The Lady and the Cowboy by Catherine Winchester Page B

as the door closed after them to see Sam now glaring at the m.
    ‘If looks could kill,’ she thought, ‘I’d be writhing in agony right about now.’
    She wondered what caused the animosity between them but daren’t ask.
    As she held Tobias’s elbow, she began to feel that she should act like a lady once again, a thought which saddened her a little. He led her up Main Street, pointing out the different shops, such as the saddler and the dressmaker, the coffee house and the doctor’s surgery (which was in his home).
    When they seemed to be coming to a more residential rather than commercial area, Ruth suggested they turn back.
    “Oh, there’s no rush,” he assured her.
    “I don’t want to keep Mamma waiting.”
    “They won’t mind, dear.”
    “Perhaps not but I will. Please can we turn back?”
    He looked a little annoyed for a moment, then smiled at her. “Of course we can, anything you want.”
    “So, what do you do for a living, Mr Middleton?” she asked to be polite.
    “Please call me Tobias, and I do a little of everything I suppose.”
    “Such as?”
    “Oh, you know.”
    “Not really, no.”
    He huffed. “Well, I loan money to people the bank won't, I support new business ventures; I suppose you could say I am a Bank.”
    Ruth didn’t know that people other than banks could loan money.
    “So, how long have you been here, Ruth?” he asked.
    She disliked his use of her Christian name but answered anyway. “In the country for seven weeks but only on the ranch for a little over a month. Then our Atlantic crossing took two weeks; we hit some very rough seas unfortunately.”
    “We?” he asked, with a little too much interest.
    “A servant journeyed with me.”
    “You had servants back home then?”
    “Of course.”
    “Must be quite a shock to the system then, coming here. Oh, people like me have servants but life on a ranch, that must be difficult for you.”
    Ruth realised that he was trying to put Sam down but instead she felt it was a slight on Mamma.
    “We have a servant, Cassy.”
    “Just the one?” he sounded snide.
    “Unless you count the cook -come-caretaker, who takes care of the ranch hands.”
    “Of course,” he nodded appeasingly. “I seem to have upset you, when all I intended to do was sympathise with your plight.”
    ‘Plight?’ she thought. ‘I have never felt so free as the past two days on the ranch.’
    “I do not consider myself to be in a plight, Mr Middleton.”
    “No?” his tone implied that he didn’t believe her.
    “I rather consider it an adventure.”
    “Really?”
    “Yes.”
    “Well, of course. I'm sure Mamma looks after you very well. I just thought that you might have had trouble adjusting, after all, you were a Lady in England, were you not? I just thought that you might feel more comfortable, being among your own class for a while.”
    She may have disliked many things about being raised to become a Lady, but for this man to suggest that he was of her class was simply ridiculous.
    “Mr Middleton, you clearly know nothing of class! ” she removed her hand from his elbow and turned to face him. “You introduced yourself without waiting for an introduction, you offered me your hand like any common tradesman, you refer to me by my Christian name, despite the fact that I have not given you permission, you are overly familiar and you seek to belittle others. For the record, I am Lady Adams, Dowager Viscountess of Marwich and you, Sir, are no gentleman.”
    She walked off towards the general store, hoping that the cart was still around the corner , where they had left the horses tethered to the store’s hitching post. Sam was just loading some bags of corn but he didn’t smile when he noticed her.
    Seemingly ‘helping’ him was a young woman. She looked to be young, certainly no older than 20, and dressed in rather gaudy clothes. They were much like Mamma’s dresses in their basic style but with far more ruffles and in a garish shade of cerise,