Touched by Time

by Zoe Matthews

  “I wonder why she is suddenly interested in being a mail-order bride,” Victoria wondered out loud.

  “I don’t think she is, ma’am.”

  “What do you mean?” Victoria was curious as to how Collins knew this.

  “When I traveled into the future to talk with her last week, she told me she was interested. I was suspicious.”

  Victoria looked at him in surprise. “Suspicious about what?”

  “I think she is expressing interest because she wants to see Kimberly. I don’t think she really wants to be a mail-order bride.”

  “Oh,” Victoria waved her hand at his words. “I need to take her at her word. Although I really didn’t want to have another bride from the future, at least at this time.”

  Collins took a few steps away from her. “I don’t think it would be wise to encourage her interest, but the choice is yours. There is something I must finish.” Collins quickly left, without waiting for Victoria to dismiss him.

  Victoria didn’t understand what had just happened. She thought they were both discussing a fairly simple matter, and she wanted to make sure Nicky wasn't dismissed because of past actions. When she thought back on the last few sentences said between Collins and her, she realized she hadn't even considered his opinion.

  She regretted the action. She had noticed a bond starting to grow between them; one they hadn't ever experienced during his entire employment. He was starting to become her friend. She cherished it. Since her husband had passed, she had started to grow lonely. She always had her staff around, but they never relaxed around her. When Collins had started to treat her more kindly, and less formally, it had started to fill a hole in her life. She hoped that this past conversation wouldn't push him back to his formal ways.

  Victoria made a mental note to talk to Collins about it later, and put the letter aside. She noticed there was another piece of paper in the envelope Nicky had sent. When she removed it, she saw that it was a sealed letter addressed to Kimberly. Maybe Collins was right. Did Nicky mail her a letter, pretending to answer the ad when she really just wanted to get another letter to Kimberly?

  Chapter 27

  The ride to Denver wasn’t as bad as the trip she took to the ranch almost a month before. They stopped and rested twice. Patrick told her the stops were for Colleen, but Kimberly was grateful for the breaks just the same. She loved riding the trail along the river. The sound of the stream had become a rhythmic comfort to her. It helped ease the stress of what she and Patrick were going through. The brush started out fairly thick, but eventually evened out as it became evident the trail was used more frequently. If she kept her eyes open, she could also see various types of wildlife. The deer were majestic and calm, the squirrels and rabbits were busy, and never held still. Both would scurry away as soon as they heard Colleen’s constant chatter. Eventually, the trail left the river as it headed towards the city. Soon they left the forest and the mountains and were riding down one of the main streets of Denver.

  Patrick sent Shaun to the nearest hotel to reserve two rooms for the family. Then he and Kimberly went to Victoria’s home. Kimberly silently wished he had given her a minute to freshen up; she felt a layer of grit and dirt covering her face and arms from the ride to Denver. But, she was also glad he was so anxious to get Victoria's opinion.

  Kimberly was amazed that Victoria’s home looked just like it did in her time, although there were a few differences. The paint was just a slightly different shade; it was a fresher coat of paint, so it was a bit more vibrant. It was clear the tools they used to upkeep the lawn could not trim the lawn as evenly as the mowers they had in her time, and the grass was not edged, giving it a rougher look than grass back in 2005 normally was. She could see that Victoria’s home would probably be considered a historical home in her time.

  Patrick tied both of their horses to a nearby post and knocked on the door. Collins answered, looking surprised that they were there standing on the porch. “Hello,” he greeted them. “Would you like to come in?”

  Kimberly and Patrick stepped into the entryway. Kimberly saw the same marble table she had seen in her time with an arrangement of flowers on top of it. They heard footsteps and she turned, seeing Victoria walking towards them. She was dressed exactly the way she had been when she first met her in her time. It was good to see her. It was nice to be around someone who had known her in her own time.

  “Welcome, Kimberly and Patrick,” Victoria greeted them. “I was just thinking today that the 30 days were up. I am assuming since you are both here, that you have good news to tell me?”

  Kimberly looked at Patrick. “Well…”

  Victoria interrupted them. “We can talk about it in a few minutes. How long will you be in Denver?”

  “My entire family is here,” Patrick explained.

  “They are? Well, invite them in, Collins,” Victoria said, turning to the butler who was standing nearby.

  “They went to get rooms at a hotel,” Patrick said.

  “Oh, you don’t need to do that,” Victoria argued. “I have plenty of room in this house. Why don’t you and your family stay here?”

  Kimberly expected Patrick to turn down Victoria’s request, but he smiled as if in relief.

  “I think I will take you up on your offer.” He turned to Kimberly. “I am going to go catch up with Shaun before he pays for the rooms at the hotel.”

  Kimberly nodded her agreement and watched as Patrick left the room. Her heart skipped a beat as he left. It was if she was noticing him for the first time. She had dated a few men in her time, but she had never been attracted to anyone like she was to Patrick. He carried himself like a man; but also showed some grace when he walked. It was obvious to anyone who saw him that he took pride in his lifestyle. He was always wearing his riding pants, and a neatly pressed, sturdy button-up shirt. He kept his long hair combed out of his face, showing a hint of ruggedness without being sloppy. Somehow, while carrying all of that masculinity, he was still able to be perfectly courteous and gentlemanly.

  She felt someone touch her sleeve and noticed that Victoria was standing close to her. She smiled at the woman almost sheepishly. She must have been standing there staring at the doorway that Patrick had just gone through for at least a few seconds.

  “I am assuming that you and Patrick are going to marry,” Victoria said as she guided Kimberly to a nearby sofa.

  Kimberly glanced around the room and noticed that Collins had left. She was alone with Victoria and she was glad. She desperately needed to talk to someone who was aware of what was going on. She shook her head at Victoria’s words.

  She quickly brought Victoria up-to-date about the last 30 days. She explained to the older woman how she loved living on the ranch and enjoyed getting to know Patrick and his family. She talked about Daisy and how she learned to ride a horse. She explained that when Collins had come to deliver the letter from Nicky, Keegan had accidentally witnessed her giving Collins a paper and then the man disappeared, which raised a number of questions.

  “By then, I had already decided I wanted to stay and marry Patrick. I just hadn’t told him about my past yet. So I told him a few days ago.” Kimberly paused as tears formed in her eyes.

  “And…?” Victoria questioned, softly encouraging her to continue.

  “He is having a hard time believing that time travel is possible. I really think he would want us to marry immediately as soon as the 30 days were up. That is, if I was from his time. Things were going well between us.”

  “I can understand his concerns,” Victoria told her. “After all, as far as I know, no one in my time period has even heard about the possibility of traveling from one time to another. My dear husband, Charles, couldn’t accept that it could happen. When he was alive, I was very careful to only use the keys when he was on a business trip.”

  “What do you think I should do?” Kimberly asked, desperately needing advice at this time. “I would like to stay. I have fallen in love with him. I believe he l
oves me. But I don’t want us to marry unless he can accept where I am from.”

  Victoria thought for a moment, then took one of Kimberly’s hands in a motherly gesture. “Maybe one of his concerns is that you might change your mind, that you might someday long for your own time, and wish to return.”

  Kimberly was silent as she thought about this possibility. Would she miss her time? She knew she would miss many of the conveniences that her time offered. Wearing pants and t-shirts was a big one, as well as hot showers, air conditioning, and the ability to travel in a comfortable, timely manner. Most of all, she would miss Nicky and Justin. But she knew that she was willing to give all that up to be with Patrick.

  “Have you shown him the key?” Victoria asked.

  Kimberly shook her head. “He hasn’t asked. I have something else to tell you, something that happened the first week I was at the ranch.” She confessed to Victoria that even though she wasn’t supposed to, she did bring a few items from 2005 with her. She explained how Keegan had become injured when he was cutting wood and how she was able to help him using her first-aid kit and knowledge because she was a trauma nurse. She also confessed to Victoria that she had brought her sketch pad and some pencils, feeling a bit sheepish at deliberately ignoring one of Victoria's rules.

  “Keegan saw my sketch pad. I have drawings in it of things from my time. I offered to show it to Patrick, but he refused to look at it.” She turned hopeful eyes to Victoria. “Could you use the key and disappear? Like you did when you first told me about how it works?”

  Victoria hesitated, then shook her head. “Using the keys are starting to affect my health. I don’t dare use them again, at least for a while. After you left your time, I used the second key to come back here, and it took me days to recover. I don’t think I will be using the keys anytime soon.”

  Kimberly nodded her understanding, but then asked, “How can I convince him, then?”

  Victoria took her hand into her own and squeezed it in reassurance.

  “Patrick is a good man. I am willing to talk to him and I am sure Collins will, too. I think eventually he will believe you.”

  “I have already decided I don’t want to stay if he can’t accept where I am from, who I am. I don’t want to have a marriage filled with mistrust.”

  Victoria nodded. “I think that is a wise decision, but I don’t think you will need to worry about that. I really feel that in the end, Patrick will understand.”

  “I also feel we should let his family know, when Patrick believes me. I don’t want to live on the ranch trying to keep such a big secret from them. It has been difficult to not use words from the future around them,” Kimberly explained.

  The older woman thought about it, then nodded her head again. “I am okay with Patrick’s family knowing about the keys, as long as they understand they are not to tell anyone else. When the man gave me the first key, he warned me that only one other person should know about it. At first I obeyed his wishes. I only told Charles and he didn’t believe me. Because I had already told him, I didn’t dare tell anyone else. I finally told Collins after Charles’ death.”

  “How long did it take for Collins to believe you?” Kimberly asked.

  “He believed me right away. I think there were a few times when I had used a key and was gone for awhile. He would look for me and couldn’t find me. Then suddenly, there I was. I think he suspected something. In fact, when he first held the keys, he felt the vibration from them. Charles never felt that.”

  “Well, both Patrick and I know about the keys and if we tell his family, more people will know about them. Aren’t you worried about this?” Kimberly was concerned that it might be dangerous if more people knew about them.

  “It can’t be helped. We will just need to be very careful.”

  “What about Nicky?” Kimberly asked about her friend.

  “She isn’t aware that Collins has been traveling back and forth from my time to yours, although I think she suspects something.”

  “Nicky is very aware of her surroundings. I wouldn’t be surprised that she suspects something.”

  Victoria stood and walked to her desk and picked up an envelope. “In fact, Nicky sent this to me.” She handed the enveloped to Kimberly.

  Kimberly quickly opened it. Inside was a sheet of paper and another smaller envelope with her name on it. She quickly read the paper and could see that Nicky had asked for information about being a mail-order bride. She smiled to herself. Nicky was doing what she could to make sure she was okay.

  “Are you going to let her be a mail-order bride?” Kimberly asked.

  Victoria shrugged her shoulders. “I’m not sure. Before this arrived, I had made the decision to not have any more brides come from your time. Nicky's behavior has shown me that I should have planned better before sending you to my time. I don’t think I was fully aware of the amount of contact your society has with each other.”

  Kimberly nodded. “Yes, we can talk or communicate with each other basically whenever we want, no matter what the distance is. Nicky wouldn’t have understood why I couldn’t talk to her.”

  “I will need to think about it. Collins seems to think Nicky is not sincere in wanting to be a bride.”

  Kimberly smiled. “Well, she originally thought this entire plan was a scam. I agree with Collins. I think she is just trying to find me. I wish there was a way I could stay in contact with her though, even though I am here and she is there.”

  “We’ll have to think about a solution to that, won’t we?” Victoria asked with a smile.

  Kimberly heard voices coming towards them and knew that Patrick and his family had arrived.

  Chapter 28

  Patrick entered the cool house with his siblings and Colleen. When they had arrived, a man was standing in the yard as if waiting for them. He offered to take care of the horses and Patrick gratefully accepted. He wanted to get his family settled and then find Collins. He wanted some answers that he felt only Collins could give.

  “This house is big,” Colleen said with awe in her voice. She looked around, turning in a circle as she did so, her eyes wide at what she saw.

  “It is a big house, isn’t it?”

  Patrick heard a voice and turned. Victoria was coming towards them with Kimberly behind him. He wondered what they talked about while he was gone.

  “Much too big for an old woman like myself. I am glad you agreed to stay here. You are all welcome. Please use this house as you would your own,” Victoria came up to them and smiled down at Colleen.

  “You’re beautiful,” Colleen said with the same awe in her voice she had when she first walked into the house.

  “Thank you,” Victoria took the compliment in stride. “You are quite pretty yourself.” She turned to Collins. “Could you show them to the rooms they will use?”

  Collins nodded stiffly, yet pleasantly. “If you will follow me.”

  Very quickly, they were all settled into their rooms. Patrick shared a room with Shaun and Keegan while the women and Colleen shared a room across the hall. The rooms were large, almost as large as their cabin was on the ranch. There was plenty of room for them all. Both rooms had a large bed adorned with many pillows at one end, and a small table near a fireplace at the other. The table had a couple of chairs, and a fancy sofa for seating. There were two large windows with beautiful beige curtains that hung close to the ceiling, and fell all the way to the floor. A large rug covered most of the floor, providing comfort to those who walked across it.

  After they were settled and had cleaned up from their trip to Denver, Victoria served them a delicious lunch. Then Kimberly left with Bridget and Colleen to do some shopping. When Patrick learned of their plans, he pulled Kimberly aside. He handed her some money.

  “I assume you might need some things. Go ahead and use this to get what you need.”

  Kimberly looked at him in question, as if wondering why he would give her money if it wasn’t certain they would be marrying yet. But she ac
cepted the bills.

  “Thank you,” Kimberly told him. “I promise I will only get what I need.”

  Patrick wasn’t worried that she would over spend. “You should buy some more riding britches.” He was giving her a message. He wanted her to stay. He still wasn’t sure about this time travel issue, but he felt they would be able to work it out.

  “Really?” Kimberly’s face broke into a beautiful smile. He smiled back, and knew she had understood the message hidden in his words.

  After the women left, Victoria going with them, Patrick immediately went to seek out Collins. He found him sitting in Victoria’s office looking through a stack of papers.

  “Can we talk?” Patrick asked frankly. The older man nodded his agreement and indicated with his hand that Patrick should sit.