A Free Heart by Amelia C. Adams Page A

again any minute, like skies getting ready to rain. “All right. My room’s across the hall if you need anything.”
    “Thanks, Tom. Good night.”
    He stood outside the door and waited until he heard the latches click before he walked away.
    The hotel had good food, but nothing like Miss Hampton could make. Tom ate his fill of stew, bread, and pie, noticing that the table linens weren’t as white and crisp as the linens at the Brody, and one of the legs of his chair seemed a little shorter than the others. He enjoyed taking a certain amount of pride in his home.
    His home? He blinked a few times. Where had that thought come from? He was a drifter, a man unfettered. He could come and go as he pleased. He’d only taken the job at the Brody for six months, maybe eight, to earn enough money to fund his next adventure. Then his mind flicked back to telling Harriet he thought he might stay for a while. Maybe he didn’t know what he really wanted, but the thought of belonging somewhere was sure nice.
    He tossed some money on the table and stood up, trying to decide what to do with the rest of his evening. It was still young, and he wouldn’t be sleepy for a while yet. Salina wasn’t a large town, but maybe he could find some way to pass the time.
    Hot, humid wind slapped him in the face as he stepped outside. It had been humid inside the hotel as well, but at least within those four walls, he’d been protected from these unpredictable gusts. He pulled his hat down low over his eyes, hoping to keep the dust out of his nose and mouth while he walked down the street.
    Up ahead loomed a tall saloon, easily two stories. As he drew closer, he could hear laughter coming from inside, and he smiled, remembering that one time when he beat Roy Hawkins out of fifty dollars with a bluff. Of all the hands of poker he’d ever played, that one had been by far the best. Roy hadn’t been too happy about it, but Tom wasn’t living to please Roy.
    He paused for a moment outside the saloon. He’d always enjoyed a hand of cards, a drink, and a dance with a pretty girl just as much as the next man, but for some reason, Harriet’s face rose up in his mind. He couldn’t picture her ever stepping foot in a place like this, or condoning that behavior for anyone. Then he thought about Elizabeth, Miss Hampton, and the other girls at the Brody. He didn’t know what to think of Miss Markham—he’d only just met her, and she was more confusing than a snake with two tails—but as for the rest of them, he couldn’t imagine any of them approving. He took a few steps back. He was surrounded by some of the finest women he’d ever known, and he wanted to have their confidence. He’d be a fool to throw that away for a few hands of poker because he was bored.
    He shook his head as he walked back up the street to the hotel. What was happening to him? It’s a good thing none of his old friends from Wichita could see him now—they’d likely dress him in petticoats and tease him about turning into a girl. Whatever the consequences, though, he felt good about his choice. He wanted to be a different kind of man than he’d ever been before, and this seemed like the perfect way to begin.
    The hotel was mostly quiet when he went back inside. It seemed that the diners had all finished their meals and gone their way. Tom picked up a newspaper in the lobby and sat down to read the headlines, but nothing held his interest. Finally, in disgust, he returned the paper to the table and took the stairs to the upper floor two at a time. He’d never felt so caged up before. He’d once seen a picture of a tiger in captivity. The caption said the animal had been pacing back and forth for hours, glaring and growling at anyone who came too near the bars, and that’s how he felt. He wanted out of there. He wanted to get back to work. He paused—he wanted to talk to Harriet.
    He stilled outside her door and listened. He couldn’t hear one sound from inside—no