by Kit Morgan
“Not too well. She’s been kinda standoffish the last few times I went over there to see Abbey. But Mr. Davis invited me to Sunday supper this week!”
“That ought to drive Mrs. Davis plumb loco!” Spencer laughed.
“She kept asking about you the other day when I done went to see Abbey.”
Spencer cringed. That could only mean one thing. She must still have her eye on him for Charlotte. Considering Charlotte’s behavior the day Miss Barstow came to town, she was probably counting on her mother to see it done. If she couldn’t have Clayton, she’d settle for him just as sure as the sun sets. After all, it wasn’t the Riley men so much as the Riley land Mrs. Davis wanted to welcome into her family. They had one of the larger farms in the area, large enough to have to lease part of it out to be worked by Mr. Johnson, the neighbor. But old man Johnson was slowing down so would stop working the extra orchards come spring. It was one of the other reasons Clayton went back to farming and Spencer was now Sheriff. They decided if it got too much for Clayton and a couple of hands to handle, then Spencer would also leave the Sheriff’s office and return to the life of an apple farmer.
“What did she ask? Spencer finally said as he hung up his hat and coat.
“Well, she didn’t ask so much about you as she did about your wedding.”
“She knows we haven’t had a wedding yet, doesn’t she?”
“Oh trust me, she knows! She was making all kinds of comments to Charlotte while me and Abbey was sittin’ in the parlor! They were in the dining room but we could hear them all the same.”
Spencer rolled his eyes. “I can only imagine what they were saying, but tell me anyway.”
“Well, what it amounted to was if’n you wasn’t hitched yet, that it must mean you don’t care for your mail order bride. That there wasn’t any good reason why you didn’t get married New Year’s day when she got off the stage.”
Spencer turned to him. “My mother wanted it that way, but I wanted to give Miss Barstow and I a couple of weeks to get acquainted first. I saw how it helped Clayton and Summer, not to mention how important it is to be able to trust the other person and how to start to grow that trust. Remember that while you’re courting Abbey.”
Billy nodded. “Yeah, that’s important to womenfolk, the whole trust thing.”
“Men too. Trust is what binds two people together. You gotta have it. I want to start building some of that with Miss Barstow before we marry.”
“What about them folks that marry the same day the bride gets off the stage?”
“That might work for some people, but I’d rather have a couple of weeks to court, even if we are contracted to marry.”
Billy sagely nodded in agreement.
“How’s our new deputy?” Spencer asked to change the subject. He was having a hard enough time trying to woo his future bride and didn’t want to talk about it anymore.
“He’s fittin’ right in. He went along with Doc Brown to the Miller’s place. I didn’t think you’d mind so I let him go. Doc can’t get enough of the stories that Tom has to tell about the doc down in Clear Creek. The way he tells it, this Doc Drake is some kind of miracle worker.”
Spencer smiled and sat on the desk. “Mr. Turner does love his home town. I wonder how long he’ll stay in Nowhere? I should wire Uncle Harlan and ask how long we can keep him.”
“Better question would be to ask Tom Turner if’n he wants to stay on permanent.”
“You’re right. In fact, I’ll do both.” In fact, he should put his hat and coat back on and go wire Uncle Harlan right now, then he could just happen to go by the mercantile again. Didn’t Miss Barstow want to wire that mail order bride agency she came from?
Unfortunately, Spencer never got the chance.
* * *
Abbey came through the door to the Sheriff’s office, saw Billy, and went straight for him. “Hello Billy,” she said shyly.
Billy stood, his chest out, and sauntered out from behind the desk. He brushed his reddish hair out of his eyes and smiled. “Howdy Miss Abbey. What brings you here?”
“Daddy wanted me to tell you to bring a healthy appetite come Sunday. I’m making a pot roast and apple pie.”
Charlotte stood behind her, her face sour, and rolled her eyes.
“Why, pot roast is my favorite! I can’t wait.”
Abbey gazed at him with a look that clearly said, I’m yours forever! Spencer began to wonder if he’d ever see that same look on Miss Barstow’s face when he felt Charlotte tap him on the shoulder. He turned and looked down at her. She had a forlorn look he’d never seen before and his face changed to one of concern. “You okay, Charlotte?”
“Oh, I’m fine. I’m just busy preparing myself for the inevitable.”
“Inevitable? Inevitable what?”
Her mouth pressed into a firm line. “Spinsterhood.”
Spencer visibly relaxed. Was that all? Spinsterhood and Charlotte Davis would go together about as well as a fat hen and a coyote. Only in this case, the coyote better watch out! She’d land herself a man no matter what and everyone in town knew it.
“I don’t think you have to worry none about that,” Spencer told her in a consoling tone. A pill Charlotte may be, but he could see a flicker of worry in her eyes that her life as a spinster may have some truth to it.
“Oh, I can see it coming. Everyone in this town will wind up with someone, everyone but me that is. Too bad they don’t have mail order grooms. I might as well order me one.”
“There’s no such thing as far as I know,” said Spencer. “But someone will come along, Charlotte. You’ll see.”
“Will I? Your brother is taken, and you’ll end up married to that girl. Where does that leave me?” she asked and gave him her best pout.
Spencer fought the urge to laugh. She was definitely pulling the sympathy card, and in a way, he did feel sorry for her. She had a reputation for being a haughty, sometimes nasty, better than thou gossip. How did one repair that sort of a reputation in order to find a husband in a town like Nowhere? She didn’t always used to be so bad, but had gotten worse over the last few years. Mrs. Davis had a lot to do with it, but unless Charlotte left the Davis household, how was she ever going to change? The more Spencer thought on it, the more truth there was to her fear of becoming a spinster.
“Oh Charlotte!” Abbey scolded. “Stop being so dramatic! You’ll find someone … eventually.”
“Easy for you to be calm about things, you have a beau.” Charlotte shot back then turned her attention to Spencer. “You’ll think of me won’t you, if that girl leaves and goes back to wherever it was she came from?”
“Think of you?” Spencer began. “And what do you mean if Miss Barstow goes back?”
She turned away from him and took a few steps toward the cell area located down the back hall. “Well, I’m not one to gossip…”
“You’re the only one in town to gossip, besides mother of course!” Abbey was quick to interject.
Charlotte shot her a warning look. “As I was saying, I’m not one to gossip, but your future bride did seem distracted in the mercantile while we were there.”
Spencer immediately turned to Abbey, “Is this true?”
Abbey shrugged. “For once I have to agree with Charlotte. She did seem distracted and not at all into picking out things for a wedding.”
Spencer’s heart sank. So, she wasn’t all that interested in him. He knew it! The question now was, what to do about it?
“We’d best be going, Abbey. Mother will want her tea and we still have to stop by Mrs. Jorgensen’s,” Charlotte said as she turned and gave Spencer a pretty smile. “It was nice stopping in for a visit.”
Spencer gave her a half-hearted smile. It was all he could muster after what Abbey just told him. “You ladies have a nice day.”
“Five o’clock, Billy! Don’t forget!” Abbey called over her shoulder as Charlotte pulled her toward the door.
“I’ll be there. Nothin’ I like better than a
good pot roast! Except maybe the pretty gal cookin’ it.”
Abbey blushed a deep red and smiled as Charlotte hauled her out the door and slammed it shut. Spencer and Billy both cringed at the noise then looked at one another.
“I sure feel sorry for the fella that winds up married to her,” Billy said.
Spencer began to chuckle. “What about the fella that marries into her family? You won’t only have Nellie Davis as a mother-in-law, you’ll have Charlotte for a sister-in-law!”
“Don’t think I haven’t thought about it! Which is why you’d best get on down to the telegraph office and wire your Uncle Harlan. Cause if me and Abbey get married, we ain’t staying in Nowhere!”
“What?”
“You heard me. I already done talked to Clayton about it when Tom Turner got to town. I didn’t want to leave you short handed, but if he stays on and you’re able to hire on another deputy, than I can go find myself a job somewhere else. I ain’t stayin’ in Nowhere and puttin’ up with Nellie and Charlotte Davis! Except maybe on Christmas.”
Spencer moaned, grabbed his coat and hat, and left for the telegraph office. He might as well stop by the mercantile and take Miss Barstow with him as he knew she wanted to wire New Orleans. Maybe that’s what had her so distracted. She might be the sort that had to have everything done that needed doing before she could relax and enjoy herself. Well if that was the case then she should be more open to his wooing and courting before they got married. He didn’t fancy going into a marriage with a woman who didn’t think highly of him, or with whom he didn’t share a mutual attraction. He hoped that wasn’t part of her problem. What a slap to his ego it would be to find she didn’t think him the least bit attractive! The thought pained him and he picked up his pace.
When he reached the mercantile he found Miss Barstow draped in several bolts of white and ivory cloth. He could see very little of her dress underneath and suddenly the image of a Greek goddess flash through his mind. She was beautiful and it pained him to think this lovely creature possibly had no interest in him.
“Spencer, what are you doing here?” It’s only been a half an hour!” His mother admonished as she began to wrap Miss Barstow up in yet another bolt of cloth.
She sent him a pleading look and he quickly took the cue. “I came to borrow my bride, mother. I have to wire Uncle Harlan and figured Miss Barstow could accompany me to the telegraph office. I know she wanted to wire New Orleans.”
“Oh yes!” Miss Barstow exclaimed. “I do!”
Ah, touché’. He was right, that was what was holding her back. He smiled at the thought and strode over to the threesome. Summer he noticed was sitting in a chair by the pot bellied stove reading a book. She smiled at him and winked when he looked her way. Apparently he must’ve come just in time. His mother and Mrs. Quinn were probably driving both Summer and Miss Barstow crazy.
“If you don’t mind mother, we won’t be gone long. Then you can finish up here.”
His mother sighed in resignation. “Oh very well, but hurry right back! I suppose Mrs. Quinn and I can start cutting what fabric is needed for the dress.” She turned to Miss Barstow. “You said you liked the ivory lace best dear?”
Miss Barstow did her best to peel herself out of her wrappings. “Yes, that will do nicely. Thank you Mrs. Riley and I promise I’ll be right back!”
Spencer noted the excitement in her voice and smiled. He stepped over and began to unwind his future bride. His mother and Mrs. Quinn had her wrapped up like a mummy. As soon as he was done, he held his arm out to her. “Shall we?”
She smiled up at him in relief, grateful to be free of his mother and Mrs. Quinn for a short while. “Yes!”
He chuckled, then steered her toward the coat rack by the door. Yes siree, there was no stopping him now! He was going to woo the stockings off of his future wife! By the time they were married she would be in love with him!
Spencer Riley would have it no other way.
Seven
At last! Elle could finally get a message off to Mrs. Ridgley! Now all she had to do was wait for a reply and that shouldn’t take more than a few days, could it?
“Did you find everything to your liking? For the wedding I mean?”
Elle shook herself out of her elated state and looked up at the man she was to marry. That is with luck and a positive reply from Mrs. Ridgley. “Yes, thank you for asking. Your mother certainly does love to put together weddings!”
“You have no idea! She and Mrs. Quinn have had their hands in more weddings in these parts than I can count. Now that she has her own family marrying, she’s beside herself. You should have seen her with Summer and Clayton’s wedding.”
“I thought she went easy on Summer.”
“Summer yes, Clayton no. Ma about drove poor Clayton crazy with her wedding talk. It went on for weeks after Summer arrived. If it hadn’t been for her injury, Ma would’ve got things underway a lot sooner and had them married off well before Christmas. As it turned out though, things worked out for the best and they were married just after midnight Christmas day.”
“Oh, how romantic! I didn’t realize they were married around midnight. I thought it was sometime late Christmas morning.”
“No. They had their wedding and their wedding night all in a matter of hours.”
Elle felt herself blush at his remark. She knew well what he was saying. She hadn’t thought about that aspect of marriage since she left New Orleans. She’d thought about it before though and wondered what things would be like between her husband and herself. Mrs. Teeters had given her a brief talking to about marital relations, but didn’t give her any real details. She figured she was going to have to wait to find out, that is until she discovered Summer was now to be her sister in-law! When they had some privacy, she’d ask her all about it.
But right now, she had to send that message! “Thank you so much for taking me with you to the telegraph office. I know Mrs. Ridgley must be wondering why she hasn’t heard from me since my arrival.”
“I’m sorry for not taking you sooner, but I’ve been pre-occupied with other things,” he said and gave her a pointed look.
Did he mean her? But then, what else could he mean? “Oh, I’m sorry if I’ve kept you from your work.”
“What? Oh no, you mustn’t worry about that. My wife comes first. It’s just that … well maybe because I know you arrived safe and sound I wasn’t as adamant about getting word to Mrs. Ridgley. But then, how is she to know unless you tell her? I’m sorry I waited this long, it was selfish of me.”
“The important thing is that I’m letting her know. I suppose a few days delay doesn’t hurt anything.” Except that they’ve been like torture! She looked up at him and smiled as they approached the telegraph office.
“I should have sent word to Uncle Harlan that his deputy Tom Turner arrived in town as well. I must be more preoccupied than I thought.”
She smiled as they entered the telegraph office but said nothing. If he had been preoccupied with her this whole time then what must he think of her? She hadn’t avoided him entirely, that was impossible, but she hadn’t fallen all over his attentions toward her either. He probably wondered if she was attracted to him at all! But she couldn’t very well return his attentions until she knew what she was facing. Wedded bliss? Or the gallows?
What did they do to women out west accused of murder? Oh she couldn’t bear to think of it! Be logical Elle! Self defense! It was self defense! The man was coming at them with a gun after all! He was going to shoot Jethro and …
“What did you want to say?”
Elle jumped. “OH!” She looked up at him, eyes wide.
His brow furrowed as he quickly studied her. “What’s wrong?”
“N … nothing. Give me a few minutes while you go ahead and send yours first.”
His eyes lingered on her a moment more before he turned to a man sitting behind the counter and began to tell him the message he wanted sent.
Elle swallowed hard
and turned from him as she wracked her brain over what to say that would convey what she so desperately needed to know without asking the obvious.
“Miss Barstow?”
Elle stiffened.
Spencer put his hands on her shoulders and turned her around to face him. “Elnora? May I call you Elnora? We are to be married soon.”
She looked up into his eyes. He had a starry expression on his face that made her tingle all over. He was attracted to her that was obvious. How was she going to keep her heart in check for another day or two or worse yet, a whole week? He was handsome and strong, and more importantly, hers! Oh how she wanted to let her heart fly! But she didn’t dare, not until she knew she bore no guilt in what happened and found out if Jethro was all right.
“You can call me Elle. Everyone did at the orphanage.”
“Elle,” he said as if trying it out. “I like it. You can send your message now.”
She looked to the man sitting behind the counter and swallowed. She nodded and approached the counter, Spencer right behind her. “Hello,” she said weakly to the man.
“Well?” the man asked impatiently. “What’s your message?”
“Oh, yes. My message,” she began with a smile. “To Mrs. Ridgley of the Ridgley Mail Order Bride Service, New Orleans. I’ve arrived safely. Give Jethro my best regards and tell him thank you. Please inform me of his welfare. You can sign it E.B.”
“That’s it?” the man asked.
“Yes,” she told him then turned to Spencer. “That’s not too long is it?”
“No, you’re fine.” Spencer watched as the man scribbled the message down. “Who is Jethro?”
Elle closed her eyes a brief moment. She knew he might ask but it couldn’t be helped. She didn’t know how else to word the message. She opened her eyes. “He’s one of Mrs. Ridgley’s business associates. He was kind enough to see me to the train station. He … he wasn’t feeling very well when I left him.”