“No, at least not today. You’re a guest.”
“I only ask because my sister and I always took care of that back home. Habit, I suppose.”
“I see.” He had no way of knowing if that was the truth, or if she was trying to worm her way into Ben’s good graces as well. She certainly had Anna in the palm of her hand. He turned to his daughter. “Anna, would you keep Miss Carmichael company for a moment? I want to check on Grandfather.”
“Yes, sir.”
He found Ben outside on the porch smoking his after-dinner cigar and sipping a shot of whiskey.
“Your thoughts?” Colt asked as he came to stand beside him. The mountains glowed red and gold in the setting sun.
“She’s going to bring chaos to this house. That’s for sure.”
Colt agreed. “Anna seems to like her.”
Ben’s face soured. “And if you marry her, Anna’s going to grow up to be as incorrigible as your sister.”
“Only if I try and force her to marry someone she can’t abide.”
Ben skewered him with hard eyes. Colt knew the old man still believed marrying Spring off had been his right, but it precipitated the breach that followed, whether he chose to acknowledge his role or not.
Ben returned his attention to the mountains and grumbled, “She was supposed to do what I told her to.”
Colt refused to argue. “Miss Carmichael and I will set a date.” Not needing a response, he walked back inside.
“Will she be all right?” Regan asked as they rode towards Spring’s cabin. They were both mounted. Anna had been left behind with Ben.
“Yes,” Lee replied. “Ben’s not much of a companion for a six-year-old but he’ll watch out for her and make sure she’s safe. When I’m away in the evenings, he usually cares for her.”
Regan didn’t think Grizzly Bear Ben qualified as a companion for anyone under the age of eighty, but kept that to herself. “I enjoyed meeting her. Do you think she enjoyed my visit?”
“I believe so. She’s seldom as curious as she was tonight. Both Minnie and Ben feel children should be seen and not heard.”
“And your feelings on that?”
“My mother encouraged us to have opinions, our father didn’t. Spring and I lost him during Lincoln’s War and our mother in seventy-one. Ben moved in in sixty-eight when she first got sick.”
“How old were you?”
“I was thirteen when our father died in sixty-four and Spring was eleven.”
“Portia was twelve and I was ten when my mother sent us to live with our Aunt Eddy and Uncle Rhine.”
“Was your mother ill?”
Regan responded with a short bitter chuckle. “No. She didn’t want us anymore, so she shipped us off like a crate of oranges and we haven’t heard from her since.”
He stopped his horse.
Regan added, “Portia grieved the loss but I didn’t. If she didn’t want us, I didn’t want her.”
“Something else not in your letters.”
“True, nor did I reveal that she was a prostitute.” He visibly tensed, studying her in the fading light, so she said, “If you wish to cancel our agreement due to my mother, you are free to do so, but you should know the truth.”
“Forgive me for asking what might be a rude question but have you ever been with a man?”
“I gave my virginity to someone I cared deeply for. He was the only one though.”