Marry well. Run the newspaper. Take care of the family.Reggie.
Be his father.
He ran his hands down his face, struggling for focus.
It was only because he'd taken the morning to see Frank, to see the mare. Being out of his routine has shaken him, reminded him of old dreams. Dead dreams.
The swirl of thoughts in his head wasn't going to produce words on the typewriter before him.
Suddenly, there was a new buzzing in the office. He braced his shoulders, straightening, expecting to find his father looming over him, but it was a boy of maybe ten who ran straight toward him, panting as he drew to a stop just outside Adam's cubicle. Adam recognized him, vaguely. Wasn't this boy the cook's son?
"Your mama needs you," the boy panted. "It's your papa. He's collapsed."
1
Six weeks later - Bear Creek, Wyoming
Breanna White could never resist a dare. Today was no exception as she and her opponent waited on horseback near the train tracks at the edge of town.
She'd been sent to town because Ma wanted new fabric for the little kids, who were outgrowing their duds almost faster than she could sew them. Also at home were Pa and six out of seven of her older, adopted brothers. Breanna’d already bought the fabric and been on the boardwalk, ready to head home, when she’d been talked into this nonsense.
Shecouldjust go home. Or maybe shop for fabric for a dress for herself, something that would shock Ma completely. She should ignore the gaggle of boys nearby murmuring and laughing like geese clustered just beyond the train platform. On the edge of town, where the prairie spread out in front of them, there was less foot traffic, but someone could still see her, and everyone knew gossip traveled faster than the breeze around here. And a whole heap of passengers had just disembarked from the train, probably doubling the crowd on the platform.
Eighteen is too old for childish stunts. She could hear her brother Oscar in her head as if he'd just spoken the words. Or maybe it was Cecilia, one of Oscar's adopted daughters and Breanna's closest friend, who was now away at the Normal School studying to be a teacher.
But Breanna didn't wheel her horse and ride away.
She never walked away from a race. Or a wager. Abe and Dougie and Tommy had talked their friends into parting with their hard-earned money, and the pot was up to twenty buckaroos.
Behind her on the platform, the conductor called for the last passengers to board. It was almost time.
The noise from the crowd on the platform faded away. The grass smelled sharper beneath the scents coal and steam.
Beneath her, Buster shifted as if he felt the same anticipation she did, the same pounding of her heart in her throat.
The other racer moved, his horse stamping his feet.
She glanced to the side. Tommy was more acquaintance than friend. He'd moved to Bear Creek several months ago with his mother, who ran a dress shop, and a passel of younger sisters. He was her age, give or take a year.
"Anybody asked you to the Founder's Day picnic yet?" Tommy asked.
Snickers broke out from her other side, where Abe and his buddies stood watching and waiting for their race. She ignored them, her heart suddenly fluttering against her breastbone.
Tommy was reasonably handsome. Not as handsome as her father. Someone had broken his nose at least once in the past, and it remained slightly crooked, but the dancing light in his eyes more than made up for that.
There was a hiss as the train's brakes were released, and Breanna knew it was moments from pulling out of the station. She was distracted by Tommy's invitation, but not so much that she'd lost track of the race.
The picnic.
Not one boy in town had ever asked her to go walking with him, much less to an event like the picnic.
You're too much of a tomboy to catch a beau.That was her brother Seb's teasing voice.
She didn't want a beau, did she?
Still, it was nice to be asked. And if she accepted, her brothers might shut up about her future prospects.
Tommy tilted his head, his smile just a hint mysterious.
