The second he was gone, Norah grabbed Ruthann’s hand. “Nathaniel Harper. He . . . he . . .”
“Kissed me and left town,” Ruthann finished for her.
Nate was the reason no beau of Ruthann’s ever measured up to the standards in her head.
And now he’d returned.
Chapter Two
THE SIGN WAS SIMPLEand unimpressive, but it conveyed the information needed to passersby:
Harper Photographic Studio
Nathaniel Harper stood back and locked his hands behind him. It would do for the time being, he figured, until he’d found enough business to warrant purchasing a more professional sign. Even as he stood assessing how it looked above the door, more than one passing townsperson eyed the sign with curiosity. That was reassuring. He was not the only photographer in town, but with the way Cañon City was growing, he hoped there would be plenty of customers eager for a photograph.
And growing it was. Nate hardly recognized the Cañon City he’d left six years ago. Here and there, a few places remained the same. A church, the sheriff’s office and jail, Mrs. Smith’s restaurant, the dusty roads, Murray’s Saloon, the McClure House hotel. But those familiar places were vastly outnumbered by the construction of newer buildings and the sheer quantity of people Nate passed on the streets.
Happy enough with the sign, Nate returned to the interior of the building he’d rented from a man eager to have a tenant. It wasn’t much to look at inside yet. He’d set up a makeshift studio space, with a settee, some drapes, and an end table he’d found in the mess upstairs. The fellow who’d rented this space before had lived on the second floor—and it looked as if he hadn’t taken a thing with him from that space when he left.
Nate leaned against the wall and assessed the space before him. He needed a few chairs to swap out with the settee and some decorative items for the end table. A candelabra wouldn’t go amiss, nor would a fancy lamp. The more options he had to work with, the happier the people who came for photos would be.
With what he had, though, he was ready to open the doors to customers. The darkroom was prepared in the rear of the building in what used to be a storeroom, and he’d brought all of his equipment, plates, and chemicals with him. He had enough to last a couple of months, provided business was steady. It wouldn’t be too difficult to order more from Denver.
His camera sat ready on the tripod he’d bought off a surveyor a few years ago. He rested a hand on the camera, remembering the joy he’d felt upon purchasing it. Photography had been the only thing that had lightened the darkness he’d slipped into after the Great Sioux War years ago. It had been the only thing that made him rise in the morning, and the only way he could distract himself from the vivid memories that would otherwise haunt him at night.
Nate dropped his hand. Those days were behind him now. And hopefully, with returning home to Cañon City, he could finally leave behind the memories he’d rather forget, and become the man he used to be.
But right now, it was time to get this business off the ground, which meant opening the door to potential customers.
And so he did just that, striding to the front door, opening it, and propping it with a small stone. He stood out front a moment, basking in the warmth of the sun and taking in the sights around him. Scrubby hills rose outside of town, with shadowy blue mountains not far behind them to the south and west. If it were silent, perhaps he could have heard the rushing of the Arkansas River, but it wasn’t quiet at all here on Main Street. People strode the plank sidewalks, and horses and wagons clattered down the dirt road. The clanging hammer in a blacksmith’s shop ricocheted against the nearby buildings.
Nate closed his eyes and took in the sounds and the scent of the air. As much as it had changed, it was good to be home. It sounded normal here. It was a place where bad memories could most certainly disappear, never to be experienced again.
“Pardon me, sir?” A feminine voice interrupted Nate’s reverie.
His eyes flew open to find a petite young woman with dark hair and a pointed chin standing across from him. She was dressed in yellow ruffles with a parasol to match. He didn’t recognize her from his life here before. Her eyes narrowed and widened within the span of a moment, as if she’d suddenly changed her mind about him.
