Cole groaned. He didn’t want another night of going without supper. He’d much prefer eating with the others. “When am I supposed to make my command appearance?”
Howard chuckled. “She said right away.”
Cole watched Howard and Doolan hurry off to the long table, where the others were already starting their meal. His gaze shifted to the tent off to itself. He’d be damned if he’d bathe, as he had last time. He moved forward. No sense putting off the inevitable. If he hurried, he might get away before all the food had disappeared from the long table.
“May I come in?” Cole called when he reached the canvas opening. This time he was prepared for anything.
“By all means.”
Assuring himself that this would be brief, Cole ducked his head and entered the feline’s den. Again he was taken aback by the sight before him. Everything had been changed. Now the furniture was dark, big and heavy. Though the tent was the same, it now appeared to be much smaller. To add to the overwhelming picture, Mrs. Alexander had on a heavily beaded black bolero, with a white, ruffled shirt front and a bright red waistband. The black satin pants were molded to long, perfect legs and ended just below her knees. White hose covered the rest of her legs and black slippers completed the costume.
“Well, aren’t you going to say anything?”
“Working on another book?”
“No. Who wants to dress the same all the time?”
Cole’s gaze traveled back up to the beautiful face. Her hair had been pulled tightly back into a knot on top of her head, exposing an oval face with a proud brow, large, heavily fringed brown eyes, high cheekbones and a wide mouth with full, tempting lips.
“Are you just going to stand and stare at me?”
“Since you’ve gone to all this trouble, I assumed you wanted a complete assessment.” He removed his hat.
“I hope you don’t think I did this just for you.” Beth took his top hat and placed it on a small, heavily carved side table. “However, since you mention it, are my furnishings more to your liking?”
“Well.” He pretended to consider his answer. “I would say it depended on what you wanted to use it for.”
“And my clothes?”
Cole chuckled. Mistress Alexander was fishing for a compliment. “Again, it would depend on what you had in mind.”
“That’s no answer.”
Cole’s grin broadened. “I know. That way I don’t get myself into trouble.”
“I’m wearing a matador’s suit.” Seeing his blank expression, she added, “It’s what the men wear in Spain when they fight bulls.”
Cole looked at the small table that had been set for two. “Why would any man want to fight a bull?” he asked offhandedly. This was all taking too long. There would be no leftovers if they continued to chat. He wondered what she planned to feed him tonight. “Did Howard make a mistake when he said we would be sharing supper?”
Beth was becoming vexed. What was it about her that he didn’t find attractive? “No, he made no mistake. I guess we should eat.”
Cole went straight to the table, but to Beth’s delight, when he pulled out a chair, he motioned for her to be seated. The man had manners after all. She was suddenly curious as to his background. “I had a special dinner prepared.”
Cole managed to hold in his groan. She had said the same thing at the last meal. He looked at the fine china and sterling settings. He was trying damn hard to get along with this woman, but she wasn’t making it easy.
“You will be pleased to know that there are no hot spices in the food. Though I’m wearing clothes from Spain, I selected pasta dishes from Italy. I thought they might be more to your liking.” She clapped her hands.
Molly Dee immediately appeared carrying a large bowl of something white. It reminded Cole of worms. When Molly Dee set it on the table, Cole wondered if her breast brushing against his shoulder had been an accident. Magda was right behind the cute little brunette, with two smaller bowls.
“Please, serve yourself,” Beth said eagerly. She had always loved to entertain. Unfortunately, Cole was the only one she had to practice on. “The sauce goes on top of the pasta. Eating it can be a bit tricky.”
Why not? Cole thought. Heaven forbid that she would serve plain, simple food.
Beth demonstrated how to use a fork and spoon to eat the pasta. Even so, it took several attempts before Cole managed to get the long, stringy stuff from the plate to his mouth. Once he had the knack of it, Beth scooted up in her chair, waiting for his praise. She wasn’t sure whether he liked it or not. “Well?”
Prepared for the worst, Cole had steeled himself for the first unwanted bite. Therefore it took a moment for him to realize the food was messy but quite good. He smiled and nodded appreciatively. Not until Beth clapped her hands with glee did he realize the importance of his approval. She quickly filled her own plate.
Remembering that last time Beth had said there was to be no business discussed during the meal, Cole settled down to a delectable supper. Before long he found himself wondering who the real Bethany Alexander was. It seemed that every time he was around her, she acted like a different person. Minutes ago her face had mirrored the delight of a child. Howard had once mentioned something about her being lonesome. Perhaps he had been right.
When his appetite was satisfied, Cole leaned back in his chair and sipped the black coffee that had been served. For the moment he was at peace with the world.
“How much farther will we be traveling before the train robbery?”
Apparently supper was over and business could now be discussed. “Three days,” he replied. “I haven’t had a chance to thank you for changing our traveling routine. I know it must be a considerable inconvenience for you. It’s because of the extra hours of travel that we’ll make final camp so soon. Tomorrow we’ll pass within four miles of a town.” Her excitement was apparent. “However, I don’t think it would be wise to stop.”
“Why? There are things—”
“I thought the purpose of all this was so you could find out about train robbers? Believe me, they don’t make a habit of announcing their presence to a sheriff and a town full of people. If at all possible, they avoid easy identification.”
“So we’ll just travel on?”
“You and the caravan will travel on.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that Doolan and I are riding to town.”
Beth leaned forward, any trace of humor gone. “Are you planning to return?”
“Don’t worry. I could have left you any time I wanted. But as long as everything continues to move smoothly I have no intentions of going anywhere. I want my money. It will help buy land when I go to California.”
Beth remembered him mentioning that before. “Why can’t we all go? I’m sure the others would enjoy seeing a town for a change.”
“Come, come Beth. Don’t you think a caravan like this one would be a bit conspicuous? Bruster is a small town.”
“I’ll go with—”
“I’ll take Doolan. We can pick up any supplies needed and make sure there aren’t any Pinkerton men about. I also need to check on the train schedule.”
“I thought we had already established who is in charge here.”
Cole rested his elbows on the table. “And I thought you wanted to know what it was like to rob a train. All this traveling and staying out of view is exactly what a bandit would do. The only difference