Jasper quickly picked his way through the wagon to join him. The other man clapped Will on the shoulder and addressed the women. “Ladies, you won’t meet a finer man than my friend Will Lawson. I was just telling someone about him the other day and how he’d saved my father from being robbed.”
Will’s stomach sank as Jasper launched into a tale of Will’s heroism. It had been happenstance that day, him riding down the street at the same time Mr. Jackson was being held up. Will had been fast on the draw and managed to get a shot off that had wounded the bandit and given Mr. Jackson the space needed to get away. Of course, in Jasper’s version...
“Hey! I didn’t kill anyone. And there was one man, not ten.” Will gave his hearty denial of the exaggerated story.
“You still saved my father,” Jasper admitted jovially.
With Jasper’s hearty endorsement, it was clear to Will that he hadn’t yet heard of Will’s disgrace. Which should have been reassuring; only, it served to make Will feel more like a fraud. What would his friend think of him once he knew how far Will had fallen?
That would be resolved easily enough—as soon as he brought Ben to justice. He stole a glance at Mary, whose expression lacked the mistrust he’d come to expect from her. Could Jasper’s endorsement be the ticket he needed to get Mary to open up?
Chapter Six
The party arrived at the picnic location near Soda Springs, and Mary couldn’t help but notice how the other young ladies had gathered around Will and Jasper. Once Jasper had filled their heads with tales of Will’s heroism, he’d gained estimation in their eyes.
Mary sighed and helped Rachel spread one of the blankets they’d brought for the excursion.
“Have you ever had the water here? It’s like drinking a real soda.” Rachel pointed to the spring a few yards away.
“Let’s go before the others crowd in.”
Nodding her assent, Mary followed the other girl down a well-worn path toward the soda spring. When they reached the water, Rachel handed her a cup and together they dipped them into the water.
As Mary drank, the bubbles tickled her nose. The water had a tangy flavor she found quite refreshing.
“It’s good, isn’t it?” Rachel grinned as she refilled her cup. “The others can gawk at Jasper and Will all they want, but they’re wasting their time.”
“Because we’re drinking all the water,” Mary said, taking another sip.
Rachel shook her head. “There’s plenty of water for everyone. What I meant was that Jasper has never shown an inkling of interest in any one of us, and as for Will...” She looked around slowly, then back at Mary. “Will only has eyes for you. I see him looking over here, watching you.”
Almost as if Rachel could predict the future, Will chose that moment to break free from the crowd and head in their direction.
“See?” Rachel looked mighty puffed up over her proclamation. “It’s a good thing I already have my heart set on someone else. Otherwise, I might not forgive you for stealing the heart of one of the few worthwhile eligible bachelors in town.”
Mary frowned. “But I’m not—”
“Oh, no. Don’t try to argue. We all noticed how he monopolized you on the ride over.”
So much for trying not to draw too much attention to herself. More specifically, to her and Will.
Rachel continued, “What I don’t understand, though, is last night, when mother came home from helping serve the meal to the miners, she said your fiancé arrived. It was quite the to-do, from how she tells it. Such a dashing man, and yet here you are, having secured the interest of another.”
Wasn’t it Sir Walter Scott who said, “What a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive?” So much of her world was mixed up all because of a secret romance gone awry.
“It’s a long story,” Mary told her. “The truth is that I broke off my engagement some time ago. And Will is not my beau. He’s—”
One more thing she couldn’t explain. Apparently, he wanted to bring her former fiancé to justice. But at what cost? Would her aid in proving Ben’s guilt also put her behind bars? Will looked so determined in his desire to see Ben punished. What would he do if he knew her involvement?
“Well, I don’t know what he is,” Mary finally said. “I met him on the street yesterday when he saved me from being accosted by a group of drunken miners. Since then, our paths keep crossing, and I—”
She what? Was growing to like him more at every moment? And with that like, growing to fear his reaction when he knew the truth? Mary tried not to sigh, but she simply couldn’t help it.
Fortunately, her sigh was all Rachel needed. “It sounds so romantic.”
Only if one thought a hangman’s noose was romantic. Did they hang accomplices to thieves? Or was Will a thief himself?
Will was almost upon them. “I see you two have already been drinking the water. Is it as good as everyone claims?”
“Here you go.” Rachel thrust her cup into Will’s hands. “You two enjoy. I need to finish getting the rest of the picnic things ready.”
Before Mary could argue, Rachel was off, leaving her alone with Will.
“I’m sorry about that,” she said.
“I’m not.” Will bent down and filled his cup. “It gives us a few moments alone to finish our conversation from the wagon.”
Precisely what she didn’t want. Will had a point in his observation about Ben being enticed by her fortune. He was probably even right that he’d stop at nothing to marry her. If he was willing to rob good people of their money, ruining someone like her wouldn’t be beneath him.
If she wasn’t already ruined.
“You don’t understand the position I’m in,” she said by way of explanation.
“Then help me understand.”
His face was filled with such kindness that she was reminded of Frank and how he cared for those around him. Though she knew
