Chapter 27
“I’m sorry that you’ve had to pick up my slack over this last week,” Melanie said apologetically, watching Iris place her feet gingerly in the tub of heated water John had brought her. She’d known that Iris was near the end of her pregnancy and expecting the baby to arrive any day now, not to mention how she’d heard her complain about the pain she’d had in her feet after standing for long periods of time. It was a source of constant guilt, but Melanie didn’t know what else to do. Even after a week had elapsed, the confusion she felt hadn’t dissipated in the slightest.
Their kiss had been wonderful, the rough contrast of his lips against her own having stirred feelings inside her that she’d never felt before. And yet, it had also been one of the worst moments of her life. This was exactly the kind of thing she’d been trying to avoid. She had told herself time and again that she couldn’t let her guard down. That she needed to be prepared for the possibility that Edward Brighton would track her down and try to reclaim her for his own. Since she was technically already betrothed, it made her feel bad that she’d developed feelings for another man. Even if she didn’t love Edward, a spoken for woman should not let her gaze or affections wander.
He was a master manipulator, so it would be easy for him to convince the townspeople of whatever he wanted. She didn’t think that Peter would be able to stand against him, and that was the worst part. Edward was exactly the kind of man who would try to sow discord between her and Peter. She wanted to tell Iris about her fears but didn’t want to burden her. She didn’t want to add any stress to what Iris was already going through, especially when her problems seemed tiny in comparison.
She’d long felt guilty about not staying at an inn, but any time she’d voiced those feelings to John, he had simply laughed and told her she worried too much. She felt like she was taking advantage of them, and that troubled her.
“I don’t mind filling in for you, but I do want to know what has caused you to avoid town like the plague so suddenly. You barely talk to any of us, but I can see the constant worry on your face,” Iris said, shaking her head as she gazed up at Melanie. “What is really bothering you?”
“I wish I knew! Every time I feel like I understand what I want and what I am here to do, something comes along that gets my thoughts all scrambled,” she admitted, doing her best to prevent her tears from escaping the corner of her eyes.
Iris clicked her tongue in sympathy. “Why don’t you start from the beginning? Tell me what happened that has you all in a tizzy like this.”
There was something about the way that Iris spoke that made Melanie wonder if the pregnant woman didn’t know or at least suspect what had happened between her and Peter a week ago. Iris had come to her the next day and asked her why she’d returned home so late the night before, but Melanie hadn’t been able to admit the truth. She simply said that she’d been helping watch over Darwin at the sheriff’s office and lost track of time. If Iris had believed for an instant that Melanie was keeping something from her, she hadn’t shown it.
“If I tell you, I first need you to promise me that you won’t breathe a word of it to anyone. I don’t want anyone finding out about this,” Melanie said conspiratorially.
“If you ask for me to remain silent, then I shall remain silent. Though I will admit that I am curious about why you insist on acting so secretive. Is there something shameful that is eating you up inside?” Iris inquired, her eyebrows arching in curiosity.
Before Melanie had a chance to explain herself, a loud knock on the front door cut her off. The women’s heads turned in unison toward the door, Melanie’s heart immediately beating faster in her chest. Could it be that Peter had grown tired of her trying to avoid him and decided to come to see her himself? John had sent him away last time at her request, but Mr. Broughs had gone to town for the better part of the day, leaving the two ladies to look after the six rambunctious children that were currently playing tag out in the front yard.
“Now who could that be?” Iris asked, placing her hands on the arms of her chair and moving to get up. Melanie gently reached her hand out and stopped her, offering a smile.
“Don’t trouble yourself, Iris. You can go ahead and keep soaking your feet,” Melanie said, patting Iris’s shoulder affectionately. “I’ll go see who is at the door. Be right back,” she promised, leaving her friend where she sat. A tall shadow had been thrown across the door, a wide-brimmed hat just barely visible through the small window. For an instant, she thought that it might be Peter, resignation on her face as she slowly pulled the door open. “Peter, I know you probably want an explanation about why I’ve been avoiding you.”
“I’m sure he would be very interested to know about that, but this isn’t the time to have that conversation,” came the cool reply, the rest of Melanie’s words dying in her throat. She was not looking at the gruff sheriff whom she seemed to have fallen for, but instead, she gazed upon the smiling visage of Edward Brighton. “You should be sure to let him know about it next time you see him. For now, I would prefer that we focus on the matter of our own affairs.”
“Melanie, who is it at the door? Someone that you know?” Iris called out, leaning forward and waving cheerfully. “No need to leave him standing on the doorstep. Let him come in!”
Melanie could see the gleam of triumph in his eyes as he took a step across the threshold. She took a step back, shrinking away from him as he advanced. “What a lovely home you seem to have found yourself in. The home of the Broughs, was it?” he asked conversationally, though his warm tone never seemed to dull the icy stare he had fixed on her. “I am so glad that I managed to find you, given the directions I received were not the most reliable.”
Iris had waddled into the room by now, her smile faltering for only a moment as she gazed between Melanie and Edward. “Who is it that I have the pleasure of addressing?”
“My name is Edward Brighton, ma’am. I come from Kansas to seek after the woman who stole my heart but disappeared before we could have the chance to exchange our vows. I came to retrieve her, and to have her come back home to be my wife,” Edward replied, the silence that followed deafening.
“Are you engaged?” Iris looked between Melanie and Edward with a mixture of suspicion and confusion. “Melanie never mentioned anything about having a fiancé. This comes as quite a surprise.”
“I’m sure she hasn’t. I fear we didn’t end our last engagement on the best note, and my heart was greatly pained when I tried to call on her at her aunt Victoria’s home only to discover that she had seemingly vanished overnight. Her aunt was worried sick about her, you know,” Edward continued, laying on so much charm that it was physically sickening.
Melanie felt a wave of nausea roll through her, clamping her hand over her mouth briefly as she turned her head away from him. “Iris, could you please give us a moment?” she asked, doing her best to communicate her discomfort silently to her friend. Iris must have taken the hint, the sound of the front door closing as she went to check on her kids soon following.
Left alone with Edward, it took her a moment to calm herself. When she managed to find her voice again, it was only to ask one simple question. “What are you doing here, Edward?”
“I have come for you, of course. I have ridden a great distance to come find you and persuade you to return to Kansas with me. The sheriff was kind enough to reveal your location to me, once I told him I was your fiancé. He looked rather surprised by the news, but after what Mrs. Broughs just said, I can’t say I’m surprised. You were keeping me a secret from everyone else. Naughty, naughty,” he teased, though his expression told her he was displeased about the whole situation.
“Edward, if you would just let me explain,” Melanie began weakly, wincing when he raised a hand to silence her.
“I am staying in town for a while. I don’t know what it is that caused you to develop this sudden issue with me, but rest assured, I am prepared to go the distance to make sure that when I decide to leave,
you will be coming back with me. Your aunt would no doubt be delighted to see you again, and after all of the trouble you’ve caused her, isn’t it the least you could do?” he asked, the smug smile on his face telling her he thought he’d won. “I’ll be seeing more of you in the coming days, Melanie. Look forward to it, won’t you?”
Then he was gone just as quickly as he’d arrived, the front door shutting quietly after him. Melanie was left standing in the entryway, doing her best not to start shaking. Her absolute worst fears had managed to come to life twofold.
Not only had Peter had a run-in with Edward, but the man had just told Iris they were engaged. This was going to throw a wrench in her plan, not to mention run the risk of furthering the distance that had begun to grow between her and Peter once more. Her only chance now would be to act proactively and try to explain herself to Peter. She just hoped he would listen to her.
Chapter 28
Peter felt like someone had punched him right in the stomach. She would have brought Edward up by now if she had any sort of feelings for him, wouldn’t she? She didn’t come across as the kind of woman who would have secret lovers, so he suspected something else was at play.
It didn’t help his mood at all that wherever he seemed to go throughout the town, Edward Brighton seemed to turn up shortly after. If he didn’t know any better, he would think that the blond man was going out of his way to follow him around, as if he wanted to be in the sheriff’s gaze as often as possible. Peter suspected the man was watching him instead. He was probably suspicious of the sheriff’s relationship with Melanie and was trying to get some dirt on him.
It felt so strange to find himself in such a situation, especially since he couldn’t see a good way for him to remedy it. In the old days, when he found himself in competition with a man over a woman, he would just challenge him to a fight, and the winner would get the girl. This time was different. If he challenged the stranger to a duel over Melanie, it would immediately reveal to everyone that he harbored feelings for her. Not to mention, it would serve as the exact kind of scandal that Johnny Carrington could only dream of.
It didn’t matter if he was talking to a man or a woman, Edward seemed capable of charming just about any person who would lend him an ear. There was a group of young women getting out of their sewing circle that Edward immediately gravitated toward. Peter watched him walk to the group, the heads of each of the women turning toward him as he approached. It reminded Peter of a flock of birds after spotting a possible predator.
Peter couldn’t make out what was being said thanks to the distance between them, but the sound of some of the women’s laughter carried on the air toward him. He scowled and turned his head in the direction of the sound of a wagon pulling closer, surprised to see Melanie climb off directly in front of him. She moved across the road toward him, looking conflicted the entire time. When she spoke to him, it felt like they had returned to the first days they’d known one another.
“Sheriff,” she said politely, her eyes briefly hovering past his shoulder to gaze at Edward where he stood. “How are you today?”
“As good as I can be, I reckon. I woke up early this morning, and I’ve practically been run ragged by the sheer number of errands I’ve been asked to run so far. I was just taking a moment to appreciate your fiancé's social skills,” he remarked conversationally.
Peter watched Melanie’s face sink into a deep frown, her teeth biting her bottom lip.
“Is something the matter, Melanie? You look like your thoughts are on other things. Preparing for your wedding with Edward already?” Peter asked, his voice coming out more sarcastic than he’d originally hoped.
“Things aren’t like that between us,” she whispered furiously. “Now stop calling me his fiancée. I never agreed to it, despite what he might think.”
“Okay, easy. You don’t need to bite my head off. I’m just asking a few questions,” he snarled in return, narrowing his eyes at her. “What’s got you all in a knot?”
“He wasn’t supposed to find me,” she murmured softly, turning away from him and rubbing her arm through her sleeve. “I don’t even understand how he found me. I had hoped he would get over me and move on to someone else, but I see my hopes were in vain.”
He noticed that Melanie’s gaze was repeatedly returning to Edward’s direction, a pang of jealousy coursing through him. He wanted her to focus her attention on him and not on the manipulative gentleman before them. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but Edward gave him all sorts of unnerving feelings. Her glances didn’t seem to belong to a lover who’d been reunited with her other half.
“What can you tell me about him?” Peter asked, watching as Edward took the hand of one of the women in his and raised it to his lips. The sound of the various women giggling soon followed. “Aside from his charismatic personality.”
“His name is Edward Brighton. He is the son of a very wealthy landowner back in Kansas that my aunt Victoria wishes for me to marry. We started courting, and he was a gentleman, but I knew immediately that he was not the one for me. That was why I came out here to pursue the school teaching job, since I didn’t want to continue to burden my aunt with caring for me,” Melanie replied absently.
“What made you decide that you wouldn’t be a good match?” Peter asked, knowing he was pressing his luck. He could practically feel the way that she was walling herself off from him, knowing what her answer would be even before she began to shake her head.
“I don’t want to have this conversation right now,” Melanie said gently, her eyes no longer meeting his.
“Just reject his advances and tell him to look elsewhere,” Peter replied gruffly, beginning to suspect that there was more to Melanie and Edward’s relationship than she was letting on. “Tell him it’s off.”
“You think I haven’t tried that already? I did my best multiple times to slip him the hint that I wasn’t interested, but he willfully ignored me each time. Plus, he wraps people around his finger at every chance he gets so that no one suspects him of any wrongdoing. Even my own family doesn’t believe me about him,” Melanie whined bitterly.
Peter pursed his lips at that, his gaze silently moving over in Edward’s direction. The pompous playboy had just finished his flirting, loudly saying goodbye to the group of women he’d been talking to as they slowly dispersed. Now free, Peter watched as Edward slowly turned his attention in their direction, as if he had just realized they were there.
“Oh goodness, he’s coming over here,” Melanie murmured, her eyes wide with fear. “Please don’t let him take me off somewhere.”
“Good afternoon, Sheriff. I trust that you are keeping the peace around here,” Edward said pleasantly, offering his gloved hand for a shake. “Ah, and my precious fiancée. Good to see you as well. You were one of the people who I wanted to talk to, actually.”
Peter watched Edward’s eyes as he spoke, noticing that none of the jovial politeness that came out of his mouth seemed to be reflected in his gaze. In fact, it almost seemed like Edward was doing his best to intimidate her without being too obvious in front of him. “What exactly is it that you needed to talk to her about?”
“Nothing of significance, though the content is a bit of a private matter. I’m sure you’ll forgive me if I say that I’d like our conversation to be out of earshot of others,” Edward said, his smile containing a hint of smugness.
“Oh, certainly. It is just that Melanie and I were in the midst of a conversation, and it would be rude for her to leave now,” Peter blurted out, trying to buy Melanie more time. He could see what she’d meant about his insistence, agitation starting to well up in the back of his mind. “Perhaps you could meet up with her later and have that conversation of yours?”
“Or I can simply wait for your conversation to conclude. I am a reasonably patient man, after all,” Edward replied smoothly. “I have no other plans for the evening that require my immediate presence, so I have time to kill, as they say.”
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nbsp; Peter looked over at Melanie helplessly. It seemed that Edward either wasn’t getting the hint or was deliberately ignoring him. He did his best to buy them time by asking Melanie some questions about how she’d been, given that she’d been absent for the last week, but every answer she gave him was brief, leaving them in awkward silence once more.
“It seems to me that the two of you have exhausted your conversation for now. If you would excuse us, I would like to take Melanie to have that private chat of ours,” Edward said, brazenly wrapping his arm around Melanie’s shoulder and pulling her along with him.
Melanie gave him one final backward glance, the pleading look on her face causing his heart to break slightly. He felt so conflicted about everything. Would it be right for him to get involved between two people who were already betrothed?
As he watched the two of them fade into the distance, he made a silent promise that he was going to keep a close eye on them. Even without what Melanie had told him today, Peter would have been quite suspicious of Edward Brighton. Experience had taught him that if someone seemed too good to be true, they were.
A Bride to Melt the Sheriff’s Iron Heart Page 15
