Heart of mine, p.22
Heart of Mine, page 22
Her eyes flashed indignantly. “Out to pasture! A horse like that needs to be in the ring, or harnessed before a beautiful coach for all to enjoy. I have his double, and I recently lost the gelding I paired him with. I must have him, Mr. North. I don’t believe you understand how determined I am. I believed he was in fact sired by our stallion. Father and son could be reunited.” She glanced over her shoulder at her men.
The two promptly stepped off the saloon porch and started her way.
Beranger smiled, although he’d all but run out of patience with this spoiled woman. Who did she think she was, demanding he sell Charger just because she desired the horse? The men stopped on either side of her and narrowed their gazes at him—as if that would frighten Beranger. They were armed and he wasn’t, but he wholly doubted they’d be stupid enough to shoot him down in cold blood in the middle of the day for all to see.
“Mrs. Salazar?” one said, his scraggly black mustache hanging down past the corners of his mouth.
“Mr. North refuses to sell me the black gelding,” she said with a pout that belonged on someone much younger. “I can’t make him understand how much I love the horse, want the horse.”
The other henchman snickered. “Maybe we can make him understand, no?”
“No,” Beranger stated, unafraid of the likes of them. He’d faced much tougher rivals when he’d been on the ship. And in the gold fields of California. These two were dime-a-dozen thugs. “Thank you for stopping by, Mrs. Salazar. I bid you good day.” He turned to go.
“Mr. North!” Reaching into the dark-turquoise bag that had been fastened around her wrist a moment ago, she pulled out a handful of coins—enough to buy ten good horses.
This woman was tenacious. He would give her that. “You have my answer, Mrs. Salazar. I can’t be bought. Not like some men.” He looked from one of her henchmen to the other. He’d have to watch his back from here on out. He hadn’t meant to make enemies the moment he got to town, but it seemed like that was what he’d done. Obviously, she didn’t know how wealthy he was or else she’d have tried a different tactic. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be on my way. You can stay if you like.”
One of the guards stepped into his path.
Rhett and Cash stood by the wagon, watching.
“Horeto, let the man go!” Mrs. Salazar commanded, her chin still high. A small smile played on her lips. “We will speak with him later.”
Beranger chuckled at her threat. He stepped around Horeto and headed for the wagon to thank Rhett and Cash for having his back. He thrust out his hand to Rhett and then to Cash; he already liked both very much. He may have made enemies, but he’d also made friends. Good friends. He liked being a part of Eden. The camaraderie felt worthy. Like he was a part of something larger than just a growing town. Perhaps his destiny had found him when he hadn’t even been looking.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
The crowd in Lavinia’s café had begun to thin, and Mavis couldn’t be happier. The birthday party had been a lot of fun, but she was anxious to get to the letter she knew Henry had in his front coat pocket for her. He’d all but said that it was from her father, and with Belle, Lavinia, and Katie all having received one, surely he would have explained if her father had been too weak to complete a letter for her before he’d passed away as well. So much had been revealed about their past lives through her sisters’ letters. She hoped to learn more from hers. Just getting a personal message from the father she vaguely remembered was an exciting thought. Clint, her ever-loyal friend, was at her side. He seemed to be able to read her thoughts.
“Would you like me to ask your guests to leave? I can say you’re tired.” He pushed a strand of hair from her face as he tried to read her eyes. “Because I think you are—tired, that is. These last few days, with Katie’s disappointment and the Mr. Strong mystery, have taken their toll. You can’t solve this situation on your own, Mavis. I wish you’d realize that.”
“But I’m the mayor now.”
“So what? That doesn’t mean everything falls to you.”
She ignored the part about Mr. Strong and the town. She was weary of speaking or even thinking about the situation. The man would present himself in good time, but would that be before or after the rest of the townsfolk had lost their livelihoods? The problem was perplexing.
“No. Don’t ask them to leave. Let them wander off on their own when the night is over. They’re enjoying catching up with Blake and Belle. Look at them, Clint. They seem so happy. They really seem well suited for each other, and are always touching in some way. I’m happy to just sit here and watch.” She laughed, truly delighted at the sight of a deliriously besotted Belle and Blake.
What would love like that be like?
“As long as I don’t have to make conversation myself, I’m content.” The small portion of cake still left on her plate drew her attention. “Ada’s chocolate-and-walnut cake was delicious. She outdid herself.”
Clint patted his flat stomach. “You’re right about that. I’d like to get the recipe.”
She laughed and gave him a fond look. “As if you would bake it?”
He shrugged and smiled.
At the table beside them, Belle and Blake were telling Emma and Beranger about their return trip, and hearing in exchange the tale of the encounter with the jumping cacti and how Beranger had helped the poor horses escape their torment with a sword that had belonged to a lunatic who could have killed all the travelers in their sleep. Katie sat close to Rhett, Lavinia, Henry and Elizabeth, and Jeremy Gannon. She was listening and smiling. Elizabeth looked fondly at Henry every few minutes, nodding along with the story and looking pretty indeed for her thirty-six years. She’d arrived in Eden with her young son, Johnny, exactly when Mavis and her sisters had been called to town for the reading of their father’s will.
Katie’s counterfeit smile almost broke Mavis’s heart. Her little sister wasn’t her normal self yet. A lot more time would need to pass before the heartbreak was history.
Today the sisters had come up with a name for their mine. Beranger had laughed when Emma had said they were all counting on him to hit it big at “the Lucky Sister.”
Earlier the café had been full—more friends, some business owners, and members of the town council. Maverick had left, as well as Mr. Buns, and Mr. Little, the old curmudgeon that ran Belle’s tannery. Mr. Wells, the investor who was building the new hotel, along with his sons Warren and Brody, had stopped by. The ranch hands had attended, but left a little while ago to go drinking at Poor Fred’s as well as play a few hands of poker. Cash had wanted to go along with the men, but Clint had told him no.
Nicole, Clint’s younger half sister, was working with Karen Forester, serving and cleaning up. For the past two hours, the birthday group had had the café almost all to themselves.
Clint leaned in. “I have something for you, Mavis. Would you like it now . . . or later?”
Startled, she sat back and set her teacup down. Ever since the unscrupulous lumberjacks had knocked Clint out last March, during the terrifying exchange by the Dolores River, something sweet had taken root between them. But she wasn’t sure of exactly how he felt. Each time she expected Clint to make a romantic move, to grow their friendship into something else, something more meaningful between them, he stopped just short. Then he’d make a joke and she’d have to laugh along, pretending that a romance between them was tremendously impossible, hysterically funny, and any discussion of one was meaningless chatter.
Is that what he really thinks?
“Well?” he prompted her.
He really seemed to be eager to give her . . . whatever it was. Was his gift something important this time? An exciting warmth spread through her body. Perhaps he was going to make his move tonight? Perhaps he’d been waiting for her birthday, so she’d know how special he thought her.
“It’s not like you to be speechless, Mavis.” He winked.
She liked when he teased her. It made her feel like she was the center of his world. That seemed to be happening more and more.
Am I imagining the look in his eyes?
“I think later, when we can be alone,” she whispered softly. “If that’s all right with you.”
He shrugged, and a cocky half smile lifted his lips. “It’s up to you. Just thought I’d bring the subject to your attention.”
“Why? To torture me?”
“Can I torture you, Mavis?”
The playful light in his eyes vanished.
Is he finally being serious?
She never knew, and that was half the problem. If only he realized how much he did torture her in her dreams. Nary a night went by that she didn’t hear his voice and laughter, see his eyes, and gaze at his lips. It happened so frequently she’d wondered if he’d cast a love spell over her.
Karen went to the door and turned the sign. The clock chimed nine. The girls still needed to clean up. If her guests didn’t clear out soon, Karen and Nicole would be there all night.
“Shall we step outside for some fresh air?” she said. “Maybe our doing so will encourage the others that way as well. Karen and Nicole will thank us later.”
He stood and took Mavis’s hand, helping her to her feet. Without a word to anyone else, they slipped outside the hotel and sat down on the wooden bench that was used by guests and travelers as they waited for the stage. The cool air of the quiet night wrapped itself around Mavis’s soul. At times like this, she loved Eden best.
A few lamps burned along the dark street, pushing back the night. A lantern burned in Clint’s office across the way. Voices sounded from the saloon, most likely the ranch hands having a good time.
“Let’s go look at the rock cliff,” she suggested.
“A little time alone sounds nice.”
Finally.
“I like the way the granite sparkles in the moonlight.”
They stood, and he offered her his elbow. They descended the steps and walked the few feet to the dramatic rock wall that jutted out beside Main Street to rise several hundred feet in the air. Simply beautiful, the enormous formation was a landmark in the town. The moon was in the perfect position to make the cliff face sparkle and shine like the stars.
“It looks like magic,” she whispered, hoping Clint would finally kiss her the way she’d been dreaming.
Is the sight of the sparkling granite the gift he has for me?
She hoped she wasn’t making something out of nothing, as she often did. She knew she should be content with his friendship, but seeing how happy Belle was, and Lavinia now too, made her yearn for more. She’d been married, and Darvid had made her very happy—and yet, the feelings Clint evoked in her were so different, deeper, exciting. Not imagining them together wasn’t possible. He’d captured her dreams months ago. She was growing tired of waiting for him to figure things out.
She gazed at the sight before her, keenly aware of his proximity and the way he held her arm close to his warm side. A gentle puff of air stirred her hair, and she thought she detected a barely perceptible clean, spicy scent. It tickled her nose.
Has Clint purchased some eau de cologne?
When she felt his finger gently take her chin and turn it toward him she almost swooned, feeling more like a young maiden than a twenty-four-year-old widow.
Heaven’s sakes, Mavis, get ahold of yourself.
With anticipation swirling within, she closed her eyes and leaned forward.
His chuckle brought her back to reality.
She opened her eyes.
“I don’t think we’re on the same page here,” he said softly. He reached inside his pants pocket. He held out a small gift wrapped in pink-and-white paper and tied with a thin white ribbon. “Happy birthday, Mavis Brinkman Applebee.”
What does that mean? He’s passed up the chance to kiss me and used my married name. Perhaps he’s trying to gently give me a hint.
She had been the one to suggest their walk, and that was after speaking about how happy and contented Belle and Blake looked being married. He and Blake were best buddies, but Mavis was sure he saw Blake much less since he’d married.
Is Clint a lost cause? Is he a confirmed widower for life?
“Well, aren’t you going to open it?” he asked, a tone of disappointment in his words.
With trembling fingers, she took the small rectangular package. She hoped he couldn’t see her distress in the moonlight. Forcing a wide smile, she held his offering up to her ear and gave a gentle shake. “No noise.”
“Were you expecting a bell?”
She shook her head. “It’s light.”
His crooked smile was back. “The box is not empty, Mavis, although I know that’s what you would expect from me.” He gave her hands a nudge. “Go on. What’s taking you so long? I’d’ve had that open lickety-split.”
He was right. He would have. She was being silly. The hotel door opened, and she could hear others gathering on the front porch. They’d run out of time for a private kiss! Swiftly, she drew off the bow and unwrapped the tiny box.
A tiny shepherd’s staff made out of silver glinted at her. She took the gift out and turned it over to see that it was a pin. She didn’t understand the significance of the object.
He cocked his head. “You’re the shepherdess of your family, Mavis. Of the Brinkman sisters. I’ve always admired that about you. And now that you’re the new mayor, shepherdess over the town as well. It was made especially for you by a craftsman in Dove Creek.”
She just stared.
“Don’t you like it?”
“Like it?” she responded, fondling the gift no larger than a dollar coin. “I love it, Clint. Thank you so much for thinking of me. For remembering my birthday.” She gazed up into his beloved face, quelling her desire to go up on tiptoe and press her lips to his.
Skepticism crossed his face. “As if I’d forget.”
Fumbling to pin the jewelry to the front of her bodice, she cried out when she stuck herself with the sharp point.
Clint chuckled and gently withdrew the staff from her fingers. “Allow a clumsy ol’ cowboy to do that for you.” Finished, he nudged the pin back and forth until his gift was positioned to his liking. He smiled into her eyes. His gaze dropped to her lips. He moved closer.
“Mavis?” Henry appeared beside them. “Your party’s breaking up.” He withdrew a snowy white envelope from his pocket, in much better shape than the one Katie had shared earlier that morning. “From your father. Happy birthday.”
Henry leaned forward and kissed her cheek just as Elizabeth joined their group. She looped her arm through Henry’s. The couple was enjoying a long courtship, she thought, but at least they seemed to be making progress. Her sisters, and everyone else, were watching from the porch. Blake had driven her and her sisters into town in the buggy. Until Rhett either sold Shawn’s Café or married Lavinia, whichever happened first, he would be sleeping in the upstairs apartment of the restaurant he’d renovated when he’d purchased the building back in March.
Beranger North stood apart, looking much the aristocrat as he watched Emma and Nicole in a discussion. The younger girl had just stepped outside to hand Emma the reticule she’d left behind in the restaurant.
Mavis liked Beranger immensely and easily recognized the romance budding between him and Emma, even as much as her obstinate sister liked to pretend it wasn’t happening. It would only be a matter of time before her steely will crumbled and she admitted she was in love.
Henry and Elizabeth bid her and Clint goodnight and walked off toward the small rental house Elizabeth had moved into last month on Wild Turkey Road, the same road that led to the new hotel site. So much was changing in Eden, and yet the one thing that dwelled in the deepest regions of her heart was not. She and Clint were still just good friends.
Blake assisted Belle and Katie into the buggy and then looked her way. Rhett did the same for Lavinia.
“I guess we’re going,” she said softly, leaving the sentence open-ended to see what he would say.
Clint took her hands in his warm, rough ones. “Good night, Mavis. I hope that letter is everything you wish for.” He leaned in and brushed her cheek with his own.
Feeling like the ugly stepchild instead of the birthday girl, she nodded. “I’m sure Father’s letter will be everything and more . . .”
She had to get away before he saw her misery. Turning on her heel, she hurried to the waiting buggy and the family she was the shepherdess over. She blinked away tears as Blake helped her inside and she got comfortable next to Belle. Lavinia, Emma, and Katie were crowded in the back seat. Someone behind put a hand on her shoulder; she turned to find Lavinia smiling into her face.
“Did you enjoy your party? What were you and Clint talking about as you stood so closely in the street? My curious mind would like to know.”
“Thank you, yes. A beautiful party. Thank you all. Clint and I were just discussing Mr. Strong and what might be going on with Eden. Something has to be done soon before too many others find themselves in real debt. I don’t—”
Belle nudged her shoulder as Blake clucked to the horse and the buggy started off with a bounce. “You need to stop talking business, Mavis. You’re much too serious. A man wants to hear you giggle once in a while and see you bat your eyelashes. Not talk numbers, accounts, and what to plant next fall. They want to appear as the leader with all the ideas, and be praised for their manly ways. I think you’re scaring Clint off.”
Having no idea how much her words hurt, Belle, as if to make her point, pushed playfully into Blake’s side, extracting a sound of agreement from him.
A knife sliced through Mavis’s heart as she stared off into the darkness.
I’m a widow who is growing older by the day. Eden is no longer devoid of women like it used to be—and more are arriving every month. Clint could have his pick. Then again, maybe someone else has already caught his eye—someone young, fresh, who wears frilly clothes and giggles at every word he says. I better face the facts.
