door.
“Hello,” Dora greeted. She breezed into the sitting room carrying a package under her arm. “Are you ready to be a seductress?”
Rose nodded.
Dora unwrapped the parcel and shook out a frilly dress. “C’mon. Try it on.”
Rose slipped her cotton day dress off and pulled the colorful, ruffled dress over her head.
Dora took a step back. “It needs something. Your bosom is just sitting there. Do you have any rags?”
Rose turned to her kitchen and brought back some rags without questioning why. She handed them to Dora who set out to stuff them under Rose's bosom so that it stuck out above her low neckline. She felt herself blush.
“Oh, I couldn’t,” she said. “Someone might see me.”
“That’s the point, honey.” Dora took a case from her pocket and started applying makeup on Rose's face.
“Dora, are you sure this is what Quinn likes?”
“I lived with him for three weeks; trust me.” She took a brush to Rose’s hair. “Oh, honey, you have lovely hair. I wish I could get mine to shine like that. What do you wash it with?”
“My mother makes soap with aloe in it,” Rose said. “Would you like a bar to take home?”
“I’d love one, thanks. By the way, what is your name?”
“Rose.”
“That’s a beautiful name,” Dora said.
Rose had no idea what Dora was doing to her head, but she felt a lot of yanking and pulling. When she finished, she plopped back down on the sofa “You look fantastic, Rose. I bet you another bar of soap that Quinn isn’t in the house five minutes, before he has you in the bedroom,” Dora said.
Rose sat down beside her. “How did you become a saloon woman?”
“Oh, well, there aren’t many jobs out there for women. I didn’t want to work in the house of ill repute because I’m choosy about my men. I can’t just go off with anyone. I pick them out carefully,” she said with a wink.
“Do you have any family?” Rose asked.
“No, no family. My ma died when I was three or four—don’t recall, exactly. My pa took to drinkin' and went off one day and never came back. My older sister did the best she could takin’ care of us kids, but then she got with child, and took off with some older man. The boys all ran off…I had no one, so at sixteen I put on my best dress, walked into the Red Fox Saloon in Salina, told them I was eighteen, and they hired me.”
Rose thought that she'd led a sad life, and she felt badly for Dora. “How’d you come to Abilene?”
“Oh, I fell hard for a man everyone called Mr. E. He came to Abilene, and I followed. I thought he cared for me, too, but he turned out to care for every saloon woman in Abilene,” she said. “He’s in jail, now, but I'd already followed him here.”
“Did you ever wish for a home and family? You know, to have babies and such?” Rose asked.
Dora’s face softened. “Yeah,” she said, “doesn’t every woman? But my way of living doesn’t exactly invite that kind of life or that kind of man, for that matter. Men are only looking for pleasure from us saloon girls. Not all the saloon women sleep with men, you know. Some just make sure they have a good time and flirt with them, but occasionally we meet someone we can’t resist, like your Quinn. We all have a strong need to be loved, after all.”
“Yes, we do,” Rose quickly agreed. “But it’s never too late to change.”
“Change?” Dora laughed. “What would I change to? A dress designer? A lawyer?”
“You could become a child-minder, or clean houses, or become a maid. There are many prosperous families in town who could use the help,” Rose said.
“They wouldn’t want me,” Dora said. “And then where would I get my lovin’ from?”
“You might start going to church, meet a fine, decent man, and start a family,” Rose said.
“You make it sound so simple,” Dora said with a laugh.
“Do you ever think about God?” Rose asked.
“Nah. We were too poor to go to church growin' up. I went once and
“Hello,” Dora greeted. She breezed into the sitting room carrying a package under her arm. “Are you ready to be a seductress?”
Rose nodded.
Dora unwrapped the parcel and shook out a frilly dress. “C’mon. Try it on.”
Rose slipped her cotton day dress off and pulled the colorful, ruffled dress over her head.
Dora took a step back. “It needs something. Your bosom is just sitting there. Do you have any rags?”
Rose turned to her kitchen and brought back some rags without questioning why. She handed them to Dora who set out to stuff them under Rose's bosom so that it stuck out above her low neckline. She felt herself blush.
“Oh, I couldn’t,” she said. “Someone might see me.”
“That’s the point, honey.” Dora took a case from her pocket and started applying makeup on Rose's face.
“Dora, are you sure this is what Quinn likes?”
“I lived with him for three weeks; trust me.” She took a brush to Rose’s hair. “Oh, honey, you have lovely hair. I wish I could get mine to shine like that. What do you wash it with?”
“My mother makes soap with aloe in it,” Rose said. “Would you like a bar to take home?”
“I’d love one, thanks. By the way, what is your name?”
“Rose.”
“That’s a beautiful name,” Dora said.
Rose had no idea what Dora was doing to her head, but she felt a lot of yanking and pulling. When she finished, she plopped back down on the sofa “You look fantastic, Rose. I bet you another bar of soap that Quinn isn’t in the house five minutes, before he has you in the bedroom,” Dora said.
Rose sat down beside her. “How did you become a saloon woman?”
“Oh, well, there aren’t many jobs out there for women. I didn’t want to work in the house of ill repute because I’m choosy about my men. I can’t just go off with anyone. I pick them out carefully,” she said with a wink.
“Do you have any family?” Rose asked.
“No, no family. My ma died when I was three or four—don’t recall, exactly. My pa took to drinkin' and went off one day and never came back. My older sister did the best she could takin’ care of us kids, but then she got with child, and took off with some older man. The boys all ran off…I had no one, so at sixteen I put on my best dress, walked into the Red Fox Saloon in Salina, told them I was eighteen, and they hired me.”
Rose thought that she'd led a sad life, and she felt badly for Dora. “How’d you come to Abilene?”
“Oh, I fell hard for a man everyone called Mr. E. He came to Abilene, and I followed. I thought he cared for me, too, but he turned out to care for every saloon woman in Abilene,” she said. “He’s in jail, now, but I'd already followed him here.”
“Did you ever wish for a home and family? You know, to have babies and such?” Rose asked.
Dora’s face softened. “Yeah,” she said, “doesn’t every woman? But my way of living doesn’t exactly invite that kind of life or that kind of man, for that matter. Men are only looking for pleasure from us saloon girls. Not all the saloon women sleep with men, you know. Some just make sure they have a good time and flirt with them, but occasionally we meet someone we can’t resist, like your Quinn. We all have a strong need to be loved, after all.”
“Yes, we do,” Rose quickly agreed. “But it’s never too late to change.”
“Change?” Dora laughed. “What would I change to? A dress designer? A lawyer?”
“You could become a child-minder, or clean houses, or become a maid. There are many prosperous families in town who could use the help,” Rose said.
“They wouldn’t want me,” Dora said. “And then where would I get my lovin’ from?”
“You might start going to church, meet a fine, decent man, and start a family,” Rose said.
“You make it sound so simple,” Dora said with a laugh.
“Do you ever think about God?” Rose asked.
“Nah. We were too poor to go to church growin' up. I went once and
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