A Family For Carter Jones

It was the temporary sheriff’s deputy, Lyle Wentworth. Carter wasn’t particularly pleased to see him. Though they were both eligible young men in town, the two had not become friends. Carter found him overbearing and petulant. He’d seen Lyle kick back a chair and stomp out of the bar over a two-bit poker game. Of course, as the only son of the town banker and the pretentious Lucinda, Lyle had probably been raised to believe he was a cut above the rest of the world. Carter, on the other hand, had known at a young age that he’d better start climbing, because he was starting life at the bottom rung.

“Evening, Lyle,” he greeted his visitor.

“What in blazes are they trying to do to the Sheridan sisters?” Lyle asked without preamble.

Carter raised his eyebrows. The demanding tone was characteristic, but for the life of him he couldn’t think what interest Lyle Wentworth would have in the plight of the Sheridans. He leaned over his desk and put his hand down flat on the court order that he’d not served that morning. “The court says they can’t take in boarders in that location. They have to stop it or move to another house.”

“They don’t have any money to move. Or to survive if they can’t get that extra rent money. What are they supposed to live on with both their parents fresh in their graves?”

Carter let a stream of air out threw his nose, still mystified as to the motivation behind Lyle’s inquiry. “This order doesn’t concern itself with what they’re going to live on. It just states that the way things are, they’re in violation of the law.”

“It’s damned nonsense, fostered by a bunch of the town’s old biddies. The Sheridan sisters aren’t hurting a thing in that house.”

Carter slid his hand off the papers and grinned. “Well, according to the oldest Sheridan sister, the only way we’re going to get them out of there is to carry them out.”

Lyle’s scowl softened. “That sounds like Jennie, all right So you talked to them already?” At Carter’s nod, Lyle stiffened and asked, “Did you see Kate, too?”

“The younger one? No. Her sister said she was ill.”

Lyle’s head jerked up. “Ill? What’s wrong with her?”

The motive behind Lyle’s interest was becoming more apparent. It appeared he was smitten with one of the girls. Which one? he wondered. Carter was surprised to realize that he was very much hoping that it was not Jennie who held the rich young man’s interest, though she would be the most likely candidate. It would be tough for any man to be in love with Kate Sheridan under the current circumstances.

“What’s wrong with Kate?” Lyle insisted. The slight tremor in his voice gave Carter the answer to his question.

“I’m sorry, Lyle. Her sister didn’t elaborate. I assumed it had something to do with…” Carter hesitated. Surely Lyle knew about Kate Sheridan’s condition.

“With her having a baby,” Lyle finished for him, his voice tight.

“Yes.”

Lyle kicked the heel of his boot backward into the door frame, gouging the soft pinewood. “I don’t want them bothered, Jones,” he said. “Not by you nor by those old gossips who are trying to run them out of town.”

Carter pushed back his chair and looked up at the young man. After a moment he said, “I intend to see what I can do to straighten this out.”

Lyle nodded and spun on his heel to leave. Carter could hear the clatter of his fancy, high-heeled boots all the way down the stairs. This was an interesting development, he thought, since the way he understood it, one of the “old gossips” Wentworth had referred to was Lyle’s own mother. Carter wrinkled up his nose. Small-town politics. He had little patience for it. But if he had to put up with the foibles of the local denizens in order to proceed up that ladder he was determined to climb, he’d put aside his distaste.

And in the meantime, straightening things out meant that he’d have to pay another visit to Jennie Sheridan. Which was not such an unpleasant prospect.

Chapter Two (#ulink_ac755f57-828c-5125-a40a-9e74b1dc4c21)

By the time he’d washed down the last piece of the Continental’s totally flavorless meat with a third mug of beer, Carter was ready to admit that the prospect of a return engagement with Jennie Sheridan had him interested. Hell, it had him downright bothered. He’d planned on postponing the encounter until tomorrow, but with the pleasantly warm hum of beer singing inside him, he stood on the steps of the hotel wondering if he should change his mind and go immediately.

“Evening, Carter.” The gruff voice of Dr. Millard was unmistakable. It could be intimidating to someone who didn’t know the disposition of the town’s only doctor.

“Dr. Millard,” Carter acknowledged. “You out seeing a patient this time of night?”

“I came looking for you. I’m concerned about this campaign against Jennie and Kate Sheridan.”

Yet another champion for the beleaguered sisters. Carter smiled. It was beginning to look as if the two lovely orphans might cause a regular civil war in town.

“I was just about to head over there,” he told the doctor.

“To the Sheridan house?”

Carter nodded.

Dr. Millard looked up and down the street. Only a few evening stragglers were still out. “Now?”

Carter gave one of his self-assured nods. “I imagine those poor girls are quaking in their shoes wondering when the sheriff is going to show up to move them out of there.”

Dr. Millard looked doubtful. “Have you met Jennie?”

“Yup. This morning. She was…”

“She’s not exactly the quaking type,” the doctor interrupted.

“No. Perhaps not. But I imagine she’ll be pleased to learn that I’ve decided to help her and her sister out of this muddle.”

Dr. Millard looked amused. “I’m relieved to here it, Carter. Ah…just how do you plan to do that?”

Carter peered into darkening street and blinked to find it empty. “I don’t know. I’ll…file an appeal or something. Get the court order blocked. I can talk to Mrs. Billingsley and get her to forget the whole thing.”

“That’s about as likely as a blizzard in July.”

Carter gestured grandly. “Would you like to come with me?”

The doctor grinned. “My boy, I’d love to see Jennie’s face when you give her the good news that you’ve gallantly decided to ride to her rescue.”

“Well, come along then.”

Millard’s smile died. “I can’t. Kate’s been avoiding me since the beginning of her…problem. She refuses to see me, and I can’t go over there without her welcome. She’ll let me know when she’s ready for my help.”

“Hey, Doc. Haven’t you learned by your age that women don’t always know what they want Sometimes a man just has to step in and take over to keep them from making a mess of things.”

“Is that what you learned at that fancy Eastern school?”

“I learned it long before then. Give a woman a chance to argue and you’re sunk. If you want to help out Kate Sheridan, you should just march on over there and tell her so. Don’t let her get a word in edgewise.”

“And that’s the approach you intend to take with Jennie tonight?” he asked.

“Actually, it’s what they like,” Carter answered with a firm nod.

Dr. Millard made a click with his mouth. “Yup, I surely would like to see that.”

“Do you want to change your mind and come along?”

The doctor shook his head with a slow grin. “Nope. But you give Jennie my regards, you hear?” He turned to leave, and Carter could hear him chuckling all the way down the street.