Grooms with Honor Series, Books 7-9

by Linda K. Hubalek

  “You’re more than welcome, Mrs. Randolph. My conscience wouldn’t let me leave when I knew two men had been scouting out the place. Maybe nothing would have happened, but I wouldn’t have slept a wink at the church knowing they might have broken into the café.”

  “I assume you didn’t have any problems since I didn’t hear anything.”

  “Not after they tried opening the door and immediately saw the barrel of my revolver pointed at them through the door’s window. After that, I enjoyed a long nap by your warm cook stove.”

  “Oh, my word! Thank goodness, you were here. We need to let the law know what happened.” Myrtle was visibly shaken, knowing they could have been robbed last night.

  “Sheriff Matters stopped in for coffee already this morning, so he knows about the incident. I described the men so he’ll be on the lookout for them.”

  “Do you think they’ll leave on the train this morning?” Holly worried they might stick around the area.

  “I’m guessing they’ll move on, but hopefully not to create problems for someone else.”

  Nolan dished up two plates of steaming white gravy and biscuits, then added two crisp strips of salt pork on top of each plate before setting them on the kitchen table.

  Next, he pulled out a chair and offered his arm to help Myrtle sit down. “Please enjoy your breakfast. Do you like your coffee black, or with cream, sugar?”

  “Oh, how nice to be waited on. I like cream in my coffee if you already have it available.”

  “I sure do. Holly, please sit down and eat before the breakfast crowd comes in. I assume we’ll be busy within the hour.”

  Nolan fixed a plate for himself and joined them.

  “Well, what do you think? Does the gravy need more black pepper?”

  The gravy was so good Holly wanted to lick her plate clean. Hopefully, there would be some gravy left after they fed the morning customers because she’d like another helping.

  “You’re a very good cook, Mr. Clancy. Would you like to buy this café?”

  Holly choked on her mouthful of coffee as Nolan laughed at Myrtle’s question.

  “No, really, I’m serious. I’ve decided to sell the café and move to Billings to live with my daughter. Would you like to buy it?”

  Nolan looked at Myrtle, then Holly, trying to figure out if Myrtle was serious.

  “Um, thank you for the opportunity, but I’m on my way home to Kansas to take over my grandparent’s café.”

  Holly knew Nolan was looking at her again, but she refused to look his way. He probably was wondering why she wasn’t taking over the café for Myrtle.

  “What about Holly?” Nolan asked Myrtle as if she wasn’t sitting there listening.

  “We talked about it this morning. I suggested she travel with me to find employment. She’d also have a better chance to find a suitor in a larger town.”

  “Myrtle, please don’t...” Holly was mortified Myrtle was talking to Nolan about this.

  “There’s a shortage of women in the Montana Territory, so I’m sure you’ll soon have a husband and family,” the older woman added.

  “But no one wants a woman of mixed breed,” Holly interjected.

  “Why not? And anyway, what little time I’ve spent with you, you seem like a very nice woman,” Nolan protested.

  “That’s not how society thinks of us.” Holly corrected him.

  “When are you planning on relocating?” Nolan asked Myrtle, probably to change the subject.

  “I don’t want to wait long, because we could get snowed in, depending on the storms this winter.”

  “That could happen about any time,” Nolan warned.

  “Actually, now that I’ve made up my mind, I’d like to be with the grandchildren by Christmas. I have a new grandbaby I haven’t met yet.”

  “That’s only ten days away!” I’ll be out of a job and homeless within days.

  “I know, but why not move now? I can spread the word that the building is for sale, and Sheriff Matters can contact me when someone is interested in it.

  “The café is normally very slow during the winter when the train runs sporadically. I’d rather be with my family instead of waiting on the few customers that brave the cold to come into town.”

  “How often does the train come through town?” Nolan asked, apparently unfamiliar with the train schedule.

  “It will drop to twice, maybe three times a week during the winter months. After today’s departure, the next train won’t be in town until Monday, again depending on the weather.”

  “What would you move with you, besides clothes and personal items?”

  “Nothing else really. Furniture, both downstairs and upstairs, would be sold with the building.”

  Nolan glanced Holly’s way, but she remained quiet. What would she do? Stay here and look for another job, or travel with Myrtle?

  Myrtle reached out to lay her hand on Holly’s forearm. “I realize you may not want to leave the area since your father is buried in Silver Crossing, but please think about moving to Billings.”

  “What choice do I have? Jobs are scarce here and in Silver Crossing, especially during the winter months.”

  I wish I could travel to Kansas with Nolan.

  Why did that thought spring up in Holly’s mind? Maybe because she was thinking of her mother and sisters, buried in Kansas since Myrtle had brought up her father. Or because she’d like to work beside him in the Clancy’s Café?

  Holly couldn’t dismiss the fact she was attracted to Nolan. Could he ever feel the same way she felt about him?

  “You got customers!” Old Mr. Negus called from his table in the dining room. The man was so feeble he shouldn’t be walking to the café each morning, but he took his job of sentinel seriously. There was no use to go into the dining room until Mr. Negus told Holly they had a customer. At least with the café closing, she wouldn’t have the daily worry of him falling, walking the two blocks from his house to the café anymore.

  “I better get out there. We’ll have quite a few customers before the train leaves this morning.”

  About the same people as yesterday arrived for breakfast in mass, sitting at the same tables if they could. People must have left the church and stopped to eat breakfast here before continuing on to the depot. A pile of carpetbags lined the wall below the coat hooks by the door. The floor was going to need a thorough scrubbing this afternoon.

  Holly moved quickly between the dining room and kitchen to get all the orders out to the tables. Everyone was antsy to get back on the train to travel on to their destination.

  Actually, Holly had liked the bustle of extra customers in the café, especially since it kept her mind off Myrtle’s announcement this morning.

  She’d be leaving Miller Springs in less than ten days unless she could find another place to work and live. The trouble was it was such a small town, that the businesses were all run by their owners, and didn’t need extra employees. Holly got her job at the café only because Myrtle’s husband had died.

  Billings was a new railroad town, only about three years old, so she didn’t know what opportunities it had for employment. And was there a boarding house she could afford, that had an available room, too?

  December wasn’t the month to be living on the streets as she did for a few days in Silver Crossing when her father had died unexpectedly. They had lived in a rented house by the mine. The owner told her to move out when the rent was due, and she couldn’t pay it. Holly did mending and washing at home for the miners to help with expenses, but she needed her father’s salary to stay in the house. She’d used most of their meager savings to bury her father.

  Holly caught a ride with Lee Dalberg to Miller Springs and hadn’t been back to Silver Crossing since then.

  “Miss? More coffee?” Holly didn’t have to look which direction the voice came from. The two men in question from last night were blatantly sitting at the same table as yesterday. Where was Sheriff Matters when they needed him? Although
they could say, they hadn’t done anything other than peeking in the café window last night.

  Holly walked over and refilled their coffee cups. “Ready to get back on the train so you can get home?” The idea of them leaving in the next couple of hours eased her tension around them.

  The one called Griffin leaned back in his chair and stared at Holly. “Oh, I don’t know. Seems like a nice quiet little town. We might stick around a while,” his yellowed teeth showed plainly, as he gave her a wide grin.

  “I’m sure you’d miss us if we weren’t eating here every meal.”

  Holly could feel her face heat, and she turned to look for other coffee cups to refill. She knew they were joking, but it still bothered her. Why couldn’t Nolan be the one staying instead?

  Holly turned as the front door opened and the train conductor stood in the doorway announcing, “The train will leave in an hour so we’ll start loading in thirty minutes.”

  The easy talking in the café changed as people concentrated on finishing their meal. Then they’d all want to pay at once to return to the depot.

  The coffee pot was empty, so she went back to the kitchen to refill it.

  “Nolan, did you hear the train leaves in an hour?”

  “Yes, but I’ll finish plating up the last two meals and start cleaning up for you. I hate to leave you with all these dishes, but I don’t have a choice.”

  Myrtle was still sitting at the table, occasionally wiping her eyes and nose with a handkerchief. Was she rethinking her plan to leave, or sadly thinking about the past when she and her husband ran the café together? The place must have so many memories of her.

  Holly was pouring coffee from the big pot they kept on the stove to a smaller one to carry around the dining room, when Myrtle’s chair scraped across the wooden floor.

  Myrtle stood leaning against the table, looking around the room, so Holly set the pot down to help her if she wanted to go back upstairs.

  “Myrtle, do you need help?”

  “I want to go into the dining room and talk to the coffee group. They need to be the first to hear my announcement.”

  Holly looked at Myrtle, then Nolan, wondering what exactly Myrtle would tell the group. Nolan shrugged his shoulders but followed them into the dining room, curious as Holly was about Myrtle’s comment.

  Myrtle took Mr. Negus’ empty coffee cup in her hand and rapped it on the table to get everyone’s attention.

  “I’m closing the café after this meal. You’ll have to meet elsewhere for coffee and meals.”

  “Taking the rest of the day off?” One of the regulars kidded Myrtle.

  “Nope. I’m closing the café today and moving to Billings on Monday. Thanks for your business over the years.”

  Holly stared at Myrtle, and then looked around the room at the shocked faces of their customers. Most of the people were only eating here because of the train’s delay, but there were two tables of daily customers.

  “Myrtle, are you sure about this?” Mr. Bailey asked.

  “Yes, I’ve made up my mind,” she warily said as she sat down in a chair the older man had pulled over to their table.

  “Then it’s the right thing to do, Myrtle. Why be in the middle of a snowed-in town when you could be enjoying your family without working so hard?”

  “I just hadn’t been ready to leave Fred yet...”

  Holly thought of Myrtle’s husband buried in the town’s cemetery. She knew what Myrtle felt since Holly’s father was buried in Silver Crossing. But neither man was around to give them comfort and support anymore. She and Myrtle needed to move on now. Luckily for Myrtle, she had a family. Holly was on her own.

  “Miss? We’d like to pay for our meal so we can get back on the train,” a customer pulled Holly away from the corner conversation between Myrtle and her friends.

  She was busy the next half hour, taking the money and carrying the dirty dishes into the kitchen. It would take a few hours to wash and dry all the dishes they’d used for breakfast, and she’d try not to cry knowing it would be the last time she washed them.

  Holly walked into the kitchen with the last tray of dishes and saw Nolan with his coat and hat on, ready to leave for the depot.

  “Thank you so much, young man, for helping us. I truly appreciated it, and I want to give you something special to take with you.”

  “Mrs. Randolph, that isn’t necessary. I didn’t have anything else to do while I waited for the train, so I thank you for the free meals and the opportunity to brush up on my cooking skills.”

  Myrtle wasn’t listening to him as she reached for something in the drawer on the worktable. Holly almost gasped aloud when Myrtle pulled Fred’s recipe book out and handed it to Nolan. Why would Myrtle give her husband’s book to a stranger? And why not to Holly if Myrtle wasn’t going to keep it? It would have been so useful if Holly ever had an opportunity to open her own café someday. She had spent hours reading the recipe book and made several of the recipes.

  “This is a record of all the recipes Fred made over our years together. He knew most of them by heart, so he didn’t use the book, but it was handy for when we had workers helping us. Since you’re taking over a café, I’d like you to have this recipe book. Maybe there will be new dishes you could add to your grandparent’s menu, to make it your own place.”

  “Well, I’m honored to receive a recording of your recipes, and I’ll be sure to use it.”

  Nolan glanced at Holly with a worried look on his face. Did he sense her disappointment in not receiving the recipe book herself?

  “Is the winning biscuit recipe in there?” Nolan lowered his voice, pretending to whisper to Myrtle.

  Myrtle laughed and shook her head. “That’s Holly’s recipe, so you’re out of luck.”

  “Oh, shoot,” Nolan grinned at Myrtle, and then gave her a tight hug.

  “It’s been a pleasure to work in your café, Ma’am. If you’re ever in Kansas, be sure to stop and eat at the Clancy Café. Now I better get on the train.” He waved to the dining room. “Holly, would you walk me to the door, please?”

  Holly hoped Nolan didn’t notice the tears forming in her eyes. She had grown fond of the man and hated to see him leave.

  “Holly, please take this money,” Nolan quietly said while holding out a large bill to her.

  “I can’t take—”

  “You’ll be on your own soon, and I’d feel better knowing you had some extra funds to tide you over until you found a new job and home.”

  Holly hesitated but took the money and slipped into her skirt pocket. Nolan didn’t realize how much she needed the money.

  “Thank you so very much. I hate to take handouts, but Myrtle’s decision has turned my life upside down, and I’m not sure what I’ll do yet. I really appreciate this support, and your help in the café, too.”

  Nolan took her hand, gave it a squeeze, and then held it up to his lips for a soft kiss. “And I enjoyed working with you. Goodbye, Miss Holly Elizabeth.”

  Holly watched out the window until Nolan’s bundled figure, trudging through the snow, was out of sight. She’d finally met a kind and decent man, but he left Miller Springs as quickly as he arrived. But she guessed it didn’t matter since she was leaving on Monday anyway.

  Chapter 5

  Nolan glanced over his shoulder as he made his way through the snowy path to the depot. Holly stood at the window watching him walk away. It was a chance meeting, but he hated leaving her behind. For some reason, he could clearly hear her father’s words from years ago. Always protect the women and children.

  Holly would start over in Billings. She’d have Myrtle and her daughter’s family to help her. Meanwhile, he needed to help his grandparents in Kansas, so there was no use thinking about the raven-haired beauty.

  The engine was warming up, the puffing growing louder as Nolan hurried to the depot. Time had passed as he had said goodbye to the ladies.

  “All aboard! Time to get all aboard!” Nolan rushed to the car steps whe
re the conductor was calling to the last passengers hurrying to catch the train. He was glad he hadn’t taken off his trunk now. Running and sliding in the snow was enough hassle with his two bags he’d taken off the train yesterday.

  “You’re the last passenger. Glad you made it,” the conductor said as Nolan stepped up on the stairs. Nolan looked back to respond to the man and noticed Griffin and Ronald walking around the corner of the depot, away from the train. Why weren’t they on the train if Nolan was the last passenger to board?

  “What about those two men?” Nolan nodded toward the two men who had their backs to them.

  “Said they would wait for the Monday train. Still had business in town to finish.”

  Shoot. Were they hoping to break into the café now that Nolan was leaving? He’d noticed they were in the café when Myrtle made her announcement of closing today.

  “I have a trunk in the baggage car marked ‘Clancy Café, Clear Creek, Kansas.’ Will it get pulled off for delivery if I’m not with it?”

  “It should. I’d suggest you telegraphing the depot there, so they know to pull it off though. Why?”

  “I’m going to wait and take the Monday train, too. Sorry for delaying your departure.”

  Nolan stepped down the stairs, waiting for the men in question to get around the depot before Nolan walked into the building to talk to the agent. A simple telegraph to Clear Creek would make sure his trunk was taken off the train.

  Before walking back to the café, Nolan paid a visit to the jailhouse to tell Sheriff Matters his suspicions of the two men, and to let him know he would be escorting Myrtle and Holly to Billings on Monday. A three-day delay didn’t matter in Nolan’s schedule.

  Next, he strolled into Carson’s mercantile. His visit was two-fold. He’d seen the men walk in there, so Nolan wanted them to know he was still around the area.

  He needed some new clothes, so why not do it today if the store carried ready-made clothes in his size. His trousers were thin and worn out, and he’d like a warmer vest to wear.

  “Hello, Mr. Carson. I need some new clothes,” Nolan announced when he was halfway to the back counter.