“What have you done to my sister?”
“Saved her from dying in the forest. A tree branch fell on her, knocking her off her horse and pinning her to the ground. Even if she had not been unconscious, she would never have been able to get out from under the branch without my help. You are most welcome.”
“And then you brought her here and took advantage of her?”
Ginger rose from the bed, wrapping the blanket around her. “He did no such thing, much to my regret, Basil. While I was unconscious, he stripped off my wet clothes and got me warmed up. Joseph has been a perfect gentleman.” She strode to Joseph’s side.
“It doesn’t look like it from my vantage point. Were you going to bring her back, once you were finished with her?”
“We were about to return to the house, now that it is first light.”
“We’ve all been out looking for you all night. The ladies even joined us in the search once dawn broke. It’s fortunate I’m the one who walked in here, or your reputation would be in tatters, Ginger. We’ll leave you to get dressed. Joseph, you will come with me outside.”
Ginger cried out in frustration. “No, I will not get dressed! Joseph and I aren’t finished here. I don’t need to listen to you. We want you to leave and pretend you’ve not seen us. Right, Joseph?” She turned to him with a look of confusion on her face.
Joseph quietly replied, “Do as your brother asks, Ginger.”
Basil turned on his heel, and left the room. Joseph let his gaze flicker over Ginger’s face briefly, one last time. He reached out to run his fingers through her hair, but stopped in mid-air and dropped his hand. He sighed and walked from the room without saying a word.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Joseph walked outside to find Basil pacing in the small clearing, pounding one fist into the palm of his other hand. Basil’s enraged glare moved up from the forest floor to meet Joseph’s face.
Joseph nodded at Basil’s curled fist as the two of them circled one another. “Would you like to take a swing at me?”
“More than anything, but I won’t, because you’d probably knock me senseless and take advantage of the situation to go back inside and continue to seduce Ginger.”
“I will offer no resistance to you. Go ahead and hit me if it will make you feel better.”
“No, I’d feel worse if you let me take a cheap shot. Neither outcome is a prospect I find enticing.” He dropped his gaze to the ground and then looked back at Joseph. “How could you?”
“I have done nothing to harm your sister’s reputation, Basil. She is still pure.”
Basil ran his hand through his hair again. “You were in bed with her while she was naked, for God’s sake! How is that ‘still pure’? If anyone other than me had found you, her reputation would be destroyed and she would be forced to marry you.”
“We would not need to be forced. It would be my honor to marry her, Basil.”
Basil’s expression changed from anger to incredulity as he glared at the man he had called his best friend. “It’s one thing to be my friend, but quite another to toy with the affections of my sister. She will marry someone worthy of her. I allowed you to come with me to New York and welcomed you into my family. This is my fault. I never dreamed you would force yourself on one of my sisters.”
Joseph’s defenses rose. Basil’s reaction to the scene in the cabin, to be told Joseph was not worthy, was an insult he had been dealing with his entire life. Somehow, his Indian blood overruled the French blood when it came to finding his place in society. He had entered into his friendship with Basil tentatively, knowing Basil had a naive approach to life on the border and that his friendship with an Indian could change at any time. It seemed the moment was at hand.
“So you are showing your true colors after all, Basil. You had a great deal of fun with the ‘Indian’ though, did you not? Amusing yourself with the people you know here in New York and wondering what their reactions might be if they only knew my true bloodline. You and your family have regaled each other with the joke you were playing on your friends. You all have had a great deal of fun this summer, at my expense. I thought all along it was a bad idea, did I not?”
Basil shrugged his shoulders uncomfortably. “I’ll admit, I believed it was a great joke to have you here. I thought most of New York’s high society was a bunch of old fuddy-duddies and I did want some fun at their expense. Little did I realize the joke would be played on my family. Well, it can’t be helped now. As much as I regret my foolish choices, at the end of the day, you are an Indian, my sister is a blueblood, and the two of you will never unite. I’m sorry I brought you here at all. I regret I got you involved in this wretched horserace. I’ve been going out of my mind all night, worrying about Ginger and fearing my foolishness at accepting William’s taunt might result in my sister’s death.” He looked up at Joseph. “But it seems my senselessness has done far greater damage than I ever thought.”
“Are you saying that Ginger and me being together would be worse than her death?”
“If she was to run off with you, neither of you would be welcome in the family, which is the same thing as her being gone from this Earth. And I have no doubt, from what I saw in the cabin, the two of you would have been on the road to St. Louis this morning, if I had arrived an hour later.”
Joseph sighed, knowing Basil was correct in his assessment. The thought had certainly crossed his mind during the night to just pick her up, set her on Midnight with him, and ride off toward the West. And he knew it was what Ginger would want — at least until she knew his true heritage.
Ginger, still wrapped in a blanket, yanked open the door to the cabin and joined the men in the clearing. Rushing to Joseph’s side, she turned to face her brother.
“Basil, please leave us alone.”
“Not until you hear the truth. Joseph has to know his place.”
“What do you mean, his place? His place is here, with me! You’re the one who should leave, not Joseph.”
“No, his place is not with you, sweetie. It never has been. It never could be. Tell her, Joseph.”
“Tell me, Joseph.”
“I am only half French-Canadian. The other half is Ojibwa Indian. And I am equally proud of both halves.”
“So? What does it matter what your heritage is? The only thing that really matters is the nature of the man you are.”
Basil sighed. “It is the way of the West. He will forever be treated as an Indian, despite being half French-Canadian. He will never fit into society, especially the portion of society you belong to. You must forget about him, and pick a husband who is worthy of your station. It’s fortunate I was the one who discovered you, so we can salvage your reputation and one of your more patient suitors can still lay claim to you.”
“I will not pick another for my husband. Joseph has my heart, and has had it since the first night you brought him into our midst. I knew the moment he led me to the dance floor at the Cotillion that we were destined to be together for all time.”
Joseph’s smoldering gaze lit on Ginger. “You can come with me right now. I will take you home with me to St. Louis.”
“Ginger, please, think carefully about this.” Basil’s glance bounced from his friend to his sister. “If you go with Joseph, and marry him, our family’s reputation will be destroyed. Father’s customers at the bank will leave and the family will be destitute. You know how fickle the wealthy are. One hint of scandal and they’ll go running, so as not to be tarnished themselves.”
Ginger’s eyes filled with tears as she listened to her brother’s logical remarks.
Basil continued. “Please, listen to me. I thought it would be fun to have Joseph accepted into our society as my friend, all the while knowing he was an Indian. I wanted to show everyone how hypocritical New York high society was and to have a good laugh.”
“But instead, you’ve only shown yourself to be the hypocrite. I thought he was your friend. Why would you want to make a joke of him? What was the story you told about him saving your hide when you first arrived in St. Louis? Was that a big joke, too?”
She began to cry in earnest as Basil watched her put a hand on Joseph’s arm. Both men remained silent, waiting for her choice.
Her eyes raked over Basil. “Joseph and I share a very deep bond, much like you and he do. We saved each other’s lives a few weeks ago. We were in the path of a runaway buggy on Broadway. I saw it coming and jumped into Joseph’s arms, knocking him out of the way. Then he rolled us to safety at the last second. I knew he would never brag to you about how he saved both my blasted reputation and me, but I will. I literally threw myself at him time and again, and he would not be moved, until this morning. Even then, he made certain he did not violate me and I remain a virgin, capable of marrying another.” She spat out the words to her brother, her green eyes blazing.
“Mother and I had ‘the talk’ before the season began, Basil, so I know what I’m speaking about. I gladly would have given myself to Joseph in a heartbeat. I still want to.”
“But think about Father. And your sisters. What will their chances be for a successful marriage if you follow your heart instead of your head? Please, I’m appealing to your logical nature. Don’t compound my mistake by making one of your own.”
Ginger drew in a deep breath as she pondered her situation. “Basil is right, Joseph. If I went with you — and you know I want to beyond reason — I would be placing my family’s reputation and future livelihood in jeopardy. I’m sorry.”
She raised tear-filled eyes to him, and inched up on her toes to kiss him softly.
“We are not yet done, ma petite.” Joseph ran his hand down her cheek, wiping her tears away. “I will see you again.”
Without another word, she walked inside the cabin.
Basil turned to Joseph. “I want you to leave here, right this minute, and not return. When I get back to St. Louis, I am going to close your father’s account. The bank will cease doing business with Tall Feather Enterprises. And as for you, I never want to see you again. Do you understand?”
Joseph looked at his former friend, sadly. Basil was just a white man like any other. Already, he missed their friendship. He sighed.
“I understand. You are like all the rest. Forgive me for thinking you were someone special. I ride out now knowing it is not yet time for Ginger and me to be together.”
He saddled Midnight, untied the reins, and jumped on his back. He nudged the horse into a trot.
“It will never be time!” Basil yelled after him.
• • •
After a few minutes of pacing in the clearing, Basil returned to the cabin where Ginger was dressing. She glared at him as he entered the room.
“Well, he’s gone now, thank God, and you can forget about him.”
Ginger ran to her brother and began to pummel him with her fists as her tears of anger became sobs of remorse. Basil said nothing more and let her cry herself out.
Finally, she turned her back to him. “I need some help getting laced back into my corset. If you would, please, Basil.”
She allowed Basil to tighten the laces. Her sobs had diminished and now sounded like a kitten mewing.
Basil laid his hand on her shoulder. “Gin — ”
She cut him off and shrugged out of his grasp. “I have nothing to say to you, Basil.”
“All right then, have it your way. If you are sufficiently put back together, I’ll take you to the estate, and we can call off the search. Everyone will be so relieved.”
“Yes, I expect they will. I’m nearly ready. I want to say this while we’re alone, though. If you want to blame someone for destroying my hopes at making a proper marriage, blame yourself, Basil, not Joseph. He is the only man I want and if I can’t have him, I’ll have no one.”
“Please don’t say that, Ginger. It would break my heart if you martyr yourself because of my stupidity.”
Ginger took one last look at the room where Joseph had touched her with his scorching hand and branded himself on her heart. Where he finally declared his love for her. Tears slid down her face as she realized she had not had time to return the declaration to him. With a final sob, she turned her back on the cabin and on the life that might have been hers.
Chapter Twenty-Four
As they rode back to the Curran estate, Basil began to think of an explanation he could offer for how he managed to find Ginger — and what had become of Joseph. He needed something plausible to quell the spate of questions sure to come their way as soon as they arrived. A plan formed in his mind and, as they neared the large house, he spoke quietly.
“I know you don’t have anything to say to me, but we need to get our stories straight. I’m thinking we should tell everyone Joseph found you, got you to the cabin, and told you to stay there until daylight. He knew that staying with you would cast you in a bad light, so he went back to St. Louis, having finished the race and his work here in New York. I came upon you walking through the woods this morning, trying to find your way back to the house. Will you agree to align your story with mine?”
She thought for a moment, nodded in agreement, and then added, “So long as you say or do nothing to disparage Joseph, I will agree. But, if anyone thinks he left because of the outcome of the race, or because William was going to file a protest, or if anyone tries to otherwise blacken his name, I will tell everything as it truly has happened, family reputation notwithstanding. Unless you come to his defense.”
“Hopefully, the race is old news by now. Your disappearance and now subsequent return will surely put it out of everyone’s mind. You have had all of us quite frightened out of our wits, me especially.”
“As Joseph said, the race was a foolish and childish thing to do, an idea put forth by two foolish and childish men — you and William. It resulted in one good horse being put down, and me nearly perishing out in the forest. So once again, Joseph has proven to be the better and smarter man, even though his skin is brown. Is that what you’re saying?”
Basil groaned. “Not exactly in those terms. I can tell I’m going to have a hard time getting back into your good graces. I remember how long it took you to forgive me the last time I truly upset you.”
“What you have done in this instance does not begin to compare with the time you put all my hair ribbons in the ink well. You have broken my heart, and ripped my one true love from my arms. My life will never be the same, and I may never forgive you.”
“Then you would break my heart, Ginger.”
“I wish I could say I am sorry, but I’m not.” She slid off the horse as it came to a stop and walked into the house without waiting for him.
Her mother, father, and Elizabeth all hurried to the door when they heard Basil’s horse approach the house. Tearfully, they wrapped her in a group embrace.
“We were so frightened for you. Since Elizabeth’s last glimpse of you was as you headed into the forest, we had horrible visions of you, alone in the dark woods all night, cold and frightened. Why, anything could have happened to you! Come into the parlor and tell us what went wrong.”
Ginger smiled weakly at them. “Could I first have a bath and change clothing? And, I am a bit weary from my ordeal. I wish for a nap. I’m no worse for wear, just tired.”
Charlotte bustled around her. “Most certainly, dear. You do look pale. I’ll order a bath be drawn for you. Come with me, I’ll comb out your hair while we wait for hot bath water.”
Charlotte took Ginger’s hand and they climbed the stairs, leaving the relieved group to bombard Basil with questions. Basil followed George and Elizabeth into the parlor and helped himself to some hot tea while the other guests gathered to hear the details.
�
�I don’t know how the accident happened,” he began, “but, as Ginger was riding through the forest, a branch snapped off a tree and hit her. She was knocked from her horse and pinned underneath the huge fallen branch. Joseph was able to track her trail through the woods and found her, still trapped and unconscious. He freed her and took her to a small hunter’s cabin in the woods nearby and built a fire there to warm her. When she woke up, he urged her to stay in the cabin, out of the rain, until morning, and gave her directions back to the estate. I found her walking in the woods this morning.”
“How fortunate we are to have a knowledgeable tracker in our midst,” said Mrs. Curran. “I shudder to think what would have happened to poor Ginger if Joseph hadn’t found her. Where is our hero?”
“He didn’t want the acclaim he knew would come his way, so he took off sometime during the night and began the long ride back to St. Louis.”
William’s lip curled at the mention of his foe. “He left because he was going to be disqualified from the race, not because he was a hero. Who would believe such nonsense?”
“Joseph saved Ginger from a certain death in the woods last night,” Basil said angrily. “She would never have survived being out in the rain. Even if she had made it through the night, who among us would have been able to find her before she perished from cold, or from an animal attack? So, he is due the moniker of ‘hero’ although he would never admit to it.”
• • •
Charlotte brushed Ginger’s long locks. Ginger closed her eyes, enjoying the pampering her mother was bestowing on her. How long had it been since her mother brushed her hair? Tears dampened her eyes as she looked at her mother’s reflection in the mirror.
“Darling, it’s all right now,” Charlotte cooed softly to her daughter. “You’re home, you’re safe, and you can put this harrowing experience behind you.”
“That’s just it, Mother. I can’t. I’ll never be able to.” Ginger began to cry in earnest.
Time After Time Page 196
