The Bachelor Tax

Tomorrow. It was the last day she would look for work in Edgewood. She slipped from her dress and draped it over a chair, bending to roll her stockings down her legs. After tomorrow, she’d have to look beyond the boundaries of town. Maybe she could cook for a rancher or keep house for a farm family. And at that thought, she slid her nightgown over her head and stripped from her petticoat and drawers beneath its billowing folds.

Tomorrow, she’d decide what to do.

“Have you heard if anyone needs a live-in?” Rosemary’s hopeful query brought consternation to Phillipa’s round face.

“A live-in what?”

Rosemary glanced around the general store, where only two other customers browsed at this early hour. She faced Pip across the wide counter. “Maybe as a housekeeper or…” Her hands gripped each other at her waist as she groped for another position she might be capable of filling.

Pip shook her head. “Nobody hereabouts can really afford to hire in help. Maybe some of the ranchers, but most all of them have wives.” She halted, her eyes widening.

“Rosemary…” Pip leaned over the counter, whispering her thoughts aloud. “Maybe you ought to reconsider Gabe Tanner’s proposal.”

“No!” Her single word of denial exploded, and both browsers turned her way, openmouthed. Rosemary bent her head and spoke in a low tone. “I couldn’t possibly, Pip. I just couldn’t.”

Bernice Comstock stepped up to the counter. “Hello there, Rosemary. I understand you’ve been looking for work,” she said. “It’s a pity your daddy didn’t provide a little better for you, isn’t it? Though I’d think you’re equipped for something.”

Rosemary attempted to smile, cringing within at the faint praise the other woman offered. “Well, if I am, I’m sure I don’t know what it is,” she answered. “Whatever my talents are, there doesn’t seem to be a place for them here. I’ve tried at the hotel, the newspaper and even pestered poor Phillipa here.”

From her left, Geraldine Frombert cut in abruptly. “You need to marry and have a family, child. A young woman with your upbringing would make a fine wife for any man. Matter of fact, I’m surprised you haven’t been snatched up before this.”

Pip opened her mouth, then snapped it shut after a quick look in Rosemary’s direction.

“The Bachelor Tax will send some of these men scurrying for a wife, I’ll warrant, now that the year’s almost up,” Bernice Comstock said briskly.

Rosemary’s heartbeat sped up, pounding in her ears. She felt cornered, as if she were a project being taken on by this pair of ladies. “I’d really rather seek employment,” she announced firmly.

The door opened and all eyes swept in that direction. A hush fell among the women as Dex Sawyer entered the store, removing his hat in deference to their presence as he approached the counter.

“Ladies.” He nodded at each one in turn, receiving only a frosty glare from Bernice and Geraldine. Pip grinned invitingly.

“Mr. Sawyer, what can I do for you?”

For a moment, he looked uncomfortable, then waved at the supply of linens Pip’s father had arranged on the highest shelves. “I’ve found a furnished place to rent. I need to have a set of sheets and a couple of towels, Miss Boone.”

Pip’s gaze followed his pointing finger and she turned aside, hastening to scoot her ladder into place.

“May I climb up there for you?” Dex asked politely.

Pip stood back, allowing him space, and watched as he made his way up several steps until he could reach his goal. “Are these arranged by size?” His hand hesitated, as he glanced down at the woman below.

She shook her head. “They’re all the same. If your bed is smaller than regular size, you just have to tuck them in farther. The pillowcases are to the right, next to the towels.”

With an adept twist of his wrist, Dex tugged what he needed from the stack and handed them down to Phillipa. He climbed down, facing her behind the counter. “I’ll need foodstuffs, along with these linens.”

“I’m sure my mother has an extra quilt she can let you use,” Pip said, her cheeks pink, her eyes shining as she spoke.

From either side of her, Rosemary noted the departure of the two women. Probably didn’t want to associate with a man who made his living at the saloon, she thought. He turned to Rosemary, and his eyes were kind. “I don’t mean to infringe on your privacy, Miss Gibson, but I wondered if you had found employment yet, or a place to live.”

Pip turned away, Dex’s list in her hand, gathering items from the shelves. Rosemary shook her head.

“No, not yet. I can’t pay rent for a room until I have some income. I fear it’s a vicious circle, Mr. Sawyer.”

He leaned closer, lowering his voice as he glanced aside at Phillipa, as if assuring himself she was not within hearing distance. “I have to admit I’ve been thinking about you. If you have nowhere else to go, I can offer you a haven, ma’am. I have room and to spare.”

Rosemary’s cheeks burned with a rush of heat. “I couldn’t even consider such a thing,” she said hastily.

“It would be better than nothing,” he said quietly.

Rosemary was stunned for a moment at his words. “Are you offering me a room, sir? Or a position?”

“Perhaps I should not have put such a suggestion to you. However…”

“You want me to be your…” She could not utter the word aloud. The insult was too great to be considered, and Rosemary turned away, her injured ankle not allowing as dignifed an exit as she would have liked.

He was behind her, his hand grasping her elbow. “Wait. I didn’t mean to give offense, although I’m sure it must seem that way to you. I’m offering room and board in exchange for your services in my home.”

Rosemary shuddered, her perception of Dex Sawyer shattered. At first glance, on the train platform, she had thought him the picture of elegance, a perfect choice for the new preacher and certainly for a husband.

Now, he had proved himself to be a blackguard of the worst kind. She jerked from his grasp. “I cannot tell you how outraged I am at your suggestion,” she said between gritted teeth.

He rolled his eyes, shaking his head. “I’m sure there is a misconception here, Miss Gibson. I am simply offering you shelter. I beg your pardon for infringing on your dignity, but I only meant that you could cook my meals and keep my house in order until you find a better position.”

“The only offer I will ever accept from a man will be an honorable proposal of marriage,” she said firmly.

“Have you had one?” His tone was dubious.

Her chin tilted and her mouth was primly set as she spoke her reply. “Yes, as a matter of fact, I have.”

A flush rose to color his cheeks, and Dex ducked his head. “I beg your pardon, Miss Rosemary. I spoke in haste, and I fear I have offended you greatly. I can only offer my deepest apologies.”

“They are not acceptable, I fear,” Rosemary whispered, her only thought that of escape from his presence. With steps that limped ever so slightly, she left the store. Glancing back, she hesitated for just a moment as Pip mouthed words she could not hear, her arms full of foodstuffs.

From the other side of the glass, Dex watched her departure, his mouth twisted in a half smile that hinted of regret, even as he lifted two fingers to his brow in a salute.

It was impossible that the man would think she’d even consider such a thing. Rosemary’s feet scuffed up clouds of dust as she crossed the street. How could he think she would keep house for a single gentleman? She could only imagine the gossip such an arrangement would cause. The wooden sidewalk beneath her feet now, she barely felt the pain in her injured foot, so great was her distress.

How he could even imagine that she would take him up on the idea was beyond her comprehension. And yet, what had anyone else offered her? she asked herself in a burst of honesty. At least the man had been aboveboard with his proposal. And quick with his apology.

Proposal. She’d thrown the word in his face. She’d said in no uncertain terms that a proposal had been offered. And so it had. An ambiguous proposition, to be sure. And yet…

She stopped suddenly, coming to a halt in front of the newspaper office. Inside, Duncan Blackstone glanced at her, then quickly away.

She ignored his back as he turned away, her mind on the conversation with Gabe Tanner when he had offered his hand so casually and with such a lack of dignity. Had she turned him down flat? She didn’t think so.

The scene filled her mind. She’d told him not to molest her. She’d sputtered words she could not even recall. Yet…she hadn’t refused him outright.

Not once had she said the single word he’d apparently expected to hear.