walk away toward the river. “Not on my train, you’re not,” he said, and was gone before she could make a reply.
Dorothy Burnett was waiting for her when she returned to her listing, disabled wagon.
“He says he’s not going to let us stay with thetrain,” she told her neighbor in a dazed voice. She still couldn’t believe what she’d heard.
“He’s just angry, Kerry,” Dorothy said, putting an arm around her shoulders. “In the morning he’ll probably give you one of those superior male tongue-lashings and then everything will be fine.”
Kerry shook her head. “That’s not how it sounded to me.”
Dorothy frowned. “Well, he can’t just abandon you. No one would stand for it.”
“He says he’ll find us an escort back East when we reach Fort Kearney.” Listlessly she picked up the coffeepot and dribbled water over the campfire to put it out for the night.
“That’s crazy. If you’ve done all right up until now…”
“I know.” Kerry sat down on an overturned bucket and dropped her head into her hands. “It doesn’t make sense. I knew he’d be angry, but I thought once we were out on the trail, there would be no way he could refuse to take us.”
“Maybe he can’t. What do the papers say? Maybe you can force him to take you.”
Kerry stuck her feet out in front of her. She was still in a pair of Patrick’s trousers. Her own clothes were carefully buried at the bottom of one of the soggy trunks that were piled haphazardly around the wagon. She was not sure she could find them even if she wanted to, and after everything they’d been through today, her attire was the least of her concerns. “I don’t want to force him. He’s our leader. I can’t make him into some kind of an enemy.”
Dorothy kicked at the embers that had scatteredfrom the fire, lost in thought. Finally she said, “Well, then, make him into your friend.”
“What do you mean?” Kerry asked.
“I mean, my dear Kerry, as long as everyone now knows that you’re a woman, you might as well take full advantage of it Hunter’s flesh and blood. At least I think he is,” she added with a chuckle. “Go talk to him. Bat those long black lashes if you have to. Didn’t your mother ever tell you about how a woman can get what she wants from a man?”
Kerry’s face flushed. “I was only six when my mother died. But I hope I know enough about those things to be above—”
Dorothy interrupted her with a quick hug. “I’m sorry, Kerry. You haven’t had an easy road of it, have you? But don’t get prickly on me. I wasn’t implying anything immoral. I just meant that if you can manage to talk to Hunter on a friendly basis, he might find himself much more disposed to change his mind”
“Do you really think so?” Kerry looked dubious. She’d always looked down on the girls back in New York who used their looks and female manners to get what they wanted. Plus, whereas Scott Haskell’s head might be turned by a pretty face, she had the feeling that Jeb Hunter was not so susceptible. She’d seen him polite and respectful to the women on the train, but she couldn’t recall seeing him look at so much as one with that flirtatious smile that Scott seemed to use on every woman between ten and sixty.
Dorothy’s eyes swept from Kerry’s glossy black hair to her long, slender legs. “Kerry,” she said firmly, “once we clean you up and put some decent clothing on you, I predict that our wagon captain is going to find it awfully hard to stay angry at you.”
Chapter Six
K erry knew that she should be tired enough to fall asleep standing up, but Dorothy’s words were dancing inside her head and wouldn’t let her alone to think about going to bed. She had bristled at her friend’s insinuation that she use some kind of unspecified feminine wiles to get her way with Jeb Hunter.
It was true that Kerry had never had a mother to talk to about such things, but she was sure that if her mother had been alive to raise
Dorothy Burnett was waiting for her when she returned to her listing, disabled wagon.
“He says he’s not going to let us stay with thetrain,” she told her neighbor in a dazed voice. She still couldn’t believe what she’d heard.
“He’s just angry, Kerry,” Dorothy said, putting an arm around her shoulders. “In the morning he’ll probably give you one of those superior male tongue-lashings and then everything will be fine.”
Kerry shook her head. “That’s not how it sounded to me.”
Dorothy frowned. “Well, he can’t just abandon you. No one would stand for it.”
“He says he’ll find us an escort back East when we reach Fort Kearney.” Listlessly she picked up the coffeepot and dribbled water over the campfire to put it out for the night.
“That’s crazy. If you’ve done all right up until now…”
“I know.” Kerry sat down on an overturned bucket and dropped her head into her hands. “It doesn’t make sense. I knew he’d be angry, but I thought once we were out on the trail, there would be no way he could refuse to take us.”
“Maybe he can’t. What do the papers say? Maybe you can force him to take you.”
Kerry stuck her feet out in front of her. She was still in a pair of Patrick’s trousers. Her own clothes were carefully buried at the bottom of one of the soggy trunks that were piled haphazardly around the wagon. She was not sure she could find them even if she wanted to, and after everything they’d been through today, her attire was the least of her concerns. “I don’t want to force him. He’s our leader. I can’t make him into some kind of an enemy.”
Dorothy kicked at the embers that had scatteredfrom the fire, lost in thought. Finally she said, “Well, then, make him into your friend.”
“What do you mean?” Kerry asked.
“I mean, my dear Kerry, as long as everyone now knows that you’re a woman, you might as well take full advantage of it Hunter’s flesh and blood. At least I think he is,” she added with a chuckle. “Go talk to him. Bat those long black lashes if you have to. Didn’t your mother ever tell you about how a woman can get what she wants from a man?”
Kerry’s face flushed. “I was only six when my mother died. But I hope I know enough about those things to be above—”
Dorothy interrupted her with a quick hug. “I’m sorry, Kerry. You haven’t had an easy road of it, have you? But don’t get prickly on me. I wasn’t implying anything immoral. I just meant that if you can manage to talk to Hunter on a friendly basis, he might find himself much more disposed to change his mind”
“Do you really think so?” Kerry looked dubious. She’d always looked down on the girls back in New York who used their looks and female manners to get what they wanted. Plus, whereas Scott Haskell’s head might be turned by a pretty face, she had the feeling that Jeb Hunter was not so susceptible. She’d seen him polite and respectful to the women on the train, but she couldn’t recall seeing him look at so much as one with that flirtatious smile that Scott seemed to use on every woman between ten and sixty.
Dorothy’s eyes swept from Kerry’s glossy black hair to her long, slender legs. “Kerry,” she said firmly, “once we clean you up and put some decent clothing on you, I predict that our wagon captain is going to find it awfully hard to stay angry at you.”
Chapter Six
K erry knew that she should be tired enough to fall asleep standing up, but Dorothy’s words were dancing inside her head and wouldn’t let her alone to think about going to bed. She had bristled at her friend’s insinuation that she use some kind of unspecified feminine wiles to get her way with Jeb Hunter.
It was true that Kerry had never had a mother to talk to about such things, but she was sure that if her mother had been alive to raise
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