by Renee Ryan
“What’s changed, kitten?”
How did she respond? With the truth, whispered a still, small voice in her head, giving her the courage she needed to continue. “I could say my position as Mrs. Singletary’s companion has made all the difference. And that would be true, but only partially so.”
“So there’s another reason for your contentment,” he mused, glancing at Garrett now, too.
Her father knew her well.
“Garrett and I have become…” Friends, she nearly said, but that wasn’t the full truth, either, and perhaps not even accurate. There was so much more to her feelings for the man than mere friendship. “We’re courting.”
“I know, kitten.”
She shook her head, giving in to the urge to laugh at herself. Of course her father knew. Even if Garrett hadn’t gone to speak with him about her, this was Trey Scott. The man knew everything.
Nevertheless, she found herself saying, “I understand Garrett has asked your permission to court me.”
He nodded. “As any respectable man should.”
A strange sensation took hold of her, one full of hope. “When did he make his request?”
Her father gave her an odd look. “Does it matter?”
She thought that it might. “I believe so, yes.”
Smiling softly, her father guided her expertly into another series of turns.
“It was the same afternoon his brothers came to town. Logan and Hunter had stopped in to see me just hours before Garrett and I spoke.” He shook his head in wry amusement. “I remember the day well because I’d gone months without seeing a single Mitchell, then three of them crossed my path within a matter of hours.”
Molly did a quick mental calculation. Garrett’s brothers had come to town the same day he’d taken her to lunch at The Brown Palace. That meant he’d gone to speak with her father after they’d agreed to a pretend courtship. After they’d discussed their turbulent past, and after she’d told him the truth about her broken engagements.
Had he been playing his role as the besotted suitor? Or had he been sincere in his request?
She thought back to that day and forced her mind to think logically, rationally.
Garrett had treated her differently ever since their conversation that day at the restaurant, his attention seemingly more real than pretend.
Dare she hope?
Dare she open her heart to him at last? Dare she become vulnerable enough to accept his suit without reservation?
“He’s a good man, kitten.”
“The very best man I know,” she agreed. “Aside from you, of course.”
“Of course.” His lips twisted at an amused angle. “Do you love him?”
“I…yes. I love him.” She was through lying to herself about something as essential to her as air and water. “I have always loved him.”
Seemingly unsurprised by this, her father nodded.
“Daddy?” she asked, using the name she’d called him as a child. “Did you give Garrett your permission to court me?”
“I did, kitten.” Her father drew in a sharp breath. “Of all the men who’ve come to me with that same request, Garrett Mitchell is the only one I fully trust with your heart.”
Chapter Nineteen
From Garrett’s position beyond the dance floor, it looked as though Molly and her father were having a serious conversation. Satisfied she was in the best hands possible, he went in search of Mrs. Singletary.
He found her holding court on the opposite side of the room.
She waved him forward, then surprised him by meeting him halfway.
“I have been remiss in greeting my lovely hostess properly,” he said, bending over her hand. “Forgive me.”
“You’re late, Mr. Mitchell. Embarrassingly so.” She drew her hand free of his. “Tell me where you’ve been and I’ll decide if you’re forgiven.”
Recognizing the amused twinkle in her eye, he nonetheless gave her a solemn answer. “I was tying up loose ends on the contract between you and Mr. Hawkins. The wording is nearly where I want it, with the overall agreement leaning in your favor.”
“In that case, I am sufficiently appeased.”
“You are also one of the most breathtaking women in attendance this evening.”
Swatting at his arm, she laughed in feminine delight. “And now I am sufficiently charmed.”
They fell into a general discussion about the ball, the guests and the decorations in the room. “My companion has proven gifted at planning large parties.”
“Very well, indeed.”
“Although gauche to talk of such things,” she said. “I predict when it’s time to pass the baskets we will come away with sufficient funds to build a new wing on the hospital.”
“That would be quite a coup d’etat.” Garrett scowled when Marshall Ferguson approached Molly and her father at the edge of the dance floor.
The smile Molly bestowed on the other man had Garrett scowling harder. And then she was no longer holding on to her father, but ensconced in Ferguson’s arms, spinning into the center of the parquet flooring.
After only an initial hesitation in the man’s arms, Molly’s smile widened.
Ferguson smiled back.
Garrett frowned at them both.
They seemed to be getting along a bit too well considering their history.
Mrs. Singletary’s amused voice added to Garrett’s overall discomfort. “You don’t like seeing her with other gentlemen.”
“No, I don’t.”
The widow stepped in front of him, cutting off his view of Molly and her dance partner, who were now laughing together.
“There is a way to end your agony, once and for all.”
He heard the provocation in her tone, saw the challenge in her eyes and knew the widow was attempting to incite his jealousy in order to force his hand. He refused to rise to the bait. “I like seeing Molly happy.”
“When another man is the source of her pleasure?”
Garrett’s heart squeezed. “No.”
“I thought not.” Mrs. Singletary gave him that sly, far-too-sweet smile he’d first seen in his office when she’d made her initial business proposition to him.
But again, Garrett chose to pretend he didn’t know where she was leading him, or why. He might have enlisted her help with securing Molly’s heart, but he wasn’t going to allow the woman to force him to act before the proper time had come.
The music stopped—Praise God—and Garrett thought to make his excuses with the widow. But Molly was back on the dance floor. In yet another man’s arms.
This time it was Jonathon Hawkins spinning her in circles, making her laugh.
“Would you look at that?” Mrs. Singletary’s tone filled with innocent glee. “Molly and Mr. Hawkins seem to be enjoying one another’s company beyond a recent acquaintance would indicate.”
Garrett gritted his teeth. “They are old friends.”
The aggravating woman’s voice practically hummed with delight. “Our Molly certainly has a lot of friends.”
He chose to remain silent.
“At the risk of sounding redundant, Mr. Mitchell—” she patted his hand with obvious condescension “—there is a way to stake your claim.”
“Stake my claim?” He snorted. “Molly is not a prize to be won.”
“Forgive my choice of words. What I meant to say is that you can end this now, tonight, in front of family and friends.”
“I could.” He would.
When she wasn’t dancing with one of her many…friends.
The widow ambled oh so casually out of his line of vision. “I see you have come to the proper conclusion at last. I’ll leave you alone, then, to strategize your next move.”
“I don’t need—”
He was talking to Mrs. Singletary’s back.
Garrett remained alone for a maximum of three blessed seconds before another feminine voice fell over him. “You’re brooding, brother dear.”
He let
out a rough laugh. “Go away, Callie.”
“When annoying you is so much more fun?” Her voice held just a touch of irony. “Not a chance.”
Garrett arched a brow at her, then stiffened at the melancholy he saw lurking in her eyes. “What’s wrong, Cal?”
She attempted a bright smile and failed miserably. “Would you believe me if I claimed nothing?”
He took her hand and squeezed gently. “No.”
“I was afraid of that.” She sighed. “If you must know, as frustrated as I’ve been with Fanny lately, I already miss her.”
“She’s been gone half a day.”
“Yes, but she’s always been my best friend. We’ve never been apart more than a day or two at a time.”
“You haven’t?” Garrett hadn’t realized, hadn’t even thought about it until now.
Blinking rapidly, Callie stared up at the ceiling. “We attended school together, toured Paris together, returned home to Colorado together. We even took positions at the same hotel so we could be—”
“Together?”
She sighed again, twisted her hands at her waist. “I still can’t believe she went through with her threat and took the position at Mr. Hawkins’s Chicago hotel.”
“She needed to get away.”
Looking even more miserable, Callie lowered her gaze. “You mean she needed to get away from me.”
“From all of us,” he corrected.
“She should have stayed and worked things out with Reese.”
“She needed to get away from him most of all.” Garrett touched her arm, nearly sighed himself when she jerked out of his reach. “Callie, she doesn’t want to marry him. And I’m not sure he truly wanted to marry her.”
“They were perfect for one another.”
“Fanny didn’t think so.” He remembered Molly’s words in the hallway outside Reese’s office a few weeks ago. He’s not heartbroken. “Reese will recover.”
He said the last part absently, because Molly was thanking Hawkins for the dance. This was Garrett’s chance, one that vanished before he could make a move. A group of men were already gathering around her.
Garrett felt something tighten in his chest. He’d allowed himself to forget that Molly was never without a handful of suitors vying for her attention wherever she went.
A brief conversation ensued and she was back on the dance floor, spinning in yet another man’s arms.
This one Garrett didn’t know.
He was getting extraordinarily tired of standing off to the side while other men monopolized her time, her attention. Not only this evening, but at every other occasion when their paths had crossed in the past six months.
Molly’s current dance partner was a bold reminder that if Garrett didn’t act quickly, another man would attempt to claim her heart.
Unacceptable.
Callie hitched her chin to a spot off to their left. “Look at him, Garrett.”
Oh, he was looking.
“He’s brooding, too.”
No, the man dancing with Molly was smiling, one of those big, toothy, wolfish grins that meant nothing but trouble.
“He misses Fanny,” she said almost wistfully.
Reese. His sister was talking about Reese, not Molly’s dance partner.
Garrett shook his head, but kept his gaze on Molly. “If you’re that worried about Reese’s well-being then go talk to him.”
“I couldn’t.” Her hand flew to her throat. “I wouldn’t begin to know what to say.”
“Ask him to dance.”
She gasped, the sound drawing his attention back to her. Her look of mortification made him realize his mistake a shade too late.
“I can’t ask a man to dance. Why would you suggest such a thing?” She lowered her voice to a soft jeer. “There are rules concerning proper behavior, Garrett.”
Of course there were rules. He’d been so caught up with watching Molly and her assortment of suitors that he hadn’t been thinking properly. “Right. Sorry, Cal. Ignore what I said.”
His gaze drifted to the dance floor again. Molly had been passed on to yet another partner. Enough.
Enough.
Garrett set out.
Callie stopped him with a hand on his arm. “Where are you going?”
He glared at the dance floor. “To stop this madness once and for all.”
“You mean all the men dancing with Molly?”
“Of course that’s what I mean.” He pried her fingers from his arm. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
She opened her mouth to argue—Callie seemed to be doing that a lot lately—but clamped her lips tightly shut when he shot her a speaking glance. “Not a word,” he warned.
“Not a word,” she repeated, her eyes dancing with sisterly affection. Then she wiggled her eyebrows at him. “Be sure to give Molly my love.”
It was his love he planned to give her. Now, tomorrow, always.
He approached the dance floor then stopped cold when Giles Thomas stepped up for his turn. Garrett might have been willing to allow the man one dance, one, but Thomas had the nerve to shoot him a smirk over his shoulder.
“The man’s spoiling for a fight,” he murmured to the gentleman coming up beside him.
Reese’s eyebrows shot up. “Pardon me?”
“Nothing worth repeating.” Garrett released a mirthless laugh and forced himself to concentrate on his boss. “How are you holding up?”
Hands clasped behind his back, Reese sighed in a philosophical manner. “As well as can be expected, I suppose, given that today was supposed to be my wedding day.”
Right. Garrett had forgotten the date. No wonder the man was standing outside the festivities, brooding. “That’s got to be rough.”
Reese shrugged. “I’m coping well enough.” His gaze fixed on a spot across the room. “I suppose you spoke with Fanny before she left this morning?”
“Indirectly.” His parents had taken her to the train station and then reported back this afternoon. “She’s nervous about leaving family and friends, but looking forward to the challenge of learning a new city.”
Reese absorbed this information in silence. “I wish her the best.”
“I’ll make sure she knows.” Garrett studied his boss more closely. Although he wasn’t in the best of moods, he didn’t appear as distraught as a man should be on a wedding day that would never come to pass. “Not dancing tonight?”
“No, and I see you aren’t, either.”
“The only woman I want to dance with is currently occupied.”
Reese followed the direction of Garrett’s gaze. “Miss Scott is a popular young woman.”
“A little too popular,” Garrett grumbled. Mr. Thomas had no business gazing down at her so possessively. “Excuse me.”
Reese nodded his approval. “By all means.”
Wading through the spinning couples, Garrett strode purposefully onto the dance floor.
No better time than the present to make his intentions clear.
* * *
Ever since their one and only dance, Garrett had never been far from Molly’s thoughts. His eyes had held such a look of open adoration as he’d spun her around the dance floor that she’d felt an answering twist of emotion in her own heart.
She was having a lovely time tonight and Garrett was the main source of her joy. She’d kept him in sight since their waltz. She couldn’t help but notice he’d danced only with her, and no one else, not even his sister or mother.
Now, with her heart in her throat, she watched his very determined approach through the crush of dancers. He was coming for her.
She was ready.
Only this moment mattered. Only this man.
Their eyes met over the sea of twirling couples. A silent promise spread across the tiny divide. A lasting, eternal vow that couldn’t be put into words.
“Miss Scott? Is something the matter?”
She hadn’t realized she’d stopped dancing and pulled out of her partner’s arms.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Thomas, but our dance is over.”
Confusion crossed his features. “The music is still playing.”
Her eyes remained locked with Garrett’s. Oh, my. He looked like a man on a mission. “Nevertheless…”
Forgetting what she was saying, the rest of her words trailed off.
Mr. Thomas glanced over his shoulder and snorted audibly. “Him? You are throwing me over for him?”
“Don’t take it personally. My heart has always belonged to Garrett.” Only him.
Unappeased, Mr. Thomas huffed out an expletive, one Molly thought quite rude for mixed company. Then he stomped off, leaving her to stand by herself in the center of the dance floor.
She wasn’t alone for long.
Garrett took her hands in his. “Molly. My love.”
“Garrett.” She could say nothing more.
He seemed equally tongue-tied now that they’d exchanged greetings. And so they simply stared at one another in captivated silence, neither moving, neither speaking.
A thousand promises passed between them, enough to fill a lifetime.
He took a step closer and his voice dipped to a husky whisper. “I love you.”
“I love you more.”
“I love you most.”
They’d recited the same words, in the same order, seven years ago, when they’d first fallen in love. The declarations, though somewhat juvenile in nature, were just as real today. And just as life-altering.
“I don’t have a ring, or a fancy speech prepared.”
Her heart sighed. “I don’t need either.”
Talk around them didn’t cease all at once, nothing so dramatic, but rather the chatter slowed by degrees.
Then, as if realizing they were about to witness a memorable moment, the dancers began forming a makeshift circle around them.
“You’re everything good in my life,” he said, his voice strong. “Everything beautiful and pure.”
Tears filled her eyes. “Oh, Garrett.”
He dropped to one knee and a collective hush fell over the room. “Molly Taylor Scott…” The crowd pressed in closer.
“Will you marry me?”
The tears spilled down her cheeks. This proposal, this was the one she’d been waiting for all her life. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you.”