Faith: A Historical Western Romance (A Merry Mail Order Bride Romance Series Book 2)

by Amy Field

Nick cursed and Camellia had to smile.

  “Does he know about Amelia?”

  “I didn’t think to tell him,” Camellia said. “I was going to when I discovered he was cheating. I left him and came here. I didn’t want to see him.”

  “I don’t blame you. That’s rough but you are doing a great job so it’s his loss,” Nick said.

  Tears pricked her eyes as Nick said those words. They were words that she had longed to hear and somehow hearing it from Nick made it sound sweeter. She suddenly wanted to hug him but stopped herself. What was wrong with her?

  She looked at Nick with fresh eyes. He had gotten his hair cut and it cleared his face so that she could see him properly. He really was handsome and she could fell herself becoming engrossed in examining his face.

  “Camellia?”

  “Yes?” she started.

  “You haven’t finished your salad. Eat,” Nick ordered gently.

  She nodded and began to eat, her head bowed to hide her blush. What was wrong with her? Why was she suddenly so enamored by Nick?

  Camellia felt like she was walking on eggshells around Nick.

  After their dinner together, she felt that something had subtly changed in the dynamic of their relationship. So far, she could have labeled it as an employee-employer relationship but he began to share things with her and Camellia knew that she had gone past it. She could feel the change in her as well, her heart reacted around him and she got the fluttery feeling in her chest.

  Camellia wasn’t a child, she knew exactly what it meant but she was too scared to do anything about it. Jared’s betrayal still cut deep and she didn’t know if she could trust Nick. Each day, the feelings deepened and she found herself pointing out things about Nick that she liked.

  He was smart and funny. He tried to accommodate her but the greatest virtue he had was the clear love he displayed for Amelia. He took care of her well and she never saw him complain about it. He was always there for Amelia, be it day or night. Unlike the nanny who had abandoned Amelia when Camellia had returned home later, he stayed until Camellia was home before he left Amelia.

  Camellia found herself opening up to Nick and told him about the day she discovered Jared cheating on her. She didn’t mention Jared by name but the details were sufficient enough to make Nick curse him out for doing such a cheap thing. It had been comforting and hilarious to see him insult Jared. Camellia had forgotten what it was like to have friends. She had to abandon hers after she got pregnant as most of her friends were mutual friends of Jared and it was nice having someone she could talk to. Tracy was a good friend but she was out of depth talking about babies. Recently, Camellia found it hard to relate to Tracy. Having a baby had made Camellia grow into a mom but Tracy, despite being older, was unattached and single.

  Nick was a godsend and Camellia knew it wasn’t surprising that she was growing to like him more and more each day but she had to hide it, for her sake and Amelia’s sake.

  Her work was nearing completion. The plans had been approved and the workers were doing their best so Camellia found herself coming back home earlier. She had another offer for a job which she was going to take. It meant that Nick would have to go on taking care of Amelia and she loved the idea of that. She wanted him around.

  Camellia thought that when she came back home early, Nick would leave but he didn’t. He took his time to leave and watched her take care of Amelia. Sometimes they ate together and Camellia loved the dinners. He talked about his work and told him about his website. It was a place to search references from pop culture which she thought was cool. He told her that it had only been for searching at first but recently they had made it into a social media site where people could share things. Camellia made a note to check it out one day. She wanted to see his hard work.

  One night, Camellia came back home and found Nick with Amelia watching TV. Nick was feeding Amelia and even helped her burp before handing her back to Camellia.

  “Are you taking secret child caring lessons?” Camellia asked as she rocked Amelia.

  “You caught me,” Nick grinned. “That’s my night job.”

  “I feel like I don’t say this enough but I really am grateful for all the help you are giving me Nick,” Camellia said sincerely. “You can’t believe how much of a help you really are.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” Nick brushed it off. “I told you, I like Amelia and I like you so it doesn’t matter.”

  At his words, Camellia blushed deeply, her heart fluttering. Did he really mean it? It was then she saw that his forehead was wrinkled and there was a clouded look in his eyes.

  “Is something wrong?” Camellia asked.

  “Yeah,” Nick sighed. “I didn’t want to tell you but…”

  “Did something happen to Amelia?” Camellia said panicked.

  Nick laughed softly, “Nothing of that sort. It’s a personal problem.”

  “Oh.” Camellia blinked. “What is it?”

  “A couple of months ago, I started getting threats from a person who claimed that I had plagiarized my site. It was letters at first but the guy went a step further and contacted a lawyer.”

  As he said that, Camellia recalled the letter that had arrived at her apartment. So that was the letter that she had gotten. A lawyer’s notice,

  “I had someone handling it but that person bailed out on me and I have to deal with on my own.”

  “I am sure it’ll sort itself out. For what it’s worth, I don’t think the site is plagiarized.”

  “Those words mean a lot to me,” Nick said. “It’s nice to have someone believe in me.”

  “Why…?” Camellia said confused.

  “Some of the people have started to leave the site.” Nick said. “They think that the site is plagiarized and we are losing traffic. If this continues…”

  He didn’t complete his sentence but Camellia knew what it meant. If it continued, he would lose his revenue.

  “Have you contacted a lawyer?”

  “I avoided doing it but I think I have to do it now,” Nick said. “I don’t have any other option.”

  “You shouldn’t give up. I am sure a lawyer will do a good job in making this go away.”

  Nick nodded at her gratefully and looked at the bundle in her hands.

  “She is sleeping.”

  Camellia looked down and saw that Amelia had indeed fallen asleep. It was time to transfer her to her crib. She took Amelia to her bedroom, aware that Nick was following her. His words spun in her mind and she was glad he had shared it with her. It made her feel closer to him.

  Camellia set Amelia down and looked up to see Nick’s eyes boring into her. The tension was suddenly thick in the air and she could hear the rush of blood in her ears as they exchanged their meaningful gazes.

  “I thought that it would go away,” Nick started. “I didn’t want to burden you with but your words made me realize that it wouldn’t go away.” Camellia could hardly breathe as she listened to him. His words made it sound like he was telling her that he liked her in a romantic way but she could hardly dare to believe it.

  “Nick, what do you mean?” Camellia asked.

  “It’s exactly as you think,” Nick confirmed quietly and stepped forward.

  Camellia knew what was going to happen and she didn’t try to resist as he gently took her face in his hands and pressed a kiss to her lips. It was as if everything that she had bottled inside came out that moment. She had told herself that she would be a mother from now on but Nick’s kiss made her realize that she was a woman as well. She let herself go and leaned in so that they both kissed each other passionately for a few minutes.

  When they parted, breathless, neither spoke.

  “That was something,” Nick said with a slow smile.

  “It was.”

  “I am glad I did it.”

  “So am I,” Camellia confirmed. “I want you to know that I don’t kiss men idly.”

  “I don’t kiss woman idly and I think this is something
special,” Nick said.

  “I am happy that we are of the same mind.”

  “How about we have some dinner to celebrate our new relationship?” Nick suggested. “I make mean pasta.”

  “You know, I would like to take you up on that offer,” Camellia said, her hand slipping into his.

  Nothing could ruin this.

  Chapter Six

  For the first time in a while, Nick found himself going to his work headquarters.

  As the site owner, he didn’t usually go to the office but Camellia’s advice was good. He should go and talk to Sam; they had to go for a lawyer. The thought of Camellia made him smile. It had been two weeks since they started dating and he loved every moment of it. Though Camellia worked a lot, they saw each other every night.

  Nick had heard that babies were hindrances for romance but he found that Amelia was the opposite. She was their charm and he loved her a lot. Amelia was a very obedient baby and went off to sleep in a timely fashion, giving them plenty of time to enjoy each other’s company. Nick made no attempt to ask Camellia out. He knew that she wanted to be around Amelia and frankly so did he. He really didn’t like dates and he didn’t think Camellia was a fan either. What did dates matter when they had each other?

  It was enough for him and her.

  Nick stared at his headquarters and walked in. The receptionist greeted him and Nick made his way to Sam’s office. Sam was waiting for him and had a grin on his face when he saw Nick walk in.

  “How have you been?” Sam asked hugging him.

  Sam had dark hair and was taller than Nick. He was married and had been with Nick through his college days.

  “I am good,” Nick said brightly.

  “You seem really bright for someone facing legal procedures,” Sam noted. “Did you meet someone?”

  “I did,” Nick said.

  “She must be someone special.”

  “She is,” Nick said. “Can we talk about business please?”

  Sam nodded.

  “The thing is, they want you to close the site.”

  “I can’t do that,” Nick said immediately.

  “I know but they are threatening to go to court.” Sam said.

  “I got that part.” Nick said sourly. “Did you find a lawyer?”

  “I have a good one,” Sam took out a file. “His name is Jared Baker and he specializes in settling outside of court.”

  “When do we go see him?” Nick asked, taking the file. He flipped through the pages, settling on the picture. A good looking guy,

  “Right now if you are ready for it,” Sam said.

  Nick nodded and they got up the leave. He couldn’t wait to see what the lawyer would say.

  Jared Baker’s office was snazzy.

  Nick hadn’t seen a polished office in a while and as he was led in by the secretary, he couldn’t help but admire it. This was the sort of office he would have liked to work in. He didn’t have to wait long before Jared arrived. He was completely professional from the get go and Nick liked that.

  “Please sit down,” Jared said as Nick rose to shake his hand. “How can I help you?”

  Nick let Sam take the lead, explaining the whole problem while he sat back and listened to them. He had no doubt that Jared was a good lawyer but would he be able to get Nick out of this mess?

  Jared listened to their problem, nodding occasionally before saying,

  “I think we can fix this easily.”

  “What do you suggest?” Sam asked.

  “We can settle out of court. We’ll call them to this office tomorrow and have a discussion,” Jared said. “It’s all too simple.”

  “That sounds great,” Nick said. “You can do that?”

  “Easily. Why don’t you go home and I’ll call you tonight with the details?” Jared suggested.

  Nick nodded and they stood up the leave. For the first time in months, he was feeling hopeful.

  “You are in a good mood,” Camellia said smiling.

  “I had a great meeting with the lawyer,” Nick said excited. “He said we can fix this problem.”

  “I told you, didn’t I?” Camellia’s smile was strained but Nick didn’t notice.

  They were watching TV together. Amelia had been put to sleep and the two were snuggling on the couch. Nick kept on talking about the lawyer he had met and Camellia’s smile disappeared. She was thinking of Jared but didn’t want to say so to Nick.

  “Are you okay?” Nick asked, noticing her faded smile.

  “I am fine, a bit tired,” Camellia diverted but Nick was too perceptive.

  “I am sorry,” Nick said. “I didn’t think about your feelings.”

  Camellia had told him that her ex-partner had been a lawyer and she had gone to his office to tell him when she had seen him cheating on her with his secretary. Thinking of it made his blood boil. He couldn’t abide cheaters.

  “Don’t blow it out of proportion. It’s a minor hitch. I just want your problem to be solved,” said Camellia.

  “You and me both. He said that he would call me with the details,” Nick looked at his cell hopefully but there was no call.

  “I am sure it’ll arrive soon.” Camellia assured him as Nick’s cell phone rang.

  “I’ll take it,” Nick said and picked it up.

  “Hello?” Jared’s voice came through and Camellia looked up.

  “What’s the news?” Nick asked.

  “We’ll have the meeting in my office,” Jared said. “Tomorrow at ten,”

  “I’ll be there.” Nick said and hung up.

  Camellia’s eyes were narrowed and her face was thoughtful. The voice had sounded familiar to her but she didn’t know why. It was almost like she was hearing Jared but that was too big of a coincidence right?

  “Is something wrong?” Nick asked.

  “Nothing, I was thinking of something else. So your meeting is tomorrow?” Camellia said.

  “Yeah, I hope it dies down tomorrow. Any more of this and I’ll go mad.”

  “Isn’t a normal life going to be boring?”

  “Not when I have two beautiful ladies in my life.” Nick grinned.

  “That’s so cheesy,” Camellia’s nose wrinkled but she was smiling.

  “It’s the truth. I am looking forward to the quiet life, with you and Amelia,” Nick said sincerely.

  “So am I,” Camellia said softly.

  Nick wrapped his hands around her and they settled back in the couch but Camellia couldn’t quite shake the feeling that something was going to happen.

  Nick was at the office promptly at ten. He couldn’t sit still as he waited for the other lawyer to arrive. He hadn’t seen the person who had complained against him and he was nervous. What did this person look like? Would this issue be resolved quickly? Time would tell.

  “Don’t worry,” Jared patted his shoulder.

  He was completely composed with his secretary beside him. It was a normal day for him, but a nerve-wracking day for Nick. The door finally opened and a well dressed man walked in, followed by another man who wore casual clothes. The casual clothed man avoided looking at him and Nick was at ease. This wouldn’t be an issue.

  He lost track of the words that were being spoken. There was a lot of lawyer talk going on and Nick couldn’t keep track of it. An indictment, pay off…Nick was in over his head from the words. The two lawyers traded harsh words and Nick was glad he had gone with Jared. Jared clearly was a strong lawyer and didn’t back down once. He was good at his words and an hour later, he had convinced the lawyer to drop the charges in favor of a slight pay off. Though Nick had done nothing wrong, he was relieved to let it all go. He didn’t want the hassle of court and this wasn’t a big issue.

  However he couldn’t help but glare at the man who had caused him all this trouble. The two men left and Nick turned to Jared.

  “Thanks for this,” Nick said sincerely.

  “It’s no problem. It’s my job,” Jared assured him.

  “You can talk to S
am about the payment.” Nick said and left.

  He couldn’t wait to tell Camellia the news, they could celebrate it tonight. Everything seemed wonderful as he thought of the two important people in his life waiting for him.

  Jared didn’t like hassles.

  He was tempted to tell Alicia to do it herself but sighed as he took the file from her.

  “I have to get it signed by him?” he asked and Alicia nodded.

  It had been three weeks since he solved Nick Prescott’s problem. Nick had seemed like a good guy to him and the job had been easy. He paid well which was always a plus. The file that Alicia had given him was the contract severing their relationship and authorizing the release of the check that they would give to James Reckon, the man who had filed a case against Nick. He would have let Alicia sent it but when he checked the address, he thought he could do it easily with his car.

  It was an hour away and Alicia would take too long. Jared wanted to get everything done.

  “Thank you boss,” Alicia smiled coyly.

  Jared didn’t respond. Ever since Camellia left him, he hadn’t gone into a relationship with Alicia. Alicia was a fling and she was going to remain so. A part of him felt guilty for cheating on Camellia but not enough to want her back. His feelings for Camellia had dimmed but he did want to know where she was. She had left abruptly and he was a man with morals. He did feel guilty about being the reason for it. Tracy had told him to let it go and he was doing just that by moving on with his life.

  The file in hand, he went down to his car. It was six then and he wanted to get this over with so that he could go over to his house and relax for the day. Being a lawyer wasn’t easy but all the hard work was worth the reward.

  Through the car ride, he thought about home and was surprised when he drove up to the apartment building. It wasn’t a bad place but not the place where he expected someone as rich as Nick to live. Rich people were always strange.

  He got out and started at the noise the lift made. It shook as he pressed for Nick’s floor and he felt the distaste grow in him. Jared calmed himself, he just had to deliver the files and he would be done. The doors opened and he stepped out. Alicia had told him the apartment number was 10C so he headed for that. He knocked and waited but there was no response.