Tyler lay back down and placed his hands behind his head. "Well, in that case, I guess I'll just do my worshiping right here. Maryellen," he said the false name with a wry twist, "tell the preacher to speak up loud and clear this morning."
Evie couldn't keep a bubble of laughter from forming on her lips. The children had stopped to stare, and people were coming out of the church to watch the performance. Tyler looked quite ridiculous in his best Sunday frock coat and crisp ruffled linen lying in the street, but he seemed perfectly content to continue perusing the sky. Kyle, however, appeared on the verge of a volcanic explosion.
Doing her best to keep a straight face, Evie patted Kyle's rumpled coat sleeve. "Do try to understand, Mr. Harding. Tyler's been a friend of the family ever so long, and I've come to rely on his help and advice. Daniel looks up to him as if he were an older brother, and the children adore him. He's really a very nice man, Mr. Harding. And he literally swept me off my feet. I had no idea he returned my feelings like that. I do love him, Mr. Harding, and I wish you wouldn't hurt him too much."
Tyler liked the sound of that, even if it were a pack of Evie's usual lies. He propped himself up on his elbows again and grinned at Kyle's discomfort. "Yeah, Mr. Harding, don't hurt me too much, or I'll not be any use at all to my wife."
Kyle almost erupted again, and Evie kicked Tyler with her little shoe. Giving a surprised "oomph," he caught his bruised rib, sat up, and glared at Evie. "Kick a man while he's down, will you? You'll pay for that later, woman."
Kyle bristled and clenched his fists again, but Evie smiled sweetly and held out her hand to her dusty husband. "We'll be late for church. I want to hear you singing this time instead of grumbling in my ear."
Laughter tittered through the crowd as the handsome gambler eyed his wife and stood up without the aid of her helping hand. Ignoring Evie's triumphant expression, Tyler dusted himself off and met Kyle's furious gaze.
"Don't know that I can say the best man won, but it's not as if I forced her." Tyler groaned inwardly at the sound of his own words. He was becoming as much a liar as Evie.
Before he could correct himself, Evie took his arm and smiled pleasantly at her erstwhile suitor. "Why don't you come to dinner after church, Mr. Harding? We'd be happy to have you. I'd hate to think I'd come between two friends."
Kyle growled, "He ain't no friend of mine," but he walked by Evie's side as they headed toward the church.
Not until Jace joined them did Tyler realize the big man was in the crowd. Thanking the heavens above that the brawl had been settled amicably before Jace could join in, Tyler expressed his gratitude by consenting to join in the hymn singing. He wasn't certain it was good for his soul, but it could very well be good for preventing aching ribs.
It had been a long time since he had raised his voice in song and he was a bit rusty, but the notes came back to him with a little practice. So engrossed did he become in remembering the harmony that he didn't notice Evie's curious glances, nor the startled looks on the faces of the children around them. He just felt better for having conquered one more ghost from his past.
It wasn't until they were leaving church and well-wishers came up offering both congratulations on their marriage and comments on Tyler's singing that he realized what he had done. Jace pounded him on the back and grinning, dragged Kyle away after making polite excuses about dinner. After swallowing one more compliment than he could handle, Tyler caught Evie's arm and hauled her from the crowd.
Evie had the pensive look on her face that Tyler had cause to remember too well, and he attempted to forestall her next leap of imagination. "Don't even say it, Evie," he warned.
She gave him a thoughtful look from behind long lashes. "Did all your family sing as well as you?"
He should have known he couldn't stop her. Tugging uncomfortably at his tie, he answered evasively, "My father wasn't much good at it."
"But the rest of you did: your mother, and your older brothers."
"Yeah." Tyler refused to say more. He wasn't stirring any more old memories than was necessary. His family had lived too far up the river to attend church regularly, but they had often spent Sunday morning around the piano, singing hymns to his mother's accompaniment. And at Christmastime, they were often called upon by the neighbors to do the carols that became second nature to them. His mother sang at weddings, and singing was a form of entertainment at any number of other social occasions. Just thinking about those times brought painful tears to his eyes. That had all been before the war, of course.
Evie respected Tyler's silence. It didn't take her imagination to know what was in his mind right now. Children were just naturally jubilant and loved to sing. She had a better understanding of his reaction to the Rodriguez children. It was a wonder Tyler hadn't taken to his heels and never turned back when they'd met him at the door with that song. The painful memories that must have brought back made even her heart flinch.
Unaware of the thoughts of their elders, the children rushed around them, chattering like magpies. Even Daniel was grinning and talking excitedly about some plan of his for the afternoon. Evie wound her fingers around Tyler's hand and squeezed, and he pulled her arm behind her back and rewarded her with a kiss on her forehead.
The children took the affectionate gesture in stride and continued chattering as they walked down the alley. Not until they got close to the house and saw the stranger standing on the porch did they go silent, one by one.
Tyler pressed Evie behind him, but the stranger didn't look dangerous. He looked as if he had been traveling for a long time. His long canvas dust coat was wrinkled and dirty and thrown over a satchel that looked as beaten and weary as its owner. The man himself wasn't particularly tall, but he sported a pointed goatee that had the children staring. Threads of gray laced the beard and his otherwise dark hair. But it was the eyes that Tyler noticed.
They were Evie's eyes.
And the children's eyes.
With a growing lump of panic in his middle, Tyler looked around him again to be certain he wasn't mistaken. He had never really noticed the resemblance before. The children were unmistakably of Spanish origin, with the olive coloring, black hair, and slight stature of their Mexican father. Evie's complexion was as fair as an English rose, her hair shimmered with strands of auburn, and while she wasn't particularly tall, he would never call her short. There was absolutely no resemblance at all, except in the eyes.
Those mysterious, slightly slanted, long-lashed sloe eyes of hers had always fascinated him. Perhaps knowing Evie made it easier to accept the same eyes on the children without a second glance. But seeing those eyes on this stranger who pulled the two sets of characteristics together caught his attention with a vengeance.
Gesturing for Evie and the children to wait, Tyler advanced upon the stranger alone. "Is there something we could help you with?" His voice was neutral, but he scanned the newcomer for guns or other weapons. He could see none. There did seem to be a paintbrush sticking out of his coat pocket, however. Tyler's breath caught in his throat.
The man looked over the crowd of heads ranging from Maria's small one to Daniel and Evie's taller ones, and an expression of puzzlement crossed his brow. "I was told this was the Rodriguez place. Does Angelina Rodriguez live here?"
That question wasn't as easy to answer as it should have been. The man had to be a relation, a close relation to the children and therefore a close relation to their mother. Tyler didn't want to blurt out that Angelina Rodriguez had been washed away in a flood some weeks back. But he wasn't at all certain how to explain why he and Evie and Daniel were now living in this little house. He opted for the evasive answer.
"I'm Tyler Monteigne. May I ask your name?"
The older man grimaced and brushed the dirt off his hand before extending it. "My manners are lacking, as usual. I apologize, Mr. Monteigne. I'm James Peyton, Angelina's brother."
Tyler heard Evie's gasp behind him, and obviously, so did Mr. Peyton. Not daring to turn around and see
the questions in her eyes, Tyler shook the man's hand. "Well, Mr. Peyton, in that case, we're mighty glad to see you, but I'm afraid we have unhappy news for you. Why don't we all go inside first?"
In his words and the gracious gestures he used to escort the other man into the house, Tyler revealed his plantation upbringing. Heart pounding, Evie watched the two men go in, but she didn't think she could move a foot. The children followed her example, standing in the dust, watching her with curiosity and waiting for instructions. Daniel was the one to limp up on his crutch and tug at her elbow.
"Come on, Evie. That has to be Carmen's uncle."
Evie's gaze swung to Daniel's familiar face for reassurance. "His name is Peyton." She had known that. She had seen the gravestones in the cemetery and sent the second telegram. She had hoped, but she had hoped for twenty years. Hope was about as real as Don Quixote and Sancho Panza.
Daniel's excitement danced in his eyes. "He could be the clue you're looking for. Come on, Evie. We've got to go in."
The boys were already deserting her. Curiosity won out over the security of Evie's company. They were at the door and listening to the conversation within. Carmen and Maria waited patiently for Evie's decision.
Evie nodded. "He must be your uncle," she agreed speaking to Carmen and ignoring Daniel and all their hopes. "He has traveled a great distance. Bring him some of that beer your mother kept in the cellar. Have Manuel run over to the butcher's for another chicken."
Carmen accepted the orders with grave dark eyes that belied her years. She disappeared with Maria into the interior, leaving Evie to follow at an unsteady pace.
By the time she entered the cool darkness of the house, Evie had found her shield again. She shook out her skirt and touched a hand to her hair, then donned a sympathetic smile as she practiced the feminine walk she had been taught in school. Even through the grief written across his face, the gentleman near the hearth watched her approach with appreciation.
"Mr. Peyton, my sincere condolences. I trust Tyler has explained everything to you, but if you have any questions, please feel free to ask away." She took the mug of beer that Carmen carried in and handed it to their guest. "Please, don't stand on formality. Have a seat. We'll have dinner ready shortly. You have to stay and join us. You'll want to hear all about the children."
The stranger set the mug on the table and searched Evie's face. "I have dozens of questions, thank you, but I don't want to be in your way. I can remember being a young boy and starving impatiently for Sunday dinner. Please go on and work without worrying about me."
Evie felt tighter than a bow string as she accepted the excuse to leave the two men while she and Carmen went to work at the kitchen stove. Most everything had been put on to simmer before they went to church. It was just a matter of frying chicken, putting in the biscuits, and finishing up the last-minute things that couldn't be done ahead of time. It gave her time to breathe and steady her nerves.
Although the stranger and Tyler sat not that far away, both men spoke in low tones, and with the clanging of pots and the chatter of nervous children, their conversation was not easily discerned. Evie tried to pretend she was just preparing a meal for a friend of Tyler's. The coincidence of his name meant absolutely nothing.
She heard Jose ask the stranger if he was going to stay and be their new daddy, but she couldn't hear the man's reply. That gave her one more subject to fear. He would take the children away. What would she do without the children?
She would have to stay with Tyler in his hotel room. They would have to take a room for Daniel, but he couldn't manage the stairs yet. She couldn't cook their meals. She would feel like a kept woman, sitting on the bed and waiting for her man to come home from the saloon. And she wouldn't have the children.
She tried to keep the tears from her eyes. Perhaps Mr. Peyton was a wealthy man and could take care of them much better than she could. The streets of California were said to be paved with gold, and he had just come from there. He would take the children back with him and they would go to good schools and dress in fine clothes. They would be just fine. She didn't need to worry about them.
Carmen set the table while Evie put the new chicken Manuel brought into the skillet. She ordered the boys to go wash their hands, and the men went outside to clean up, too. There was a great deal of noise and jockeying for position around the washbowl. Evie could hear Tyler ordering Jose to get the dirt out of his ears before potatoes grew in them, and she smiled. Tyler might be terrified at the thought of children, but he was good with them.
Freshly scrubbed, they trooped in and took their places around the table. Evie started setting the food out in bowls while Carmen got Maria arranged on her high stool with a towel around her neck. She could pretend this was a family gathering. It was a family gathering. She just wasn't part of the family.
When everything was served, Evie took her place beside Tyler and said grace. Hands reached and grabbed after that. Nervously, Evie ordered them to mind their manners, and aware of the stranger in their midst who might disapprove and go away again, the children went stiff and silent, passing the bowls as they had been taught.
Evie thought she might break like brittle glass. She forgot to take a piece of chicken as it went around, and only rolled the peas around on her plate. She watched the stranger furtively as he ascertained each child's name and made an awkward comment or two to get them talking. They responded with wariness, causing Evie's tension to shoot up another notch.
She had been cooler-headed in a saloon filled with gamblers and when she had been abducted than she was in this perfectly normal setting with a man who might be her father. Evie closed her eyes and shut out that thought. She was a Howell. Just because her middle name was Peyton she shouldn't get her hopes up. Her mother may have been a Peyton. There was nothing to prove her speculations right or wrong.
But she wanted to know. All her soul screamed to know. She couldn't eat for wanting. And at the same time, she was afraid to find out.
When Jose dumped his glass of milk and it flooded across the table to Mr. Peyton's lap, Evie calmly cleaned up the chaos, soothed Jose's terror, offered the use of her bedroom so Mr. Peyton could change into dry trousers, and when all was calm again, she walked out the front door and didn't look back.
Chapter 33
Sending an apologetic look to Peyton, who had watched Evie's exit with perplexity, Tyler stood up, made his excuses, and went after her.
She was wandering aimlessly down the street, looking bewildered and sad. When Tyler caught up with her, she donned a bright smile and gestured to a bolt of cloth in the mercantile window.
"That would look nice on Maria and Carmen. Do you think they would wear matching dresses?"
Tyler grasped her shoulders and forced her to face him. "I'm not Peyton or Hale or any of those other men you've fooled with that face, Evie. I know what's worrying you, but worrying about it isn't going to make it go away. Now let's get back to the house before the kids' uncle thinks you're crazed and unfit to take care of them."
Evie searched Tyler's face. He had known enough pain of his own to recognize hers. The determined set of his jaw reassured her somehow. Tyler turned a smiling, easygoing face to the world, but he wore the same kind of mask she did. Only what was behind his mask had been shattered long ago, while she was still relatively whole. She thought maybe she was beginning to understand him just a little bit. He needed something to replace what had been lost, but he was afraid of it, afraid of suffering the pain again.
Her smile faltered, but she offered a brave face. "Kiss me, Tyler."
They were standing there in the eyes of the whole world, but Tyler didn't hesitate. Gently, he cupped her face with both hands and touched his lips to hers until they both moved closer together. Nothing could tell him that they had something special more than that small movement, that natural gravitation. It was a little frightening, but Tyler dropped his hands to Evie's waist and pulled her into his embrace for a brief moment before releasi
ng her.
"Hold your chin up and let's beard the devil. What would Jane Eyre do if she were you?"
Evie didn't want to pretend that Mr. Peyton was Mr. Rochester, but she knew what Jane Eyre would do. Picking up the skirt, she sailed back down the street to confront the man directly.
Carmen was cleaning up the table and Daniel was embarrassedly entertaining their guest when Tyler and Evie returned. The boys were fidgeting, not wanting to miss anything, but reluctant to hang around the house on a Sunday afternoon. Evie sent them to change clothes and go play, put Maria in for a nap, and helped Carmen finish cleaning up. Carmen was old enough to know what was about happen.
When the children were out of the way, Evie set cups of coffee around the table, invited Daniel and Carmen to join them, and sat down beside Tyler to face the man who could take the children.
"We sent several telegrams, Mr. Peyton, but never received a reply. We had just about given up hope." Evie had learned to take the initiative a long time ago. It was the best way she knew to get what she wanted.
"I didn't receive any telegrams. I was probably already gone." Peyton's face clouded in memory of the letter that had sent him on this journey. "Angelina had written to me some months ago. It took me a little while to wind up my affairs, and finding transportation in this direction from California wasn't easy. I've gone through two horses in the process. I had no idea what I would find when I arrived here."
He looked up at Tyler and Evie. "The children have been blessed in finding someone as thoughtful as you to look after them. Had I come here and found my sister gone and her children scattered to the winds, I would have been desolate. Thank you for keeping them together."
"It's been our pleasure," Evie answered. "They are beautiful children, and I really don't know what I would have done without them."
"But you and your husband will be wishing to set up a home of your own," he said with understanding, sipping his coffee. "It is difficult for newlyweds to be suddenly endowed with four children."
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