“Time for a square dance, folks. Form your squares.”
“Let’s get that lemonade, and then we’ll show these folks how to dance,” Crockett said.
She gulped down a half cup of the sweet beverage, and then he pulled her over to join a square. Ben was part of it, with one of the Allen girls. He smiled across the space in the middle of the square at Jane. He looked almost happy. Happier than she’d seen him in years. Jane smiled back and crooked her arm through her partner’s, glad that her slow dance had been with the Ranger, not with Crockett. She might have crumbled into a pile of ash if she’d had to waltz with Crockett first thing. But maybe later, before this odd evening had ended.
She found herself short of breath as she whirled around. The old moves from the school program didn’t match up with everything Austin Hart called out, but somehow she managed to keep up. When in doubt, she followed Crockett’s lead or imitated the other women in her square.
When it was over, she stood laughing and clapping with the rest, with the fire-lit night still spinning around them.
The music started again almost at once, this time slower, to let the dancers get their breath. Many of the dancers drifted to the sides of the crowd, but others joined them. Jane started to walk away from the makeshift dance floor, but Crockett seized her hand.
“Hey, won’t you have this one with me? I know you can waltz.”
She wasn’t sure what to say. Wasn’t he afraid other people would pair them up if they danced together twice in a row?
“Are you sure you want to do that?” she asked, still a little breathless.
“I’m sure.”
He pulled her into his arms, and out of self-defense, Jane put her hand up to his shoulder. Crockett seemed to want to dance a whole lot closer than his brother had. Her face felt hot, but maybe that was from the exercise or the heat of the bonfire.
As they turned around with the flow of the music, she spotted Pa, heading inside the barn with one of Mr. Allen’s cowboys. That couldn’t be good.
“Everything all right?” Crockett asked.
“Yes. Well, no.”
His eyes widened, but he didn’t miss a beat of the music.
“I was wondering about Pa,” she confessed. “I’m afraid someone’s brought him some drink.”
“If you’d like, I’ll go check on him after this dance.”
“Thank you.” She couldn’t talk after that. Telling him her fears about her father embarrassed her, but she also felt relieved that someone else knew and didn’t judge her. She glanced up at him, and he smiled at her, causing such an odd lurch in her stomach that she looked down and tried to concentrate on her steps.
The song came to an end, and they stood apart and clapped. When Hays poised his bow over his fiddle again, Crockett said softly, “I’ll check on your pa.”
She glanced toward the barn and saw Pa stagger out the doorway.
“Never mind. There he is.”
Chapter Six
Jane called Crockett’s attention to her father just in time for him to see Pa trip and nearly fall on his face. Her cheeks heated, and she was glad for the semidarkness to hide her shame. Mr. Mortenson, who stood nearby, reached out to steady him. Pa turned and laughed heartily at something the storekeeper said.
“Think he’s all right?” Crocket said.
Jane looked down at the ground. “As all right as he’ll be until morning.”
“I’m sorry.”
She sighed. “Not as much as me.”
The music was gentle and soothing, and Crockett leaned close. “One more dance?”
“Thanks, but I think I need to rest.”
“Sure. Come have a seat.” He led her to some benches people had brought. After supper, the men had arranged them around the yard, outside the dancing area. Crockett steered her to one beyond the circle of firelight, away from the people.
“Thank you.” Jane sat down, very conscious of him settling beside her.
“There’s something I’ve been wanting to talk to you about,” he said.
Jane peered at him, trying to read his expression. “You mean, besides the money?”
“Yeah. I, uh…” He cleared his throat, looked up at the moon, and then looked back at her. “I’d like to court you, Jane.”
She swallowed hard, but a painful lump remained in her throat. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Say yes.”
She wanted to. Very much. She had always liked Crockett, though he was a few years older than she. And he’d been very kind to her and her family. He’d seen her father stumbling drunk, and he still wanted to call on her. But would he change his tune if her father was revealed to be a felon?
She swallowed again.
“Should I ask your pa?”
“You saw him. This probably isn’t a good time to ask him anything.” Or maybe it was a very good time. Pa probably wouldn’t remember a thing tomorrow.
Crockett shrugged. “I’ll ask him if you want.”
“You don’t have to. I make my own decisions now.”