by Jenna Brandt
Then there was Harrison. What had started out as a business arrangement had developed into something deeper. She cared about him, but she wasn’t sure if it would ever manifest into more on his part. Her need for his help with the farm was still as real as ever. What was she going to do?
The knock on the door drew Willa’s attention to the present. She walked over to the door and opened it to find Penelope standing on the other side. Penelope was wearing a simple yellow day dress that complimented her hair and eyes, and she was carrying a small, tapestry bag in her hands.
“Good afternoon, Penelope, come on in,” Willa greeted her friend with a smile. “I’m glad we’re finally getting together.”
“It’s been long overdue,” Penelope agreed. “Thank you for inviting me.”
They made their way into the dining room where Willa already had everything set up for their lunch. She had made a fresh garden salad with a vinaigrette dressing, finger sandwiches, two types of macaroons, and sweet tea. In the table’s center, was a vase full of spring flowers. The food was set around it with two place settings for them.
“I can’t believe you went to all this trouble,” Penelope beamed, looking at the food and decorations. “It’s lovely.”
“It was no trouble at all. My mama loved having friends over, and I grew up watching what she did for them. She inspired me to do the same.”
The light in Penelope’s eyes dimmed as she said, “Your mother was a wonderful person. She’s missed greatly.”
“Thank you.”
“How are you doing with her passing?” Penelope inquired.
“Sometimes it feels like she was just here, and then other times, it feels like she’s been gone forever.”
“I can only imagine. I’m not overly close to my mother like you were, but I would still miss her if she wasn’t here.”
Willa nodded, then trying to move on to a happier subject, she gestured to the dining room set. “Why don’t we take a seat and enjoy lunch.”
The women took seats across from each other. Willa poured them each a glass of sweet tea, then plated an assortment of goodies for her friend to enjoy.
“I have to say, the dress you’re wearing is gorgeous,” Penelope stated, reaching over and fingering the lace that edged the soft pink fabric at the neckline and cap sleeves. “Did you make it?”
“I did. It was the first one I made completely by myself. It’s why I didn’t sell it.”
“Once I save up some extra money, I need to have you make one. Your eye for detail is amazing.”
“Thank you,” Willa said with a smile. “How is the rebuilding of the post office coming along? Have they started yet?” Willa asked with curiosity, knowing that Penelope’s mother would talk about it non-stop.
“It’s going well. The first set of bricks arrived earlier this week. My mother has tons of ideas as to how the building should be laid out.”
Willa let out a laugh. “I bet she does. I’m sure that anyone who argues with her is getting an earful.”
“I would try to rein her in more, but I’ve been so busy helping Mrs. McGregor with Collin.”
“It’s not your job to monitor your mother,” Willa pointed out.
“You would think so, but isn’t that the nature of what happens when you have a parent that can’t seem to do it themselves?”
Willa nodded, knowing Penelope was talking as much about Willa’s papa as she was about her own mother. Both of them were in the position of having to take care of their parents because their spouses died. The only difference was how their parents handled their loss. Penelope’s mother was controlling and a busybody while Willa’s papa completely shut down. Neither scenario was easy to deal with.
“What about you? How are you doing with the fact everyone knows about your relationship with Mr. Holt?”
Willa let out a sigh, then said, “I’m guessing you’re saying that because of what happened at the town social the other night. It was a rather public display, so I’m not surprised the word got around about the incident.”
Penelope’s eyebrows furrowed together. “No, not exactly. What I’m talking about is this,” she said, pulling out a folded newspaper from her bag, and holding it out to Willa.
“What’s this?” Willa inquired, taking the paper and opening it.
“It’s a feature article on Harrison Holt. My mother knew he was being interviewed for his business dealings here in Silverpines, but the article took a rather unexpected turn when he was questioned about you.”
The headline of the front page of the newspaper read:
Brickyard Tycoon in Silverpines:
Not Only for Business, but for a Bride
Willa took in a deep breath and held it as she skimmed through the article. Penelope was correct that the first half was about Harrison and his business dealings, but the second half was about their relationship, including a detailed account of what happened at the town social.
There was even a quote from Harrison, saying, “Yes, I am courting Miss Brown. We’ve been spending the past couple of weeks getting to know each other.”
She wasn’t sure why the details of the article bothered her. It wasn’t like they were hiding their relationship, but she wondered why he hadn’t talked with her about it first. It would have been easier to digest if she had some warning ahead of time.
“Is it true then? Are you being courted by Harrison Holt?” Penelope inquired.
“It’s true. We’ve spent the last three weeks spending time together, though I’m not happy he went public with the information without talking with me about it first.”
“Is a proposal on the horizon?” Penelope probed. “I mean, I heard about your beau from Rockwood Springs showing up. Does that change things for you?”
Willa raised an eyebrow, not sure how to answer the question. With everything going on between her and both men, she wasn’t even sure if she could answer the question.
“To be honest, I’m not really sure. I’ve been debating the matter for days now.”
“We can pray about it, if you think it would help,” Penelope offered.
“I’d like that,” Willa said with a smile. “I could use God’s direction with all of this.”
The friends spent the next ten minutes praying about Willa’s situation, then another half hour talking and eating the rest of their lunch. Once they were finished, Willa walked the other woman to the door.
“Thank you for coming over, Penelope. I appreciate your friendship tremendously.”
“You’re completely welcome. It’s nice taking a little time from my responsibilities.”
Willa watched as her friend sauntered down the walkway, through the gate, and slowly drifted out of sight.
After spending time in prayer, it always helped her to journal her thoughts. She made her way into the office—the one place where Arthur still didn’t snoop—opened the desk drawer, and pulled her journal out.
She put the date, then began to put her thoughts down on the paper. The words flowed so quickly, she barely registered she was writing. Finally, after several minutes, she placed the pen down as a wave of exhaustion hit her. She had plans to go to dinner with Harrison, but it seemed daunting at the moment. If she was going to muster the energy to talk with him about the article, she needed to rest first.
Two hours later, Willa woke up feeling no better than when she laid down for her nap. What was she going to do? The question kept rolling around in her head, but no matter how many times she asked it, she never seemed to find the answer.
Willa climbed out of her bed and headed over to her dresser. She pulled out her plum dress and slipped it on before moving to her vanity. She pinned her hair into a French twist before pinching her cheeks to add some color. Though she was trying to make herself ready for the evening, her heart just wasn’t in it.
“Is everything all right?” she heard her grandma ask as she shuffled into the room. “You’re just sitting there with a worried look on your face.”
“I’m just confused, Grandma. I’m not sure what to do about Harrison or Georgie. I’ve been spending a lot of time with Harrison, but I just found out he publically shared details about our relationship without talking with me first. Then there’s the added complication of Georgie showing up a couple of days ago.”
“How do you feel about the young man?” her grandma inquired.
“Which one?” Willa asked back. “I care for them both, which is the problem.”
“Let’s start with Georgie first then,” her grandma suggested.
“I think I could have had something special with Georgie if I hadn’t left Rockwood Springs, but the timing was never right for us.”
“What about Harrison? How do you feel about him?” her grandma probed.
“I have had time with him. We’ve pushed our courtship quickly because of the time factor regarding the farm, but for me, that’s not the only reason. I want to spend time with him. I enjoy his company. He’s quick-witted, easy to talk to, and a good listener. At first, I thought it was simply the attraction, as he’s the most handsome man I’ve ever seen, but it turned into much more than that.”
“From what you just told me, it sounds as if you’ve already decided. The way you described what you have with Harrison far outweighs what you might have had or could have in the future with Georgie.”
“But there’s still the issue of what Harrison did. I don’t want to be with a man that would go behind my back and talk about our relationship with anyone, let alone to a newspaper man. What does that say about him that he thinks it’s acceptable to do that?”
“Do you think perhaps the problem isn’t what you think it is?” her grandma asked.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I think you’re using what he did to deflect from the real issue. You’re afraid to let yourself love him because you’re afraid he won’t feel the same.”
Willa inhaled sharply, shocked at how astutely her grandma could read her.
“And remember, dear, he’s only a man. They make mistakes all the time. It’s our job as the women in their lives, to help them learn not to make the same one twice.”
Willa stood up and moved over to her grandma’s side. She leaned down and hugged the elderly woman. “Thank you, Grandma. I know what I need to do now.”
Her grandma let out a chuckle, patting her on the back. “Go on now, dear. Go spend some time with the man you love.”
As Willa headed down the hall, she decided the best course of action was to calmly discuss what he did and explain how it made her feel. Hopefully, he would understand and assure Willa he wouldn’t do anything like that again.
The knock at the door made Willa jump, even though she knew it was only Harrison. She rushed to the door pulled it open and gestured for Harrison to enter. “Come in.”
“Did I confuse what our plans were tonight? Are we having dinner here?” Harrison asked.
“No, I just need to speak with you first.”
“Oh-no, I’m not sure I like the sound of that.”
“Let’s head into the office. It’s more private in there,” Willa suggested, knowing she had left the newspaper in there after lunch.
Harrison followed her down the hall and into the first room on the right. She gestured for him to sit down in the guest chair as she went around to the one behind the desk.
“What’s this all about?” Harrison inquired, taking his seat as he crossed his leg over the other.
“Can you explain this,” she said, pushing the newspaper across the desk towards him.
He uncrossed his legs, then leaned forward to look at it. “Oh, yes, I wondered if you had seen it. What do you think?”
“What do I think? I think you discussed the private nature of our relationship with the one person who had the power to tell the whole town.”
“You seem upset. I’m not sure why,” Harrison said, running his hand through his hair. “I left out the details of our arrangement.”
“It’s still embarrassing, especially when it’s brought to my attention by a friend. I had no idea this would be in the paper. It felt awful to be ambushed with it,” Willa explained.
Harrison looked chagrined, as he said, “I’m sorry, Willa. Mrs. Wallace interrupted our interview and starting going on about our relationship. Mr. Jensen asked me about it afterward, and I told him just enough to get him to stop asking questions. I didn’t know it would upset you so much.”
“I’m not saying I’m upset that people know, I just would have liked to be included in how we told people.”
“I understand. I should have been more thoughtful. I haven’t had to consider anyone else’s feelings in a long time. I’ll do better in the future.”
Willa’s anger softened at his heartfelt apology. She wasn’t the type to stay mad. “I accept your apology and appreciate you listening to me.”
“It seems we got our first disagreement out of the way,” Harrison stated. “I’m glad we did so without a single item being broken or nasty word said.”
“I can’t imagine doing either of those things.” Glancing towards the door, Willa remembered she forgot her purse upstairs. “Will you give me a moment? I need to go fetch something.”
Harrison nodded. “I’ll wait for you here.”
As Harrison waited for Willa’s return, he decided the best way to show Willa he was truly sorry was to write a letter to the newspaper, asking them to print a retraction.
Harrison glanced around, looking for a piece of paper and pen. The ink well and pen were on the desk, but there was no paper to be found. Perhaps, there was some in one of the desk drawers.
He stood up and moved around the desk, then sat down in the chair. He opened and closed the drawers, shuffling around the papers when his eyes caught several pieces of paper with the words man of means on it.
Young woman of nineteen years, with dark brown hair and eyes, petite stature, and fair skin, in search of a husband with a substantial income.
The last part was crossed out and the words in need of a husband with means was added instead.
Must be Godly, fair, and of sound mind. All others need not apply.
Regards,
Willa Brown
What on earth was this? Harrison couldn’t believe his eyes, but it looked as if at some point Willa had been considering placing an advertisement for a husband—and not just any husband, a husband with money. Did that mean that when he came to offer to buy a portion of her land, she decided he was an even better option of getting the money she needed?
Underneath the papers, there was a small black book that appeared to be a journal. He picked it up, and a letter fell out. It was addressed to My Dearest Willa.
Part of Harrison knew it was wrong to read it, but he had to know what was inside it. His stomach dropped to the floor as he read the romantic words written on the page.
He had wondered why Mr. Caldwell had traveled all the way from Texas for Willa, and now he knew. He was in love with her, and the mere fact she kept the other man’s love letter made Harrison wonder if it was mutual.
As he held the journal in his hands, he realized the answers he was seeking were most likely inside. He knew he shouldn’t do it, but after finding the advertisement and the letter, he had to know what Willa was thinking. He flipped to the last page and read the final two entries.
The first entry read:
Why did Georgie have to show up like this? He’ll ruin everything. I just need to convince Harrison we should be together. If I can do that, I can set everything right.
The second and final entry read:
I’m still as confused as ever. I really want to make the right decision, but I don’t know what to do. The more I think about it, the more confused I get. I don’t want to give up on love just because I need money to save my family.
Her entries confirmed it. Harrison was nothing more than a way to save her f
amily’s farm. He had been stupid enough to think she truly cared, that this was more than a business arrangement for her, but with everything he found, it was clear that was never the case.
Willa’s heart belonged to George Caldwell, which left no room for him. Was her plan to marry Harrison, take his money, and then return to her admirer? She didn’t seem the type, but maybe she was better at deceiving men than Harrison realized.
“What are you doing?” he heard Willa accuse as she walked into the room. “How dare you go through my personal things?”
“Why? Afraid I would find all of this?” he said, gesturing in anger to the advertisement, the love letter, and journal.
Willa crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. “I don’t have to explain anything to you.”
“You don’t? I thought our agreement to get married meant I had a right to know if you were secretly carrying on with your past lover.”
“What are you talking about?” Willa asked with an offended tone.
“I’m talking about George Caldwell, and whatever is going on between the two of you.”
“George Caldwell is not my lover. Yes, he gave me that letter, and his arrival in town confused me, but I have never been more than friends with him.”
“I saw the way he looked at you during the town social. You don’t look at a friend that way,” Harrison countered.
“I can’t control how anyone else feels, but I can tell you how I feel, and we never had a chance for there to be anything more than friendship.”
“Aha, but that doesn’t mean you didn’t want it to,” Harrison declared. “Just that it didn’t happen… yet. But I’m betting the only reason it hasn’t happened is because you need a…” he grabbed the advertisement and read it as he shook it at her, “man of means to help save your family’s farm. Otherwise, why would you advertise for one?”