“I thought you said you were fine.” He frowned down from his great height beside her. Sadie kept her gaze directly between the two ears of the giant horse on the right.
“I am, thank you again for asking,” she replied, despite the fierce blush she could feel suffusing her entire being.
“Well, I know that sound came from you, so unless you have some strange way of communicating that I’ve never heard tell of, you are hungry. When is the last time you ate?”
“I don’t really see how that’s any of your concern, Mr. Foster.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Sadie’s flush deepened, but she still didn’t look at either man. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Herman reaching under the seat.
“I’m feeling a tinge peckish myself. It’s a good thing I brought this bag of sandwiches for us, isn’t it? Would you like one, Foster?”
He didn’t even bother asking her, just handed one to Sadie without comment.
Mr. Foster didn’t speak further, but Sadie felt his gaze burning into the side of her head. She made every effort to ignore him while she concentrated on not devouring the sandwich like the wild animal she had sounded when her stomach growled.
The handsome man seemed to simmer with anger. Sadie couldn’t fathom what the man had to be angry about. It was rude of him to ask her about her hunger, surely he must realize that. Her refusal to answer was no reason for him to be angry. And if it was her hunger that angered him, well that was completely ridiculous, too, because it wasn’t really his problem. And now it was taken care of. Sadie ought to thank Herman, but she couldn’t muster up the gumption to speak at the moment.
Another, worse, thought occurred to Sadie. What if Mr. Foster was just always angry? That would be a terrible outcome to all these arrangements. The Fredericksburgs had spoken highly of him. Not that they had known him personally, but they said he came highly recommended from good friends of theirs. Sadie now realized that was the slimmest of all possible recommendations. She ought to have stayed in Boston and tried to sort out the situation with Oscar herself. Surely, if she had persisted in looking a little bit harder, she would have eventually found a position that would have paid enough to get the awful man to leave her alone.
Sadie continued to stare at the horses’ ears, deep in thought. Focusing on the what ifs wasn’t going to get her anywhere. She had signed the documents Jane’s husband had drawn up for her. Mr. Foster was her husband. She had used her own free will and made the vow. She owed it to everyone to keep her word. Yes, she should have thought it through a little more before she signed and got on the train, but at the time, it felt like a welcome respite from the pressure she had been under from that wretch Oscar.
It was amazing what a little break from stress will do. Ten days out of her hovel of an apartment, and she was already changing her mind about decisions she had made. She was being foolish, and it had to stop.
Lifting her chin, Sadie decided to face her situation head on.
“I apologize, sir. I was hungry and wretched and not feeling very polite. While I think it was a little impertinent of you to ask me about it, I shouldn’t have been rude in return. I was hungry as I had run out of funds and hadn’t yet eaten today.” Sadie turned to Herman, who was looking on with unmasked interest. “Thank you so much for being prepared to alleviate all our hunger. You were right to come prepared. Your drive would have necessitated a meal at some point. I’m glad you planned enough for me to have some, too.”
Much to her delighted surprise, Herman’s ears turned pink, as though her thanks embarrassed him. “It was barely anything, ma’am. I’m sorry it was so necessary for you, but I’m glad to be of service.” He even lifted his head and gave her a slight bow. Mr. Foster, on the other hand, looked as though he were ready to explode with anger.
“What happened to the money Fred was to give you to make all your arrangements? Surely, you didn’t bring enough luggage to have spent it all on fripperies.”
Sadie wished she had kept silent.
“I had to buy my train ticket, for one thing. I also had some pressing obligations that needed to be cared for before I was free to leave. There were also even less fortunate souls on the train than me.”
“And you felt obliged to give my money to them?”
“Mr. Fredericksburg led me to understand that it was, in fact, my money, sir.” She answered with quiet dignity, silencing the man at her side. But he continued to glower.
Chapter Two
They continued the journey in silence. Sadie surmised that if she could observe them, they most likely looked humorous. From her peripheral vision, she could see that Mr. Foster was frowning and angry looking. On her other side, Herman appeared inordinately pleased, although she had no idea why he would look so delighted. Perhaps he was just one of those perpetually happy people, she thought with a mental shrug. Sadie was certain that her face was probably a mix of the two.
Despite the very large question marks looming in front of her, Sadie was thrilled to be gone from Boston. She was no longer within Oscar’s reach. Her debts were paid. She was safe. Despite how surly her husband seemed, he had been vouched for by people she trusted. Or at least as far as she trusted anyone these days. Even though the man seemed like a cranky bear, she didn’t have any reason to feel that he was a threat to her, and his large, looming size actually filled her with a sense of security. He might be growly about it, but he had wanted her to be safe and fed. It warmed her heart more than she was comfortable to admit.
Shoving the unwelcome thoughts from her mind, Sadie watched with interest as they drove through a very small village. This was where Herman had said she could find company if she needed. At this point in time, Sadie wanted to curl up in a room and be alone for the next year or two, but she doubted she would ever have that luxury. Instead, she would content herself with not seeking company. At least for a time. But it was still good to know there was somewhere to make necessary purchases, she acknowledged as they left the village behind after slowing enough to allow the men to nod at the shopkeeper of the mercantile.
Before she had time for her mind to wander too far, they were slowing again and turning onto a road that looked very similar to the road they were already travelling. But then she saw, off in the distance, a collection of buildings including a very appealing house. Her heart quickened. Was that her new home? Sadie contained her excitement and didn’t bounce in the seat, but she couldn’t keep her eyes off the house as they drove steadily toward it.
It rose up from the cluster of buildings on a small knoll, two stories of gently aging clapboard planks. Somehow, it felt to Sadie as though the house were calling to her. As though it were already her home. As though she had lived there for years and had just somehow forgotten it. It made her feel slightly irrational to be experiencing the sensation, but there was no arguing with how she felt. The house seemed to welcome her.
Too bad Sadie was hoping for a way out of her marriage.
But for the time being, she was going to enjoy the sensation. She had experienced so little enjoyment in the recent past. Sadie was certain there must have been times that she had enjoyed herself in the far off past. Her childhood had been sufficiently carefree, filled with childish giggles and easily procured treats. But the recent years so overshadowed all else that it was hard to remember she had ever not been careworn.
This house didn’t appear careworn. It didn’t even appear all that old, despite the aging clapboard. Sadie rather supposed that in the strong sun, that could happen in a matter of months or maybe a year or two. She thrilled as they came through a copse of trees, and she gained a different perspective of the house. Dormer windows! Her very favorite. And there were two. She would never want to leave the house now. She shook away the unwelcome thought. One always did what one must, she reminded herself fiercely before returning to chronicling all the details of the homestead that was steadily rising up before her.
As Herman had said, there were fields sp
reading out in all directions, as far as the eye could see. Nearby to the house there were several outbuildings, including what looked like several small houses. She wondered if that was where Herman and some of the other workers lived. Perhaps, too, there were hens and such. Sadie, having lived her entire life within the confines of Boston, wasn’t completely certain what all one would find on a homestead but she knew, even in the city, many raised chickens and hens. Her family even had before they’d been forced to move into the shared accommodations after her father had taken ill.
One more thought to shake off, Sadie reminded herself and turned her attention to the vista before her once more. Horses and cows, she could now see, dotted the rolling hills spreading out from the barn. Even some sheep and goats. She wasn’t completely certain how it was accomplished, but she was certain the sheep wool would be removed and they could make clothing from it. The thought of warm woolen socks and mitts filled her with another wave of security that she made an effort to ignore. She didn’t need to find her sense of security from such external things, she reminded herself fiercely. She had managed just fine without a strong man to care and provide for her.
Had you really, though, her conscience prodded her. Give the man his due. You wouldn’t have been free of your debt without Mr. Foster. And you wouldn’t be more than half a country away from Oscar, either. You owe him more than secret schemes to get away. You owe him your loyalty, at least for a time.
Sadie knitted her lips together in a line, acknowledging the truth of her inner thoughts. She owed Foster more than he knew. She would do her best to be a good wife for as long as he needed. She had taken vows before God and the Fredericksburgs.
She finally turned toward the frowning man at her side. “It’s quite a large homestead, isn’t it, Mr. Foster?”
~~~
Hamilton gazed down at the small woman at his side. He was surprised that she had finally addressed him directly, voluntarily. It had seemed as though she were avoiding him as much as was possible while crammed against him on the narrow seat. The wagon had seemed quite spacious while he and Herman had driven to the train station, but he had been constantly aware of the pretty creature as she sat stiffly beside him ever since she had been handed up into the wagon. Even the sound of her voice was delightful, making Hamilton want to curse. He was well aware that he was being beastly. It was probably beyond ridiculous to be angry to find out his wife was pretty. But he had thought he had been very clear with Fred. He did not want a pretty wife.
Dragging his thoughts back toward her question, as he felt her questioning gaze still rested on his face, Hamilton wasn’t sure exactly how to answer.
“Yes,” he finally answered, smiling to hear the note of pride in his tone.
“Have you lived here long?”
“Didn’t Fred tell you?” It wasn’t that he didn’t want to tell her, it just felt too much like bragging if he told her himself. But once again he had embarrassed her, he could see by the color flooding her cheeks.
“He was too busy explaining the legalities of the situation to go into very many details about you, sir.” She stammered out the reply.
“Did he tell you anything?”
She cleared her throat with a delicate cough. If Hamilton could correctly read her expression, she was wishing she hadn’t raised any subject with him. He wished he had just been able to answer her question directly. He was being a wretch toward her. And she was probably exhausted from more than a week of travel, besides being such a tiny little thing the next big gust of wind might blow her off the wagon seat if she weren’t wedged in between the two men. He didn’t know if she was going to finally answer. She surprised him.
“Mr. Fredericksburg told me you left Boston for California a little over ten years ago. But I don’t think he mentioned how long you’ve been here. Did you stop here on your way to California and decide to settle here?”
“There were no trains this far when I came West. But yes, when I was passing through, I knew I wanted to own a piece of this beautiful land. Thankfully, the government makes it easy, since I’ve never spoken or raised arms against this nation. It was quite a simple thing to place a claim to the land. I got my first claim as I was passing through. I had five years to start developing the land. When I came back, I expanded my claim with ranching. So yes, you could say it’s quite a sizeable homestead.”
She was watching him expectantly as though she were hoping for more information. He almost grunted.
“With the arrival of the trains, more people are arriving every week, so I’m glad I laid my claim to so much land when I had the opportunity.”
“You would prefer not to have too many neighbors?”
He shrugged.
“I just don’t like the idea of being limited. I now have more land than I have any use for, but maybe I’ll need it later. If all the parcels around me are already claimed, I’ll be mad as a hornet.”
This surprised a tinkle of laughter out of the tiny creature.
“You do have a way with words.”
“And besides, if we have any hopes of building a dynasty here, we need room to grow.”
“A dynasty?” Now she sounded even more hesitant than she had when he had been growly.
“For our children and grandchildren,” he explained as her color rose once more.
“I don’t think I’m ready to entertain the idea of dynasties just yet, sir,” she replied, her tone prim and strained, making Herman smirk. Hamilton had to fight the urge to show him the business end of a fist.
Hamilton felt as though his ears were heating up, and he wasn’t sure if it was from embarrassment or anger, but he felt compelled to reassure the woman, despite his own discomfort.
“Not immediately, of course, but eventually, children would be an expected result of our vows, don’t you think?”
She still didn’t turn back toward him, keeping her head bowed and her eyes downcast, but he was fairly certain she gave a small bob of her head in agreement.
Hamilton didn’t want to leave the conversation on such an awkward note, so he tried to introduce another topic.
“Do you think you’ll be uncomfortable so far out in the wilderness?”
This finally brought her head back up, and she looked at him with a puzzled frown.
“Is this wilderness, sir? I rather thought it looked somewhat civilized. At least more so than some of the places I could see from the train as we travelled here. The gently rolling hills are far less intimidating than some of the mountainous regions the train went through closer to Boston. And some that I spoke with on the train said that the further West one goes, it gets even rockier. So I think this is rather nice.”
“True, but we are a week’s journey from the big cities you’re used to.”
Hamilton couldn’t read her expression as she gazed at him, barely blinking. She finally spoke. “Some might consider that to be a very good thing, sir.” She paused for a moment with a slight frown before continuing. “So to answer your question, no, I don’t think I’ll be uncomfortable, at least not from the distance. It would seem from the size of your property and buildings, there is plenty of space to make oneself comfortable in. I’m looking forward to not feeling squashed.”
“I apologize about the wagon, ma’am,” Hamilton began, feeling chastised. “I hadn’t thought you would have so little luggage. If I had realized, I would have brought a conveyance that allowed more room for people.”
His brows arched in surprise as she once more giggled.
“Do not trouble yourself, sir, I wasn’t meaning right now.” She gestured toward the fields as she said, “After a lifetime of living in a rapidly expanding city and then more than a week on the train, I’m looking forward to not living piled on top of other people.”
“Did you live in an apartment, then, rather than a house?”
“Yes,” she answered simply.
“Is that why you’ve been staring at my house ever since it came into view?”
; Her smile didn’t look embarrassed, Hamilton was relieved to see. Even though he wasn’t too happy with Fred’s choice of such a pretty woman for him, he was very glad to note that she was a cheerful sort.
“Yes, I was hoping that was your house. It is delightful. So big and spacious. And those dormer windows look so inviting. That house looks as though it was built for comfort, not to impress or intimidate.”
“Well, you’re right about that. It would be ridiculous to build a house way out here with the intention of impressing anyone other than myself. Who’s going to see it?”
She again laughed shortly. “So true. But sometimes people dream big and feel the need to fulfill it whether it makes sense or not.”
Hamilton pondered her words, wondering what sort of dreams she might have but feeling it would be much too intrusive to ask her about them just yet. She hadn’t appreciated his question about her hunger; she wasn’t likely to want to tell him about her dreams. They had just met, after all, even if they were already wed. Not that he was all that interested in what was going on inside her head, he reminded himself. He couldn’t be bothered with a pretty woman. He needed to ignore the inclination to listen to her and especially his misguided impulse to gaze at her. Yes, he had to keep an eye on her, but that was only to make sure she wasn’t getting up to nonsense. If she was going to bear his name, he needed to ensure she didn’t sully it in any way.
Feeling his face tightening, Hamilton turned his gaze back toward the house. Despite his reservations about her, he had been thrilled to witness her interest in his home.
“Did you always live in an apartment?” he surprised himself by asking.
“Since my father got sick and couldn’t work as hard as he once had.”
“How old were you when that happened?”
“I was seven years old.”
“Barely out of infancy, then,” he commented. “It's the worst age to leave a house behind. Children should have space to run and play.”
The woman lifted one shoulder in what he supposed was meant to look as though she didn’t care overly much, but Hamilton suspected she wasn’t nearly as care free as she would like him to think. She wouldn’t have been looking at his house with such anticipation if she didn’t care that she had been forced out of her childhood home.
A Bride for Hamilton Page 2