Fancy Meeting You

[Lovely]

September 5, Year 1


Alex flips a coin and steps in to the shop to 'buy' something... very rare, very special... gives her a wink

She blushes and smiles at him, continuing to stock the shelf from the crate beside her.

Cody clotheslines him halfway past the cotton cloth bolts.... "not so fast... I was here first, Irish"

She winces at the way Cody 'attacks' him and fights the urge to rush over and intervene.

"Oh... too drunk to walk on your own feet this morning Carlisle?"

rubs his shoulder where Cody's elbow rammed him on the way past. "Walking's fine lad... not a drop, but thank you for your concern... your arm alright there? How about your arse?"

"My ar... ? Why y....," his arm tipped back ready for the punch as Ciara stepped up.

"Ahh... I wouldn't do that to a payin' customer, now lad... Miss Palmer... lovely day, lass... might I buy this bolt of cotton?" He said to her out loud then turned to whisper to Cody. "So I can wrap his head in it..."

"Afternoon gentlemen." She smiled, the expression on her face half amuse, half annoyed. "A reminder to you both... if you break anything or make a mess you'll be paying for it and cleaning it up." She said softly, glancing from one to the other.

"Of course," Alex winked at her then turned back to Cody and teased in his perfectly condescending manner. "Tut now lad... don't want t'be makin' a mess in front of a lady."

Cody stood down, but didn't take his glare off Alex, burning holes through him if he could as he stared. "Right, Miss Palmer. Was just offering to help him up was all... just didn't get there in time. Boy's all bouncin' around... guess he ain't hurt or nothin'."

"Isn't... or anything. Cody, if you're not buying anything today, please leave the shop. You scared Mrs. Rutherford's niece just now. In fact.. buy the girl a couple pieces of candy and I won't go talk to the sheriff about this little ruckus, hm?" Chance happened in at that moment, dusting off the front of his pants where the young girl collided with him on the walk out front.

Ciara frowned and looked down to the floor boards, feeling bad that the young girl had been disturbed. She made a soft muttering, excusing herself to go back to stocking shelves.

Cody rubbed his neck with his still-raised hand and gave the older Palmer a nod after a moment. He took the coins he had left in his pocket and thrust them into Alex's hand. "Buy the kid some candy. I've got work to do," he said, grunting his disgust at the boy as he shifted around him, not giving Chance or Ciara another look or word as he left.

Emerald or Em as her sister called her was on her way to the merchantile as Cody was leaving. A soft smile came to her face as she looked up, before nearly running into him. "Pardon me, mister Westgate."

Alex clenched around the coins, tempted to use their edge in a clean swipe at Cody's jaw as his smug expression turned toward him. He plunged the coins in his pocket for the moment and waited for the next commentary from Chance, not sure if he was being dismissed as well.

[Lovely]

Cody looked down the walk for the Rutherford kid to make sure she was okay, but more likely to blame Alex on the ordeal. He nearly ran over this one as he turned at the voice and stopped suddenly. "Wrong Westgate... 'mister's' my pa... can I help you with somethin'?"

"Pardon me again, then." She gave a slight curtsey and smiled a little more warmly. "I was merely apologising for nearly running into you... I was distracted.."

Rutherford's niece was all but forgotten in a moment with the tip of a warm smile... directed at him on purpose. Nice change, he thought, finding himself grinning back. "Nah... I was distracted. Don't need no apology, Miss...I... I'm sorry... don't know your name."

"I'm sorry.. Emerald.. Em.. Emma, Emily.. pretty much anything that resembles part of my name.." She chuckled a bit nervously, a tint of blush touching her cheeks.

Chance looked Alex over and nodded him to the counter, "Actually wanted to talk to you a minute, Alexander... Ciara... you excuse us a minute?"

Alex nodded at Chance's request, giving a small sigh. He tossed Cody's coin on the counter. "No Mrs Rutherford?"

"No niece, no," he grinned. "Ciara.. take the boy's money and add it to the till. You like lemon or cherry, Alex?"

Ciara gave her brother an odd glance and went to do as he'd asked her. Adding in the money to the till and then going back to her stocking of the shelves.

"Licorice if it's all the same," he shrugged, watching Chance warily as he was handed a strand of the blackened confection. He glanced up to Ciara who was busy trying not to pay attention in the small space. Whether she heard or not, she pretended not to.

Chance led him to the far corner, not to the back room. Better to be out front gauging the conversation as customers came in rather than risk being overheard in the back room. He rested a foot up on a crate and leaned down on his knee to talk low and quiet. "Been wonderin', Alex... you and your carrying on.. been seein' a lot of change in you.. good change."

Cody straightened up a little and brushed the harsh edge off his face with his hand as he watched the girl. There was no little girl around that he could tell, crying or otherwise and the girl in front of him surely wasn't 'little' though she was young and pretty.

"Emerald Walcott." She said softly, giving him her full name, though he did not recognise the girl before him.. he might remember the litle girl who'd left town years before. Widow Walcott's youngest daughter, she'd tagged along with her sister several times to go swimming with 'the boys' at the river. After church, on lazy hot afternoons.. or any time she could.. with no father the girls were left to themselves as their mother worked and worked hard to keep them all fed. Emily and Ame were always fine girls, Ame was not of loose morals, but rather very tom boyish. Getting in scrapes and running with the tougher boys like the Carlisles and Palmers.. the boys who'd grown to become the sheriff's men.. and Em's sister was still close and friendly with most of them.