The Stafford Collection, Historical Western Romances Read Online Free PDF Page B

arm.  She forced a smile at the older lady. 
    After lunch they packed up the muddy curtains and stopped by the livery for horses. Brock rode Troy and Sabrina rode Star. Mr. Swanson allowed her to take Star out whenever she wished.
    They were quiet as they rode and Sabrina’s thoughts again drifted to the past.  She was thinking about the last time she saw her brother.  They had several horrible arguments.  Warren wanted Sabrina to go back to Boston with him and stay in a boarding school with other young women of her stature. He would leave Daniel, their current foreman, in charge of the ranch. Sabrina was adamant that she would not go.  She would not leave her home and family to go up North to some girls’ school to learn “to be a lady.” 
    Her mother taught all of them including Samuel to read, write, do their math and play music. She didn’t need any more schooling. She felt that Warren just wanted to get her married off so he wouldn’t have to deal with her and she told him so.  Warren was unreasonable, to say the least, but Sabrina found herself a week later on a train to Boston with a chaperone.  Warren had to work out some details with the ranch and would follow later. She was to stay with her Aunt Betty, her mother’s sister, until Warren arrived. 
    Her mother came from a wealthy family.  It was old money---they could trace their roots back to English royalty---or so she was told.  She never had to think about money before; everything was always provided for her.  Warren had given her some extra money for items during her trip and she kept it secure in the pocket of her skirt.  Yes, she was wearing a skirt begrudgingly.  She intentionally wore a big fluffy skirt to conceal the pants she wore underneath. 
    She had devised a plan and it did not include her going to Boston.  That was about three years ago. She waited ‘til her chaperone was asleep and hopped off the train as it neared the next station, and Will was born.
    It didn’t work out exactly the way she planned.  She was initially going to contact her cousins but she was scared that they would take Warren’s side.  She drifted from town to town keeping up her disguise.  It was just safer that way.  Since her father was a Marshall, she had heard her parents whispering together at night about things that sometimes happened to young girls in rough towns so she was very careful. 
    She eventually wound up in Tulsey Town.  Exhausted and nearly out of money, she took refuge in the stable during a winter storm.  Mr. Swanson found her in the morning and the rest was history.  She didn’t know if Warren was still looking for her, but she didn’t want to take any chances.
    One day she happened to overhear someone telling Mr. Swanson that Warren Lovett was an attorney for the new circuit court Judge. She guessed he took that position to keep searching for her so he could ruin her life again. But this was her new home and her new family and she did not want to leave.
    Her horse neighed softly and Sabrina forced herself back to reality.  It seemed like lately she had been thinking more about the past than the present.  She would have to try to stay more focused, especially around Brock.  His eyes and ears were much more keen than Mr. Swanson’s.
    “Almost there. So how did you end up in Tulsa?”  Sabrina asked, breaking the silence. 
    “Mostly just lookin’ for a nice place to settle. I’ve been drifting like a tumbleweed for years now. I’m looking for someplace to plant my feet.  I heard about the opening and here I am.”  Brock turned to Sabrina and smiled so brightly she had to turn her head. 
    “It does have a certain charm that whispers home.   I don’t have much family left so I kinda feel like the town I live in is my family.”  Sabrina’s brain suddenly told her mouth to shut up.  She had kept her secret by not talking to anyone about her past. Most townsfolk had been too busy to notice Will, much less drum up