An Obsessive Bride

by Elliee Atkinson

  Claire giggled. “Your advanced age? My good man, if you are of advanced age, I must be, as well and I refuse to believe that. I am now and will always be a young woman.”

  “I misspoke. I am definitely not of advanced age. Unless you think from the important people in society’s point of view. You know they expect men to marry by a certain age. I’m well past that.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with deciding what to do with your own life until you find the right partner. It’s certainly better than settling for someone who won’t make you happy throughout your life. I know so many women who suffer because they choose the first suitor to come and take their hand. I won’t allow that to happen to me. I will be an independent woman until the… right man comes along.” She couldn’t bring herself to look at him.

  He could tell she was avoiding making eye contact with him when she said that. He leaned a bit closer, knowing she would realize it. He wanted to see the look in her eyes when he got closer. It made him feel extremely wanted which was a fun thing sometimes. Moreover, he had always been a man who went after something he wanted, and he wanted her.

  The only thing holding him back was his past. When it came out, it could ruin a wonderful relationship with Claire. However, if he waited until she knew to woo her, she might not give him a chance. He didn’t want her to judge him too quickly. If she knew who he really was, she wouldn’t be so quick to knock him for the past he couldn’t escape.

  When he leaned closer, he said in a low, deep voice. “Do you think you’ll ever find the right man?”

  Her breath caught in her throat. When he leaned closer, she’d looked up at him and hadn’t been able to take her eyes from him since. Her mind whirled with anxious replies. What could she say that wouldn’t make her look like a fool? She wanted to be cool-headed about the whole thing but having him so close and asking if she would ever find the right man…

  The right man was sitting in front of her. She wouldn’t admit it yet. She couldn’t. Yet it was only a matter of time before her true feelings came out. She would stop resisting and start pursuing. She didn’t want to do that. It wasn’t generally accepted. If she waited too long, though, there might be a chance he would move on, leaving her and her desires behind. She didn’t want that, either.

  She only hesitated a moment before she answered, “Yes,” in the softest voice she could muster. “I believe I will.”

  He didn’t take his eyes from her. He was impressed that she stared right back at him, letting herself drown in his attention. He enjoyed giving it to her. He hoped he’d have many more opportunities to enjoy her company. He used the same soft tones when he said, “Do you think it will be soon?”

  She giggled, covering her mouth with her hand. “I don’t know. Who am I to predict the future?”

  He sat back and spread his arm out behind her on the couch. “You may not be able to, but I can tell you someone who can.”

  She raised her eyebrows, looking at him. “What? That’s not possible. Who?”

  He smiled at her. “My cousin, Mark, and Adam Collins. They can predict the future.”

  She just stared at him for a moment. “No. No, they can’t. You are joshing me.”

  He shook his head. “I’m telling the truth, with God as my witness. Raise my hand to God.” He held up one hand.

  “Tell me how they can predict the future. If I ask them who I will marry, can they tell me?”

  He let himself gaze at her for a moment, taking in her beauty. “Well, you got me there. They can’t tell you that. But if you want to know what the weather is going to be like in a few weeks, they can tell you up to two weeks in the future what kind of weather we’re going to have on any given day. They’ve written up their own weather almanac. Every year, they produce another one recounting the last year's weather and how it will affect future weather.”

  “They can predict the weather?” Claire sounded doubtful. He tilted his head.

  “I swore to God, fine lady. You must believe me.”

  “How do they do it?”

  He looked out at the bright blue sky. “That I can’t tell you.”

  “Why not?”

  He moved his eyes back to her, taking in her natural beauty. He grinned. “I don’t know. Haven’t a clue.”

  They both laughed.

  “I guess that rules out stealing his idea and selling it for a million dollars.”

  “A million dollars is a whole lot of money,” Gabe said. “I don’t think I can even imagine what it’s like to have that kind of money.”

  “There aren’t many in this world, I’m willing to bet,” Claire responded. “I’ve never heard of any, anyway.”

  They fell into a comfortable time of quiet, both of them wrapping themselves in personal thoughts. Gabe thought about how important it was that he tell Mark about his past before it came to him from somewhere or someone else. He was sure someone would figure out why he’d left Kentucky and if they told Cousin Mark before he did, he would be devastated. He cared about his cousin and his cousin’s family. He was the cursed one. The one who would never be loved by his father. He didn’t want to bring his misfortune down on Mark or anyone else in Wickenburg.

  He just needed time to sort things out before he consulted with Mark. Eventually, someone would come looking for him. That, he was sure of.

  Claire leaned forward and picked up her empty glass from the table in front of them. “I’m going to get some more tea. Would you like some?”

  “I would, thank you.” He leaned forward but she’d already picked up his glass. She smiled at him and carried them both to the kitchen, disappearing behind the doors.

  She stopped on the other side of the door, which closed behind her. She stared at Agatha, who was sitting at the table in her usual spot, staring down at the steaming liquid in her coffee cup. Her hair was disheveled and her clothes weren’t quite right. One sleeve was pulled down slightly from her shoulder. She looked up at Claire. She looked tired. She looked more than tired. She looked hung over.

  “Oh, Agatha,” she said, surprised. “I didn’t know you were in here. I didn’t even know you were out of your room. When did you come down?”

  “I’ve been down here for a bit,” Agatha said, her voice cold. “Long enough to see what you’re doing.”

  Claire stared at her. “What I’m doing?”

  “Yes. I see how you’re flirting with Gabe. You don’t have him, you know. You don’t have rights to him.”

  Claire was only a little confused. Agatha had been drinking quite a lot since her arrival in Wickenburg. She didn’t know what she was saying. The alcohol was not helping her keep her jealousy in check.

  “You think I am trying to assert myself with Gabe?”

  “I see it. Everyone sees it. But he doesn’t want you.”

  “Oh?” Claire didn’t want to argue with the woman. It was pointless to argue with someone who wouldn’t believe anything but their own truth.

  “That’s right.”

  Claire went about making two more cups of tea for herself and Gabe. “And how do you know this?”

  Agatha paused before blurting out, “He told me.”

  Claire looked over her shoulder at Agatha. “He told you?”

  Agatha nodded. “He did.”

  Claire looked back down at the two glasses. She picked them up and headed back to the door. “Well, he’s right out here. Why don’t we ask him?”

  Agatha shook her head, putting out one hand. “We don’t have to do that.” She put one hand to her head, moaning. “I mean, we don’t need to bother him with that right now. It doesn’t matter anyway.”

  “It does matter. It matters to me.” Claire didn’t want to feel upset. She was listening to the ramblings of a drunken woman. She did anyway though.

  CHAPTER NINE

  A VOW TO REMEMBER

  A VOW TO REMEMBER

  The residents of the Campbell Hotel gathered that weekend for a dinner together. The festival was the next weekend and th
e Campbells' were excited for it. They wanted their new residents to know what it was like when the people of Wickenburg gathered together for a good time.

  “I’ll tell you, I don’t think there’s a person in Wickenburg who doesn’t enjoy the fairs and festivals and parties.” Dr. Campbell had joined them for the dinner. He and his wife, Abby, joined Tom and Elizabeth with the rest of the residents. “I’ll be glad to see what you think. Please pass the butter, dear.” He tipped his finger to his wife. She handed him a plate with a slab of butter on it. He picked up a roll and the knife for the butter. He pointed the knife at Gabe. “You should really think about joining in on some of the competitions, young man.”

  “What kind of competitions?” Gabe asked, eyeing the food on his plate hungrily. Mrs. Campbell and Elizabeth always made delicious dinners. He was thinking he might not leave the hotel. He might just stay there for the rest of his days, letting the Campbells' feed him and take care of him.

  The thought made him smile.

  “There’s all kinds of competitions of strength,” Elizabeth put in excitedly. “Tom was in a couple of them last year. He almost won twice. He did win once, though.”

  Gabe looked at Tom. “Congratulations. Which competitions did you win?”

  “I almost won the log splitting and did win the bell ringing,” Tom replied. “You’ll see what those are next weekend. I think you could probably beat me, Mr. Stapleton.”

  “Gabe, please.” He smiled at the young man. “I don’t know if I want to compete against the men of Wickenburg a few weeks after I arrive. If I win, I’ll feel bad.”

  “You’ll feel bad for winning?” Tom grinned wide. “I’ve never felt bad for winning. Not here and not in Arizona, where we’re from. I like to win.”

  “There’s a difference with you, though, Tom,” his mother said quietly, pulling a piece off her roll and putting it in her mouth.

  “What difference, Ma? Are you saying I’m different from other people?”

  She shrugged, still picking small pieces off the roll and putting them in her mouth. “I’m not saying you are peculiar and that no one else feels the way you do. I’m saying you don’t boast when you do win. Most people, men and women, will boast incessantly when they win, especially if they win more than once.”

  Gabe looked around the group of people as the older woman spoke. They were all looking at her and listening, even Agatha, who seemed to become normal after her two lost drunken days. She refused to look at Claire or speak to her but was otherwise pleasant and easy to get along with.

  It was easy to see that Mrs. Campbell garnered as much respect as her husband. Her words were wise and she spoke them in a soft, tactful manner. Gabe liked Mrs. Campbell. He had yet to find anyone he didn’t like in Wickenburg. Even Agatha, who sometimes came off like an obsessed stalker, was likable. In some ways, she could make him laugh. In other ways, she simply repulsed him. It depended on what mood she was in.

  Gabe felt comfortable. The room was warm, the food smelled delicious, and he was as hungry as he could get. He wanted to inhale the food on his plate, but was being forced to wait just a little longer. His selfish pride always insisted that he wait until all the women at the table had begun eating before he did. It wasn’t something everyone did. It was a personal thing to Gabe. He thought of it as respect. He wanted to be a respectful man on all levels.

  He was still waiting for Claire to take a bite. She was listening to Mrs. Campbell and had yet to touch any of the food on her plate, though she was holding a fork. She pushed around the peas on her plate and he thought she was about to take a bite when she looked up, laughing at something the doctor’s wife had said. Finally, she picked up her roll and took a bite, smiling through her full mouth. He breathed an inward sigh of relief and picked up his fork.

  The food on his plate didn’t just look good. It tasted delicious. He was excited to taste it all. He’d also heard something about apple cobbler for dessert. There couldn’t be a more delicious meal than that. A large slab of steak, onions on the side, string beans, corn on the cob, rolls… he was going to be one stuffed man that night.

  “I am looking forward to the festival so much,” Claire said. She turned her eyes to Gabe. He could have sworn he saw them twinkle, though there was nothing that would reflect light in her eyes behind him. He grinned at her. “You are going to take me on a hayride, aren’t you, Gabe?”

  The question made his grin wider. “I would love to do that, Claire.”

  “I love hay rides,” Agatha announced. “Maybe we’ll all go.”

  “I don’t see why not,” Gabe said, wanting to be accommodating to the troubled woman. “There’s no reason why each and every one of us can’t go. More the merrier, I always say.”

  Claire watched Gabe devour the food on his plate. She wondered why he was so hungry. It was amusing and attractive to her at the same time. She pictured herself making him dinners, serving him, and seeing him every day on a more intimate level.

  A thrill ran through her and she had to look away from him. Her eyes moved down the table and stopped on Agatha. The woman was looking at her. Everyone else had their own conversations going on. The Campbells' were speaking to each other, discussing their respective roles in the festival. Gabe listened to them trading jobs, making schedules and cooperating fully with each other. The couple that rarely showed their faces had come out of their room for the dinner. He couldn’t remember their names and they hadn’t introduced themselves to him. They took their seats, pulling them closer to each other and fed each other strawberries, giggling the whole time. The man couldn’t keep his hands off the woman. Gabe wouldn’t have minded, but he was trying to eat and sometimes that behavior was not appropriate.

  He kept his eyes from them and was grateful when they left early. He chuckled to himself just after they left, noticing the rest of the table seemed to relax, as well. A few minutes after the couple went through the door, Harry looked around at the rest of them and said, “It doesn’t seem as hot and stuffy in here as it did a few minutes ago, does it?”

  After a moment of silent shock, the rest of the table burst out in laughter. Claire caught Gabe’s eye and tilted her head to the side. He grinned.

  The rest of the dinner was light-hearted, though there were a few tense moments when Claire was sure Agatha was going to throw herself into Gabe’s arms and force him to tell everyone how much he adored her. She looked at him like he was made of pure gold. The strange thing, Claire thought, was that it didn’t seem like Gabe even noticed how enamored the woman was with him. She’d tried to tell him earlier in the week, when they’d had an opportunity to talk one on one for a while. He just didn’t seem to catch on.

  After Agatha’s threatening behavior, Claire decided to avoid her altogether. She didn’t do more than nod when she saw the woman if they happened to be out at the same time and passing in the street. She didn’t acknowledge her at all when they were in the hallways of the hotel.

  “I have a splendid idea,” Agatha said at one point. The people at the table looked at her. She was staring, as always, at Gabe. “Why don’t you walk with me to the festival, Gabe?”

  Gabe grinned at her. “I’m sure we’ll all be walking together. After all, I believe the central position of all the festivities is this hotel, isn’t it, Doc?”

  Dr. Campbell nodded at him. “That’s correct, Gabe. We have it centered here every year. We have many of the fairs and festivals centered here. I may not be the first owner of this hotel, but I have to admit the original founders were forward-thinking when they built the town around the hotel. We are in the very center of Wickenburg.”

  “I’m sure it makes things much more profitable for the shops when tourists come to town.”

  “Tourists don’t come here,” Elizabeth laughed. “Travelers do, but not tourists. There’s nothing here for them to see and many, many other places that are more interesting.”

  “I love it here,” Claire said softly, in a breathy voice that made Gabe�
�s chest tighten. He couldn’t look at her. She would see his thoughts on his face, he knew it. He wasn’t ready for her to see the level of attraction he had for her. He needed to deal with his situation first. Having a woman preoccupy his mind would only serve as a distraction. He had to stay on his guard and he had to do some deep thinking to figure out the best solution.

  “I love it here, too,” he said.

  “So do I.” Agatha looked eagerly at Gabe. Again, he gave her a smile. He felt so sorry for the woman. She was desperate for his attention… for anyone’s attention. He was quite sure if he hadn’t been there the day she arrived, Agatha would have set her sights on one of the other single men in Wickenburg just as quickly. He didn’t want to hurt her feelings, but he wasn’t going to lead her on, either.

  “You already lived here once, didn’t you, Gabe?” Claire said, locking eyes with him.

  “Yes, you know I did.”

  “Is it much different now than it was?”

  Gabe looked around at the other people at the table. All eyes were on him. Typically, when the spotlight hit, Gabe would retreat. He was in the spotlight too often. He didn’t want to be praised too much.

  “It’s different,” he replied. “But not in a terribly bad way. I must say, it’s grown. On the other hand, there are many, many things still here that I remember.”

  “It’s only been twenty years,” Claire said. “Give it another twenty and see what happens.”

  “I don’t plan to be gone from Wickenburg again,” Gabe said. “I’m going to buy a ranch and stay here. Or maybe I’ll just stay on at this hotel. I get good meals cooked for me here.”

  Elizabeth laughed. “Thank you, Mr. Stapleton. But when you move to your new ranch, you can still get meals here. We serve all the time, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Anyone can come. You are welcome.”