Frontier Matchmaker Bride. Regina Scott

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      Scout quirked a smile. “I suppose money will do that for a fellow.”

      “Nonsense,” Beth said, applying herself to the cinnamon roll Maddie had placed between them, white sugar icing dripping from the still-warm sides. “You were a gentleman before you left for the gold fields. Money doesn’t change who you are.”

      He rubbed a hand on the olive-colored sleeve of his coat, as if uncomfortable with the elegant cut of the wool fabric. “It sure doesn’t.”

      This time, Beth’s nudge was sharper, and he looked up, brows raised in obvious surprise.

      “You stop that immediately,” she scolded. “You are a fine man, Thomas Rankin. Any lady in Seattle would be blessed to have you.”

      Whether it was the use of his formal name or the tone of her voice, she wasn’t sure, but Scout grinned at her. “Well, there’s one lady I’d like to impress, but she’s awfully bossy.”

      Beth stuck out her tongue at him.

      Scout laughed. “See? You don’t stand for any nonsense from me or your brothers. Never have.”

      “Never will,” Beth promised him.

      “And that tells me it isn’t anything about me that keeps you from letting me court you. I know which way the wind blows there.”

      Like her brothers, Scout had witnessed her earlier infatuation with the deputy.

      “The wind has changed, Scout,” she murmured, keeping her gaze on the cinnamon roll. “I’ve changed. I don’t think I’ll ever marry either.”

      “What?” He leaned closer, and she could feel him searching her face. “But you’re the matchmaker!”

      “Just because I can match other people doesn’t mean I can pick my own husband reliably,” she said, voice prim. “That’s why people need a matchmaker, you know. They lack the vision to see the right person for them.”

      “Funny,” Scout said, leaning back. “I thought it was lack of skills in society or lack of confidence.”

      “Those can be overcome,” Beth assured him, raising her gaze with certainty. “But I’m beginning to believe none of us can reliably choose a mate on our own.”

      “The human race is doomed,” he teased.

      “No,” she replied with a grin. “I’ll save it.”

      He laughed. “We’re a pair, I guess. I doubt any woman would want me given my family history. You doubt the man you want will return your affections.”

      “I don’t doubt,” Beth told him. “I asked him. He doesn’t.”

      She wasn’t sure why she told him. He could very well take the tale back to Levi and the rest of her brothers. But there was something about Scout, something sweet, something approachable.

      And it was very nice to have someone commiserate with her.

      His reaction was everything she might have hoped for. He drew himself up, color rushing back into his lean cheeks. “Then Deputy McCormick is nothing but a low-down skunk, and you’re better off without him.”

      “That’s what I keep telling her,” Hart said as he stopped by their table.

      * * *

      He watched as Beth washed white. She’d been so intent on her conversation with Scout Rankin she probably hadn’t heard the shop bell. Georgie Howard had told him Beth had come to visit. The boy often joined Hart at the paddock to help him rub down Arno. But Beth hadn’t approached Hart, and he found himself eager to speak to her. After all, he needed to know how she intended to follow through on her threat to find him a wife. Then he’d spotted her through the window and had decided to ask.

      Besides, he still wasn’t any too sure about Scout. He’d known the fellow since Scout was seventeen. He’d seemed the sneaky, weak-natured son of a crooked, cruel father. Ben Rankin’s homemade liquor and high-stakes card games had been the ruin of many a man in Seattle. His son might be living in a fancy house instead of the shack along Lake Union where his father had raised him. He might be wearing better clothes than the torn trousers and rough wool shirt that had been his habitual outfit, but until Hart knew this apple had fallen farther from the tree, he couldn’t feel comfortable with Scout spending time with Beth.

      Scout flushed now, but he rose to his feet and met Hart’s gaze unflinchingly. “Deputy. I’m glad to hear we’re in agreement.”

      “Stranger things have happened.” He turned to Beth, who seemed to have recovered by the way her chin came up. “What brings you to Seattle, Miss Wallin?”

      Scout bristled. “Seems to me this is a free country. Beth can go wherever she likes.”

      “Deputy McCormick isn’t questioning my rights, Scout,” she said, keeping her dark blue gaze on Hart. “He’s concerned what I may be doing. You must know I’ve deposited my things with the Howards, Deputy. I will stay in Seattle as long as it takes to accomplish my goal.”

      At least she hadn’t mentioned that goal aloud. It was bad enough the Literary Society had been discussing his matrimonial prospects. He didn’t need Scout Rankin laughing behind his back.

      “Your family will miss you,” he told her.

      Her look softened. “And I will miss them. All the more reason to settle things quickly. I believe you have this afternoon off?”

      How did she know? He took care to vary the days and times so no criminal would guess when the law might be absent. Had Mrs. Wyckoff learned his schedule from her husband?

      “I do,” he acknowledged.

      She nodded. “Good. You have an appointment at Ganzel’s at two.”

      The barber? He certainly hadn’t made that appointment. “Do I, now?”

      “You do.” The twinkle in her eyes was unmistakable. “And I believe Messieurs Black and Powell are expecting you at three.”

      The tailors as well. She had been busy.

      “And if I had other plans for the afternoon?”

      The twinkle became a gleam. “Cancel them.” She rose suddenly, and Scout stepped to her side as if protecting her, his gaze defiant as he looked toward Hart.

      “I must be going,” she said. “Scout, it was lovely to see you. Let’s keep in touch while I’m in town. I haven’t given up on our plans.” In her usual impetuous manner, she gave him a hug.

      Hart was more interested in her words. Plans? What plans did she have with the fellow? Was Rankin looking for a bride, too?

      Releasing Scout, Beth nodded to Hart. “Deputy. Don’t disappoint me.” She swept from the shop to the chime of the bell.

      Scout sighed like a moonstruck schoolboy.

      “Someone should marry her,” Hart spat out.

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