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the axle,” Radford instructed, nodding toward an old hickory stump that she was sitting on.
    Reacting quickly, she rose up and wrestled the thick stump from beneath her, brushing her elbows, back, and bottom against Radford in all the wrong places. Torn between bolting from the livery or tightening his arms around her, he forced himself to concentrate on the chain, afraid it might slip further and cause the carriage to fall on the unsecured wheel.
    Evelyn pushed the thick block of wood beneath the axle then turned to him, her face only inches away. “I’ll hold the block steady while you tighten the chain.”
    “No. You’ll get hurt if that axle pulls from the hub.” He gripped the chain and wondered if it was his hand or the metal beneath it that trembled. A long silky strand of hair had escaped Evelyn’s braid and dangled down her back reminding him of how it had cloaked her slender body last night. “What time do the customers usually start coming?” he asked to distract himself while he adjusted the chain.
    “We haven’t had many lately.”
    The thought that Evelyn and William might be experiencing financial troubles because of William’s illness brought Radford back to his senses. He would turn this livery around then go back to the mill.
    “That should do it,” he said, securing the chain then backing up a step to let Evelyn squeeze from between him and the carriage wheel. “Business will pick up when I get the forge going. I’ll be able to shoe horses and maybe even fix this wheel band by tomorrow.”
    “You can fix that?” Evelyn asked, her eyes lighting up.
    To his distress, he found himself staring again. Evelyn was refreshingly transparent, unlike Olivia who’d been an emotional chameleon. The first time he’d seen Rebecca’s mother was at a theater in Boston where he had gone to escape the pain of his memories. Olivia’s ballet performance had swept him away so completely that it was the first time in years his mind had been quiet. After the show, he’d gone backstage to introduce himself to Olivia, and that began a fiery ten-month affair that ended when she walked away from him and their infant daughter. Olivia Jordon wanted the stage, not a husband and child.
    “It’s all right if you can’t fix the wheel,” Evelyn said, as though his lack of response was meant to be a negative answer.
     “It won’t be a problem,” he said then stood up and grabbed the chain. “You’d better stand back.” Iron links rumbled over the beam as he pulled on the chain, gouging fragments of wood that floated down upon them. He pulled again and the carriage inched upward until the wheel was suspended four inches off the livery floor.
    “It must be nice to be so strong,” she said. “I could do three times as much work in a day if I had a pulley and half your strength.”
    Or three times as much destruction, Radford thought. Though his strength had kept him alive during the war, knowing how he’d used that power to survive was not something he wanted to remember.
    “Kyle lifts logs by hand just to prove he can,” she continued, oblivious to Radford’s unease. “He says it keeps him in shape.”
    Radford squatted beside the wheel and pulled the pin from the hub. “Kyle’s been strong since he was born. He doesn’t need to work at it.”
    “I know, but don’t tell him that. His head is fat enough.”
    Radford grinned despite himself. Maybe working with Evelyn wouldn’t be so bad after all. She was easy to read and she spoke her mind honestly. As long as she kept her fanny away from his groin, he might be able to keep his thoughts where they belonged.
    “You won’t tell Kyle what I said, will you?”
    Radford didn’t respond right away, just studied Evelyn with curiosity that deepened to appreciation. Slowly he stood. “You have my word.” He reached out and picked a wood fragment off her shoulder. “I’m sorry about last night,” he said. “I didn’t know what I was doing.”
    Her