She listened but was not convinced.
“Please, don’t be upset with Stone. If you’re upset with anyone, let it be me. I’m the one who asked it of you—not him.”
“Well—maybe you’re right. But I won’t blame you, Father. I know how hard this has been on you. I wish I could help, but you must understand, I cannot marry a man I don’t love. I’d be miserable!”
John grabbed her hands and cupped them in his. “Please, let’s forget I ever asked you to do such an unforgivable thing.”
She stood on tiptoe and kissed her father’s cheek. “But I will work at the general store, if it’ll help.”
“No, and that’s final.”
❧
The air was brisk in the quiet town of Dove City as Stone rode in on Blackie that night. Most folks had gone to bed, their lamps extinguished; but the lamp in the lobby of The Great Plains Inn burned brightly, and Stone knew his friend was toiling over the hotel’s bookwork. He gave a slight tap on the windowpane and waited.
John opened the door and let him in. “I spoke with Juliette, and it didn’t go well.”
“She said no?” Stone pulled off his hat and sat down.
“She said a firm no. She was furious with both of us.”
Stone leaned back and balanced his hat on his knee. “You explained it all to her?”
“Everything we’d discussed.”
He rose and stuffed his hat onto his head. “Well, I guess that answers that. But don’t forget my offer for your family to stay with me as long as necessary.”
“I spoke with Robert Marquette at the bank this morning, and I’m sure you can guess what he said.”
“Another no?”
“Another firm no. Almost as firm as Juliette’s. I’d hoped he’d reconsider, but he said he couldn’t take a chance on me without collateral.”
Stone’s brow creased. “What’re you going to do?”
“I don’t know. I just don’t know. I’ve reached the end of my options.”
Stone laid a hand on the man’s shoulder. “I meant what I said. Your family is welcome at my house.”
“Thanks, I may have to take you up on your offer.”
“I’m still willing to give you the money.”
John shook his head sadly. “You’re a successful businessman, Stone. You didn’t get that way by behaving foolishly. There’d be nothing in it for you. I couldn’t let you do it.”
“My offer still stands.” Stone tipped his hat and rode away into the night with a heavy heart.
❧
Stone rose early the next morning. Each Sunday, he made a practice of arriving at the saloon ahead of the churchgoers to cover up the bars and arrange the chairs. Since Mr. Ward allowed the saloon to be used for public functions, church was one of them. It wasn’t that Stone was a pillar of the church. He wasn’t. But he’d attended services for so long, sometimes he felt like it. He rarely read his Bible and hardly ever prayed, though he bowed his head when others did. But he liked being around people who were good Christians. They were fine people with high moral standards, and he could trust them. He knew folks in the community took it for granted he was one of them, though he’d never outright claimed it.
He was just putting the last chair in place when the Baker family arrived. As the two men shook hands, Stone nodded a good morning to Mary Baker, then turned to Juliette. “Good morning.”
She gave him a cold, emotionless stare and said nothing.
“You’re looking beautiful this morning.” He watched for a reaction to his compliment but didn’t see one.
She moved past him and went to sit with her family in their regular place. He waited until the music began, then slipped into the empty chair beside her. When she made no effort to share her hymnal with him, he slid closer and took the corner of the book in his hand. Although she ignored him, he sang with his usual robustness, harmonizing occasionally with her lovely soprano voice. By the end of the service, he noticed she’d seemed to relax some, and he decided to chance speaking with her.
“Nice day for a drive in the country, don’t you think?”
“Drive?” She eyed him suspiciously.
“I thought maybe you’d do me the honor of taking a ride with me this afternoon.”
Furrows creased her brow. “I think not.”
“Please, Juliette. I know your father talked to you about me. Give me a chance to explain my side of things.”
“No need for explanations. My answer is no. Plain and simple, no. I want nothing to do with you.” She tried to move away from him, but he slipped his hand under her elbow and firmly led her off to one side.
“I have to make you understand. I don’t want there to be any hard feelings between us. Although we’ve only known each other for a few months now, your father is my friend.” He glanced around, then continued, his voice even softer. “I want you to come and see my place. You’ve never been there.”
She pulled away slightly, tugging from his grasp. “Why would I want to do that?”
“I’ve offered my home to your family if Mrs. Stark sells the hotel. I’ve tried to convince John there’s plenty of room for everyone, but he’s a proud man and very stubborn.” He wanted to add, Almost as stubborn as you!
She relaxed a bit and seemed to be considering their housing dilemma.
“Come on, say yes. You can bring Andrew and Caroline. It’s a beautiful day. I know you’d enjoy the ride.”
She appeared to be giving it some thought. “That’s the only reason you want me to come? Not to talk about marriage?”
“That’s the only reason.” Stone almost felt he should cross his fingers behind his back. That truly was the reason for his invitation, but he hoped when she saw his spread, she might decide to take him up on his offer, after all.
“Father told Caroline about the hotel, but he didn’t tell either of us about your offer of housing. If she comes with me, I’ll have to tell her, you know.”
“I’m sure that’d be fine with your father, but perhaps you’d better get his approval first.”
“I could ask him, but I don’t want her to know about—”
“I know. I won’t tell her.”
“I guess it wouldn’t hurt for us to see your place.”
“You’ll come?”
“If it’s all right with Father.”
“I’ll come for you about three. You won’t be sorry.”
“I’d better not be.” She shook a finger in his face. “This better not be a trick.”
Stone crossed his fingers behind his back. “It’s not.”
❧
“You ladies comfortable back there?” Stone asked with a congenial smile, swiveling in his seat as the horses ambled up the dusty road. Juliette had refused his offer to ride up front with him, opting to sit in back with Caroline.
They’d barely reached the outskirts of town when Andrew began to fuss. Juliette knew her baby would not be satisfied until he was fed. Yet, how could she nurse him? Here in the buggy, with Mr. Piper sitting so close? She could feel a flush rise to her cheeks, just thinking about what she was about to do.
“Mr. Piper, I’m sorry, but my baby is hungry, and I must see to his needs. Would you—could you—please—face the front—for a little while?”
He sat up straight and squared his shoulders. “Ah, yes—certainly. Of course.”
They rode along in silence as Andrew suckled beneath Juliette’s shawl. When he finished, she handed him to Caroline. Once her clothing had been adjusted and put back into place, she leaned forward a bit. “Thank you, Mr. Piper.”
He gave her a nod but kept his eyes on the road.
“Are you warm enough back there?” he asked finally. “I want you ladies to enjoy your ride.”
“Thank you, Mr. Piper. We are. Are we getting near your place?” Caroline asked, craning her neck.
He turned in the seat to face his three passengers. “Actually, we’ve been on my place since before we crossed the bridge. The house is s
till up there a ways ahead of us.”
Caroline scanned the area. “This land is all yours?”
“Sure is. A mighty lot to keep up.”
“But you do have help, right?” she asked, obviously impressed with the magnitude of what she was seeing.
Stone let out a hearty laugh. “Lots of help. I could never take care of all of this by myself.”
“Could you hire our father to work for you?”
“Wish I could, Miss Caroline, but my work is seasonal. Your pa needs something he can work at every day.”
“Oh, I see.” She seemed disappointed.
“See over there through the trees? The Neosho River runs across my land. Makes a good swimming hole in the summer and provides water for my stock.
“Look, you can barely see the roof of my house. And over that way are the barns. Down there is the cabin where America and Moses live.”
“Your slaves?” Caroline asked with big eyes as she glanced in the direction of the old couple’s cabin.
“Slaves? No!” Stone stated emphatically. “They’re friends who happen to work for me.”
“I heard Mrs. Marquette say they’re your slaves.”
“No, Caroline. Those two are as free as you or I.”
“Then why would Mrs. Marquette say such a thing?” Juliette asked.
“The story probably got all messed up. My father did buy Moses and America, and they were his slaves. But my father died a long time ago. The first thing I did after I claimed his property was to set them free.”
“If they’re free, why are they still with you?”
“It’s their choice, Caroline. They wanted to come to Kansas, and since I’d never known life without them, I wanted them here with me. I made it perfectly clear to them that they were no longer slaves of the Piper family. They were my employees, and as employees, they were free to come and go at any time.”
Caroline smiled. “Oh, that’s so wonderful. What a nice man you are, Mr. Piper.”
“Tell that to your sister. I don’t think she agrees.”
Juliette lowered her gaze and avoided his eyes. “I do think you’re a nice man, Stone. It’s just that I—”
He reached back and cupped his hand over hers. “I know. You don’t have to explain.”
The buggy slowly rounded a curve in the road, and Stone’s house could be seen in the distance. “We’re nearly there,” he explained as he gave the reins a gentle flip.
“Oh, my, I’ve never seen such a huge house,” Caroline exclaimed as they moved up the lane. “Do you live here alone?”
Stone nodded. “All alone, but I have two sons living in St. Joseph. I plan to bring them home as soon—” He cast a quick glance at Juliette. “As soon as it’s possible.”
“Oh, Juliette. This is the kind of house we were wishing for, remember?”
Juliette gave her sister a frown. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Yes, you do. We said maybe we could both marry rich men and ride around in fancy buggies while other women did our work for us. Surely you remember. We were standing in the hotel lobby. You were saying—”
“I said I don’t remember, Caroline. Please, let’s not discuss this now.”
Stone grinned to himself. So, Juliette was talking about marrying a rich man. Could that have been after I gave her Lucy’s handkerchief and told her I planned to marry her?
Caroline let out a sigh. “If you say so.”
Time to change the subject. He didn’t want Juliette to be upset about anything. He wanted her mind to be on the advantages he could give her if she married him. He made a large circle around the outbuildings, passed by America and Moses’ cabin, then turned into the circle drive in front of the spacious house. “Here we are.”
He leaped from the buggy and rushed around to assist his guests. After handing Andrew to Caroline, his fingers circled Juliette’s waist, and he slowly lifted her down. His eyes never left her lovely face. “There you go, little lady.”
She gave him a demure smile that made him grin, and he tipped his hat. Maybe she isn’t as mad at me as I thought.
“Juliette, look at this place. It’s the biggest house I’ve ever seen! Bigger’n any in Ohio.” Caroline spun around, looking in all directions. “Wouldn’t you like to live here?”
“Yes,” Stone asked with a wink as he took Andrew from Caroline and ushered Juliette up the steps of the wraparound porch. “Wouldn’t you like to live here, Juliette?”
With a quick snap of her head, she turned to face him, hostility in her eyes. “For a few weeks maybe. No longer.”
“I could live here forever!” Caroline said as she hurried up the steps ahead of them.
America met them at the door, wearing a freshly laundered apron.
“Juliette. Caroline. This is America.”
America gave them each a nod, then slipped a brown finger into the sleeping baby’s chubby hand. “Would you like to lay him down?”
Juliette leaned toward her and whispered, “I nursed him on the way. It’s time for his nap, so he’ll probably stay asleep for an hour or so.”
America pointed to a small daybed in the far corner. “He should be comfortable there. Push that chair up close so he won’t roll off.”
The three watched as Juliette carefully placed her son on the daybed and tucked the blanket about his shoulders. “Thank you, America,” Juliette said as she moved back across the room.
Caroline stared openmouthed at the oversized room, then turned to America. “Mr. Piper said you used to be a slave.”
Juliette’s hand reached out to cover her sister’s mouth.
“It’s okay,” Stone advised with a laugh. “I don’t think America minds talking about it, do you, America?”
“No, I don’t mind.” She turned to their inquisitive guest. “I used to be Stone’s pa’s slave, but never Stone’s. He freed me and Moses the day he got everything.”
Caroline turned to her sister. “Isn’t that nice, Juliette? Isn’t Stone the nicest man you ever met?”
“Yes, very nice,” Juliette agreed sullenly.
“Stone asked me to cook up his favorite little cakes and some tea. Would ya like some?” the old woman asked.
“Of course, they would,” Stone answered for them, “as soon as I’ve shown them the rest of the house.”
“Why did you ever build such a big house, Mr. Piper?” Caroline asked as they moved through a hallway and into the master bedroom.
“For my wife,” he explained proudly. “Lucy wanted a showy house with fine furniture. I built it just like she wanted it.”
“Caroline, don’t ask so many questions,” Juliette cautioned with a warning frown. “You’re being rude.”
“It’s all right. I don’t mind answering. That’s why I invited you here today. I wanted us to get to know each other better.” Turning to Caroline, he went on. “She died. My Lucy died not long after my second son’s birth.”
“Oh, that’s terrible!” Caroline returned with a frown as she put a consoling hand on the man’s arm. “I’m so sorry.”
“So am I,” Stone agreed. “I loved her very much. Life hasn’t meant much to me since she’s been gone.”
“Why don’t your boys live with you?” Caroline asked.
Again her sister gave her a warning frown.
“I want them to, but boys their age need a woman to take care of them. Since I haven’t found that woman—” He shot another glance toward Juliette. “Since I haven’t found that woman, they’ve stayed in St. Joseph with my sister.”
Caroline nodded toward America. “Couldn’t she take care of them?”
“Stone won’t let me,” America answered as she scurried toward the kitchen.
“She’s an old woman,” Stone added with a hearty laugh. “Too old for two rowdy boys. I couldn’t ask that of her.”
“You could hire someone who wasn’t that old,” Caroline continued.
“Wouldn’t look right for a woman to be living out
here on the ranch with a widower.” Stone turned toward Juliette, and this time she was looking directly at him.
“Couldn’t you find a wife?” Caroline asked with a glance toward her sister, as if she expected Juliette to silence her once more.
He reared back with a vigorous laugh. “I thought I’d found one, but she said no.”
“She must be crazy!” Caroline sat down in a well-padded chair, testing the cushion’s plumpness. “Can you imagine it, Juliette? Some woman would say no to all of this?”
“Yes, crazy,” Juliette answered softly with a piercing glare toward her host.
“Juliette, would you look at this bedroom?” Caroline followed close at Stone’s heels. “This is your bedroom, Mr. Piper?”
Stone nodded. “Like it? Lucy fixed it this way.”
Caroline leaned over the bed and ran her fingers across the delicate quilt. “I wish I had a bed like this.”
They moved on to the room across the hall, a smaller room but quite nice, filled with ladylike furniture. Everything with lace. Even the pillowcases had lace edges. A beautiful quilt with appliquéd flowers covered the bed. “Lucy made that quilt,” Stone explained. “She liked to do handwork.”
“It’s lovely,” Juliette admitted with admiration as her fingers traced the swirling green vines that connected the flowers. “You must have loved her very much.”
“I did,” he conceded. “No one will ever take her place.”
“Not even the lady who said no when you asked her to marry you?” Caroline asked as she bent to look at a delicate glass vase on the table beside the bed.
“Not even her,” he told her with another wink to her sister. “Let me show you the other bedroom on this floor. It’s the room I’m going to fix up for—” He paused. “Whoever takes care of my boys.”
As they made their way down the hall, Caroline clasped her hand on the knob of a closed door near Stone’s bedroom. “Whose room is this?”
Lucy's Quilt Page 6
