Where The Heart Is

by Sheridon Smythe

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  The Wild Rose Press

  www.thewildrosepress.com

  Copyright ©2008 by Sherrie Kelley and Donna Smith

  First published in Berkly Jove 1998, 2080

  * * *

  NOTICE: This work is copyrighted. It is licensed only for use by the original purchaser. Making copies of this work or distributing it to any unauthorized person by any means, including without limit email, floppy disk, file transfer, paper print out, or any other method constitutes a violation of International copyright law and subjects the violator to severe fines or imprisonment.

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  CONTENTS

  Prologue

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

  EPILOGUE

  A word about the author...

  * * * *

  Feeling heady with desire, Elliot tasted her lips and tenderly coaxed them open. He slipped his tongue inside, inhaling her spontaneous moan.

  Still, she didn't resist.

  He held her tightly now, tracing the curve of her waist, sweeping his hands upward to test the swell of her breasts, all the while deepening the kiss by slow degrees. He didn't want to shock her ... didn't want to startle her. He wanted the kiss to go on forever. Natalie Polk ... little orphan ... felt so right in his arms.

  She tasted sweet and hot, and when her questing little tongue brushed against his, he groaned, his control slipping.

  He pulled her lower body flush against his so there would be no mistaking his hardened arousal. For a delicious moment, he could feel her heat against him. But his loss of control was his downfall. With a gasp of shock, she pulled away and turned her back to him, lifting her hands to cover her face.

  Elliot breathed heavily, watching her try to regain control.

  "The moonlight,” she whispered.

  "Causes madness,” he concluded softly. He understood that she was attempting to explain her behavior. The realization made him want to drag her back into his arms and make her believe in magic instead of madness, but he had no right.

  A HEART UNTAMED: “This delightful, light-hearted comedy with an undertone of seriousness floats like a fluffy cloud across an azure sky of romance"

  ~Affaire de Coeur

  THE LOVE LESSON: “Sheridon Smythe brings a fresh new voice and outlook to the settling and building of the American west. This is a story whose well drawn characters will draw you into their lives from the first pages, and leave you sorry to tell them goodbye at the end."

  ~The BookNook and CompuServe Romance Reviews

  HERO FOR HIRE: “Don't miss this tender love story, which makes you wish Mac and Savannah lived next door. A great story, great characters and a great ending."

  ~Old Book Barn review

  WHERE THE HEART IS: “Putting this book down was hard to do, especially with the way the characters come to life, making it seem as if you truly are standing there with them. Where the Heart Is will spirit you through an emotional roller coaster ride that you won't soon forget."

  ~Affaire de Coeur

  HOT NUMBER: “HOT NUMBER moves at a fast pace, and gives us lots of chuckles ... a great read that any fan of contemporary romance won't want to miss."

  ~A Romance Review

  THOSE BABY BLUES: (Romantic Times Top Pick!) “A compelling, sexy romp that leaves you smiling!"

  ~Christine Feehan, New York Times bestselling author.

  A PERFECT FIT: “Lots of good chuckles and a modern relationship that goes from zero to racing speed in seconds flat."

  ~Romantic Times

  MR. HYDE'S ASSETS: “A warmhearted and charming tale of secrets, lies and true love."

  ~Romantic Times

  Where The Heart Is

  by

  Sheridon Smythe

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  Where The Heart Is

  COPYRIGHT ©

  2008 by Sherrie Kelley & Donna Smith

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  Contact Information: info@thewildrosepress.com

  Cover Art by Nicola Martinez

  The Wild Rose Press

  PO Box 708

  Adams Basin, NY 14410-0706

  Visit us at www.thewildrosepress.com

  Publishing History

  Previously published Berkley Jove, 1998

  First American Rose Edition, 2008

  Print ISBN 1-60154-278-X

  Published in the United States of America

  Prologue

  1875, Chattanooga, TN

  "Your new ma and pa are here,” Natalie Polk announced from the doorway of the room she shared with her best friend, Marla, and several other orphaned girls. “I told them you'd be right down."

  "Okay."

  Holding onto a brave smile, Natalie clasped a handful of her homespun dress and twisted the rough material, watching as Marla carefully wrapped an old garment around her most precious possession; a music box that played a timeless tune popular since 1823, Home Sweet Home, salvaged from the rock slide that had killed Marla's parents and younger sister.

  Marla often gathered her orphaned brothers and sisters around and played the music box, lifting everyone's spirits and reminding them in a voice old beyond her ten years that someday they would be taken into a loving home. She had never given up hope, and now her adoptive parents were waiting proudly in the parlor for their new daughter. The event was both inspiring and traumatic to them all.

  Natalie swiped at her wet cheeks with a grubby hand and said, with as much dignity as an independent seven-year-old could muster, “The Masons seem nice.” She meant it, even if Mr. Mason's beard needed trimming, and Mrs. Mason smelled of sweet peach brandy. They had given each child a peppermint stick and a nice smile—a rare treat for the orphans of Ivy House.

  When Marla finished wrapping the music box and faced her, Natalie saw that she was about to cry, too. She was happy that Marla was being adopted, but sad to lose her best friend. What would she do without her? What would they all do without her? She never let them give up hope, and was always there to wipe a tear or lift a chin.

  "I'm going to miss you.” Marla's voice wobbled endearingly. “Everybody, in fact. But ... I'll be back to visit, Mrs. Mason said I could. She promised.” Patting the bed beside her, she urged Natalie to sit. When her friend had climbed onto the bed, Marla said earnestly, “Now, remember, if you ever need me—for anything—just holler. I'll find a way, even if I have to walk! You and me are like sisters, Natty, and we'll never let anything come between us.” She spit into her palm and held it out. “Let's make the spit promise."

  Natalie spit into her palm and clasped her hand firmly against Marla's, sealing the promise. She nodded vehemently. “Nothing,” she whispered. “I swear it."

  "And when I grow up an
d get married, I'm gonna adopt a child from this place,” Marla declared. “All of them, if I can.” It was a wild, passionate promise, but at the moment Natalie believed that Marla meant it with all her heart.

  "Your husband might not like that,” she said. She'd watched couples come and go, saw them avoid the hopeful gazes of the older children and eye the younger ones far too critically.

  Her friend tossed her black curls. “Then I won't marry him, if he don't like it. You'll do the same, won't you?"

  Natalie flushed, pulling her hand free and wiping it on her dress. “Miss Nelda says no man will want to marry me because I don't know who my Pa is. She says my mama was a who—"

  Aghast, Marla clamped her hand over Natalie's mouth before she could finish the ugly word. “Bite your tongue! And don't listen to Miss Nelda. She was probably corned on that cheap whisky she buys with our money. Mrs. Mason told me that your ma was a fine school teacher—"

  "She knew my mama?” Natalie bounced on the bed in her excitement, jiggling the cloth-wrapped music box. Her friend grabbed it and held it against her chest in a protective gesture. Chastened, Natalie grew still, her lips parted expectantly.

  "Yep. She said your mama was a good person, but she fell in love with a scoundrel."

  "What's a scoundrel?"

  "A man who makes promises he don't intend to keep just so's he can get a woman to show him her bosom."

  "Oh.” Natalie plucked at the covers in thought. “You mean, like he promised to marry her, but then he didn't ... after she ... showed it to him?” She didn't have a bosom yet, but if she did, she couldn't imagine wanting to show it to anyone. And now, she was positive she wouldn't, after hearing what had happened to her mother.

  Marla nodded. “Exactly."

  Both girls fell silent, aware that time was running out. Soon, Miss Nelda would lumber up the stairs in search of Marla and Natalie might never see her again. She couldn't bear the thought.

  With a sob, she flung herself at Marla, her words muffled against her friend's thin shoulder. “Please stay! We'll be your family, even better than before. I'll watch my mouth and do more of the chores and give you my bread pudding every single night and mind the young ones and—and anything, if only you'll stay!"

  Gently, Marla patted her back, then pulled away. Just as she had done a hundred times, she wiped at Natalie's tears. “Be brave, Natty. You have to be the big sister now. Take care of the others. And don't forget, I'll just be down the road a piece. We can visit as much as we like."

  "You'll forget me,” Natalie sobbed. She just knew it.

  "No, no I won't. I made the spit promise, didn't I? If you ever need me, just holler. I'll be here faster than Miss Nelda can stumble to the outhouse."

  They both giggled through their tears. Marla lifted the music box from her lap and with a determined smile, held it out to her. “I want you to keep this as a reminder. Someday you'll have a new ma and pa too."

  Eyes wide with shock, Natalie took the box. “You mean it? I can have it?"

  "Yes. You can keep it until you get married.” When Natalie frowned, she hastily added, “Or until you have a home of your own. Then I want it back."

  "Are you sure...?” Natalie couldn't believe her friend was giving up the only thing left to remind her of her parents. It was the greatest gift she could think of. Bravely, she swiped at her tears and thrust her chin forward. “I am happy for you, Marla."

  "I know."

  Bonded by friendship and love, the two girls embraced. They both knew that from this day forward their lives would be forever changed, but they knew in their hearts they would always have each other.

  They'd made the spit promise.

  [Back to Table of Contents]

  CHAPTER ONE

  "What does it say? I'm going to die from curiosity if you don't read it out loud! Who's it from? What's it say? Is it bad news? Good news? Are they going to increase the yearly allowance for the orphanage?"

  Marriage had not dulled Marla's optimism, Natalie thought, wishing with all her heart that Marla could be right. Unfortunately, she feared the opposite was true.

  Needing a moment to gather herself, she ignored her well-meaning friend and read the letter again, gripping the expensive stationary until her knuckles turned white. Maybe she was mistaken...?

  When her friend jiggled her hand, she scowled and batted it away. “Hold your horses. I want to read it to myself first.” In truth, she hadn't wanted to read it at all. When Marla had handed her the letter a moment ago and she saw that it was addressed to Nelda Boone, she had known it was going to be bad news.

  It turned out to be worse than bad; it was the very thing she had dreaded since Nelda Boone's disappearance six months ago. Like the coward she was, Miss Nelda, housemother for the orphanage for over twenty years, had deserted a sinking ship without telling a soul there was a leak in the hull.

  Heaving a long-suffering sigh, Marla folded her arms over her protruding stomach and began tapping her foot on the worn boards of the Mercantile. “I'm waiting."

  Natalie glanced up, then back to the letter, wishing she could hide the devastating news from her a bit longer, say five more months. In her delicate condition, Marla didn't need the added worry.

  And she would worry. When Marla left Ivy House twelve years ago, she'd kept her promise. She hadn't forgotten them, returning often with gifts and sweets for the children, and continuing their friendship.

  Marla would not only worry, she would also be very angry when she found out that Natalie hadn't revealed everything she knew. Nelda Boone's leaving was a mere drop in the bucket compared to everything else that had happened.

  Licking her dry lips, Natalie knew she couldn't put it off any longer. She looked around to assure herself that the store was temporarily empty and took a deep breath before she began. “It's from Elliot Montgomery, in Nashville. He's coming to inspect the orphanage, and he's arriving by steamship tomorrow."

  Her mouth forming a perfect circle, Marla leaned heavily against the counter. “Montgomery? Isn't he—why, he's the founder, isn't he? Why would he come all the way from Nashville to look at Ivy House? He never has before!"

  This was the moment Natalie dreaded. “Elliot's not the founder—his name was Gill. Elliot's his grandson."

  "Was? Was?” Marla squeaked. “What do you mean—you don't mean that the founder's ... dead?” Her friend quickly put the facts together, as Natalie knew she would.

  She braced herself for the storm.

  "You knew, didn't you? How long have you known? Why didn't you tell me? That's the reason that old sot ran off, isn't it? Mrs. Boone thought with Gill Montgomery dead Ivy House would be history."

  Natalie hung her head in shame. She deserved a tongue lashing for keeping secrets from her best friend. “I think you're right about Mrs. Boone, and yes, I knew. But I didn't want to—"

  "Upset me?” Marla straightened from the counter, her dark blue eyes glittering with either unshed tears or anger.

  Natalie hoped it was the latter, because she couldn't bear it if Marla cried.

  "You didn't tell me because I'm going to have a baby?"

  The storm was going to be a bad one, she thought. “Noah said—"

  "Noah?” Again, Marla squeaked her amazement. “Since when did you listen to my lout of a husband? You said yourself that he's been acting foolish since I told him about the baby. He won't let me do a lick of housework, and I had to pout for three days just to get him to agree to let me work in the store for a few hours a day! The man's off his rocke nicolemccaffrey.blogspot.com/r, and you're listening to him?"

  When Marla said it, it did sound foolish. And of course Marla didn't mean what she said about Noah, she loved her husband to distraction. “I'm sorry. I was just trying to protect you.” Wrong choice of words, she realized the moment she said them. She bit her lip.

  "What else have you protected me from, Natalie Polk? Come on, I can tell by the look on your face that there's more."

  Natalie win
ced. It seemed she had fumbled in trying to protect her friend and had wound up hurting her feelings instead. Poking a strand of light blonde hair behind her ear, she sought to make amends. “I found out about Mr. Montgomery's death by accident. It was after I discovered Miss Nelda gone, and I was going through her desk looking for the yearly allowance I knew she had received at the first of the year."

  "You didn't find it because she took it with her.” Marla was still fuming, but her eyes had lost that angry glitter.

  "Yes, but I told you about that.” The reminder earned a tiny smile of forgiveness from her friend. Encouraged, she continued. “What I did find was a page from a letter Nelda received from the late Mr. Montgomery, written a few years before his death. He was informing Miss Nelda that when he died, he would be leaving the orphanage to his grandson, to do with as he wished. Mr. Montgomery strongly hinted that his grandson wasn't interested in keeping the orphanage open."

  All traces of anger gone now, Marla's brow puckered in thought. “So, when Nelda heard of his death, she got the letter out and read it again, deciding she wouldn't wait around for the ax to fall."

  "I came to the same conclusion.” She did her best to look unconcerned, but she suspected she hadn't fooled her friend for a moment.

  Marla confirmed this. “And all this time, you've been worried sick about what would happen to you and the children."

  "Not me, just the children. I could take care of myself, but they wouldn't have a home.” She swallowed a lump in her throat. “Jo, Lori, Brett and Cole are too old for adoption, and still too young to make it on their own. Thank God, you and Noah adopted Hickory.” Natalie smiled at the thought of the five-year old boy she had raised and nurtured since infancy. She never understood how someone could give up such a beautiful baby.

  Marla grimaced and placed a hand on her stomach. “Noah loves Hickory, and so do I. I just wish the little fella would believe it when we tell him that just because we're having a baby, doesn't mean we don't want him anymore. Noah's gettin’ tired of running to Ivy House to fetch him back."