Light of my Life

Eight

EIGHT

The little town of Spruce Hill was absolutely amazing. Amelia didn't quite know what to expect, but as they rode into town looking for an inn or hotel, many people stopped and stared at them, and most of them greeted them with waves or smiles. Already, she felt welcomed here.

Another thing that she noticed was there seemed to be more men than women. Of course, since this was a lumberjack town. That probably explained why she saw more men.

Excitement built inside her, and she wiggled on the seat, holding her clasped hands in her lap tightly. She tried to study every person she could, especially if they were over the age of sixty because she still didn't know if her grandparents lived here. This was the very reason she came to Spruce Hill, and yet... remembering what Duke had told her during their talk earlier, she wondered if finding her grandparents was a good idea or not. Perhaps it was best to wait until she was out of danger before locating her family.

Lodging was easy to find. A large sign above the building announced the business, The Noble Hotel.

Uncle Theo stopped the wagon out in front. Duke had dismounted and tied his horse to the post before hurrying over to help Amelia down. Uncle Theo climbed down by himself. Gracie peeked out of the canvas, grinning.

"Are we here?" she asked.

Duke reached his arms up to lift Gracie down. They all walked into the hotel with Bobby following behind. It was difficult not to feel like a family, but Amelia tries to squash her dreams. It was too early to think that way. She promised herself not to get her hopes up until after she'd told Duke the truth about Gracie not being her daughter.

A middle-aged man and woman stood behind a long counter, talking. They raised their gazes to the group who had just entered, and immediately, wide smiles touched their faces.

"Welcome to The Noble Hotel," the man said. "I'm Heber Portly and this is my wife, Hilde."

Duke shook hands with the man. "I'm Duke Logan, and this is Mrs. Florence and her daughter, Gracie, and her uncle, Theo, and her brother, Bobby."

The hotel owners nodded to each one.

"We are new in town and we need a place to stay until finding something more permanent."

Mrs. Portly clapped her hands once in excitement. "That's just wonderful. You're all going to love this town."

Amelia stepped up to the counter. "My daughter and I will share a room."

Mrs. Portly jotted down Amelia's name in the registry book before looking up at Duke. "And what about you?"

Duke grinned and clapped a hand on Bobby's shoulder. "I'm going to share a room with my good friend, Robert."

Amelia held back a laugh. By Bobby's grimace, she could see that her criminal brother wasn't very happy about the situation.

Mrs. Portly looked at Theo. "And you'll have a room to yourself, sir?"

Amelia quickly turned toward her friend and signed Mrs. Portly's question. Theo frowned and signed back, I can't afford it.

Her heart dropped. She'd forgotten about their low funds. She looked at Duke and shook her head before returning her attention to the hotel owner. "Actually, Uncle Theo can stay in the room with me and my daughter."

"Actually," Duke moved closer to her and touched her hand, "I can pay for Theo's room."

Surprise lifted to her throat as she released a gasp. Her heartbeat quickened from his kindness. "Are you certain?"