by Cyndi Raye
She could barely see the man holding the reins. He jumped from the buggy and stood before her. Taking her carpetbag, he looked down at her and smiled.
Goodness gracious, the man had the most charming smile she had ever seen. He tipped his hat back, removed it, revealing dark, thick hair and nodded. “My deepest apologies. I find myself running late most days. There’s so much to do.” His deep voice was strong and solid. She liked the way he spoke, looking directly at her as if he was interested in what she had to say.
It didn’t take much for Hannah to forgive his tardiness. She smiled. “You must be Mr. Ward.”
“I am, although you may want to call me Max. Seems my name is not too popular in the public eye.”
Hannah tilted her head. “Oh?” What kind of man didn’t want to speak his last name? Was he a wanted man? An outlaw?
She took a step back. “I’m afraid you will have to explain this to me, sir. I’m not inclined to go off with a man with a bad reputation.”
He held out his arm. “Please, don’t fear. It was my father’s doing. I’ll explain it all on our way to the church.”
“Church?”
He nodded, raising his brow. “You did read my letter, did you not? I explained clearly I needed a bride immediately. It was why I sent the money along with the advertisement.”
That would explain why she had no more than two days to pack and leave, except Hannah didn’t realize it would happen so fast. “Well, then, sir. Let’s go to the church,” she told him, sounding a lot braver than she felt.
He helped her in the buggy and secured her carpetbag on the floor. Taking the reins, Hannah noticed how tanned and muscular those hands and forearms were. He obviously was a man who worked the land. She could tell right away he wasn’t a lazy man like her step-father.
“I’ll have to confess I didn’t read your letter. I stuffed the envelope in one of my skirt pockets and then left the dress behind. I meant to read it on the train ride here but of course realized too late it was back in New York.”
He gazed over at her, a grin on his face. “I honestly can’t remember what all I wrote in those letters. Ah, here’s the church.” He got out of the buggy and helped her down, taking her arm gently as he guided her to the church. A door flew open.
“About time. We don’t have all day,” a large man told Max. “I’m not sure I should even be performing this marriage but if you keep your word that you will fix your daddy’s wrongs, then so be it. A man’s gotta have a second chance.”
Hannah, confused as ever, followed Max inside. They stood at the alter, where a woman who introduced herself as the preacher’s wife, waited with a small bouquet of flowers.
Hannah held on to Max’s arm a bit tighter than she realized. He patted her arm with his free hand, leaning over. “It will be alright. You’ll get used to the rough people here.”
Hannah wondered if she would.
“Welp,” the preached began. “I’m Reverend Daniel Conners, this here is my wife, Mrs. Conners. We need two witnesses but since no townsfolk wanted to do so, I found the only one willing to stand in. Get on over here!”
An old man, who was slouched on one of the benches rose and swaggered his way to the alter. Hannah looked in shock as the man staggered towards them, leaning on a bench so he didn’t fall over. He hadn’t even dressed for a wedding. Wearing a pair of pants with suspenders and a button down shirt that seen better days, he reeked of alcohol. Hannah placed her gloved finger over her nose.
“Sorry, ma’am,” the preacher apologized. “Town drunks the only witness I could find. Let’s get on with it.”
Hannah and Max looked at each other and sighed.
Chapter 3
“You may kiss the bride.”
Hannah hadn’t been paying attention to any of Reverend Conners words. She knew this was a farce, a business agreement and so she had tuned him out. Until he said those last words.
Max’s hands felt warm on her shoulders as he leaned down and placed a kiss on her mouth. She lifted her chin to meet his, thinking she would receive a small, friendly peck. After all, this was business only.
That didn’t happen. The moment their mouth’s touched and his warm breath mingled with hers, she drew him in like a butterfly encasing the freedom of leaving the cocoon. It couldn’t be helped. Hannah had never experienced a kiss quite like this before.
To be honest, no one had ever kissed her. She had been a slave to her step-father for so many years, the thought of dating never crossed her mind.
That’s why she was knocked for a loop when they kissed. Her gloved hands wrapped around his neck, her fingertips digging into his skin. When he moaned in her mouth it encouraged her more. A power so strong engulfed her, Hannah realized with just a kiss she could control a man. She liked that. Taking a step closer, she pushed her lips in to his, teasing, enticing him, until she felt his hand on her chin before sliding down her neck towards her collar.
Someone cleared their throat.
Max stepped away.
Hannah wanted to be ashamed but she wasn’t. She liked the kiss. Her first kiss. Her gloved hand went to her lips. They felt bruised, in a good way. She smiled. The preacher’s wife, her eyes downcast, pressed her mouth together in the background as if she were trying not to smile.
Max stared at her mouth so hard as if he wanted to get back to kissing. Then he turned to the preacher. “Sign the document. We must get back to the ranch.”
He was all business now but Hannah tasted him moments before. Under her kisses, he seemed so out of control. She knew this new found power was going to be interesting to say the least.
Max took her hand and placed it on his arm as they left the church. He was silent as he helped her in to the buggy. That’s when her stomach let out a growl.
Embarrassed, she giggled.
He grinned. “We should get you something to eat before we leave.”
“I’m sorry. I was too nervous to eat on the last leg of the train ride.”
“That settles things.” He helped her back out of the buggy and guided her towards the small eatery beside the hotel.
Jenna’s Place was the only fine-dining restaurant in Wichita Falls. It was quaint and had a woman’s touch with round tables covered in pretty white tablecloths. A single candle flickered in the center of each table.
The late afternoon crowd was beginning to arrive for supper. As the newly wedded couple waited for someone to seat them, several others pushed past Max and Hannah, drawing the attention of the young serving girl.
A couple who pushed their way ahead of them called out to the young girl. “Sallie Mae, we’ll take the seat by the window over there, away from the riff-raff.”
Sallie Mae waved them on, glaring at Max when she noticed him standing there. Hannah took it all in, watching the cords on his neck tighten when she deliberately turned away. For some reason, he was being ignored.
Hannah spoke up. “We don’t have to dine here. I’m fine until we get back to your ranch.”
Max turned to her. “We’ll wait.”
The look on his face told her he wasn’t going to budge on his decision. There was more going on here than Hannah realized but in order to figure it all out, she needed food. “Pardon me,” she told him. “I’ll be right back.”
Hannah marched up to the young serving girl. “Sallie Mae?”
She turned to Hannah with a smile. “Yes, ma’am?”
“I would like to sit at the small table in the corner if that is alright with you.”
“Certainly. Help yourself. I’ll be with you shortly.”
“Fine. When you make it to our table, please bring along a bottle of wine.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She walked back to where Max was standing, took his hand and led him to the corner table. Smiling, she waited for him to pull out a chair.
Max took off his hat and sat down across from Hannah. The candle flickered and left shadows on the white linen tablecloth. He grinned. “This is th
e first time I got a table in under twenty minutes.”
She placed her hands over his. “Max, what in the world is going on here? It was obvious Sallie Mae was not going to seat you.”
He shrugged. “Sooner or later she’d have to seat me. Especially since Jenna, the owner, would eventually come out of the kitchen to see how everyone is doing.”
“That’s awful!” Hannah was not going to like it here if everyone was horrible to each other. “Does this happen often?”
“Every time I come to Wichita Falls, which is once or twice a week. I’ve tried to be friendly but a man can only take so much rejection.”
He didn’t seem too upset that others treated him badly.
“I need to know what happened here, Max.”
He leaned back in his chair and sighed. “My father, that’s what happened. He was evil, paid lousy wages and worked his employees to the bone. He hurt people, badly. There was a woman here he was determined to have as his own. Almost destroyed her but she fought back. He rustled cattle which caused his demise.”
“I think I’m seeing the picture. Where were you when all of this took place?” She doubted he was in the picture until recently.
“At my ranch in Arizona.”
“That explains things. Well, Max, we have a lot of work to do if what you are looking for is to restore your family name.” It was as if she could read what was going on in his head. Or, perhaps, he wanted the same things she did, a place to feel welcomed, a family and town to belong in.
“I have a lot of people depending on me. If it weren’t for that, I’d sell everything and go back to my aunt’s ranch. But I have to turn this around before I can go anywhere. It’s why I ordered a mail-order bride.”
“I’ve never backed down from a challenge.”
Max grinned. “Me neither. I think I’m going to like being married to you, Hannah.”
She watched his mouth, knowing he was staring at her. When she looked in to his beautiful, dark eyes, she knew he was thinking the same thing she was, about that kiss they had shared earlier.
<><>
Max watched her eyes widen at the sight of the ranch house.
“It’s huge!” he heard her gasp.
“Welcome to Ward Ranch.”
“We are to live here?”
“Yes. Of course. Where else would we live?” Max stopped the buggy out front and threw the reins to a ranch hand waiting to take the horse back to the stables. Max took her arm and guided her to the front of the house.
“The porch is bigger than my whole apartment in New York City,” she told him.
“Wait until you see the way my father lived. It’s too much for even me and I’m used to nice things.”
“Well, what are we waiting for?” Hannah pushed open the front door to be greeted by a smiling older woman with gray hair and wrinkled cheeks. A young girl, maybe twelve at the most, stood beside her, half hidden behind her skirts.
“I’d like you to meet Mrs. Hannah Ward, my wife.” Max said the words with pride. He was certain Marni was overjoyed he brought a wife home. Why, having another woman in the house will be the highlight of her day. He knew Hannah was about to be spoiled silly.
“Miss Hannah, welcome to the Ward Ranch. I’m Marni and this is my grand daughter Mary. Pleased to meet you.” Then the old woman opened her arms and gave Hannah a great big old fashioned hug. She smacked her lips on Hannah’s cheek and pinched her cheeks while hooting and hawing about how pretty she was.
Max grinned at Hannah when she looked at him in surprise. He shrugged. It was Marni’s personality, she was such a loving lady and if she gave Hannah a hug like that, it meant she was accepted by the old woman.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Marni, and Mary.” Hannah leaned down a bit and took Mary’s hand in hers, trying to make the girl feel like a part of this. Max noticed how Mary shied away, pulling her hand back.
He watched Hannah’s reaction. A puzzled look shaded her eyes for a mere second and then she pulled her shoulders back and gave Mary the biggest smile ever. Max’s heart swelled. Marni and Mary were two of the few people he loved. Saddened by the fact he left here and never came back to check on them, he was determined now to take care of them both, no matter what. Even if he had to stay here and make a life at this ranch, he would.
He could always sell the ranch in Arizona and move his aunt here. She had wanted to come along but he wasn’t sure what he would find. He couldn’t bring her here, yet. Not until the town accepted him first.
A heavy sigh left his chest. The burden of undoing what his father had done lay heavy on his soul. It ate away at Max day and night. He could barely stand being in the house with all the gaudy, over priced furniture.
“Max?”
Hannah’s gentle touch stirred him from those terrible thoughts. He turned to her to find her staring at his hands, which were crushing his hat into a ball. He let go, not realizing what he had been doing.
“I’m taking your wife to the kitchen for some refreshments and to show her around. You, young man, have some messages to attend to. Mr. Youngston was here earlier. I left them on your desk.” Marni shuffled Hannah through the door to the kitchen, talking away and moving her hands back and forth like she was putting out a fire.
“Yes, Marni.” He turned away from the ladies and worked his way to his study, where he found a pile of paperwork dead in the center of the large intricately carved wooden desk. Max took off his jacket, opened the two top buttons of his shirt and rolled up his sleeves. This was going to be a long night of reading documents signed by his father. The deals he made with others were all crooked and the offers were meant to benefit Ward Ranch and not the recipient.
Max read a few, disgusted, then tossed them on the desk. He leaned back in the padded chair, closing his eyes. Bryon Ward had been a jerk. The way he had manipulated every single person he made a deal with was too overwhelming. Max’s brain hurt thinking about how to make it all right with every single person who had dealings with him. Several townsfolk were about to lose their homes because the interest rate his father charged was outrageous. No working man could keep up with those payments.
“A penny for your thoughts?” Her gentle voice softly caressed his overburdened ears. He sucked in a deep breath, turning towards the angelic voice. She stood at the door, a cup in her hand, looking nervous.
“Come in, take a seat.”
Hannah set the cup down in front of him. She took a step back.
“Please, sit for awhile,” he offered, his hand pointing towards the chair opposite the desk. She did.
“This house is quite the show place,” she told him in a soft voice as though she didn’t want to disturb the quiet in the room.
“This house is ridiculous. It’s filled with items no one would ever use or need. I’ve a mind to sell the whole lot.”
“I’m afraid I’m in agreement with you, Max.” Her soft spoken voice when she said his name made his gut tighten. He was starting to like Hannah. She was so beautiful with dark, almost black, silky hair and flawless skin, a perky nose and those eyes, they looked at him as if he were the only person in the world she wanted to talk to. When they were at Jenna’s earlier, she had paid attention to his words as if he were the only patron in the restaurant. As if he were the only man she ever had an interest in.
He had to get rid of these thoughts. This was a business arrangement, made by him. He couldn’t change the rules now. Not until he made a place in this town where people didn’t hate the name Ward. “I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks my father had terrible taste in furniture.”
“Those drapes look like they belong in a museum in New York City.”
Max grinned.
Hannah smiled.
Max’s gut tightened again.
“And those gaudy statues of women on the table against the wall,” she mentioned, laughter in her voice.
“Have you seen the ones in your bedroom suite?” His brow rose, knowing she was in for a surpr
ise when she went upstairs. His father had bad taste in art, even though he would never judge a piece of art, but this whole place, filled with so much, was too much for one man.
“I’m afraid I may faint if it is anything like these,” she joked.
“Perhaps I should escort you to your suite then, to catch you if you fall.” Why did he say that? Her sudden ghastly look told him he went too far. Or, was it fear? He leaned closer. Yes, it was fear. He had to reassure her he would not overstep his boundaries. “A mere joke, Hannah. Please, I like when you smile.”
She did then, relief showing in those dark eyes.
There was something deep in her eyes that told of secrets held there. What was she afraid of, a man’s touch? By rights, they were married, he could attend to her in the bedroom if he so wished. But he had made a contract with his bride, a business arrangement and he was not one to go against his word. “My word is my honor,” he told her, his own dark eyes staring in to hers.
“I trust you.” Those three words knocked him for a loop. She was one of two people in the surrounding area who did. Everyone else thought he was going to be like his father. “Sadly, you and Marni are the only two people right now who do.”
She reached across the desk, taking his hand. The softness of her fingers against his made him so aware of her. “Then it’s time we begin to change that, Mr. Ward. I’m happy to help and I think I may know how.”
“How?”
“Well, as I sit here realizing we both hate all this furniture and art, why not replace it with what we like?”
“We could do that, yes.” He still didn’t get what she was trying to say.
“We need to go back to the town of Wichita Falls and find out what they need the most. A school? A library, museum? I see they have a church so that’s out. What is it the town needs the most? When we find out, we’ll have an auction, sell all this stuff and buy the town that very thing.”
He grinned. “You, Mrs. Ward, are brilliant. We’ll go first thing in the morning. Care to take a stroll outside before we retire?” He stood and held out his arm.
