He was a fool.
The truth was…he didn’t deserve her. Not one bit. She deserved someone without issues. Someone who wouldn’t let insecurity rear its ugly head—but whoever that man was, he couldn’t love Grace as he did.
Oliver would do whatever he had to to win her back—grovel, beg, promise. Anything. He just had to find Arabella first.
As he marched through the tunnels with all his partners—excluding Everett, who was coordinating the search—he didn’t care if they witnessed whatever happened between him and Grace.
All he cared about was her and Arabella.
“That way,” Lucas said, pointing to their left. “They shouldn’t be far—”
The ground shook beneath them, and something like an explosion rocked the shaft. “What was that?” Oliver yelled.
The rest of his partners looked at each other grimly. “A cave-in.”
Oliver’s eyes went wild as he took off down the tunnel.
“Wait. It could be dangerous.” Nathan growled out the warning, but when Oliver didn’t stop, the rest of them followed.
His blood pumped hard through his veins, the drumming sound cutting off the admonitions from his partners. If it was dangerous, they could stay back.
He turned down the final tunnel, choking as dust filled the air. “Grace! Arabella!”
“Over here!” A masculine voice called out.
Oliver followed it quickly and found a man pulling at boulders. “Were you with Grace?”
“Yes. She went in after the girl.”
Oliver’s eyes went to the filled-up tunnel. The boarded-up section had collapsed under the weight of so many rocks. “They’re in there?” His throat went dry as fear and despair mingled.
“Yes, sir.”
A comforting hand dropped on his shoulder, and Lucas spoke. “Have you heard any sounds? Do you know if they’re alive?”
The miner shook his head. “I’ve called, but if they’re responding, I can’t hear them.” He shifted on his feet. “Sir, they weren’t far. I could hear them talking before it collapsed.”
Oliver’s hands flexed and he launched himself at the pile of rocks. If they were close—and alive—there was a chance.
He moved several large rocks before he realized no one had joined him. “Help me!”
Whether it was his desperate plea or the craziness he felt, they jumped into action. Lucas barked out orders as more and more men were called down.
Tools appeared, crews formed, and debris was quickly hauled away.
He worked until his hands bled, until he choked on the dust-tinged air, hovering at the brink of unconsciousness. Lucas pulled him away then. “Take a break.”
“I can’t!” He lunged back toward the collapse, but his partner held him in place. “If you pass out, you won’t be any help to either of them. And they’ll need you if…”
His friend trailed off, and Oliver knew what the man wasn’t saying. “They’ll need me if they’re still alive,” he said, finishing his partner’s sentence. “They’re alive.” There was no doubt in his mind.
He would feel it if they were gone. Just as he knew his own heart continued to beat, he knew Grace’s and Arabella’s did too. “I know you don’t believe me, but they are.”
Lucas didn’t say anything. Instead, he nodded in agreement, and the two of them went back to work.
Hours passed as men frantically worked to clear the mouth of the tunnel. But they still hadn’t found them. How far back had they been? It was impossible to tell.
“Over here!” The cry rang in the air. “They’re over here!”
Oliver ran to where they’d been found, breath clogging in his lungs as he neared the group encircling the two most precious people in his life.
“They’re alive!” another shouted.
He sucked in a sharp breath as he saw the state of them. Grace was curled around Arabella as if she’d tried to protect her. They were both unconscious, but he could clearly see both their chests moving as they breathed in and out.
They were unconscious—but still alive.
“Get stretchers,” Oliver barked out. “And someone tell Everett!”
When men with stretchers came to him, Oliver reached out for Arabella first, touching as gently as possible. He knew that jostling them could cause further damage if they were injured. But leaving them down here wasn’t an option.
If they were going to make it, they needed the best care he could give them—and that was in Everett and Emery’s clinic.
The men took off as soon as Arabella was secured, and then he turned his attention on Grace. His heart wedged in his throat. This woman meant everything to him. And for a brief moment, his mind traveled down a steep dark road into panic. How would he manage if he lost her?
“Everett will take good care of her,” Nathan said as he helped move her to the stretcher.
It was exactly what Oliver needed to snap him out of the pit he’d thrown his mind into. “I know.”
Two men grabbed the stretcher, and Oliver moved with them, holding Grace’s hand as they quickly made their way out of the tunnel.
As they broke the surface, Everett was checking over Arabella.
“How is she?” Oliver asked as he moved next to his niece. “Is she going to be all right?”
Everett was silent as he listened to her heart and inspected the lump on her head. Finally, he nodded. “She should recover just fine.”
Oliver sighed in relief and reached out to squeeze his niece’s hand. A large weight had been lifted. “And Grace?”
A frown formed on Everett’s face, and he moved his stethoscope around Grace’s chest.
A cold sweat broke out over Oliver’s skin. “What is it?”
His partner looked at him grimly. “Her lung has partially collapsed.” He quickly traced along Grace’s abdomen. “I don’t feel any broken ribs though.”
“Is it serious?”
“It can be.” He checked a few more things. “They were both struck in the head during the collapse.” He pointed to a lump on Grace’s head. “But they don’t look too serious. I suspect they both will wake soon. Grace’s lung though.” He let out a troubled sigh. “We’ll need to monitor it. It’s possible it will inflate on its own over the next few days.”
“Good.” Oliver nodded. “I know you and Emery are the best people to take care of her.” He glanced at his stone-still niece. “And Arabella.”
“We can watch them at the clinic.” He ordered several men to assist in loading Grace and Arabella into a wagon. “I’ll let you know when Arabella wakes.”
Oliver looked at his partner as if he’d lost his mind. “They aren’t going anywhere without me.”
“Of course.” His nod was professional and distant, a role he’d never seen Everett in. “We can have a bed made in Arabella’s room.”
“What about Grace?”
Everett gave his friend a serious look. “Until she tells us otherwise, I can’t update you on her condition.” Oliver staggered a step back. “You’re not family. I’m sorry, Oliver.”
“I love her!”
Everett nodded. “I know. I’m sorry. The best I can do is tell you when she wakes. If she wants to see you, I’ll send for you.”
Oliver moved forward aggressively. “You’re going to have to throw me out.”
Everett sighed but looked as if he expected no less. “We’ll figure some way around it.” He looked at the wagon, both patients were secured in the back. “Let’s go.”
Oliver raced to his horse, leaving the rest for his partners to resolve. No matter what happened, he wasn’t leaving their sides.
Why can’t I open my eyes?
Grace weaved in and out of consciousness. The few moments of wakefulness she remembered were filled with confusion.
She heard voices somewhere distant. They didn’t seem happy—was that Oliver?
She tried to push through the darkness, failing several times. She didn’t know how long the periods were betwee
n each attempt. Then finally, she pushed through the last web of fuzz.
It was dim in her room. Her vision blurred.
Where am I?
She closed her eyes, blinking a few times before opening them again. The world spun, but she forced herself to stay conscious. She refused to be pulled under again.
She tried to move, but a pain in her side had her sucking in a breath.
The cave in! Her memories came back in a rush. “Arabella!”
“Shh. Grace, you’re all right.” A hand fell on her shoulder, soothing her.
Grace looked next to her bed, her heart soaring when she saw Oliver—but the feeling quickly turned to an ache as she remembered their last conversation. “Where’s Arabella? Is she all right?”
“She’s well. She’s in the other room.” He gently squeezed her shoulder, and he seemed to gather his thoughts. “You protected her. Without you—” he cut off when his voice became hoarse, the thought of losing Arabella must have been too much.
“Where am I?”
“You’re at the clinic. Everett and Emery have been looking after you. What do you remember?”
She shifted through her memories of what had happened. “All of it. At least until the ceiling collapsed. I remember grabbing Arabella and wrapping my body around hers…then nothing.”
He nodded gravely. “You were struck on the head. Both you and Arabella were unconscious when we found you.” Tentatively, he reached for her hand. “Grace, thank you for what you did for Arabella. If you hadn’t protected her, she probably would have died.”
Grace swallowed hard and tears stung her eyes. “I don’t know how we’re both alive.” She sniffled and tried to put her emotions in place. She didn’t want to cry in front of him. “I’m just so relieved she’s all right.”
“I’m grateful you both are.”
His soft words hurt. It almost made her feel like he cared. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?” He seemed genuinely confused.
Even though it caused her pain, she shifted away from him. “Don’t act like you care, Oliver. It’s too confusing.” He reached for her again, and she held up her hand. “Don’t. I understand how you feel. Truly. And I can even, to a point, understand why you don’t want me to come with you as Arabella’s nanny. But that doesn’t make it any easier. It doesn’t mean I’m all right with it.”
Unable to stop the tears, Grace shook her head softly. Confusion, hurt, and fear mingled, finally breaking her. “You know what? I don’t understand. I love Arabella. She’s everything to me. And I loved you too. I would have given you both everything, but instead of accepting it—accepting me—you turned me away. Well, let me tell you something, Oliver.” She sniffled, feeling a surge of resolve enter her. “I’m not giving up just because you don’t want me because it’s too hard, or too confusing, or whatever other excuse you’ve come up with. I made a promise to Arabella that I would always be there for her, and I will. I will go East. I will be there for her. It doesn’t matter if I’m her nanny or not. And it doesn’t matter if I have to wait until she is an adult to see her. There’s nothing you can do to stop me.”
A slow smile curved Oliver’s lips, and he sat on her bed. “Good.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“I said, good. I’m glad you’re going East. I’m glad you’re not giving up.”
Confusion warred within her, frustrating her. “I don’t know what you’re saying. I don’t understand you at all.” She clenched her eyes tight.
“I’m saying”—he took her hand again—“that you should do all that. Grace, don’t you understand? You kept her alive. You saved her. Without you, Arabella would be dead. She’s as much yours as she is mine.”
Hope filled her chest. “So, I can see her anytime I want?”
“Yes. You can be as involved in her life as you’d like.”
“Truly?” Happiness, relief, and grief all warred within her.
“Yes.”
Being able to see Arabella was more than Grace had hoped for, but still, she wanted more. “Will you hire me as her nanny?” Grace held her breath.
But instead of answering, he looked away. “No.”
Once again, Grace’s heart was crushed. “No? You won’t hire me?” She floundered. The slingshot of emotions was too much to take. “Then everything you just said was a lie—”
His eyes connected with hers. “I won’t hire you as a nanny, Grace, because I was hoping you’d accept a different position.”
What did he want her to do? Be their housekeeper? Their cook? “And what position might that be?” Her body was rigid as she waited to hear what he would expect her to do in return for seeing Arabella.
“I was hoping you’d become her aunt.”
The air rushed from her lungs. “Her…her aunt?”
“Grace.” His eyes pleaded with hers. “I’m ashamed and appalled by the way I behaved at the celebration.”
“What do you mean?”
He squeezed her hand. “When I told you I didn’t need you, that I didn’t want you to come with us, it was a lie.”
Her face pinched. “Why would you lie about that?”
“Because I was afraid.” He looked at her seriously. “Which is no excuse. That day, I’d intended to ask you to come with us as her nanny. I thought we might court, spend more time together, and not rush into a commitment.”
She looked into her lap. She had no idea how to take all this. “I see.”
“No. You don’t.” He notched her chin up to look at him. “I love you, Grace.”
She stilled. “You do?”
He smiled and nodded. “I do. But because of how much I love you, when I saw you talking with another man, I panicked. I thought there was a chance that you didn’t care for me as I do you, that you could hurt me as I’ve seen happen to so many in the past. I was wrong,” he said firmly. “I know that’s not who you are. You have never once been false. I know I can trust you.”
“You can.” Her voice was soft.
“I know I don’t deserve a second chance—I don’t deserve you. But I love you so much I ache with it. No man will ever love you as fully and completely as I love you. I want you to be a mother to Arabella, but most of all, I want you to be my wife. I want to love and care for you for the rest of our lives. I want to give Arabella cousins to play with, cousins who will be her brothers and sisters.”
Emotion flooded her, and she gasped, trying to take it all in.
He threaded a hand through her hair at the back of her head and pulled her closer until their foreheads touched. “Say I’m not too late. Say I haven’t pushed you too far away, that I haven’t lost you. Say that you’ll give me a chance to prove to you how much I love you.” He brushed a kiss across her forehead and leaned back. “I don’t expect an answer now. You can have all the time you want. And if you decide you don’t want me”—he swallowed hard—“you may be Arabella’s nanny. Or you may be her friend and visit as often as you like—whatever it is that you want will be yours.”
He waited for her response as a man might wait for a death sentence.
Awe filled her. He loved her. After everything that had happened, he wanted her, wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. “You truly love me?”
“With all my heart,” he rushed to say.
She looked away, worried she would explode with joy.
“If you don’t want me—”
She whipped back to him. “I love you too.”
His pained expression left his face. “You do?”
“Yes.” A soft laugh escaped her as happiness swept away all the pain from earlier.
He wrapped his arms around her softly. “Will you come home with us?”
“I will.”
“Will you marry me?”
She leaned forward and brushed her lips against his. “Yes.”
His lips found hers again, and all the emotion, all the angst, all the worries and doubts and fears and love went into the shared embrace.
>
Tears leaked from her eyes, and she held on to him, using her lips to show him what was in her heart.
“I love you,” he whispered between kisses.
“I love you too.” She giggled when he kissed her again.
“I’m going to make you so happy,” he said, leaning away from her, fully taking her in.
“You’ve already done that.”
He grinned. “Then I’ll work to make you happier each and every day. I’ll—”
The door to the room swung open, and Everett glared at Oliver. “I told you that you weren’t allowed in here.” His eyes lit on Grace, and he moved into the room. “You’re awake!”
Everett moved to her side, immediately checking her vitals, focusing on the lung which had since reinflated. “Why didn’t you get me?” Everett asked Oliver. “I should have checked her immediately.”
Oliver tried to look penitent, but he couldn’t accomplish it. “I’m sorry. I was too busy asking her to become my wife to even think of it.”
Everett’s hand paused, and then he looked between the two of them. “And have you accepted him?” he asked Grace.
She couldn’t stop the beam of happiness shining from her. She reached for Oliver’s hand. “I have.”
“I see.” A grin spread across Everett’s face. “Well, now that I’ve seen that Grace is stable, I’ll leave you two to finish your conversation. I’ll give you a full checkup when you’re ready,” he said to Grace before walking toward the door. “I’m happy for you both.”
He left with a grin on his face.
Once the door was shut, Grace looked at Oliver curiously. “You snuck in here?”
A sheepish expression crossed his face. “I didn’t care what the rules were, I wasn’t going to leave your side until I knew you were all right. Are you angry?”
“No.” She pulled him close for another kiss, a slow smile forming on her lips. “I’m very, very happy.”
Epilogue
Grace shoveled the last bite of lemon cake from her plate into her mouth, the emerald on her left-hand twinkling in the setting sunlight. “Just one more piece,” she said as she sliced the cake. “Of lemon, anyway.” She winked at Arabella before she added a thick slice of chocolate cake to both of their plates.
Western Fate Page 11
