Tavia offered a nod and allowed “I have tried” To suffice for an answer.
“Yes, well,” Mrs. Baker said. “Your father is a good man. Why is he allowing his daughter to gad about unescorted?”
Tavia allowed a deep breath as she contemplated her response. When she met the older woman’s gaze, she found an unexpectedly soft expression. “You know my father?”
“Quite well. And your mother, too. Was there a disagreement?”
She managed a nod.
“And you’ve apologized?”
Tavia hesitated. “I plan to, yes.”
Rit’s mother reached for the teacup strewn with roses and took a sip then set it back down gently. “I see. When are you returning home to remedy the situation, then?”
“My plans are under consideration,” Tavia said in the most assured tone she could manage.
“Your plans to apologize or your plans to return home?” Rit’s mother asked coolly.
Again Tavia hesitated. “I have a letter started to my parents that I will mail as soon as it is finished.”
“I have a man going to post letters for me this afternoon. He will be leaving at four.” There was no missing the woman’s direct look.
“Then I shall finish the letter and have it ready for your man to deliver it along with yours.”
Mrs. Baker nodded ever so slightly. “And your plan to return home?”
“Those plans would still be under consideration.”
“Because you are now engaged to my son?”
“You’ve been misinformed,” Tavia said. “I did not agree to an engagement.”
“And he did not intend to ask.” The older woman paused and lifted one dark brow. “It is part of the ruse you and he have perpetrated on all of us.”
“Yes,” Tavia said softly, her guilt suddenly stinging. “That’s true.”
“Oh, Miss Derby,” Rit’s mother said with an unexpectedly light tone. “You are everything my son said you would be and more.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Of course you do,” she said as she stood and motioned for a maid. “You’ll do just fine, and you know very well that you’re a good match for my Merritt. Or do you?” She shook her head and waved away any further response. “Dinner at six, Tavia. I can call you Tavia, can’t I?”
“Yes, please do,” Tavia called to the retreating woman.
“Very well, and you may call me Mother. Now why don’t you go and finish that letter and then find a horse to ride? I understand you’re an accomplished horsewoman.”
“What else does she know about me?” Tavia said under her breath.
“That you do not type,” Mrs. Baker said as she disappeared inside. “Neither did I, dear,” drifted toward her on the breeze.
Tavia returned to her room and the stack of writing papers containing her unfinished letter to her parents. Each version of the heartfelt letter had gotten a little closer to the truth. None, however, were without the words that showed her stubborn pride, pride that kept her from admitting that she was wrong to leave the way she had. Surely she could have proven her independence to her father without defying him. She still could.
Crumpling the paper, she set it aside and began again, this time limiting her words to those of heartfelt apology without qualification. She was wrong to leave. Her father was right to be concerned. The words flowed easily, and Tavia did not pause until she was done.
As she folded the letter and rang for a maid to fetch it, she felt a weight being lifted. Of course she wouldn’t be completely happy until she could have her parents’ response face-to-face, but for now knowing they would soon be reading her heartfelt apology made her smile.
Tavia easily found the stables, though choosing a horse to ride was more difficult. She finally settled on a dappled mare with a spirited step. “She’ll run if you let her,” The stable boy said.
“Then I fully intend to let her,” Tavia responded as she settled onto the saddle and headed away from the stables.
“Watch out for those clouds to the west,” he called. “Those look like just the kind that’d turn on you.”
“I grew up on a ranch,” she said over her shoulder. “I’ll be fine.”
Though the rolling hills were no match for the majestic Rocky Mountains, the wide-open terrain was a welcome change from the city where she’d spent the past two weeks.
Her conversation with Mrs. Baker chased her as she allowed the horse to dictate the pace. How had pretending an affection for Rit become the real thing? Or perhaps it wasn’t the real thing at all, but just pretending done overboard.
Yes, that had to be it. She hadn’t even kissed the man, and goodness knows they would never agree on politics. Tavia urged her mount forward, and the mare readily complied. Hoofbeats thundered over hard-packed prairie and beat a staccato rhythm that drowned out her thoughts.
The horse crested a hill, and they headed down the other side toward a babbling brook some distance away. When they reached the stream, Tavia dismounted and enjoyed the view while allowing the mare to drink.
A lone rider coming over the hill caught her attention. As he neared, she saw it was Rit.
“Thought I’d join you,” he called. “How are you liking Texas so far?”
“I like it just fine,” she said as he dismounted and let his horse wander toward the stream. “A fact that has no bearing on whether Texas and Colorado compare.”
“They don’t,” he said as he closed the distance between them and then nodded to her mare. “Good choice of horses. That one’s fast but surefooted. She’ll take you where you want to go and get you there quickly.”
“I have enjoyed the ride so far,” she said. “Oh, and I have now met your mother.”
Rit grimaced. “How did that go?”
She laughed. “Well, I learned your mother did not type either.”
He joined her in her laughter. “No, she most certainly did not. However, my father did not find that a hindrance to their relationship.”
“Well, see there. There are some men who can look past that kind of flaw in a woman.”
“I’ve been looking past that flaw for two weeks,” he said. “Now, I’ve got an hour before I have to be back at the ranch. I say we let these horses show us what they can do.”
“You’re on.”
A few minutes later, they were riding side by side over the hills and through the deep green valleys that made up the Baker Ranch. Finally they reached another flat plain where cattle grazed off in the distance. Rit pulled up short, and Tavia joined him.
“See those cattle over there?” When she nodded, he continued. “They are descendants of the first animals my grandfather raised right here. He was a rancher, and he thought my mother was a raging fool for marrying a man of commerce.”
Tavia smiled. “I had a grandfather very much like yours. Thanks to him, I spent my younger years living just like this.”
“On horseback in open lands?” Rit shrugged. “Don’t see a problem with that.”
“Well, you wouldn’t,” she said. “So I’ll repeat a question I asked you last week in New Orleans. Why does a man who loves all of this so much live in the city and spend his days in an office?”
“I don’t recall that you phrased it exactly that way,” he said as he looked out over the horizon. “But I can answer with one word: loyalty.”
She waited for him to explain. Instead, he surprised her by digging in his heels and setting the horse in motion. It took her a minute, but eventually she caught up with him.
“Good job of eluding the topic of discussion. I’ve seen you do that with politics, so I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised you’d try the technique elsewhere.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Exactly my point,” she said. “So either ride or explain your cryptic statement.”
Rit laughed. “I choose ride. Come on. I’ll show you another of my favorite places on the ranch.”
Off he went. Tav
ia easily kept up with him, and after a while she forgot anything but the feel of the horse beneath her and the wind in her hair. He led her across the plain and over a stream shallow enough to walk the horses through. Over the next rise, she spied some rock outcroppings.
“What is that?” she called.
“That’s where we’re going.” They rode to the base of the rocks and then tethered the horses. Rit gave her riding outfit a sweeping glance. “Can you climb in that?”
“Watch me.”
She followed him up the rocks until they reached a point some ten feet off the ground. “It seemed much higher when I was a boy.” He gestured toward the entrance to a cave that was undetectable from the ground. “Welcome to my favorite place on Baker Ranch.”
Tavia gave the open hole a wary look. “You go first.”
He pressed past her, chuckling. “Wait just a minute and I’ll see if the matches are dry.”
Apparently they were, for Rit struck one and a golden glow filled the cave. Tavia ventured inside and found the little cave was actually only a few feet deep. Primitive drawings decorated the walls.
“Indians?” she asked as she traced the figure of a buffalo hunter.
“Bakers,” Rit responded. “My brothers and I used to love to pretend.” He nodded toward the wall. “That was part of our games. One of us would draw on the wall, and the others would try and guess what it said.”
“I see.” She pointed. “What does that one say?”
Rit moved closer and held up the match. In the process, he brushed her shoulder and then offered a smile. “That says someday I’ll marry a woman who cannot type.”
“It does not.” She gave him a playful swat. “What does it really say?”
“It’s us,” Rit said. “The Baker brothers. See, that’s me. The tall one. And the little guy, that’s Asa. And Charles, he’s the one over there.”
“Interesting. Why was Charles over there?”
Rit laughed. “Oh, he was probably mad about something that day. He always did accuse Asa and me of conspiring against him.”
“And you still are.”
He failed to hide his surprise. “How do you know that?”
She shrugged. “Because I couldn’t help but notice that the man you’re meeting with here is a railroad man. Bud Smith, right?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. I haven’t met him yet.”
“Well the staff has, and I heard the maids talking about him. If he’s who I think he is, he doesn’t want Baker Shipping. Baker Ranch, probably, but not Baker Shipping.”
Rit tossed the match aside and the back of the cave plunged into darkness. “The ranch will never be for sale.”
“Of course.”
She moved toward the sunshine with Rit behind her. When she emerged onto the ledge, she stopped to admire the view.
“So,” she said when Rit joined her, “you and Asa are inseparable, yet Asa isn’t here.” Tavia paused to consider a moment. “My best guess is you’re here to keep Charles away from the office in New Orleans. There is a buyer for the company, and you and Asa have decided to let the others believe it’s Mr. Smith. But the real buyer is probably arranging the deal with Asa and Miss O’Shea right now.”
Rit shook his head. “I knew I should have picked a woman who wasn’t as smart as you to deflect the bride brigade.”
“I chose you, remember?”
“When you thought I drove a taxicab.”
She smiled again. “And don’t you forget it, mister. Now, shall we see if I can get down from here without falling on my head?”
“I’ll help you.”
“Thank you,” she said as she shrugged away his offer of assistance. “I’ll do it myself.”
“Of course you will.”
And she did. When she’d climbed into the saddle once more, Tavia posed a final question regarding the family business. “What I’m not clear on is your mother’s role in all of this. Is she in on the ruse and playing along, or doesn’t she realize you and Asa are pulling the wool over everyone’s eyes?”
“That, Miss Derby, is the question of the day.” He grasped the reins. “I have no idea what the answer is. Now let’s ride.”
Tavia followed Rit back along the prairie and across the stream, this time at a slower pace. Too soon, he turned his horse toward the ranch. Tavia followed, though she longed to continue her ride.
He paused beneath a stand of pine trees and reached for his bandana to swipe at his forehead. “I’m loyal to family, Tavia,” he said. “My father loved this ranch, but he loved Baker Shipping, too. I’m only spending my days in that office building until I know I can hand it over to someone whom my father would approve of.”
“And do you have that someone in mind?”
“I think so,” he said. “And I’m hoping it will happen sooner rather than later.”
She nodded toward the ranch house in the distance. “Is that what the meetings are about?”
“In a roundabout way, yes.” He shrugged. “I can’t say any more than that.”
Tavia reached over to give him a playful hug. “You don’t have to. Just go on back and have your meetings. I plan to take advantage of the afternoon to continue my ride.”
“Do you think that’s safe?” He nodded toward the distance. “I don’t like the look of those clouds.”
“You sound like the stable boy. I’ll be fine. Now go.”
“Promise me you won’t take any foolish chances.”
“I already have,” she said lightly. “I’m here, aren’t I? And apparently engaged to you.”
His brows rose.
“Well, at least your mother thinks so. I tried to explain. She wouldn’t listen.”
Again he laughed. “Imagine that. I have two stubborn women in my life.”
“I am not stubborn,” she said as she gathered up the reins. “I just know what I want and how to make it happen. And occasionally I just might feel the need to educate others.”
“Stubborn!”
She dug in, and the horse bolted off. “So are you!” she called. “But I don’t mind!”
Rit watched Tavia ride away, and a little part of his heart went with her. It was sappy, how he felt when he was around her. Ridiculous that he couldn’t get her off his mind. He’d been fooled by the same game he’d used to fool everyone else.
He really was smitten.
No, he decided. He was in love. Exasperated at her stubbornness and enthralled with her amazing combination of brains and beauty, but unmistakably in love.
If only she felt the same.
“Are you coming?” Charles called.
Reluctantly, he turned his attention away from Tavia’s retreating figure and followed Charles into Father’s library where the others were already waiting. He recognized all the faces but one, and Charles hurried to remedy that.
“Pleased to meet you,” he said to the railroad man who was indeed Bud Smith. “I look forward to hearing what you’ve got to say.”
So Bud started talking. And kept at it for over an hour. Then another hour passed, and Bud had commenced to debating Charles and entertaining Mother. Rit had almost fallen asleep in his father’s favorite chair, the rain now drizzling outside, when the butler knocked on the door and delivered Mother a note.
She unfolded the paper and read it then cut her eyes toward Rit. “This is for you,” she said. “As to the rest of you, I say this meeting is adjourned and I will see you at dinner. All this talking has exhausted me.”
She rose and walked over to hand the note to Rit. “Go see to your woman,” she said just loud enough for him alone to hear. “I like her.”
Rit unfolded the paper. “The horse has returned without Miss Derby.”
Two seconds later, he was out the door and heading for the stable.
Chapter 7
Raindrops doused Rit as he stepped outside the stables, leading his bay. Of all the horses in his stable, this one was the least skittish and the most adept at traveling wet ground a
t a trot. Tavia’s horse had come back uninjured. That told him either she’d fallen off or she’d decided to take cover from the weather and the horse had bolted.
From what he’d seen of her ability to ride this afternoon, the latter was much more likely than the former. Unless the downpour had caught her on the wrong side of the ranch, there was one place a smart girl like Tavia would be sheltering from this weather. For that reason, he brought his saddlebags with the blanket and emergency rations inside.
He set the bay off in the direction of the cave, the rain pelting him as the horse fairly flew over the familiar ground. When he reached the stream, he pulled back on the reins. The tame creek of this afternoon had swollen to twice its size. A sane man wouldn’t cross it on horseback.
But Tavia was on the other side of that creek.
Rit scratched the bay behind the ear. “All right,” he said gently. “Do what you do, girl. I need to get to my woman.”
His woman. That felt good, so he said it again.
The bay dodged forward, plowing through the water without so much as slowing down. “You’ll be getting two sugar cubes tonight,” Rit said as he whooped and laughed on the opposite embankment.
On he rode until the rock outcroppings showed on the horizon. He looked for the cave and found it, but the golden glow that showed Tavia was there did not appear. Instead, the cave was black as night.
He considered bypassing the rocks and turning toward the stand of pines to the east but decided against it. With the rain coming down like this, surely she would find her way here.
The wind picked up, sending Rit surging forward the last few yards until he’d reached the rocks. Tethering the horse beneath an outcropping where it was out of the weather, he tossed his saddlebag over his shoulder and moved back around to begin his climb up the rocks.
Midway up, he spied a piece of torn fabric dotted with what appeared to be blood tucked under the rocks. “Tavia,” he shouted over the rain. “Where are you?”
“Up here.”
Rit scurried up the rocks as best he could, heedless of his own safety, until he reached the ledge and spied Tavia sitting just inside the opening of the cave. He hurried to her and tossed the saddlebag aside to gather her into his arms. “You’re bleeding.”
The Most Eligible Bachelor Romance Collection: Nine Historical Romances Celebrate Marrying for All the Right Reasons Page 57