“I just wanted to see how ya’ look before dinner tonight!” she said, excitedly. “How do ya’ like ya’ dress? Does it fit too tight for ya’?” Tillie asked.
Adeline turned from the mirror, facing Tillie, “I love it, Tillie, really I do!” she said. Tillie lit an extra lantern in the room, so she could get a better view of the beauty that Richard was going to introduce to his society tonight.
“In better light, I can see that I did a good job! Almost perfect fit for ya’! Told ya’ I could sew!” Tillie smiled, revealing a few missing teeth.
“Thank you very much for all of your hard work, Tillie, and when am I expected to be down?” Adeline inquired.
“Guests are to arrive at eight o’clock, sharp, and dinner is at a half past eight,” Tillie informed Adeline.
“Then, I had better complete my dressing routine, and I will be down shortly,” Adeline responded.
Tillie nodded, and left the room, feeling a sense of pride she had not felt in quite a long time. It was partly her doing that will make Adeline such a sight to see tonight!
Adeline walked over to her bedroom door and locked it. She needed a few minutes alone, to gain her composure.
What will Ernest think tonight when he hears the news that Richard and I are betrothed? How will he handle the news? Will he view me as manipulative, or even having loose morals, for having spent time alone with him this week, while being spoken for by another man?
She decided to find a way tonight and tell him in private the complete truth as to why she was really here, why her parents arranged for her to come, and how this situation between Richard and her was merely an illusion for the sake of propriety. She shuddered to think of losing what Ernest and she had built so far.
She wished this wasn’t so complicated. Wasn’t love supposed to be easier than this? Had she fallen in love with Ernest already?
Is that why my throat goes dry, and I feel the butterflies in my stomach when I am around him? Oh, Lord, I ask that you help me with this situation, and give me wisdom as to my true feelings for both Ernest and Richard, soon!
Chapter Ten
Adeline stood near the front door and greeted Richard’s guests as they filtered in, playing her part as the dutiful hostess as Tillie and the rest of Richard’s household staff circulated with trays of wine and other refreshments. The air in the main room was stuffy and saturated with the odor of cigars and sweat. It was cloying and all Adeline wanted was to get out of there and breathe some free, fresh air.
“You look beyond ravishing tonight, my dear.”
Adeline did her best to suppress a shudder as she turned to Richard, putting on a smile she hope didn’t look as false as it felt. He took her hand and bowed low, placing a gentle kiss on the back of it.
“Thank you, Richard,” she said. “You are very kind.”
He smiled graciously at her. “And I am very glad you chose to wear the necklace,” he said. “Though your beauty outshines it by far.”
Adeline looked down at the ground, her cheeks flushing with color. She never did well with compliments and it made her feel even more uncomfortable coming from a man she didn’t want to receive them from.
He certainly uses his words well and knows how to woo a woman, I have to give him that.
“Have you had a chance to meet some of my friends and neighbors?” Richard asked.
“I – not yet,” she replied. “But I will make the rounds shortly. I just wanted a moment to gather myself.”
“Of course, take your time,” Richard replied. “But I know they will be most anxious to get to know you since I reckon you will be a long-term fixture here.”
“Perhaps,” Adeline reminded him. “This was not intended to be a permanent arrangement. I am only here until it is safe to return home.”
“Of course. But while you’re here, I wish to do everything I can to protect your reputation,” Richard said, his gaze narrowing and his voice growing frosty. “But we should also consider the possibility that you may be here for a while. I mean, who knows when or even if they will capture this Wild Hog character. You could be here for a while.”
Adeline sighed and let her gaze fall to the floor once more. She knew she was stuck in Richard’s house, far from home with no idea when she was going back. The thought tore at her heart and she had to fight to keep the tears of despair from rolling down her cheeks.
Adeline knew she needed to be respectful and that included playing along with the charade of being Richard’s betrothed. At least, until it was safe for her back in Frailburg. Ultimately, the decision whether to marry him rested with her. At least, if her father was to be believed. Lately, Adeline had been having her doubts about whether it was true or not, given some of the things Richard said and the way he acted.
All she knew in the moment was that until the Wild Hog was caught, her father would never let her come home out of fear that something might happen to her. But Adeline was starting to feel like being murdered by a mass killer might be preferable to being forced to marry a man she did not love. And a man old enough to be her father at that.
Maybe going home and taking my chances with both my father and the Wild Hog would be preferable after all.
Of course Adeline appreciated Richard’s care in protecting her reputation and virtue. She thought he’d been a gentleman in every way in that regard. But she did not want to be known as his betrothed. At least, not any longer than necessary. She just wanted to go home and back to her normal life.
“I will come in and introduce myself to your friends soon, Richard,” she said. “I would just like to go outside and take in a little air.”
“Of course my dear,” he responded. “Just don’t be long.”
Richard walked away and started chatting with a tall man in a gray suit. She turned away and walked through the house, finding her way to the back door.
“You need somethin’, Miss Adeline?” Tillie’s voice sounded behind her. “Is everythin’ okay?
“Yes Tillie, thank you,” Adeline replied. “I just need a little air.”
“Well, y’all be careful out there,” she cautioned her. “I heard them coyotes out there earlier and you sure don’t wanna find yourself surrounded by them evil beasts.”
Adeline smiled despite her dark mood. “I will be careful. I promise you.”
She opened the back door and stepped outside, pulling the door closed behind her. Adeline walked across the yard, taking deep breaths of the cool evening air. She stopped at the fence and leaned against it, staring out into the darkness beyond. The whinnies and neighs of the horses floated back to her on the currents of the breeze. They were out there – the horses. And in that moment, all Adeline wanted to do was saddle one of them up and ride off – putting Richard and his ranch behind her and never come back.
A lone tear raced down her cheek as despondency threatened to overwhelm her. She wanted to go home. Wanted to be surrounded by the things most familiar to her. Most of all, she wanted to be with her family. She looked to the sky, taking a deep breath, and let her tears flow.
I just want to go home. Please God, help me to go home soon.
Somewhere in the distance, Adeline heard the howl of a coyote. It was long and plaintive and to her, was the sound of despair. It was a noise Adeline could imagine herself making. A moment later, the original howl was answered by what sounded like a dozen others, all of them howling in unison. To Adeline, it was alien, strange, and chilled her to the bone.
She wrapped her arms around her chest and squeezed herself tight, torn between wanting to go back inside for safety’s sake and not wanting to just so she didn’t have to be near Richard.
“It’s the sound of loneliness, ain’t it?”
Adeline jumped at the sound of his voice and spun on her heel.Wearing black pants and boots, a black button down shirt, and a black hat, Ernest emerged from the darkness like a living shadow. Adeline’s breath caught in her throat and her heart somersaulted in her chest at the sight of him.
He moves quieter than a ghost just risen up from the grave.
His boots crunched on the dirt and gravel in the yard as he made his way over to her. He leaned against the fence and looked out into the night. She studied his profile – his strong jawline, tawny skin, and hair darker than the sky above and thought everything about him was beautiful. She knew it was wrong – improper perhaps – but he made her feel things inside she’d never known before. She wanted nothing more than to reach out and touch him but restrained herself.
“It is a sad sound,” Adeline said as a small shudder rippled through her. “And a little frightening.”
If my heart could make a sound, it would be that exact same howl.
“Oh, you don’t need to be scared. They won’t hurt you,” Ernest told her. “They’re as afraid of you as you are of them.”
They stood side by side in silence for a few moments, each of them lost in thought. Ernest turned, and gave her a wan smile, as sad as the sound of the coyotes howling. Adeline thought he seemed tense. Maybe a bit sad. She couldn’t say for sure, but it definitely seemed like something was bothering him, but his face was like a stone, betraying neither thought nor emotion, and Adeline could not read him.
“I – is everything alright?” she asked.
He pursed his lips and blew out a breath. “Is it true?”
Adeline looked up to the sky, at the stars above. To her, they looked like chips of diamond spread across a blanket of black velvet that stretched from horizon to horizon. She had always thought the stars above looked so cold – and yet like the most beautiful thing in the world.
She didn’t need to ask Ernest what he meant. She knew what he was referring to and was afraid to answer the question because she feared he might not understand.
“Are you betrothed to Richard?” he asked again.
“My father betrothed me to him,” she replied, her voice barely more than a whisper. “It was not my choice.”
Ernest nodded and she could not help but see the flash of pain and disappointment in his eyes. She hated that she caused him any hurt whatsoever and the guilt lanced through her heart. She wanted to take it back and salve his pain. And she knew the only way to do that was to explain the situation to him and hope he understood.
“Please don’t think me wicked,” Adeline pleaded.
A small smile touched his lips. “I couldn’t ever think of you as wicked.”
Adeline swallowed hard and raised her head, meeting his eyes that even in the darkness sparkled like polished emeralds. He gave her a small smile but she knew if she didn’t want him to walk out of her life forever, she would have to make him understand her plight. So she took a deep breath and decided to tell Ernest her story.
“Back home, a man has been murdering young women – women my age,” she began. “And my father, wanted to keep me safe, so he made me travel here to stay with Richard. Under his protection.”
“And your father gave you no say in it?”
Adeline shook her head mournfully. “No, but that’s not the worst of it,” she went on. “My father and Richard thought a woman my age living with a man might look bad to outsiders. So to protect my virtue, they decided to betroth me to him.”
Adeline sighed as Ernest looked out into the darkness again, listening to the coyotes howling.
“They say whether or not I actually marry Richard is my decision,” Adeline continued.
“Sounds like you don’t believe that,” he noted.
She sighed again. “I get the idea that Richard wants this to be a more permanent arrangement than I would prefer it to be.”
Ernest turned to her and shrugged. “He’s a wealthy man. Powerful around here. He’s got a good home. Good business,” he replied. “I don’t know him well, but Richard seems like a decent man. I s’pose you could do a lot worse.”
“Do not misunderstand, I respect and appreciate everything Richard has done for me. I am grateful he cares enough to protect my reputation. But I do not love him. I do not wish to marry a man I have no feelings for,” Adeline’s voice was thick with emotion. “If I am to marry, I wish to marry a man I willingly give my heart to.”
Their eyes lingered on each other for a long moment and Adeline felt like all the air had suddenly been sucked out of the air around them. A tension, or sense of expectation was whispered on the quiet breeze but then Ernest looked away, breaking the spell.
Adeline cleared her throat and tried to control her racing heart. Slowly, she looked up at Ernest, doing her best to be calm.
“I am grateful to Richard for taking me in while this whole murder business is happening back home. And for the sake of my parents, I will play along with this charade,” she said, her voice harder than steel. “But I will not be coerced into a situation not of my making, nor will I allow my gratitude to be manipulated into something it is not.”
In the distance, the coyotes howled again, their long, plaintive wails echoing across the plains. Ernest looked at Adeline and gave her a small smile.
“I s’pose we should be gettin’ back into the party,” he said.
I wish he could see I don’t want to go back in there. That he wouldn’t force me. That he would put me on his horse and spirit me away. Far, far away.
A flash of sadness touched Adeline’s features but she quickly masked them. She thought she’d become quite adept at masking her emotions since coming to Richard’s ranch – another fact that made her feel sad. More than that, she felt a sense of loss – a loss of the carefree, spirited young woman who never used to have to hide any bit of herself.
The only time she was able to shed her masks and be who she really was anymore was when she was with Ernest. With him, she did not feel the need to wear a mask or pretend to be somebody she was not. She could just be Adeline and that was good enough.
This façade she had to put up – this dual nature she was forced to exist in was slowly chipping away at who she was. Eroding her true nature. Some days, Adeline barely seemed to recognize herself and she feared that if she kept having to play these games, wear her masks, and conceal her thoughts and emotions, she might never find her way back to who she used to be.
“I suppose you’re right,” she replied.
Chapter Eleven
Ernest milled about the fringes of the room, slowly drinking his glass of whiskey as he kept an eye on everybody in attendance. He didn’t know many of them well other than to say he knew they were considered the cream of society in Talon Peaks.
He usually couldn’t be bothered with any of that, preferring to stay to himself and his books mostly. But he had accepted the invitation to attend tonight’s festivities, telling himself for the sake of his business, he needed to at least try to ingratiate himself with the wealthy people in town.
But in truth, he knew he’d come for her.
Adeline had gotten under his skin in ways nobody had in a very long time. Perhaps ever. He couldn’t stop thinking about her. She was in his every waking thought, his dreams – she had invaded every corner of his mind. Adeline was extraordinary. She was in turns as fragile and delicate as glass, but also stronger than iron. There was more to her than met the eye, of that Ernest was more than certain.
He found himself impressed with her strength and courage. But he also knew in this world, even strong and courageous women often did not get to make all the decisions in their lives.
Family, circumstance, wealth, political convenience – Ernest knew they all played a role in the lives women led. Or in some cases, were forced to lead. He didn’t know what went into leading Adeline to where she was now, but he didn’t need to.
What he knew for certain was that despite his feelings for her, she was not his woman. And there was nothing he could do about that. She was betrothed to Richard and even though Adeline said she had no desire to marry him, Ernest knew that he could not allow himself to indulge the feelings he had for her.
That would be a dangerous game and one he could not afford to play �
�� let alone lose. Richard Arnolds was not a man to be trifled with. Oh, Ernest thought Richard was a decent enough fellow – in all their years as neighbors, they’d never run afoul of each other. In fact, Richard had been kind and helpful on more than one occasion. Ernest liked Richard – as well as he liked anybody, anyway.
But he also knew that Richard had another side to him. The older man had a will of absolute steel and when it came to business, Ernest knew he could be downright ruthless. He knew that Richard would do whatever it took to protect what was his – including Adeline.
The man is more cunning and vicious than any wolf or mountain lion out there and I’m the last person who wants to tangle with him.
The Cowboy's Stolen Bride (Historical Western Romance) Page 9
