Bobbi Smith (9 page)

The auction was always fun, although there had been a few times when some of the cowboys had gotten good and drunk and made a spectacle of themselves bidding on a certain girl. It had happened to Randi once. Her father had had to step in and outbid everyone to save her from the humiliation of dining with a drunk.

Randi wondered if Hawk would show up tonight—and if he did show up, she wondered if he would bid on her. Deep in her heart, she hoped he would.

“That’s right. We have to look good so all the men will bid on us,” Sherri said. “I’m just glad I go before you, so they’ll still have money left to bid on me!”

“I’ll see you in a little while. I have some serious dressing up to do.”

“Do you think we’ll recognize each other tonight after we get all gussied up?”

“Of course,” Randi answered. “We’re always lovely. We’re just going to be even lovelier than usual tonight.”

“I like the way you think!”

Her mood was light as Randi left the store to return to the hotel. She’d brought a pretty gown with her, and she wanted to make sure she looked her best. She had just enough time to get ready for the evening to come.

Jack was meeting with Wade and Hawk up in his hotel room.

“Just remember to pay attention to what’s going on while you’re here in town,” Jack told them.

“Wade and I already talked about it,” Hawk assured him.

“Good. Whoever the rustlers are, they’re going to slip up sometime, and when they do, we’re going to be ready for them.” He was disgusted by his inability to catch the thieves so far. “One other thing, Hawk—watch out for Fred. I don’t know if he’s still in town or not. As angry as he was when he left the ranch, he could still mean trouble for you.”

“I’ll tell the rest of the boys, too,” Wade said as they started from the hotel room, although the foreman knew most of them wouldn’t care if Fred wanted to cause trouble for Hawk.

“I’ll see you at the social,” Jack called as they left his room.

“Are you going to the social?” Hawk asked Wade.

“I wouldn’t miss it. It’s a dinner auction. We bid on the dinner we want, and each dinner comes with a lady—of course, we know who the lady is before we start.” He grinned. “Then whoever bids the highest gets to have supper with her.”

“Randi mentioned it, but I didn’t know it was an auction. Is she one of the ladies being auctioned off?”

“Oh, yeah. She’s done it for about three years now, and she usually does real good. A year or so ago, though, a cowboy got drunked up and bid real high for her. Jack got worried and stepped in with the biggest bid for a dinner ever. Randi ended up having to eat with her pa that year. She still gets teased about that. You’re going tonight, aren’t you?” Wade asked.

“I hadn’t thought about it.”

“Start thinking about it. We can show up together,” he said, making the decision for Hawk.

“All right.”

“Meet me here at the hotel about five thirty.”

“I’ll see you then.”

“Randi?” Jack knocked on her hotel room door.

“Are you ready to go downstairs to meet Sherri yet?”

“Just about, Pa,” Randi called out.

Sitting at the small dressing table, she put the finishing touches on her hair, then stood up to take a critical look at herself in the mirror. Randi smiled at her reflection, impressed by the changes a pretty gown and different hairstyle could make in her appearance. She actually looked like a lady. She hurried to the door before her father got too impatient.

“I’m ready.”

“It’s about time,” Jack said as the door opened. “Well, sweetheart, you were worth the wait.”

Randi was a vision as she stepped out of her room. The emerald-colored gown she wore emphasized the color of her eyes and fit her perfectly. With her hair done up in a sophisticated style, she no longer looked like his little girl, Jack realized. His daughter was a woman, and a very beautiful one at that.

“You look lovely.”

“Why, thank you,” she told him with a smile.

“Your mother would be proud of you.”

“What about my father?” she teased.

“I’m always proud of you.”

“Let’s just hope I don’t embarrass the family name tonight at the auction.” She laughed.

“When has that ever happened?” he countered, laughing, too. “Besides, as pretty as you look, I’ll bet you bring in the highest bid.”

They found Sherri waiting for them in the lobby with her parents, Jim and Rosie. The families were longtime friends.

“This is a pleasant surprise,” Jack greeted them.

“When Sherri told us she was meeting Randi, we decided to come along with her,” Jim told him.

“It’s good to see you.”

“Don’t the girls look pretty?” Rosie said, watching Randi and Sherri walk on ahead of them as they left the hotel.

“They’re lovely, but there’s no one as beautiful as you,” Jim told her.

Rosie laughed at her husband’s charming ways, and they followed their daughter outside.

Up ahead, Randi was asking eagerly, “So what did you have to tell me that was so important?”

“Well . . .” Sherri took a quick look around to make sure their parents weren’t close enough behind them to overhear. “There’s someone new in town.”

“So?”

“So—he’s the handsomest man I’ve ever seen! He’s got black hair and hazel eyes.” She sighed. Her expression turned dreamy as she thought of him.

“Who is he? I haven’t heard Pa talking about anybody new.”

“His name is Andy Karandzieff. He came here from St. Louis about three weeks ago.”

“What’s he doing in San Miguel?”

“He’s opened up a confectionery called Crown Candy Kitchen. He makes and sells the most delicious candy.”

“So you’re sweet on him, are you?” Randi said with a smile.

“Yes, I am,” she confided.

“Are you sure it’s not his candy you’re after?” Randi teased.

“Oh, Randi!” Sherri laughed with her friend. “He’s just real . . . nice, that’s all.”

“So you’ve had the chance to get to know him already?”

“I’ve spoken to him a few times at church, and he serves lunch at the confectionery, too, so my parents and I all went there to eat one day last week. He’s so charming. He’s nothing like all the cowboys we get around here. He’s a . . .”

“A gentleman?” Randi finished for her.

“Exactly,” she said with a sigh. “A very handsome gentleman.”

“Maybe he’ll bid on your dinner tonight.”

“I hope so. That’s my dream, anyway.”

“Who won the bidding on you last year?”

“Jed Thompson, but he’s moved on. I really haven’t been seeing anyone lately. All I’ve been doing is thinking about Andy.”

“Does your Andy know about tonight?”

“He’s not ‘my’ Andy.”

“Not yet,” Randi said, and they shared a conspiratorial smile.

“Well, I did make it a point to mention the social to him when I saw him last. I didn’t say too much, though, because I didn’t want it to look like I was begging him to show up.”

“It’s a church fund-raiser. Pray on it.”

“I already have!” Sherri grinned. “What about you? Who do you want to bid on you tonight?”

“Oh, I don’t know.”

“What do you mean, you don’t know?” Sherri asked astutely. She knew her girlfriend very well and could tell when she had something on her mind.

“My pa hired on a new hand last week, and there’s something about him . . .”

“What?” Sherri urged, immediately curious about this new man.

“He’s different from all the other men.”

“How is he different?” Sherri was puzzled. She’d never heard her friend talk this way about a ranch hand before.

Randi knew she might as well tell Sherri the truth and get it over with. “His name is Hawk Morgan, and he’s a half-breed.”

Sherri was stunned. “Your father hired a—”

“That’s right,” Randi interrupted. She didn’t want to hear any remarks about Hawk’s Indian blood. “Hawk came highly recommended from a friend of Pa’s in Dry Springs.” She went on to tell Sherri the same version of their first encounter she’d told her father.

“But, Randi, how is he ever going to fit in? You know the way people feel about Indians around here.”

“There was some trouble at the ranch,” Randi admitted. “Fred Carter picked a fight with Hawk.”

Sherri wasn’t surprised. She’d heard bad things about Fred before. “What happened?”

Randi told her about the snake. “Pa managed to break up the fight pretty fast; then he fired Fred for starting it.”

“I have to ask—who was winning when he broke it up?”

“Hawk, definitely,” Randi said with confidence.

“Point him out to me if he shows up. I want to see what this Hawk looks like. He must be special for you to feel this way about him.”

“I will, and I want you to show me your Andy, too.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you get a look at him. Just don’t be too obvious about it, all right?” Sherri knew how open Randi could be about things sometimes.

“I’ll try to behave myself.”

Sherri laughed. “That’ll be a first.”

Randi laughed, too. They both knew the night ahead was going to be an adventure.

When they arrived at the large, open-sided tent that had been set up to house the dinner auction, Jack, Jim, and Rosie went to join the crowd that was already gathering, waiting to be seated. The girls went in search of Mrs. Washburn, the lady in charge.

Inside the tent, women from the church were busy putting the finishing touches on everything. There was a platform set up in front, and chairs had been arranged inside the tent for seating during the bidding. Tables and chairs were located on the grounds surrounding the tent for the winning couples to enjoy their meals.

“Hello, dears,” Mrs. Washburn welcomed them warmly when she saw them coming her way. “This is going to be an exciting night. We have so many wonderful dinners—and so many beautiful girls!”

“We’re looking forward to it,” Sherri assured her. “Is there anything you need help with?”

“No, we’ll be ready to start very shortly. The other girls are waiting out back, if you want to join them.”

Sherri and Randi sought out the other girls. In all, there were twelve young ladies who were willing to be auctioned off for the sake of the benefit.

When Mrs. Washburn had finally finished with her duties and came to get them, she was a bit troubled.

“Oh, my,” the elderly woman said with a frown. “Do you know of any other ladies around town who would be willing to help us? We’ve got twenty dinners boxed up for the sale. Who else could we get?”

Regular meals were served at the social, too. Those who didn’t want to get involved in the bidding could purchase dinner at a reasonable price and still be a part of the festivities. The auction of the box dinners, though, had always been an exciting occasion for the town and a great fund-raiser for the church.

“I know!” one girl called out to Mrs. Washburn. “I’ll go get my Granny! Everybody loves Granny Dawson!”

“That’s a wonderful idea!” Mrs. Washburn agreed. Granny Dawson was a fixture in the community. Everyone thought highly of the opinionated widow.

“If I know my granny, she’ll probably bring in the most money!” the girl said with a giggle as she hurried off to find her.

“What about Pat Walker?” Randi offered, knowing their neighbor was going to be in town for the festivities, too.

“I’m not sure. . . .” Mrs. Washburn hesitated. They’d never had a young widow participate before.

“You can ask her. The worst that could happen is that she’d say no,” Sherri put in.

“That’s true. All right, I’ll send someone out to see if she can be found. We’ve still got a few minutes left before we have to get started.”

Several of the other girls suggested additional ladies, and soon they were officially ready to begin.

The tent was opened to the crowd, and it didn’t take long for every seat to be taken. Most of those in attendance were high-spirited ranch hands who’d just gotten paid and were anxiously looking forward to the auction. They thought buying dinner with a pretty girl was a good investment of their hard-earned wages.

Wade and Hawk had been waiting with the others to gain entry, and they took seats near the back.

“Think everybody’s a little excited?” Wade asked with a grin.

“Is it always this way?”

“Oh, yeah. You haven’t seen anything yet. Wait until the bidding gets going.”

The crowd was loud and boisterous. Some of the cowboys shouted out their impatience for the auction to start.

“Sherri! Hawk’s here!” Randi confided excitedly to her friend as they stood in back waiting for the official opening of the auction.

“Where?”

“He’s sitting with Wade. What about your Andy? Has he shown up?”

“No. I haven’t seen any sign of him yet.” Sherri was disappointed as she looked out over the crowd. She was able to get a glimpse of the man named Hawk, and she understood why her friend was attracted to him. He was a handsome man—in spite of his Indian blood. The moment she thought it, she scolded herself for her prejudice. If Randi cared about him, then Hawk was special.

Mrs. Washburn appeared at the head table just then, and a respectful silence quickly descended over the crowd.

“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen,” she welcomed everyone. “It’s our delight to have you here tonight. I know how hungry you must be.”

A roar went up from the men.

“We are ready to begin the auction. As you know, all funds raised will go to the church. As you know, too, gentlemen, we expect you to be on your best behavior with our ladies this evening.”

“Yes, ma’am!” one cowboy yelled to her.

“Good.” Mrs. Washburn smiled brightly at the excitement being generated by the crowd. Judging by how enthusiastic they sounded, it was going to be a very successful night. “Are you ready?”

“Yes!” they called out, applauding.

“Then let’s get started!” She turned to the first young woman, a pretty blond who was offering herself up for bid. “We have here Miss Lara Brady, and she has a fried-chicken dinner to serve the lucky winner.”

There were cheers and whistles from the men.

“Gentlemen, remember yourselves!” Mrs. Washburn scolded, but she was still grinning. “May I have your first bid?”