Priscilla’s jaw dropped and she stared at Ian. “You speak French?”
Mitch leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms over his chest. “Um, Priscilla, we all speak French.”
Her head swung back toward him. “You, too?”
“Oui.”
“When I spoke in French, you understood?”
“Chaque mot que vous a dit.” He grinned at her, obviously enjoying her discomfort.
“I’ve been mumbling insults to you in French for days. And all that time you knew exactly what I was saying.” She dropped her head in her hands. “Mon Dieu!”
“Most of our family speaks English, French, and Crow,” Mitch said.
“Crow, too?” She choked on the words. Although Mitch had proven to be much more intelligent and sophisticated than she’d assumed, every day as she learned more about him she became more impressed.
“My mother was Crow, my father French-Canadian. When fur trapping became harder, they left Canada and moved to Colorado where he opened the gun shop.”
Priscilla slid off the sofa. Mitch immediately felt the loss of her presence next to him. “I think I can announce that dinner is almost ready. Ian, why don’t you come help me in the kitchen?”
“Sure.”
Once the two were in the kitchen, chatting away and rattling dishes as they set the table, Two Moons poured a small amount of whiskey into both of their glasses. “If you let that one get away, you’re nowhere near as smart as I’ve always given you credit for. She’s pretty, smart, comes from a fine family, and I can tell by looking at him that Ian adores her.”
Mitch leaned back and rested his arm on the back of the sofa. “That’s the problem, Uncle. She comes from a big shot family. She’s so far above me I can barely see her shoes.”
Two Moons shook his head. “Don’t believe that for one minute. She might come from a great family, but I remember reading about Senator Cochran. Do you know he was raised in a brothel?”
Mitch sat forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “What?”
“Yes, sir. His mother was a prostitute. He dropped out of school and some librarian took him under her wing, got him a couple of scholarships, and he went to college and law school. So don’t think for one minute that woman out there is any kind of snob. If Jesse Cochran is the type of man I believe him to be, he would never raise a daughter like that.” He swallowed the last of his drink. “Just keep that in mind.”
“Dinner is ready,” Priscilla called them from the kitchen.
Two Moons had given him something to think about, but he still didn’t believe she would last the winter. Snob or no snob, she wasn’t meant to live in a backwoods town.
Priscilla was amazed at what she’d learned about Mitch and his family. She assumed he had some Indian in him but didn’t know he was half Crow. She also had no idea he could speak French. It had been a dirty trick for him to keep that from her. But then, her assumptions had been shattered more than a few times since she’d arrived. Ian was, by far, the brightest student in her class. Mitch was a smart man, dedicated to the town and his son.
But he still should have told her he knew French.
At Priscilla’s suggestion, once they were all seated, they joined hands and thanked the Lord for the food, their health, and the company at the table. Soon platters and bowls were passed around until everyone’s plate was overflowing.
“Two Moons. Is that the name you go by in your Ranger duties?” Priscilla asked.
“No. I thought that might a bit hard for the Rangers to swallow. I go by T. M. and borrowed Mitch’s last name, so to the Rangers I’m T. M. Beaumont.”
“And where does Two Moons come from?”
“I was born in a month that had two moons. I’m afraid my parents weren’t very inventive.”
“Every summer Uncle comes to Dogtown and takes me to the reservation where his family lives,” Ian said between swallows. “I stay there for a few weeks. That’s how I learned Crow.”
“I think that’s a wonderful idea.” She turned to Two Moons. “I would love to meet your family.”
“You would?” Mitch said, his eyebrows raised.
Two Moons grinned and winked at him, something passing between the two men that she didn’t understand. “Yes. I think visiting a reservation and living there for a while is a wonderful learning experience.” She looked at Ian. “I suggest when you go this summer you keep a journal and share it with the class when school starts up again in the fall.”