Chapter 5

Millie opened her eyes, smiled, and welcomed the new day. Her mother had always told her that once she opened her eyes in the morning, she should thank God for the blessing of a new day and then ask Him what she should do with it.

Her days went better when she obeyed her mother's words. She looked at the window and the streams of sunlight breaking inside her room. "Thank you, Lord, for this day. What would you have me do?"

She waited and listened. Not sensing any direction, she still grinned at the peace she felt. Millie would take that as an answer. She needed to get new clothes for the dance this weekend. Most of her clothes looked girlish. At twenty-two, she was no longer a child.

She wondered if Mother's sudden passing when Millie was ten had kept her in a childish stage. Here she was, playing with dogs, wearing the clothes of a mountain man, and unable to get a real man to take her to the ball.

She put her pillow over her head and screamed, "I can do better." Corinthia had a dress shop. They used to be friends. Of course, if Father found out she was seeking a Chadwick for help, he'd disown her. But she was desperate. She needed nice outfits to be seen around town and a gown for the Hightower Ball that would draw the attention of men to her. She would not go to another dance and leave with an empty dance card.

Millie needed help. Maybe that was what the Lord wanted her to figure out for this day. Father would be no help at all. He always thought she looked lovely. Shaking her head, she dressed and went down for breakfast.

As luck, mostly bad, would have it, Fritz was making breakfast. He glanced at her. "Want an omelet? My grandmother made the best." He almost looked pleasant as he flipped the egg dish over and then onto a plate. "Eggs, onions, cheese. It's good."

She nodded. "Thank you. I didn't know you could cook?"

"I can make a few things." Fritz looked at her. "I thought about taking the dogs out today. Want me to take Bob?"

"No. I'll take him out later."

Fritz shook his head. "He needs to learn how to be around other dogs during a hunt. You take him out, and he's by himself."

"I have things to do today." She savored a bite of the omelet and had to admit Fritz knew how to cook. She glanced at him. "Where is my father?"

"He's checking the mine." Fritz frowned. "I take it there are some problems."

Millie's head went up. "I haven't heard of any trouble."

"Maybe he wants to shelter you from the conflict." Fritz shrugged and finished cooking his omelet. He put it on a plate and sat at the table across from her. "What are you doing today?"

This was probably the most civil discussion she and Fritz had had together. Still, he didn't have any business asking her what she was doing. She stiffened. "I'm going shopping."

"Shopping?"

Millie sat up straight and raised her head. "Yes, shopping. You know, it is what women do."

Fritz set his fork down and studied her. "For clothes?"

She felt her cheeks grow hot and knew her body was betraying her and blushing. "Yes."

"My family designs clothing. I can help."

Millie nearly fell out of her chair. She wanted to say something witty and criticize Fritz for not knowing anything about clothing. Yet, she had to admit, he dressed in the latest, and he always looked nice.

She finished her omelet. "That was good. Thank you."

He was looking at her with a measured eye. "With your hair color, you would look good in blue. Navy blue. I think one of the modern hats would set you off as a woman who meant business."

Millie squirmed. She desperately needed help. In her heart, she kept hearing pride goeth before a fall . She knew how she did when shopping for clothes. When she came home, Father always looked at her and rolled his eyes. She couldn't tell what colors went together, much less what looked good on her.

"You would help me pick out some clothes?" She hadn't been nice to Fritz in the four months he'd been here. Not that he'd been sweet to her at all. But his offer was nice.

"Yes. I know of a few stores that have quality clothing. I bet some even have styles from my family's house." Fritz stood. "I can take the dogs out later or tomorrow."

"Well, all right. I need the help." Millie cringed at the truth of her statement. "I have money to get all I need."

Fritz smiled. "Then I'll pick you up in the carriage in an hour." He looked at her. "You aren't wearing that, are you?"

More blush assaulted her cheeks. She'd thought she looked pretty good. "Maybe you could find something appropriate for me to wear?"

Fritz nodded. "Not a problem. Shall we look now?"

"Yes. Follow me." She put her plate in the sink and walked up the stairs to her room. Along the way, she wondered what she was doing. It was not proper to have a man in her bedroom. Yet, desperate times required desperate measures.

She took him to her wardrobe and opened the doors. "Here is what I have."

Fritz looked at her clothes. "Hmm. What I can do is go to one of the shops I am familiar with and get you a few things. Then we can go shopping."

Millie sighed. She'd hoped she wasn't that bad, but seeing the look on Fritz's face, she knew she was hopeless. "You would do that for me?"

He tilted his head and glanced at her. With a small smile, he nodded. "Your father has been kind to me, and I can see you need the help."

That stung. Millie felt her temper rising. But she had to admit that her clothes looked more like those of a young girl than of a young woman. "All right. I'll feed and water the dogs for you." She sagged against the door. "You don't have to shop for me if you don't want to."

Fritz grinned. "Consider it a truce between us. Besides being a dog trainer, I am a tailor and have designed clothes for my family's business. I know what looks good on a man and a woman."

That stopped her. Millie stared at him, wondering if she could trust him. Then again, her wardrobe could not get worse. She nodded at him and even offered a slight grin. "I know I haven't been as friendly as I should have, but please find clothes that make me look like a woman and not a mountain girl. I would like to look attractive to men." Millie was near tears. She didn't enjoy bearing her failures and soul to Fritz. A man she had not liked and still didn't trust.

"I'll get you a wardrobe that will make any man take a second look." Fritz grinned at her. "Maybe even me."

Millie thought she should shudder at his words, but as she looked at him, she realized he was handsome. She sighed. Why did life have to be so complicated?