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the ground but she had to hold onto the cab to regain her balance.
She determined not to break down in front of him so, throwing
her shoulders back, she walked around the truck and up the dusty
path to the house as the stench of barnyard manure assailed her
nostrils.
Ben went inside leaving the door open behind him. Slowly she
followed. With one step over the threshold she stopped and stared.
Everything about this room was in contrast to what she had seen
outside. The McClary range on the wall facing her was clean and
uncluttered although it lacked the shine of a good blacking. A sideboard
stood near the door and this, too, was passably tidy. Across
the room, under a window, sat a worn but clean leather couch, and
in the centre of the room, surrounded by three wooden chairs,
stood an oilcloth covered table. In the centre of the table sat a potted
geranium with one single red flower.
“It looks nice,” she murmured.
He manoeuvred her bags through a narrow door which opened
off the kitchen, muttering as he went, “I tried to fix it up a bit.”
A moment later he returned to the kitchen. “I’ll be doing the
milking and chores. There’s some cold meat in the ice box in the
pantry and potatoes to fry up for supper. I’ll be an hour or so.”
He went out leaving the screenless door open behind him. Sarah
hurried to close it against the flies that were swarming into the
house. She looked around at the windows and discovered that they,
too, were closed. There were no screens there, either, so she left
them alone. But the house was stifling. She knew that, sooner or
later, the flies would win out.
She removed her hat and coat and went into the room where Ben
had taken her luggage. This room, also, was neat although sparsely
furnished. A single bed stood along one wall with a wooden kitchen
chair beside it. On the opposite wall a dressing table and a washstand
took up most of the space. She threw her coat and purse on
the bed and returned to the kitchen.
She should begin exploring the pantry cupboards if he expected
his supper to be ready when he got in. But she didn’t think she
could live another minute without stripping down and having a
wash. She located an enamel basin and, going to the stove, lifted the
lid of the water reservoir on the side. The water was cold but …
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