he murmured. “But know this. You haven’t seen the last of me.”
With a little gasp, she spun away, fled to her bedroom, and closed the door behind her.
* * *
True to his word, Joe was gone when Sarah came into the kitchen the next morning. The only sign that he’d been there was the empty coffee mug on the counter and the charred pile of leather boots, belts, and brass buckles that remained from the fire he’d lit in the front yard.
By the time breakfast was over, a taciturn, middle-aged man driving a wagon had shown up to fix the door. Laying out a pair of iron hinges and several long screws, as well as a sliding iron bolt to serve as a lock, he set to work.
He was just finishing the job when a one-horse buggy pulled up to the house. The driver was Lorna Calder.
“What on earth?” She climbed down from the buggy and secured the horse to a post. A basket, covered with a checkered cloth, was slung over one arm. “Sarah, are you and your boy all right?”
“We’re fine.” Sarah had no wish to upset her friend by making a fuss over the break-in. “I’m just having the door repaired after a couple of drunks from the saloon broke it in.”
“Sarah! What happened? And what’s this?” She nodded toward the torched remains of the men’s clothes.
“It’s . . . a long story. I didn’t want you to be concerned.”
“Well, I certainly am concerned!” Lorna said, stepping around the workman’s clutter on the front porch. “Let’s go inside, and you can tell me about it.”
“Of course. I’ve got hot water on the stove. I’ll make us some tea.”
After checking on Blake, who was in the backyard with Humdinger, gathering scrap lumber for the doghouse he wanted to build, Sarah followed Lorna into the kitchen and started the tea.
Lorna lifted the cloth that covered the contents of the basket. “The blueberries are ripe, so I made some muffins,” she said. “I hope you like them.”
“I’ll love them, and so will Blake. Thank you so much.” Sarah put the fresh muffins in a bowl and returned the empty basket. “The tea will be ready in a few minutes.”
“That’s fine,” Lorna said. “What I really want is to hear what happened to you. Please sit down and tell me.”
Sarah gave her an abbreviated version of last night’s events, leaving out how close the two ruffians had come to raping her and the memory of Joe’s searing kiss. “So, as you see, Blake and I are fine,” she said. “And Joe sent one of his men to reinforce the door.”
“And that pile of burned things in the yard?”
“I didn’t see what happened. But I think Joe had the men strip down, then ran them off, and set their clothes on fire.”
“Oh, my goodness!” Lorna laughed. “That must’ve been quite a sight. I trust they won’t be coming back this way.”
“I hope not. But since you’re on the women’s committee for Blue Moon, maybe you can suggest that we choose a sheriff and build a jail. We need some law in this town.” Sarah poured some tea and split one of the generously sized muffins for them to share.
“Actually, that’s one of the reasons I’m here,” Lorna said. “As the new teacher, you’ll be essential to the committee. Our monthly meeting will be next Saturday. We’ve been using the classroom since it was built. If that’s not a problem, and if you’re free, we’d love to have you join us.”
“Oh . . . my, that’s so kind of you.”
“But why are you so surprised, Sarah? Of course we’d want you on our committee. You’re going to make a real difference in Blue Moon.”
Sarah laughed nervously. “It’s just that, when I lived in Ogallala, people turned their backs on me. This is such a change. And it bothers me some that my acceptance here is based on a lie. I’m not really a widow. And the father of my boy is a man who’s known all over the county. What if somebody finds out?”
“Your secret is safe with me, Sarah. But understand that Montana is a place of new beginnings. One of the ladies in our group was a prostitute in Miles City before she married a cowboy from the Calder ranch. She’s a lovely person, and I keep her secret, too. But everybody’s got their stories. People don’t tend to judge here. So how about it? Will you join us?”