With that said, Clay finished with some readings from the Bible, which he figured made his point more effectively than anything he had to say. Before excusing the congregation, he added one more point. “Some of you may have an interest in seeing Miss Langtry perform before she embarks on another tour next year. You will have that opportunity later in the month since they were such a rousing success last night. I will post the details of the dates of their next performances near the door.” He ended the service with a prayer.
Morgan looked at Jack when they stood. “That was some sermon.”
“I’d say Emma has made a lasting impression on our friend,” Jack retorted.
Morgan nodded. “Yeah, I think she has.” He glanced around at the people filing out. “I see a lot of head-nodding going on, but I wonder what the busy bees will be talking about tomorrow.”
“I hope they take his words to heart,” Rose said.
Emma didn’t comment. She couldn’t believe she’d just heard the man, who had barely spoken to her earlier in the day, give her such resounding praise in front of the whole church. Not only that, but when he glanced her way, she knew that something important had passed between them in that one look. Clay Hunt was definitely a puzzle.
Clay stood at the door of the church saying good-bye to the congregation when Granny approached. “That was a wonderful sermon.” She shot Jack a glance to see if he was going to mention that he’d expected the pastor’s sermon to be on the wages of sin.
Jack winked at her.
“Jack thought your sermon was going to be on the wages of sin tonight.”
Clay smiled at Jack. “Sorry to disappoint. I’ll get to that next week. If the congregation shows up next week.”
“Oh, I wasn’t disappointed. I thought it was a great sermon,” Jack said.
“We all did,” Addie added.
“I really appreciate all of you coming tonight. I know you’ve had a busy few days.”
“It was too late for the children to attend, but be assured they will be here next week,” Jack said.
“The children were worn-out from pestering Emma to sing for them,” Addie said. “I’m afraid they asked her thousands of questions about the places she has been. I’m actually surprised she wasn’t too tired to come.”
Clay shifted his attention to Emma. “It was good of you to come.” When he looked into her eyes, he felt . . . he didn’t know what it was . . . but he was drawn to her. Like last night, he couldn’t take his eyes off of her. She owned the stage. Despite the booming voice of the striking Carlo by her side, all eyes were fixed on Emma. Then tonight, each time he looked her way, he felt it was like she was the only person in church.
“I want to thank you for what you said,” Emma said. “You’ve more than lived up to Granny’s billing.”
“Thank you.” Clay was pleased that she’d enjoyed the sermon. He’d told the congregation what was in his heart; Emma did sing like an angel. But if anyone thought she was a meek, timid woman, they’d be in for a surprise. She carried herself as regally as a queen. Seeing her stand up to Frank last night gave him insight on the woman’s character. She wasn’t one to tolerate fools. When Frank tried to feed her his well-rehearsed lies, she’d let him know she wasn’t falling for his story. She wasn’t intimidated by Frank, and she hadn’t minced words as she told him exactly what she thought of his lies. Clay admired that about her. “I see you brought Sweetie. Do you think he liked the sermon?” The dog leaned into his leg, and Clay scratched him behind the ears.
“I think he likes you, with or without a sermon,” Emma said. Her dog seemed to like the pastor as much as he did her.
“We are going to have a late dinner at the hotel. Would you like to join us?” Morgan asked.
Clay’s initial thought was to decline for the simple reason he didn’t understand his reaction each time he looked at Emma. Was it attraction? Until he figured out what he was feeling, he thought it best to steer clear of her. Last night had been a night of contemplation for him. Watching Morgan and Jack tease their wives, he realized he wasn’t over the loss of his wife. Until he’d put that chapter of his life behind him, he couldn’t see himself getting involved with another woman. Not that Emma would be interested in a small-town pastor when she had a real prince infatuated with her. How could he compete with a man like that?
“Join us, Clay. I won’t let you sit here fretting over the people that didn’t come to services tonight,” Granny said.
Clay didn’t have the heart to deny Granny’s request. “I’d be delighted.” Granny was right about one thing. He was concerned about the opinions of the folks who didn’t come to church tonight. He’d worked hard to develop relationships with his parishioners, but that wasn’t what was occupying his mind tonight. Thoughts of Emma, Violet, his son, and the ever-present Culpepper and Taggart had dogged him all day.
Chapter Six
Entering the hotel restaurant, Morgan was escorting his party to a table when he noticed a woman he recognized walking through the dining room. He turned around to get Jack’s attention, and inclined his head toward Leigh King. “Is that who I think it is?”
Jack peered around Morgan to look at the woman who had taken a seat at a table on the opposite side of the room. “Yep. Wonder what she’s doing here.”
“Who are you talking about?” Emma asked.
“That woman at the table by the window is Frank’s girlfriend, the ex-girlfriend of the judge, Leigh King.”
The women turned to look at the woman. “Isn’t she too young to be the judge’s girlfriend?” Emma asked.
“Why isn’t she in Denver with Frank?” Granny asked.
“It would be my guess that Frank hid her out here at the hotel to keep her away from the judge. He couldn’t take her to Denver and take a chance that the judge would find out,” Morgan said.
“Does she know you two?” Emma asked.
“I don’t think so, unless Frank pointed us out to her. We saw her in the restaurant in Denver, where there was a confrontation with the judge’s daughter. The next time we saw her, she was unconscious in the middle of the street after the bank robbery.”
“I’ll be back in a minute. Go ahead and get seated.” Jack turned toward the hotel registry.
* * *
All eyes were on Jack as he walked back to the table and took his seat. “She arrived Saturday, and the clerk said he didn’t know how long she is staying. Frank was with her Saturday morning, and he hasn’t been back.”
“So Judge Stevens believes Frank has been looking for her, and all the while, he’s been with her,” Morgan said.
“She’s a lovely woman, I can understand their attraction. But it doesn’t say much for her judgment to get involved with Frank,” Emma said.
“Frank’s wife was a pretty woman too,” Jack said. “And she ended up dead due to Frank’s recklessness.”
“It’s hard to believe how these women fall for all of his lies,” Morgan said.
“Frank was always a charmer when he wanted to be,” Granny said.
“Do you think Frank thought you wouldn’t recognize her?” Clay hadn’t been able to get a good look at her, but he noticed her dark hair was the same color as his deceased wife’s.
“Maybe. Maybe he didn’t care one way or the other. It’s a miracle she survived the shooting,” Jack said.
“Miracles still happen,” Granny said.
“But don’t you think Frank would be worried that if you did recognize her you might tell the judge?” Rose asked.
“The judge probably wouldn’t believe us. I can’t say he’s my biggest fan,” Morgan said.
“Don’t you think the judge would sever his relationship with Frank if he knew about his girlfriend?” Emma asked.
“If what Sheriff Trent said is true, Frank is closer to the judge’s sister,” Jack replied.
“Frank’s probably been hiding her out at that gold mine the judge’s sister owns in Black Hawk,” Morgan said.
“Bl
ack Hawk is close enough so Frank can come and go to Denver in a day. I bet the judge’s sister knows what Frank is up to with Mrs. King,” Jack said.
Granny looked across the room at the young woman sitting alone. “I would doubt the judge’s sister is privy to Frank’s scheming. Her niece was Frank’s wife, and I can’t imagine she would be too happy with Frank if she knew he was involved with that woman. In a way, I feel sorry for her. She should have stayed with the judge, even if he is old enough to be her grandfather. Anything would be better than taking up with Frank.”
“Maybe we should tell her,” Emma said.
“She knows.” Jack had seen women like Leigh King many times before. Women like her craved the excitement they thought they would find with a man like Frank.
Granny shook her head. “When she is an old woman, she’ll be sorry for the choices she’s made.”
“If she stays with Frank, she may not live to see her old age,” Morgan said. “I agreed with Sheriff Trent, she was involved with Frank in that bank robbery. You can’t tell me that Frank and his wife just happened to be walking in front of the bank at the exact time that Mrs. King was leaving the bank.” Morgan wasn’t a man who believed in coincidences. At least, not such convenient coincidences when Frank was involved.
“You can’t be serious, Morgan,” Granny said. “You think a woman as pretty as she is would resort to bank robbery?”
“I’m very serious,” Morgan said.
Jack agreed with Morgan. “Morgan’s right. That little scene in front of the bank was planned by Frank. Frank’s wife and Mrs. King had already been in an argument in the restaurant. They caused quite a scene that was witnessed by a lot of people dining that night. When they ran into each other outside the bank, the bystanders said it was a real hullabaloo, and no one was paying attention to the bank being robbed. It was definitely staged.”
Clay looked across the room, but he still couldn’t see her face. “You called her Mrs. King. Had she been married before?”
“The sheriff said she was a widow,” Jack said.
“If there was ever a soul who needs saving, I’d say it would be Mrs. King’s if she’s involved with Frank. She’s so young; perhaps she didn’t know what Frank was going to do.” Just as Clay started to look away, Leigh King turned and looked his way. Clay felt as though he were looking back in time. He couldn’t speak—he could barely breathe. At a distance, Leigh King looked exactly like his deceased wife.
“Don’t you think young women can be deceitful?” Emma asked.
Clay didn’t respond. His eyes were fixed on the woman sitting at the table alone.
“Well?” Emma said.
Clay realized Emma was speaking to him. “Pardon?” Emma took a deep breath and said, “I asked if you thought a young woman could be deceitful.”
“I guess I choose to believe such a beautiful woman has a heart to match.” Clay tried to keep his eyes from drifting across the restaurant to the table by the window, but he had little success.
Emma noticed he couldn’t take his eyes off of the young widow.
“I think I will stop at her table on our way out and ask her to come to next Sunday’s service if she is still in town.” Clay wanted to see her up close. He had to see if she did resemble Violet, or if it was his imagination playing tricks on him.
Emma leaned over and playfully whispered in Clay’s ear, “Are you certain you are interested in her soul, and not her beauty?”
Clay turned to look at Emma, but he didn’t know how to respond. He couldn’t tell her the reason he wanted to meet Mrs. King. He wasn’t prepared to share that with anyone. “We shouldn’t pass judgment.”
Emma had only been teasing, but his tone told her that her attempt at humor had fallen flat. Emma turned to Addie and engaged her in conversation.
Morgan heard Clay’s reply to Emma and glanced at Jack to gauge his response. Jack shrugged his shoulders. It was out of character for Clay to be so prickly.
* * *
As the group left the restaurant, Clay made a detour to Leigh King’s table. After he introduced himself, she invited him to join her. She was getting ready to go back to her room, but she decided she’d rather converse with the handsome pastor instead of spending time alone in an empty room.
Emma watched them from the doorway with Rose and Addie right behind her.
Addie peeked around Emma’s shoulder. “What do you think they are talking about?”
Emma arched her brow at Addie. “Whatever the pastor is saying, I’d say she’s interested.” Emma noted the way Leigh was leaning close to Clay, hanging on his every word.
“Wonder why he felt the need to speak to her tonight?” Rose asked.
Emma turned to look at Rose. “Why? Just look at her. She is very beautiful, and I imagine more than one man in that room would like to meet her.”
“I’m certain Clay thinks she is a lost sheep worth saving,” Rose said.
“Now you sound like Granny,” Emma retorted, but she was smiling. “Have you ever seen a sheep that looks like her?”
Rose and Addie laughed.
“Don’t you think he’s handsome, Emma?” Addie asked.
Emma couldn’t deny the obvious. “Yes, I do, but he’s a difficult man to get to know.”
“I did notice he’s been very quiet all day,” Addie said.
Granny walked up behind the sisters. “The men have the buckboard in front of the hotel, and they are anxious to get home.” She noticed the girls were watching Clay at the young woman’s table. “Are you keeping an eye on Clay?”
“We wanted to see how he was going to get on with Frank’s girlfriend,” Emma said.
“I’m certain he’ll have no problem,” Granny said. “He can be a charmer when he wants to be.”
“Couldn’t prove it by me.” Emma didn’t think he’d been very charming throughout dinner. “Let’s go.”
“Shouldn’t we wait to say good-bye to Clay?” Addie asked.
Emma turned to leave. “No, if he had an interest in saying good-bye to us, he would have.” When Sweetie didn’t immediately follow Emma, she looked at him and saw he also had his eyes on Clay. “Don’t be a traitor, Sweetie.”
“Where’s Clay?” Morgan asked when the women walked to the buckboard.
“He’s talking to Frank’s girlfriend,” Granny said.
Morgan and Jack assisted the women onto the buckboard. “I guess we shouldn’t interrupt him if he is saving a soul. We need to be on our way. It’s getting late.”
* * *
Clay walked outside the hotel to see Morgan’s buckboard was already at the other end of town. He felt guilty that he didn’t say good-bye, but when he sat down with Mrs. King, he’d been so overwhelmed by the resemblance to his deceased wife that he could barely think straight. Violet had black hair and light blue eyes, just like Mrs. King. Though Mrs. King was a beautiful woman, he told himself she was not as lovely as Violet. No one had ever measured up to Violet in his mind. He couldn’t imagine why Leigh was with that scoundrel Frank Langtry. Clay invited her to church next Sunday, and while she didn’t commit one way or the other, she seemed pleased that he’d asked. He didn’t mention that he’d been told she was traveling with Frank Langtry, and she didn’t offer an explanation for being in town. She did mention she’d once lived in Colorado City with her husband, who had died not long after their marriage.
On his way back to his small home next to the church, Clay thought about three women. Seeing Mrs. King brought back so many sweet memories of Violet. When they married, it was the first time he’d felt like he knew his life’s purpose. He wanted to build a life with Violet, provide for her and the children they would have. Losing her and Mark had nearly killed him. For years, he no longer cared if he lived or died. He’d lived for his family. He couldn’t say he’d ever stopped grieving, but he’d stopped asking why his family was taken from him. He’d learned sometimes God was silent, and he had to wait to get answers to his many questions.
&nb
sp; He walked into his quiet home, and the silence brought back other memories. He saw himself returning home to the fragrant aromas of dinner warming on the stove. The sound of his son’s voice as he asked his mother question after question. Violet’s soft and patient replies to their inquisitive son.
Clay set the pot on the stove to warm some leftover coffee. Emma’s face flashed in his mind. She probably thought he was rude, and he couldn’t disagree that he hadn’t been friendly tonight. He didn’t want to be attracted to her. He tried to push her image away; he wanted to think about Violet tonight. If he thought about Emma, he was being disloyal to the memory of his wife. Why should he find happiness again when his wife and child were dead forever? He didn’t want to forget Violet’s face, her voice, her sweet nature. If he married again and had children, those memories might fade. Seeing Leigh King tonight reminded him of all he’d lost. Had he imagined the similarities with his deceased wife, or was he just wishing it to be so?
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