“Y-yes.” She bumped her head against his chin as she moved her head. “N-no. I-I don’t know.”
“Do you want me to call Doc? Have him make sure the burns aren’t bad?”
“N-no.”
“Sweetheart, you’re still shaking.” He pulled her closer, hoping to warm her with his body heat.
“P-probably will be for a while. N-not every day I meet a ghost...I mean s-spirit.”
He brushed his lips over the top of her head.
She lifted her eyes to his. “C-could you do that on my lips?”
He tensed. He couldn’t have heard what he just thought she said. That had to be wishful thinking. “What did you just say?”
“If I’m going to die, could you kiss me just once? So I know what it feels like?”
He cursed under his breath. What was she talking about, wondering what his kiss would feel like? Did she think to compare him to her dead husband at a time like this? No, the shock had her so upset she just wasn’t making any sense.
“Sweetheart, you’re not going to die. Grandmother and Grandfather won’t hurt you. They just wanted to…to get your attention.”
She’d lowered her head again, probably in embarrassment, but now her eyes shot up to his. “They did that.” She smiled weakly. “Can you kiss me anyway—j-just in case?”
Hank shifted on the bed. Even if he counted to one hundred, it wouldn’t be enough to turn her down after that request. “Jessie, I—” As if I want to say no. All I’ve been thinking about lately is kissing her.
Tears streamed down her face again. “H-Hank, you win. I’ll leave on the next stage out of town. You don’t have to pay me anything for the hotel. I’ll…go back home and figure out something to do there.” She reached up to brush his lips with her fingertips. “I know it’s brazen, but I don’t care anymore. If I’m leaving tomorrow or the next day, you won’t ever have to see me again. Just once, will you kiss me so I know what a real kiss is like? Or am I too despicable to consider it? I know you don’t like me.”
Kiss her? Just once? Too despicable? Don’t like her? Leaving?
“What the deuce do you mean you’re leaving?” He rose and set her on the floor, pulling her into his arms.
She shrugged. “W-what I said. You win. You wanted me gone and I thought I could stick it out until you started to like me. But I was wrong.” Tears filled her eyes again. “I’m sorry I was such a disappointment to you. I…I hoped… For a while I thought you might actually like me in time. Geoffrey always said I brought out the worst in men. I never meant to, but he said I was too headstrong. After I got into the argument with the man who’s now the bank president and cost Geoffrey his job, he said I owed him, so he made me come out West with him.” She leaned her head against Hank’s chest. “And that cost him his life. God must hate me. I can’t live with that. I killed my brother.”
She tried to jerk away from him, but he held tight. She leaned back to meet his gaze. “I loved him more than anything, you know. He was always there for me. When I was a little girl and scraped my knee or drew a pretty picture, Geoffrey was there. Mother and Father were always too busy being…wealthy. Then Father died a few months ago. He’d been the bank president all my growing years. With him gone, the man who took his place pressed his suit on me. He’d wanted to marry me for quite some time and I couldn’t stand him. Father always let me make that decision—even though he always hoped I’d finally say yes to someone.” She stopped and drew a long breath. “Since the new president couldn’t take out his anger on me without losing face, he fired Geoffrey. There was nothing for him to do in Boston anymore, so when he suggested coming out West, Mother didn’t really care. It gave her more time for…her parties.”
Geoffrey was her brother? He eased her away from him and rubbed his hand up and down her back. No longer paying attention to him, she seemed lost in her own world.
“And then we almost got here. Our new world. A little dry and dusty, with sagebrush all around, but a new beginning for both of us. We both thought this was what God wanted for our lives. We’d prayed about it, he and I. And while God never came right out and talked to us, we took the silence as His agreement.
“I guess that was silly of us. Two Easterners on an adventure out West. Looking for a life of happiness. Having money growing up certainly hadn’t done that. We were both too lonely. We had no one but each other—and the servants, of course. So we took the train from Boston, but then it derailed in Dodge City. We boarded the stagecoach to finish the rest of our trip. And those men killed Geoffrey. Left me with no one.” She met his gaze. “I didn’t care that they kidnapped me, you know. All I wanted to do was die so I could be with Geoffrey again. But even as I thought it I knew that was wrong. Wouldn’t be what God had in store for me.” She stopped and stared around the room. He doubted she saw anything. “Then you came. You stopped those horrible men. And held me. No one ever held me like that before except Geoffrey. No one ever cared about how I felt, what I thought. Our nannies were nice, but they were paid help. They had to be nice. Not like a real mother.”
She drew in a breath. “So when you held me, I guess I misunderstood. Wanted more than you were willing or able to give. I’m sorry.” She licked her lips.
She’s hurting. Sounded like she’d been hurting her entire life just like he had. So, maybe living a life of leisure wasn’t the answer to everything. Love was the answer. In his heart he’d always known that. She’d had Geoffrey; he’d had his mother. So maybe they hadn’t had no one. Despite the loneliness in their lives until now, Fate—no, surely it was God—had brought them together. Her words brought him back to the present.
“I’m sure Mother will put me up in a flat nearby. She won’t want me in the same house anymore, being as I’m such an embarrassment.” She rose and went to her wardrobe. Began taking a few things out and folding them. Then pulled out one of her travel bags and placed it on a nearby table before putting the folded items inside.
He jumped up, grabbed the bag and threw it against a wall. “There, I’ll do it before Grandmother or Grandfather decides to.”
“Hank!”
In one swift step he swept her into his embrace. “Let’s get one thing straight right up front, Miz Ashbury. As they say in nearby Dodge City, you’re not getting out of Dodge on any stage.” Lowering his lips to hers, he gave her the kiss she wanted and tried to cool his ardor when she didn’t kiss him back. He raised his head and pushed her away as realization hit.
Geoffrey had been her brother! The full ramifications of that fact were still sinking in.
“Geoffrey Ashbury was your brother?”
“Yes.”
He raked his fingers through his hair in frustration. “Why the blazes didn’t you tell me before now? You let me—the entire town—believe he was your husband.”
Jessica stepped backward. “Don’t yell at me, Hank Beaumont.”
“I’m not yelling at you. I’m merely talking louder than usual.”
He moved toward her. She took another step back. He followed until she was backed against the wardrobe.
She wasn’t scared anymore. She was angry now. Good. Angry he could handle. Scared, she messed with his heart. Made him want to protect her. Made him want to love her.
“So you’ve never been married?”
“Of course not,” she shouted in frustration. “No one ever wanted me. Oh they liked my looks, but as soon as they discovered I wasn’t some weak-willed female, they all disappeared. Never saw them again—except at parties dancing with other women. All they wanted was someone to look pretty on an arm. Well, I wanted more than that. I wanted someone to want me. Wanted to be an equal with the man I’d spend the rest of my life with. Everyone thought I was ‘touched in the head’ as they politely called it.”
Hank smiled. “And you’ve never been kissed?”
“No, as a matter of fact, I haven’t.” She glowered at him. “Quit smiling. Are you going to make fun of me now? Hoity-toity rich girl can’t get a
nyone to kiss her? Well, I don’t care. Maybe I’ll join a convent. Never have to look at another man again. That would make my life much easier.” She pushed against his chest.
He didn’t budge. He lowered his head to hers.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m going to kiss you senseless.”
“You’ll do no such—”
As Hank’s lips touched hers, his heart exploded in what felt like hundreds of little pieces. This woman—this stubborn, mule-headed, beautiful woman—had never been married. She’d never been kissed. Well, he was going to kiss her all right. Planned to kiss her for the rest of her life. By the time he was finished kissing her, she’d never think about leaving town again. She’d think only of how many children she would bear him. And he was going to be the first person in his family to do it right. He was going to have the preacher marry them—and then love her forever.
Not only did she not finish her sentence, neither of them said anything for a very long while.
~6~
After they went down the stairs, Jessica and Hank surveyed the damage in the dining room. Sunlight filtered into the room through the lacy curtains at the windows. Other than the tablecloth with brown stains, all the other tablecloths looked pristine as newly fallen snow. Valicia must have gotten brave enough to enter the room, because the flowers were all back in vases. Neither were surprised no patrons were around. In truth, they wondered if anyone would ever stay at the hotel or eat in the restaurant again. While Hank had seen his grandparents’ antics before, no matter how much they’d been talked about, no one else had ever been present to witness their pleasure…or displeasure.
“Think we can persuade Miz Bishop to come back?” Hank bent to pick up a discarded flower still under one of the tables.
“I wouldn’t if I were her. But I hate to lose a friend.” She pressed her fingers to her kiss-swollen lips.
Valicia stuck her head through the open doorway to the kitchen. “Thought I heard someone talking. Good to see you back. Why don’t you change the tablecloth with a fresh one while I keep cooking for the early afternoon folks? After word of this morning gets out, I think we’re going to have quite a crowd the rest of the day. I might need both of you to help serve.” Her eyes twinkled with devilment as she looked from Jessie to Hank.
“You’re still here,” Jessica squealed happily, rushing to throw her arms around her friend.
“Certainly I’m still here. You think I want Mister Beaumont’s grandparents mad at me? I may not have been trained at some fancy Eastern school like you, but I’m no fool. The grandparents want the restaurant run like it’s always been. That’s what they’ll get.” She started back to the kitchen, then stopped. “And in case you’re interested, while you two were busy yelling at each other, I went to check on Molly. For the first time since we got here, she’s feeling better. Now I know Doc had an awful lot to do with that, and for that I’m mighty grateful, but I know it’s all because God allowed him to help her and has been watching over her.” She lowered her voice. “And He’s not the only one that has been watching her. Molly said some pretty lady in yellow was standing beside her bed when she woke up. Said she blinked, and the lady was gone.”
Both women looked to Hank. He cleared his throat before speaking. “Well, yellow is Grandmother’s favorite color.”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” Valicia headed back into the kitchen, then quickly called out. “By the way, when you’re seating people at the tables later, be sure to save one. That nice young lieutenant from Fort Redrock told me he’d be by to visit today.”
* * * *
After Hank walked back to the saloon, Valicia untied her apron and hung it on a peg near the door before she stepped into the dining room.
“So Mister Beaumont actually asked you to marry him?” The women started up the stairs together to check on Molly. They found her sound asleep, Doc sitting in a chair by her bedside.
He smiled when they entered. “She really does seem better. Her fever broke and I didn’t notice any more white spots coating her tonsils. God seems to have smiled down upon our precious this girl today.”
Valicia said, “I know He did. But He sure sent someone strange to watch over her.”
Doc frowned.
“Oh,” Valicia rushed to assure him, “I didn’t mean you. I meant…”
“Ah, yes. I heard about the strange goings on this morning. And Molly informed me about the woman in yellow she saw near her bed. While I’m pleased if Beaumont’s grandmother may have stopped in to see the child, I’ll still have to put my faith in God for her healing.” He winked as he closed his medical bag. “Now you ladies have a good evening. I’m going to take these tired bones home.”
* * * *
After he left, Valicia turned to Jessica. “Okay, out with it. You don’t think I forgot our discussion, do you?”
“What discussion?”
“About you marrying Mister Beaumont.”
In truth, Jessica had been unable to answer Hank’s proposal. She’d been too worried about his motives for asking to allow herself to take it seriously. He might be attracted to her, but she knew better than most that attraction didn’t amount to love.
“We should get some rest now, Valicia. We have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow. Mister Beaumont said there should be another bunch of ranch hands passing through in a couple of days. Said the Bar-Q is getting ready for their annual Christmas party, so men will be in town buying supplies for the week-long festivities. With them in town, we’re sure to be busy.”
Valicia nodded. “But, Jessie, what are you going to do if Mister Beaumont did mean it?”
Jessica let the possibility sink in and warm her. “Well…then I’d just have to marry the man, wouldn’t I?”
* * * *
Friday arrived quicker than Jessica thought imaginable and she wasn’t ready for the influx of men in the restaurant. She was about to get more food from the kitchen when six disheveled cowhands entered the lobby. She froze when one pushed his hat back on his head.
The man that killed Geoffrey!
How could she get to Hank? Or the sheriff? Oh! The sheriff is out of town.
Measuring the man with careful eyes, she started to walk past them to the front door, but someone grabbed her arm.
“Not so fast, darlin’. We still have some unfinished business.”
She tried to jerk away. He tightened his grip.
“Release me this instant.” She met the man’s glare. No she wasn’t going to back down. This wasn’t Hank’s fight. It was hers. He’d killed her brother and she aimed to do something about it.
“I don’t wish to start a fight here,” she said, knowing full well she’d like nothing more than to clobber him over the head. “I’d rather you left, but if you insist on staying, I shall have someone come back to serve you.” She had to stall him. Had to figure out a way to get help.
The men around him guffawed.
“You ain’t going nowhere, missy. You’re going to stay here and keep us happy.”
The reality of his threat formed in her mind. Again, Jessica tried to extricate herself, tried to pry his fingers from her arm. They didn’t budge. “You won’t touch me.” She met his eyes. He filled her with disgust. “This time there are witnesses to your foul deeds. You won’t get away with anything like you did murdering my brother.”
The dead silence that followed was stifling.
He backed her against the wall. He glanced around the room and gave a mad laugh. “Nobody here will stop me. Look at ‘em. They’re all too afraid. Then again, if’n they care to try, my friends here will be happy to help ‘em outside—or shoot ‘em on the spot. I never do know what they’re gonna do.”
A lean, powerfully built man smiled, revealing missing teeth, and wielded his gun.
A trickle of fear and anger coursed through her. No, this man wouldn’t touch her. He’d terrorized her once. She wouldn’t let him do it again. She twisted and turned, trying to esc
ape his grasp. When he didn’t release her, she kicked him.
He swore—and a teacup hit the back of his head. “What the…?” He reached up to rub his head and glanced to his men.
“Didn’t see no one do it, boss.”
“Cups don’t just fly out of thin air,” he growled.
“Maybe it just fell off the shelf on the wall above you,” the toothless man said.
“The killer inched closer to Jessica, and this time his men stood poised with pistols at the ready. As he lowered his head to press his lips against hers, a metal mug fell off the aforementioned shelf and slammed into his back.
“What. . .?”
He turned, taking Jessica with him. She clawed at him, kicking him to throw him off balance.
Before she knew what happened, mugs flew through the air, hitting his men as well. Her customers remained safely out of harm from the flying debris. A nearby pewter candleholder hit the man nearest the door and several men ran out during the distraction.
Another man, a large, lumbering fellow who’d been there when Geoffrey had been murdered came up behind her and jerked her hair, pulling her away from his boss. “Stop whatever you’re doing.”
“I’m not doing anything! Are you simple-minded? How was I doing anything when that beast was holding me?”
Valicia came out of the kitchen holding a large pot of stew. “Thought you might be ready for this now, Miz Ashbury.” Had the woman lost her mind? Why would Valicia put herself in the path of these men again? Valicia approached the table nearest Jessica. “I’ll just put this down right here, if that’s okay with you, ma’am.” She didn’t move. Didn’t set the steaming pot on the table and leave.
“Missus Bishop, please. Just set it down anywhere.”
“Yes, ma’am. That’s right. Is this the table you want me to set it down on?”
Her eyes widened as she finally understood.
Her head screamed in pain from the man who’d jerked her hair before he finally let go and she dropped to the ground. She rolled away just as Valicia threw the burning pot and all its contents at the man. His shouts of pain echoed through the room.
Forever Love Page 5