RNWMP: Bride for Easton (Mail Order Mounties Book 11)

by Cassie Hayes

  “No…I mean, yes. Fine. Come in.”

  Molly offered her guest some tea, but Miss Hazel gently pushed her into the chair she’d just vacated, then lowered herself into the chair across the table from her.

  “Tell me what’s wrong, and don’t try to deny it. You’ve always worn your heart on your sleeve, Molly.”

  Just as suddenly as the fire had consumed Molly, guilt and sorrow poured from her eyes in a flood of tears. “I was so horrible to Easton, Miss Hazel! He was surprised, was all, but I flayed him open like a butcher. I wouldn’t be surprised if he sent me back with you when you leave.”

  The older woman heaved her bulk out of the chair and pulled Molly’s head to her bosom, stroking her hair and hushing her softly. “Shh…there there. We’ll work it out. You can trust that, my dear.”

  With tremendous effort, Molly wrangled control of her emotions and pulled away. Once Miss Hazel had settled back in her seat, Molly explained everything, including how she’d told her new husband to get out of his own house.

  “It’s hopeless, isn’t it, Miss Hazel? I’ve lost him forever, and it’s all my fault!”

  Fresh tears threatened, but Miss Hazel’s light chuckle stopped them.

  “Oh, Molly, my dear. Don’t be so dramatic. It was an argument, that’s all. The first of many, I’d wager, knowing you as I do.”

  Molly’s face heated up from shame at her renowned temper. But hope bloomed deep inside.

  “You think so?”

  “Of course, I do! Do you think Mr. Hughes and I never argued? We were as blissfully happy as any couple we knew, all the way to the end, but we were two separate people with separate needs and desires. Most of the time, they meshed well, but not always. Marriage isn’t easy, Molly. It requires a goodly amount of give and take.”

  “And here I was taking, taking, taking.” Molly dropped her head and picked at a flaking cuticle, unable to meet Miss Hazel’s gaze.

  “Poppycock! Molly Cooper, you’re one of the least selfish people I’ve ever known. Other than letting your emotions get the better of you, you did nothing wrong. You have every right — no, you have a responsibility to make this a warm, cozy home for the both of you. As well as any little ones that might come along.”

  Molly’s eyes snapped open at the mention of children, one of her heart’s deepest desires. But first things first. “So…I wasn’t being selfish by decorating?”

  Miss Hazel smiled and patted her hand. “Not at all. Easton is lucky to have you, and he’ll come to see that in time. You just need to let him get used to the idea of sharing his life with someone else. He seems to be the type of man who’s taken care of himself for most of his life. He’s not used to someone else filling that role.”

  “I never thought of it like that before,” Molly mused, recalling Easton’s brief mention of not having any family deep in the dark of night as she lay in his arms. If her suspicions were correct, Miss Hazel was spot on about him. “I swear I’ll do better at controlling my temper, Miss Hazel. Thank you.”

  Miss Hazel waved away her words and looked around the cabin. “Now, you said something about tea? I don’t suppose you have any cookies to go with it…”

  “Commander, what a pleasant surprise!”

  Sam Bonney welcomed Easton into her saloon and escorted him to his usual table. ChiChi sat on her shoulder, grinning and chattering at Easton. The monkey was amusing, but Easton was happy Sam kept the animal under control.

  “I thought for sure you’d be holed up for the next month or so with your new bride.”

  She tipped him a wink. Ignoring the insinuation, he placed his hat on the table and sat with a grunt.

  “Beer, please.”

  Sam gasped, causing ChiChi to screech and leap to a wall sconce. Ignoring the monkey, she sat across from him, eyeing him hard. “Is everything okay, Commander? You never drink anything harder than iced tea.”

  Easton sighed and rubbed his forehead, and before he knew what was happening, he was spilling his guts to the saloon owner. Since the dawn of time, men shared their woes with bartenders, so he shouldn’t be any different — but he’d always thought he was.

  “This marriage was a terrible idea. I knew better, but my men all wanted wives and they wouldn’t have done it on their own if I hadn’t agreed. Who marries a woman he’s never met?”

  Sam opened her mouth to reply, but he didn’t give her time.

  “Better question: who marries a man she’s never met? A wild Irish lass who refuses to obey my very clear instructions, that’s who.”

  “Tell me what happened,” Sam said quietly, ignoring the bustle of the bar around them.

  Easton chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment, wondering if sharing such personal information with another woman was proper. Unfortunately, he had no one else to share it with. He couldn’t show such weakness in front of his men. Besides, he’d always listened whenever Sam needed to complain about her own husband.

  “I told her I liked things just so, but I came home — to find out why someone had accused her of stealing, no less — and she’d changed everything! It didn’t even look like my own home anymore. She only brought one small case the nuns at the convent gave her, yet there were knickknacks everywhere. How did she fit it all in there? Plus, she moved the furniture and…”

  “And?” Sam pressed when he hesitated.

  Easton sighed with exasperation. “And when I made my displeasure known, she yelled at me. Now what kind of way is that for a bride to treat her new husband?”

  Sam leaned back, arms crossed, as she regarded him. He shifted in his seat under her gaze as the seconds ticked by. Finally, she leaned forward, bracing her forearms on the table.

  “I’ve known you a long time, Commander,” she said, a smile playing at her lips, “and I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you this unnerved. I’ve watched men train their guns on you, right in this very room, and you barely batted an eye. But that little wisp of a thing you married has you tied in knots.”

  “Exactly!” Thank goodness someone saw his point of view!

  “More power to her, I say,” Sam said, scooching her chair back and starting to rise.

  “What? Why!” A few men glanced over at the pair, but Easton ignored them. He needed to find out what Sam meant by that.

  She must have seen his distress and settled back in the chair. “Commander, you’re used to being in control, having everyone obey you, no questions asked.”

  “That’s right. I’m the commander of this Mountie force, and I can’t have anyone challenging me. Chaos would descend otherwise.”

  Sam smiled softly and clicked her tongue. ChiChi landed on her shoulder and accepted a pet from her mistress.

  “The one thing you forgot, Commander, is that this young woman is your wife, not your subordinate or a criminal. She’s not under your command. Unless she’s breaking the law, she’s free to live her life as she sees fit, and she’s chosen to live it with you.”

  Easton frowned, wondering if Sam would ever get to her point. “And?”

  “And…you can’t expect her to obey your every whim.”

  “But she vowed to obey me,” he objected, and even to his own ears, he sounded like a whining child.

  “As you vowed to obey her, if I’m not mistaken.”

  Easton focused on ChiChi instead of meeting Sam’s eyes. He let his silence answer for him. She sighed in disappointment, and for some reason, Easton felt as if his mother had just chided him. Which was ridiculous because he’d never had a mother.

  “Okay, Commander, why don’t you look at it from her point of view? What’s her name again?”

  “Molly,” he muttered petulantly, though just saying her name made his lips tingle.

  “Molly gave up everything she’s ever known and everyone she’s ever loved to live with a man she’d never met. Think about that for a moment. Can you imagine how absolutely terrifying that must have been for her?”

  Easton couldn’t help picturing Molly quaking
with anxiety over what her new husband would be like. Would he be kind? Would he be violent? Was he who he said he was? Would she be accepted in town? With all his traveling as a Mountie, he could certainly relate to that last one. Every time he received orders to move to a different post, anxiety gnawed at his guts, and he wondered if he would be able to effectively lead his new team.

  “Hmm…” he mused.

  “If you ask me, she’s incredibly brave. Maybe even braver than a Mountie.”

  Guilt stabbed his heart at her jibe, but he deserved it.

  “And now you’re telling me she was in a convent before this? Commander, Molly’s world has been flipped upside down and inside out. And that small case of hers? You can bet your life it contained everything she owns. Every single thing. All she wanted to do was display her things so she wouldn’t feel so isolated. She just wanted to make your home her home too. And you yelled at her for it?”

  Easton had never been overly emotional, but something was trying to choke him from the inside. He prayed Sam would stop, but she kept right on. He could only be grateful that she kept her voice low so as to not make a scene. This justified humiliation was punishment enough.

  “Commander, I know you like to control every aspect of your life, but if you want this marriage to work, you’re going to have to become a willow tree and bend until you both find your footing.” She gave him a steely look. “Do you want this marriage to work?”

  Two days before, Easton would have quickly and easily answered ‘No’. But from the moment he’d laid eyes on the fiery redhead who he’d instantly known would be his bride, everything had changed. A part of him he’d thought had died long ago had sparked to life again. Food tasted better, the sky was a little bluer, birds chirped a little louder. Imagining what his life would be like without Molly there to mess things up opened a hole in his heart he knew he’d never be able to fill again.

  “I do, Sam. I honestly do.”

  Sam grinned and slapped the table, drawing a scolding from ChiChi. “Good! Now get on home and tell her that!”

  Easton was out the door before she’d finished. As he hurried back to their cabin, he wondered for the first time if Molly would want to stay. After the way he treated her, he wouldn’t blame her if she’d packed up that small case and was ready to leave on the next train.

  Warm light shone through the windows as he climbed the steps, giving him hope she was still there, but he wasn’t looking forward to the tongue lashing he knew he deserved. Hopefully, she would accept his apology eventually.

  Bracing himself for the worst, he eased the door open and peeked inside, ready to duck a frying pan if need be. Instead, he was greeted by a smiling Molly standing next to a table loaded with the most delicious meal he’d ever smelled.

  “Welcome home,” she said meekly.

  “What’s all this?”

  “I wanted to make my husband dinner.”

  Easton spent the moment it took to hang his hat wondering what exactly had happened in his absence. “I thought you’d still be angry with me.”

  “Well, I—“

  “Never mind that,” he said, moving to her and taking her hands in his. “I’m sorry, Molly. I was selfish and unforgivably rude to you. I have no real excuse, except that I grew up in an orphanage and had to fend for myself all my life. I’m not telling you this to make you feel sorry for me, just to shed some light on why I am…the way I am. You have every right to make this your home too. If you still want to, that is.”

  Her eyes misted over and she pulled her hands free to wrap them around his neck and pull him into the sweetest kiss he’d ever had in his life. When they broke apart, she gazed up at him with a light in her eyes that made his heart swell.

  “I’m sorry too, Easton. I have a terrible temper and I swear I’ll work hard to keep it in check.”

  He smiled down at his beautiful wife and wondered what he’d done in his life to deserve such an amazing woman.

  “Does that mean you’ll stay and turn this into our home?”

  Molly grinned, then grabbed one of his hands and pulled him toward the bedroom. “Maybe later.”

  Chapter 5

  “I’d love to quit, but I need something to do or I’ll go crazy,” Molly told Sinead as they walked past the crowded hot springs. Institute guests frolicked in the steaming waters as if it was a lovely summer day, instead of a dim late fall afternoon with clouds threatening more snow.

  “It still reminds you of cleaning up after your dozens of siblings?” Sinead snickered, but not in a cruel way.

  “The last three weeks have felt like my entire youth all over again, only with slightly less fighting. You would be shocked at how rich people treat others, much less their hotel rooms. Why, just the other day, I was changing the bedclothes when I found this huge—“

  Sinead stuck her fingers in her ears and shouted, “La la la la! I don’t want to know!”

  They clung to each other for support as they laughed and walked, marveling in the white majesty surrounding them. Not long after the brides had arrived in Cougar Springs, the first snows had fallen, and they’d fallen ever since. No blizzards yet, but that was only a matter of time.

  “How are things working out with the new head of the Institute?” Molly asked.

  “Quite well. Ever since Dr. Porter replaced that quack Jenkins, I have more patients than time. And people are actually getting better.”

  “That’s wonderful!”

  “I can’t believe what passed for medical care before we got here.”

  Molly snorted. “I think Rocky the Reindeer offered better medical care than Dr. Jenkins. You wouldn’t believe how rude he was to the staff. Everyone hated him.”

  Sinead rolled her eyes. “Doesn’t surprise me a bit, although I have to admit I’m surprised that you hated him. I know you have a temper, but I didn’t think the word ‘hate’ was in your vocabulary.”

  “I never said I hated him, but I certainly didn’t like him very much. May the good Lord forgive my dark thoughts.”

  Sinead bumped her with her hip. “Molly, I doubt your thinking poorly of a bad man has even made God’s list of sins.”

  “Maybe,” Molly said, hoping it was true. “Tell me more about your practice.”

  Sinead shrugged. “At first, most of my patients were locals who’d developed a healthy aversion to the not-so-good doctor. It’s taken a while, but the Institute patients seem to trust me now too.”

  “Any more babies being born? I’d surely love to take part, if I could.”

  “Stella takes care of them, mostly. She’s only called me in once since that first time. But I worry about her. I get the sense she’s tired, and at her age, I don’t blame her. But I swear I’ll send Matthew to fetch you the next time one comes up. As kindhearted as Stella is, I’d feel better with you there.”

  “Aww,” Molly said, flushing with pride that her friend trusted her more than the local midwife who’d been practicing for decades.

  “So, how are things at home these days? I don’t suppose Easton has suddenly become a slob.”

  “You know better than that,” Molly said with a chuckle. “We’re both working hard to learn how to live with each other. No one ever tells you about that part, do they? You grow up thinking your real life begins when you get married, but really it’s just the same life, only now you have to tiptoe around to protect someone else’s feelings.”

  “Are you two still arguing?”

  “Not too much, but occasionally he’ll try to order me around like I’m one of his men, and when I snap back, he runs off to the saloon.”

  Sinead gasped in surprise, and Molly quickly corrected her assumption.

  “He only eats there, never drinks. I’ve met the proprietress, Sam, and she’s a strong woman who doesn’t mince words. She also runs a relatively respectable place. Well, as respectable as a saloon can be, I suppose.”

  A woman ahead of them caught Molly’s eye. She looked familiar, and as they drew nearer, Moll
y recognized her as the heavily pregnant woman who’d accused Molly of stealing the glove she’d dropped, Mrs. Hildebrand. She was speaking to a tall, thin man Molly had never seen before.

  His slicked-back dark hair and perfectly styled handlebar mustache almost reminded Molly of a melodrama villain. He stood behind a flimsy table loaded with all sorts of bottles, showing each to the woman in turn. Molly couldn’t stop herself from listening in as she and Sinead passed.

  “And this one will ease the ache in your lower back,” the man said, his voice smooth and oozing with guile. “The three medicines— Don’t be shy, ladies. Join us.”

  Molly started when she realized he was talking to her and Sinead. She shot her friend a glance and knew immediately Sinead was as curious about this man as she was. He was no doubt yet another quack trying to take advantage of those coming to the hot springs looking for a cure to whatever ailed them.

  “My name is Dr. Joseph Kinderhawk, inventor of Dr. Kinderhawk’s Miraculous Medicines. As you can see, this lovely young lady before me is expecting a miracle of her own any day now. Mrs. Hildebrand wisely came to me seeking relief from the many discomforts of her condition, and I’m happy to say I can help. I can help you too.”

  “Just tell me how much for all three,” Mrs. Hildebrand demanded, obviously irritated the women had interrupted her transaction.

  “Of course,” Kinderhawk said, smiling and turning his full attention the rude woman. “So, a bottle Magnificent Mother’s Milk to prepare yourself for the delivery, along with the Ultimate Unguent for your backaches and the Soothing Syrup to help you sleep. And because you’re so near to welcoming your new bundle of joy, I will throw in, at absolutely no charge, a sample of my special Baby’s Lullaby Elixir, to calm colicky infants.”

  The price he quoted the woman nearly made Molly faint, but the fact he was trying to con the poor lady riled her up even more than his outrageous prices. As Mrs. Hildebrand reached into her coat pocket to pay, Sinead snatched up one of the bottles while Molly laid a hand on the woman’s arm.