Magnificent Passage Read Free

Julia had spent the year in Boston. She’d left her finishing school and come on the train to visit Mandy for the summer. They’d shared the small room that had been spartan before Julia’s arrival and now was filled to overflowing with lacy underwear, bottles of perfume, dresses, hats, traveling suits, even a riding habit. Julia never traveled light. There was almost no space left between the rough-hewn walls of the cabin and Mandy’s narrow, slatted bed with its trundle beneath, but Julia made use of every inch. She paced the room like a caged cat.
    â€œFather’s been trying to run my life for years,” Julia said hotly, her slim arms akimbo. “But he’s never succeeded, and he’s not going to this time.”
    If Julia hadn’t been so distraught, Mandy might have smiled. She’s every bit the governor’s daughter, Mandy thought. It was the way she always pictured her cousin—haughty and arrogant, wild, reckless, and passionately headstrong when
convinced she was right. Storming about the room, Julia alternated between biting her bottom lip uncertainly and pressing both together in a determined line.
    â€œI know how you must feel, Julia,” Mandy said, getting caught up in Julia’s indignation. “I know how much you love Jason. I wish there were something we could do.”
    â€œYou can’t know how I feel! You’ve never been in love. You’ve never even had a beau!”
    The words stung like a slap. Mandy glanced away. More than a year older than her cousin, Mandy had never done more than dance with some of the local boys, and that had been at best a tolerable experience. A few young men, mostly soldiers, had attempted to court her, but her father always discouraged them. Of course that would all change one day, she told herself. She’d leave Fort Laramie and experience life, be her own person again—the way-she used to be, before her mother died and her father became so strict and forbidding.
    Julia stopped pacing and turned, her expression softer. “I’m sorry, Mandy. That was a rotten thing to say. I guess I’m just a little upset.”
    Mandy thought “upset” was a bit of an understatement.
    Julia lifted a ruffled petticoat strewn across the bed and fingered the lace absently. “I wish I’d never written that letter to my father.”
    â€œYour father would have found out about Jason sooner or later. And when you didn’t return to Boston, he’d have been worried sick. He’d probably have called out the cavalry and then you’d really have been in trouble.”
    Julia flashed a quick, uncertain smile. “I guess you’re right,” she said. She walked to Mandy’s chair, sighing.
“Someday, when you fall in love, you’ll understand why I can’t let Jason go. He’s the most wonderful man I’ve ever met. He isn’t like the others—and believe me, I ought to know! Jason’s kind and considerate. He’s charming—and handsome. He loves me and I love him!” She clenched her small fists and whirled away. “Damn it, Mandy, I won’t go to California and leave him behind!”
    Mandy wished things could be different. Uncle William had always been a good man, but an ambitious one. He’d had no time for his daughter, yet he’d always tried to do what was best for her. But Julia was stubborn and wild, her reputation notorious. Her escapades had made headlines all over the country. She was considered “a woman of legendary beauty,” and men everywhere fell at her feet. Jason Michaels hadn’t. Maybe that was why Julia had fallen in love with him.
    â€œWhat about the way you’re used to living?” Mandy asked, broaching a problem she was sure Uncle William had considered. “You’ve always had everything you want. How are you going to handle being an Army wife?”
    â€œIn a year I’ll have my own