Christmas Miracles: Mega Mail Order Bride 20-Book Box Set: Multi-Author Box Set

by Jenny Creek Tanner

  After Markovic had found him and said that Candy wasn't one of the two sisters, he thought he could put it to rest and feel better about himself. Although a part of him was upset that he had doubted her at all.

  But he loved the woman. In such a short space of time, he loved her. The problem was, Dustin didn't know if he would be able to cope loving a woman who had committed such a heinous crime.

  Now they were sitting on the ridge, sitting side by side as they leaned back on the rocks. The sun was dipping below the horizon, the orange glow spreading across the landscape. Candy was staring into the distance, but Dustin had a feeling that what she was seeing was different than him. He nudged her gently.

  "Candy?"

  She didn't respond. So he prodded her side.

  "Candy."

  Candy jumped with a squeal. She looked at him, and her eyes came back into focus. Then she blushed and looked embarrassed.

  "Sorry, Dustin. I don't mean to spoil the mood. The view's beautiful." She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. "I guess I'm just not with it today."

  Dustin's arm automatically went around her shoulders and held her close. He felt bad for making her feel like this. It was his fault, and no amount of making it up to her would make him feel better.

  "Do you want to talk about it?"

  Why did he say that? He knew exactly why she was upset.

  Candy shifted against him.

  "There was a murder back in Philly. A father was killed by his two daughters, and they've disappeared. Now the authorities think that they've come to Memphis."

  "It's a possibility, I guess. We are on their train route," he said the words gently and felt Candy shiver against him, so he held her a little tighter.

  "I don't like the thought I could have come down here with a killer. There are ten of us who traveled here together. Two of the other nine killed their father and are running away. What happens if they start killing more people? I don't want to be one of those victims. I don’t want one of my friends to be a murderer!"

  Dustin's heart ached for her. He was the cause of all of this. Candy was a collected person and to feel her coming close to breaking down was hard to witness. He pressed a kiss to her head.

  "Don't think about it now. No harm is going to come to you, Candy." He rested his cheek on her head. "I won't let it."

  Candy sniffed and shifted, straightening up a little but not moving away from him.

  "What I don't get is why Markovic focused on me first? He hasn't spoken to the other girls. Why did he talk to me and assume I was one of the killers?"

  Dustin shrugged, trying to sound assuring.

  "I suppose he needed someone to start with. He did say he would try and cross everyone off the list as quickly as possible, and someone needed to go first."

  As soon as he had said it, Dustin knew he had said the wrong thing. He hadn't wanted to reveal to Candy that he had spoken to Markovic and was concerned about her story, but now he had slipped up. Candy sat up, pulling away from him to stare at him.

  "He said this? Markovic?" Her eyes narrowed. "When did you speak to him?"

  Dustin gulped and rubbed at the back of his neck.

  "When he first arrived in Memphis. I met him on the platform. He asked me how to get to Romeo's office and told me why he wanted to see him."

  "And what did you tell him?"

  "I told him the truth. The ten of you came from Philadelphia, and I said I didn't believe any of you could have killed anyone."

  "But you thought it." Candy accused. "You thought I could've killed someone, didn't you?"

  Dustin hesitated. He wanted to tell her the truth but knew she would react badly considering her current reaction. But telling lies didn't fare well so early in their relationship, and he didn't like the thought of lying to her.

  He hesitated a little too long. Candy's eyes widened.

  "Oh, no, you did." Hurt filled her eyes, and she pulled away out of his reach. "I can't believe this."

  "I didn't think you'd killed anyone!"

  "You didn't need to say anything. Your eyes said it all." Candy looked horrified. "You thought I was one of those girls, and you weren't comfortable courting a killer."

  Dustin didn't say anything. He didn't know what to say. Candy seemed to take his silence as an answer. She stood, brushing down her skirts furiously.

  "Nice to know you trust me," she muttered.

  She turned to leave. Dustin shot to his feet and grabbed at her hand.

  "Where are you going?"

  "I need to get away." Candy yanked her hand away. "Get away from you. You didn't believe me about my family, and I can't be with someone who doesn't trust me." She turned away. "Just leave me alone."

  "Candy..."

  Dustin watched helplessly as Candy started to clamber down the hill, her actions clumsy and hurried as she tried to get away. But he didn't follow her. Somehow he knew chasing after her wouldn't get them anywhere.

  Chapter Six

  A soft rap sounded at Candy's door.

  "Candy? Candy, can I come in?"

  Candy rolled onto her back, wiping away the tears, and looked at the door. It wasn't locked, but the shut door and her refusal to answer the door had to be an indication that she didn't want to talk to anyone. A few of the girls had tried to come in, but Candy had ordered them away, refusing anything to eat.

  Now it seemed Lenox was trying to get in as well.

  The door opened and, sure enough, the older woman's gray hair popped around the frame.

  "Candy?"

  Candy turned away and stared at the wall, swallowing back the lump in her throat.

  "I'm sorry, Mrs. Samson, I'm not in the mood for a heart-to-heart conversation right now."

  "Come on, call me Len." Candy heard the woman entering her bedroom and closing the door. "All the other girls do."

  Candy gritted her teeth.

  "I just want to be left alone."

  It had been two days since she had found out what Dustin had done. Ever since she had run away from him, Candy had gone straight to her room and stayed in there. Then she had cried her eyes out, unable to eat or sleep properly. The betrayal stung badly from his lack of trust, and it hadn't faded.

  She had wanted to lock the door and shut everyone out, but Lenox had made a rule that everyone had to keep their doors unlocked unless there were mitigating circumstances. Candy respected that and so far, everyone had respected her decision not to let anyone in.

  Lenox was like her mother, coming into her room whether she liked it or not.

  She felt the bed dip and Lenox sighed.

  "I know you do, honey, but Dustin keeps coming around. He wants to see you. I'm covering for you, but there are only so many times I can tell him to leave. The man doesn't give up that easily." She touched Candy's arm. "What's going on, Candy?"

  Candy sniffed and wiped her nose with her sleeve. She rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling, twisting her hands around the handkerchief in her fingers.

  "He told that Marshal Markovic that I could be one of the girls who killed their father. He didn't trust me when I told him about myself... he thought I could be a killer!"

  "Oh, darling." Lenox took her hand. "Everyone is allowed to have doubts. I had doubts about all of you when I first heard about it. But I have faith that it was something that wasn't under their control."

  Candy snorted.

  "You are more forgiving than some people."

  "I'm fifty years old. I've lost a husband, and my four kids are grown up and with their own families. I've seen my fair share of things that are not in people’s control so I've had lots of practice learning to forgive." She squeezed Candy's hand. "And I'm sure when someone kills another person out of the blue it's usually because they've snapped."

  Candy wished she could be as forgiving. But right now she wasn't in the right mind to forgive. She was still reeling from Dustin’s lack of trust and trust was a big thing for her.

  "I don't think Dust
in was thinking like that."

  "You're in love with him, aren't you?"

  Candy nodded and felt the tears well up again.

  "I wish I wasn't now." A tear escaped, and she angrily swiped at it. "I can't love someone who doesn't trust me."

  Lenox gave her a gentle smile. Everything in her said she had seen this all before. She leaned over and pressed a kiss to Candy's forehead.

  "Take a few more days for yourself. I'll tell Dustin to leave you alone for now. But remember, that man is smitten with you and I don't think he'll stay away for long. I don't want to see two broken hearts right at the beginning of pairing all of you girls off."

  Candy gave a weak chuckle. She didn't know if she would be able to forgive Dustin for a while. If at all. She was the type of woman who didn't forgive easily.

  "I have a feeling you're going to have a lot more broken hearts in the near future."

  Lenox sighed and nodded.

  "That I am."

  Dustin let out his frustration on the tiles he was nailing into the station house roof. They were stubborn and refused to do as he wanted. His hammer pounded at them, denting and bending them as he tried to keep them in place.

  The other man on the roof with him shook his head.

  "Take it easy, Dustin! You'll do yourself a mischief."

  Dustin realized that he was actually making the job worse and stopped his hammer midair. He lowered it to the roof and rubbed at his eyes. He felt very tired.

  "Sorry, Matt. I guess my mind's on other things."

  Since Candy had walked away from him, Dustin couldn't get her out of his mind. He knew he had betrayed her trust, and now she was upset and had holed herself up in her room and refused to come out. Lenox kept telling him to go and let her deal with it, but Dustin wanted to talk to Candy himself.

  He wanted to say he was sorry and beg for her to give him another chance. Now he had blown it. The woman he loved wouldn't speak to him.

  Matt Thomas sighed and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.

  "Come on, man. If she's giving you this much grief, you shouldn't even be considering her as your wife. Stop thinking about her and choose someone else to marry. She isn't worth it."

  "But I want Candy." Dustin protested, knowing he sounded like a petulant child. "I was wrong to mistrust her, but I'm glad I found out she wasn't the killer." He looked down at the roof, which looked in a sorry state. He was going to have to take all these tiles off and replace them again. "Unfortunately, I lost her at the same time."

  "If she walked away she isn't worth thinking about," Matt grunted.

  Dustin didn't know why he was talking to Matt about it. The guy steered clear of women and refused to have anything to do with them romantically. Dustin had been confused as to why since Matt was a handsome man and women swooned over him. But Matt wouldn't look at them. He seemed to have developed a hatred for women, and it hadn't faded in the two years since Matt had been transferred to Memphis.

  "I understand why she's upset, Matt. But not thinking about her is easier said than done." Dustin pointed the hammer at Matt. "When you fall in love you'll know what I mean."

  He was surprised to see Matt's eyes widen, and his face go red as he flushed angrily. Matt looked away and grabbed at another tile.

  "I'll never fall in love," he growled. "I'll stay as I am and be grateful for it."

  Dustin stared at him. The few times they had got around to talking about love Matt cut it off sharply and ruined the conversation. He had been polite enough to Candy, but he didn't go out of his way to be overly friendly. Dustin shook his head.

  "I don't know why I'm talking to a man who hates love about my love life. I must be crazy."

  Turning his hammer over, Dustin tried to pry the nearest dented tile off the roof. But it wouldn't budge. So he tugged harder.

  He was so focused on getting it off the roof that he didn't concentrate on his balance. So when the tile suddenly came off it bounced back and hit him in the stomach, knocking him backward, Dustin couldn't stop himself from toppling from his perch.

  "Dustin!"

  Dustin tried to stop his descent, but he was sliding down the roof too fast. He slid off the edge and plummeted to the ground.

  The pain was immediate and brief before the world went black.

  Chapter Seven

  Candy's heart was pounding double-time as she ran to the doctor's surgery and charged through into the waiting room. Doctor Beattie was coming out of the medical bay when she ran in. He caught her as she collided with him, nearly knocking both of them over.

  "Whoa, take it easy, Miss Connor."

  "Don't get in my way, Doctor." Candy tried to get out of his arms, but Doctor Beattie held her tight. "Let me go! I want to see Dustin."

  Nothing mattered except seeing Dustin. When she had heard about his accident, Candy had charged out of the saloon and run blindly through Memphis until she found the surgery. She was panicking, thinking that his injuries were bad and that he was unconscious, or possibly dead.

  She couldn't think like that, but Candy was frightened. Dustin was hurt - badly, possibly - and she had walked away from him in anger. She had to see him and tell him she was sorry. Candy couldn't let Dustin go anywhere until he knew how she felt.

  Candy wanted to hold onto Dustin and not let him run like she had run from him.

  "Calm down and I'll be able to explain."

  Doctor Beattie's soft declaration and calm demeanor had Candy's heart picking up more speed. She swayed, and Doctor Beattie sat her down on a nearby chair. Candy clutched at his arms.

  "He's dead, isn't he?" She could feel the tears falling down her cheeks. "He's dead."

  "He isn't." Doctor Beattie took out his handkerchief and handed it to her. "He's sore and bruised, but he's alive."

  Candy tried to take this in, but the relief was too great. She slumped in the chair.

  "He's alive. You're sure?"

  "We're sure." Doctor Beattie realized she wasn't using the handkerchief and wiped at her eyes for her. "He did break his ankle and gave his head a good whack on the platform, but he was lucky. A train was coming in, and if he'd been a few more feet over, he would've fallen onto the tracks and gone under the wheels. But he's going to be fine."

  Candy didn't want to think about how close she had come to losing Dustin. She swallowed and forced herself to speak.

  "Can I see him?" she whispered. "If he'll see me." She gave him a weak smile. "We didn't part on the best of terms."

  Doctor Beattie smiled.

  "You're the only person he's been asking for since he came around. His parents are on their way, but you're the one he's been asking for."

  He went to the door and opened it. Candy shot off the chair and almost pushed past the doctor to get into the room. Dustin was sitting on the bed, his right foot bandaged up and on a pillow. His face was white, there were dark shadows under his eyes, and he looked like he hadn't shaved for a couple of days. His shirt was unbuttoned all the way, showing her the light dusting of hair on his chest and the solid muscle of his stomach. He sat up when he saw Candy, his eyes suddenly lighting up.

  "Candy?"

  Candy didn't hesitate. She hurried to the bed and sank down beside him, falling into his arms as he reached for her. She buried her face into his shoulder and didn't stop the sobs as they finally broke through. She clutched onto him and shuddered as she cried. Dustin held her and stroked her hair.

  "I'm fine, honey. It hurts, and I'll be off my feet for a bit, but I'll live."

  Candy shut her eyes tight and hugged him closer.

  "I was so scared. When Matt told me you'd fallen off the roof, I..." She swallowed. "I thought you were dead."

  "I was lucky."

  Dustin sighed and drew back, urging Candy to sit up. He cupped her cheeks in his hands, wiping away the tears with his thumbs. Then he kissed her. Candy clutched onto his lapels and kissed him back, her trembling calming under his touch. He was all right. He was alive.

/>   Dustin drew back and let out a shuddering breath, his expression pained.

  "I'm so sorry, Candy..." he began, but Candy put her hand over his mouth.

  "No, I'm the one who's sorry. I shouldn't have been so mad at you. I get why you did it, but it didn't make me any happier. But hearing you were hurt..." She swallowed back the tears. "I didn't want you to go anywhere without me telling you that I'm sorry."

  Dustin surveyed her for a moment. Candy held her breath. Then Dustin took her hand away from his mouth, and he smiled, his eyes seeming to glow. Candy felt him draw her against him, and she let him kiss her again. Dustin pulled away from her lips and kissed her forehead.

  "I love you, Candy," he murmured against her head. "I know it's fast, but I didn't want you to leave me without knowing that."

  He loved her. Candy couldn't stop the smile, and she snuggled into his arms.

  "I'm not going anywhere," she said. "I love you, too."

  Dustin's arms tightened around her.

  "Can we start again? Without all of this? I might be ordered to bed rest for a while, though, so I can't be as romantic as you want me to be."

  "I don't care about romantic." Candy raised her head and grinned. "All I want is to be with you."

  Dustin nodded and grinned, brushing his fingers across her cheek.

  "That sounds like a very good idea."

  He was still kissing her when Doctor Beattie entered the room with his parents in tow. His father was leaning heavily on his crutch. They all stopped as they saw the scene and Dustin's mother ushered them out, shooing them away. She gave the couple a knowing look before she left last of all, closing the door behind her.

  Epilogue

  As the door closed, Dustin pulled away and looked up at his love. She was so beautiful and so full of life, he could not have asked for a better woman. At that moment he knew what he needed to do. “Candy, I love you so much... will you marry me?” he asked, his voice shaking towards the end.

  Candy pulled back and for a second she looked shocked. He feared that he had moved too quickly, that she needed longer to trust him and now he had blown it.