A Man to Call My Own
Page 24
Stuart also traveled with his entourage of hired guns, and this trip was no exception, though they didn’t take up any of the coach seats. Two rode shotgun with the driver, and four more flanked the coach on either side as they headed out of town early that morning.
It was going to be a long trip, Marian thought miserably as she sat across from Chad in the coach. She was going to get a stiff neck, she was sure, trying to avoid looking at him—or spend most of the day with her eyes closed. She supposed she could claim she was tired, and just make sure the next time she entered the coach, she’d be on the same side of it as he was. Just not next to him. That wouldn’t do either. That would be worse, in fact.
Damn, it really was going to be an excruciatingly long journey.
Chapter 49
ODDLY ENOUGH, AMANDA DIDN’T complain about any of the traveling this time around. Of course, this trip was to her benefit, and that made all the difference. And everyone coming along was there to help her. At least, she’d see it that way. But the lack of complaints actually made the trip quite bearable, even pleasant, for everyone else.
Except Marian. Being forced into such close confines with Chad again wasn’t pleasant at all. In fact, she spent most of the trip quite dejected, frustrated, and with a whole slew of other unwelcome emotions to annoy her. Every time she happened to look at him, he was looking at Amanda. Every conversation Amanda started, he joined in on.
Everyone else was having a fine time on their new adventure. Marian wasn’t. If she were anything at all like her sister, she would have found a great deal to complain about. But she wasn’t, and so she kept her unhappiness to herself. She actually kept quiet for the most part, so much so that Chad remarked on it when they found themselves briefly alone in the corridor of one of the hotels they stayed at.
“You worried that you won’t be in time to recover any of your inheritance?”
“Why would I be any more worried than Amanda?”
He shrugged. “You just seem more preoccupied about it. Never known you to be so silent for so long. Barely heard a word out of you today.”
When he’d laughed at one of Amanda’s attempts to be funny that morning? When she hadn’t been funny at all? When the only ones who would have thought so were the men who adored her? And he wondered at her silence?
She had stewed over Chad’s response to Amanda all day, feeling more convinced than ever that Chad was still hoping to come out the winner in the end, where Amanda was concerned. Spencer hadn’t thought his wife was funny either. Of course her catty remark had been at his expense, so he wouldn’t.
Those two weren’t getting along. It was patently obvious to anyone taking notes, and Chad would be taking notes. Oddly, though, Amanda was being remarkably restrained toward someone she actively disliked.
The barbs she tossed at her husband were rather tame for her, more designed to get his attention than to cut to the quick. It was almost as if she didn’t really dislike him—or he held something over her to keep her from getting overly vicious.
But as for Chad’s remark, and because he was standing there blocking her path as he awaited a reply, she was forced to say something, and she said it rather stiffly, “I have a lot on my mind aside from someone stealing my inheritance. Four proposals of marriage require a great deal of thought.”
“What?!”
“You heard me. And I told them all I’d think about it, so I am—thinking about it.”
“Who’s been bothering you on this trip?”
“No one.”
“Then who asked to marry you?”
“Oh, those weren’t recent proposals, that was before we left Trenton.”
“Who?” he persisted.
She frowned and was forced to admit, “I honestly can’t remember most of their names, well, aside from that nice Willaby.”
Chad snorted. “He’s old enough to be your father.”
Marian shrugged. “He’s still very nice.”
He then narrowed his eyes on her. “You pulling my leg, Mari?”
“No, I wouldn’t dream of doing that,” she shot back. “And besides, since none of this is any of your business anyway, you shouldn’t be asking. And maybe you should keep your questions to yourself next time if the answers are going to bother you.”
“I’m not bothered,” he snapped.
“My mistake. You don’t sound bothered at all,” she snapped back, and pushed her way past him.
She didn’t say another word to him that day, or the next. In fact, if she couldn’t say something to him without snapping—she’d castigated herself thoroughly over that—then she’d do better to keep her mouth shut. He must have felt the same way because he went back to ignoring her.
* * *
The longest and most tedious part of the journey was over when they reached the railroad that connected to the eastern half of the country. The trip had been uneventful for the most part, no attempted robberies with such a well-armed escort, no gunfights or brawls to witness in the towns they passed through.
There had been the one morning Marian rose earlier than usual and caught her aunt leaving Stuarts hotel room. That could be considered quite eventful, she supposed, though only she knew about it. And she’d been much more embarrassed than Kathleen had been.
Her aunt had merely grinned at her, and said, “He’s asked me to marry him.”
“Isn’t this rather sudden?”
“Not really. We—ah, sort of shared a bed the night of the barbecue. I was all worried about you, even though Chad was going out to find you. But Stuart was determined to take my mind off of it. It’s pretty much why he came over that day for dinner, not just to tell me he was heading to Chicago for a spell, but to let me know when he got back that he’d be courting me proper.”
“Will you marry him?”
“Oh yes. I’ve been in love with that man since the day I first met him, just never thought to do more’n keep it to myself. Even after Frank died, I never dreamed the day might come that he’d show some interest in me.”
“Why not?” Marian asked in her aunt’s defense. “You’re a fine-looking woman.”
“But with a small spread, while he aspires to being the cattle king of Texas. Besides, with his wealth, he could have any woman he wanted, so why would he want one who could only bring a few head of cattle to the marriage?”
Marian rolled her eyes. Trust a couple of ranchers to think in terms of cattle rather than love.
“So you were wrong.”
“Actually,” Kathleen replied with a chuckle, “Stuart says it’s the only way he could think of to get my cook into his house.”
Marian blinked, and felt her hackles rise indignantly. Kathleen burst out laughing, then put a hand to her mouth to stifle it. Considering the early hour, she didn’t want to wake any of the others in their nearby rooms.
With another grin, she hooked her arm through Marian’s to lead her back to her own room. “He was joking,” she said in a low voice.
“You’re sure?”
“Absolutely. And let’s keep this to ourselves for now. Stuart wants to get married in style when we get back home. He’s going to invite the whole county. Says he’s going to throw the biggest shindig ever to celebrate. But in the meantime, we’d like to keep our happiness under wraps. Just ain’t appropriate, with everything else still unresolved.”
And Amanda would be sure to put a damper on it, since the happiness wasn’t hers. But that didn’t need to be said, it was understood by them both.
Marian was still amazed. She hadn’t seen it coming. But then she’d been so wrapped up in her own moping, she hadn’t noticed the intimate looks passing between the older couple, hadn’t noticed anything at all to indicate they were having secret rendezvous. Not that they could arrange them very often, when half the hotels they stayed at didn’t have enough rooms to accommodate everyone, so rarely did one of them get a room to himself or herself.
But she was very pleased for Kathleen. It did add to her
own dilemma though. It meant she’d have to live on Stuarts ranch with her aunt when they got back to Texas, at least until she got married herself. But that would mean being back under the same roof as Chad, and she found that so unacceptable she didn’t even want to think of it.
It did give her more incentive to find a husband before they returned to Texas, not an impossibility. She was returning to her hometown, after all, where she already knew most everyone in her social circle. And although she had alienated most of the eligible men there, she was returning a new woman—well, new in looks anyway—so she could start afresh.
There was the problem of a time constraint. They might not be in Haverhill very long, and certainly weren’t going there with the intention of entertaining callers. But she could work around that if she were determined enough, and she was. Anything would be preferable to having to put up with Chad’s continued presence.
Chapter 50
Stuart’s private railroad car was a marvel of elegance even for him. He’d be the first to say it was overdone. But he didn’t use it often enough to bother redecorating it. While it wouldn’t accommodate all of their party for sleeping purposes, the parlor area was well supplied with overstuffed chairs girded in velvet, so those who ended up sleeping in them didn’t really mind. And there had only been one night that they’d had to, when the train stopped at a depot only long enough for the passengers to eat dinner, then continued on through the night.
There was a well-stocked bar, even a piano. “It came with the car,” Stuart explained with a shrug. “Just never got around to getting rid of it.”
Red actually knew how to play it, and entertained them a few times. Chad enjoyed that much more than playing poker with his father and his men because he couldn’t concentrate long enough not to get ribbed for it. And he had no excuse to be so preoccupied, none that he was willing to share anyway.
Actually, his father seemed to be in the same boat— of not being able to concentrate for very long. Chad had guessed why. It was pretty obvious. But he’d wait until Stuart made the announcement, that he and Red were going to get hitched, before he said, “ ‘Bout time.”
The two made a perfect couple. Chad had thought so long before Stuart came to that realization himself. And he would have gotten a kick out of seeing his father “in love” again after all these years since his mother had died, if he weren’t so aggravated over his own pathetic circumstances.
He shouldn’t have come along on this trip. He’d never gone to Chicago with his father before. There was only one reason for his presence. He couldn’t bear to see the woman he wanted riding off into the sunset without him. That was really stupid, because she didn’t know he wanted her, and she sure as hell didn’t want him. So there had been no point in going, other than to make himself miserable. And he was doing a good job of that.
It hadn’t been so bad at first. Spencer and Amanda had distracted him with their odd relationship. He’d even found a lot of their bickering amusing, considering how he felt about Spencer. But it was getting harder and harder to see Marian every day and be so totally ignored.
Her behavior spoke volumes about her feelings for him. She didn’t have any, though she might have previously. He’d stood a good chance with her, before Amanda had tricked him. But she’d be insulted if he turned to her now. That night under the stars, she’d been in shock, and although he hadn’t intended to take advantage of that, he really had gotten carried away from wanting her so much. He should have just told her that; but she’d been so embarrassed about it afterward, he hadn’t wanted to make it worse. And even if for some reason she’d welcome his suit, the incident in the stable with her sister would always stand between them. He’d be better off just to forget about her entirely.
They were at their last overnight stop before reaching Chicago, when Chad found Spencer eating alone in the hotel dining room. He’d come down late to eat himself, hoping everyone else would be done and already in their rooms. Stuart had already announced that he’d be going all the way to Haverhill with the ladies. No surprise to Chad. He’d yet to decide if he would as well.
Prolonging the agony was one way to view it, except that Marian would be returning to Texas, probably even moving to the Kinkaid ranch if she didn’t marry before Red did. Maybe he should just stay in Chicago himself, at least until Marian was out of his life.
He sat down at Spencer’s table without asking permission. He and Spencer had been “getting along” if you could call not fighting getting along. And ever since the trip started, Chad had been curious what was behind Spencer’s strange attitude. Half the time he seemed annoyed, and the other half he seemed to be holding back laughter.
Spencer merely glanced up when Chad sat down, then went back to cutting the meat on his plate. Chad chose not to be ignored. He’d had quite enough of that lately.
“Where’s the wife?” he asked.
“A headache sent her to bed early. She seems to get a lot of them.”
“I’ll bet,” Chad said dryly. “But as good a reason as any for you to be tarrying down here.”
Spencer grinned, a secretive grin that Chad found damned annoying. But Spencer offered nothing by way of explanation, “The food’s great. I decided on a second helping is all.”
“Glad to hear it, since I’m starving.” Chad called the waitress over and asked her to bring him what Spencer was having. Then as if they’d already been discussing it, he said “You two getting a divorce as soon as this thing with the lawyer is settled?”
Spencer almost choked at the unexpected question, but recovered with a noncommittal, “I’m beginning to like married life.”
“You could have fooled the rest of us.”
Spencer laughed. “Appearances can be deceiving— as we both found out.”
“You wishing you’d found out sooner that the ladies are twins?”
“Hell no. Marian is too—how shall I put it—nice for my taste.”
“Too nice for you, period,” Chad mumbled.
Spencer sat back, took a drink of his wine, and said nonchalantly, “I sense you haven’t claimed her yet. But then I always knew you were a fool.”
Chad stiffened, reminding him, “I made love to her sister. That’s not something a woman will overlook.”
“Since when did you become an authority on women?” Spencer smirked. “You might as well run around with your head in the ground because you sure as hell aren’t going to get anywhere with her by not trying.”
“Look who’s talking. You have a wife who claims a headache if she even looks at you.”
Spencer burst out laughing. Chad gritted his teeth. His food arrived just then, or he might have sent his fist across the table.
He’d never known Spencer to be so cryptic, or to withhold what he found to be amusing. And something was sure as hell amusing him, although, for once, it didn’t seem to be at Chad’s expense. It was still damned annoying that Spencer was keeping it to himself.
But then Spencer surprised him. Laughter wound down, still grinning, he confessed, “I hate to disappoint you, but Amanda’s ‘headache’ excuse isn’t for me—well it is, but that’s because she hopes I’ll follow her right to bed. Her excuse is mainly so no one else will notice that she prefers to retire early these days— or wonder why.”
Chad frowned thoughtfully. “What you’re implying doesn’t add up.”
“That’s because you’re missing the main equation. How shall I put this? She loves making love.”
Chad snorted. “But otherwise hates your guts?”
Spencer’s grin widened. “She doesn’t hate me. Far from it.”
“You’re just her current favorite verbal punching bag then?”
“You mean her pouting? That’s all her cattiness is, because I won’t pamper her or give her everything she wants. Lord love her, she wouldn’t be herself if she didn’t pout. She is a brat, after all.”
“And that doesn’t bother you? Never mind. Your amusement speaks for itself.”
“It would drive me up a wall.”
“Well, that’s you, and thank God, you and I aren’t the least bit alike.”
“Son of a bitch,” Chad said as he realized, “you wanted to marry her all along, didn’t you? Your protests were just for her benefit.”
“Of course.”
“You ever going to get around to letting her know?” Chad wondered aloud.
“Probably not.” Spencer shrugged. “That would spoil her, and I’m not stupid.”
“A matter of opinion,” Chad said, but it was merely habit, insulting Spencer.
And Spencer ignored it. “I’m not about to make that mistake. Besides, it wouldn’t make her happy. It never did. Spoiling her just made her a bitch. But she’s learning—rather late, though better than never—that it’s more worthwhile to earn what she wants than to have it given to her. And I’m going to enjoy every moment of teaching her.”
Chad shook his head. “You amaze me, Spencer. I never would have thought you’d have that kind of patience.”
“There’s no patience needed. She’s too predictable, my wife. She’s spent her life manipulating others and never realized just how easy she is to manipulate herself.”
“I almost feel sorry for her.”
Spencer burst out laughing again. “For what? Getting her just deserts?”
“Something like that.”
“Don’t kid yourself. She’s never had so much fun in her life as she’s had since she met me.”
Chapter 51
ON THE LONG TRIP to Haverhill, there had been plenty of time to discuss a plan for confronting Albert Bridges. After going back and forth on all sorts of possibilities, they decided that the sisters would remain out of sight, until they located Albert—assuming he hadn’t already taken off to other parts of the country with his ill-gotten gains. But if he was still in Haverhill, they didn’t want to alert him to their presence before a confrontation could be arranged. They didn’t want to give him the opportunity to run before they could get their hands on him.