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Justin Kincaid had come back

Maybe it wasn't hiht as she refastened her cuffs It could well be another Justin Kincaid Both nah She'd on train had ca She'd asked a couple of the women settlers, but they'd never heard of Justin

She smoothed her hair, then made her way back into her store Andrew, her assistant, rapping up a purchase of bleachedwo a pretty dress for the Fourth of July dance The celebration waswell in advance Thinking about that dance didn't ease her et Justin In fact, it made her think of other dances when she'd been held by proper young men but had watched Justin out of the corner of her eye He'd danced with alh with his easy humor and flirtatious winks

Once, at one of the dances, on athrough a grove of trees No one had been around, although they could still hear thea word, Justin had taken her into his arms He'd pulled her closer than the other boys did Close enough that she'd felt the heat of his body, his warh that her heart had pounded harder in her chest They'd danced for what felt like a lifetiers had burned into her back For a s, his head had dipped low and he'd brushed his ainst her cheek Then he'd looked at her and—

"Oh, Megan," she heard someone say "I need to order a few yards of silk"

Megan blinked several tieneral store The wo wedding and the need for the young woht married

Megan flushed She'd never had a wedding night Had never had a wedding At twenty-four, she was an old maid And a businesswoman, she reminded herself as she hurried forward to help the customer So what if Justin had come back? She didn't care She didn't have time to care But as she continued to work that afternoon, she could hear the faint sounds of the fiddle froled with the soft echo of Justin's kiss

By three-thirty, Megan couldn't stand it anymore If one more person came into the store and asked if it was true that Justin Kincaid had co to scream Everyone wanted to talk about the possibility, but no one illing to find out the truth

Widow Dobson talked on and on about what ato be, and how someone born to trouble usually died from trouble Even if it wasn't his fault

"You mark my words," the older woman said for at least the fortieth time that day "It's easy to hope a boy like that

will turn out right But a body never knows for sure I can just see—"

Not willing to listen to thefor one an marched to the rear of the store and slipped behind the curtain In her tiny office, she picked up her hat and set it on her head She paused in front of the oval ht and that no stray hairs had escaped fro coiffure, then she picked up her cloak and drew it over her shoulders After closing the fasteners at her throat, she reached for her gloves and reticule, and headed back into the store

"Andreatch things for me, please," she called as she sailed down the center aisle

"Where are you going?" theasked

Megan paused by the door and pulled on her gloves "To find out the truth"

The older woasped "You mean—"

"I' to the sheriff's office"

"But you can't My dear girl, if it is him, well, he's one of those kind of men What will people think?"

The question an knew the power of what other people thought She lived her life by what other people would or would not think of her actions Between her late father's rules and having a minister for a brother-in-law, she always had to think about other people's opinions

But she also had to know She would go mad if she didn't find out the truth If it wasn't the Justin Kincaid she knew, then she would simply introduce herself and coure that out when she saw him