by Linda Bridey
Rebecca felt admiration for the young couple who had worked so hard towards their dream. “So it took them until you were eight to start it then?”
Jake nodded and tried to shield her from a sharp blast of wind. “Right. If you think it's rough now, you should have seen it then. There wasn’t really any law around the area at the time so Pa was the law in that place. That’s where I learned it from. It was his place and he wasn’t gonna let anyone ruin what he and Ma had worked for.”
“Did your mother help with it?” Rebecca asked.
“At first, but then she got influenza when I was nine and her health wasn’t the same after it. So it was Pa and me. I didn’t have any formal education until I was older because there wasn’t any school here. Pa taught me a lot of math and I had to memorize a lot of it. Paper was scarce since the small store here didn’t carry it much,” Jake said. “That’s how I can memorize what everyone drinks and how much they owe and all that.”
“It’s remarkable,” Rebecca said. “I couldn’t do that. I would need to write it all down.”
“Most people would. I started tending bar when I was ten. The locals got a kick out of it and Pa let me do it because they would buy more booze just to watch me serve it. Then I started learning tricks and they liked it even more.”
“Tricks?” Rebecca asked.
“Juggling shot glasses, sliding mugs, that kind of thing. I don’t do it much on Fridays and Saturdays because it’s just too busy,” Jake said. “But they liked it and we sold more and more booze. Some nights we ran out. Pa started making improvements to the place and eventually it got to be the size it is now and we put the apartment upstairs so that we could be near Ma while we worked. I was fifteen when she passed on.”
“So young. I’m so sorry,” Rebecca said.
“Thanks. Sorry, I didn’t mean to get into all that,” Jake said.
“I’m not sorry,” Rebecca said. “I want to know more about you.”
As they arrived at the hotel and walked up the steps to the porch, Jake said, “I want to know more about you, too.”
Rebecca gave him a little smile and said, “There’s really not much to tell.”
Jake said, “I think there’s more to tell than you’re letting on, Rebecca. I’d like to really get to know the woman I’m possibly going to marry. I’d like to take you to Wolfe Point tomorrow. It’s a little bigger than here and they have a very nice restaurant there. How about I pick you up around noon?”
“That would be lovely,” Rebecca said.
Jake smiled and their eyes locked. He used her cloak to pull her a little closer to him. Rebecca’s heart began beating faster when she saw he meant to kiss her. She looked at his mouth and then back into his eyes. When his lips brushed hers, Rebecca leaned closer and offered no resistance.
He tasted of whiskey and wine and the two flavors together were very pleasant. Rebecca responded to his kiss, enjoying the burgeoning desire he incited within her. She’d been kissed before, but there was something different about the way he kissed that caused a stronger reaction in her. Jake wanted to go on kissing her, but didn’t feel that it would be proper.
Rebecca opened her eyes when he pulled back and smiled at him.
“Goodnight,” Jake said smiling back.
“Goodnight,” she said.
She watched Jake descend the stairs. He looked back and waved at her and she waved back before going inside.
Jake drug himself out of bed at ten the next morning even though he would have liked to sleep another hour as he usually did on Sundays. But he’d told Rebecca noon and he didn’t want to be late. He’d forgotten to pick up more coffee for his apartment so he ran downstairs to get some. Then he decided that he might as well just drink it down there.
So he put it on to brew and sat in his office until it was ready. He looked over some invoices and then poured some coffee into a cup and went back to his office again to drink it. Jake was about halfway through with the coffee when he heard the back door open and shut.
“Hey, Sammi. What are you doin’ here on a Sunday? Just can’t get enough of the place, huh?” Jake said with a laugh. The fact that he was only half dressed didn’t concern him since Sammi had seen him like that plenty of times when she’d come around earlier in the day and he’d just gotten up. Normal societal rules didn’t apply where Sammi was concerned.
“Hello? Jake?”
Jake started at hearing Rebecca’s voice. He went to rise from the desk, banged his knee, swore and sat down again. At least his bottom half would be hidden from view. She appeared in the doorway and he said, “Hi.”
Rebecca saw his bare torso and couldn’t look away from him. As he moved some invoices to the side, the muscles of his shoulders rolled under his skin and Rebecca enjoyed watching them. “Hello. I’m sorry. I just thought I could practice a little until you were ready.”
Jake smiled. “Certainly. Feel free. There’s coffee in the kitchen if you want some.”
“Thank you,” she said but didn’t move.
“Is everything ok?” Jake asked. She needs to go practice so I can get back upstairs.
“Yes. Fine,” she said absently. Rebecca knew she should either get some coffee or go practice, but he looked so good that her feet wouldn’t do what they were supposed to.
“Good,” Jake said. Several more moments passed while neither one of them moved. He because he was trapped, she because she’d never seen a man undressed before and was fascinated.
Jake saw her slightly pink cheeks and a certain light come into her eyes that women got when they were attracted to a man. Oh boy. This is a good thing, but a bad thing, too.
He cleared his throat and Rebecca jumped a little. “Rebecca, I, um, need you to either go to the kitchen or out to the bar. I’m not properly dressed for female company.”
Rebecca said, “Oh, I, um, pardon me. Yes, of course.” Her cheeks were on fire as she went to the kitchen and found the coffee and a mug.
She heard Jake trot down the hall and mount the stairs to the apartment. Suddenly she started giggling and couldn’t stop. Never had she been so transfixed before and then she felt badly for poor Jake. Rebecca started laughing again as she thought about Jake’s wild hair. He must not have been up long since he was still in a state of undress. She poured some coffee and then went to practice.
A little while later, Jake appeared in the barroom. He waited until Rebecca was done with the song she was practicing before announcing his presence.
“That was pretty,” Jake said.
Rebecca looked at him and found it difficult not to laugh. “Thank you. You look very handsome.”
Jake wore his other suit. It was black with a vest and white shirt. “Thanks. I think you look rather fetching,” he said in an imitation of her accent and style of speaking.
“You’re making fun of me,” she said.
“Oh, no, not me. Why I’d never do that, Miss Walker,” Jake said as he continued the imitation.
Rebecca laughed and got up from the piano. “Now, you stop that.”
“Whatever are you talking about? I don’t know what you mean,” Jake said.
“You’re bad,” Rebecca said.
“Sometimes. I could have been just a little bit ago, but I was a gentleman,” Jake said as he dropped the accent.
Rebecca felt a little reckless as she said, “Perhaps I was hoping you wouldn’t be so gentlemanly.”
Jake arched an eyebrow at her. “Really?” He came very close to her and said, “What about now?”
Rebecca put her chin up and said, “No. Not now. I’m afraid the moment’s passed.”
Jake caught the way she smiled as she moved to go around him. He caught her by the arm and turned her around to face him. “Not so fast,” he said and pressed his lips to hers.
She felt a thrill run up her spine as Jake hooked one arm around her waist and cupped her face with his other hand. Rebecca put her arms around his neck and kissed him back. She hadn’t ever experienced anyth
ing like the way he was making her feel. It made her heart beat faster and a flush stole over her body as his hands moved up her back.
With difficulty Jake slowed things down and ended their embrace. He smiled and said, “Well, that was unexpected, but I’m not sorry.”
Rebecca looked at him with her green eyes shining. “I’m not either.”
Jake laughed and said, “We better get going, Miss Walker.”
“Yes, perhaps we’d better,” Rebecca said.
They walked to the livery stable to pick up the team Jake had rented for the day. Stew was working and greeted Jake warmly. Jake introduced Rebecca to him before they left. The chestnut pair was well matched but nowhere near the caliber of any of Joe’s teams.
Rebecca was thankful that Jake had brought a couple of blankets with them. She wasn’t used to such cold and the woolen blankets felt good to her. “Do you have any horses?”
Jake nodded as they moved through town. “I have a draft horse and a riding horse. Eventually I want to buy a pair of Clydesdales from Joe. He has a couple of mares that he’s planning to breed and I want them if they’re both the same sex. The stallions he has now are incredible animals and so well trained it ain’t funny.”
Rebecca smiled at the admiration in his voice. “Clydesdales are beautiful. Family friends of ours had some.”
“They sure are. So about your family. You said you’re not close. How come?” Jake asked. He saw that shadow cross her face again but wasn’t going to let the subject drop.
Rebecca took a breath of cold air and said, “My father committed quite a bit of business fraud and lost our fortune. We went from being one of the most influential and successful families in Georgia to gutter trash in a matter of a few days. They took almost everything from us except for some of our clothing and some jewelry we were able to squirrel away. Needless to say, neither my brother nor I wanted anything to do with my father. My mother refused to leave him so I don’t have anything to do with her, either.”
Jake’s heart went out to the beautiful young woman beside him. Joe had been spot on about her breeding and it wasn’t hard to see it or hear it. It made him understand why her first letter hadn’t mentioned what kind of work she did and why it had been a rather bland missive. She hadn’t wanted to give anything about her away in case he’d heard of them. He couldn’t imagine what it had been like to find your world ripped apart like that. Her identity had been turned against her and Jake knew that she must have suffered severe ridicule. No wonder she’d wanted to get out of Savannah.
He reached over and took her hand in his. Jake said, “Rebecca, look at me.”
It was hard, but Rebecca did it.
Jake said, “I’m sorry for everything you had to go through. I don’t know your family and I don’t care to if that’s the kind of people they are. All I care about is you. It doesn’t matter to me that you used to be rich and now you’re not. Money doesn’t make a person. Look at Joe. He’s got all kinds of money and yet he hangs around with all of us regular folks. Hell, he even goes to the Lakota camp and gambles and drinks with them. Around here, money and prestige don’t mean a whole lot. So if you were lookin’ for a place where you could be accepted for you, you came to the right place.”
Tears filled Rebecca’s eyes and she squeezed Jake’s hand. “Thank you for being so kind,” she said as a few tears fell from her eyes.
He squeezed back and said, “Well, I can’t have my concert pianist going around being sad, can I? It’s bad for business if you can’t play because you’re crying.”
Rebecca laughed a little and Jake smiled. As the buggy travelled along, Rebecca thought about what Jake had said to her and Joe’s comments about meeting people where they were at started to make more sense to her. The handsome man riding with her didn’t care that she was a disgraced socialite from Georgia. He appreciated her for herself and that was something that no one had ever done before in her life.
Her parents had only cared that she be the dutiful daughter of whom they could be proud. The last time she’d heard either of them tell her they loved her was when she’d been a little girl. Her brother and she had barely crossed paths once they’d reached their adolescent years. Since coming to Dawson only two days ago, Rebecca had felt more camaraderie and appreciation from its residents than she’d felt in her former social circles in years.
Jake furtively watched Rebecca. Her brow was furrowed and she still held his hand. He wondered what she was concentrating on, but didn’t disturb her. His gaze travelled over her black, silky hair and pretty profile. His eyes stopped on her mouth and Jake wanted to kiss her again. The urge to do so was strong and his other hand tightened around the reins in order to control the impulse.
During the ride to Wolfe Point, something happened to Rebecca inside. Unconsciously, she started holding Jake’s hand with both of hers as she felt the inner butterfly she’d tried to describe to Ellie start to spread its wings. She saw the beautiful colors on those wings flash in the sunlight and watched it lift off and fly away on the breeze.
Jake saw her eyes close and a smile of joy spread across her lovely features and couldn’t look away from her. He’d never seen anything so beautiful in all his life. Rebecca opened her eyes and looked over at Jake. Those sky blue eyes of his stared deep into hers and they reminded her of the color of her butterfly. She slid over close to him and placed a hand on his face and pressed her lips against his.
Though Jake was surprised, he wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity do exactly what he'd wanted to do moments ago. With his free arm, Jake pressed her harder against him and deepened the kiss. Rebecca was no longer cold as their kissing created heat within her body. He was strong and solid and smelled good. His mouth was firm yet soft and Rebecca didn’t want to stop.
Jake was feeling the same way, but he found the control needed to halt things, especially so they didn’t run off the road if he made a sudden jerk with his hand. As he raised his head, Jake wished he had a team of horses like Joe’s that was trained to drive by themselves to certain destinations.
Rebecca smiled at him and said, “Thank you.”
“That’s a different reaction to me kissing a woman than I’ve ever had before,” Jake said with a laugh.
“Not thank you for kissing me, although that was…transcendent,” Rebecca said.
“I have no idea what that means, but it sounds like a good thing,” Jake said.
“Hush! I’m trying to tell you something,” Rebecca insisted. “I meant thank you for accepting me without judgment, for seeing me as a person and not something to be paraded around in front of other people to be admired. You actually appreciate my abilities, my talents, and respect me as a woman and not a possession.”
Jake’s brows drew down with concern. “Is that what it was like for you?”
“Yes! They didn’t care about my hopes and dreams. All they cared about was whether I played well or danced well! They didn’t know the real me. Hell, I don’t even know the real me, so how could they?” Rebecca said.
Jake was surprised to hear her swear, but it sounded so classy that it wasn’t the least bit offensive. If she hadn’t been so worked up, he would have smiled. As it was, he didn’t want to interrupt her because she obviously needed to talk.
“I was like those little dogs that people parade around on leashes and make do pretty tricks. As surely as I am sitting here with the most handsome, virile man I’ve ever laid eyes on, they issued commands and expected me to sit up or lie down or speak! Rebecca, play this song, Rebecca wear this dress, Rebecca, eat this food! And then when my poor excuse for a father swindled people and did all kinds of despicable things that I don’t even want to know about and lost everything we’d ever had, I was plunged into the very depths of hell, Jake. The very depths, I tell you!” Rebecca shouted.
Her accent and impassioned speech was creating havoc inside of Jake. Her cloak had fallen open a little and her chest rose and fell as she breathed a little more rapidly. Her green eye
s held a fire that captivated him and Jake desperately wanted her to keep talking. She placed her hands on his thigh and Jake jumped a little.
“Do you know what it’s like to have everything you’ve ever known ripped from you? Do you?”
Jake shook his head.
“It is not fun, I’ll tell you. I was the proverbial belle of the ball. I had the finest of everything. Clothing, food, jewelry, tutors, houses, and I had many suitors. I was like a princess high in her castle and then the next moment, the princess fell from that tower and sank deep into the moat. The water was dark and murky and cold and she just knew she was going to die. But, Jake, just when I thought I had been cursed to live a life of despair and drudgery, you came into my life and rescued me like the fabled knight in shining armor,” Rebecca said.
“Then what?” Jake prompted her.
“You showed me that the richest people aren’t those who have wealth and power; it’s those who have happiness. Ever since I arrived in Dawson, I’ve seen so many happy people. Everyone has problems, but it seems as if the people here have risen above all of that and they make the most of every day. And every night. I have felt more joy the past two nights than I’ve felt in forever, Jake. People want me to play because they appreciate my music and it moves them, not because it’s expected or to show me off.”
“Well, I do want to show you off a little, I mean, look at you. You’re the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen,” Jake said.
Rebecca looked down and realized that her hands were squeezing his leg. She immediately removed them. “Oh, I’m so sorry!”
Jake’s chuckle was a little husky. “That’s ok. I’m not complaining any.”
“I sometimes get carried away like that. What you must think of me,” Rebecca said and looked down at her lap.
“Oh, no. Don’t do that,” Jake said as he guided the team around a curve in the road.
“Do what?”
“Don’t hide the real Rebecca again. I like the real Rebecca. Feel free to speak your mind any time you want. How else am I gonna get to know her if you keep hiding her from me?” Jake said. “I’m really liking the real you, so don’t quit now.”
