Meant To Be

by Ruth Ann Nordin

  Esther pointed to the marshal. “Send for the preacher at once.”

  “Preacher?”

  The question, asked by both him and Megan, echoed in the still room, waking the drunk who snorted and sat up, rubbing his round tummy.

  Ted ignored him. He turned back to the sisters. “Are you talking about marriage?”

  Marshal Thomas made his way to the door, off to do his wife’s bidding.

  Marriage? Now? To…Megan? Whoever Megan was.

  Esther gave a curt nod and straightened her blue hat. “Of course. It is only proper.”

  He shook his head. “No way! There’s no way I’m going to marry her!” What if she turned out to be another Amanda? Needy and too agreeable. He couldn’t commit himself to someone like that.

  Megan glared at him, as if he’d just paid her a tremendous insult. “I’m already engaged, thank you very much.” Looking back at the sisters, she straightened her back and lifted her chin. “I’m not marrying him. My mother will never approve of his kind.”

  He frowned and wrapped a hand on the bar next to him. “What do you mean, ‘my kind’?”

  The drunk stood up and stretched, his vocal yawn blocking half of her response, which Ted figured had to be condescending by the way her eyes swept up and down his body as if he just walked out of a garbage heap.

  “What?” he demanded once the drunk grew silent.

  “I’m not repeating myself,” she snapped.

  Miriam brought her hand to her cheek, looking startled. “This isn’t good. We can’t have the bride and groom arguing. The preacher won’t like that at all.”

  Esther shook her head at her sister. “What else can we expect? He wanted to use her body, not marry her. Naturally, he’d protest. But,” she turned her piercing eyes in his direction, “it’s time we cleaned up the filth in this city. Fargo has more than enough prostitutes and customers. What we need are more men and women coming together in the bonds of holy matrimony. It’s time we got back to what made this nation great! The husband and wife. The family unit.”

  “But we weren’t having sex,” Megan protested, her hands on her hips.

  Esther’s face softened as she looked at Megan. “Then it’s fortunate for you that we stopped him before he took your virginity.”

  He couldn’t believe his ears. Of course, they would assume he instigated the whole thing. “I wasn’t going to have sex with her. I don’t even know her. She followed me off the train.”

  The drunk snorted.

  A glance over his shoulder showed Ted that the drunk didn’t believe him either.

  “I wasn’t chasing you,” Megan snapped at him.

  Ted’s hand squeezed the bar. “I didn’t say you were. I said you followed me off the train.”

  “To find out where we were, not to follow you.”

  “Right. Because you would never be seen with my kind.” Whatever that snide remark meant.

  She shrugged. “It’s nothing personal. It’s just that my mother would never approve.”

  He huffed, liking her less and less the more she talked.

  Esther folded her hands in front of her waist and took a deep breath. “Regardless, you two must marry.”

  “Over my dead body,” he argued.

  “I’ll marry her,” the drunk intervened.

  Megan shuddered and backed away from him as he stumbled to the bars separating their cells.

  Ted got a cruel sense of satisfaction in watching her squirm. It served her right after she put him down. In fact, it would do her good to know that other men out there came even lower on the ‘ideal man’ scale than he did. “You know, that’s not a bad idea. Since she’s still a virgin”--he rolled his eyes--“then it doesn’t matter who she makes miserable for the rest of her life.”

  Megan gasped. “Are you implying I’m not a virgin?”

  “With the way you’re dressed?”

  Esther and Miriam gave solemn nods to each other, probably agreeing with his statement, and he crossed his arms, feeling better after the way she put him down.

  The drunk burped. “I don’t mind marrying a used woman. As long as she can cook and clean.” He peered at her through his puffy red eyes. “You do cook and clean, don’t you?”

  She jutted her chin out and inhaled, an action which pronounced her already generous breasts, an action which also drew Ted’s attention, despite his sudden dislike of her. She might be an uppity princess, but she was a very good looking one.

  “No,” she said, her tone firm. “I don’t know how to cook or clean.”

  The drunk’s eyes remained on her bosom. “I don’t mind. I’ll marry you anyway.”

  Ted just bet he’d marry her anyway! The way the sloppy and dirty man drooled over her had him reconsidering her fate. Could he really condemn her to a life with such a creepy guy?

  Miriam clapped her hands together. “Now listen here!”

  Startled, Ted did as she ordered. The others obeyed as well.

  Miriam pointed a bony finger in Ted’s direction. “You will marry her. It’s time you owned up to your responsibilities, mister. Women are not objects. They are human beings. We are God fearing women who will not tolerate any mistreatment. Now, when that preacher comes, you’ll do right by her.” Then she stormed up to Megan and stuck her hand through the bars so she could point that same accusing finger in Megan’s startled face. “And you will marry him. Just because he doesn’t come from money, it doesn’t mean you’ll disgrace your mother. You’ve already disgraced her when you went in public without clothes on.”

  Ted’s face grew red. So that’s what Megan meant when she said she wouldn’t marry his kind. What a snob! Before he could tell little Miss Perfect what he thought of her, the jailhouse door opened and the marshal led an older man into the small building. The older man carried a Bible in his hand and had a big grin on his face. As if this was a happy occasion!

  Marshal Thomas motioned to the preacher. “This is Alex Miller. Alex, these two are here to get hitched.”

  “Oh no, we’re not.” Ted ignored Miriam’s pointy finger which she shoved in his face. “I’ve done nothing with that woman, nor do I have any desire to. So if you’ll let me go-”

  “Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join this man and woman in holy matrimony.”

  Ted’s jaw dropped as the preacher began the ceremony without even flinching. He couldn’t be serious! “Like I was saying,” he yelled over the preacher.

  Megan picked up the tin can from the floor and banged it on the bars, shouting, “No. I do not!”

  And yet, the preacher continued, as if he hadn’t heard a single word of their fervent protests. Ted grabbed the bars and shook them, knowing the bars wouldn’t give but attempting to escape anyway. When the preacher reached the point asking him if he’d take Megan to be his wife, he emphatically said, “No!”

  Preacher Miller turned to Megan and asked her if she’d take him to be her husband. Panicking and angry, Ted tried to grab the Bible out of the preacher’s hand but the older man swiftly dodged Ted’s outstretched arm. Curse the bars that imprisoned him! If he could yank the preacher and knock him off his feet, he’d prevent this catastrophe from happening.

  But it wasn’t meant to be.

  The preacher smiled, pronounced them man and wife and had the marshal and Esther sign the document. Ted and Megan stared in silence as the couple wrote their names on the white piece of paper resting on the marshal’s messy desk.

  Finally, Ted found his voice. “This isn’t legal! That document doesn’t bind me to…” he motioned to the outraged blond “…to her.”

  “My name is Megan Crane.”

  He shrugged and rolled his eyes. Like he cared!

  “You are married,” the preacher said, returning to them.

  Megan blanched. “No, we’re not. We never agreed to it.” Then she growled.

  Ted couldn’t believe his ears. The woman actually growled! Good grief! She was no better than a rapid dog. Ted could not,
in any circumstance, live with a vicious, snooty woman, no matter how attractive she appeared with her golden waves in disarray as she vehemently shook her head and stomped around her cell. Maybe she was more like a hungry bear that just woke up after a long winter’s slumber. If someone let her loose, she might start tearing into anyone who got in her way.

  The preacher, however, seemed unconcerned by her rebellious display. “Sure, you married under protest, but you are married before God and man.”

  Ted huffed. Why should the preacher care? He wasn’t chained to her for the rest of his life! Ted’s future of endless suffering loomed before him. Tears did not come easily to him, but he had to choke back a sob on this event.

  Esther’s lips formed a thin line and she shook her head in grave disapproval. “The more I hear, the worse this gets. It’s a good thing we’re making you two do right.”

  Ted groaned and jerked his thumb toward Megan who banged the tin cup on the bars. “Look at her! She’s a monster! You can’t confine me to that.” He might be six-feet-two-inches tall and she might be five-feet-six, but she was beginning to scare him with her erratic behavior.

  The preacher sighed. “You should have thought of that before you took away her innocence. Now, what’s your name?”

  “I’m not a monster,” Megan protested. “I’m trying to get out of here.”

  “By banging a cup on the bars?” Ted asked.

  She stopped and inspected the dented cup in her hand. She grunted and tossed the cup aside, letting it fall in a series of clanks as it rolled on the floor. Then she stomped over to the cot, plopped down on it and buried her face in her hands.

  “Your name?” the preacher softly asked.

  Ted sighed, knowing he’d lost the battle. “Ted Jacob.”

  She lifted her head. “As in Jacob Innovative Creations?”

  He bit back a sarcastic reply. Oh, so now that she thought he was somebody important, she found a reason to be civil to him. He smiled, enjoying the moment where he’d pop her bubble of hope. “You’d really like that, wouldn’t you? To be married to one of the country’s richest men. Well, this isn’t your day, sweetheart. I am not related to Christian Jacob. The last name is a coincidence. I’m a computer software representative. That means I work in a small cubicle with a million other people. I guess fate played a sick joke on you, huh?”

  Her nose wrinkled. “I don’t care either way. It was a question. Nothing more.”

  “Right.” Like he believed that one.

  “What’s a computer soft…” Miriam shook her head. “What’s your job again?”

  He caught himself before he repeated his job title. Computers and software programs had no place in this time period. “Never mind.”

  The marshal fingered his gun and studied him. “You are an odd one. I’m not sure what to do with you.”

  Ted’s gaze drifted to the man’s thumb as it caressed the butt of his Colt 45. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he wondered what he said that irritated the marshal.

  The preacher slapped the marshal on the back. “It’s taken care of, Thomas. We’ve done right and made them an honest couple.”

  The marshal relaxed.

  Ted felt the tension leave his muscles. Marshal Thomas didn’t like him, and he probably didn’t like Megan either. They were different. The marshal picked up on that and had a healthy dose of skepticism.

  The preacher beamed at Ted and Megan. “Since this is your wedding day, we’ll let you go. Where do you live?”

  Ted stayed still, knowing very well that he couldn’t say he lived in the future.

  “Nowhere,” Megan blurted out, finally standing up.

  The drunk, who had been silent the whole time, spoke up. “You can stay at my place.”

  She skirted away from him.

  “No doing, Hal,” the marshal said in a low voice.

  Hal pouted but didn’t protest.

  “In that case,” the preacher began, his round face looking jubilant at the news, “I have the perfect place in mind for a newly married couple.”

  Oh no. Ted grimaced. Whatever the man had planned, it couldn’t be good.

  Chapter Four

  Cole’s breaths came short and quick as he leapt off the train. The rush of hot air blasted his body in the freefall. He saw the ground coming before he slammed into the tall grass. Tucking the travel device to his chest, he cushioned it as he tumbled down the hill. He grunted from the impact of jabbing rocks and thick twigs that punctured his clothes. Gravity pulled him further down and he rolled with the carefree abandon he’d long since given up in childhood.

  Did Blake follow?

  The question haunted him, though he couldn’t check. The world spun fast around him in shades of yellow, blue, and green. When he finally stopped, he laid still for a moment, willing the dizziness to pass. He closed his eyes and listened for sounds of someone nearby. Birds chirped and the wind ruffled the tall grass. No footsteps. No breathing except his own.

  Opening his eyes, he lifted his head, noting the green grass. The sunlight beat down on him, making him squint. Tentative, he pushed himself up, his body protesting from the bruises already forming on his skin. No matter. He’d tend to his wounds later. Right now he had to verify that Blake hadn’t followed him off the train.

  His eyes traced the incline of the gentle slope. The train tracks ran parallel to the river behind him. He sighed with relief. He was alone. Pulling out his time travel device, he checked to make sure he hadn’t damaged it in the fall.

  “Yes!”

  Then he frowned.

  “No.”

  He didn’t have the chip that made the actual traveling part of time travel possible. Everything else supported it. Where could that chip be? His eyes swept the tall grass that swayed in the breeze. Wow. It could be anywhere.

  Then he recalled the energy signature and did a quick scan for the half-inch round chip. He blinked and banged the instrument, immediately sorry he did so since it meant he could damage the device. This was no toy, and he had no desire to remain in the same time period where Blake could track him down and drag him back to Christian Jacob and the cops.

  Calming his racing heart, he punched the miniature keypad until the electronic signature told him that the chip he needed was in Fargo, North Dakota. He gritted his teeth. He had to find out how far he was from that city. Sighing, he tucked the device into his pocket and started his ascent up the hill. He’d follow the train tracks until he reached the next town. Then he could find out where he was and what year he’d accidentally entered when Blake tackled him on the train. When he retrieved the chip, he’d be able to go to any time he wanted…and stay there for the rest of his life.

  ***

  Miriam and Esther seemed especially pleased with themselves as they showed Megan and Ted the two bedroom house that Old Milly Madison had up for rent.

  “It’s got a pump right here in the kitchen,” Miriam said as she walked over to the sink. She pumped the handle and clear water poured into the sink. “It’s easy to use too, not like mine. Mine sticks every so often when I try to get the handle back up.”

  “We’ll have to take care of that.” Esther nodded and motioned to Megan and Ted who stood still, silently watching as the sisters enthusiastically showed them the kitchen. “Come on.”

  Since Ted didn’t budge, Megan sighed and obliged the poor woman. After all, Esther was being friendly. The small window overlooked the backyard. Before Megan could take adequate inventory of the acreage, Esther grabbed her hand.

  “And look at this cookstove! It’s only five years old,” she rambled, her face flushed and her chubby hands opening the small door.

  Megan bent down and frowned. Exactly how did a woman work this thing? And what exactly was she looking at?

  Esther opened the smaller door next to it. “The wonderful thing is that you can put wood chips or coal in here.”

  Megan bit back the shiver of panic that coursed through her. These women couldn’t expect her t
o cook food with this…antique contraption. She stood up and glanced from one expectant face to another. What did they want her to say?

  “Oh good, Meg,” Ted spoke up, “it’s what you always wanted! Too bad there’s not the servant to go with it.”

  She pierced him a dirty look. What was his problem anyway?

  “Now, now,” Esther soothed, patting Megan on the arm. She nodded in Ted’s direction. “You are the head of the household. That means you are to treat her with respect. I know it’s difficult for a man of your reputation to be respectful to women of her reputation, but for now on, you are going to do the Christian thing.”

  “Oh,” Miriam clapped her hands, directing their attention to her. “That reminds me. Church is at ten, and then you will come over to my house for lunch.”

  Esther nodded. “She lives with our parents. It’ll be a good chance for you to meet them.” She paused and glanced at the ceiling, as if thinking of something. Then she continued, “I’ll come by at nine to take you both to church. Then you’ll know where it is in the future.”

  Future. Megan wished she could go back there. No. She would go back there. It was just a matter of when…and how.

  Miriam motioned to the cupboard and the shelves. “I’ll bring over some dishes and cups. We’ll say it’s your wedding gift.”

  There was that word again. Wedding. Sure, she wanted to get married, but not like this! And not to him. She glanced at Ted who checked out the sparse parlor with two wooden rocking chairs and a big window overlooking the large yard. He placed his face in his hands and groaned.

  She knew the feeling. Returning her attention to Miriam and Esther who led her up the narrow staircase where the two bedrooms were, she noted the bed in each room. Thank goodness because she had no intention of sleeping with Ted! She sighed. Well, for the time being, she’d make the best of it. What else could she do?