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cleared his throat, but didn’t respond as he crossed in front of the horses and used the wagon wheel to lever himself into the seat.
    She swished her skirts and smoothed them, and part of the fabric brushed his calf and almost sent him jumping out of the seat. Had the seat always been so small? He felt awkward and too large next to her.
    Behind him, Breanna was questioning Sam Castlerock, who responded in nearly unintelligible grunts. With seven brothers, his daughter was used to teen boys and wasn’t letting this one’s sullenness deter her, if her chatter was any indication.
    Jonas released the brake and snapped the reins, and the horses began to move. Miss Castlerock’s shoulder bumped his as the wagon crawled into motion.
    “You’ll have to excuse my brother,” she said softly. “He’s been…difficult as of late.”
    She paused, then went on. “I think perhaps my mother hopes some time with our grandfather will straighten him out.”
    Jonas agreed. “Hard work never hurt a body. Walt’s got plenty to do around his place.” He’d learned about hard work growing up on the streets, then found there was plenty of it to be done in the West just the same as there had been in Philadelphia.
    The reminder of the past between them, and what she must think of him, was sharp in his chest. With a glance over his shoulder to make sure Breanna was still engaged, Jonas spoke quickly in a low voice.
    “I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t speak of Breanna’s mother or the…circumstances under which I left Philadelphia.” He planned to tell Breanna before she was grown, but right now she was just a little girl.
    This close, he could see the curiosity and something else pass through Miss Castlerock’s clear blue eyes. “As you wish,” came her soft reply after a long moment when he didn’t dare breathe.
    And just in time, because Breanna popped her head up between Jonas and Penny. “Miss Penny, your brother is funny.”
    Miss Castlerock turned to address his daughter and her knee bumped Jonas’s. Jonas opened his mouth to prevent her saying anything rude to his daughter, who had a tendency to be a bit precocious, but the young woman spoke before he could.
    “Why, you’ve made a little nest for yourself.”
    She must’ve spotted the little gap Breanna had created amongst the boxes and bundles. Miss Castlerock went on, “Hmm, I suppose Sam can be funny sometimes, although I don’t always appreciate his humor. Just the other night he was trying to play a prank and ruined an entire chocolate sheet cake that I really wanted to taste.”
    Breanna’s eyes grew big in her face. “He sounds like Ricky! My brother pulls my pigtails all the time in church and sometimes I wish he wasn’t my brother, but Pa says we have to be patient with all the brothers.”
    Staring over the horses’ ears, Jonas caught the curious slide of Penny’s eyes toward him. What must she think of him? Of Breanna talking about her brothers? Penny couldn’t know he wasn’t married, and yet Breanna referenced more children?
    Before Penny could ask him any questions, Breanna rambled on.
    “Have you ever been on a train, Miss Penny? Yesterday Pa took me to see the train come to Calvin and it was so noisy and loud.”
    Jonas started to caution his daughter that maybe her new friend didn’t want to talk so much, but before he could speak, Miss Castlerock was talking again.
    “Why, yes. My parents sent me to finishing school back East. In Philadelphia.”
    “Philadelphia? Pa, Miss Penny’s been to Philadelphia.” Breanna patted his shoulder, her excitement evident.
    Jonas had to clear his throat. “I heard.” He shifted on the seat, uncomfortable. His daughter had steered the conversation right where he’d asked Penny not to. What would she say?
    “Pa and I rode the train from Philadelphia to Denver, and then a wagon and then we came to our homestead and lived in a little cabin, but I don’t remember any of that because I was just a