An impish smile came to his lips, the one that used to cause her knees to grow weak. But that was a different time, and she was a different person now.
“I think a kiss would be appropriate considering our engagement,” he declared.
“Engagement!” Mrs. Tyson exclaimed, her hand flying to her chest. “Good heavens. I did not expect that.”
“We are not engaged,” Rosalie rushed to correct.
There was a twinkle in his eye as he responded, “We may not be officially engaged, but we had an understanding between us.”
Rosalie needed time to think, and she couldn’t do that with Paden standing so close. “I need to freshen up before supper,” she said, inching her way toward the stairs.
Paden extended his arm toward her. “Allow me to escort you to your room.”
Drat! He saw through that ruse. Rosalie gave him a weak smile before she slipped her arm through his, attempting to ignore the tingles that coursed through her when they touched.
“That’s most kind of you,” she murmured, attempting to keep her voice cordial.
“There is nothing kind about it,” he replied in a hushed whisper, leading her up the narrow flight of stairs. “I just wanted to ensure you didn’t plan to escape out the window and run from me.”
“I only did that one time, and I was ten,” she reminded him, finding herself smiling at the childhood memory.
He chuckled, and his familiar laugh warmed her heart. “It is good to see you, Rosie.” He stopped at the top of the stairs. “I have missed you.”
Rosalie pressed her lips together. So much needed to be said between them. She needed to apologize for leaving without saying goodbye, but she couldn’t seem to find her voice.
Paden turned to face her. “Go freshen up. We can talk later.” His full, clear voice with its note of impersonal kindness was like a dagger to her heart.
“I’ll be down in a few minutes,” she assured him as she began backing up.
Walking swiftly toward her room, Rosalie didn’t dare look back at Paden. Her heart ached knowing that she was not the person that Paden thought she was. The past four years of being on the road had changed her, and once he recognized that, he would leave her alone. She was sure of it.
Chapter 2
Paden Brooks waited at the bottom of the stairs for Rosalie so he could escort her to supper. He had not properly prepared himself for seeing her again. Her beauty had always managed to take his breath away, but it wasn’t just her attractiveness that he fell in love with. Her kindness and compassion for others also fascinated him.
Even when they were both in the school room, he knew that they would eventually get married. Rosie was two years younger than he. She encouraged him while he worked as a deputy to her pa, the sheriff of Waterglen, Colorado. On her eighteenth birthday, he approached her pa and asked permission to court her. It had been the happiest day of his life when she agreed to his courtship.
But everything changed a few months later when Sheriff Addis was gunned down by Bill Garrett and his gang. When the bullets started flying, her pa had shoved Rosie to the side, but a stray bullet still managed to hit her.
“Are you all right?” Rosalie asked as she stood in front of him. She had changed her clothes and was now wearing a pin-striped dress with ruffles running the length of her skirt.
“I was just thinking of a happier time,” he lied.
“You seemed deep in thought,” she remarked. “You should be grateful that I didn’t have nefarious intentions toward you, because you failed to see me approach.”
“Is that so?” he replied, his lips curling into a smile.
Rosalie tucked a lock of brown hair that had fallen out of her side bun behind her ear. “As a Pinkerton agent, I expected better of you,” she teased.
This is what he missed. They had always had a good rapport between them, and he loved nothing more than bantering with Rosie. He waggled his brow. “I carry two guns on me and a knife. Would you like to know where I keep them?”
With a contemplative look, Rosalie ran her eyes down the length of his brown suit. She snapped her gaze back up. “You are carrying a gun in your left pocket, and, if I had to guess, you have another one in the back of your trousers. Also, it is fairly obvious that you have a knife in your left boot.”
“That’s impressive,” he commented.
She smirked. “Not really. When you worked as a deputy, you always kept a knife in your boot. Plus, you may write with your right hand, but you prefer your left hand for other things.”
“Well,” he started, offering her his arm, “it looks like I’m going to have to come up with new ways to fool you.”
A thrill of pleasure raced through him when Rosalie slipped her arm into his.
“I find that hard to believe. I might know you better than you know yourself,” she said lightly, but he knew no truer words had ever been spoken.
Paden walked her into the dining room where two place settings were arranged across from each other at the table.
Rosalie’s steps faltered. “Why are only two plates on the table?”
“I requested to dine privately with you this evening,” he explained, leading her to a chair. “Is that a problem?”
Rosalie glanced nervously at the door leading into the kitchen. “Poor Mrs. Tyson is a lonely widow, and it is…”
“Nonsense!” Mrs. Tyson
