“Okay.” Coalie stuck out his hand.
David took his hand and gripped it in a firm handshake. “Tessa? Agreed?”
“Agreed.” Tessa extended her hand as Coalie had done.
David studied her hand. It was delicate, with long, slender fingers. Her nails were ragged and bitten down to the quick, but clean. He took her hand. Her palms were rough, and callused. Hardworking hands. He intended to shake her hand and seal their bargain, but he surprised himself and Tessa by raising her hand to his mouth.
Tessa shivered at the rush of warmth flooding her body when David gently pressed his lips against her hand.
A shock of awareness jolted her. She gazed up at him. The flicker of deep emotion in his dark eyes pleased her. She held his gaze for what seemed like an eternity, reluctant to let it go.
Coalie tugged on Tessa’s hand, breaking the spell. He gently pulled her toward the front door, then took his hat down from the lowest peg and jammed it on his head. “Hurry, Tessa.” The expression in his shining green eyes clearly showed his excitement.
David followed Coalie to the door and removed his heavy sheepskin coat from the peg above Coalie’s. “Take this,” he said as he placed the garment around Tessa’s shoulders for the second time in two days, and handed her her bonnet. “I’d hate for you to catch cold.” His dark eyes sparkled as he smiled down at her.
She was instantly engulfed in leather and sheepskin.
The remembered scent catapulted her back to the jail. Suddenly the prospect of a trip to the general store with money to spend imbued Tessa with optimism.
“Tell Miss Taylor to put your purchases on my account. I’ll meet you in front of the mercantile in an hour or so.”
“What if she doesn’t believe me?” The terrible thought made her voice higher than normal, and she had to tie the ribbon beneath her chin twice before she got it right.
David took out his wallet, removed several bills, and handed them to Tessa.
Tessa shook her head, refusing the money.
“Take it. If she doesn’t believe you, pay in cash.” He paused, giving Tessa the chance to reconsider.
She took the money and tucked the crisp bills into the pocket of his coat.
“Don’t forget to meet me outside the store in an hour or so,” David reminded her as they parted ways on the sidewalk.
Chapter Seven
On Saturdays the general store did a brisk business, and this Saturday morning was no different. Customers milled about, searching for foodstuffs, supplies, fabrics, notions, and the hundred other items crammed on the tables and shelves. The ladies’ corner at Jeffers’s Mercantile was particularly popular. The latest shipment of goods from Cheyenne included exotic teas, bath salts, milled soaps, and perfume from faraway London and Paris. The women of Peaceable and the wives and daughters of the surrounding farms and ranches congregated there to ooh and aah and spend their precious savings on the expensive luxuries. Because it was the first shipment in nearly three months, Mrs. Jeffers had covered a table with her finest linen and set out an assortment of tea and cakes to entice the ladies to sample and buy.
Two grizzled old men, Jeffers’s Mercantile regulars, sat huddled over a game of checkers at a table near the Franklin stove, grumbling over the ruckus while they helped themselves to the cakes and cookies.
The brass bell over the front door jangled merrily as Tessa and Coalie entered the building. Tessa’s eyes widened with surprise at the sight of the enormous amount of merchandise and the variety of goods. She hadn’t expected to find a store like this in a small town like Peaceable. Drawn by the warmth, the smell of baked goods, and the low buzz of feminine voices, Tessa took a hesitant step forward.
Coalie, eager to begin the shopping expedition, bumped her from behind.
Tessa took a moment to tuck a stray lock of bright red hair back under her bonnet and to smooth a tiny wrinkle from her green calico skirt. She wet her dry lips with the tip of her tongue and moved toward the front counter.
“May I help you?” A slightly plump middle-aged woman with a friendly smile and beautiful thick gray hair looked up at Tessa.
“I’ve come for…” Tessa cleared her throat, then spoke with more authority. “That is, I need to pick up some supplies.”
“Certa
inly.” The woman was brisk and businesslike. She stepped around the counter. “May I have your list?”
“I don’t have a list.” Tessa spoke quickly, her Irish brogue more noticeable with each word. “But I can tell you what I need. I know everything by heart.” She looked to the other woman. “That will be all right, won’t it?”
The older woman smiled. “That will be fine.” She gestured toward the coat tree near the door. “Why don’t you take off your coat while I get a pencil and paper?”
Tessa unbuttoned David’s coat and hung it on a hook.