Page 85 of Kissing the Sheriff
“What?” Letty said. “You mean you’re not going after her?”
“I just said I have work to do, didn’t I?” He set the glass down, marched straight to Lawrence, unhitched him and mounted. “Wish me luck!” He turned Lawrence, gave him a kick, and the horse started off at a faster pace than normal, though still a snail’s pace compared to other mounts.
“You should have bought a different horse,” Sterling called after him.
Conrad glared daggers at him over his shoulder, then tried to get lazy Lawrence to pick up the pace. He graduated to a trot. It was all he was going to do. Just as well. Conrad was off to explain a kiss to a woman with a gun. He just hoped that wasn’t going to get him shot.
CHAPTERNINETEEN
Cassie sank to her knees beside her father’s grave. “Oh, Pa! I’ve done something awful. Well, not awful. In fact,Ididn’t do anything.” She rested her hands on her knees and stared at the headstone. “Conrad kissed me.Kissed me!” She leaned back on her heels. “And I liked it. A lot, Pa.” She began plucking grass and tossing it aside. “I sort of knew it was coming, I could see it in his eyes. And I wanted him to. Is that bad? Is it, Pa?”
She got to her feet and began to pace. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I wanted that kiss, needed it. But why?” She stopped, went to the headstone and put her hand on it. “I’m sorry, Pa. Are you ashamed of me? I don’t want you to be. But I don’t feel ashamed. In fact, I … oh, no. I think I’m in love.” She buried her face in her hands to stifle a sob. “And he’s leaving!”
She wiped her hands on her bodice, sucked in a breath and stood straight. “I can handle it, though. You’ll see. My heart won’t break.” She looked at the headstone again. “Much. But doggone it, how did this happen?” She went back to pacing. “I’ve only spent a few days with the man!” She spun to the headstone. “But it also happened to Letty. Now she and Sterling will marry. She’ll go to England with all of them and I’ll be left here …”
She buried her face in her hands again. She didn’t care if she cried. She was frustrated, angry, and unfortunately for her, in love with Conrad Darling. This was terrible!
She sniffed back tears, wiped her eyes with her hands, and tried to pull herself together. It was bad enough Conrad was leaving, but did he have to kiss her? It only caused her heart to leap with joy and made every fiber of her being sing his name. She was good with him. There was no sadness or angst or loneliness. He helped fill the void left behind after Pa died. She enjoyed spending time with him, talking with him, watching him work. In his own way, he gave her a new sense of purpose.
Cassie stared at her father’s headstone and hung her head. “I guess that’s it then. I’ll have to live with it. But if Letty leaves too, this won’t be easy. I don’t know who I’ll miss more. But Letty’s not the one breaking my heart, Conrad is. The best thing to do now is avoid him. Why prolong the torture? Because that’s what it is, Pa. Pure torture. Even if we write to each other, what good will it do? He must have been giving me a goodbye kiss, that’s all. And here I’ve gone and blown it out of proportion. Just like Billy does with everything. What a fool I am.”
She took a deep breath, then another. She needed to calm down because sooner or later she was going to have to face Conrad again. She’d tell him goodbye, let him finish the work on her house and do her best to stay away from him. It was all she could think of.
She kissed her fingers and placed them on her father’s headstone. “Thanks for the talk, Pa. I needed it. I still don’t feel good. I think my heart’s breaking. It’s not the same as when I lost you, but … it’s close.” She sniffed back more tears and left the cemetery.
At her office she sat behind her desk and mulled over what happened. Conrad didn’t give any warning before he kissed her, he just did it. Part of her knew it was coming, just like she told Pa, but the other part hadn’t a clue and was surprised. She liked that surprise and the way it made her melt like butter. She hoped she remembered his kiss for a long time. Then again, would that help? Would she pine for Conrad Darling formonths on end?
Before she could lament further, Alma burst through the door. “Cassie, come quick. Captain Stanley and Agnes are going at it in the middle of the street. It’s working up into an ugly squall.”
She rolled her eyes and sighed. “All right. I’m coming.” She left her chair and followed Alma outside. “When did this start?” She spied the captain and Agnes yelling at each other and rolled her eyes again.
“A couple of minutes ago. I can’t believe you didn’t hear them.” Alma, being a few inches shorter, trotted along beside her. “Agnes started it, just so you know.”
Cassie nodded and headed for the pair. Captain Stanley’s eyes were round as saucers as Agnes was giving him what for. “And another thing, you scalawag – stay away from my Francis! You don’t need to be filling his head with a bunch of nonsense. He isnotgoing with you to Virginia City to deliver apples!”
Captain Stanley’s face contorted. “Now see here! That poor husband of yours needs an outing. It’s bad enough you never let him go fishing with me, but to deprive a man of a trip to Virginia City for a little rest and relaxation …”
“Rest and relaxation!” she snapped. “You’ll be taking him to some saloon!”
Captain Stanley rolled his eyes. “May I remind you that Iownthe saloon here? Do you see him frequenting it?”
Cassie snorted as she approached. The captain had a point. “All right, what’s going on here?”
Agnes pointed a finger at him. “He’s trying to corrupt my Francis!”
Cassie sighed. “Captain?”
“All I did was go to the bank and ask Francis if he’d like to accompany me when I take another load of apples to Virginia City. He said he’d love to. So long as we do it on a Saturday.”
Cassie turned Agnes. “And what is wrong with that?”
Her jaw dropped. “Everything! He’s going to corrupt him, I just know it!”
Cassie gave Captain Stanley a sympathetic look. “As I see it, the only way to resolve this little issue, is if both Agnes and Francis accompany you to Virginia City. That way they both get a lovely outing.”
Agnes’ eyes bulged. “What? Sit next to this overgrown miscreant for hours?”
“Francis can sit next to me,” the captain shot back. “You can ride in the back with the apples.”
