BARELY A DAY HAD PASSEDbefore Mr. Tip Maddox came calling.
He arrived early in the evening, asking to escort her to supper at a nearby restaurant. Every instinct inside of Norah recoiled at the very idea, and yet she forced herself to remember Jeremy, to smile, and agree pleasantly.
Mr. Maddox, with his greased dark hair and nearly black eyes, exuded a presence of trouble barely concealed with civility. It hadn’t been as noticeable in the dark outside the saloon the night before, but it chilled Norah to her core as he stood in the entryway of her home. Even Mama could feel that something wasn’t entirely right with Mr. Maddox. It was evident in the tight smile she gave him and the very reticent way she agreed to allow him to take Norah to supper.
“Please be home immediately afterward,” she said from the doorway as they made their way down the stairs. “Else your father will be concerned.”
It was both an admonition to Mr. Maddox and a slightly veiled threat if he didn’t comply, and Norah was immensely proud of her mother’s sly ability to ensure her safety. She was more than certain she’d hear Mama’s every thought about Mr. Maddox’s unsuitability the moment she arrived home.
And Norah would agree with her completely.
Simply allowing Mr. Maddox to take her arm made her stomach lurch. But she forced yet another smile to her face as he did so and said soothing, ingratiating words to make him think she had an immense interest in him.
It was the only way to help Jeremy, and as long as she kept that in mind, she could withstand this evening with Mr. Maddox.
He was prattling on about business matters without precisely letting on what sort of business he was in. Eventually, curiosity grew the better of Norah, and she asked him as soon as they were settled into seats near the window at the restaurant.
“Oh, I’ve an interest in several businesses,” he said noncommittally. “But I’ve a particular interest in moving into shipping and freight, as that seems to be a successful sort of business here in Cañon City.”
“It is indeed. Many men have done well in that line of work.”
The waitress approached at that moment, and as she told them of the dishes available that evening, Norah wondered why Mr. Maddox hadn’t been more interested in speaking with Stuart too, given that he worked in an integral position at his family’s freight business. Then again, Stuart hadn’t introduced himself. Because he’d been far too busy seething over the attention Norah had paid to Mr. Maddox.
She had to look down to keep Mr. Maddox from seeing her flaming cheeks as she remembered Stuart’s barely contained jealousy. Every attention she’d shown Mr. Maddox had been pretend, of course, but in no way had she ever expected Stuart’s reaction.
It had buoyed her hopes so much that she’d gathered the courage to give him that kiss on the cheek at the end of the evening. And then she’d promptly regretted her impulsiveness and run inside before she could see his reaction. She’d spent half the day hoping he would visit that evening, but of course, if he did now, she would never know.
Because here she was with Mr. Maddox instead.
He must have ordered for her because the waitress was leaving the table. Norah was just realizing that he hadn’t bothered to ask her if she cared for the dish he’d chosen, but she couldn’t think long on that because he was going on again about the shipping and freight business.
“—so many companies in town,” he was saying. “I presume your brother Charles is happy with his position?”
“He is, so far as I know,” she said. What an odd question. Was he hoping to find work? If he was involved in the attempted robbery Jeremy went to prison for, Mr. Maddox hardly seemed the sort to take up mundane work at a freight office.
“He’s with Guelph’s Freight Company, right?” Mr. Maddox asked.
“Yes.”
“What sort of work does he do?” He must have realized it was a strange question to ask Charles’s sister, because he then added, “I’m considering asking for work there, and it’s best to know more about the business before approaching them, you see.”
She nodded. It was perfectly reasonable—if she believed he really wanted a job at Charles’s company. “He handles the accounts for a few of the silver mines, but that’s all I know.” She gave a light laugh, as if she had no interest in such matters. “Any more than that, and you’ll have to talk to Charles yourself.”
“Could you introduce me?” He watched her with curious eyes. “I would like to learn more about the company, and if it goes well, perhaps he could put in a good word for me.”
“I . . . I suppose.” It was quite possibly the strangest request Norah had ever received from a suitor.
But then again, Mr. Maddox wasn’t exactly a suitor. Thankfully.
Their dinner arrived, and Norah was relieved to see it was a simple plate of venison, potatoes, and squash. Mr. Maddox cut into his meat, and before he could carry on about Charles and the freight business, she asked the question that had been most on her mind.
“Mr. Maddox, you said you were a friend of Jeremy’s. Tell me, do you believe he is truly guilty of the crimes for which he’s been punished?” It was a bold question, one that sat just on the edge of giving away what she knew.
But she wanted to see his reaction.
He carefully finished cutting his venison, and then looked up at her. His face was drawn into a grave expression, one that said he felt nothing but sorrow for her and for Jeremy—but his eyes indicated something else entirely.
She studied them as he spoke, trying to determine the truth that sat in their inky depths.
