“Yes, you know what washing dishes can do to your hands. Now imagine how a teenage boy might be razzed for having ‘dishpan hands’. The skin on my hands was always red, cracked, and sore.”
“You could have rubbed some salve on them after washing dishes,” Holly pointed out.
“Nah, then I would have been accused of having pretty girl hands,” he teased back.
Holly stopped to look up at Mr. Clancy, and was caught off guard by his pleasing grin.
“Well, washing dishes is part of my job, so your hands are safe today, Mr. Clancy.”
“I thank you for that, but I’ll be glad to dry the dishes for you,” he offered.
“Don’t you need to check on the train? You don’t want to miss it leaving.”
“One of the customers in here heard it might not leave until tomorrow.”
“Oh dear. That means I could have another full café for supper tonight and tomorrow’s breakfast.” Holly pursed her lips, embarrassed she’d said that aloud.
“Hinting you could use some help for the next few meals, Miss Brandt?”
“No, just thinking of something I could stretch like your grandfather’s stew,” she bantered back, waiting for the smile she knew would follow.
“Chili can be stretched by adding more beans, but you have to plan ahead and have the beans soaked the night before.”
“Or chicken and dumplings could be stretched. I can make more dumplings and add more canned chicken if need be,” Holly felt good with her answer.
“Make plenty of quick biscuits too, and what you don’t use tonight you can serve in the morning.”
“What about serving biscuits for breakfast?” They both turned around when they heard Mrs. Randolph speak behind them.
“Why did you come downstairs when your side is so sore, Myrtle?” Holly quickly dried her hands on a towel and helped the older woman sit down on a chair in the kitchen.
“It was so noisy down here I figured you had quite a few people for lunch, and would need help cleaning up,” Myrtle said while carefully sitting down with Holly’s help. “And who is this soldier helping you in my kitchen? Hello, son, I’m the widow Myrtle Randolph.”
“Nolan Clancy at your service, Ma’am,” the man said as he shook Myrtle’s hand. “Miss Brandt served fifty-seven plates for lunch today and I volunteered to help with the dishes as part of my pay.”
“Oh dear. You still haven’t eaten your meal,” Holly exclaimed, feeling her face blush, thinking of her taking advantage of the stranger’s help, and then not feeding him.
“Holly, please dish up some leftovers then so we can all eat,” Myrtle instructed her.
Holly hated for Myrtle to come downstairs, yet she felt more at ease than being with the soldier by herself. He might have been polite at first, but maybe it was a ploy to get her alone.
“Where you been stationed, Mr. Clancy?” Myrtle asked the question Holly hadn’t had time to ask yet. Holly listened to the two converse while bringing their filled bowls to the table.
“Fort Ellis.”
Holly sat down in her chair, ready to eat her meal. “My father worked at Fort Ellis before retiring six years ago and we moved to this area. I wonder if you would have been there at the same time.” Holly was curious if the two men had ever worked together.
“Sergeant Brandt, by chance?”
“Yes, he was an interpreter and scout.”
“Yes I remember him. I came in ‘78 and he left in ‘79. What does he do now?”
“Actually, he died last year while working for a mining company in Morgan’s Crossing. It’s a town two day’s ride up the mountain from here.”
“Sorry for your loss,” Mr. Clancy said before taking another spoonful of stew.
Holly nodded in response. Her life had drastically changed once she was on her own.
“I decided Sweetwater Springs was a safer place to live than around the miners, so I moved down here.” Luckily, Mrs. Randolph hired her right away, letting her live upstairs as part of her pay.
They ate in silence, all hungry because it was way past noon.
“Tasty stew, Holly,” Myrtle said after thoughtfully tasting a spoonful. “You added green beans to it?”
“Mr. Clancy came to my rescue when I had only one pot of stew—to stretch to feed over fifty people.”
“Plus we handed out several bowls of seconds,” Mr. Clancy added.
“I recognize vegetables we canned with summer,” Myrtle stirred her bowl, looking over the contents, “and the meat we cut up and canned from the side of beef we bought from the Carter Ranch.”
“I learned this trick from my grandfather. My grandparents raised my sister and me so we spent our childhood in their café. I can do anything except make a pie.”
“And why didn’t you learn that?” Myrtle asked. “People like a dessert to finish their meal.”
“We have a woman in town, Millie Wilerson, the marshal’s wife, who makes the pies for the Clancy Café and the Paulson Hotel. Or anyway she used to when I lived there. By now she’s probably too busy with her family to still bake for both places, if either.”
“Having pies brought in would really help with time and oven space. What did you serve for dessert today?” Myrtle looked at Holly, then Mr. Clancy.
“Another one of Mr. Clancy’s ideas. We scooped the top crusts off the pies and set them aside, then dumped the contents of the three pies in a big bowl, mixing in cherries and blackberries we’d canned with summer.
“We put the fruit mixture in custard bowls, crumbled the pie crust, and sprinkled the crumbs on each bowlful.”
“Mr. Clancy whipped the cream and put a spoonful on top of each dessert.”
“So three pies served over fifty people. My grandma called it ‘berry crumble’ if she had to stretch out a few pies.”
“Well, you just taught this old cook a few new ideas. Thank you for helping Holly out today. How long are you in town?”
“Until the train leaves, which I should probably go check on since I’m done with my bowl of stew…but then I couldn’t help you with dishes,” Mr. Clancy hastily added.
“I can dry dishes while sitting down, Mr. Clancy, so you’re free to go.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Randolph,” he said rising from his chair. He added his bowl to the stack of dirty dishes on the side table before reaching for the layer of clothing he’d shed while working.
“No, sir, I thank you for being an upstanding young man. You were taught good manners by your elders,” Myrtle pointed her finger at Mr. Clancy.
Mr. Clancy laughed and shook his head. “Oh, I was part of a gang of boys in town and we did our share of mischief. But the pastor’s wife always caught us and straightened us out.”
“Why the pastor’s wife?” Holly asked, wondering why this woman would have been involved.
“Six of the boys causing the trouble were her sons,” Mr. Clancy grinned. “She’d get so mad, she’d switch to her Irish brogue, and we couldn’t understand a word she said. But we knew what she meant when she thumped our heads. Boy would that sting.”
“Well, sounds like she had her hands full and still did a good job,” Myrtle commented.
“Yes, and I can’t wait to get home and give Kaitlyn Reagan a hug. Her words of wisdom—and scolding—have helped me in many situations over the past years.”
Holly stood up and walked over to Mr. Clancy. She didn’t know how he’d react, but she reached out her hand to shake his. Would he take her hand since she was a mixed breed?
Her hand tingled when he clasped her hand with both of his, holding it a second before squeezing it and letting go.
“Thank you, Mr. Clancy for coming to my rescue today,” Holly spoke while watching the man’s expressive eyes. He hadn’t been offended shaking her hand.
“Well, thanks for letting me help today. I actually enjoyed it.”
Mr. Clancy looked around the kitchen before nodding and walking to the door.
Holly’s eyes followed Mr
. Chancy as he trudged through the snow and disappeared in the swirling snow. Why do the decent men always leave?
Nolan’s Vow is available now.
~*~*~*~
Dear Reader:
I hope you enjoyed reading Helen Heals a Hotelier, the tenth book in Brides with Grit series. Please help other readers discover my books by recommending them to family and friends, either by word of mouth or writing a review. I’d really appreciate it.
The historical romance series setting is based on the famous old cowtown of Ellsworth, Kansas during its cattle drive days. The town of Clear Creek though, is fictional, based on the many little towns which sprang up as the railroad was built across Kansas.
This particular area is now the current Kanopolis State Park in central Kansas. Being local to where I live, I've hiked the park’s hiking trails where it’s easy to visualize what the area looked like in 1873—because it remains the same now—as then.
For more information on this series please visit www.LindaHubalek.com or ask your favorite retailer or library to order them for you. You don’t have to, but I recommend reading the books in order to get full benefit of the story line.
If you see any errors or typos, please email [email protected] about them. Even though this book has been read and professionally edited by several people, things can slip through which I want to correct for the next reader.
Please sign up for my newsletter at www.LindaHubalek.com to receive a free short story, and to hear about the release of future books, contests and more. And I love to connect with my readers, so please contact me through one of these social media sites.
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Many thanks from the Kansas prairie!
Linda K. Hubalek
~*~*~*~
Brides with Grit Series in order:
Rania Ropes a Rancher (Rania and Jacob) FREE
Millie Marries a Marshal (Millie and Adam)
Hilda Hogties a Horseman (Hilda and Noah)
Cora Captures a Cowboy (Cora and Dagmar)
Sarah Snares a Soldier (Sarah and Marcus)
Cate Corrals a Cattleman (Cate and Isaac)
Darcie Desires a Drover (Darcie and Reuben)
Tina Tracks a Trail Boss (Tina and Leif)
Lorna Loves a Lawyer (Lorna and Lyle)
Helen Heals a Hotelier (Helen and Ethan)
Also read Lilly: Bride of Illinois, a spin-off book in the American Mail-Order Brides Series.
Grooms with Honor Stories and Series (available and future titles)
Nolan’s Vow (Nolan and Holly) Story in the Montana Sky Kindle World
Elof’s Mission (Elof and Linnea) Story in the Montana Sky Kindle World
Angus’ Trust (Angus and Daisy)
Fergus’ Honor (Fergus and Iris)
Gabe’s Pledge (Gabe and Iva Mae)
Mack’s Care (Mack and Pansy)
Cullen’s Love (Cullen and Rose)
Seth’s Promise (Seth and Lilly)
Tully’s Faith (Tully and Violet)
~*~*~*~
Historical Fiction Books by Linda K. Hubalek
Trail of Thread Series
Trail of Thread
Thimble of Soil
Stitch of Courage
Strong Women: The Complete Trail of Thread Series
Butter in the Well Series
Butter in the Well
Prairie Bloomin’
Egg Gravy
Looking Back
Planting Dreams Series
Planting Dreams
Cultivating Hope
Harvesting Faith
Kansas Dreams: The Complete Planting Dreams Series
Kansas Quilter Series
Tying the Knot
~*~*~*~
About the Author
Linda Hubalek grew up on the Kansas prairie, always wanting to be a farmer like her parents and ancestors. After earning a college degree in Agriculture, marriage took Linda away from Kansas as her husband worked in engineering jobs in several states.
Meanwhile, Linda wrote historical fiction books about pioneer women who homesteaded in Kansas between 1854 to the early 1900s, especially her Swedish immigrant ancestors.
Linda Hubalek and her husband eventually moved back home to Kansas, where they raised American buffalo (bison) for a dozen years.
Linda is currently writing sweet historical western romances set in the 1800s.
Helen Heals A Hotelier (Brides With Grit Book 10) Page 16