by Cyndi Raye
As she placed her fingers over his muscled forearm, he felt the tightening again. Was Max going to be able to keep his hands to himself?
“We’ll make great business partners, Max.” Her words were like a splash of cold water in his face.
He opened the front door for her. “Great ones,” he told her, wondering what he had gotten himself in to.
Chapter 4
“He left you a note,” Marni told her when she sat at the breakfast table. Hannah had taken a stroll around the property with Max last night, a half moon and clear sky with thousands of sparkling stars lighting their path. It was romantic to say the least, but they weren’t having a romantic moment. They were business partners and Max had made that clear. Except he kept touching her hand whenever he spoke to her and once he pushed a strand of fly-a-way hair from her cheek, letting his fingers linger there for a brief second.
“Thank you.” She took the note and opened it. Hannah, I’m sorry I can’t take you in to Wichita Falls this morning. There is a problem on the ranch I have to attend to. Once it is taken care of, we can arrange to do this another day. Your business partner (grin), Max, P.S. I had a nice time on our stroll. It was so relaxing I fell right to sleep. Haven’t done that since I got here.
Thank you.
Please turn around.
She turned to find a vase filled with daisies on the table by the small window that looked out over one of the gardens. Hannah rose out of her chair. “What did he do, buy these for me?” No one ever bought her anything, not since her mama died. That seemed like ages ago.
Marni stood beside her. “He picked them for you. I saw him barefoot out in the garden early this morning. Don’t tell him I said so.”
A swell of pride at the image of Max out in the gardens picking her flowers filled her head. “That is so darling.”
“He won’t feel so darling when Georgie finds out someone was trampling about in his flower gardens. But I ain’t gonna squeal on my boss.” Marni laughed, her eyes filled with the love she had for Max.
Hannah was beginning to feel so much affection for this woman. “You care about him very much, don’t you, Marni?”
“Let’s sit and have some breakfast and I’ll tell you all about him, from the time he was a little lad up until he left here for good.
<><>
Hannah had decided Max had way too much going on at the ranch so she asked Marni if there was anyone else who could take her to Wichita Falls. Georgie, the gardener, knew how to drive a buck board and said he needed to go get some more flower seeds and could do it right after lunch.
The ride was bumpy. She sat alongside Georgie on the wooden bench, who didn’t speak much. He was much older than anyone she had ever known, with fine wrinkles dotting his entire face. His skin was tanned from spending endless hours in the gardens. The older man was tense and quiet, so she left him alone.
She let her thoughts drift to Max. He was so adamant about clearing his last name and she didn’t blame him one bit. As his wife, it was her duty to help, because that’s what this business arrangement was all about. Hannah never did anything half-way. She’d give her all and help him clear the Ward name. Perhaps things weren’t all that bad and Max just needed to be nicer to the townsfolk.
The first stop she made was to the mercantile. Several folks were in the store. After she entered, the room fell silent where a few seconds ago she had heard talking and laughing. Was this what Max heard whenever he walked into a public area?
Riff-raff was mumbled by an older patron who grabbed her sack off the counter and marched out the door. The tinkling of bells above seemed so loud in the quiet store.
Hannah placed her chin in the air, turned to the man behind the counter and smiled, although it was a forced one. She would not let them bring her down. If she could face her step-father each day then this would be a breeze. “I would like to purchase some material.”
“I’m out of here, have a good one, Jim,” another patron mumbled. He steered clear of Hannah and stared as if she were a boil on his nose.
Hannah opened her mouth to tell him what she thought and then clamped down. Angry words would get her nowhere. She turned back to the store owner. “Jim, is it?”
“It’s Mr. Wheeler to you,” he said, his voice gruff. “Make it quick, I’m off to pick up some supplies at the train depot.”
Hannah knew it was a lie. She had an itinerary in her reticule of when the train ran for the next few weeks. She had picked one up when she got here, in case things hadn’t worked out with Max and she had to leave here in a hurry. She wasn’t a fool. She didn’t know what to expect when she got here to Wichita Falls and Hannah always tried to be prepared.
She got to thinking it was better to be sweet and nice than to tell him she knew he lied. “I would like a few yards of material there,” she pointed.
The mercantile owner cut the material and rolled it, tied a string around the middle and took his good old time. Hannah found herself tapping her toe on the floor waiting. His claim of being in a hurry was another attempt to scare her off.
When he finished and told her the price, she gasped. “That’s robbery!”
“It’s my store. I can charge whatever I want to.” A smirk crossed the man’s face. He was being obnoxious and didn’t try to hide it.
Digging in her reticule, she counted out her money. “Mr. Wheeler, I don’t have enough, it seems.” She hadn’t thought it would cost so much for some material to make curtains. This was deliberate because of who she was married to.
“Well, then, guess you can’t buy the material, Mrs. Ward.” He spat out the last name like it was poison on his tongue.
“Do you have a tab in Mr. Wards name I can place it on?”
The older man laughed out loud but it wasn’t pleasant at all. “A tab! Not on your life, missy! Now, go on, take yourself out of my store.”
“But, but I need decent curtains,” she protested.
“Go on now, closing up. You take yourself right out of here before I have to get mean.”
Offended, Hannah stared at the man, shocked at his behavior. She pulled her shoulders back, pursed her lips and turned her back on him. “It would serve you right if you had some competition here. Maybe another mercantile to bring your prices down.”
He grunted. “No one would buy anything from a Ward owned store.”
Hannah had never been treated so badly. She came out of the mercantile with empty hands. Her sole purpose was to buy some material to replace those heavy, awful curtains in the house.
The next two stops were a repeat of the mercantile. Hannah was determined not to let the townsfolk’s attitude get the best of her. She stopped in at Jenna’s for some tea but found the same young girl serving again. The one that treated Max so badly during their dinner last night. Hannah waited over ten minutes to be seated. Finally, she marched to the first available table and sat down, daring the young server to say a word. Eyes flashing, she set her reticule on the table, her back straight and watched the girl. Another twenty minutes went by while the girl served other customers, who avoided Hannah as well. No customer in the restaurant would acknowledge her.
The term riff-raff was starting to grate on her nerves. Whispering it as they passed by Hannah’s table forced her to keep her head down, quietly reading the menu that she had almost memorized. She would not shed a tear, not over a bunch of small-minded people.
“Well, hello, may I help you?”
Relief went through her as she looked up to see the beautiful Jenna at her table. “Thank you,” was all she could muster.
Jenna stared at a few of her customers before pulling the chair across from Hannah and sitting down. “Do you mind?” she asked Hannah.
“Not at all. It must be very lonely for Max. These people are terrible.”
“I agree.”
The moment Jenna sat down the young girl was at the table.
“Sallie Mae,” Hannah acknowledged. “May I please have a cup of coffee?”
“Yes, ma’am,” she said, her voice sweet, her button nose no longer up in the air.
“Jenna, would you care for anything?”
“Yes, bring me a cup and a plate of pastries. My new friend and I have lots to talk about.”
Before Hannah realized what happened two cups of coffee with all the makings and a plate of delicious looking pastries were placed on the linen tablecloth.
Jenna placed her elbows on the table. “It seems I heard rumors that Jim Wheeler wanted to overcharge for some material, is that right?”
She nodded. “How did you find out so fast?”
Jenna laughed out loud. “Within five minutes of you walking in to that store, the whole town knew you were there. Word travels fast here. If I may suggest something, I would propose you stop by the newspaper and ask for a copy of the weekly news. Go through the advertisements until you find the one to order you a Sears Catalog. You can buy whatever you want and have it shipped on the rail road. Jim Wheeler has one but I doubt he’ll let you use his.”
“Thank you. I doubt I’ll ever go back in that store again. It’s like being in the middle of a robbery what he charges!” Jenna laughed, her sweet smile helping Hannah to relax. “I didn’t think it would be so difficult. I left the mercantile and stopped by the little shop to buy some tea for Marni, our cook. But the Chinese lady pretended she didn’t speak English and refused to wait on me.”
“I know, I heard that, too.”
Hannah shook her head. “You obviously hear it all, don’t you, Jenna?”
Jenna nodded. “Everyone eats here sometime or other. I can hear everything going on when I’m in the back cooking. I’m sorry you and your husband are being treated poorly. Don’t give up, people have a tendency to forgive and forget sooner or later.”
“I have to do something to help him.”
Jenna drew a pastry from the plate and took a small bite. Placing the napkin over her mouth, she dabbed it along the corners. “I’m afraid that may take some time, but don’t fret, when they see you are not here to hurt them, they will change their minds.”
“Max and I both plan to turn things around. He was saying how he hated all the glitz and glamour his father acquired. Awful furniture and paintings cover his house from floor to ceiling. I suggested to Max we should sell every single piece of furniture and start over.”
Jenna set her cup down. “That’s a great idea. It may turn some people here to another way of thinking.”
Hannah bit her bottom lip. “As I was walking today I didn’t see a school. Does Wichita Falls have a school?”
“No. Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Jenna took Hannah’s hand and squeezed.
“Yes. We’ll have a big auction and all the proceeds can go to building a school, even if we have to add some of the Ward money afterwards.”
“We’re going to need a school teacher.”
“Oh, I didn’t think that far ahead.”
“No worries. We can advertise for one. I’m sure there will be many applicants. What teacher wouldn’t want a brand new school to run?”
“Perfect.” Hannah stood up. “I’ll run this all by Max this evening.”
Jenna stood and gave Hannah a hug. “Keep me informed. I’ll do all I can to help.”
“You are a nice friend, Jenna. Thank you for welcoming me to Wichita Falls. Unlike some others here.” She had to say it, she was tired of people staring at her back.
Jenna whispered in her ear. “You tell ‘em, Hannah. Don’t put up with their nonsense.”
Hannah was smiling as she made her way to the buck board. Georgie was waiting patiently, his eyes closed, arms crossed as if napping. When he she appeared, his eyes opened. He started getting down from the buck board so he could help her up.
A horse and rider came flying out of nowhere while Hannah was crossing. It didn’t slow down but swerved around her, causing her to stumble. Startled, she tumbled head first on to the dirty street, her face crashing against the ground. She had tried to put out her hands for protection but failed. Her right arm hit the ground as a searing pain shot clean through, all the way up to her shoulder. Hannah cried out.
“Mrs. Ward!” Georgie yelled, scrambling faster than a man his age should. He bent down in the middle of the street to help her up, crooning like a mother hen. “Come now, misses. Let’s get you in the wagon.”
Hannah felt as if a herd of cattle trampled over top of her. With shaky knees, Georgie helped her across the rest of the street. He made her sit in the back of the wagon where she could stretch out her legs and lean against the side. Then he placed a small lap blanket over her knees. “Now you sit right there. I’m getting you back to the ranch.”
Georgie was careful to take off slowly. Hannah was glad. Each bump took a toll on her body, the pain from falling shooting through every inch. As she glanced out across the street, men and women both mingled on front porches, watching. Not one person offered any help. The horse and rider had stopped at the saloon, slid off his horse and stumbled through the front door. She took it all in like a free play she had the chance to watch in New York City’s park a long time ago.
Hannah wanted to raise her fist and shake it at the townsfolk. Refraining from doing so, she raised her good arm to swipe loose hair from her brow. Her hair had fallen out of the pins, which were lying in the street somewhere. Dark hair, almost black, tumbled down her back, flowing over the back of the buck board in silky waves. She leaned her head back, closing tired eyes. How in the world would she turn things around when all the town wanted to do was punish them for the sins of the father? It was going to be a struggle and a fight to win these townsfolk over. They were a tough lot.
<><>
Max nudged the stallion forward. Finishing earlier than expected, he came back to take Hannah to town but found out she had already headed there with Georgie. Little did she know the townsfolk were not going to be receptive. They would treat her as bad if not worse than they treated him, knowing she was the wife of the dreaded Mr. Ward.
Max knew she didn’t realize how people were here. He didn’t blame her for wanting to go to town but he had to warn her, make sure she was ok. His brow formed beads of sweat as he worked the horse faster to get to Wichita Falls.
When he saw the buck board in the distance, relief washed over him. That was a short trip, he thought, then squinted his eyes when he noticed Georgie was alone. Where was Hannah?
“Come on, git,” he ordered the horse, digging his heels in a little harder. She immediately obeyed, rushing towards the wagon like her tail was on fire.
When Georgie saw the rider, he slowed down and waved. “Mr. Ward! Mr. Ward!”
That’s when Max spotted the long mane of waves flowing like a river from the wagon. A gut-wrenching fear caught him off-guard. He pulled on the reins, jumping off the horse before it stopped completely and ran towards her. “Hannah!”
She turned towards his voice, her eyes fluttering open. Max jumped in the back of the wagon, falling to his knees. He took her face in his hands. “What happened?”
Georgie ranted on, spilling words out so fast it was hard to keep up. “Some careless rider came barrelling down the street while she was crossing. She began crossing the street and I no more ‘n jumped down to help Mrs. Ward when the rider practically knocked her over.”
“Who was the rider?”
“Don’t know, sir. The man went in to the saloon. Never stopped or made any apologies.”
Max fumed. The whole side of her face was bruised and turning purple from the fall. She held her forearm with one hand and winced when he began to push on her shoulder to see if there was any broken bones. “Hannah, I’m going to get you to a doctor. Georgie, take my horse and go get the doc. Tell him I’ll pay him triple to come out right now.” The older man did as he was told, hesitating at first before he climbed on the stallion. After several minutes, Georgie got control of the big boy and took off in to town like a man on a mission.
Max took his place on
the wooden seat, making sure Hannah was as comfortable as possible. “I’ll get you back to the house, darling. Hang on.”
His insides were doing flips as they made their way to the main house. Max hadn’t realized what seeing her hurt would feel like. He thought he no longer had any emotions left. He was wrong. Within such a short timing of knowing her, he wanted to protect this woman who traveled all this way to find a new life.
Emotions tugged at Max like nobody’s business. He would find out who hurt her and make them pay one way or another.
Chapter 5
Marni came running from the house the moment the buck board came to a halt, her hand favoring her hip. “What happened?”
Max lifted Hannah up. “She’s hurt. Someone tried to run her over.”
Hannah moaned softly when he took her in his arms and began to carry her inside. Max brushed his lips across her hair, pressing softly. “Everything is fine now, Hannah. Your home.”
Marni followed behind, ordering Mary to get some water boiling. He carried her to her suite and placed her body gently on her bed after Marni rolled down the cover. Max sat on the edge of the bed holding her hand.
“I’m fine,” she whispered, exhaustion evident in her voice.
Max brought her hand to his mouth. He held her sweet skin there for a moment until Mary came through the door with a bowl of warm water and some clean rags. Dipping one cloth in the water, Marni blotted it on her cheeks. She winced.
“Let me do that,” Max ordered. “Marni, can you go wait for the doctor. He should be coming along shortly.”
Mary stood by Max watching as he carefully squeezed the cloth again, cleaning her face, erasing the dust from the street.
“That feels nice,” Hannah whispered, her voice barely audible. She blinked several times. “I’m sorry, Max.”
The cloth stilled against her cheek. “What are you sorry for, Hannah? It isn’t your fault someone else was so careless.”
