Memphis

by Sara Orwig

  “Are you printing the paper again?”

  “Yes. As soon as I came back to town and moved in here, I started the paper. Since I bought supplies for the paper, I don’t have much furniture here yet, only what I needed.”

  His green eyes gazed at her as he lowered his spoon. She felt her pulse start to drum as he kept looking at her. “I’m not going to make Mazie unhappy by leaving one bite of food. Otherwise, I would push this aside right now.”

  She nodded, unable to resist reaching across the table to touch him. He wound his fingers in hers, warm and strong, holding her hand and she felt a rush of joy that he was finally home.

  When they finished, she stood. “Mazie, we’re finished,” she said and the door swung open.

  “Yes’m. It’s good to have you home, Major.”

  “Thank you, Mazie. That was the best supper ever cooked.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  He walked to the front parlor with Sophia and she glanced at the sparse furnishings—the settee and one blue velvet wing chair. Potted plants filled the room and blue chintz drapes covered the windows.

  “I haven’t seen your house,” he said, his deep mellow voice sounding so marvelous.

  “There’s very little to see. I don’t have much furniture. Come along and I’ll show you.”

  They heard Mazie clattering pans in the kitchen. “Mazie lives in quarters with a friend down the next block. She’ll walk home when she finishes cleaning.

  “There’s the bathroom, which you saw, the kitchen, the parlor, one small bedroom, and my bedroom,” she said, leading him into her room. The windows were covered with the same pale blue chintz drapes and there was a washstand, a dresser, and a four-poster bed. The polished floor gleamed and one mirror hung on a wall. Hooks along a wall held her dresses.

  He closed the door behind him and she turned to see him leaning against it, gazing at her solemnly. He reached out, his warm fingers closing over hers as he drew her to him. “We don’t have to worry about Mazie?”

  “No. She’ll clean and go.”

  “You know I want to stay here all night and all the time, but I’ll go to the hotel later, because I don’t want to start gossip about you.”

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his head down as his arms tightened around her and he spread his legs apart, pulling her close between them. His lips brushed hers, a slight touch that fanned hungry fires.

  It was midnight when he finally realized he should head for the hotel. “I don’t want to leave you,” he whispered.

  “I don’t want you to go.”

  “Your neighbors would be scandalized if I were still here tomorrow.” A small lamp burned on the table beside the bed and he turned on his side to prop his head on his hand and look at her. “You can’t imagine how much I’ve thought about you and wanted you. That’s all that kept me going.”

  She stroked his shoulder and trailed her fingers over his chest, feeling the hard slabs of muscle. “Thank God, you’re home.”

  “We’ll talk about wedding plans soon,” he said. His green eyes were filled with love, and her heart beat with joy.

  “I shouldn’t have waited. I don’t want to wait now.”

  “I’m not going to let you, Sophia. Tell me about the town and the people. Where’s Henry?”

  “He died last year.”

  “I’m sorry to hear. Who came home from war?”

  “They’re still coming home. So much has changed and Memphis has people pouring into it. The population has soared. It’s almost forty thousand now. There are people without work, people uprooted by the war, some on their way West. There’s a rowdy element that is worse than it ever was before. There are brawls and I don’t stay at the paper at night like I did. I carry a pistol.”

  “Thank God, I’m home.”

  “Hannah Lou married Dunstan Trevitt,” she said. Sophia didn’t want to tell him about her problems with Trevitt and spoil their first night together. Time later to tell Caleb, she decided.

  “I can’t imagine her family would allow it.”

  “He has them, as well as others, charmed. He’s an important man in town and he’s building a railroad.”

  “Lord, that means he’s Will’s brother-in-law. I may lose my partner in the railroad. Will can’t invest in two railroads. Has Trevitt given you trouble?”

  His green eyes probed, and she wanted to shake her head and answer no, but as she gazed up at Caleb, she couldn’t lie to him. He frowned, his brows drawing closer as he held her chin.

  “What’s he done?” he demanded.

  She drew her fingers along Caleb’s bony shoulder, feeling his smooth skin, touching a small scar. “I’m with you and everything is the best it’s ever been. Let’s talk about Major Trevitt tomorrow.”

  “No. Talking about him won’t ruin tonight—” His scowl deepened. “What’s he done to you?”

  “Nothing,” she assured him quickly, seeing his temper flare. “He’s angry over that night. He threatened me.”

  “Threatened what?”

  His voice was so cold it chilled her and the harshness in it was a side she hadn’t seen to him. “Caleb, please. You’re home now, and he won’t dare do anything. Please don’t do anything to jeopardize your safety. I couldn’t bear it if something happened now.” She ran her hand along his smooth jaw.

  “Nothing’s going to happen now because of Trevitt. Tell me, Sophia, exactly what he’s done. What did he threaten?”

  “To get revenge.”

  “I want to know when and where and how.”

  “Please, Caleb. It will only make you angry.”

  “Sophia,” he said, in a compelling, angry voice that brooked no argument.

  If he knew Trevitt’s threat, Caleb would be in a rage. As she gazed up at him, she felt that old clash of wills spark between them. “See,” she said quietly, “he’s already disturbing our night and I hate it. Caleb O’Brien, I’ve waited three years for you and you’re not going to bully me with your Irish temper tonight!” She raised up to push him down, twisting in the bed swiftly to bend down and trail her tongue along his thigh, her hands moving over him.

  He drew a deep breath. “Sophia, damn—”

  She stroked him and his argument ended. He caressed her bare back, his warm fingers playing across her nape. With a groan he sat up and pulled her against his bare body to cradle her in his arms. His long legs were rough with short hair, warm against hers as he stroked and kissed her.

  It was one in the morning before he returned to the conversation. He climbed out of bed and rummaged in his satchel producing a bottle. He uncorked it and tilted it to drink, turning to offer it to her.

  Shaking her head, her gaze ran over his nude body and she remembered that night so long ago when she had walked in on him. He was lean, all slabs of hard muscle now, his upper body so dark while below his waist his skin was pale.

  He came back to the bed and sat beside her, placing his hands on either side of her. “To hell with your good name if Trevitt’s threatened you, Sophia. I’ll sit in the parlor if you want, but I’ll not leave you alone here. You’ll be my wife soon, so let the tongues wag.”

  “Caleb! You know people won’t speak to me. They’ll be outraged. You leave before dawn. I’ll be safe then. Take the buggy and go down the alley and come back early in the morning to get me.”

  “They’ll forget. I promise you that,” he said forcefully. “Now, lassie, you’re to tell me right now about Trevitt.”

  She couldn’t escape this time by distracting him. “Please don’t call him out,” she pleaded. He sounded harder, more fierce than he had before the war and she was afraid of what he would do.

  “I’ll decide what I’m going to do. Sophia—”

  “Hannah Lou invited me to her house. I went during a morning because I thought he would be gone from home. He wasn’t. He greeted me and talked a few minutes and left. Later he came to the newspaper office and told me he would get revenge some day. He said he
wanted me to think about it for a time.”

  “That bastard.”

  “Caleb, you frighten me when you sound like that. Please don’t call him out.”

  “Has he been to this house?”

  She looked away. “Once. He was on the porch. He’s angry with me.”

  “He’s angry with ye—” he said, his voice growing even quieter, a note of hardness to it that sent a chill over her.

  She sat up to wind her arms around his neck. “Please don’t do anything. You’re home. He’ll stop now.”

  “Why was he angry with you? What did you do to cause that, Sophia?”

  She buried her face against his throat. “I didn’t do much of anything.”

  “I know you, lassie. What was it?”

  “He wants to build a railroad from Memphis to Springfield, Missouri, and he’s raising funds and getting supporters and acquiring land. I opposed it in the paper.”

  With his forefinger beneath her chin, Caleb raised her face and stared at her. “I intend to build my railroad through Pine Bluff to Shreveport, Louisiana. Are you going to oppose that as well?”

  “I won’t publish articles in my paper against your railroad. I can see why you think railroads bring progress and prosperity, but look at Memphis tomorrow. You haven’t seen what it’s like now. There are thieves in abundance here.”

  “That’s the rabble from war. Once industry begins to thrive again, things will settle.”

  “I don’t think you should stay here tonight.”

  “You think with that bastard threatening you, I’ll go stay at a hotel and worry about your safety? The only thing you can do about this, is marry me soon, love,” he added, his voice changing, all anger dissipating.

  “Caleb, I’ll be ruined.”

  “That you will be,” he said in a tender, husky tone that made her breathless. “So we might as well make it complete. You’ve always been viewed differently by your neighbors. Marry me, lass, and it’ll be forgotten swiftly.”

  “Yes,” she whispered, stroking him as he stretched out and moved over her, his weight pressing against her.

  The next morning when she stirred, the bed was empty. She sat up and climbed out of bed to pull on her wrapper. He was seated in the parlor smoking a cigar. A clatter came from the kitchen. Mazie was cooking breakfast, so she already knew he was here.

  “Caleb—”

  His features were impassive except for a glint of fire in his eyes. She glanced at the paper in his hands and saw it was The River Weekly.

  “You’re adamant against a new railroad,” he exclaimed. “This should make his investors say no if they read your paper.”

  “Caleb, it was directed against Dunstan. I won’t write anything like that against you.”

  “You won’t need to. This will make any investor worry. You point out there is already a line to St. Louis. There is already a charter for a train to Little Rock, Arkansas, so it’s just as easy a conclusion to say there shouldn’t be another one from Arkansas to Shreveport.”

  “Why do you want one to Shreveport?”

  “They’ve never gotten the one finished to Little Rock. It runs through swamps and only part of it is finished. My line will angle off through Pine Bluff and down to Shreveport, which has been a major inland port in Louisiana—and not far from the Texas border. When that is successfully running, I want to go from Shreveport to Texas. They’ve had the Memphis-Little Rock line in the planning stage for years and only a tiny stretch has ever been finished. I’ll get mine open for business.”

  “Mazie is here. Did she faint to find you here?”

  “No, she didn’t. I was dressed and sitting in the kitchen and I explained to her that Major Trevitt had threatened you and I intended to sleep in the parlor at night and protect you until we’re married. Or until I have a talk with Trevitt.”

  “You’ll end up calling him out or he’ll call you out,” she said, thinking Caleb was a whirlwind stirring up her life every time he came into it. “And Mazie will be shocked. Caleb, you’re trouble!”

  “I’m trouble! That’s the tigress calling a lion a predator.” He dropped the paper and stood up. His jaw was thrust forward, his green eyes filled with sparks, and she felt the clash between them. And she felt like backing up, remembering suddenly how unpredictable he could be.

  “Caleb O’Brien, you calm down.”

  “Calm down?” He caught her to him, sliding his arm around her waist and reaching past her with the other hand to slam the door shut. It banged closed and she jumped. She raised her head and glared at him.

  “You—” She was at a loss for words, her heart beating fast.

  “You still make me want to kiss you or shake you, Sophia. How will I ever control you?”

  “You won’t, Caleb. You’re a bully.”

  “Is that right?” he asked in a voice that had lost all anger. “There’s only one thing, Sophia, to do with you.”

  “Now you’ll not—”

  “Yes, I will,” he replied, leaning forward to stop any further protest. As soon as his lips touched hers, she pressed against him, holding him tightly, all worries and arguments gone.

  When he released her, she looked up at him and saw the amusement and love in his eyes. “You’re a handful, Miss Merrick.”

  “You’re a storm tearing up my peaceful life, Major O’Brien,” she added, laughter surfacing. “Oh, Caleb, I’m so thankful you’re home! I don’t care about anything else.” She hugged him and he held her tightly, his breath tickling her ear.

  “That’s more like it, love.”

  “Mazie will be shocked that you’re here.”

  “Maybe she was, but when I told her about Trevitt, she nodded her head.”

  “What did she say?”

  The twinkle in his eyes deepened. “She said it was high time you got married. You—”

  “—need a man,” she finished, laughing. “Mazie has been telling me that since I was seventeen years old and Papa died and the boys went to fight.”

  “Shall we go have breakfast?”

  She looked down. “My heavens, I’m in my wrapper.”

  “Let’s see,” he said, untying the sash.

  She clutched it tightly and stepped back. “Oh, no you don’t, or we won’t get to breakfast and I would be more embarrassed than I am now!”

  “We’ll announce our engagement today, and you think about a date.”

  She gazed into his eyes and felt consumed with joy. As she went to her room though, she wondered about their differences and their arguments and if Trevitt would disrupt their lives. How could she keep Caleb from going to see him? She rubbed her forehead, worry returning, because she knew she couldn’t.

  They left the house together in her buggy, driving down the alley and turning away from her block, but her cheeks flamed and she could imagine every neighbor watching them with shock.

  “Caleb, I’m ruined.”

  “Not when you tell them you’re engaged to be married and you’ve had someone try to break into your house. I’ll spread the word today and you’ll see, people will calm. Besides, Sophia, society isn’t as close-knit now as before.”

  And she never had been a part of the fashionable society of Memphis. She sighed. “Caleb, Papa would call you out or send me packing, but I’ll have to admit it, I like having you there and if we’re going to marry, it shouldn’t be a sin.”

  “It’s no sin, love,” he sid gently. “To have to leave you alone and fight in a war was the sin and that’s over.”

  They arrived at the newspaper office and went inside to look around.

  “I plan to hire a typesetter to help as soon as I can save enough,” she said.

  “You’ll not need a typesetter, because when you marry, you can sell the paper.”

  She stopped and turned to stare up at him. “Sell the paper?”

  “Of course. My wife will be home.” He placed his hands on her shoulders and spoke before she could reply. “Sophia, we’re not wed yet, and you ha
ve your paper. No arguments this morning?”

  She gazed up at him. “No arguments,” she replied softly.

  He grinned and then kissed her lightly, untying the blue ribbons to her straw bonnet. He ran his hands over her blue silk morning dress. “You have grown more fashionable since staying with my sister-in-law.”

  “You know how Chantal and Amity love dresses and both have so many. They were so generous with me, Caleb.”

  “I’m glad and I know they love you.” His gaze went over her features. “I hate to be away from you for even a short time. You lock the doors.”

  “I’m safe here. I have a revolver in my desk and neighbors and Major Trevitt is busy during the day.”

  Caleb nodded. “I’ll be back later.”

  She watched him stride through the door and down the street. He was marvelous. She spun around, holding her arms out, feeling a rush of joy. He’s home. She glanced back at the street and then her jubilation ebbed. She had a sinking feeling Caleb was on his way to see Dunstan Trevitt.

  Chapter 20

  Caleb stopped at the Supply State Bank on Main and talked to Irwin Spurling, the president. As he sat across the desk from his auburn-haired friend, he outlined his railroad plans.

  “You’ll have competition, but now is a good time,” the president said. “Memphis has a steady stream of people pouring through town. Transportation is changing. Before the war it was always the steamboats and the river that was Memphis’s lifeblood. I think now it’ll be the railroads.”

  “I want to get some of my money today. I’ll have more money transferred here from New Orleans, but until it arrives, can I make a loan?”

  “Of course. You were one of my first customers.”

  “I’ve got land and I want to start building a house and I need a small office.”

  “There’s some space above Randolf Taylor’s barber shop if you don’t have to have something fancy. It’s on Main.”

  “I’ll talk to him. I intend to marry Sophia Merrick soon.”

  Irwin’s red eyebrows arched and he scratched his bony nose. “Congratulations. You didn’t waste time when you returned.”