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  Bella’s dark hair and earthy brown eyes stared at Abigail worriedly. “Are you okay?”

  She nodded. “I’m trying to make some decisions about what to do with the store, my life. Whether I should return to Boston or stay here.”

  “You’ve got a lot on your mind,” Bella said, glancing away. “And I came at the worst possible time.”

  “Oh no,” Abigail said. “Actually, I’m so happy to see you. I didn’t know what to do. Maybe you can help me.”

  Bella gazed at her. “How?”

  “Do you remember when we were in jail and we were talking about creating our own town?” Abigail said, glancing at her friend, noticing the tired circles under her eyes.

  “Yes, I thought it was just the boredom talking, but I remember.”

  “Since my papa died, I’ve been told that in this small town, a woman cannot own a business.”

  Bella sat straight up. “What? So how is she supposed to earn a living if she has no husband?”

  Abigail smiled at her friend’s reaction. Why was it that young women understood the vulnerability of being dependent on a man? Why couldn’t men realize women just wanted the chance to have the same opportunities, the same chances in life they had?

  “Oh, believe me, I’ve already received three proposals of marriage. The last one came in a handwritten note in flowers.”

  Bella started laughing. “You’re kidding me.”

  Shaking her head, Abigail laughed as she told Bella about her latest proposal of marriage. “No, I never saw the man’s face. I was to meet him at the church if I was ready to get married. He might still be down there, waiting for me to show up.”

  Giggling, Bella covered her mouth with her hand, her body shaking with mirth. “You’re in mourning. You can’t get married now.”

  “Doesn’t matter. These men are desperate to find themselves a wife.”

  “I’m not that anxious that I’d marry just anyone,” Bella said. “If I wanted a husband, I could have gone home.”

  Bella’s family lived in St. Louis, where her father ran a shipping company on the mighty Mississippi river. Wealthy, she had never experienced a small town like New Hope. Abigail, wondered how Bella would like living without the arts and refinements of a larger city.

  “Originally, I had plans to return to the university.”

  “You’re no longer going?”

  Abigail sat and considered the idea of returning to Boston. “I never thought I would say this, but I’m having a hard time letting go of the mercantile, which I’ve now received four offers on.”

  Bella started laughing again. “Is it men or women who want to buy the store?”

  “Women are not allowed to own a business. We are to focus on our husband and children and let the men folk take care of us.”

  In a fairytale, it sounded so beautiful. A woman married the man of her dreams, they had children, and while he worked to support them, she took care of his home and the children. But how many times had reality been different than the simple tale of love? And if a man was killed or, was a drunk or a heathen, how did the woman and her children survive then? How could she support them without the help of family and the generosity of friends?

  “Again, what happens when something befalls that man or woman?”

  Abigail shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know, but I think I’m about to test this law.”

  Bella giggled. “Yes, I can see you doing this.”

  “I feel the urge to show this town you cannot keep women down. I think we should contact our friends and tell them we have found the perfect place for women to take control of the businesses in this town.”

  “I love it,” Bella said, leaning back in her chair. “Please warn them warm clothes are not needed before they get on the stage. I thought I would melt between here and Fort Worth.”

  Abigail smiled dreamily. “Each woman could have her own business. If she chooses to marry, there are lots of single men here. She could have both a business and a family.”

  “And a really good life, if she chooses her lifelong partner carefully.”

  “Only if she loves him. Marriage without love would be impossible.”

  “Yes, if you’ve already received three marriage proposals, I think these men are just looking for a woman, any woman. Someone to cook and clean and conceive a baby with,” Bella said, shaking her head. “Is it wrong to reject the idea that a good husband is someone who comes with a large investment portfolio?”

  For a moment Abigail wondered if Bella’s father had found her husband. He’d been threatening to for the last year, thinking his money for college could better be spent on a marriage or a merger, as he liked to call it. Surely, Bella would tell Abigail if that was the reason she was here.

  “I think New Hope is about to get just that—a new influx of women with brains and a desire to control their destiny.”

  Abigail gazed at her friend so happy to see her. “So, you think it’s a good idea?”

  Bella smiled and shook her head. “Oh, Abigail, you have a way of finding trouble, squeezing every drop of life from it and then serving it at your next luncheon. I think it’s a splendid idea.”

  Abigail reached out and grabbed Bella’s hand. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

  “How do you think the women in this town are going to respond?” Bella asked.

  Abigail thought about the women who had set up the luncheon after her father’s funeral. They were strong, caring women who held the community together. She would hate to receive their condemnation, but they needed to realize they were just as capable as men of owning a business.

  “I don’t know, Bella. That’s my only concern because the men in this town need shaking up and thrown into the frying pan.”

  Abigail couldn’t help but think of Jack Turner. His laughing smile, the way his hazel eyes twinkled, and the way he’d made a mockery of her by not helping her down and letting her think she needed to contact the mayor.

  He was about to be in for the fight of his mayoral life.

  “Nothing like tackling women’s rights in the West.”

  ***

  Jack hated being thrust into this controversy, especially when the woman causing the problem was the luscious Miss Vanderhooten. Since the day he’d agreed to pick her up at the stage, he’d avoided her. The cool miss had gotten under his skin like stinging nettle.

  But he had toned down the piano player in his saloon. When she’d pointed out the noise factor, he’d been shocked. He hadn’t considered how much racket traveled down the street. Just because the woman had been right about the sound coming out of his saloon didn’t mean he wanted to negotiate with her for her father’s business. The law in New Hope said no woman could own a business, and as mayor it was his duty to carry out said law.

  He opened the door and stepped into the mercantile. The store was empty, except for a young woman he’d never seen before standing behind the counter.

  “Can I help you?” she asked.

  “I’m looking for Miss Vanderhooten,” he said, glancing around at the changes in the store. It looked cleaner, brighter, and more appealing. The displays were pretty and clever, tempting you to peruse the store a little longer. What had she done?

  “Just a minute,” the girl said, disappearing behind a wall. A few seconds later, she came back with Abigail, looking red-faced and wiping her hands on a rag.

  “Jack,” she said, “to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?”

  “Where’s Don?” he asked.

  “He’s no longer employed here,” Abigail said. “We had a parting of the ways.”

  He shook his head. So the rumors he was hearing were true. Abigail was putting herself in place to run the store against the wishes of the city council. “Do you have some place we can talk privately?”

  “Jack, let me introduce you to my friend Bella Spencer,” she said.

  “Nice to meet you, Mr. Turner.”

  “As well. I really think what we need to dis
cuss should be in private.”

  “I have nothing to hide from Bella. She’s my best friend.”

  Just what he didn’t need, to have this discussion in front of another woman, a woman who’d come from Boston. He cleared his throat. “I’ve received another offer on the store. The buyer wanted me to present the offer to you to consider. He’s willing to give you top dollar for the business.”

  Abigail smiled at him, and he got the feeling she wasn’t going to listen to him no matter what he said. He could just see the trouble seeming to ooze from her every pore, especially around her mouth. The urge to kiss those full lips into submission was overwhelming, and he blocked the thought from his mind.

  The woman was a nuisance, and he suddenly wished she would just get back on the stage and ride out of town because there was something about her that was as tempting as crème filled rolls.

  “I’m not interested in selling. This is my birthright. My father left me the store to do with as I will.”

  He took a deep breath. This was not going to be easy. “May I call you Abigail?”

  “Of course, we’re getting to be such good friends.” She said the words with just enough sarcasm he knew he needed to be aware.

  “You know the town of New Hope has an ordinance that no woman may own a business.”

  “Ridiculous,” Bella said with a wave of her hand. “Complete nonsense.”

  Abigail smiled at him and lifted her chin defiantly. “So, what should I do? I don’t want to sell.”

  “Then maybe you should marry, and the business will remain in your husband’s name.” The words made him cringe inside. Abigail marrying would be such a disappointment. Yet, that would keep him safe.

  “But I’m not interested in marriage either,” she said with a shrug and a complete lack of interest that piqued him.

  A woman not interested in binding herself to a man…unusual.

  He frowned. What kind of woman didn’t want to get married and have kids? Every woman he’d ever met wanted a man to take care of her. Now, he would be forced to give her the official mayoral speech.

  “I didn’t write the laws. But as mayor it’s my job to make certain they’re followed. You will need to either sell or get married and put the business in your husband’s name.”

  “And if I don’t? What are you going to do? Throw me in jail?” she asked with that saucy tilt to her head, her sapphire blue eyes just daring him to even try.

  “If I have to.”

  She stepped around the counter and came to within inches of him. “Let me just say I will obtain a lawyer, and I will take this archaic law to the highest court in the land if needed. Does the city have the funds to fight a legal battle that will cost them a lot of money?”

  He frowned as a trickle of annoyance spiraled down his spine. The city operated on a very tight budget with no room for extra expenses. Plus, next year he was up for reelection. How he handled this little problem could put all the wrong people in power. Not something he needed for this city that he cared about. “I will go back to the city council and tell them you intend to fight this ordinance.”

  She smiled. “Thank you, Jack. Tell them it’s time they updated their laws to the nineteenth century.”

  He shook his head. “You scare me, Abigail Vanderhooten. Don’t be surprised if you get backlash from the men in this community. Are you prepared for the men to take exception to your brazenness?”

  “As mayor, it will be your job to make certain the sheriff protects me and my property from any men who may decide to partake in vigilante justice. As for my brazenness, you haven’t seen anything yet, Mayor.”

  He stepped even closer to her and stared into her blue eyes. “Some things are out of my control.”

  “That’s all I’m asking,” she said.

  “Nice to meet you, Mayor,” Bella said as he turned and walked out the door.

  He’d done his best to let her know what she was up against, but the woman didn’t want to listen. He’d been witness to how a small Texas town could deal out justice, and even though Miss Vanderhooten was only trying to earn a living, he feared some people would find it bold and disrespectful. He only hoped his sheriff would protect her from the vigilantes who seemed to live in every town.

  ***

  “Tell me about everyone. How are they doing?” Abigail asked Bella that night as they ate dinner in the Fork and Spoon.

  “Emma has gone off to medical school. Faith is enrolled in law school. Everyone but Haley is still attending the university,” Bella said. “Her father forced her to come home. She’s getting married in the fall.”

  “Oh, dear,” Abigail said. “I’m so glad you came here.”

  Bella smiled, but she seemed nervous. “I felt like you were off on a grand adventure without me. I wanted to go too.”

  “Not hardly.” Abigail took a bite of her food. “Remember that class we took on selling? Merchandising 101?” She’d never thought she would use the knowledge, but now she found herself remembering things the professor had said about how to increase sales.

  “How could I forget? That professor accused us of taking the wrong classes. He said we should be taking cooking or even elementary education classes.” Bella shook her head at her friend. “Even in education, the men want us to continue in our assigned roles.”

  Laughing, Abigail said, “Yes, he did. But remember after we’d been in the class for a while, he did a lecture on how to increase sales? What if we were to create a display and for a limited time everything on the display is on sale?”

  “We should try it. Have the sales fallen off since your father died?”

  “No, but I fear by not selling the store and fighting the city, they will. When people learn I intend to take this clear to the Supreme Court, they’ll be upset by how much this battle will cost the city.”

  Bella shook her head. “Why are you fighting this so hard? Why not sell and go back to Boston?”

  “For several reasons,” Abigail said, leaning over the table. “With the mercantile, I have a steady income. If I sell the store, I’ll have a short-term financial gain, but would it be enough to let me finish college? Or would I have to go to work somewhere? And then I look around the place my mother and father created and I have such a hard-time letting go. This is my birthright. My inheritance.”

  A smile formed on Bella’s lips. “And you’re just itching to fight for your womanly rights.”

  Abigail couldn’t suppress the grin that spread on her face as she shook her head. “This is going to be tougher than marching in Boston.”

  Just then, Ella Fletcher, the head of the ladies sewing group, walked up to their table. “Abigail, I wanted to stop by and offer my condolences on the death of your father.”

  “Thank you,” Abigail said. “We were apart for so many years that I keep looking for his weekly letter. It feels like we’re still apart, and he’ll be sending me a letter any day now.”

  The woman patted Abigail on the back and then leaned down close. “I also wanted to tell you that if the rumors I’m hearing about you refusing to sell the mercantile are true, good for you. Many women in town have long believed that ridiculous law should have been overturned years ago. We’re hoping you can get that straight for the ladies here.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Fletcher. I appreciate your support and hope the men in New Hope won’t run me out of business.”

  The older woman nodded. “I understand, but you keep fighting.”

  “Thank you, that means a lot to me.”

  Mrs. Fletcher walked out of the restaurant, and Abigail turned to Bella. “Maybe I do have support in this town after all.”

  “Or maybe she’s just the random oddball,” Bella said.

  The cook appeared at their table and set down two pieces of fresh apple pie. “Compliments of me. Thanks for helping to get rid of that silly law. Even though I run the restaurant and do most of the cooking, we have to have the business in my brother’s name because I’m a woman. And he gets pa
rt of the profit, but does none of the work. I’m sick of it.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Abigail said, while Bella made a tsking noise. “Maybe what comes from it will help you as well.”

  “I hope so. Enjoy, ladies. I have to get back in the kitchen and finish cooking.”

  “Thanks, Henrietta,” Abigail said.

  “See, we can bring our cause out here to the West,” Bella said. “Even here we can help change the world and make it a better place for women.”

  “I hope so, but I don’t get the feeling the men will be as welcoming to change. After all, there are many of them who are looking for women and will see this as competition.”

  Bella shook her head. “You’re wrong. Because they’re desperate for a woman, a wife, a helpmate and partner, they’re going to be open to accepting whatever the woman wants just so they have a companion. Actually, we may have a better chance of success right here in the West.”

  Abigail gave a little laugh. “This is why we’re friends. You always help me see things in a different way. Thanks, Bella. Now let’s just hope sales at the store will continue to climb as we fight this battle.”

  ***

  “What in the hell do you mean she’s not going to sell? She has to,” Tim Barton, one of Jack’s city council members, yelled. “It’s the law.”

  Jack stared at the men around the table. Returning here after attending college, he’d loved the town of New Hope, but some days he wondered why he’d ever gotten himself into politics and city government. It could drain the life right out of you, worse than any bullet hole he’d ever seen.

  “I know, Tim, but the woman is threatening to take this fight to the highest court in the land. Do you know how much that will cost the city?” he said. “I estimated it, and we’ll have to double the taxes on every citizen who lives here.”

  “She’s just mouthing off. No decent judge is going to change this law.”

  “Send the sheriff over there and shut her down,” Rupert Jackson said, an older man who had been on the city council for way too many years.

  “Our nearest store would be in Mineral Wells. Are you ready to make weekly trips twenty miles away to buy what you need? How do you think the women in this town are going to feel about us shutting down a young woman trying to make a living and having to make a day’s drive just to purchase supplies?”