With an embarrassed gasp, she attempted to vault from the chair, but several pairs of hands kept her still, Kyle’s arms anchored around her waist.
“Wait a minute, missy.” Doc Finlay put a hand to her forehead. “You sit right there until I tell you otherwise.”
Amelia glanced at the faces gathered around her, saw Eva Bentley’s censuring look, and wanted to crawl behind the nearest piece of furniture. Kyle’s brothers watched with a mixture of concern and a flicker of amusement. Her mother looked frantic with worry.
The pounding in her chest left her short of breath and she feared she was going to faint again. Despite her efforts to remain upright, she trembled and sagged against Kyle’s chest. She turned her face toward the crook of his neck. “Get me out of here,” she whispered. “Please.”
“What did you say, honey?” her mother asked.
Mortified that her guests might have heard her, Amelia clutched Kyle’s hand.
“She needs some fresh air,” he said.
Amelia felt herself being gathered against Kyle’s body and propelled upward as he gained his feet. He stood with her draped over his hard arms in the middle of the parlor with everyone staring at them. His formidable expression revealed none of the trembling in his body or the pounding of his chest against Amelia’s side. “Excuse us,” he said then limped across the parlor, through the foyer, and out the front entrance without a single word of explanation.
An airy grunt came from his throat as he carried Amelia down the steps.
She glanced up in alarm. “Your leg!”
“Is killing me.”
“Then why on earth are you carrying me? Put me down.” She tensed in his arms, but instead of a grimace of pain, Kyle gave her a sad smile that made her world tilt.
“I’ll make it a bit farther, Miss Drake.”
She tried to ignore the bunching and shifting of his shoulder muscles as he carried her toward a wrought-iron bench beneath a maple tree, but it was impossible to ignore a man like Kyle Grayson. At sixteen years old, she’d had the same problem whenever Kyle visited her father’s sawmill. Despite being tense and too serious, he had been incredibly handsome and so mysteriously aloof that Amelia couldn’t resist watching him. In her father’s presence, she would share polite conversation with Kyle, but the minute her father was out of earshot, she had openly flirted. The more Kyle ignored her, the more desperately she’d craved a response. Finally, one spring evening Kyle pulled her behind a stack of lumber and kissed her. He gave her no warning and it wasn’t in the least romantic, but it was the most thrilling, earth-shaking experience Amelia had ever had in her life.
While she’d still been reeling from the momentous impact of her first kiss, Kyle warned her to quit playing with him then stormed across the mill to finish his business with her father. Amelia had stood in ankle-deep sawdust with her heart pounding and her fists clenched, cursing him even as she prayed he would come back and kiss her again.
But he hadn’t come back to her, nor had he shown any interest in doing so the rest of that summer or during his many subsequent visits to her father’s lumberyard. She hadn’t forgotten Kyle or his incredible kiss, but she’d eventually turned her attention to Richard, who had flattered her sore ego.
From beneath her lashes, Amelia peeked at Kyle’s handsome face only inches from her own. He was still arrogant and aloof and too handsome for his own good, but she would gladly overlook all of that if he would kiss her again and make the world disappear like he had that day five years ago. She would give anything to escape the agonizing heartache tearing her apart right now.
Kyle lowered her onto the bench then collapsed beside her. Air hissed between his clenched teeth as he eased his throbbing leg out in front of him.
“A cold compress might help relieve the swelling.”
“I’ll be all right,” he said, wishing she’d stop being so concerned about him. Every time she looked at him with those sad brown eyes it gouged his conscience. As soon as he caught his breath, he was making a straight line toward the carriage.
“Thank you for taking me out of there.”
He nodded, relieved to escape the house as well.
“Did you see Eva’s livid expression? The school board members are furious with me.”
Kyle had been more concerned about the look in Catherine’s eyes. He couldn’t tell if it had been surprise or pain in her expression, but he would have preferred to spare her either.
“I’ll probably lose my position,” Amelia said. “I’m expected to protect my reputation at all times. In all circumstances.”
“That’s absurd.” Kyle stared at her. “You were out of your mind with grief.”
“The school board doesn’t see it that way.” She lowered her lashes and smoothed the pad of her thumb across her palm. “My curfew is dusk unless I’m with my mother or father, or at a function approved by the board. I can’t wear bright colors. No consorting with men outside immediate family, even in emergencies. I’m not allowed to marry while under contract.” She paused for a breath and met his eyes. “I think you understand where this is leading.”
“Why do you agree to live like this?” he asked, feeling as if he were watching a favorite pet struggling against its leash. He could never live his life under such restrictions.
“I’m a teacher. It’s expected of me.”
“What does being a teacher have to do with the color of your dress?”
“I don’t know,” she said softly. “I think the board is afraid of making the same mistake that they made with Miss Denby. I can’t blame them for being cautious.”
“Climbing onto a horse because you needed help is a far cry from running off with a beau... well, the point is, we’ve done nothing wrong. They shouldn’t punish you because of another woman’s misconduct. You were upset last night. It was desperation that drove you to ride with me. That’s all.”
“I know, but my desperation could cost me my position.”
Kyle pinched the bridge of his nose, wishing his leg would stop throbbing. “I’ll make Phil understand that nothing improper happened,” he said, lowering his hand. “If you or your mother need anything, though, I’d appreciate it if you’d let me know.”
“Thank you.” She inhaled as if trying to decide how to voice the question he saw in her eyes then she released her breath in a rush. “Was my father aware of what was happening to him when he collapsed?”
Unprepared for her direct question, Kyle remained silent. Though he wanted to tell Amelia about that night and clear his conscience, Jeb was right, now wasn’t the time. She had enough worry without him adding burdens to her narrow shoulders.
“Did Papa say anything? Other than he loves me?”
He sure did. But no matter what Kyle owed Tom, wedding his daughter was out of the question. Tying himself to a woman who needed him but didn’t want him was a recipe for disaster. Kyle had made that painful mistake once and had learned his lesson. Evelyn had needed him but she hadn’t loved him.
He glanced at Amelia and wondered if there was a special man in her life who might step forward and offer to keep and protect her now that her father was gone, but he knew he couldn’t pry into her personal life. Still, Tom had warned Kyle to keep someone away from her. Perhaps it was a man whom Tom didn’t approve of, a man Amelia was seeing in secret.
“Your father asked me to look after you and your mother,” Kyle said, searching for a way to broach the subject without offending her.
“Are you saying Papa knew he was dying?” she asked, her voice filled with pain.
The silence lengthened as Kyle tried to decide if it would cause her more heartache to know that her father had been aware of his impending death and appeared resigned to it, or if it would be kinder to tell her that he had been oblivious.
Her fingers curled lightly over his forearm. “Please. I need to know.”
Kyle couldn’t look at her knowing he’d been the one to cause the pain in her eyes. “Your father seemed more c
oncerned about you and your mother than himself.”
“He would.”
Her quiet assurance fueled Kyle’s self-condemnation. Tom Drake had been a man of integrity. If Kyle had reminded himself of that before he went storming into Tom’s office, maybe he wouldn’t be trying to avoid Amelia’s tortured eyes and the feeling that he was being crushed by his own guilt.
Maybe he should just tell her everything. Just blurt it out and let her hate him. He could live with that. He deserved it. But she didn’t deserve more heartache when she was suffering so much already.
“We’re not your obligation, Kyle.” Their eyes met. “Not that I don’t appreciate your promise to Papa, or his concern for us. We’ll be all right.” She tried to smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes.
Worry and fear lines etched her face and Kyle knew Amelia and her mother wouldn’t be all right at all. The urge to smooth away her frown caught him by surprise. Maybe it was the pain in her eyes, or the tiny line marring her forehead, that melted him, but whatever it was, it weakened his resistance, which scared him. Before he was stupid enough to lift his hand, he linked his fingers together and braced his elbows on his knees. He wouldn’t look at her. He would keep his promise to Tom, but he wouldn’t let this urge to protect Amelia go any farther than financial support. She would have to find comfort from someone else.
“I wanted to talk with you privately,” Amelia said, breaking into Kyle’s thoughts, “because I’m hoping you can tell me what Papa’s mill is worth.”
Kyle’s protective instincts snapped to attention and he sat upright, his chest filling with fresh air. Amelia could only be asking for one reason. As if Tom Drake had climbed up out of his grave and kicked Kyle in the shin to get his attention, Kyle suddenly knew he’d found the perfect way to give Amelia and her mother security.
By buying Drake’s mill, Kyle could fulfill his promise to Tom, as well as make Grayson lumber the largest sawmill business in the county, which had been a dream of his for several years. Despite the poor timing of the huge financial undertaking it made sense to Kyle. He would discuss the investment with his brothers before making an offer, but he knew they would ultimately leave the burden of this decision on his shoulders.
“To me, your father’s lumberyard is worth more than anyone else will pay you.”
Amelia’s mouth dropped open.
“I assume you’re asking because your mother intends to sell it,” he said, beginning the process of assuming ownership of Drakes’ Sawmill. “I’ll need to discuss this with my brothers first, but Jeb can confirm the worthiness of our offer.”
Something in her expression shifted and her eyes sparked with life, as if a lantern had been lit in a dark house. She met his eyes with a boldness that unnerved Kyle. “Mama’s hoping I’ll use Papa’s mill as a dowry.”
Kyle’s heart jolted and he lunged to his feet. The pain in his leg, and the shock of Amelia’s comment, made him grab for the back of the bench to steady himself. He’d made a private vow the night Evelyn broke their engagement that he would never ask another woman for a promise she might not keep. Never would he put himself through that nightmare again. He was content to pour his heart into his sawmill. He could depend on his business.
“Sorry, Miss Drake, but I’m not interested in acquiring a wife.”
A bright flush spread across her cheeks and her shoulders stiffened as she stood to face him. “I wasn’t attempting to gauge your level of interest.”
She wasn’t? Then why had she mentioned using the mill as a dowry?
“If you want to buy the mill, you’ll have to approach my mother with your offer.”
Kyle reached out to stop her from leaving, to tell her he hadn’t meant to insult her, but she yanked her arm free and left him standing beside the bench feeling like an egotistical fool.
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About the Author
New York Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Wendy Lindstrom is known for the riveting emotional power of her work. Romantic Times has dubbed her “one of romance’s finest writers,” and readers rave about her enthralling characters and “masterfully crafted” stories. She is the creator of the “original Grayson Brothers” series that begins with RITA award-winner Shades of Honor. This critically acclaimed series is available in ebook, paperback editions, and audiobooks.
Professionally produced in audiobook format, her Grayson Brothers series captivates listeners and is fast becoming an audiobook 5-star favorite. Get the audiobook edition of Shades of Honor. The Grayson Brothers series is also available in audiobooks.
This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, business establishments, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Victorian, Sweet, Historical Romance – American Setting
EBook copyright 2015 Wendy Lindstrom
EBook published by Rustic Studio Publishing
ISBN: 9781939263155
Cover design by The Killion Group, Inc.
EBook design by Rustic Studio Publishing
All rights reserved. With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means whatsoever without written permission from the author.
Even with many layers of editing, mistakes can slip through. If you encounter typos or errors in this book, please send them to Wendy Lindstrom at http://www.wendylindstrom.com/contact/.
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Twice Loved Page 27