Shadows Through Time

by Madeline Baker

  * * * * *

  Kelsey woke bright and early the following day. Putting on her jeans, tee shirt and tennis shoes, she grabbed a quick cup of coffee and a muffin in the dining room and then went to Osgood’s, where she bought a broom, a mop, a bucket and soap and wished for a pair of rubber gloves. After charging everything on her new account, she hurried toward the Williams house. Her house, she amended.

  Unlocking the door, she stepped inside. For a moment, she just stood there. It was the first piece of property she had ever owned. She and Nick had never bought a house, they had rented one with the idea of having one built some day in the future. When he passed away, she had rented a small condo. Now, she owned a house.

  Taking up the broom, she began sweeping the living room floor. A good coat of wax would really make the floors shine, she thought, pleased.

  When she had swept the whole house clean and mopped the floors, she began to wash the windows. She had never been crazy about washing windows but she soon found herself humming as she worked.

  She bent down to wet her rag, reeled backward, one hand at her throat when she looked up again and saw a face peering at her through the window.

  “Reese! Good lord, you scared me half to death!”

  Grinning, he walked around to the front door and stepped inside. “You’ve been busy,” he remarked, looking around. “What can I do to help?”

  “You want to help?”

  “Gotta protect my investment,” he said with a wink.

  “How’d you like to finish washing the windows?”

  “Sure. What are you going to do?”

  “Get to work on scrubbing the kitchen.”

  With a nod, Reese rolled up his shirtsleeves. Taking the cloth from her hand, he took up where she had left off.

  Smiling, Kelsey went into the kitchen. She scrubbed and polished for a good hour before her back demanded a rest.

  She went into the living room looking for Reese, but he wasn’t there. She found him in one of the bedrooms, drying one of the windows.

  She stood there a minute, one shoulder resting against the door frame, content to watch the play of muscles under his shirt. Sunshine painted gold highlights in his hair. Her gaze moved down his back, over his tight butt, down his long legs. She loved the way he moved, the sense of controlled power that emanated from him. It was a good thing there wasn’t a bed in the room, she mused, or she might have turned her lusty thoughts into action.

  As though sensing her gaze, he glanced over his shoulder.

  “Ready for a break?” she asked, annoyed by the husky note in her voice.

  “Sure.” He dropped the cloth on the floor.

  “Come on, I’ll buy you lunch, I mean dinner.”

  “Maybe you’d better wait until you’re turning a profit.”

  “All right, then, you buy me dinner,” she said, grinning.

  “I’ve got a better way to spend an hour or two.” He moved toward her like a cat stalking its prey, his dark eyes smoldering.

  “Do you?” she asked. Her voice, no longer husky, emerged as little more than a squeak.

  He nodded. Closing the distance between them, he took her in his arms. “I can’t fight it anymore.” His hand slid up and down her back, slow and sensual.

  “You can’t?”

  “No.”

  Lowering his head, he claimed her lips with his in a long searing kiss that burned away every thought, every objection, every doubt. Maybe she was here for a short time, maybe she was here forever, it no longer mattered. What mattered was now, this moment, this man. Maybe it was fate that had brought her here, maybe it was luck, but whatever it was, she was here now, in his arms and there was no place she’d rather be. She moaned softly when his tongue found hers, tasting, exploring, dueling in a dance as old as time. His hand slid down to cup her buttocks, drawing her body tighter to his, letting her feel the heat of his arousal, the depths of his need.

  And she wanted him. Right or wrong, for this day or forever, she wanted him.

  Taking him by the hand, she led him out of the house and down the street to the hotel.

  Once they were in his room, with the door closed and the bed at her back, some of her courage deserted her. She had never been the kind to indulge in one-night stands, had never made love to any man but her husband.

  Reese shoved his hands in his pockets. “Change your mind?”

  “I’ve never done this before.”

  “Never had a man?”

  “Just my husband…”

  “Husband?” Reese exclaimed, rearing back. “Didn’t you tell me you weren’t married?”

  “I’m not, not anymore.”

  “You a divorced woman?”

  “No, he was killed in a car accident.”

  “Car?”

  “An automobile. Oh, it doesn’t matter how it happened, does it?”

  “I reckon not. How long has it been?”

  “Three years.”

  Reese tossed his hat on the bedpost, ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry. I guess you miss him.” Crossing the room, he poured himself a shot of whiskey from a bottle on the dresser. “Want a drink?”

  “No.”

  He leaned back against the dresser, glass in hand. “Were you happy together?”

  “Not really. We got married too young and for all the wrong reasons. He was jealous of my career and he started drinking too much…I was thinking of asking for a divorce when he was killed.” She crossed her arms over her breasts, saddened by the memory, surprised that it still had the power to bring her to tears.

  Reese tossed off his drink and turned to pour another, then changed his mind. Setting the glass on the dresser, he ran his hand over his jaw, torn between the need to take Kelsey into his arms and comfort her and the need to bury himself in her sweetness.

  Chivalry won out in the end.

  Gathering Kelsey into his arms, he held her close and stroked her back. “It’s all right now, girl. Go ahead and cry.”

  With a sob, she buried her face against his chest. She’d thought she had cried her last tears for Nick years ago but now, cradled in Reese’s arms, she wept for the failure of her marriage, for the death of all her teenage dreams. She wept because she was far from home and didn’t know if she would ever find her way back. She wept because going home again would mean leaving Reese. Lastly, she wept because as much as she wanted to make love to him right now, she knew it was wrong and would only complicate an already complicated situation.

  Reese must have sensed what she was feeling, or maybe he had come to the same conclusion. Using his kerchief, he dried her eyes.

  “Come on,” he said with a faint grin, “let’s go get something to eat.”

  “Reese…”

  Using his thumb, he caught a stray tear trickling down her cheek. “It’s all right, Kelsey.”

  “I love you.” She hadn’t intended to say the words out loud, but they whispered past her lips of their own volition.

  Reese blinked at her. “Kelsey…”

  She put her fingertips over his mouth. “You don’t have to say anything. I shouldn’t have said anything. I don’t know what I was…”

  Removing her hand from his mouth, Reese said, “Hush, girl,” and kissed her before she could say anything else.

  It was a gentle kiss, more promise than passion, more sweet than sensual, and yet she felt it clear down to her toes.

  His eyes were filled with warmth when he looked at her again. “I don’t know how you got here,” he said quietly. “Maybe it was fate, maybe it was just my good luck, but whatever it was, I’m glad you’re here.” He stroked her cheek. “All I know is, I don’t want you to leave, not now, not ever. Hantaywee said you would be good for me.”

  “She said that?”

  “Yea. And she was right.”

  With a sigh, Kelsey rested her cheek on his chest, struck yet again by how right it felt to be in his arms.

  He brushed a kiss across the top of her head. “I love you
, too, you know.”

  She looked up at him, her heart swelling. “You do?”

  “I tried to fight it,” he said. “I’ve felt guilty because I lived and Chumani died.” He blew out a sigh. “Being in love with you just made it worse. But all the guilt in the world can’t change the past, or the fact that I love you.”

  “Oh, Reese!” She hugged him close, more torn than she had ever been in her life. She loved him so much, but did she love him enough to stay here, in the past, to never see her family again, to give up everything that was dear and familiar?

  There was no point in worrying about it, she thought. For all she knew, the choice of whether to stay or go might never be hers. And if she was here to stay, well, now that she knew Reese loved her, the thought of spending the rest of her life in the past wasn’t nearly as daunting as it had been.

  * * * * *

  They went to lunch—Kelsey didn’t think she’d ever get accustomed to calling lunch dinner and dinner supper—at the hotel. Reese loved her! She smiled every time she thought about it. She felt like a teenager again in love for the first time, all bubbly and dreamy-eyed. She found herself just sitting there, staring at him, several times.

  Now was one of those times. She couldn’t stop looking at him, or thinking that he was surely the most handsome man she had ever seen. His face was strong and rugged. He had straight black brows and deep dark eyes and a nose that was slightly crooked, making her wonder if it had been broken. His cheekbones were high and prominent, his jaw square with a hint of stubbornness. His white shirt was the perfect foil for his dark good looks.

  “Quit that,” Reese muttered when he caught her staring.

  “I’m sorry, I can’t help it.”

  He grinned at her, so devastatingly handsome it took her breath away. He loved her!

  Kelsey grinned back. “Are you going over to the saloon after lunch?”

  He shrugged. “I reckon, unless you need my help at the house.”

  “Well, if you wouldn’t mind, you could clean out the shed in the back.”

  “Consider it done. How much longer are you going to work for Pete?”

  “I don’t know. For a while, I guess. I need to have some money coming in regularly until the coffee shop is up and running.”

  Reese nodded. “You about ready to go?”

  Kelsey pushed her plate away, took a last sip of her coffee. “Yes.”

  “All right, then, let’s get to work.”

  * * * * *

  Kelsey had the inside of the house spic and span by the time Angie arrived.

  Angelina stood in the middle of the living room, her hands on her hips. “Looks like you don’t need my help,” she said, glancing around.

  “Oh, there will be plenty for you to do before we’re done, don’t worry,” Kelsey replied. “We need to make curtains for all the windows and tablecloths and napkins…”

  “I don’t know how to sew,” Angie said.

  “That’s all right, I do. My grandmother taught me and I’ll teach you. And once we’re open, I’ll need you to help serve and wash dishes.”

  “You seem awfully happy today,” Angie remarked.

  “I am happy.”

  Angelina regarded her a moment, her eyes narrowed, and then she looked around the house again. “You’ve got that look in your eyes,” she remarked. “Reese must be around here somewhere.”

  “He’s in the back, cleaning out the shed.”

  “Anything I can do?”

  “I don’t think so. I was just about to lock up and get ready for work. Why don’t you go to the hotel and get started on your homework? I’ll be there in a little while.”

  “All right.”

  After Angie left, Kelsey locked the front door, then went around to the backyard to see how Reese was making out.

  Rounding the corner, she heard him cuss. A moment later, he stepped out of the shed, one hand rubbing the back of his head.

  “Are you okay?” she asked.

  “Fine,” he muttered sourly.

  “What were you cussing about?”

  “Nothing. I was poking around in the corner and a crate fell off the shelf and hit me on the head.”

  “Let me take a look.”

  He started to argue, but when he saw the determined look on her face, he obligingly turned around.

  She ran her fingers through his hair, checking his scalp. He winced when her fingertips slid across a bump the size of a golf ball. “At least it’s not bleeding,” she said. “Did you find anything interesting in there?”

  “Just a bunch of junk. You ought to burn it and the shed, too.”

  Kelsey grinned at him. “One man’s junk is another man’s treasure.”

  He snorted softly. “If you find a treasure in there, it’s all yours.”

  “Well, I don’t have time to look for it today. I’ve got to get to work.”

  “Me, too,” he said with a wry grin.

  “I’d hardly call playing poker all night work,” she muttered.

  “Call it what you want,” he said, “but it puts food on the table and pays the rent.”

  “And buys houses,” Kelsey added with a smile. “Don’t forget that. Come on,” she said, taking him by the hand, “I’ve got to hurry.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Kelsey stood at the bar, joking with Pete while he filled a drink order, when she heard a familiar voice behind her. Unable to believe her ears, she slowly turned around.

  “Papa Joe!”

  “Kelsey? Kelsey!” His arms went around her in a bear hug. “What are you doing here? How did you get here? How’s Mary?”

  Kelsey’s happiness at seeing her grandfather erupted in laughter and tears. Dashing the tears from her eyes, she said, “I’m so glad to see you!”

  “Come and sit down,” her grandfather said, drawing her toward a vacant table, “and tell me everything.”

  In short order, Kelsey explained how she had found the door and stepped through it and then discovered she couldn’t find it again no matter how hard or how often she searched.

  “The portal is only open a couple of days at a time in mid-April and mid-October,” Papa Joe said ruefully.

  “So, you’ve been back and forth before?”

  “Several times over the years.”

  “Does it always open to the same time and place?”

  “Not always.”

  “So you can’t pick and choose where you want to go?”

  “No, it seems random. But it’s brought me here before.” He shrugged. “I’m not sure what determines the time and place.”

  “Does Nana Mary know about the portal?”

  “Of course, but I made her promise she wouldn’t try to follow me if something delayed my return.”

  Kelsey nodded. That made sense, since there was no guarantee that her grandmother would have ended up in the same time and place. “You’ve been gone for over a year! We all thought you were dead or something. Why didn’t Nana Mary tell us where you were?”

  “I always wanted to tell you, but she was afraid you’d think the two of us were, you know, losing it. She’s always been afraid of being sent to an old folks’ home for wackos.”

  “As if we’d do that to either of you! So, what happened? Why didn’t you come back? You’ve never been away this long before.”

  “Well, I missed the opening last April because I…well, I was in jail.”

  “Jail!” She stared at him in disbelief. “What on earth for?”

  A faint red flush crept up his neck into his cheeks. “Being drunk and disorderly.”

  “You’re not serious!” Kelsey stared at her grandfather in dismay.

  He shrugged.

  “You should be ashamed of yourself.”

  “Oh, I am,” he said, but he didn’t look ashamed. “Promise me you won’t tell Mary.”

  “I promise.” Kelsey could hardly believe what she was hearing. Her grandfather was sixty-eight years old. The idea of his being drunk and disorderly w
as ludicrous, yet in spite of his obvious embarrassment, he seemed almost proud of it. Men. She would never understand them.

  Papa Joe cleared his throat. “Then, in October, I missed my window of opportunity because my horse went lame and I didn’t get back to town in time. This April…” He shook his head. “I was laid up with a bad case of the gout and just couldn’t make it.”

  “So the door won’t be open again until October?” Kelsey asked.

  “As far as I know. So, how’s my old girl getting along?”

  “She was fine when I saw her last. She’s renovating the old house…” Kelsey frowned, Had Nana Mary known Kelsey would walk through the portal once she found it? Had she set the whole thing up, hoping Kelsey would somehow find Papa Joe? No, it was too farfetched, she thought. “Oh! Will renovating the house change anything?”

  “I don’t think so. We should be able to get back home in October.”

  It was the first of June, Kelsey thought. A lot could happen in the next four months, but at the moment, she had no intention of going back in October or April or anytime unless Reese went with her. Why hadn’t she thought of that before? Of course, she didn’t have to stay here, in the past. He could go with her to the future. It would be such fun, showing him all the wonders of the twenty-first century. Just thinking about it made her smile. And then she frowned. Maybe it wasn’t possible to go from the past to the present…

  “Something wrong?” Papa Joe asked.

  “No. I was just wondering, is it possible for someone from this time to travel to our time?”

  Papa Joe scratched his neck, his expression thoughtful. “I don’t know. You got anyone in mind?”

  “Maybe. I still can’t believe you never told anyone about your little jaunts to the Old West. How on earth did you find the portal the first time?”

  “It was just an accident. I only stayed a few hours the first time.”

  “What did Nana Mary say?”

  “She didn’t believe me, so I brought back proof the next time I went.”

  “What kind of proof?”

  “A newspaper from Deadwood. A picture of me with Wyatt Earp. Stuff like that.”