“I wouldn’t have either.” It had been a noisy dinner this evening, reminding Roen of his family dinners growing up.Everyone had something to report about his or her day. Hannah received a star and had her name put on the board for a perfect spelling score. Ham had to pound erasers after school because he spoke out of turn. It wasn’t his fault, of course. Janie Wilmot, the prettiest girl in the class, talked to him first, but if that was true, she had mastered the ability to whisper, whereas Ham had not. Clay was called on to solve equations at the board, which he did easily, but he also wrote over Hannah’s name. There was lingering resentment about that, and Hannah dealt with it by poking Clay with her foot under the table. Roen reported on his ride out to Thunder Point, which was not particularly eventful except that he didn’t tell it that way. He held them captive with a tale about spotting Old Man McCauley slipping in and out of the rocky terrain, prospecting for gold with a pickaxe and a canvas bag full of dynamite. It hardly mattered that Clay and Hannah were skeptical. Ham and Lizzie were rapt.
“You were the only one who didn’t share anything at dinner,” he said, opening the wardrobe for his nightshirt. “Ah-hah! I see a new shirt in here. And pants.” He took them off the peg and held them up against his waist. “Definitely not for me. Did you get these at Hennepin’s?”
“I did.”
“Did he ask why you wanted them?”
“No. And I didn’t offer. Mr. Addison didn’t inquire about the boots either. They’re on the floor beside the wardrobe.”
Roen put away the pants and picked up the brown leather boots. He examined them with the critical eye of someone used to calculating measurements, then compared them to Lily’s left foot, which was outside the covers while she rolled her ankle and alternately curled and pointed her toes. “An observation,” he said, setting the boots down, “and a question. These boots are too big for you, and what in the world are you doing?”
“I know about the boots,” she said, continuing to exercise her foot. “I already crumpled newspaper in the toe of each and I’m going to wear two pair of socks. They’ll be fine. I walked around in them when I got home.”
“And the other?”
“It’s something Ridley showed me. I hurt my knee a fewyears ago, and this is one of the exercises I do to strengthen my leg. All done.” She slipped her foot back under the covers.
“How did you hurt your knee?”
“Tumbled down the stairs. It swelled to half again the size it is now.”
Roen didn’t point out that he had never seen her knees. It seemed like the safer option. He reached for the lamp and turned back the wick. He stopped short of extinguishing it, choosing to keep the room dimly lit. After performing the bedtime rituals, he began to undress. He looked over his shoulder once to see if Lily had turned to watch him, but she was still lying on her back, her attention fixed on the play of light and shadow across the ceiling.
“Did you speak to Mrs. Rushton about Lizzie?” he asked.
“Ben did that for me. She’ll be here before the other children go to school, and she’ll stay until we return, even if we’re late. I spoke to Clay about getting the horses from the livery.”
“So he knows you’re going with me?”
“He does. He’s disappointed, of course, that he’s not the one going, but after he thought about it, he declared it was an excellent thing I was doing and that I shouldn’t be afraid that you won’t take good care of me. He brought up last night and the pail as proof that you were capable of handling emergencies.”
“Huh. You’d think he’d have mentioned that I pushed him out of the way when someone shot at us.”
“I had that thought, too, but my condition last night was fresh in his mind, and I think he derived some satisfaction bringing it up again.”
Roen chuckled. “Then it’s all taken care of. Are you looking forward to going?” He slipped his nightshirt over his head and then stood to let it fall to his knees before he removed his trousers and drawers.
Lily said, “I’m looking forward to catching a glimpse of Old Man McCauley.”
“Hah! So you were listening at dinner. You had your head bent over your plate and you didn’t comment so I wasn’t sure.”
“All of that was in aid of not laughing, but I will say that if the two younger ones have nightmares about that prospector, they are your responsibility.”
“Oh. Well, I guess I can manage that.”
“You’ll have to. I’m snug.”
“Hmm.” Roen straightened the comforters on the floor. “I notice that you put the bundling blanket in the middle of the bed again.”
“I wondered if you’d seen it.”
“Well, I have. It belongs on the floor with me.”
Lily finally turned on her side to look at him. She propped her head on an elbow. “Sleeping on the other side of the bundle doesn’t make this a marital bed. If I don’t think it’s a violation of our agreement, then I’m not sure why you do. You’ll be more comfortable sleeping here.”
Roen was not as certain, but he said nothing.
“You can’t sleep on the floor indefinitely. Is it that you don’t think you can trust me to stay on my side? I can understand why you’d think that after last night, but I promise it won’t happen again.”
