The Lawman’s Frontier Bride

by Maya Stirling

  Tate smiled nervously and shook his head. "No. I'm not a member. At least not in the way you might be thinking."

  She felt relieved at that. But she was still intrigued by the hint he'd given her. "But they know you, Tate. They accept you as one of their own."

  Tate frowned. "That's because I've been lying to them for the last couple of months."

  Her mouth dropped open. "Lying!"

  Tate nodded. "They think I'm just some wandering cowpuncher who happened to be around one day when they were robbing a general store in a small Montana town." He shook his head. "But that's not who I am."

  Gretchen faced Tate, eager to know where he was leading all this. "But they let you join their outfit."

  "That was the plan from the start." He shifted even closer toward her. "You see, I deliberately joined that gang so I could bring them all to justice."

  Gretchen gasped. "What are you? Some kind of a lawman?"

  Tate nodded. "That's exactly what I am." He gazed into her eyes. Now she could see he must be telling the truth. "I'm a marshal from Laramie."

  Gretchen stared at Tate for a long moment. She was utterly shocked. She felt her heartbeat thundering. "You're a lawman? Really?"

  Tate nodded slowly. "I've been hunting this gang since last year. One of them was responsible for the death of my closest friend."

  Gretchen groaned. "No!" she exclaimed and lifted a hand to her mouth. "That's awful, Tate."

  His gaze filled with sadness and he lowered his head for a long moment. Gretchen felt a sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach. She wanted to reach out to Tate. Lay her hand on his. Comfort him. But, when he finally looked at her again, she saw that he was still struggling with what he was telling her.

  "You see my difficulty, Gretchen," Tate said. "I've finally come close to bringing this gang to the law." He lifted a thumb and forefinger. "I'm within touching distance of sending those men to jail."

  "All of them?"

  Tate nodded. "Every one of them needs to be behind bars."

  "Is that why you wanted to go to Inspiration?" she asked. "Have I just been a convenient means for you to do your job?"

  Tate frowned. "No," he said urgently. "I had no idea I would be coming this way. Not until you walked into my life."

  His choice of words touched her heart, but she masked her reaction with a blank stare. She needed to know more.

  "But I was useful to you, wasn't I?" she insisted.

  Tate shook his head. "I had no idea any of this would happen."

  "How did they find us?" she asked.

  Tate was thoughtful for a moment. "Frank told me last night. They met those two riders who threatened us. They told Frank about a man and woman traveling the trail westward. Frank put two and two together and set out to catch up with us. There's only one way through those mountains. Through that pass."

  "And they caught up with us while I was sick at the homestead," she said.

  Tate frowned. "Don't go blaming yourself for that."

  "But they would never have caught up with us if I hadn't been sick," she said sharply.

  "Frank is resourceful," Tate suggested. "He'd have found us some other way."

  A sudden thought came to Gretchen. "Your name is Tate Campbell, isn't it?"

  Tate smiled and she felt relieved. "It is."

  At least that was true, she told herself. "How come they didn't know who you were?"

  "My friend was killed before I became a marshal."

  "So they didn't know you were from Laramie."

  "No. If they had, they might have suspected."

  Gretchen thought about what Tate had been through. The danger to his life. The peril he'd been in. "And they trusted you after you joined the gang."

  Tate sighed. "I'll tell you about it once we get to Inspiration."

  "Do they know that's where we're headed?" she asked.

  Tate's brows creased. He nodded. "They do. But that's only going to work in my favor."

  "How?"

  Tate looked deadly serious now. "When we get to Inspiration, I'll have to tell all of this to the sheriff. Hopefully, he'll be on my side. If it means getting a chance to bring in Frank Wolfe's gang, and he goes along with what I'll suggest, then the sheriff will do what's right."

  Worry ignited as she tried to understand what kind of trouble might be coming to Inspiration.

  "The gang have been talking about hitting Inspiration for a while. They know the town is coming up in the world," Tate explained. "I think the only reason they've stayed away is because of its reputation as a god-fearing town."

  Gretchen frowned. "I can't imagine those terrible men have ever set foot inside a church."

  Tate sighed. "Take it from me. They haven't. But the promise of gold has made them greedy."

  "Gold?"

  Tate nodded. She listened as he told her about his conversation with Frank Wolfe. How he'd baited Wolfe into agreeing to bring his gang to Inspiration. "You think Sheriff Cameron will be able to bring them in?"

  "I've heard good things about the sheriff," Tate admitted. "I believe there's a chance. I can help him. If he'll let me."

  Suddenly all of this seemed impossibly dangerous to Gretchen. "Someone is going to get hurt, Tate."

  He shook his head. "Not if we do our job. Sheriff Cameron and I should be able to work together."

  Gretchen shook her head. The worry was more intense now. Nothing he'd said had calmed her fears. So many things could go wrong.

  Clearly seeing her worry, Tate edged forward. "Don't be anxious, Gretchen," he murmured. "There's nothing to worry about."

  Gazing into his eyes, she sighed. "How can you say that? How can you be so sure?"

  "Doesn't good always win in the end?" Tate said softly.

  Gretchen felt heat rise to her cheeks as Tate leaned even closer. Then he dipped his head and kissed her. Sensation ignited inside her. Tate cupped her chin in his hand as he kissed her. After all the tension of the last few hours it felt good to be in Tate's arms again. For a moment, Gretchen allowed herself to savor the delight of Tate's kiss.

  Then, suddenly the worry seized hold of her. She pulled her head away from him and stared into his eyes, seeking answers. Searching for reassurance that none of her fears were true.

  For a brief moment she saw the emotion shimmering in Tate's eyes. Then Tate sighed with obvious frustration and dragged his gaze away from her.

  "We have to get to Inspiration as quickly as we can," he announced quietly. Tate stood. She gazed up at him, sensing his frustration. He looked down at her. Now there was a kindly, concerned expression on his face. The kind of expression she'd gotten used to seeing. "Get some rest. We'll head out soon. I'll get the horses ready."

  Then he walked away. She realized she'd learned so much that was new. But now the future was even more uncertain.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  They rode into Inspiration in the middle of the afternoon. Gretchen sat atop her pinto and gazed down the length of the town's Main Street. Her first impression was that the town was larger than she'd thought it would be. Main Street was long. At the far end she could see the train station. On both sides of the dusty street a boardwalk stretched the full length of the street. She and Tate rode past a livery, on past a hotel, a cafe, a saloon and, on the right hand side of the street the town bank. Gretchen saw Tate give that a long look.

  The boardwalks on both sides of the street were busy with townsfolk going about their business. Some people looked their way, curious about the newcomers. There wasn't any hostility on their faces, Gretchen noted. Just a simple, plain need to know who was arriving in town.

  It felt good to have arrived, at last, Gretchen reflected. Now that she was in Inspiration, all the events of the last few days seemed to fade into the background. All that mattered now was that she had arrived.

  "What do you think of the place?" Tate asked as he looked across at her.

  Gretchen nodded appreciatively. "It's beautiful. So peaceful."
/>   As they passed a street which led off from Main Street, Gretchen peered up the length of the narrow road. At the end of the street she saw the tall white spire of a church. Her heart filled with joy as she looked at that.

  "There's the sheriff's office," she heard Tate say. She followed his horse to a low building with bars on the windows. She and Tate dismounted and tied their horses to the hitching rail.

  Tate strode to the door and pushed it open. Gretchen followed him inside. Closing the door behind her she found she was in a low-ceilinged room, with wood panels upon which hung rifles and a wide desk. Behind the desk sat a dark-haired man dressed in plain shirt and jeans. A metal star was pinned to his shirt. In front of him, on the other side of the desk, a woman sat. She was pretty, bright-eyed and dressed in a pale blue gown. Both people seemed to be about the same age. Gretchen guessed they were in their mid- thirties.

  Hearing the newcomers, the woman turned and stared for along moment. The man, who Gretchen assumed was Sheriff Cameron stood and came around the desk. He moved slowly and had a friendly expression on his face.

  "May I help you?" he asked in a deep voice.

  Tate extended a hand. "Sheriff Cameron?"

  The man nodded. "That's me. Who might you be?"

  Tate turned to Gretchen. "I believe you already know of this young lady," Tate said.

  The woman sitting at the desk rose quickly. "Gretchen?"

  Gretchen felt her face flush with heat. She nodded. "Gretchen Ryan."

  The other woman gasped and raced to Gretchen. "Oh, my dear. It's really you. We've been so worried." The woman hugged Gretchen. "When you didn't arrive on the train we didn't know what had happened to you."

  The woman leaned back and smiled at Gretchen. "I'm Sophie Cameron."

  Gretchen smiled at Sophie. She saw tears of joy in the woman's eyes. "I'm sorry if I made you worry," Gretchen said.

  "Nonsense, dear. You're here. And that's all that matters." Sophie gazed down at Gretchen's riding outfit and then at Tate. "Did you ride all the way here?"

  "We sure did ma'am," Tate said. He shifted his Stetson from one hand to the other. "My name is Tate Campbell." Tate looked at the sheriff who was looking confused. "I can tell what you're thinking," Tate continued. "It's a long story. The short version is that Gretchen got left behind by the train over at Refuge."

  "Refuge?" the sheriff asked. "That one-horse town?"

  Tate nodded. "It was just an oversight on the part of the men running the train. They just up and left without Gretchen."

  "You got left at that ugly place? How terrible." Sophie exclaimed. She glanced at her husband and then at Gretchen. "You didn't get into any trouble, did you?"

  Tate cleared his throat. "She didn't. As I said. It's a long story." He smiled at Gretchen. "She's here. And that's all that counts." He glanced at the sheriff. "Isn't that right sheriff?"

  Sheriff Cameron didn't seem entirely convinced.

  "All of your things got left at the station," Sophie said. "We've got them over at our house. We haven't opened your trunk. I figured you'd get here sooner or later." Sophie smiled at her husband. "Nathan was arranging a search party. Weren't you Nathan."

  Nathan nodded and then smiled at Gretchen. "I'm sure glad you're safe, ma'am. My wife has been going loco with worry since you didn't turn up."

  The thought that complete strangers would have been so concerned for her welfare touched Gretchen deeply. "Well, I'm glad to be here."

  Sophie took Gretchen by the elbow and started to lead her toward the door. "You have to come over to our house. Right now. You can clean up and get out of those dirty clothes. And I'll bet you haven't eaten anything decent since you left Refuge."

  There was so much to tell, but Gretchen could only nod in agreement. "I would like to bathe and get a change of clothes."

  "You come on over to the house, right now, young lady," Sophie insisted. Gretchen couldn't help noticing that Tate hadn't been included in that invitation.

  As if to confirm her suspicions, she saw the sheriff gesture for Tate to come closer. The sheriff smiled at his wife. "You take Gretchen over to the house, Sophie. Mr Campbell and I are going to have a few words."

  Gretchen felt immediate concern. But she saw that Tate was eager to talk with the sheriff. After the conversation earlier in the morning she understood how important that would be to Tate.

  Sophie tugged on Gretchen's elbow, leading her to the open door. "I'll see you later," Gretchen said to Tate.

  Tate nodded, but she could see he was already thinking about his conversation with the sheriff. "I sure will, Gretchen."

  Then Sophie was leading Gretchen out onto the boardwalk. "Wait a moment," Gretchen told Sophie. Gretchen went to the saddlebag on the pinto. She reached inside and tugged out her reticule.

  Sophie peered at it and looked quizzically at Gretchen. She held up the reticule. "This was all I had when the train left me behind." Sophie's brows rose in surprise. "At least I had some money."

  Sophie's lips pursed thoughtfully. Then she hooked her arm inside Gretchen's and started to lead her across the wide Main Street. They dodged some passing horseback riders and reached the boardwalk on the other side.

  Walking along the boardwalk Gretchen saw many passersby nod their head and smile at Sophie. It seemed like the town matchmaker was popular, Gretchen reflected.

  "I've got so much to tell you, Sophie," Gretchen stated.

  "And you can tell it to me after you've settled in," Sophie said. "You've been through a great ordeal."

  Gretchen peered at Sophie. "I couldn't have made it here without Tate's help. If it hadn't have been for him I'd still be in Refuge."

  "He was helpful?"

  Gretchen nodded. "He made it his mission to bring me safely to Inspiration."

  "That was kind of him," Sophie said. There was a cautious tone in Sophie's voice now. "How did you meet him?"

  As they made their way to Sophie's house, Gretchen told her all about meeting Tate, and how he'd insisted on helping her reach Inspiration. Sophie gasped when she heard Gretchen's description of how she'd fallen ill and stayed at Anna and Noah's homestead. The only things which Gretchen left out was the theft of her reticule and her capture by the gang the previous night.

  The Cameron house was at the end of a long tree-lined street. The house was large, on two levels, white-painted and had a porch and garden. Sophie pushed open the gate of the picket fence and led Gretchen to the front door. Gretchen thought the house was one of the most beautiful she'd ever seen. After all the hardships of the journey across Montana territory, Gretchen was looking forward to some real home comforts.

  The interior of the Cameron home was as lovely as the exterior. Sophie gave Gretchen a quick tour of the downstairs rooms. The parlor was elegantly furnished with richly-covered sofas, rugs and expensive-looking tables and chairs. The dining room felt warm and welcoming, too. The kitchen had everything woman would need to prepare good food.

  At the foot of the staircase in the hallway, Sophie smiled at Gretchen. "Your room is upstairs."

  "My room?"

  Sophie nodded. "We put your trunk up there. Nathan was absolutely certain we would find you. He sent two deputies to ride down the train line, asking at each of the stopping stations." Gretchen gasped. She'd had no idea they'd sent a search party to find her. "We would have found you. Eventually," Sophie added.

  Gretchen was overwhelmed by the easy and trusting welcome which Sophie had given her. Gretchen already felt like a member of the family.

  She followed Sophie upstairs. At the end of the hall, Sophie opened a door. Stepping inside the room, Gretchen saw her trunk at the foot of the single bed. She went to the trunk and opened it. All of her clothes were there, along with her most treasured possessions.

  She turned to Sophie and smiled. "Thank you."

  Sophie shook her head. "No need to thank us, Gretchen. We were responsible for inviting you out here. It was our duty to make sure you were safe. And that all your th
ings would be here when you found your way here."

  Gretchen stood and went to Sophie. In spite of having known Sophie for less than an hour, Gretchen couldn't contain the urge to hug the woman.

  When Gretchen gazed into Sophie's eyes she saw emotion shimmering in them. "I'll get your bath ready," Sophie explained. She glanced at the trunk. "I'm sure you can find something to wear."

  Gretchen laughed. All the tension of the last few days had drained right out of her.

  Over the next couple of hours Gretchen bathed, changed and then ate a hearty meal. She chatted with Sophie, getting to know her temporary host. Gretchen knew she wouldn't be staying with the Cameron family long. Soon, it would be time to find a husband. Gretchen noticed that Sophie avoided all mention of the potential husbands she'd arranged. In her letters to Gretchen, Sophie had told her there were a few suitable candidates around town. But she hadn't gone into detail about them.

  Gretchen thought about Tate. She had expected him to come over to the Cameron house. At least to tell her what was happening. She wondered if Tate would be staying in Inspiration. Or whether he'd head back to Refuge. She knew he had a job to do. And that there were dangers involved in carrying it out. Frank Wolfe's gang were still roaming free.

  There was still so much uncertainty in the air, Gretchen told herself. As she stood in the parlor, waiting for Sophie to bring some tea, Gretchen gazed out the window. The street was quiet. The whole town seemed wonderfully peaceful. It was just like she'd imagined it would be. A perfect place to lead a godly life. Already she was beginning to feel like she belonged in Inspiration.

  Her eye was caught by a movement. A figure was walking toward the house. Squinting her eyes, she recognized it to be Sophie's husband, Sheriff Nathan Cameron. Sophie entered the parlor carrying a tray with tea pot and cups. When she looked out the window and saw her husband, she placed the tray down on the table.

  "Nathan is early," Sophie said and frowned. Gretchen got the impression Nathan didn't usually come home this early. Anxiety flared into life in Gretchen's middle.

  Gretchen followed Sophie to the door. Nathan strode up to the porch and entered the house. He looked even more concerned than he'd looked earlier at the jailhouse.