He assumed from the position of the chairs that it meant Clay sat at one end and Lily at the other. Roen went around the table but stood behind his chair rather than sit down.
Lily cut the cornbread and placed the warm pan on a trivet on the table. As she ladled chili into the bowls, Hannah reappeared with her brothers on her heels. The boys held up their hands for inspection, and when Lily pronounced them fit, they moved to the table.
Unlike his whip-thin older brother, Ham was a sturdy boy with a cherub’s face and deviltry in his eyes. Roen noticed he wasn’t wearing shoes and his hands were considerably cleaner than his feet. As soon as Ham sat, he leaned over to the empty chair designated for Roen and patted the seat. “This is you here, Mr. Shepard. Beside me.” With the unaffected aplomb of a six-year-old, he held out his hand and announced, “I’m Hamilton Salt, by the way, and I am glad to make your acquaintance.”
Lily regarded her younger son with suspicion and then her gaze slid sideways to Clay. He made a show of shrugging just as if he hadn’t been helping Ham master that introduction.
Roen solemnly extended his hand and shook Hamilton’s. “It’s a pleasure.”
“You can sit now,” said Ham.
“I am waiting for your mother.”
“Oh.” His mouth screwed up to one side while he considered this as Lily returned the chili pot to the stove.
Roen skirted the table and held out Lily’s chair for her. She stared at it and then at him. A vertical frown line appeared between her eyebrows. She sat slowly, hesitantly, almost as if she anticipated the chair being pulled out from under her. That didn’t happen. Roen pushed the chair closer to the table.
Ham watched this all with naked curiosity. “She’ll just get up again,” he said. “She always does.”
“Hush,” Lily whispered, and under the table, Hannah kicked him.
“Ow!” He glared at his sister. “Why’d you do that?”
“Because Lizzie’s legs are too short.”
It was true, but it was hardly the answer Ham was looking for. He settled into his seat and tucked his legs under him. He was quiet until Roen took his seat and then he announced, “We pray now,” and bent his head over dimpled hands folded into a single fist.
Roen bowed his head. The prayer was familiar, one he had learned as a child, but he chose to mouth the words rather than give voice to them with the rest of the family.
As soon as every “amen” was said, Ham reached for the pan of cornbread. Lily lightly tapped him on the back of his hand with the bowl of her spoon. “I should let you burn your fingers. We serve our guest first.” She slipped a turner into the pan and removed a square of cornbread. Roen raised his chili bowl toward her and she set the bread neatly on the lip. She did the same for Ham and herself and then let Hannah serve Lizzie and Clay.
“Go on,” Lily said, tipping her head in Roen’s direction. “Tuck in.” She saw him nod, but she also noticed he did not take his first bite until she had. She acquitted him of suspecting that she was trying to poison him. His reticence was born of good manners, and while she was grateful for what he was demonstrating to her children, it made her distinctly uncomfortable. She wasn’t used to this deference and doubted that she deserved it.
Lily’s throat felt thick. She choked down the first mouthfulof chili and was grateful that no one noticed her distress. It faded with the second bite and was nothing at all by the third.
“There’s plenty more,” she told Ham as he shoveled chili and cornbread into his mouth. “Slow down.”
“It’s good, Ma. Real good.”
“I’m happy to hear it. Now slow down.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Roen saw Ham dutifully slow the lift of his spoon to his mouth but not the size of his bite. Aware that Lily Salt was watching him now, Roen took care not to smile. Amusement would not have been appreciated just then.
“Your chili is excellent,” he said. “A family recipe?”
“No. Mrs. Butterworth’s. If you take your meals at the hotel, you’ve met her.”
He nodded. “Ah, yes. Ellie. The owner’s wife.”
Clay spoke around a mouthful of cornbread. “She’s the sheriff’s mother. Did you know that?”
“I believe she mentioned that,” he said, his voice a tad dry. “Several times.”
“Well, she’s that proud,” said Lily. “And no one faults her for it. Sheriff Ben is good people.”
“I’ve had the pleasure.” Roen guided another spoonful of chili to his mouth. The aroma teased his senses. “He welcomed me, took me around to meet the shopkeepers and the gentlemen who manage the land office.”
“Dave and Ed Saunders.”
