He laughed aloud, then toasted her with his wine. “Well done. You have defeated me, but only for the moment.”

“I will savor my small victory.”

“May it be the first of many.”

Ella returned to take their bowls away. Neither of them had eaten very much. For his part, it was because he had enjoyed conversing with Alethea. She was intelligent and humorous. He found pleasure in her features. The slight upward tilt of her eyes, the fullness of her mouth. She was a beautiful woman. He could not recall a more pleasant evening. Even if he was never to have her in his bed, he would still want to spend time speaking with her. Something that had never happened to him before.

“So, Alethea, what have you been up to in town?” he asked. “You have all the men in a state. When I first returned I was convinced there had been an attack from Indians or pirates.”

“Pirates would be at a disadvantage here where there is no ocean.”

“But they are a hardy lot. They would find a way.”

“You compare me to vicious men who steal and plunder? I am beyond dismayed.” Humor brightened her green eyes even as her mouth sank into a pout.

“Then I’ll compare you to a windstorm or a tornado. You have upset nearly all the men in town. I would like to know how that is possible.”

“Simple,” she said. “I have given the women ideas.”

“Through your society?”

“You have heard of it?”

“I have heard of little else. Shall you tsk me now?”

She laughed. The full sound made him want to join in. He enjoyed watching her amusement. It made him want to make her laugh again.

“I was in a mood,” she admitted. “The name simply came to me. It’s not that I don’t like the men in town, but they are typical of males everywhere. Why is the idea of a woman using her mind so horrifying? Do you know that here in Texas, a woman may own property, even after she is married? But that is not the case in other places. Once married, a woman gives up her property to her husband. Why is that? She was intelligent enough to handle her finances before the marriage but not after? Doesn’t that speak more to the draining influence of men than the foolishness of women?”