Wanted: Bookkeeper (Silverpines Series Book 14)

by Sophie Dawson

  She did love the wideness of the skirt. It showed off her narrow waist, which she was proud didn’t need a tightly laced corset. It wasn’t right to be proud of that, but she was anyway.

  The day was cool with big fluffy clouds in the September sky. With a furtive glance around, Tilde was pleased not to see anyone on the street near the station. She really didn’t want anyone to be asking what she was doing. No one knew she was expecting a man to arrive. A man who would be her husband in the very near future. Especially, she didn’t want her mother to find out.

  Tilde hadn’t told her mother about the advertisement or the responses she’d received. They’d all come to her at the post office box of the bank.

  She’d been surprised at the number of inquiries. Many she threw in the trash bin as soon as she read them. Then, she’d sorted the ones that had potential. She’d responded to three, making inquiries as to their qualifications as bookkeepers, as well as personal priorities and life goals. The one from Joel Richards stood out in several ways.

  That he worked at a bank pushed his to the top. That he wrote of his commitment to his faith also set his apart from most of the others. His goals were to be a competent employee, a caring husband, and Godly father.

  He sounded too good to be true. He must have thought it sounded the same as he’d added several incidents from his growing up years illustrating some of his faults. He’d stated he hoped he’d grown out of that behavior but couldn’t guarantee it. That had made her laugh.

  Joel, as she’d begun to think of him instead of Mr. Richards, not pressing her for the details of what the business he’d be working in when she evaded his question also impressed her. Many of the men had started their letters with inquiries about it.

  The whistle announcing the approaching train broke into her thoughts as she stood under the awning of the station. Tilde hoped no one she knew would be coming to board the train or disembarking. It wasn’t that she was ashamed or wanted to keep her coming marriage a secret. It was just that she wanted to keep it from her mother until she spoke with Joel and they made plans, and he understood what the situation was.

  Another whistle and a whoosh of steam brought the train to a stop. Jackson Hershall, a thirteen-year-old orphan who did odd jobs around town, crossed the platform to the baggage car. He would unload whatever was to remain in Silverpines. Tilde trusted Jackson to keep his tongue between his teeth about her meeting a man, especially as she planned to slip some coins into his hand.

  A movement at the platform of the car brought her attention back to watch for the man she planned to marry. The thought brought the butterflies in her stomach to life. She pressed her hands against it. It was as if there were a million in there all trying to break out. In her gloves, Tilde’s hands sweated more than the warmth of the day warranted.

  Standing there was a lean, tall man wearing a gray travel suit with a wide brimmed gray hat. He had a modest mustache and short beard that appeared black or dark brown. He scanned the platform of the station until he saw her standing in the shade. One side of his mouth quirked up and he stepped down.

  Tilde suddenly had no clue how one met their unknown future husband. What did one say? Should she shake his hand? Her fingers clenched together. She was frozen to the spot, unable to lift her feet to move. It didn’t make any difference as he was walking straight to her.

  “Don’t be afraid. I don’t bite. At least not since I was five. I bit my sister Annie and received a spanking and lecture I still remember.” Joel grinned at her and held out his hand. “Joel Richards. I assume you are Miss Tilde Lasek.”

  “Y…yes, I am. Pl…pleased to meet you, Mr. Richards.” Tilde lifted her hand and her weak grip was shaken by a firm one.

  Joel looked around, seeing Jackson loading two trunks onto a dolly. “Where shall I direct my baggage to be taken?”

  “Um, the Silverpines Inn. Jackson probably knows that but here, take this and ask him to please not spread your arrival around.” Tilde held out her coins. Joel lifted an eyebrow, ignored the coins, and carried his satchel across to the young man. As he chatted with Jackson, who took the satchel, Tilde saw him pull coins from his pocket and give them to the teen.

  When Joel returned, he held out his arm. “May I escort you to wherever we are to become more familiar with each other?”

  Heat flushed Tilde’s face. Becoming more familiar was a fascinating idea, especially since they planned to marry. They would be much more familiar with each other very soon. An intriguing feeling passed through her as she took his arm and turned, walking to the steps leading down to the street.

  CHAPTER THREE

  The street they crossed was dirt and rutted. So different from the cobbled streets of Cottonwood. Joel walked beside Tilde until she reached the steps up to the boardwalk in front of a building, then he paused to allow her to proceed him. He thought she would walk along but was surprised when she stopped at the first building and put a key into the lock. He looked up and his mouth dropped.

  “This is your business?”

  “Yes, come in. I’m not wanting to have this conversation on the street.”

  Tilde pushed the door open and went in. Joel followed. The bank itself was not large: Two teller windows with a desk behind the black granite counter. A couple of straight chairs under the front window. She went past the desk and into a room near the back. Joel wiped his fingers down his mustache. Never had he thought the business she ran would be a bank.

  He found her removing her hat, placing it and the pin that held it in place on a small shelf in the corner. She turned and looked at him.

  “Please, have a seat. We can chat here. I can tend to any customers who might come in.” Tilde sat in the large swivel office chair behind the broad mahogany desk. She looked like a child sitting in her father’s chair. She was, the thought came to him. Not a child. No, her curves showed she was a woman. But she was petite in bone structure and thin, as she’d said in her letter. It was her green eyes that gave the illusion. Large and open, framed with long lashes. They gave her the look of youth and innocence. Which is exactly what she was.

  Joel knew she was twenty, barely. She’d written that her birthday was July 14th. It was mid-September now. It suddenly struck him how short a time had elapsed between when he first saw the advertisement and today. Nine weeks, maybe ten. Not a lot of time to make such a life changing decision.

  Tilde cleared her throat. Her gloves now rested on the desk. She was fiddling with the fingers. Her nervousness was palpable and the desire to give her a hug of comfort almost had him rising from his seat.

  “Mr. Richards…”

  “Please, call me Joel. If we are going to marry, I think we can be a bit more intimate.”

  As she blushed and dropped her eyes, he knew his phrasing didn’t relieve her of her tension. In fact, they may have added a new layer.

  “Yes, um, Joel. Please call me Tilde.”

  When she didn’t continue, Joel decided to begin the conversation. “I understand why you didn’t tell what your business was. A wise choice.”

  “Thank you. I didn’t want to advertise for a banker. I would have had all sorts of conmen writing me. There were enough of those anyway.”

  When Tilde didn’t continue, Joel did. “You wrote me about the earthquakes and deaths of your father and brother. Please accept my sympathies. I know I wrote them to you, but I wanted to tell you in person.”

  “Thank you.” Tears filled Tilde’s eyes. “It’s been difficult. Everything was happening so fast. The mine collapse, mudslide, all the deaths, then trying to pick up the pieces of our lives. The conmen and outlaws coming to town. Trying to keep the bank working.

  “So many families leaving town, abandoning their houses and mortgages. Mother refusing to help. I was simply a teller before. I didn’t know how to do so many of the banking procedures. Trying to learn them with no one to teach me and no books to read. Then the attempted robbery.” The words came tumbling over each other.

 
When Joel saw Tilde brush tears from her face, he couldn’t stop himself. He stood and went around the desk. Lifting her from the chair, he pulled her to his chest, his arms wrapping around her, stroking his hand up and down her back.

  “You never had a chance to grieve, did you? You can now. I’m here and can take some of the burden off of you.”

  When Tilde broke down sobbing, he knew he’d said the right thing. Offered the comfort and support she needed. He marveled at how right she felt in his arms. Lifting her slightly, Joel turned and sat in the chair with her on his lap. He didn’t care that it wasn’t proper. Didn’t care that if someone saw it would cause a scandal. They were to be married, after all.

  All doubt he’d had before meeting her vanished. Coming here was right. Joel had prayed hard before he sent the first letter. He prayed each day asking for guidance. When everything preceded so smoothly, he knew this was God’s will.

  Even then he doubted. Was he really following what God wanted him to do? Was he mistaken? The questions had rolled around in his mind even on the train trip west. Especially on the train. Now, they were ashes in the wind. Blown away by the feel of her in his arms and the sound of her sobs.

  ~~~~~

  As her grief drained away with her tears, Tilde became aware of where she was and with whom. She jerked upright, away from his chest. When she tried to stand, his arms held her in place.

  “Just relax and catch your breath. Are you feeling better?” Joel’s hand resumed the stroking of her back.

  Tilde took several deep breaths. A thought of their conversation brought a giggle to her lips. “Is this the ‘bit more intimate’ you were expecting?”

  A twinkle came into his eyes and he gave her a mischievous grin. “Not quite so soon, but it seemed appropriate for the circumstances. I hope there will be more moments of intimacy after we marry.”

  Tilde felt herself blush from her head to her toes. She’d thought about the physical aspects of marriage. Aspects she wasn’t supposed to know about. Her mother certainly hadn’t mentioned them. Her good friend, Sarah, gave her a general description after she married Mason Dekum.

  “Are you feeling better, Tilde?” The concern in Joel’s eyes eased her blush.

  “Yes, I’m sorry I blubbered all over you.”

  “Had you expressed your grief at all since everything happened?”

  “Not really. We had a mass service for all those who died. It didn’t seem real at the time. Nothing was personal. It couldn’t be. There were just too many being honored. Mother went into seclusion for a few weeks. I had to run the bank. It was a busy time and I only hope I did everything correctly.”

  “I’m sure you did your best. We’ll sort it out. How is your mother now?”

  Tilde gave a frustrated sigh. “That’s something we will need to talk about.” She stood up. “I’m going to go freshen up. I won’t be long.”

  When she returned, Joel was standing, looking out the window. She knew he could see the railroad tracks, depot, jail, the house where Sheriff Sewell and Betsy lived, as well as the docks along the river. He turned and smiled at her.

  “Welcome back. You look refreshed.”

  “Thank you.” She quirked her lips to the side. “Now, I need to prepare you for my mother. Have a seat. This will take a while and we need to decide how to proceed.”

  Joel shot her a quizzical look that she waved away as she sat in front of the desk, allowing him to sit behind it.

  “Is your mother a formidable person?” Joel placed his elbows on the desk and steepled his fingers.

  “She loves me but to me she is. A better word might be intractable. She has very firm opinions and is quite forceful in making them known.

  “She would not, in any way, ‘entertain the thought of working at the bank. I have never worked outside my home a day in my life and I will not lower myself to do so now.’” Tilde’s voice took on an imperious tone.

  “Ouch, what an insult to you.”

  “She doesn’t see it that way. That really isn’t the issue. She wouldn’t be an asset here. She has no head for numbers. Father used to say she couldn’t count to twenty if her shoes were on.”

  They laughed. It felt good to remember her father and laugh. There hadn’t been much to laugh about since the disaster.

  “With so many young women now running the businesses, conmen and outlaws came to town. Sheriff Sewell and his deputies have done the best they could. Many have been captured, but that’s not where I wanted to go with this.

  “We young ladies and the young widows in town realized the need for men to marry and help with running those businesses. We went to Betsy Sewell because she’d advertised in the Groom’s Gazette and brought Alexzander Sewell to town. She gave us the information so we could submit ads. She’s another good friend.

  “When I told my mother, she threw a hissy fit. A huge hissy fit, the likes of which I’d never seen before and I’ve seen them my whole life.

  “I decided right then wasn’t the time for me to place an ad. I honored my mother and set the information aside. I prayed that if God wanted me to send for a husband, He would give me a sign that I’d know the time was right. If I didn’t get the sign, well, I wasn’t supposed to place an ad.

  “The attempted bank robbery was my sign. I realized how vulnerable I was alone here in the bank. There was no way I could stop them from doing what they wanted. And they wanted more than the money.”

  Tilde looked down and swallowed the fear that rose every time she thought of the man holding and trying to kiss her. She didn’t even want to think about what could have happened if the sheriff and his men hadn’t come in.

  “That’s when I knew it was time.” She hated the tremor in her voice. “I wrote the advertisement that night.”

  “I’m sorry you had to go through that. How did your mother take the news?” Joel leaned back in the chair.

  “That’s just it. I haven’t told her.” Tilde bit her lip.

  ~~~~~

  Joel lifted an eyebrow. “So, she doesn’t know about me coming and us marrying.”

  “No.”

  Joel rubbed a hand down his face. This was lovely. Here he was in a new town, planning on marrying Tilde, and her mother doesn’t know and was against the idea in the first place.

  Beulah Taylor’s image flashed through his mind. Seems he’d left one bossy, determined woman and found another one. And she was going to be his mother-in-law.

  “So, how do you want to proceed? Are we going to get married and present a fait accompli? Or shall we invite her to our wedding?”

  Tilde’s wide eyes got wider. “I don’t know. I never went past you arriving in my thoughts. What do you think?”

  “Since I’ve never met the woman it’s difficult for me to say which will be the least traumatic to her.”

  Joel watched as Tilde worked the problem out in her mind. So many expressions and emotions crossed her face in such a short time he was caught between laughing at the sight and comforting her again for her distress.

  She seemed to come to a conclusion when she straightened her spine. “I think it will be best to present the fait accompli. We will be legally married. I’m of age so there’s no problem there. The most she can do is have a hissy fit, right?” It seemed as if she shrunk down a little as if not to be seen.

  “She could bar me from the bank. Then you wouldn’t have the help you need.”

  “Then she will have to run it herself because I’ll quit.” Though the words were bold, Tilde hunched down a little more. It was clear she was expecting trouble from her mother and wasn’t looking forward to it.

  “Let’s hope it doesn’t go that far.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  “Have a good day, Mr. Cutler.”

  “You too, Miss Lasek.”

  Joel heard Tilde lock the door. The afternoon had been slow and Joel had stayed out of sight in the office as they discussed her decision to marry before they told her mother. He had gone to check into the inn e
arlier, making sure he got the best room. His trunks had been delivered from the station and would be taken up. He went to stand in the office doorway and saw her pull the cash drawer out. He stepped back as she brought it to the office.

  “As soon as I balance the drawer and close the safe we can go to the parsonage. Abby, Pastor James’ wife, will be there and can be a witness for us. She placed an ad for a husband too. She’s a friend and will understand why I want to marry before telling Mother.”

  “You’re sure you want to do this today? We can wait until tomorrow or even later. I can stay at the inn until then.”

  Tilde laid the bills she’d counted back in the drawer. “I don’t think that’s a good plan. When word of you coming to town gets around, and it will, people will wonder why; and unless you are planning to hide in your room, they will ask you and then either you’ll have to lie or we risk Mother finding out and stopping us. We need to tie the knot today.”

  Joel cleared his throat. “Um, what about tonight? Also, where are we going to live?”

  Tilde’s face turned red. Nervous sweat beaded on her forehead. She pulled the handkerchief tucked in her sleeve out and blotted it away.

  Joel’s eyebrow lifted and his lips twitched, trying to hide a grin. “Another thing you didn’t think about?”

  “No.” The word was spoken sheepishly as she looked at the floor.

  Moving to stand behind her, Joel laid his hands on her shoulders. It was a bold move but if they were to marry, they were going to be touching each other. Tilde took a sharp intake of breath.

  “It will be okay. Even though we will marry today, there won’t be anything else until we are ready. We do need to talk about where we will begin our married life though.”