Tomasina woke early the next morning and stared at the ceiling. Sleeping on the soft mattress had proved difficult, and she’d finally moved her bedroll onto the floor. After years of sleeping on the trail, the solid wood was more comfortable than soft tick.
Crossing her ankles, she threaded her hands behind her head. She’d only be here a day or two, just until she found work. She had a little money stashed, sure, but there was no sense in wasting her savings on a fancy room when she had a perfectly good tent that only needed a little mending.
After last night she’d reconsidered returning to droving. Her pa and James had both warned her, but she’d been too stubborn to listen. She’d let down her guard because she hadn’t expected an attack quite that soon. She’d been naive, assuming she’d be safe among the men she’d ridden beside for years. At least she’d discovered her mistake sooner than later. Though it galled her that Will had witnessed her troubles, she had to face the truth.
Alone among the men, she was a target.
Despite her embarrassment, she recalled feeling safe, almost cherished. The instant he’d held her in his arms, the loneliness she’d felt since her father’s death had abated.
Either way, what she needed was a new profession.
With that thought in mind, she dressed and set off to search for a new job. Considering her odd list of skills, she was expecting a long search. As she crossed the lobby, she caught her reflection in the oval mirror once more. Pausing, she examined herself. This morning she’d dressed in her usual drover’s uniform of dungarees, chaps and a chambray shirt. She’d never considered altering what she wore because her clothing suited her job as a drover. However, now she had a bad feeling her current mode of dress would be an impediment to her future employment.
Her brow furrowed, and she searched the people milling around the lobby. The maids and the housekeeper wore black dresses with starched white aprons. Simon had donned his familiar bottle-green uniform, and the hotel manager was crisply dressed in a dark suit. While she’d never heard anyone admit as such, people tended to dress in a uniform that indicated their position in society. Since she was temporarily giving up her role as a drover, she’d best pick a new uniform.
Only two ladies were present in the restaurant. One of them was dressed in a simple calico print; the other wore a fancy, bright blue dress. Of the two women, the one in blue had obviously spent more time on her appearance. She was young, too; about the same age as Tomasina. Petite, she wore her strawberry-blond hair braided and tucked beneath a pert blue hat decorated with a peacock feather.
Tomasina rubbed her hands together. This was definitely the woman she needed to see. If you wanted something done right, you picked someone who knew what they were doing.
Tugging on her sleeves, Tomasina approached the lady in blue. “Where can I get a dress like that?”
The woman blinked rapidly, and she touched her chest with one gloved hand. “Well, uh, I’m afraid I purchased this dress before I arrived in Cowboy Creek.”
“Never mind.” Tomasina shrugged then squinted. “How’d you get your hair like that? Can you show me?”
Her own hair was definitely a problem. She’d never had much luck taming her curls. She’d cut it short some years back, but that had only made matters worse. Her sheared curls had given her a wild, red halo. After that she’d settled for ripping a length of fringe from her chaps every so often and tying the heavy mass in a queue at her neck.
“First things first.” With a smile, the woman held out her hand, palm down. “Perhaps we should begin with an introduction. I’m Pippa Neely.”
Tomasina awkwardly pinched her fingertips. “Tomasina Stone.”
Pippa was petite and willowy with bright hazel eyes and lustrous hair that lay smooth against her head. Tomasina touched her own unruly curls. What she wouldn’t give for locks that could be wrangled into place.
The elegant woman inclined her head with a smile. “Why don’t you have a seat, Miss Stone, and tell me why you need a dress.”
Tomasina flopped onto the opposite chair. “I need a new uniform. I need to look like a girl.”
Leaning forward, Pippa rested her elbows on the table and balanced her chin on her threaded fingers. “And why is that?”
“I’m not sure I can be a drover anymore now that my pa died.” Saying the words out loud took away some of their sting. “Pa warned me things were going to change. It used to be him and me and James Johnson. Now Pa is dead and James has turned into a real jerk.”
A sage nod sent the feather on Pippa’s hat fluttering. “The end of a romance is always difficult.”
Screwing up her face, Tomasina reared back. “Ew. It wasn’t anything like that. Me and James are like brother and sister.” She snapped her fingers. “Why didn’t I think of that before? James must be in love. I bet that’s why he was so cranky in Harper last fall. That old dog. Falling in love and being tied to one person would sure make him ornery. Mostly because he has a girl in every town from here to Galveston.”
“Some men balk at the idea of settling down.”
“James Johnson is that sort of fellow.”
“Hmm.” Pippa tapped her index finger against her chin. “Is James handsome in a swarthy sort of way with a fringed jacket?”
“That’s him.”
“He is rather charming, although not my sort. He tried to flirt with me at the county fair.”
“That’d be James.” For some reason Tomasina was relieved Pippa hadn’t fallen under his spell. She liked a woman with common sense. “Anyway, after James left, Pa died. All the other cowboys took off after we reached Cowboy Creek. Wasn’t a one of them willing to take orders from a woman. That isn’t even the worst thing that happened, though. The worst came last night. A couple of the boys cut my tent and tried to drag me out.”
With a gasp Pippa rested her fingers over Tomasina’s hand. “Oh, my. You poor thing. Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. I had my guns with me. And that other fellow, Will Canfield, helped out.”
“Will Canfield came to your rescue?” The petite woman leaned back in her seat and tilted her head. “My, my, my. What was Will doing in the drover’s camp?”
“Looking for me.” Tomasina scowled. “It wasn’t a rescue. I was doing just fine on my own before he helped out.”
There was no need for folks to go reading things into something when there was nothing there. Whether she’d needed his help or not, he’d been handy with his fists. She’d especially enjoyed the part when he’d knocked out that fellow who’d been insulting her.
Pippa tapped her chin once more. “Mr. Canfield doesn’t strike me as the sort of man who engages in fisticuffs.”
“He should. He was real tough.” The man had all sorts of hidden talents. Tomasina absently rubbed her lower lip, recalling his gentle touch. She didn’t know how she’d ever face him again after blubbering in his arms.
“And now I need a different job.”
“What is the situation with your funds?” Pippa asked. “How long can you survive without a job?”
“Come to think of it, I don’t rightly know.” Tomasina pumped her shoulders once in a shrug. “Pa and I just kept what money we needed to live on and put the rest in the bank. I never paid much attention to the balance. I never needed anything I didn’t already have before now.”
“My days have been rather dull of late. This new challenge suits me.” Pippa stood and reached for her reticule—a ridiculous little beaded bag with a dangling gold tassel. “First things first. You and I will visit the bank. We need to figure out the extent of the crisis before we form a plan.”
Tomasina rose to her feet with a grin. She liked a person who didn’t dillydally. “Lead the way.”
The two walked the distance, and Tomasina gave her request to the teller. He dispatched a telegram runner. Taking a seat on a bench opposite the teller booth, the women waited. Each man who entered and exited the building tipped their hat and offered Pippa a polite smile. She answered each of them with a dignified nod in return. One of the men even made a show of dropping his handkerchief at her feet. The “accident” gave him a convenient excuse to compliment Pippa on her hat while completely ignoring Tomasina.
About the time she figured she’d lose her breakfast if she had to witness any more of the nauseating flirting, the runner returned with a folded piece of paper. The teller glanced at the number, cleared his throat and slid the folded square beneath the grate of the teller cage.
Tomasina unfolded the paper and gasped.
Pippa gazed over her shoulder and gasped, as well. “Oh, my! You don’t need a job, Miss Stone. You need an accountant.”
“I guess it added up over time,” Tomasina said, a touch of awe in her voice. She’d never considered having that much money. Not all at once. The amount was downright obscene. “How did that happen?”
The reed-thin teller behind the counter adjusted his glasses. “Don’t forget compound interest.”
She couldn’t imagine spending that much money in a lifetime. Then again, her needs had always been simple. Living in town probably came with a lot more expenses. Dressing as a girl didn’t come cheap, either. That little beaded bag Pippa carried must have cost a fortune.
Pippa straightened her jaunty blue hat. “I think you should hold off on the job search and do a little shopping instead.”
“I have to work.” Tomasina stared at the enormous sum. “What do people do if they don’t have a job?”
“Well, um, there’s all the usual things a lady does. You can embroider.”
“No way. No how.”
“Many wealthy women volunteer for a charity. I believe Cowboy Creek has a thriving widows and orphans fund.”
“I’m not suited for work with orphans.” Coddling was not her strong suit, and orphans probably needed a lot of coddling. “Or widows.”
“What about the church?”
“What about it?”
“You could start a prayer group.”
“I don’t like spending too much time with God indoors. We’re more comfortable with each other out in the open.”
“If that’s the case, you can grow a garden.” Pippa hooked her arm through Tomasina’s elbow. “You could always spend your time courting. A lady with an income is quite a catch. Especially for some of the fellows around here.”
“Where would I grow a garden?” Tomasina scoffed. “And I sure don’t want a fellow. I’d rather get a job.”
Unbidden, an image of Will Canfield sprang into her head. She blinked him away. A fellow like that would marry someone like Pippa. Someone who didn’t gag when men flirted with her. Someone who knew the purpose of all the fancy silverware at supper. She doubted Pippa had ever discovered a snake in her bedroll and eaten it for supper. Tomasina had once heard there was a special fork just for pickles. She doubted there was such a thing as a snake fork.
“You do realize,” Pippa continued, “that you could purchase a house with this sum?”
“A house?”
“Yes, silly. There are oodles of houses for sale in Cowboy Creek. You could buy one with a large lot and take up gardening between your charity works.”
A sudden panic seized Tomasina. A house was permanent. If she changed her clothes and found a job, she could always go back to droving if things didn’t work out. Buying a house meant her life had changed forever. Growing a garden meant she was staying put for at least a season. She’d never once stayed in one place that long.
Tomasina vigorously shook her head. “No. I don’t want a house. I’d rather have a job.”
“Suit yourself.” Pippa exhaled loudly. “Still, you’d best withdraw some money if you want new clothes. Trust me, being a girl doesn’t come cheap.”
“I kinda figured that.”
With what seemed like an enormous sum of money stuffed safely in her pocket, she and Pippa set off for Booker & Son. Once inside, Pippa took charge. She grabbed several ready-made dresses from a display and plucked half a dozen hats from their perches.
Twenty agonizing minutes later Tomasina emerged from the dressing room. “I don’t think this is going to work.”
Pippa held her gloved hand in front of her mouth. “It’s on backward, my dear.” She giggled.
Tomasina glanced at the hooks she’d spent ten minutes wrestling closed. “Backward? But how are you supposed to wear something if it fastens in the back?”
“A woman’s life is fraught with difficulties.”
Tomasina stared at the scattering of fashion plates. “A cowboy would never design a shirt that buttoned up the back.”
This was hopeless. She was hopeless. All the buttons and bows in the world couldn’t cover who she was on the inside. She wasn’t a lady, and she wasn’t a drover anymore. Not in practice, at least. But she’d always be a drover in her heart.
Maybe that was the difficulty. A body couldn’t move in two directions at once. Part of her found the idea of a fresh start intriguing while the other part of her wanted to turn back time. She wanted her pa back. She wanted her old life—her previously assured future.
“Trust me, Miss Stone.” Pippa stood in front of her and grasped the hat she’d balanced on her head. She set the feathered cap at a spirited angle and secured the brim with a hatpin. “Men have plenty of other problems. They simply hide them better.”
Tomasina would rather face a rattlesnake than the dressing room once more.
Heaving a sigh, she reached for the buttons with a groan. “I’ll try on another dress.”
She’d spent her whole life proving people wrong. Becoming a girl was simply another endeavor. She’d never backed down from a challenge, and she wasn’t starting now.
She couldn’t wait to see Will’s face the next time he saw her.