Three under the Mistletoe: A Christmas Menage Romance (Christmas Billionaire Menage Series Book 1)

by Tia Siren

  Even when his shadow began to eclipse her, she refused to look.

  “I’m going into town. I can’t be far. I’m going to get help.”

  “It’s about three and a half miles into town. Are you sure you want to walk all the way?”

  Cora felt her fists ball, and her cheeks grow hot.

  “I would rather walk, than to be dragged along like some sort of produce sack.”

  He laughed. “Very well.”

  She wandered on toward town, or the general direction she seemed to be needing. Darker clouds began to gather, but Cora was of no mind to it. She walked on in silence, with the horse-man following silently beside.

  Cora took a moment to glance beside her. The muscular, red-brown horse rode dutifully under the man whose broad hands commanded the reigns. His white button down was a bit disheveled at the collar, and Cora found her cheeks to be growing warm, watching him sit atop his steed, his hat shadowing his dark brown hair, some tousled bangs falling before his eyes, and his rough but clean jaw making his overall appearance to seem more well-to-do than she anticipated a rugged horseman in the West.

  He seemed to be looking away, not noticing her glance, but then the edge of his lip widened to reveal a small dimple at his cheek, and his bright blue eyes flashed their way down toward her direction.

  “Are you still intent on being so stubborn?” he said.

  Cora looked away in an instant, embarrassed, and fuming at letting her mind wander.

  “Certainly not all men from this part of the country are so--so--incredibly forward and--and--quite frankly, uncouth.”

  “Uncouth?” he feigned sounding hurt, but she could tell that he was slightly amused. “Says the Miss who was shouting at me not too many moments ago--saying things a gentleman should never repeat.”

  They continued to walk on, when Cora’s dress snagged on a drying, thorned shrub. She teased frustratedly at her dress, battling against the bush.

  “This wilderness is impossible!”

  At once, she reached back with a pull, her dress finally being released, though not without a tear, and fell back onto her bottom, hitting an open patch of moist dirt.

  She immediately felt her cheeks glow red.

  “Now will you reconsider?” The man on the horse lent his hand down for her as she steadied herself upright, attempting to brush off the mud, but only smearing it further down the backside of her dress. The clouds began to gather more darkly, and Cora took a second thought.

  “If I let you give me a ride, you should know…” She sighed and placed her hands on her hips. “I don’t like you,” she pointed up at him.

  “Blunt,” he pursed his lips. “I would say I like that in a woman, but in this case...I couldn’t care less.”

  “Fine,” she said.

  “Fine,” he said.

  And they rode on in silence.

  Chapter 3

  “Joshua Dansby,” Sheriff Pickett greeted Joshua and Cora as they rode in toward the station. A closed buggy door was being closed and carted off by the Deputy policeman.

  “Sheriff,” Joshua tipped his hat and slung off.

  The two men shook hands and Joshua got a good look at the scene. The robbers were already being brought into town, and the passengers were being escorted off of the train, and onto the platform.

  “Glad you made it in time,” Joshua said.

  “Well, thankfully I wasn’t too far along from the area,” Sheriff Pickett tipped his hat toward Cora, still sitting atop the horse, silent and her face flushed.

  “Afternoon ma’am,” he said.

  Cora nodded, red-cheeked and turned forward once again, clearly embarrassed to be seen with a strange man in such a way.

  “Seems you tried to take matters into your own hands,” Sheriff Pickett laughed.

  “When I got out there, they were already making off with the train. Glad the conductor seems to have taken his engine back.” He nodded in the distance to a bruised and bloodied conductor holding a wet rag to his face, clearly having been in an altercation.

  “Well,” Joshua said. “It looks like there’ll be a delay.”

  The two men surveyed the group of confused and stunned passengers. Joshua took a glance toward the sky, the clouds now dark as ever, ready to burst at any moment.

  “Sheriff,” Joshua said. “Feel free to invite all the passengers to be able to stay the night at the Stanton. There are plenty of rooms open, and it will be all on me.”

  “That’s mighty generous of you, Mr. Dansby,” the Sheriff replied.

  “It’s the least I could do,” Joshua said.

  The two parted ways as the Sheriff continued toward the platform, making arrangements for transportation and informing everyone about Mr. Dansby’s offer. It would be at least a day or two before the Lil’ Miss would be back in commission, and so all were offered a stay at the best hotel in town, The Stanton.

  Owned by Joshua Dansby’s family, as were most of the business endeavors in the town, the Stanton was a prized jewel of the Western territory. It had a rustic charm that made it so all businessmen and wayfarers were pressed to stop by when coming through these parts. It was in convenient proximity to the mainstay of the town, but overlooked the rolling, unmarked hills of the prairie, a paradise in the West.

  Joshua turned to the woman who still sat upon Kan, who was biding his time eating the grass by his feet.

  “Would you like to come down?”

  She refused to look at him, and he laughed at her indignation. She was an annoyingly stubborn woman. He was glad he only had to deal with her just this once.

  “Alright,” she said. “I...I might need some help.”

  Her face was red, and for a moment Joshua was almost taken aback by the way her cheeks flushed, and her braid fell to the side and framed her face.

  “Oh, so now you want my help?” he said.

  He helped her down, and she swayed as her feet hit the ground.

  “You’ve never been on a horse before?” he mused, her large, brown eyes open wide as she attempted to figure out how to walk on the ground again.

  “Of course not,” she said. “And I’m perfectly fine. Just a little...tired from being tossed around by the likes of you!”

  She forced herself to stand up straight, but Joshua could tell by her face that her legs were not quite at ease with the transition from horse to land.

  “Anyway, I have to be going. There’s someone I’m supposed to meet today,” she continued, snubbly. “Someone, I’m sure, who has a lot more class than you.”

  Joshua smirked, his eyes glinting even beneath the shadow of his hat. “As classy as you?” He laughed and began walking toward the station platform, fully aware that the woman behind him must have been fuming.

  I just can’t stand the hot headed ones, he thought to himself. Thankfully, I don’t have to.

  Most people had already made their way in buggies toward town, and The Stanton. There weren’t a great lot of many travelers that tended to head so far east, and so only a few trips were able to bring the people to and fro. Joshua and Cora waited on opposite ends of the platform. Cora had her eyes shift through the clusters of people that remained, or those crew and men who still worked nearby.

  Joshua Dansby, with his coat now returned from Mr. Stanfield, fixed at his hair, combing it back with his long fingers, and placing his hat atop. He straightened his collar and cuffs, buttoning his suit. He looked once again as if a man who would much sooner be attending an event at The Stanton, than a man who had been riding across country with his horse.

  By now, what little tinge of embarrassment or nervousness Joshua had felt, seemed to have dissipated and he was well-ready to present himself to the incoming bride.

  Perhaps it was his meeting earlier, with a woman so wild and untamed, that he felt ready to accept what came next. Anything seemed better than that. He hoped, at least, that she would be not entirely unpleasant to look at, though he had really paid no mind to age or looks. He needed a woma
n of good breeding if he was going to successfully convince his family…

  “If you don’t mind me asking, Mr. Dansby,” Mr. Stanfield came and stood beside Joshua who was lost in his future calculations. “Who exactly are you looking for?”

  Joshua pursed his lips, shifting his eyes to the side then back to Mr. Stanfield.

  “Please don’t repeat this anywhere else, or to anyone else,” he began.

  Mr. Stanfield nodded, assuredly. “Of course, Mr. Dansby. I wouldn’t dream of it.”

  Joshua coughed and made his voice low, lowering himself toward the shorter Mr. Standfield. “I’m waiting for a woman.”

  “A woman, Mr. Dansby?” Mr. Stanfield’s voice burled underneath his mustache.

  Joshua feigned clearing his throat and stood once again upright, his hands fixing at his suit.

  After a moment of silence, and perhaps trying to comprehend exactly what the young, brooding man meant, Stanfield’s red face soon puffed round at the sides with a smile.

  “Oh, Mr. Dansby! Why, congratulations!”

  Joshua’s face gave a hint of red, but he tipped his hat, using the shadow to hide any evidence.

  Mr. Stanfield surveyed the crowd of people that remained near the post, and another group of people boarded a buggy, headed toward town.

  “Mr. Dansby, perhaps if you described her, I can help you to locate her.”

  “I’m afraid you know just about as much as I do, Mr. Stanfield,” Joshua muttered.

  Mr. Stanfield’s eyes widened.

  “Oh--oh my. Well then. Perhaps…”

  The two of them scanned the area, and still no obvious choices.

  “I don’t understand,” Joshua began. “She was definitely supposed to be on this train...she--”

  Joshua stopped mid-sentence, an uneasy feeling now dawning on him.

  He turned around to meet eyes with Cora on the other end of the platform, her face telling of her own kind of realization.

  “You,” he shouted.

  “You yourself!” she shouted back.

  The two of them marched toward one another, livid at the notion.

  “You lied to me!” Joshua called as he neared.

  “You aren’t exactly a prize yourself,” Cora sneered.

  Then, only a breath away, Joshua Dansby and Cora Sutton met, for the first time to each other, and the second time that day.

  Chapter 4

  “A deal is a deal,” Joshua Dansby paced outside, in front of the small house of the town minister.

  “Exactly. A word is a word,” Cora folded her arms, her foot tapping in the grass nearby.

  Joshua let out a snort. “And exactly how much is a word worth from a Cora LeBlanc?”

  “Why does it matter? You live in the rugged wilderness,” Cora’s hands flew into the air. “Why do you need a fancy, French aristocrat in the middle of this dust heap?”

  Joshua wiped at his jaw, a hand on his hip, sending a darting look to Cora.

  “A girl like you would never understand.”

  “Girl?” Cora was taken aback.

  Joshua pointed his finger at her. “Yes, girl. You thought you’d take advantage of an opportunity, come here, get rich, live some hokey fairytale, did you?”

  Cora rolled her eyes. “Believe me, this is anything but a fairytale.”

  “You don’t understand,” Joshua sighed, and locked eyes with Cora. For the first moment since they had met, Cora thought she noticed real desperation and sadness in his eyes, and not the gleaming playfulness he first showed off before they knew. She looked away.

  “My name is Joshua Dansby,” he said.

  “I know that already,” Cora sighed.

  “--I know, but you don’t understand what that means.” Joshua held his hand to his chest. “I’m the Joshua Dansby. Now, I know that doesn’t mean much to you, coming from the shady streets of New York City--”

  Cora opened her mouth in protest, but Joshua stopped her.

  “Here,” he said, “that means that I’m the heir of the Dansby fortune. I’m the only son of Michael Wetherby Dansby, who’s the grandson of Jacob Thomas Dansby, who was the founder of this town. He cultivated the land, practically built the town himself. Responsible for the wellbeing of the people, of the cattle ranches, of ensuring the best for this whole region--he’s the one who brought the rail to us, and made jobs open for so many people moving out here..”

  For a moment, Cora felt her heart beating a little faster. Joshua Dansby began to be more animated as he spoke, and she almost forgot their earlier stint.

  “All of that is supposed to go to me, or at least, I thought it would. Turns out that a man named Walter Howell, my father’s cousin, has rights to the inheritance. And my stubborn, stubborn old fool of a grandfather, when he made his will to grant me the land, he had one stipulation. You know what that was? I had to be married. Married!”

  Joshua took of his hat and ran his hand through his hair, and Cora’s heart beat once again at the sight, though she reprimanded herself inwardly for it.

  “It’s the 1870s for crying out loud,” he continued. “If a man wants to make a living, he ought to be able to do it all without a wife. But the old man was just so old-fashioned.” Joshua sighed. “That’s why I needed a wife. And a well-bred one at that. There’s a board of directors I have to go up against, and Walter’s got his lawyers watching my every move. There’s no way you’d last one day in high society. New York or not, I can tell you’re just a regular miss off the street.”

  He turned his back away, but not without avoiding Cora who spun her way around to face him.

  “A regular miss off the street?” she exclaimed. “I may not have a family, or much money, or be your definition of high-class, but I’m not just some rat on the street. You’re an insufferable, vain, degrading man, and I will not continue to be insulted by you constantly.”

  She backed down, and folded her arms. “And I’m sorry I lied to you.”

  Joshua noticed the change in her tone, and watched as she looked off, almost sadly, toward the ground. The breeze picked up as the clouds continued to gather, still holding off the rain. Strands of her brown hair flitted loose from her braid and across her face.

  He was taken aback. She looked almost...pretty.

  Her voice brought him back to the moment.

  “For a long time, I’ve been wanting to start over. Life has never been…” she glanced at him. “Easy for someone like me. I admit that lying about who I was...was wrong. But believe me when I say that...at the time, I felt like I had no other choice. And this sounded too good to be true…”

  Cora’s big brown eyes gazed up at him, glistening. Joshua nearly choked on his own words. As stubborn and immature as she seemed, apologizing must have been difficult, and her eyes said everything.

  “Okay,” he said, and he began walking up the steps to knock on the minister’s door.

  “Wait, what are you doing?” Cora called out from the grass.

  “What does it look like?” he gestured for her to come follow. “A deal is a deal. And, maybe, if you help me...if, when the time comes, you find yourself back on your feet and choose to leave...I won’t stop you.”

  And they walked toward a new life together. For the time being.

  The rain didn’t take long to unleash. Just moments before arriving at Joshua Dansby’s, the newlyweds, Cora and Joshua, were caught in the rain.

  “Richest guy in town and you can’t have a covered buggy?” Cora shouted. Joshua helped to get her off of Kan, and they made their way to the barn.

  “Help me dry him off.” Joshua began to gather rags and towels nearby to drape across the great horse, his own clothes drenched. He removed his suit, and the damp white button down pressed against his broad chest.

  We’re married now, Cora reminded herself. But she couldn’t help but still be embarrassed and looked away.

  Her dress hung heavily with water as she grabbed for a towel.

  “We’re drying the horse when we�
��re the ones who are soaking wet?” she retorted.

  “He’s been with me through a lot,” Joshua said. “I don’t want him to get sick after all this.”

  Cora slogged toward the horse, but grunted with the weight of her dress.

  “You simply don’t understand how incredibly difficult this is,” she exclaimed. She reached for the outer layer of her dress.

  “What--what in the--” Joshua looked away as he continued to see to Kan. “What are you doing?”

  “You’ve already seen it before,” Cora muttered. “I’m just taking off the outer layer. I’m still covered, Mister.”

  She muttered under her breath, what Joshua could barely make out as something along the lines of “disgusting” or “pervert.”

  Joshua’s face glowed red. He had begun to think he hadn’t really thought this through.

  Oh, sure, Joshy, get a mail-order bride, he chided himself, what could possibly go wrong with that?

  After several minutes, the rain continued to pour outside, and Cora leaned against a post near the door, listening to the rain pounding on the roof, watching the water fall down, splattering against the muddy ground.

  Even a muddy rain is more beautiful out here, she thought. And her mind began to drift to stories and imaginations once again.

  “Cora,” Joshua’s voice came from behind, startling her.

  She turned around and peered to see Joshua among the hay and stalls of the few animals harboring from the weather, but he was nowhere to be seen.

  “Up here,” he called, and Cora looked up.

  She made her way up a narrow winding of stairs that made their way to a loft in the barn.

  A bed, and a small seating area were settled, as if for a makeshift bedroom. The extra hay bales and milk tins added an extra flair to the scene.

  “This is quite lovely,” she said.

  Joshua gave a mock curtsy. “Anything for you, dear.”

  Cora rolled her eyes. “Please don’t patronize me, Dansby.”

  “That hurts. Not even going to call me by my name?”

  Cora sighed and sent him a darting look. His blue eyes glistened with playfulness, as when they first met. Ever cool and mischievous.