Sophia laughed. “Well, that would have been fine too. I’m sorry, I think I had pictured your parents on a farm or . . . or . . .” She trailed off, not entirely certain what shehadexpected. But certainly not among the most important people in town.
“It could have been worse,” Matthew said as he opened the door to the house. “He could have been mayor.”
That made Sophia laugh again, and she was grateful not to have to meet a mayor in her threadbare trail dress. She followed Matthew inside the small but comfortable-looking home.
“Hello, I’m here!” he cried in a way so familiar it made Sophia’s heart clench. Hadn’t she walked into her own home in Kansas City and said those exact same words hundreds of times? The house itself reminded her of home, too, with its simple layout and scent of something baking.
“Neither of them were home earlier,” he said to Sophia as he led her into a cramped but light-filled dining room. “Why don’t you wait here while I find them?”
“They don’t know I’m here?” Sophia rested her hands on the back of a chair. “Perhaps I should come another day—”
“Of course not.” Matthew paused by the door. “My parents would never turn away a guest. Besides, Mama always makes enough for half the town. We have guests more nights than not.” He gave her a wink before disappearing down the hallway.
Sophia barely had time to compose her thoughts before he returned with a smaller, rounder, female version of himself. Sophia instantly liked Mrs. Canton with her pink cheeks, kind smile, and hair that refused to stay put in its pins.
Mrs. Canton wiped her hands on a cloth she held. “You must be Miss Zane. What a pleasure to meet you!”
No one had ever sounded as enthused to meet Sophia before. She smiled back at Mrs. Canton. “It is wonderful to meet you too. I hope I’m not intruding—”
“Nonsense.” Mrs. Canton waved her hand in the exact same way Matthew had done when they were on the train. “All are welcome here. We have plenty!”
“Thank you,” Sophia said warmly. “May I help in some way? It’s the least I could do considering Mat—Mr. Canton saved my life.”
Her slip of the tongue hadn’t gone unnoticed, as Mrs. Canton’s eyebrows quirked up when she nearly called Matthew by his given name. But thankfully, Mrs. Canton seemed far more interested in the last bit of information.
“That sounds like quite a tale.” She leaned in, as eager as a child to hear it.
“We can spin the entire story over dinner, but suffice to say that a band of outlaws kidnapped Miss Zane, and I—thinking she was Miss Timperman—went after her. They took nearly everything we had, but we walked back to safety in Pueblo after a few days’ journey.” Matthew glanced at Sophia, and with just a look, she was instantly back in the desert with him, wondering if they would survive.
They shared a smile until Mrs. Canton spoke. “That does sound like an incredible story.” But something had gone missing from her voice, and the smile she gave felt forced. “Miss Zane, why don’t you make yourself at home here? Matthew, I’ll need your help.”
Matthew had noticed the change in her demeanor too, his mouth settling into a straight line as he nodded. But he turned and gave Sophia a reassuring nod before leaving, and she sank into one of the dining room chairs.
Had she done something that had made Mrs. Canton wary of her? Matthew hadn’t conveyed her deception—he’d simply said that he’d assumed she was Miss Timperman—so that couldn’t be it. Was it something in her own demeanor?
Sophia glanced down at her dress, as if that would give her the answer. She appeared perfectly normal—worn but clean dress and shoes, gloves, hat, tidy hair. She picked up a spoon and peered at her reflection. Nothing seemed amiss. Besides, even if her nose was covered in boils and her dress was hardly presentable, she doubted Mrs. Canton would turn her away. She was a godly woman, after all.
No, it had to be something in the brief story Matthew had told her.
But what?
