Fields of Gold

by Jennifer Conner

  But Lordy, nothing could compare to the real thing.

  With the death of his parents and the pain and abuse from his relatives, Theo almost forgot what love felt like. How had he found Rose in such a short span of time? She was smart, funny and beautiful all wrapped up in one five-foot-three keg of blond dynamite. His throat felt tight. She trusted him. Last night, she’d freely given him the most precious thing a woman owned.

  Had he been the lover she expected? Theo was happy she was his first, but there was a part of him that wished he’d had more experience to know secret tricks to make her cry out even louder. Mind you, he hadn’t heard complaints. She seemed to be enjoying the lovemaking as much as him, though he didn’t know if that was humanly possible.

  Theo trailed a touch over her collarbone and then wound a curl of her hair around his finger. He outlined her lips, first one, then the other, as he leaned over her and kissed her awake.

  Rose let out a low moan that made him ache and grow erect all over again. His need for her went deep. It went to his core, pounding in his heart, and heating his blood. This was more than just sex. Every hour he talked with her, he knew she was more. He rained kisses over her face, teasing the corner of her mouth with his tongue. As she opened her eyes there was a flare of heat… for him.

  He was doing something right. He moved in for a second kiss.

  She suddenly pulled back and pressed a hand against his bare chest.

  “You want me to stop?” When she nodded yes, he was disappointed and uncomfortably hard. That wasn’t the answer he was hoping for. Theo obliged and sat up. He ran a hand roughly tough his hair, sucked in air, and tried to force some form of control over his raging body. “Penny for your thoughts?” he finally asked.

  Rose placed her hand against his forehead and frowned. It made a cute furrow between her brows. “You don’t have a fever,” she stated.

  “Nope, other than the fact that I am hungrier than a bear, I’m feeling great… more than great.” He trailed fingers up her side, just under her breast, but she slapped him away.

  “Oh dear…oh dear…oh dear. Don’t you know what this means?”

  He was lost. “What? What means… I…”

  She looked around for her undergarments and scooted out from under the blankets, but not before he got an unforgettable view of her perfect heart-shaped rear-end.

  “We don’t have the fever. I…” she stammered as she tugged on her dress and did up the buttons. “Not that I wanted you sick, but I thought we would be… and now. Oh, dear. I’m not sick!”

  Theo saw the trouble on her face and then understood. He walked to her and pulled her to him as she started to cry. “Your father. Now, you have to go home and face your father. Rose, I told you you wouldn’t have to worry.”

  “And I told you that last night was my decision, and I would live with the consequences.” She stepped back and wiped away tears. “I don’t want to talk about this. What’s done is done. My choice.”

  He started to tell her, this wasn’t just her damn choice. Hell, she wasn’t the only one in the barn last night, but her nerves were frayed like an old rope. This conversation was best left to be finished when they got back to Seattle.

  At least one of them was happy they were still alive.

  It took them most the rest of the day to make their way back to Seattle. The roads were rutted and full of water from the rain the night before. The wagon bumped along, creaking at every pull from the horses.

  Rose tried to think of something to say to Theo, but after sharing so many intimate hours in the barn, she wasn’t sure what to say other than it was the best night of her life.

  Women had murmured behind cupped hands they didn’t much like when their husbands did “that” to them. They obviously hadn’t had Theo as a lover. He was tender, gentle, and filled with a passion that drove her to do things she could only blush thinking about now.

  But, she hadn’t wanted a commitment, she’d only wanted one night. She was supposed to be dead.

  “Whoa,” he called. Theo clicked his tongue and brought the horses to a stop in front of her father’s store.

  Her father came out , worry creasing his face. “Where have you been? You are late.”

  “Yes father, I know.”

  As Theo unhooked the horses, Mister Conner and Sam, came out the swinging doors of their shop and joined them in the muddy street. The bustle of the busy morning shoppers and vendors had thinned.

  The sweet smell of Mrs. MacWilliams cardamom bread from the bakery next door assaulted her nose and told her she was home, but Rose knew things would never be the same. Theo offered a hand to help her down. Mud squished up around her shoes as her feet sank.

  Her father barked, “Where’s the pastor?”

  “He came down with the fever,” Theo began, and explained what happened.

  “Then you had to leave alone?”

  “Yes, and no.” Theo drew off his hat, stood to his over six-foot height, and lied. For her. “I would never take advantage of such a nice girl such as your daughter, Mister Muller. We stayed in Bellingham… in separate hotels, until we made sure the pastor survived the night. Then we picked up the supplies this morning and headed back.”

  Rose’s father stalked over to the wagon and flipped back the tarp. “You said you picked up the supplies this morning?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  He patted the bags of grain. “These bags are damp from rain. It hasn’t rained a drop this morning, how did these bags get wet?”

  “Well… uh.”

  Rose turned and faced her father. “We left Bellingham last night. Theo and I both agreed on how important it was to return the supplies as quickly as possible. We hit a terrible squall. Theo wanted to turn back, but I said to keep going. He found a barn to get the supplies out of the rain. Otherwise, with the amount of rain coming down, all the dried grain and flour would have been ruined. A loss for both stores.”

  “Just the two of you? Without a chaperone? ” Her father spun on Theo. “Why did you first lie and then she tells me a different story?” His German accent became stronger.

  “Father, listen to yourself! We stayed out of the rain to save the supplies. We did it for you. Theo didn’t steal anything like Mister Walker did, it’s the opposite. We were helping you.”

  “Let me have your gun Melvin.” His face was red, as he grabbed a shotgun from a bystander he knew.“I demand you marry my daughter.”

  Theo’s eyes met hers asking a silent question. “You’re telling me that you are going to force me to marry your daughter?”

  “Now, hold on just one minute.” Sam stepped closer and pulled off his work apron. He dropped it in the dirt and squared off. “Mister Muller, I think you are making too many assumptions here. I’m sure there is a perfectly fine explanation. Give them a minute to explain.”

  “Stay out of this, Sam,” Theo said, and held up a hand. “Let me handle it.”

  Sam’s mouth gaped in surprise.

  “First, I want to know if he is going to force me to marry Rose.”

  “If you have had carnal knowledge of her, then you must marry her!” her father shouted and tipped the barrel of the gun Theo’s direction.

  Rose gasped. She wanted to climb in a hole. This was such a mess.

  Theo stepped forward and took her hands, squeezing them between his. They were warm, rough, and strong. “There’s nothing I want more than to marry your daughter. But, I need to know if she wants to marry me. I won’t force her into anything she doesn’t want.”

  “I will,” her father grumbled.

  “I won’t,” Theo continued without breaking eye contact with her. “I know you wouldn’t want your daughter forced into a loveless marriage just because we tried to do the right thing and save the two stores supplies. It’s her choice if she wants to marry me.”

  My
choice. Just like last night had been. “You don’t need to do this,” she said barely above a whisper to Theo.

  “You know through this whole thing you have never asked me what I want. You can be a prickly thorn sometimes, but that’s why I’ve fallen in love with you, Rose. If you’ll have me, will you marry me?”

  When he kissed her finger where a wedding ring would be, she knew her heart was lost forever.

  “You love me?”

  “I just said so in front of God and family, so I think that makes it official.”

  She looked at her father and then over his broad shoulder to where her mother stood. A smile burst across her face. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”

  Sam still looked to be in shock. “Are you sure about this little brother?”

  “You always told me to do things right.” He turned. “Mister Muller, I would like to ask you for your daughter’s hand. Sir, you won’t need that shotgun. It would be the greatest honor I could have to marry Rose.” Theo tentatively put out his hand.

  Her father stared at it for a long moment, then handed the gun back to its owner. When he shook Theo’s hand, Rose let out the breath she’d been holding.

  Theo’s smile lit his eyes. “And another thing, now that I am going to be your son-in-law, let’s say we put all this mess behind us with Walker. I’ve only been in town a short while, but I can agree that you are right to say every bad thing about the man. But, now he’s gone. Mister Conner, my brother Sam and I would never do anything to undermine the success of your business. We’ve struggled hard for what we have, just like you have for your family and your business. We can become stronger if we work together and grow the two mercantiles into the top suppliers for Seattle. Aren’t I right, Sam?”

  Sam clapped his brother on the shoulder, a look of pride on his face. “Let dead dogs lie. What’s past is past. I’ve been trying to think of a way to grow my company. With our forces combined, who knows, we can supply every miner from here to kingdom come. Give us a chance to make this right, sir.”

  Rose watched her father’s face and loved him more at that moment then she ever had. He was old-world and traditional, but he wanted to protect her and do what was best.

  She dropped Theo’s hands and wrapped her fingers around her father’s meaty upper arm. “These are good men. Theo is a good man, he will make you proud and he will love me.”

  She saw his answer before he said it, “You have my permission to marry my daughter. Let me think about the business side of the question.”

  “Can I buy you a drink, sir? I have great idea to buy that vacant building at the end of the block and we could each take half of the space for storage.” Theo gestured to the bar across the street.

  Chapter 5

  The small church wedding had been perfect. The past week has passed in a whirlwind of activities. Rose had no idea how much work a small wedding with just friends and family could be. Of course, it hadn’t turned out like that, it seemed like half of Seattle was there.

  Pastor Farland recuperated much quicker than expected and was able to perform the ceremony. It hadn’t been Typhoid after all.

  She wore her mother’s wedding dress. With only a few alterations, it fit perfectly.

  Now, it was late into the night as they climbed the stairs to the small apartment they’d call home over Theo’s store.

  He surprised her by whisking her up in his arms. He flipped the latch on the door, kicked it open with his boot, and carried her over the threshold. The room was filled with bunches of fresh picked white flowers and a new quilt lay on the bed.

  “The quilt’s a gift from Mrs. Kelly, a customer at the store. She said I’m always such a nice young man and so helpful. It was the least she could do to pay me back when she heard I was getting married. I always thought I was kind of mean to her… she always takes up so much time jabbering away.”

  Rose smiled. “I’ve never seen you say a mean thing to a single soul. Everyone likes you.”

  “Even you?” he asked. He looked so handsome in the new suit Mister Conner gave him for the wedding. The black wool accentuated the blue of his eyes, and his dark hair was combed to a dark sheen. He tugged the thin tie loose, pulled it free and tossed it over the back of a wooden chair. He fished inside the small pocket in his vest and then tossed a penny her direction.

  She caught it in midair making him grin wide.

  He crooked a finger at her. “I got a sweet tooth for a ‘wife’ like you. Come here, Mrs. Cooper and show me just how sweet it can be.” His gaze moved over her in a seductive sweep that made her knees weak. She always felt beautiful and desirable around him.

  She rolled her eyes and laughed. “You have to come up with a better line.” When she came to him, first he pulled the pins from her hair and let it fall around her shoulders. Then he kissed her. Rose wanted the kiss to go on until she was drunk from the taste.

  Mrs. Cooper. She still couldn’t believe it. As Theo unbuttoned her wedding dress and pushed her back onto the bed, she knew the choice she’d made that night had been the right one.

  She would love Theo forever.

  If you enjoyed Fields of Gold by Jennifer Conner look for the first in the Gold Rush Series, Rush of Love, available now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Overdrive, AllRomance,

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