Accidental Sweetheart

by Lisa Bingham

  A rattling came from the front of the storehouse and the women gasped.

  “What’s that?” Stefania whispered.

  “Shh!”

  They froze.

  Lydia barely dared to breathe as the rattling resolved itself into the unmistakable creak of the door.

  “Give me the lantern!”

  Marie scooped their only source of light from a nearby crate and handed it to Lydia.

  “Stay here. I’ll do my best to get rid of whoever it is.”

  She quickly strode down one of the side aisles, then cut back to the section of the storehouse that was reserved for food. Without even looking, she grabbed a bag from one of the shelves, then moved more slowly toward the front entrance.

  Even though she’d been expecting to encounter someone on her trip back to the door, she jumped when a shape loomed out of the darkness. A gasp pushed from her lips when the lamplight slid over the man’s face.

  Gideon Gault.

  “Mr. Gault, you nearly scared the life out of me!”

  He seemed just as surprised to see her.

  “Miss Tomlinson. It’s after midnight. What on earth are you doing in the storehouse so late at night?”

  “We had an...emergency at the Dovecote. One of the brides fell ill and we were out of...” Too late, she realized she didn’t know what she’d grabbed from the shelf. Glancing down, she grimaced. “Beans. We were out of beans.”

  Gideon blinked at her with such a puzzled expression that she nearly laughed out loud.

  “Beans?”

  “Yes. It’s well known that a poultice made of beans and...and vinegar...is an excellent cure for...”

  For what? What?

  “Female complaints.”

  In Lydia’s wide experience, nothing quelled a man’s curiosity faster than mentioning “female complaints.” But she’d forgotten that Gideon had been raised with five sisters, so apparently, he was made of sterner stuff.

  “Beans and vinegar.”

  “And mustard.” Lydia fought to keep herself from wincing. “And a dash of bacon grease.”

  Lydia could feel panic beginning to flutter in her chest like a flock of moths, but she fought to keep her expression serene.

  “And it couldn’t wait until morning?”

  “No. Not really?”

  The man eyed her with those coffee-brown eyes, and she was sure that he could see the deceit hanging over her like a black cloud, but he finally sighed.

  “Where are your guards?”

  Locked up in the Miners’ Hall.

  “Guards?”

  “The Pinkertons who are supposed to be watching the Dovecote.”

  “I... I’ve no idea. We haven’t seen them all day.”

  Honestly, that should have been the last thing to admit.

  Gideon lifted his hand to the crease between his brows and rubbed the spot as if he had a headache. For the first time, she noted the exhaustion that lined his features.

  “Shouldn’t you be in bed, Mr. Gault?”

  “I could ask the same question of you, Miss Tomlinson.”

  She gestured to the door. “I was heading there now.”

  “Then I’ll escort you home.”

  She balked at the idea, sure that he’d somehow divined that the dormitory was missing half of its occupants, but for the life of her, she couldn’t think of a plausible reason for refusing his offer.

  “That would be much appreciated.”

  She reluctantly blew out the lantern, knowing that she would be leaving her friends in complete darkness. Unfortunately, that fact couldn’t be helped.

  Gideon held the door for her, allowing her to step into the cool night air.

  “Do you have your key?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  To her consternation, he snapped the lock shut, effectively imprisoning the women who were still inside. Then he made a sweeping motion with his hand.

  “After you.”

  They walked in silence for several minutes, but with each step, Lydia grew increasingly uncomfortable. There was something...companionable about having Gideon escort her home. Something sweet. And that was not something she wanted to feel about the tall Pinkerton.

  “You mentioned you had five sisters.”

  There was a beat of silence and she realized she hadn’t asked a question, but had offered a statement of fact. Thankfully, Gideon seemed willing to follow her lead.

  “Anna, April, Addie, Adele, and Adelaide. All five of them are older by several years.”

  Lydia couldn’t help laughing. “So why weren’t you named Alfred or Abraham?”

  “I think my mother was expecting another girl. She’d chosen the name Augusta. When I was born, she named me after my father instead.”

  “He must have been proud.”

  Gideon shrugged. “Unfortunately, my father had already passed of diphtheria.”

  So, Gideon truly had been raised in a house with nothing but women. No wonder he’d found the arrival of the mail-order brides such a trial.

  “Then Bachelor Bottoms must have seemed like a masculine haven when you arrived.”

  Gideon shot her a look, and to her surprise, he didn’t offer a pithy answer. “Actually, for a little while, I missed a bit of feminine fussing from my family. I’d spent years in the Army, so I’d had enough of an all-male environment.”

  His expression became strangely tight, his eyes shuttered.

  “Then why did you come to the territories? Why not stay at home for a little longer?”

  He shot her a glance, seeming to weigh whether or not he should confide in her. “By that time, my mother had died as well and my sisters had all married and scattered. I managed to visit them, but... I couldn’t bring myself to be a burden.”

  “Family is never a burden, Mr. Gault.”

  He eyed her curiously. “That’s not a response that I would expect from a woman fighting for...how do you put it? Female equality and emancipation?”

  She sniffed. “Neither of those issues rule out the possibility of a family, Mr. Gault. I believe that women should be given the same rights and opportunities as men. But I also understand that most ladies feel a keen need to be wives and mothers.”

  “Most ladies? Does that mean that you have no designs on ensuring such a fate, Miss Tomlinson?”

  She opened her mouth, then closed it again. Somehow, they had strayed into perilous territory.

  “That is neither here nor there.”

  “Mmm. So, you’re afraid to commit one way or the other?”

  They’d reached the end of the boardwalk at the edge of town and when Gideon stepped into the lane, she stayed where she was, needing the added height so that she could meet his gaze. Eye to eye. Man to woman. Equals.

  “I have committed myself wholeheartedly to the Cause, Mr. Gault. In doing so, I spend most of my time traveling and lecturing. Neither activity lends itself to a happy marriage or family life. Therefore, I have chosen to remain...unfettered.”

  He seemed to consider her statement. “An interesting choice of words. Unfettered. Is that how you see marriage and motherhood? As a punishment or an impediment?”

  “You’re purposely twisting my words.”

  “No, I’m merely trying to understand them.”

  She folded her arms tightly in front of her. “There are many women who—”

  “We’re not talking about other women. We’re talking about you.”

  “I...” She huffed. “I don’t see marriage or motherhood in a negative light. I merely don’t see it as part of my future.”

  “Because...”

  “Because I doubt there’s a man alive who would have the courage to put up with the likes of me!”

  The words blurted from her mouth without any thought. But befo
re she could retrieve them, Gideon Gault laughed.

  “You may be right,” he offered.

  There was no sting to his voice, no negative inflection. If anything, she sensed that he found the male population lacking in courage rather than the other way around. In any event, he resumed walking, forcing her to trail along behind him.

  “So, you’ll be heading to California after this?”

  She quick-stepped to catch up to him, nodding. “I begin my tour in San Francisco. Granted, many of my engagements have already passed and will have to be rescheduled, but I’m eager to get underway.” Peering up at him in the darkness, she asked, “Have you been to California, Mr. Gault?”

  He shook his head. “No. I’ve always wanted to go there, but so far, I’ve never had the chance.”

  “I hear that it’s warm all year round and you can pluck lemons and oranges right from the trees.”

  “Will your itinerary allow you such luxuries?”

  He was teasing her now, so she responded in kind. “Oh, I’ll make time. I also want to stand on the shore so that I can write to my aunts and tell them that I’ve dipped my toes in the Atlantic and the Pacific.”

  “Aunts?”

  “Yes. My aunts have been my guardians for nearly a dozen years.”

  “That must mean that you’ve lost your parents as well. I’m so sorry.”

  Yes, her mother had died soon after she was born. But her father...

  He might not be dead, but he was lost to her.

  “There’s no need to be sorry. My aunts have been wonderful to me. They saw to it that I had the finest education and a loving home.” Even more importantly, they’d helped her leave her shameful past behind.

  They were almost to the door of the Dovecote now and Lydia’s steps unconsciously slowed. For some reason, she felt reluctant to end their walk. Being able to talk to Gideon this way, openly, honestly, had shown her a different side to the man. One that was...companionable.

  “Here you are,” Gideon announced needlessly.

  “Yes. Thank you.”

  “In the future, perhaps you would be so kind as to wait for your guards to escort you around town?”

  There was no sting behind the words, only weariness.

  “You do realize that there’s no need for you and your men to trail us as if we had designs upon the company’s silver, don’t you?”

  “I don’t think the silver is Mr. Batchwell’s main concern.”

  “What else could we take? By your account, we only have a few weeks left in the valley at most.”

  “Ah, but you and your friends have already stolen the affections of most of the men in Aspen Valley, which is why no one wants you to leave. That fact probably worries Batchwell more than his silver. So as long as I’m told to keep my men watching over the females in the Dovecote, that’s what I’ll have to do.” He motioned to the door. “I’ll wait here until you’re inside, and I’ve heard the bolt hit home.”

  Lydia moved in a daze, entering and locking the door. After all her pestering and prodding, Gideon had admitted, of his own free will, that the women had touched the lives of the men in Bachelor Bottoms. Judging by his tone, he didn’t seem to mind.

  She hurried to the window, pushing aside the curtain in time to see Gideon pausing to look over his shoulder. He must have seen her, because he lifted a hand to the brim of his hat.

  She waved in return, waiting until he’d disappeared into the darkness. Then, she tossed the bag of beans onto the table and meandered upstairs to her room.

  Once inside, she lit the lamp and adjusted the wick. As she did so, she caught her reflection in the mirror. For some reason, her cheeks were pink and her eyes sparkled with an inner energy.

  How very odd.

  Up to this point, she’d thought of the Pinkerton as something of a nuisance. But tonight, she’d had a peek into the gentleman behind the uniform, and she’d been surprised by what she’d found. He really was an interesting man. Although she’d learned a little about his family, there were so many things she still wanted to know.

  Her hands lifted to her hair and she began removing the hairpins one by one. Sitting on the edge of her bed, she glanced at Iona’s empty cot and wished she could talk to her friend and get her opinion on the change in...

  Iona.

  The other girls were still locked in the storehouse!

  Lydia jumped to her feet and raced pell-mell down the staircase. Then, after peeking out the front window to make sure that there was no sign of Gideon Gault, she ran as fast as she could back to town.

  * * *

  Gideon didn’t bother going back to the Pinkerton office and the barracks on the upper floor. He’d only gone a short distance into town before the old familiar restlessness began to bubble up inside of him.

  He had to get away.

  He had to keep moving.

  He had to feel the wind in his hair and the roll of a horse beneath him.

  By the time he’d reached the livery and saddled his gelding, he was breathing heavily and his lungs felt as if bands of iron tightened around them. The past seemed to suck him back into that dark place where flashes of battle crowded into his brain, pushing everything aside. Try as he might to stay rooted in the present, the coppery taste of fear tainted his tongue. His ears seemed to ring with cannon fire, and the stench of gunpowder and blood lingered in his nostrils. Then, just as quickly, the sensations shifted into something worse. Far worse.

  Death.

  Disease.

  Untold suffering.

  Swinging onto the back of his mount, he spurred it into a gallop as soon as the animal had cleared the threshold. Then he was riding, riding, up toward the mine where the intermittent lanterns illuminated the road.

  Once he’d passed the opening, he was forced into slowing his horse, even though he wanted to keep flying through the darkness so that he could chase away the ghosts of his past and the sensation of being trapped. He doubled back in the other direction, taking a rarely used road that was little more than a set of wagon ruts etched into the grass.

  It wasn’t until he found himself at the top of the slopes and looking down into the canyon that he brought his mount to a stop. Dragging the cool, damp air into his lungs, he closed his eyes, trying to push away the memories that seemed determined to wash over him and transport him to another time. He felt another mount beneath him, quivering as Gideon led it toward the noise and violence of the battlefield. He remembered the way it had reared back, unseating him, beginning a cascade of ill-timed events that would see him captured, then transported south.

  To Andersonville.

  His body and spirit railed against the images that flashed behind his eyes like malicious lightning bugs.

  So much death.

  Such despair.

  As if his very soul depended on it, Gideon took deep breaths in an attempt to re-anchor himself in the present.

  He would not give in to the past.

  Not tonight.

  Gradually, the sensations of misery and filth began to fade beneath the heady scent of pine and wet grass.

  And something more. A faint hint of...

  Gardenias and lemons.

  An image of Lydia sprang into his head, pushing away the remembered ugliness of war. In his mind’s eye, he saw her in a montage of poses: militantly regarding him with her hands on her hips, challenging him with an imperious stare and smiling up at him in the darkness.

  That thought lingered, becoming more real as he remembered the way that the moonlight had slipped over the curve of her cheek and sparkled in her eyes. Crystal-blue eyes the color of the Aspen River first thing in the morning.

  The woman was full of surprises, he’d give her that. Until today, most of their encounters had proven to be a battle of wits. She’d seemed to delight in slipping away from the Pinkerton
guards, and Gideon found secret pleasure in hauling her back into line.

  But tonight...she’d been more open. More...

  Real.

  A man would have his hands full with a woman like that. If he didn’t keep her in line...

  No. That kind of thinking is exactly what Lydia would expect of him. He could already hear her railing at him that the fairer sex wasn’t meant to be controlled. They were meant to be...

  Loved.

  But Lydia had made it clear that she didn’t want to be loved. At least not by a man. She intended to live her life as a champion for women’s suffrage.

  Which was too bad. Because a woman like that could be a formidable force. Exasperating, yes, but she would also be fiercely loyal and devoted. No doubt, she would love a man with the same passion as she fought for women’s equality.

  Gideon shook his head to rid it of such thoughts. Why was he even thinking of such a thing? Lydia Tomlinson was law unto herself. In a matter of days, she would resume her journey to California, and Gideon’s life and routine could return to normal.

  It was better that way.

  Much better.

  As he shifted in the saddle, his horse nickered slightly. And somehow, the noise sounded like the animal was laughing at him.

  Gideon’s gaze scanned the darkness of the pass one last time, taking in the glint of moonlight on the river below. And something more. A spark of light?

  He leaned forward in the saddle, ruing the fact that he didn’t have his field glasses with him. For long moments, he scoured the area below him until he was sure that the glow had been a figment of his imagination.

  He’d decided to return to town when he saw it again. A tiny flicker down by the riverbanks.

  A fire?

  For nearly a quarter hour, he watched, and in that time, the light neither grew larger or smaller—which meant it was being tended. Occasionally, Gideon would lose sight of it altogether—as if someone or something blocked it from view. Then it would reappear.