He wasn't handsome in the conventional way of the Boston men she'd known, with their smooth hands and tailored suits. Kieran Daniels was rugged. His face weathered by sun and wind. His hands bearing the marks of hard work. But there was something compelling about him.
A quiet dignity that drew her eye. "Here we are," he said as they reached a two-story white clapboard building with green shutters and a sign that read Prosperity Boarding House. "Kathleen runs a clean place. She'll treat you fair." The door opened before they reached it, revealing a woman with the same steel blue eyes as Kieran. Though her dark hair was pulled back in a neat bun.
"Bringing me strays again, Kieran?" she asked, though her smile was kind. "Miss Blackwood here is Jacob's niece," Kieran explained. "Just arrived to claim her inheritance." Kathleen's eyes widened. "Jacob's niece?" She looked Catherine over with new interest. Well, you're welcome here, Miss Blackwood.
Come in out of this heat. Thank you, Catherine said, stepping inside. The boarding house was simple but immaculately clean with polished floors and curtains that smelled of sunshine. I'll come by tomorrow, Kieran said from the doorway. Help you sort out the claim paperwork if you'd like.
Catherine turned back to him struck by his continued kindness. That's very generous of you, Mr. Daniels. Kieran, he corrected. And it's no trouble.
Jacob was a friend. With a tip of his hat, he turned and walked back into the bright afternoon sun. Kathleen showed Catherine to a small but neat room on the second floor. Bathroom's down the hall. Dinner's at 6:00.
You'll want to wash up before then. Left alone, Catherine sat on the edge of the bed and finally allowed her shoulders to slump. The journey had been long and arduous filled with uncertainty and fear. When her father's investments had failed and he'd taken his own life leaving her with nothing but debts, she'd remembered her mother's brother who'd gone west years ago. A letter to the Prosperity postmaster had confirmed he'd struck silver but had recently died.
With creditors closing in, Catherine had sold what little she could to finance her journey west. Her fine dresses and jewelry had gone first leaving her with only the most practical garments which had deteriorated over the hard journey. She pulled out the creased letter from the Prosperity town clerk confirming her uncle's death and the existence of his mine. It was her only hope now. If she could make the mine pay, she might rebuild her life.
If not, she pushed the thought away. She couldn't fail. She had nowhere else to go. After washing away the dust of travel in the small bathroom, Catherine changed into her one remaining dress that wasn't completely worn through. It was a simple navy blue cotton, once her traveling dress, now faded and mended in several places.