Miserable in Montana – Another Snippet

Here is another snippet for your from my latest release, Miserable in Montana.

This follows on from the last excerpt I posted a few days ago.

 

Miserable in Montana

(Yours Truly: The Lovelorn Series – Book Sixteen)

Copyright ©2020 by Cheryl Wright

“Where are you off to?” Ma called from her bed. She was ailing tonight and Marigold almost called off her plans to go to the dance with Luke.

“I’m not going, Ma,” she called back. “I’ll stay home and look after you.” Luke would be disappointed for sure, and so would Marigold. Ma had done so much for her over the years, and it was time to pay her back, even if it was only by being on hand in case she needed something.

She spun around at the shuffling noise behind her. “Ma! What are you doing out of bed? You’ll catch a chill.” She quickly closed the distance between them and led her mother back to bed. It was the middle of winter, and Ma was already unwell. She didn’t need a chill to make things worse.

As she lay Ma down in the crumpled bed, she noticed the fire had almost burned out. “Let me fix that fire before I do anything else.” She fiddled with the fire and got it going, careful not to soil her one and only party gown.

“You going to the dance?” Ma’s shaky voice made her heart break in two.

She glanced over her shoulder. “No Ma. I’m staying home tonight. There will be other dances.” As the flames licked at the twigs and logs, Marigold stood.

Ma began to sit up, and slid her legs out of the bed. “You need to get back into bed,” Marigold admonished her mother. She lay back down immediately, a frown on her face. Her daughter lifted her legs and tucked them under the blankets.

“I’ll only stay in bed if you go to the dance,” she said, her voice low. “Which young man are you going with?”

Marigold crossed her fingers behind her back. If Ma knew she was going with Luke, she’d explode. But she wasn’t really going with him – she was making her own way to the dance. “I’m going alone,” she said, knowing she was pushing the truth with that statement.

Ma stared at her, then motioned her closer. She kissed her only child’s cheek. “Enjoy yourself,” she said, then closed her eyes as if dismissing further discussion.

As she left the room, Marigold felt more than a little guilty. She had lied to Ma by omission. Sure she was meeting Luke at the dance, but in truth, she would be with him throughout the night. Why Ma hated Luke’s family she would never know. Not that she knew a lot about them – it wasn’t a subject that had ever been discussed. Even when Pa was alive any talk of the Jensen’s was shut down.

She returned to her bedroom in the loft and finished preparing for the dance. Her party gown was a hand-me-down from cousin Mary, but it was still a favorite amongst the few gowns she owned. They’d never had much money, even when Pa was alive, but it wasn’t something Marigold liked to dwell on. That sort of thing never helped no-one, Ma always said, and she was right.

~*~

**Each book in the Yours Truly: The Lovelorn series is stand alone, and have no relationship to the other books.

Miserable in Montana is also available via Kindle Unlimited

 

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