by Renee Ryan
“That’s all I ask.” He turned his attention to the table once more and began rolling the remaining bandages.
As she watched him prepare to leave, tears pierced through her composure. In little over a month, two men had asked her to marry them. Two good men who knew the details of her horrible past, and still they wanted to marry her. Her. Katherine Taylor.
Oh, thank You, Lord. Thank You for showing me in such a substantial way that I’m worthy of a man’s caring, and that I’m so much more than what happened to me that night two years ago.
Dr. Bartlett made it to the door, stopped, then turned back to her. “Marshal Scott returned late this morning with his deputy. Perhaps you’ll want to talk with him right away.”
Her hand flew to her mouth. “How did you know? Has talk been that specific?”
He shrugged. “I don’t think so, but I see things.”
If Shane Bartlett knew about her and Trey, did others as well? “Did I, I mean, was I…that easy to read?”
“No.” He twisted the door handle, his lips descending into a sympathetic grimace. “He was.”
Chapter Sixteen
An hour after Dr. Bartlett had proposed to Katherine, she left the jailhouse dejected and out of sorts. Normally, she didn’t make the trip to town. Although used to the accusing stares and whispers, she didn’t enjoy them. In fact, they hurt. They hurt a lot. Thus she avoided the experience as often as possible. Except, of course, on Sundays, when she went to church.
Today, however, she’d ignored the familiar nervousness as she’d left Charity House and gone in search of Trey in town. For Molly’s sake, as well as her own, it was time to settle matters between them. But, according to Deputy Mitchell, she’d missed Trey by less than an hour.
Her first reaction was an excited quiver in the vicinity of her heart. Trey was home. He was safe. He was no longer chasing vengeance.
But as she realized that she was the one who had sought him out, trepidation of another sort replaced her joy. Perhaps he’d changed his mind about her, about them. Perhaps he’d decided she wasn’t worthy enough to become his wife.
No. This false sense of shame, and constant lack of confidence in her own value as a woman, wasn’t of God. By allowing the disgrace of her attack to continue festering in her soul, she wasn’t living the abundant life promised to her as a child of God.
Well, no longer.
Trey wasn’t like the others, who condemned her. It was cowardly and wrong to question Trey’s motives, especially after all they’d been through together. She would believe that good came to those who trusted in the Lord.
Nevertheless, a vague sense of doubt still swam through her mind, thundered in her chest.
Scuffing her feet much like she’d seen Molly do, Katherine made her way along the wooden sidewalk. One, two, three. She began counting the seams between the planks in an attempt to clear her mind of her foolish uncertainty. A man bumped into her, hard, jerking Katherine’s attention from her task and nearly sending her to the ground.
“Oh.” Air whooshed out of her, and she flayed her hands in order to find her balance.
The man did nothing to help her. Instead, he scowled, with eyes that had turned gunmetal cold and unforgiving. “Watch where you’re going.”
A sound of dismay slipped from her lips. “I…Of course, I apologize.”
He paused and shot a hard glare at her, looking much like the ladies from church had when she’d encountered them in her neighborhood weeks ago. And just like that last time, her hands started to shake.
“See that it doesn’t happen again.” He all but snarled the words at her.
Katherine pressed her palms together and tried desperately to keep her rising resentment from taking control of her tongue. They both knew he had bumped into her on purpose. But she was Sadie Taylor’s daughter, and that put her firmly in the wrong. Every time. All the time.
Nevertheless, she would rise above this situation and take the godly way out. “Again, I apologize,” she said, managing a tight smile.
With a look of disgust on his face, he shoved past her. “Your kind should stay on Market Street, where you belong.”
Katherine stood frozen to the spot. Even through the blur of her shocked resentment, her instinct was to turn around and yell after him that she was a good, moral woman, a woman above reproach. A woman deserving of some kindness.
But people saw in her what they wanted to see. They saw a ruined woman whose virtue and innocence were gone. Stolen, yes, but gone all the same.
The pain of her humiliation throbbed thickly in her throat. She wanted to lash out, to scream at the unfairness of it all. In that moment she fully understood why Molly had answered Bobby Prescott’s accusations with her fists.
Although the encounters were never easy, Katherine had come to terms with this type of prejudice. But Molly was still a child, and for Katherine’s innocent little sister, the guilt by association ended today.
Of course, respectability would come at a price. Marriage to Trey could be the worst decision she ever made. Or the best. At that last thought, a tiny whisper of hope threaded through her doubts.
Trust. Where she and Trey were concerned, it all came down to trust. And just as Sheriff Lassiter had said when he’d brought Molly home this morning, Trey would come to her, and they would work everything out.
With renewed determination, Katherine made the trip home in record time. As she crossed the threshold, her senses were assaulted with the fresh smell of furniture polish and the sound of familiar voices.
Katherine stopped and listened.
Molly’s excited chatter came from the vicinity of Marc’s study. “Whattaya think of my new bandage, Mr. Trey? It’s really big, huh?”
Katherine’s breath hitched in her throat when she heard Trey’s deep voice respond to the question. “Very impressive,” he said.
A long pause followed, and the breath she’d been holding escaped past Katherine’s lips. She stabbed a quick glance to her left and then her right, discovering she was alone in the hallway.
Perhaps she would listen a moment longer.
Trey cleared his throat. “Tell me again how you hurt your hand.”
An even longer pause followed the question. A vague sense of hope filled Katherine, and she moved another step closer to Marc’s study.
“Kitten?” he urged softly.
Knowing it was wrong to eavesdrop, Katherine couldn’t find the courage to make her presence known just yet.
“Well,” Molly began, clearly reluctant to tell the full tale. Katherine could almost hear her sister shifting from one foot to another, her young mind sorting through the various explanations. “Like I said, Bobby Prescott’s head kinda ran into my hand.”
“Just like your eye ran into his fist?” Trey’s voice sounded more than a little ironic.
“Right. Just like that. I think he got it but good for saying those bad things about my sister, but Katherine says I’m supposed to forgive him anyway.”
Katherine held her breath, waiting to see if Trey would contradict her efforts at teaching Molly good Christian values.
The silence seemed to stretch out, but then Trey let out a grim, impatient snort. “Your sister is right, kitten.”
“But, Mr. Trey—”
“Don’t argue, Molly. No good ever comes from fighting.”
Relief flowed through Katherine, and she decided she’d heard enough. Whether or not Trey truly agreed with her didn’t matter at this point. He’d backed her up with her little sister. Perhaps he was finally coming around to her way of thinking.
Oh, Lord, please let it be so.
Placing what she hoped was a confident expression on her face, she entered the study. “Molly was valiantly defending my good name,” she began. “Even if we all agree she didn’t choose the best avenue to do so.”
Trey rose from his crouched position in front of the child. His gaze slammed into hers and held firm. “Hello, Katherine.”
At
the sight of his intense expression, she had to fight for air, nearly gulping the next breath into her lungs. How she wished she’d prepared herself better for this first glimpse of Trey after his month-long absence.
She cleared her throat. Sighed. Forced a smile. “Hello, Trey.”
A muscle shifted in his jaw.
Her heart skipped a beat.
He took a step forward.
She took a small step back.
He stopped, blew out a breath, took another tentative step forward.
This time she held her ground.
“It’s good to see you,” he said at last.
Unable to find the words, she gave no response. In truth, they’d left off on such bad terms, she didn’t know where to begin their conversation.
“Katherine?” Molly angled her head. “Are you feeling all right?”
“She’s fine, kitten,” Trey said, grinning like a fool as he spoke. “She’s just so happy to see me, she’s struck speechless.”
At that remark, Katherine found her tongue. “Molly, would you mind leaving us alone for a moment?”
The child fixed Trey with a questioning stare.
“Go on, kitten,” he said. “You can tell me the rest of your story after I have a word with your sister.”
Looking unhappy, Molly nodded obediently and left the room without a word of protest.
Shocked, Katherine stared after the skipping child. “What did you do to my sister?”
“Let’s just say we understand one another.” His gaze turned concerned. “Now, about her fight with the Prescott boy. We need to discuss what we should do next.”
The genuine worry in his eyes took her breath away all over again. Trey’s obvious concern for Molly ran deep. As deep as her own caring was growing for him, a caring that was quickly turning into…
Oh, please, Lord, not…not…love.
Frightened of her own emotions, she focused on her little sister. “It’s actually very simple,” she said a bit too quickly. “We settle things between us and stop the talk for good. That’s why I went looking for you at the jailhouse.”
“You went looking for me?” The happy note in his voice made her heart beat harder in her chest. She didn’t tell him about the confrontation on the sidewalk. He’d only go in search of the man and settle matters in the Old Testament way.
And because of that, knowing Trey would protect her against something as small as a snub in town, she fell a little harder for him.
“I did,” she said. “But you had already left.”
He closed the distance between them, drew her hand into his and smiled into her eyes. “It’s embarrassing, truth be told, how much that pleases me.”
The declaration was swift, uncalculated. And powerful.
In spite of her every effort to remain unmoved, her eyes drank in the sight of him. He was big and healthy and safe. “I see you made it back in one piece.”
He dragged her farther into the study and shut the door behind them. “Is that your way of saying you missed me?”
She had to remember her little sister and the reason for Molly’s fight with Bobby Prescott this morning. Or she’d blurt out her feelings for him too quickly, too completely. “Molly certainly missed you.”
“But did you?” he persisted.
She looked away from him, unsure how to answer without revealing everything in her heart.
He arranged his face into a pitiful frown, the gesture making him appear more boy than man. “You’re going to make me work for this, aren’t you?”
She sniffed. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Right.” He sank into a nearby chair. Lifting his arms into the air, he clasped his hands behind his head and relaxed into his palms. “Go ahead. Proceed with your best scolding.”
“Of all the…You are a mannerless brute, Trey Scott.”
In response, he proceeded to look at her with lazy tolerance. And then he raised a single eyebrow.
“Oh, honestly.” She threw her hands up. “Yes, I missed you. Terribly. There, I said it. Satisfied?”
“Completely.” The smile he gave her made her think of love and futures and possibilities.
A feeling of doom buckled her knees. She reached out to the desk for support. “I think you should know what started Molly’s fight.”
“The kitten told me.”
“And?”
“Let’s just say I am resisting the urge to tell you ‘I told you so.’”
“Yet you said it anyway.”
He rose. “Katherine. I hate that I wasn’t here to defend you and Molly against the vicious talk in town.” His tone turned serious, heartfelt. “I should have known it would come to this. Because of me, and what happened in that supply closet, Molly suffered today. It’s time the nasty town gossip moved away from my women. It’s time I made it right for both of you, before matters get any worse.”
Tears slipped around in her eyes. She blinked rapidly, hanging on to her emotions as best she could. But how could she not be touched by Trey’s words? He understood. The big, gorgeous, heroic brute. He might still be locked in the past, but for now—today—he was right here with her. And in spite of her very real fears for his physical and spiritual safety, Katherine would trust that God would provide for them all.
Walk by faith, not by sight…
In that moment, Katherine was filled with certainty.
Trey narrowed his eyes. “You’re not going to get all weepy and female on me?”
She hitched her chin high. “Maybe.”
“I’ve a better idea.” He pulled her carefully toward him. When she didn’t resist, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders.
It quickly sank in that she was being held in the shelter of Trey Scott’s arms, and there was no panic, no shuddering fear racing through her. Slowly, she roped her arms around his waist and rested her cheek against his chest.
“Quit battling me, Katherine,” he said softly. “I may not be your first choice, or even your second. Marry me anyway, and make me a better man. I promise I’ll defend your honor and Molly’s with my life.”
Of course, he would. “Oh, Trey. That’s a much better proposal than before.”
He tightened his hold. Just a little. And all she felt in response was comfort. Safety. A warm sense of homecoming.
Was she finally healed of her fear?
“I’ve missed you, Katherine.” He sounded more amazed than shocked by the declaration.
“I missed you, too.” She sighed against him, wanting only to focus on what she could control. “Dreadfully.”
As the silence lengthened into a comfortable calm, Trey kissed the top of her head and then took several steps away from her. “Now that we’ve settled that, I have a gift for you.”
“You bought a gift for me?” Her heart gave a happy twist at the notion.
“Don’t sound so surprised.” He tapped her on the nose. “I am capable of considering someone other than myself.”
She closed her eyes, remembering all the times she’d watched him playing with Molly and the other Charity House children. For months, she’d refused to see Trey as he really was—a man who cared deeply for his own.
For better or worse, she and Molly were his now. She just had to tell him so.
Smiling down at her, he placed a black velvet box in her hand. “I found this in Colorado Springs and thought immediately of you.”
An enchanting, albeit uncharacteristic, nervousness flickered in his eyes. “Take this as a token of my affection,” he said. “And a promise of my loyalty to you and Molly forever.”
Katherine found she could only stare at the tiny box. Other than Laney and Marc, no one had ever given her a gift.
“Go ahead. Open it.”
Her fingers shook as she pulled back the lid. A gasp flew out of her lips the moment her gaze fell on the sparkling sapphire ring.
Trey edged toward her, with a tentative smile on his lips. “I picked the stone to match the color of your eyes.”
The thoughtful way he’d chosen this gift sent her heart aching for the man Trey could become if he allowed himself to let go of the guilt of his past and his drive for vengeance.
She knew he was on the right path, but would she truly be at the end of it?
Yes. She had to believe in him, and in God’s power to heal his heart.
“I…I don’t know what to say,” she said softly.
“Say you’ll marry me. Let me make you a respectable woman, for all our sakes.”
He plucked the ring out of its case, his eyes clouding over with a new emotion. He had a look about him that she’d seen once before, in the birthing room with Laney and Marc. Hope overwhelmed her as he slid the band onto her finger and commanded her gaze.
Something had changed in him. She wasn’t fool enough to question the what or the why at this point. “Oh, Trey.”
She lowered her gaze to the ring, rotated her wrist so the gem caught the light. As she stared into the sparkling stone, her decision became remarkably clear. Somewhere between Molly’s need for a family and her own need for security, Katherine had lost hold of all the reasons why she had to refuse this man.
Trey fiddled with the hair that fell across her cheek. “We can make it work.”
She sighed and thought of a verse from Ephesians. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
She and Trey might not be evenly yoked spiritually. Yet. But Katherine knew he’d once believed in God. Surely he could again.
Oh, Lord, soften his heart, she prayed. Help him find his way back to You. And if it’s in Your will, use me as Your vessel along that path.
With one last swallow, the fight finally let her go. “Let’s find out.”
Trey’s mouth hung open. He clamped his lips together, narrowed his eyes, then started sputtering. “What…What did you say?”
She lifted her gaze to his, discovering that she liked this man flustered, especially when she was the one doing the flustering. “I said, let’s get married.”
His eyes narrowed, suspicion coloring over his shock. “Are you doing this for Molly?”
