Gideon joined his friend in laughter. “Naw, we’re only discussing local happenings. I hope now that Walker will be working here I’ll be able to keep regular hours. Seems everyone who arrives in town needs a smith.”
He sent Darren a glance. “Not that I’m complaining, you understand. I’m grateful for the work but I wish it would even out so I can spend evenings at home.”
“You’re becoming a homebody, due, no doubt to having a smart, bonny wife.”
“She’s both of those but you don’t want to cross her.”
“Sounds like the voice of experience. Don’t tell me she’s already mad at you?
Gideon glanced at his old comrade. “You’d like me to give you a detailed explanation, wouldn’t you?”
“Sure, why not? What’s a friend for if not to listen to problems and give unwanted free advice? What’s wrong?”
“Being married is harder than I thought it would be. I keep putting my foot in my mouth. My red-headed wife’s not bashful about letting me know she’s displeased.”
“Don’t think any wife is. Leastwise brunette Orla’s not, for all that she’s usually good natured. So, I play it safe and do what she tells me. Simplifies life.”
Gideon laughed. “That, my friend, is a wise choice. My sister can cut you to ribbons with her tongue. You knew that before you married her.”
Darren placed his hand over his heart. “Right, but there’s no woman on earth more perfect for me. She’s my soul mate, my other half, my—”
“Auch, I get the idea so don’t go all poetic on me or I’ll be the one throwing up.”
“What’s the thorn in your marriage?”
Gideon was a private person but he’d known Darren long enough to be certain the man would keep at him until he explained. “She wants me to go to church with her.”
Darren shrugged. “So? I go with Orla. Besides, Orla said you went to church in Scotland.”
“Scotland was before the war.”
“I don’t see a reason to object now.”
He sent Darren a glare as heated as the furnace. “Easy for you to say. Folks don’t stare at you as if you’re a freak in a circus sideshow.”
“They won’t at you either, Gideon. They might stare the first time because you don’t usually attend services but that’s the only reason.”
“Not true, you should hear them when I walk down the street. I hear them talking about me. Calling me names.” He mimicked a woman’s voice, “There’s ‘the giant’, ‘the monster’, using me to threaten their children. ‘Behave or the monster will get you.’”
He shook his head. “I’ll not volunteer for such treatment by letting Keira force me to attend church.”
“Keira’s always been pleasant when I’ve talked to her. Is she a demanding woman then?”
Gideon considered. What had she asked of him? She wanted his permission to remedy the bed situation, but that was her being polite. She inquired about rearranging the furniture, again being polite. She surprised him with the giant chair but used her own money.
“I guess going to church is the only thing she’s asked of me. Oh, and saying grace before every meal.”
“So far, I’m not feeling sorry for you, my friend. Let me get this straight. You’re telling me your wife has only ever asked you to do this one thing yet you won’t do it.”
He met his friend’s gaze with a scowl. “You make me sound mean-spirited but I’m not. Leastways I don’t aim to be.”
“Don’t get your back up. Gideon, come by the shop and let me trim your beard and hair. You’ll be surprised at Keira’s response as well as how much it improves folks’ reaction when you’re out in public.”
Gideon stroked his beard. “She said I should so people won’t think I lack confidence in you.”
He stretched out a hand to one side. “Look, Darren, I never intended to give anyone that impression. What I wanted was to cover up the scar with as much hair as possible.”
“I’ve understood that and didn’t take offense. But, now that you’re aware how much it means to Keira, let me trim you up neatly and you go to church with her. You won’t be sorry.”
Gideon rubbed the back of his neck and paced the small shop. “I don’t know if I can sit in church and pretend I have faith. Seems hypocritical to me. You know how the war left part of me same as dead. What if I start bawling like a baby or lash out like I’m in a trance?”
Darren chuckled. “Think about it this way—it’s church and they have to forgive you.”
Gideon rolled his eyes at his friend. “I can think of some who wouldn’t but I’ll mull the prospect over for a bit.”
Chapter Fifteen
One evening at supper, Keira looked at her husband. “Something’s been nagging at me. You told Mr. Walker you used the wrong matchmaking service but some in town had used a different one and had success.”
Gideon frowned and polished off his meal. “Aye.”
“Why did you choose that one instead of asking around and learning what those who were happy had used?”
He didn’t meet her gaze. “I don’t know. Just happened is all.”
“How did you find the matchmaker you used?”
He shifted on the chair. “Well, um, Orla suggested that one. Don’t know where she learned about the agency.”
He pushed away from the table and stood. “You know, I think I’ll go work on that rifle a while.”
“Gideon, why are you hedging? What are you not telling me?”
He edged toward the back door. “I have a gun to finish repairing. I don’t know why you care one way or the other. You know I didn’t marry the woman and why. I don’t like talking about it, okay?” He was out the door and on the way to the smithy before she could form another comment.
She knew he was sensitive to the public rejection from Ella Price. That didn’t explain the way he’d acted or his startled expression. The man was hiding something.
She cleaned up the dishes and hung her apron on its hook. She tidied her hair and left by the front door to go talk to Orla. Normally, she wouldn’t have gone next door when Darren and Gideon were not at work, but she intended to learn what had made her husband so nervous.
Darren welcomed her with a smile. “Come in. Orla’s still cleaning up the dishes.”
“I won’t keep her long. I just had a couple of questions to ask her.” Keira swept into the kitchen. “Need help?”
Orla grinned. “I wouldn’t turn it down. Gideon with you?”
“No, he decided to work a while.” She picked up a towel and dried dishes as Orla washed them.
After a few seconds, Keira worked up her nerve. “I wondered how Gideon came to choose the matchmaker he did for Ella and he said you had found her name for him. Do you remember where?”
Orla’s smile disappeared. “In a newspaper. Only it wasn’t a matchmaker. She placed the advertisement herself. You know, ‘attractive woman of twenty-five, well educated, genteel, looking for marriage to good man with home and business’. I don’t remember the exact words. Why?”
“Whenever I mention anything about the process, he gets nervous. We were talking about it to Mr. Walker the other day and I thought Gideon was going to pass out. He did say that some in town had used a different matchmaker and had success. I wondered why he didn’t use the same one.”
Orla concentrated on washing a pan she’d already scrubbed spotless. “Well, that’s my fault. You see… I didn’t ask anyone else. When I saw that notice in the paper, I was certain a wife would be the right thing for Gideon. You know I worry about him, especially since Darren and I married and I can’t keep tabs on him like I used to.”
She turned around with her hands outstretched in front of her. “Now don’t get upset, but I wrote to Ella pretending to be Gideon and her letters sounded so nice. So, I told him and let him read her letters and then wrote and asked her to come.”
“You orchestrated the arrangement?” Keira paced back and forth in the small kitchen, her mind
conjuring up a terrible conclusion.
She turned to Orla. “So, you must have arranged with Alec for me to come. Did Gideon even know anything about our proxy marriage?”
Orla stuttered, “Of-Of course he did. You can see after Ella why he didn’t want to be discarded again. That’s why we used the proxy marriage. I mean he did.”
Keira braced her hands on her hips. “No… I think you mean you did. You and Darren arranged my marriage without Gideon’s permission, didn’t you?”
“Once he knew about you he agreed. He’s told Darren how glad he is the two of you are wed. He was so lonely, you see, and Ella’s rejection left him depressed. We had to do something.”
“Could you not have told me? I feel like a fool now. I’m the one who’s feeling rejected. He didn’t want me. He only wanted to appease you.”
Darren came into the kitchen. “That’s not true, Keira. He’s told me how lucky he is that you’re wed. He appreciates how thoughtful you’ve been about everything. He’s glad Walker is working out so he’ll have more time to spend with you.”
Keira held her head high. “I feel betrayed by my husband and two people I thought were true friends.” She ran out of the house and back home.
Home. She’d thought it was home but now she wondered if she’d ever have a house she could feel was her home in every respect.
She went to the bedroom and got her nightclothes. She carried them to the other bedroom where the first bed now resided. She got ready for bed and pulled the two ugly gray blankets over her.
Not that she could sleep. She was far too upset. The situation was all right for Orla and Darren and she doubted they could understand why she was in bits. How much rejection could one person stand?
She heard Gideon come inside the house. “Keira? Where are you?”
Instead of answering, she buried her face in the pillow.
Strong hands pulled her gently into his arms. “Here now, Darren told me what happened. I’d not wanted you to know. Now you do, I owe you an explanation.” He sat on the bed and settled her on his lap.
She rested her head on his shoulder. “You didn’t want me. What else is there to explain?”
“Can you not understand how upset I was when Orla and Darren wrote off for Ella Trigg, her maiden name was? Since she was on her way when I found out, I agreed to meet her and wed, but I had misgivings—for good reason as it turned out. As soon as she arrived, she publicly refused to have me and I was wounded by her words.”
He caressed Keira’s face. “Not that I wanted her, you see, but that I had to listen to her denounce me as a monster, a giant who looked frightening.”
“Well, I feel just as denounced as you were. You didn’t want me either.”
“I wanted you. Not when Darren first told me what they’d done. I understood they only did so because they care about me or I’d have throttled Darren. Once I started thinking about you being related to my friend Alec, who’s a man I respect and admire, and you coming from Scotland as I did, you sounded perfect for me. And, so you are.”
He kissed her tears. “Please don’t be angry or hurt. I thought we were doing well.”
“You don’t know how many times I’ve been rejected. I’m too tall, I speak with an accent, I speak too freely, or a dozen other reasons. I thought when I came to America things would be better, but I faced the same criticisms.”
“Surely Alec helped you.”
“Yes, but I couldn’t find a job for weeks. Then I worked as a nanny for two children I adored, but their father was a terrible man. I managed to avoid him but apparently his wife saw the way he leered at me and let me go.”
“I’m glad you got away from that place.”
“Alec kept bringing men to dinner but not one was interested in me because I towered over them. I couldn’t find a job again and Alec’s wife and mother-in-law let me know I was unwanted.”
“Auch, you’re wanted here. I’m grateful you’re my wife. You couldn’t be more perfect for me.”
She raised her face to look into his blue eyes. “Gideon Ross, are you telling me the truth?”
He nuzzled her neck. “Aye, and I can prove it to you if you’ll come to our room.”
She pushed at his chest. “Oh, men, you think joining with a woman solves everything.”
He grinned. “Maybe not everything. Stretching out beside my wife on the bed she cleverly arranged so I could be comfortable is a pleasure. Aye, and a great relief after a lifetime of trying to get comfortable while being crumbled like a wadded up piece of paper. Making love to her is a privilege and an honor.”
“You daft man, you sound more like an Irishman who kissed the Blarney Stone than a Scotsman.” She couldn’t prevent the smile that blossomed on her face.
He stood and carried her to their room. “An Irishman? Now what do you know of the Irish you haven’t told me?”
Chapter Sixteen
They were both sound asleep when his thrashing and yell woke her. “No, Travis, no!”
Keira tried to wake him but he was locked in the nightmare. She rose and lighted the lamp. She dampened a small hand towel and wiped his brow. At first he fought her but slowly he came awake.
His breathing was ragged, as if he’d just run a long distance. “Did I hurt you?”
“No, but I had trouble waking you. You yelled about someone named Travis.”
“That’s my most common nightmare. You remember I told you there were four of us who were friends: Darren, Alex, Travis, and me. Travis died at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863.”
“Obviously you witnessed his death. I’m so sorry.” She wrapped her arms around him, cradling his head on her shoulder.
He sobbed, “Worse, I caused his death.”
“You aren’t to blame for the war.”
He held on to her as if he feared letting go. “You can’t know, can’t understand what it’s like to be in the chaos of war.”
“I hope never to learn firsthand, Gideon. I know you saw and dealt with horrors beyond human understanding.”
“For four bloody years. I’ll never get over it, not if I live to be a hundred.”
“Alec has said the same. I imagine most soldiers have at least thought that.”
“I guarantee they have if they’re rational men. Some put down their guns and refuse to ever fire one again.”
She tossed the damp cloth aside and pulled her husband to the mattress beside her. She kissed his brow. “Close your eyes and try to sleep peacefully. I’ll be right here to hold you.”
He wrapped his arms around her. “I thank God you’re my wife, Keira.”
“So do I.” What a blessing to hear him say that.
She held him until his breathing let her know he was asleep. This time he rested peacefully. What horror had he relived? She wished she could take it from him.
Orla had said Darren had nightmares, too. She knew Alec did because his witch of a wife complained of losing sleep. How many thousands of men went through this?
Chapter Seventeen
Gideon sat in the barber chair. “I hope I’m not making a mistake.”
Darren draped a cloth around him. “You’ll be happy when you see the results. I’m glad you decided to come get a trim.”
“After Keira was so upset, I think I owe it to her. Maybe this will convince her I’m glad we’re wed.”
“Can’t hurt.” Darren chatted while he worked.
By the time he was finished, Gideon knew more than he cared about a lot of people in town. Darren handed him a large hand mirror.
“Hard to believe that’s me.” He moved the mirror around and stroked his beard with the other. “You did a good job around the scar.”
“Let me tell you how to comb the hair after it’s wet or when you get up in the morning.” Darren had Gideon hold the mirror while he gave him directions.
Gideon handed him back the mirror. “You were right. I should have come in sooner.”
“Glad to hear that. And, I’m sure glad Keira
’s not mad at Orla and me any longer. I didn’t quite understand why she was so upset.”
“She’s been rejected a lot. Too tall, too foreign, too outspoken, on and on. She thought she’d found a place where she was wanted and belonged. Finding out I hadn’t really sent for her let those old rejections get the best of her. She’s all right now.”
“Our past can sure play havoc on our today, can’t it? Look how long it’s been since the war. I still jump if I hear a gun. I still have the occasional nightmare.”
“Me, too, but they’re fewer now.”
Darren pretended to slug Gideon on the shoulder. “So I was right again and having Keira with you helps.”
“I concede on both counts but don’t look so smug. Wonder how my wife will like my new look.”
Darren swept up a pile of black hair and transferred it to a waste bin. “I can tell you she’ll love it.” He stretched his back. “Time for me to close. Today I’m ready.”
“I’ll wait and walk with you.”
“Walker must be working today.”
“He is and what a help he’s been.” Gideon turned the sign to Closed for Darren.
They strolled home together, cutting between two buildings.
He came in through the front door of his house. “Keira?”
“In the kitchen. Are you being formal now instead of coming in the back?”
“Stopped by Darren’s shop. What do you think?”
She turned from the range and her eyes widened then a huge smile blossomed on her face. She rushed to him and threw her arms around his neck.
“Gideon Ross, you are the handsomest man I’ve ever seen. I’d better start carrying a gun. I’ll be fighting off the women swarming around you like bees after honey.”
“Ha, ha. I’m pleased you like it.”
She stepped away and walked around him. “Darren did a fine job, didn’t he? Sit down, husband, for your dinner’s ready.”
“Darren filled me in on the goings on in town. And, I do mean all. He hears about everything and everyone in town.”
She dished up their food. “You can share with me what you learned.”
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