Whitman? Was he related to the Cogswell’s nephew? Wait. Why was Jack so reluctant to introduce them? Was it because he planned to have her gone before introductions were needed? If that was the case … Her ire rose. He’d best not be thinking that way. “You may call me Mattie,” she informed Clark. If they were to be colleagues, they should be friends.
“A pleasure,” Clark said, bowing slightly. His scanned her clothing for an instant. “How long have you been in training, Mattie?”
“This is my first day.”
Clark quirked a brow and turned to Jack. “You’re beginning with a rescue hold?”
Jack’s gaze hardened. “She’d best learn quickly the physical strength required for this job.”
“Do you intend for her to go inside a burning building to drag out victims?” Clark asked, incredulously.
“She’s to do what is expected of all of us,” Jack argued. “Do you think she should be given special privileges because she’s a woman?”
Mattie stepped forward. “Absolutely not. I don’t need them.”
Clark cast her a look of admiration. “I see.” He scratched his chin. “Then perhaps she should practice carrying, rolling, and unrolling the hoses. They have considerably less weight, and we work with them at every call, much more frequently than we have to drag someone from a building.”
Annoyance marred Jack’s features before he nodded. “You have a point.” Jack gestured toward a rack on the far wall where several hoses were tightly coiled. “Mattie, would you bring one of those hoses here?”
“Of course.” She crossed the room and grasped a rolled hose. When she attempted to remove it from the shelf, her arm muscles strained from the weight. Biting her lip, she used all her might to slide the coil closer.
“Allow me.” Clark set down his hat and hurried over, easily hoisting the coil off the rack.
“Clark, let her carry the hose. This is her training session, not yours.”
She held out her hands to Clark. “I can manage.” She could only hope she’d spoken the truth.
“All right.” Clark handed her the hose.
Which she nearly dropped straightaway.
He caught her arms, still holding the hose, and helped her to stand straight once more.
“Thank you, Clark,” she said before taking a deep breath and letting it out. “I think I shall try that again.”
Clark’s forehead wrinkled with concern. “Are you sure? Maybe you’re not ready for this drill yet. You could build up your strength by lifting lighter objects and working your way up.”
She raised her chin. “How will I know what I’m capable of if I don’t make the attempt?”
“Clark, leave her be,” Jack insisted, still waiting several feet away.
Mattie tensed and bit back a retort. Jack intended to be hard on her to make her quit. She understood that. Still, his demand that Clark back away … Grr. What did it matter? She didn’t need Clark’s help.
Clark released her arms, and she clutched the hose to her chest, hugging it tight. Once it felt secure, she lumbered awkwardly toward Jack, with Clark hovering nearby as if ready to assist her if needed.
When she reached Jack, she lowered … er, half dropped the coil to the floor.
“Next, unroll the hose,” Jack instructed.
Sweat beaded her forehead and dripped down her neck as she complied. Setting the coil up like a wheel, she unrolled the hose, moving forward as it uncoiled.
Jack held up his hand to stop her. “It’s better if you lift the hose as it unrolls so any sharp rocks or broken glass scattered on the ground don’t damage the line.”
She blew a strand of hair out of her face and picked up the hose once more. Her arms and shoulders ached as she struggled to unroll the unwieldy coil.
Clark stepped forward. “Let me—”
“Clark, stand back,” Jack demanded.
“This isn’t right.” Clark pointed at Mattie. “I can’t just stand back and allow a lady to—”
“Come here, Clark.” Jack waved Clark closer, and the two of them headed toward the fire engine before leaving her view.
Her breaths coming out in gasps, she did her best to unroll the hose as she’d been instructed. In a matter of minutes, she’d completed the task and stood up straight. What now? She hesitated a moment, then followed the path they’d taken. She wouldn’t be accused of standing idle when she should be training.
She found Jack and Clark just beyond the engine, arguing. Mattie stopped short at the side of the fire engine.
“Instead of torturing her, simply send her home,” Clark ground out.
“I told you, I can’t.”
“Yes. Yes. Her father made an agreement with yours to humor her request. I understand that part. What I don’t approve of is your method of convincing her to quit.”
Mattie suppressed a sigh of frustration. The men in her life thought they knew what she was capable of, or rather what she wasn’t capable of, but they were sorely mistaken. She may be struggling to complete Jack’s drills right now, but this was only the first day of training.
“With any luck, this won’t go on for long. Soon she’ll see she isn’t able to do the job,” Jack reassured Clark.
She marched out from her hiding spot to stand directly before Jack. “Your plan to make me quit will fail.” She stared him square in the eyes. “As you well know, I’m not easily swayed when I set my mind to something, and while initially I wasn’t completely sure I could be a competent firefighter, your words have inspired me. I am determined to prove my worth.”
Those blue eyes flickered with warning. “Mattie—”
“Stop underestimating me, Jack.” Blast. She’d come here to win him over, to make Jack realize they were a good match for each other. It appeared first she would have to earn his respect by proving her mettle. She would work hard to build up her strength to accomplish whatever feats Jack would ask of her. And books … She’d read all the books she could find about firefighting. Yes, she would impress him with her enthusiasm and perseverance, all the while wheedling her way into his heart.
In the cellar of her family’s store, Mattie wrapped her arms around a heavy sack of wheat, took a deep breath and dragged it back along the floor. Although it didn’t weigh nearly as much as Jack, she could move it a bit easier than a few days ago. After carrying heavy crates and now pulling around this sack, her arms and back ached and sweat had dampened her bodice.
No matter. She would continue until she was too exhausted to take another step. Even then, she would be back tomorrow, the next day, and the next. Still gasping for breath, she bent low once more and hugged the sack of wheat to her.
“Here you are,” her mother said from the stairway. Her brows drew low as she stared hard at Mattie. “What are you doing down here?”
Mattie released the sack and stood. “I’m building strength so I can do the drills required of a firefighter.”
Her mother scowled and descended the stairs. “Firefighter … What nonsense,” she muttered. “The only reason you’ve set your mind to becoming a firefighter is to pursue Jack.” She eyed the books resting on a nearby crate, books Mattie had recently checked out of the library, both related to firefighting. “What do you plan to wear to the Whitman’s dinner party?”