from old wealth.” Sydney rolled her eyes. “One of those boring men who talks about nothing but himself.”

Alice shook her head. “Your mother sounds like an odd one. I don’t remember speaking to her often, but I certainly remember how she was with you.”

“My mother didn’t speak to people working in simple shops like the mercantile. She was more interested in speaking to people in modiste shops. The most important thing in her world is making certain that I wore a gown that fitted me perfectly. If it didn’t make my waist look tiny, then it wasn’t good enough.”

“I’m glad you’re here,” Alice said softly. “And you really must marry before your parents discover where you are.”

Sydney nodded. “I know. I would rather wait for some time to get to know someone well, but I probably only have a week before I need to just marry anyone.”

Lewis frowned. “Are you saying I’m just anyone?” He felt as if she was not at all interested in him as he was in her. She wasn’t just a marriage prospect to him. She was the woman he felt he’d waited his whole life for.

“Not at all,” Sydney said. “I’m sorry if that sounded rude. I just hate that I must be in a rush. I’d rather make you court me for a few years before we marry.”

“And I’d rather be married to you tomorrow.”

“I’m not sure that’s the best idea,” Sydney said. “Let’s at least give it til Sunday. Then we can enjoy the church social, and I can recover from my journey here before we do anything else.”

“All right,” Lewis said. “Today’s just Tuesday, so five days from now? I can wait that long for an answer, as long as you let me get to know you in the meantime.”

“Of course, I will,” Sydney said. “Don’t worry, you are first on my list.”

“There’s a list?” Alice asked.

Sydney shook her head. “You’re all just trying to trap me into saying something I don’t mean.”

Albert grinned at her. “I suppose you already know us.”

After supper was finished, Lewis invited Sydney to go for a walk. “Let me help with the dishes first,” Sydney replied.

Alice shook her head. “No, you’re our guest. I’ll do the dishes.” She made a shooing motion with her hand.

“I’m perfectly capable of helping!” Sydney said. Why had she learned all the skills she had at the orphanage if not to actually use them?

“You’ll be doing dishes as soon as you’re married. Let us spoil you for a little while.”

“But I’ve been spoiled all my life!”

Alice just laughed and turned away.

Sydney followed Lewis outside, and they walked in a different direction than they had the night before. After walking a short way, he pointed straight ahead. “That’s my house. It really is exactly the same as Albert’s.”

“Looks nice,” she said. Sydney wasn’t certain about being the wife of a horse breeder, but she really liked Lewis. What she knew of him anyway. “So, tell me what a typical day is like for you.”

“Well, I’m not much for cooking, so I start my day by going to my Pa and Susan’s house. I eat breakfast with that crazy group. And then I go through the stable, checking each of the horses for any injuries or anything wrong with them. I check the mares’ cycles regularly, because I need to know when I should plan to breed them.”

“Wait,” she said, stopping walking. “You actually put them together so they can…make a baby?”

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