“Yes, Virginia. You have a choice.”
Not just one choice. Several. She could marry or not. She could help those children without a mother and work off her debt. She could go or stay. She would be free to choose. Free.
She had to be on that train in the morning.
“What do I need to do?” Her tone resonated with conviction.
“I just need your signature here.” Becky indicated a paper and lifted one of the new fangled ink pens with a metal nib. Virginia had only heard about them but never seen one.
Another moment of panic swept through her. If they knew she couldn’t read, would they stop her from going? She bit her lip and wrote her initials, scribbling behind each in a parody of bad handwriting.
Becky lifted the paper, a slight frown wrinkling her brow again. Virginia caught her breath as Becky glanced at Mrs. Webster.
The older woman turned to Virginia. “You didn’t really run into the door, did you?”
Another lie formed on her lips but she looked at the two women. Both of their expressions were soft…kind. Maybe even caring. The lie froze on her lips. She gave a slight shake of her head.
Mrs. Webster looked at Becky. The younger woman nodded then blew on the ink to help it dry. She handed a thick envelope to Virginia.
“This is a letter from Levi to his prospective bride. It’s your first introduction.”
Virginia’s hand trembled slightly as she took the envelope.
“The train leaves at precisely eight o’clock in the morning. Do you have a place to stay?”
“No.” Her voice wavered with unspoken relief. “Maybe…could I just stay here in the church?”
“That won’t be necessary. We have a spare room.” Becky’s warm smile almost brought tears to Virginia’s eyes. Almost.
****
Levi Harper stood on the boardwalk outside the mercantile. Any moment now, the wagon carrying his prospective bride would come around the corner.
Prospective bride. He shifted and ran a finger around his collar. Glancing at his siblings, he checked once more for polished shoes, hair in place and smiles on lips. Right next to him, his little sisters held hands and stood close together. Five-year-old Nellie grinned, her blue eyes lighting with delight.
“She’s going to be beautiful, Levi. I just know it.”
He gave the little girl a half-hearted smile. “It doesn’t matter how she looks, Nell. What’s important is what’s in her heart.”
The older girl’s eyes widened. “But if she’s mean and doesn’t like us…”
Trudy, the worrier. Only seven-years-old, and already fretting over everything from the weather to what to have for dinner. Guess he shouldn’t be surprised. She’d had a lot to worry about in her short life. Losing Pa and their older brother Jack Jr. in a mine cave-in, then Ma to pneumonia. It’s a wonder all four of his siblings weren’t hiding from life, afraid of their own shadows.
Stifling a sigh, he tugged on a long, black curl and winked at Trudy. “Who wouldn’t fall in love with two sweet girls like you and Nellie?”
Trudy glanced sideways. “Seth doesn’t love us. He says he hates us.”
Levi’s grin faded as he glanced at his eleven-year-old brother. Dark, curly hair hung down around the boy’s ears. Levi hadn’t been able to slow him down long enough for a haircut since spring. Had the kid even had a bath since then? Just two of the many issues Levi had been battling with Seth. Two of the easiest.
“Why’d you say something ornery like that, Seth?”
Seth’s features set into tight lines and he refused to even acknowledge the question. Levi couldn’t understand it. Up until a few months ago, he and Seth had been close, the closest of all his siblings. They saw eye to eye on most things and everything Levi said Seth repeated like a quote. Now he couldn’t even get his brother to look at him.
At the end of the line, fourteen year-old Ben, the closest to Levi’s age, looked at their younger brother then back at Levi and gave a slight shrug.
Silent Ben. Levi could always count on him to stay calm and not create more clamor. But once in a while, it might be nice for him to back Levi up. Like right now. A good swift, kick in the behind might knock that belligerent look off Seth’s face.
“He says we take too long to dress, and whine and cry like babies.” Trudy looked up at Levi, her wide-eyed gaze a silent appeal for approval. Any thought of laying down justice on Seth faded…for now.
“You don’t whine and cry like babies all the time…just when you’re upset.”
Like this morning when you couldn’t find clean pinafores to wear over your old dresses. Or last night when I tried to comb the tangles out of your hair.
Levi stopped that train of thought before it went any further.
“Besides,” he said, clearing his throat, “Girls are supposed to take longer to dress. And we fellas appreciate the finished product. Give Seth a couple more years and he’ll agree.”
Trudy’s doubtful glance shot to Seth. His only answer was a deeper scowl.
A shout from down the street prevented Levi from reprimanding his brother. “I see the wagons!”
Energy swept through the crowd of men on the boardwalk. Levi straightened and glanced down at his brown suit, brushing at a piece of lint on his pocket. The collar seemed to choke him and he pulled at it one last time.
He was about to meet his bride. Panic swept through him and he closed his eyes.
Please, Lord, don’t let her be too…unattractive, or—or…old.
He took a deep breath, remembering his words of a moment ago.
Just let her love the little ones, Lord. They need it so badly. Let her love them and bring the light back to their eyes. I promise I’ll do my best to be a good husband. To love her and appreciate what she does for us…no matter how she looks.
Levi prayed so hard, he didn’t even realize the wagons had pulled up beside them.
“Whoa!”
His eyes flew open. Jake Underwood stepped up to the wagons as the driver pulled the horses of the first wagon to a stop. Color blazed across Levi’s vision. Red. Blue. Purple. Bright, beautiful dresses and bonnets with feathers and ribbons. He hadn’t seen so many bright, beautiful colors in…well, forever. Then he noticed red hair, blonde ringlets. Snug, stately coils of deep mahogany. Creamy skin. Pink cheeks and pouty lips. Women. Soft, lovely women. Levi was speechless, and so were his younger brothers.
But the other men of Angel’s Vale couldn’t keep silent. A slow rumble started as they pointed and waved and smiled. Jake helped a lovely young woman from the wagon. They spoke for a few moments, then Jake kept a protective hand on the back of the woman as the men began to lift the other women onto the boardwalk. White petticoats flashed and the murmur of men’s voices blended with gentle tones and shy female laughter.
Levi had forgotten what it was like to have women nearby. He’d forgotten the sounds and sights…how women softened and brightened things at the same time. A little overwhelmed, he stood with his brothers, watching and taking it all in.
After a while, Jake motioned to the woman beside him. The way he hovered over her, Levi assumed she was to be Jake’s bride. The young woman nodded then linked arms with another woman who stood with her back to Levi. He glimpsed a thick braid before Jake blocked his view and headed his way.
His bride. Coming to him. Levi held his breath.
The women walked slightly behind Jake. Even though Levi strained his neck as much as possible without being too obvious, he couldn’t get a good look at his future wife. Just a glimpse of a tiny frame, shorter than the woman walking arm in arm with her. A dark brown, homespun skirt swished as she moved. Simple and plain.
Jake nodded politely.
“Jake.” Levi’s voice sounded raspy as he greeted the owner of the mercantile.
“Levi, I’d like to introduce Miss Virginia Pepper.”
Jake stepped away. Levi caught first sight of his bride-to-be and his breath left in a whoosh. Young, maybe even younger
than him. Green eyes the color of a forest. Smooth cheeks and lips like a ripe peach. Gold-streaked brown hair was pulled into a long, perfect braid that swayed somewhere near her hips. Levi didn’t know exactly where because he couldn’t take his gaze away from those perfect, peach-colored lips. Even the tiny white scar in one corner couldn’t take away from their shapely perfection.
“You’re…” Where were the words? He couldn’t seem to find them. “You’re…”
“Beautiful.” Five-year-old Nellie finished for him. “She’s beautiful, just like I said she would be.”
Levi smiled with relief. “Yes. Beautiful.”
Those lovely lips parted. She looked down at Nellie with a slight lift, almost a smile, playing about her mouth. “You’re very sweet but I’m not beautiful.”
Even her voice sounded pretty, like a song. Levi nodded. “Oh, yes, you are. Very.”
She turned that forest-eyed gaze back to him and the words disappeared again. He stopped trying to find them and simply allowed himself the pleasure of looking at her…and she did the same. She seemed as surprised—and pleased—as he. They stood silent, for how long Levi didn’t know. He only remembered his manners when Jake cleared his throat.
Levi came to himself and jerked off his hat. Immediately, the stubborn curl that refused to stay in place fell forward over his forehead.
Drat. Now he’d look like an unkempt boy fresh in from the yard. He swept the wayward strand back with a quick gesture then turned to his family.
“Virginia, let me introduce my brothers and sisters…”
“Brothers and sisters?” Surprise tinged her tone.
“Yes,” Levi hesitated. “I explained about them in my letter.”
A startled expression slipped over her features and she quickly turned to Nellie. “So who are you?”
“I’m Nellie.” His youngest sister’s grin lit up her face. “Can you teach us to be beautiful, just like you?”
Levi cringed and frowned. “Nellie is five. We’ve been talking a lot about manners and how beauty is on the inside.”
His bride-to-be crouched down to Nellie’s level. A wave of absolute relief swept through Levi. She understood children. Really understood them.
“Levi’s right,” she murmured in a low voice. “Beauty can’t be taught. It comes from in here.” She pointed to Nellie’s heart. “But we can do some things to help it along, like straightening this.”
She turned Nellie around. Levi wilted. Little girl buttons would be the death of him. His big fingers just couldn’t seem to work them. After all his careful inspections and hard work, Nellie’s pinafore had been buttoned incorrectly and lay at an odd angle. Virginia redid it and turned Nellie back around in a flash.
His sister fixed her big blue eyes on Virginia. “Can we work on our hair too? I want my hair to be in a pretty braid like yours.”
“I think we might be able to do something,” she said, a smile teasing her mouth. How perfect would those peachy lips be when she really smiled? Levi made it his goal to find out.
“Oh no, it won’t work.” Bashful Trudy spoke up for the first time. “Levi says our hair is untamable, just like his.”
“Is that so? Untamable?” Virginia looked up at him. He could have sworn he saw a twinkle in her green-eyed gaze. “Well, maybe I know a few tricks your brother doesn’t know.”
She winked and Trudy’s gaze widened with hope. “Really? We can do it?”
Trudy sported the first genuinely happy, hopeful look he’d seen in months. If he weren’t already half-way in love with Virginia Pepper, he would be now. In less than five minutes she’d brought some sunshine into their lives.
Virginia rose to her full height and turned to Seth. A cloud blotted out the sunshine. Levi dreaded introducing this one. Creating trouble was his brother’s goal. Levi had no idea what to expect from the kid, but it was only fair that Virginia know what she was getting into. Girding himself, he took a deep breath.
“This is Seth.”
Virginia nodded. “Hello.”
Seth studied Levi’s future wife with a look so piercing, it made Levi uncomfortable. He could only imagine how Virginia felt.
“Don’t be rude, Seth. The least you can do is make my bride feel welcome.”
Seth scowled. “Why bother? She won’t be here long enough for it to matter.”
With that he spun and ran off.
2
Virginia gasped. How could Seth possibly know what had been on her mind since the day the train had pulled out of the station in Maine?
That day, the only thought in her mind was escape. Get away before Pa or one of her brothers dragged her back. But afterwards, once she was safe on the train, and fear stopped being her constant companion, she thought about jumping off—just slipping into a crowded station at the next stop.
Only her new companions stopped her from doing it.
Becky and Sophia…in fact, all of the women on board had been so kind, so helpful. Virginia didn’t doubt that everyone knew the truth. They understood she was running for her life, but said nothing. Nor did they beat her down with their pity. All of the women, even the ones she’d barely spoken to, had gone out of their way to help her.
Becky made one of her own dresses over to fit Virginia. Others pitched in, donating a petticoat or a chemise to her meager belongings. By the time the train reached Cheyenne, Virginia owned two complete changes of clothes and even a small hatbox in which to carry them.
She couldn’t find the courage to run away and betray their trust. They’d supported her, believed her. She couldn’t let them down. And then, when she’d stepped off the wagon and looked into Levi Harper’s face…something happened.
He took her breath away. He’d called her beautiful but Virginia had never seen anyone so incredibly perfect. Dark curling hair that fell over his brow even though he’d slicked it back. A heart-shaped face made strong by a chiseled jaw. Deep-set eyes that flashed little blue sparks when he smiled. He had full lips for a man, and they made him look younger, like a sweet boy. Young and vulnerable.
Like her.
Just like her. She could almost believe they were in this together.
It was just a feeling, though, not the truth. Levi had a family, people who loved him, a home and money. She had nothing. But somehow, when she’d first met his gaze, she’d felt a connection…as if the two of them stood against the world.
What a seductive feeling. One she wanted to curl up in and stay with forever. That feeling, coupled with a face she couldn’t stop staring at…
Then she’d been introduced to Seth and he’d looked right through the lies. What was it about these Harper men? Their gazes had power. Seth had seen her fear and her desire to run and had spoken it out loud.
He knew the truth.
“Seth! Come back here.” Levi slapped his hat against his leg.
“No.” Virginia’s thoughts came out before she could stop them. “Let him go.”
Let him go before he speaks more truth and I’m forced to leave. Let me stay…just a little while longer.
Levi’s hat hit his leg again, a gesture that indicated there’d be a reckoning later. He cast one last, smoldering look at Seth’s retreating back, then pointed to the last of his siblings. “This is Ben.”
Virginia looked at another handsome, clear-sighted young man. He dipped his head. “Ma’am.”
“Oh, no, not ma’am. I’m not much older than you. Call me Virginia, please.”
A wry smile tilted his lips. “Just wanted to let you know not all of us forgot our manners.”
Ben turned to his older brother. “I’ll take the girls now, Levi.”
The young man ushered Nellie and Trudy down the boardwalk ahead of him. Nellie took her brother’s hand. A moment later, the child looked back over her shoulder and waved.
Levi smiled…a sweet, loving lift of those full lips that absolutely stole Virginia’s heart. A man/boy who loved his little sisters so much couldn’t be bad. Could he?
>
Turning to her, he twirled his hat in his hands. “Are you hungry? I packed a picnic lunch. Ben’s taking the girls to an oak tree just out of town to have a bite.”
“No, thanks. I’m not hungry.”
Levi ducked his head. “It’s just as well.” He shuffled and glanced at the men and women around them. “Can we move away from here? Someplace quieter?”
Virginia nodded. Levi’s look of relief was almost comical. He seemed so nervous. She was glad his condition matched hers. He slicked his hair back and slid his hat into place before gesturing down the boardwalk. They walked away from the low rumble of the mingling crowd. When they reached the end of the walkway and stepped down into the dirt, he took her elbow, polite and gentle-like. Levi’s touch was nice. Nothing like Pa’s brutal grasp.
They walked some distance before Levi said, “About my cooking, I’m not very good.”
“I’m sure whatever you brought would be fine.”
“No, that’s the point. It’s not. We’ve been living off what was in my mother’s root cellar and tinned goods I’ve bought from the mercantile. Children need more. They need good, nourishing food. Vegetables. Meat.”
Virginia understood what he was trying to say. “Yes, they do. Rest assured, Levi. I’m a good cook.”
His whole posture eased. “Great. Ben’ll be glad to hear that. I can’t seem to fill him up no matter what I do.”
He flashed her another smile and Virginia was sure his blue eyes danced. Just danced. Those eyes, and that smile…they made her feel bright and safe. Maybe even happy. She could become addicted to that feeling and those eyes.
“The girls…well, you saw how it is with the girls. They need a woman.”
An image of her father’s face twisted in anger flashed into her mind. “What those little girls need most is love.” She stopped in her tracks and looked up. “You do love them, don’t you?”
He met her questioning gaze straight on. “With all my heart. They’re the only reason I sent for a wife. If it was just me and Ben, we’d make do. But the girls and Seth…” He frowned. “I’m sorry about how he behaved.”
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