Anna's Heart (Wilderness Brides Book 2) by Peggy L Henderson Read Free Book Online Page B

to forget about this horrible day, but she couldn’t appear rude in front of the visitors, either. Besides, driven by guilt, she had to know about Ethan’s condition.
    She sought Aimee’s eyes. “He’s going to be all right, isn’t he? I feel so responsible for all of this.”
    Aimee came up beside her and pulled up an empty chair. “Well, you certainly can’t blame yourself for his injured hand.” She offered an encouraging smile. “He’ll be fine. His pride might be a bit wounded, but he’s a man.” She paused and glanced at every man sitting at the table. “None of them like to be seen as weak or vulnerable, especially in front of women or their peers, so that means pretty much all the time.”
    Caroline and Cora chuckled at her comment. Aimee patted Anna’s hand. “I’m the one who should feel responsible. I forgot about the Indian tobacco I had in my bag. It was an easy mistake to get it mixed up with willow bark.” She laughed and glanced at her husband. “I made a similar mistake once when I first came to these mountains and was learning about healing herbs, isn’t that right, Daniel?”
    Daniel Osborne looked her way. “I wasn’t sure at the time what I had done wrong that you wanted to poison me.” He smiled.
    Anna’s eyes widened. “What I gave Ethan is poisonous?”
    Aimee shook her head. “The small amount you used in the tea won’t kill him. It’s called puke weed for a reason. It simply made him sick to his stomach, and he’s going to sweat for a while, but he’ll be fine.” She chuckled. “He refused a cup of willow bark tea, though.”
    “Can you leave some of that puke weed here with us, Aimee?” Travis chimed in. “Ethan might need another dose whenever he gets too ornery.”
    “Watch it, Trav, or Anna might slip some of it into your coffee one of these days for your sass,” Nathaniel said, which earned him a jab in the side from his wife.
    “Is there something that can be done to help his recovery?” Anna ignored the men and their banter. Although they made a habit of teasing and goading each other, the Wilder brothers would lay down their lives if one of their own was in danger.
    “His stomach needs to settle. I’m sure most of what he drank came back up. I’m more worried about his hand, to tell you the truth. Infection can set in easily, and something tells me he won’t keep that bandage clean once Daniel and I leave to head home tomorrow.”
    “I’m sure he’s already thought of a reason to hold me responsible for that, as well,” Anna mumbled. At least the other men and Aimee didn’t know of the earlier incident with the muddy water.
    Cora coughed, which sounded suspiciously like a suppressed laugh, and Caroline joined her. Anna shot her friends a glaring look. After today, it became even more important that she leave as soon as possible. If Ethan hadn’t disliked her enough already, he now thought she’d tried to poison him on purpose.
    “Trevor and I will make sure he follows your instructions, Aimee,” Caroline said, looking at Aimee Osborne with awe in her eyes. “I wish that someday I could be as knowledgeable as you and learn to heal people.”
    Aimee smiled at the young girl. “There’s no reason you can’t,” she said. “You’re about the right age to enter university, aren’t you? You should consider going to medical school.”
    Caroline’s eyes widened. She laughed nervously. “Medical school? How’s that possible? A woman can go to school to be a doctor?”
    “I’m sure there are women who’ve gone to medical school. If you’re interested, I can find out for you. My son, Matthew, is a doctor in New York.” She looked toward her husband, then added with a note of pride in her voice. “Our other son, Zach, recently opened his own law practice in St. Louis. He, too, might know of a college that accepts women.”
    Caroline’s face lit up like a lightning bug. “Did you hear that, Cora? I could go to college and learn to be a