by Lisa Plumley
“I left Mary behind,” Griffin went on roughly. “I left all hope of marriage and happiness behind with her! You didn’t—”
All at once, the truth struck him. Confused, Griffin frowned. “You didn’t say a thing,” he told Palmer. “Why not?”
His friend gave him a wry look. “Mary was not Olivia.”
He didn’t need to say anything more. The truth was too evident. It was too raw, too real…and suddenly, too hopeless.
“I’ve ruined this!” Griffin said. “I can’t fix it now.”
Palmer gave an annoyingly equable look. “Well, you can’t fix it by staying here, that’s for certain.”
“I can’t fix it by leaving, either.” Distraught, Griffin paced faster. He wanted to smash something. To drink to forget. To blame this on Palmer…on anyone. But he didn’t. He truly was changed by Olivia. “Those women outside will blockade me.”
“Maybe,” Palmer agreed, appearing on the verge of chortling. “But I meant you can’t fix this situation by staying here, in your train car. You have to go to her. Now.”
Griffin stopped. “Maybe Olivia wouldn’t have accepted if I’d proposed to her,” he confessed. Maybe part of him had been afraid of that happening all along. “She’s refused everyone else.” Sardonically, he cracked a smile. “Leave it to me to fall for the one woman who’s the hardest to woo. Maybe in the world.”
“You always did enjoy a challenge.”
Argh. What Griffin enjoyed was Olivia—seeing her smile, hearing her debate Descartes’s theories with him, feeling her touch. Somehow, he had to set things right. But first…
“Did you bring any spare hats?” he asked.
Palmer appeared perplexed. “You only ever wear the one.”
“Then you didn’t. Just say so, will you?”
“I didn’t bring any spare hats.”
But he needed a hat to confront this issue, Griffin knew. He needed protection to go to Olivia—to beg her forgiveness and ask her to be his. He might even need a hat to sneak past the waiting crowd. A few of them appeared none too pleased with him.
He wouldn’t be surprised if they broke out pitchforks. He couldn’t believe Palmer was willingly marrying one of them.
“Don’t tell me you’re worried about your…” Palmer broke off, gesturing toward Griffin’s hideous nose. “Now. Are you?”
A little. “For all I know, those townspeople haven’t come to settle their bets at all,” Griffin protested. “For all I know, they’ve come to try to chase away The Boston Beast.”
Palmer’s guffaw didn’t help matters. Then… “No,” his associate assured him in an even tone. “They haven’t.”
Doubly vexed, Griffin shot another speculative glance at the gathered crowd. Each side milled around in talkative clumps. They appeared to be electing representatives now. Most likely, he reasoned, the people of Morrow Creek were preparing to have their irksome wagers settled, for once and for all.
From one side, Grace Murphy stepped forward.
From the other, Olivia Mouton did.
Boggling at her, Griffin felt his heart turn over. His belly performed a somersault, too. He couldn’t tell if Olivia loved him, if she hated him…if she’d merely come to collect on the nonproposal side of the town’s bet. All he knew was that Olivia looked wise and determined and unstoppably desirable.
All he knew was that, for better or worse, he was going to her. “Cross your fingers,” Griffin said, then he headed outside.
Chapter Twenty
Olivia couldn’t believe so many of her friends and neighbors had come to the railway station to witness her possible defeat. Likely, a few of them—the men whose marriage proposals she’d turned down over the years, for instance—were deliberately rooting for a setback for her. Doubtless, they wanted beautiful Olivia Mouton to be refused the only proposal she’d—ironically—ever truly desired. They wanted to see her humbled. They wanted to see her stripped of an advantage that Olivia knew today more than ever was wholly ineffectual.
At least it was when it really counted.
Beauty faded. Remedy bottles grew dusty. They smashed or stopped selling or simply quit convincing enough folks of their efficacy. Someday soon, Olivia knew, that medicine-show man’s Milky White Complexion Beautifier and Youthful Enhancement Tonic would fade from memory. A new elixir would replace it.
Her only hope, now as ever—even when she hadn’t realized it—was to rely on the parts of her that couldn’t be lithographed or sketched or photographed, Olivia knew. Her only hope was to be herself, fully herself…and to take her chances that when things truly mattered, she would be enough. For anything.
Considering that as she stepped forward to the front of the collected crowd, Olivia wished mightily that her wise thoughts came packaged with additional bravery. She also wished that her wise thoughts had the capacity to stop a lady from rethinking her choice of attire and hairstyle for the afternoon. Even now, Olivia gave her upswept hair a tentative pat. She fluffed her skirts, checked her high-buttoned bodice then exhaled deeply.
Nervously, she aimed a hesitant glance at Annie. From her friend, she’d learned of the goofy betting scheme that Jimmy the bellman had hatched. From her friend, she’d learned of the plans the members of the ladies’ auxiliary league had made to waylay Griffin, should he ever try to leave town. Now Annie nodded.
She also gave an audacious “go ahead!” signal, making the women’s side of the betting pool surge forward in anticipation.
Hoping she wouldn’t disappoint their hopes for a proposal, Olivia gathered her courage. She took another step forward.
At the same time, the door to Griffin’s private train car opened. Griffin himself appeared in the doorway. He looked tall and broad shouldered and undeniably grim, and Olivia had the distinct sensation that her heart skipped a beat at the sight of him. He looked so…forbidding, she thought. Also, so alone.
Maybe, it occurred to her, he perversely liked it that way?
The gentlemen’s side of the betting pool appeared to agree with that supposition. As one, they murmured and moved forward.
Keeping ahead of them, Olivia raised her chin. It wouldn’t do to falter now. She’d come here to get her man. That was exactly what she intended to do. No matter how foolish she had to make herself look to do so. Just then, she didn’t care a whit.
Also just then, Griffin descended the train-car steps. His visage did not become any softer. Absurdly, Olivia was reminded of the very first descriptions of Griffin she’d heard from Jimmy and the hotel desk clerk, the day after Griffin had arrived.
I heard he’s the terror of Boston, they’d said, with eyes like the devil and a fancy dark coat that drags along on the ground when he stomps by. About seven feet tall, with a fully loaded gun belt and knives strapped to both legs. Dressed all in black. Couldn’t scarcely see his face, ’specially with all that hair.
All those descriptors were still apt. Realizing it, Olivia quailed. Griffin might not have precisely reached seven feet, but it felt as though he did—and all his ability to intimidate was fully evident today. If she managed to successfully stage a public showdown with him, Olivia realized, her old quarrelsome encounter with the medicine-show man would crumble to pieces.
In its place, a new legend would rise—one where Olivia Mouton actually had the gumption to demand a proposal from a man whose approach made fully grown railway men and cowboys blanch.
Behind her, Olivia’s supposed backers on the nonproposal side of the betting pool stopped in their tracks. Not a man among them wanted to antagonize Griffin. She was on her own.
Bravely, Olivia took another step. She squared her shoulders. She watched as Griffin strode toward the crowd.
He might have emerged, it occurred to her, simply to settle their wagers. For all she knew, Griffin had laid bets himself.
Olivia didn’t want to think which side he might have gambled on. If he was really as bad as he’d claimed, he’d have had no compunction about profiting from such a si
tuation—about letting her believe he’d been wooing her for real…when all along he’d actually been scheming to win a devious series of bets.
On the other hand, the fact that Griffin had given The Lorndorff outright to her father was strong evidence of Griffin’s sincerity. Olivia had learned of that surprise from her father. Although everyone in town had seemed duly impressed with her “victory” over the out-of-town industrialist who’d shaken up Morrow Creek with his mysterious arrival, Olivia had been unable to take much pleasure in her supposed triumph.
She’d been too busy trying to formulate what to say when this situation arose—as, inevitably, given her own unstoppable sense of determination, she’d thought it would.
She’d had a whale of a speech prepared, too, Olivia reflected. It had been full of vivid metaphors and passionate analogies and irrefutable logical arguments. It had been touched by emotion and leavened by whimsy. It had been magnificent.
Unfortunately, as soon as Griffin got close enough for her to glimpse the heartbreak in his eyes and the regret in his face, Olivia felt her entire carefully crafted speech melt from her mind. Her eloquence vanished, replaced by simple need.
She needed Griffin. That was the beginning and the end.
With the last shred of her intellect, Olivia transferred her gaze from Griffin’s face to his head. His long dark hair lifted in the territorial breeze, making him seem wilder than ever. He hadn’t replaced his hat, but she liked him this way.
“I’d like a proposal,” she blurted. Her voice broke on the words, so she tried again. Knowing that her demand was likely being carried by the wind toward the onlookers behind her, Olivia added extra starchiness. “I deserve a proposal. I—”
Before she could say more, Griffin stunned her by dropping to his knees. His fine black trousers hit the dirt. His long black coat puddled there, too. Not caring, he grabbed her hands.
His grasp was every ounce as urgent as his expression was.
“Please forgive me, Olivia,” Griffin said. “I’m sorry.”
His hoarse, needful tone shocked her. “Get up!” She gave a jerky upward gesture, stifling an impulse to see if people were laughing. “Your suit! Your coat! They’ll be ruined.” She glanced backward. “Half the town is here, Griffin. People will talk.”
“Let them talk. I don’t care.” With unabashed sincerity, Griffin looked up at her. Ludicrously, he kneed his way closer. “All I care about is you,” he said. “I need you, Olivia. I need you like darkness needs dawn. Like whiskey needs a glass. Like flowers need creek water. I can’t stand it without you.”
“So…I’m bright and encircling and prone to flooding?” she couldn’t help asking, unable to fathom his plan. If it was to make her look a fool, it was succeeding. Her knees wobbled. Her heart pounded. In Griffin’s grasp, her hands trembled. Olivia doubted she could hold out much longer. “Is that it? Griffin, you’ve scarcely been without me for a single morning, so—”
“It felt like a lifetime,” he swore. “I didn’t know—I couldn’t see—” He broke off, groaning in dismay. “You have to believe me, Olivia. I’ve been without love for so long—”
At that, her heart broke a little bit.
“—that I guess I didn’t trust it when it found me.” He gave her hand a passionate squeeze. “I didn’t trust it when you found me. I didn’t think it could be true—that you would want me for yourself. For your own.” He gave a pleading gesture from her to himself. “Look at us. You’re fine and sweet and brave, and I’m—”
“You’re wonderful!” Helplessly, Olivia dropped to her knees, too, right along with him. Not caring about the onlookers who gasped at her movement or the dirt that smudged her skirts, she ardently stroked his cheek. “You’re kind, Griffin, and you’re brilliant and generous, too, and I can’t bear to think what would have become of me if you hadn’t come to town.”
A glimmer of hope brightened his eyes. “You’d have spent a lot more time embroidering things?”
Horrified by the notion, Olivia shuddered. “Maybe!” she agreed. She couldn’t help smiling at the raspy mischief in his voice. “Or maybe I would have just spent my days not knowing who I really was…not knowing who I really wanted.”
“Well…” He quirked a grin—one that reminded her of his teasing ways. “You have quite an assembly here to choose from.”
“It’s you!” Exasperated, Olivia choked back a sentimental sob. “It’s you, Griffin. It’s only you.” Once more, she caressed him. Once more, she drank in the sight of him. She’d only been mostly sure that she’d catch up with him in time after all. “Without you, all my days lose their thrill. All my nights—”
Hastily, he cut her off before anyone could hear her discuss all the very private, very sensual things they’d shared.
“Without you, I have no reason to be,” Griffin said simply. “Without you, I wouldn’t know what it means to be loved at all.”
At that, tears leaped to her eyes. “You are loved, Griffin! Haven’t I said so?”
Wordlessly, he shook his head. Her heart broke anew.
“I love you!” Olivia shouted, not caring who heard. “I love you so much, Griffin, that I can’t believe the breadth and shape and size of it. My love for you—”
“Is bigger than a bread box and more crooked than a shoehorn?” Griffin joked. “Well—”
“—is big enough to hold you and me together forever,” Olivia finished resolutely. “It’s big enough to hold the moon and the stars and everything in between. I don’t know how I got along without you, but if I have my way—”
“You’ll never have to try,” Griffin said, pulling her close to him. On their knees together in the dirt, they gazed at one another. Very softly, he kissed her. “I swear, Olivia, if you let me, I’ll do everything it takes to give you the love you deserve. I’ll fight every battle. I’ll give you all I have and more.” His face took on a shining countenance, as though Griffin had just remembered something especially excellent. “I have mansions and money!” he assured her. “I have social connections. I have a box at the opera house and prizewinning horses. I—”
With a kiss of her own, Olivia stopped him. She breathed in deeply, loving the sight of him. The feel of him. The nearness of him. She shook her head. “I don’t care about any of those things. I don’t care where we live or who we see. I only want you. I want you forever, Griffin. I’m sorry I didn’t say so before.” Olivia sighed. “We might have avoided all this.”
“Maybe.” Griffin cast a dubious glance at the crowd. They’d kept a respectful distance, but Olivia knew there was still a chance they’d run riot. There was a lot of money at stake in those wagers. “But somehow,” Griffin went on, “this feels exactly right to me. Because you’re with me. And I’m with you.”
He held her hands, then drew in a deep breath. “I don’t know if I can say it right. I’ve never tried before.” His dark-eyed gaze swept over her, solemn and meaningful. “But I love you, Olivia. I do. I love you in ways I’d never imagined. When I’m with you, I feel as though I could do anything. I feel as though my heart is too big for my chest and my arms are too short to hold you for as long as I’d like to.”
“Well,” Olivia inserted pertly, “that could be remedied with enough practice, I’d say. So just keep trying.”
Griffin appeared to love that idea. Tenderly, he kissed her again. He nudged his knees a little closer to hers. He inhaled, then rested his forehead against hers, gazing into her eyes.
“When I look in your eyes,” he said, “I can see the man I want to be. I can see the man I hope to be. And I know I almost wrecked that today, Olivia—” Griffin’s voice broke, then strengthened “—but I swear, if it takes my whole life, I promise I’ll love you the way no one else ever could.” Lovingly, he stroked her cheek. “I promise I’ll be there for you. No matter what it takes. I can do it! I’m strong and I’m smart—”
“He is both of those things,” Palmer Grant interjected from the side, cradling a jubilant-looking An
nie next to him. “I can vouch for the grumpy, bossy, hard-drinking son of a—”
“—and I’m equipped with more pigheaded stubbornness than any single man ought to have been endowed with,” Griffin continued with self-evident intractability. “So you can count on me. I promise, you can. Just give me another chance. Please.”
At that, Olivia gave him a cockeyed look. “What do you think this is?” she asked reasonably. “Do you think I fall down and plant myself in the dirt at the railway station for just any man?”
“I hope not,” Griffin avowed. “Because if you do, I just got a damn sight less special, didn’t I?”
“Never,” Olivia pledged, smiling as she kissed him. “You’ll be special to me always. No matter what.”
For a long, blissful moment, they only gazed into each other’s eyes, forehead to forehead, breathing the same fresh Morrow Creek air, not wanting to move—not wanting to change.
They were both, Olivia realized belatedly, savoring the moment.
Then the crowd began to stir. Someone stepped forward.
“None of this mush,” Jimmy the bellman observed loudly, “sounds like a proposal of marriage to me. How ’bout you boys?”
“No!” As one, the assembled men roared out. “No!”
“Hold on!” Grace Murphy yelled back, speaking for the collected ladies. She motioned for the men’s catcalls to quit. Her husband, the saloonkeeper, helped with that endeavor. Then, with that accomplished, Grace looked at Olivia and Griffin. “Please continue,” she suggested with a courteous gesture. “Here in Morrow Creek, most of us have faith in true love.”
Her sisters, Molly and Sarah, stepped up to agree.
“Nah! It ain’t happenin’!” one of the menfolk said.
Someone chuckled. “She ain’t sayin’ yes, if it does!”
“Pshaw,” added a woman. “She practically proposed to him!”
At that, Olivia looked at Griffin. He looked at her.
