Carol Cox (12 page)

“Thank you.” Melanie climbed down and stood back to admire her work. “Yes, I think those will do nicely.” The new curtains still needed hemming, but she wanted be sure to have them up so she could see Caleb’s expression when he walked through the door. She gathered up the second curtain, then moved to the other window and waited while Slocum set the ladder in place and helped her up.

He waited until she got her balance, then handed the curtain to her. “Did the mayor ever change his mind about having fireworks at Founders Day?”

“Not that I know of.” Remembering something she’d overheard Caleb saying to Will Blake, she added, “From what I understand, he feels it’s not the best use of the town’s resources.” She fit the curtain rod into place on the bracket and darted a quick glance out the window in the hope she might spot Will’s lanky form striding down the street. He always had a smile for her, and his good-natured attitude had more than once proven balm to her soul when Caleb seemed more bent on turning her out than allowing her to stay in the store.

“That gingham sure is pretty,” Slocum said, interrupting her thoughts. “Reminds me of the time I saw that Indian brave wrap a bolt of red calico around him, climb on his horse, and ride away with it streaming out behind him.”

Melanie froze with her hands resting on the curtain bracket. “Oh my! Where did that happen?”

“Right out in front of this store.” The man’s tone was as unconcerned as if he’d been discussing the weather. “Back in the early days of Cedar Ridge, there wasn’t much more than the mercantile here, and only a handful of people.”

Melanie felt her knees grow weak as she climbed down the ladder. “You mean it happened
here
? At this store? How long ago was this?”

“Let me see.” Slocum squinted his eyes, moving his lips as he calculated. “Musta been ten years or more ago, but I never will forget that sight.” He glanced at Melanie, seeming to recognize her distress for the first time. “But don’t let that bother you none. There haven’t been any depredations around these parts in . . . oh, three or four years now.” He offered the information with a smile, in the manner of one bestowing a gift. “That kind of thing has settled down all
over the territory. . . . Well, pretty much, anyway. No sign of ’em around here anymore, unless you count the ruins out on the other side of the creek.”

If his words were meant to give her comfort, the attempt had failed. Melanie swallowed hard, scooted the ladder across the floor, and climbed up to put the other end in place.

The bell jingled, and Melanie swiveled around on her precarious perch as Caleb and Levi walked inside carrying their fishing poles.

Levi fairly radiated excitement as he struggled to lift up a stringer holding a sizable trout. “Look what we got! Papa caught three little fish”—he dismissed Caleb’s string of fish with a flick of his head—“but I caught the big one!”

Melanie couldn’t keep from smiling at his infectious joy. “Good for you. It sounds like you had a wonderful time.” She turned to include his father in her statement.

Caleb stood stock-still, gaping at the front windows with bulging eyes. “What is going on here?” Setting his fishing pole next to the door, he stepped toward the nearest window, fingered the curtain Melanie had just put up, and turned to glare at her and her helper. “What on earth do you think you’re doing?”

Earl Slocum shuffled and glanced at the door. “I reckon it’s time for me to be moseyin’ on.” He helped Melanie step down, then touched his finger to his forehead. “I’ll be seein’ you again one of these days.” He exited the store with far more energy than he had shown thus far, leaving Melanie face-to-face with Caleb.

She swallowed and forced herself to meet his outraged expression, refusing to be intimidated by his obvious pique. “Mr. Slocum has been very helpful this afternoon,” she said
in an airy tone. “I had a problem with the stepladder, and he repaired it for me.”

When Caleb continued to glower without speaking, she added, “It was a very curious thing. One of the rungs was broken nearly all the way through. Mr. Slocum thought someone might have done it deliberately.”

Caleb brushed her comment off as though shooing away a pesky fly. “Earl Slocum is a good man, but he has a tendency to embellish. Don’t try to distract me by changing the subject.”

He retrieved his fishing pole and stringer and handed them to Levi, then spoke in an even tone. “Take these fish home and put them in the kitchen, son. We’ll have them for supper tonight.” After the little boy scampered off, Caleb turned back to Melanie, his brows knotted together in a fierce scowl. “I asked you a question. What is all this?”

Melanie drew herself up, bracing for battle. “They are known as curtains. Surely you’ve heard the term before.”

Caleb’s eyes narrowed down to slits. “I am quite aware of what they’re called, Miss Ross, but what are they doing hanging in my store?”

“Don’t you think they’re attractive?” Melanie chose to ignore the issue of ownership. One battle at a time was enough. “They aren’t quite finished. I’ll have to hem them this evening after the store closes, but I wanted you to be able to picture the full effect when you got home.”

His only response was a low grating noise that sounded like teeth grinding together. Melanie swallowed. This was not quite the response she had hoped for.

“And what’s the idea of putting all that stuff in the window?”

Melanie turned to follow his pointing finger and stepped
across to pull the curtain back, revealing the display she had arranged so carefully. “You mean the table holding the oil lamp, the reticule, and the lace fan?”

Caleb jerked his head in a brusque nod. “And that bonnet, hanging off to the side all by itself.”

Melanie favored him with a bright smile. “When women look in store windows, they like to see items they can use. Displaying them in a group like that helps them picture new ways to use them, which in turn boosts sales. I’ve seen it done back east, and believe me, it’s quite effective.”

Caleb waved his arm toward the window. “But that table and the few things on it are all you can see from the outside. You can’t look in beyond the curtains.”

Melanie dropped her hand and let the gingham panel fall back into place. “That’s the point. Draw their interest with the window display, and they’ll clamor to come inside and see what else we have.” She looked at him hopefully, but his forbidding expression told her he wasn’t convinced. Before he could start ranting again, she decided to share her news of the day’s success.

She strolled toward the counter with an air of nonchalance. “You’ll be pleased to know that things went quite well in your absence. Mrs. Pike came in a little while ago.”

Caleb grew still and gave her a wary look. “Was she able to find everything she wanted?”

Melanie beamed. He couldn’t have set this up better for her if she’d written his lines out for him. “She was interested in purchasing a new set of fine china. We didn’t have that in stock, of course, but she placed an order before she left. She even paid for it in advance.”

Caleb drew in a deep breath and some of his earlier tension
seemed to melt away. “That’s good. She’s a valuable customer, and her opinion carries a lot of weight in this town.”

Basking in his unexpected approval, Melanie added, “I went ahead and placed another order after she left.”

Caleb’s countenance brightened even more. “Oh? Who was this one for?”

“For us.” Melanie couldn’t keep the satisfaction from showing in her voice. “If Ophelia Pike is interested in china, we can be sure the other ladies in the community will follow suit. So I ordered another set.”

“You
what
?” Caleb’s roar shook the rafters. “You ordered an entire set of china? Without anyone actually interested in purchasing it?”

Melanie gulped and managed a small nod. “I thought it would be helpful to have a set on display.”

Caleb’s face turned beet red. “You mean you didn’t think at all. Don’t you realize putting money into something like that is merely speculative? It’ll be tied up until someone decides to buy that china . . . if anyone ever does.” He raked both hands through his hair, leaving it standing straight on end. “We are trying to make a profit here, in case you hadn’t noticed. This is not the same as stocking up on items like flour and sugar, things we know people will want.”

Melanie tried to recapture the enthusiasm she’d felt earlier when she made the impulsive decision. “But as an investment—”

“It isn’t an investment if a future sale isn’t a certainty. That’s gambling, not good business. We can’t afford to speculate on frivolous items like that.”

The back door swung open, and Levi scampered inside. He drew up short when he saw his father’s dark scowl.

Caleb shuffled through some loose papers on the counter, then turned on Melanie. “Where is that order?” he demanded. “I want you to tear it up right now. And don’t ever do anything like that again without consulting me first.”

Melanie planted her fists on her hips and raised her chin. “It’s too late to do that now. The order is already in the mailbag.”

“Then we’ll just take it out again.” Caleb rounded the counter and strode over to the bag. Thrusting his arm inside, he began rummaging through the envelopes there.

Melanie folded her arms across her chest. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

Caleb only glared at her and continued rooting in the mailbag.

“You do realize, don’t you, that once an envelope is placed inside that bag, it officially comes under the protection of the United States Postal Service? And that tampering with the mail is a criminal offense?”

Caleb’s arm froze and he stared at Melanie. Except for the convulsive movement of his jaw muscles, he looked as if he’d been turned to stone.

Soft steps scuffed across the floorboards, and Levi came to stand beside Melanie, gazing at his father in awe. “You mean Papa’s going to jail?”

Caleb withdrew his arm from the mailbag and clenched his hands together to keep them from reaching out and throttling the infuriating woman. “No, son, I am not going to jail. Miss Ross is making a little joke.” He glared daggers at Melanie, daring her to contradict him.

Instead of responding, she merely smiled as if enjoying
her small triumph. Then she strolled across to a back shelf, picked up an antimacassar, and disappeared behind one of the blue gingham curtains. Adding it to her window display, no doubt.

Caleb struggled to control his ragged breathing, hardly able to believe the audacity of the woman, even though he could see the evidence right before his eyes. Blue gingham curtains. In
his
store.

What did she think she was doing? It was one thing to barge in, claiming George Ross’s share of the store as her inheritance, but this . . . He squeezed his fists until his fingers ached. This was out-and-out subversion.

His gray-eyed nemesis reemerged from behind the curtain and started to carry the bolt of the remaining blue fabric to its shelf. Caleb closed the distance between them in three long strides and planted himself in her way. “What other havoc did you manage to wreak while I was gone?” He fixed her with a fierce gaze intended to make her wither like a delicate flower under a blazing sun.

Instead of wilting, the obstinate female faced him squarely and held her ground. “We had a scattering of customers here and there, but not a lot. I made a few sales, but none of them amounted to much . . . except for Mrs. Pike’s order.” The sweet smile she bestowed on him made Caleb’s blood simmer. Was she laughing at him?

Levi trotted over to join them. “Did any more cowboys ask you to marry them while we were gone?”

Melanie’s gaze flickered to one side before she gave a tiny nod.

Caleb’s interest quickened. “Oh? How many?”

The simple question achieved what his blustering hadn’t. She seemed to shrink before his eyes.

“One.” The word came out in the barest whisper.

One?
The proposals were slowing down. It was time to put his plan into motion. He just had to encourage the right man to ask her.

With her eyes cast down toward the floor, Melanie skirted around him to replace the bolt of fabric. Then she picked up a matching tortoiseshell comb and brush and headed toward the front of the store.

“Oh, no you don’t.” Caleb reached out and caught hold of the brush as she tried to scoot past him, intending to pull it from her hands, but she only tightened her grip. “What were you planning to do with this?”

Melanie set her jaw and looked up at him with a mulish expression. “I am putting the finishing touches on my window display.”

Caleb felt a wave of heat rise up his neck. “No. Enough is enough. I really must insist—”

She wrapped the fingers of her other hand around the brush handle and tugged on it. “Did I happen to mention that Marshal Hooper was one of the customers who came in earlier? I was so pleased to finally have the chance to meet him. Such a kind and gracious man. We had a lovely chat.”

Caleb snapped his mouth shut to hold back the angry words threatening to spill out. Her features were bland enough, but he hadn’t missed the quick tilt at the corners of her lips, gone as quickly as it had appeared. Even in that fleeting instance, he had recognized the expression for what it was: the assurance of victory. As long as she could wield the marshal’s name as a weapon, she had Caleb right where she wanted him, and he knew it.