“Oh?” He looked baffled. “Do go ahead, my dear.”
“I can’t marry you.”
He didn’t look the least alarmed, just regarded her curiously. “And why is that?”
“Because…” She must be tactful. Mustn’t hurt his feelings more than she had to. “I’ve never known a finer man than you, Brandon, but the thing is, since I’ve been in California, I’ve changed. I’m not the same person you knew in Philadelphia. I’ve gone on to other things, other interests. You wouldn’t want me now. I’m…just…different, and it wouldn’t be fair to you if I didn’t tell you.” She’d started out strong and ended up pretty weak, but at least she’d got her message across.
He remained silent as he picked up a piece of toast and buttered it slowly and deliberately. Finally, he looked up at her, a mocking smile on his face. “Are you sure, Laurie?”
“Very sure.”
“Is there someone else?”
This would wound him, but she must be honest. “Yes, there is.”
“Very well then.’’ With great deliberation, he took a bite of his toast and washed it down with a sip of coffee. If he had a broken heart, he was hiding it well. “I’m disappointed, of course, but if you must know, you weren’t my entire reason for coming to California.”
She’d been prepared for just about anything but not this. “I’m not?” she asked, knowing how inane that sounded, but his response had left her so astounded she couldn’t think what to say.
“No, you’re not,” he replied, a note of satisfaction in his voice. “Far from it, actually. I did plan to marry you, and I daresay we would have been happy enough, but since you’d rather not”—he raised his chin and peered down his nose at her—“this may sound immodest, but in Philadelphia I’m considered quite the catch. I can have my pick of lovely brides dying to marry me, so rest assured, I’m not in a state of despair because you’ve rejected me.” His lips twisted into a cynical smile. “Now I can concentrate on the real reason I’m here.”
“And what is that?” She couldn’t imagine what it was.
He settled back in his chair, unruffled and sure of himself. “You don’t know this, but for the past few months I’ve been engaging in correspondence with your brother, whom, by the way, I greatly admire. He had sought my advice on how to form an expedition. I became so interested in his plan that I finally agreed to help him with more than just advice. I became financially involved. That’s why I’ve come here, to watch after my interests, and also, I must admit I’m greatly intrigued by your brother’s plans.”
She could hardly believe what she was hearing. Hugh had never mentioned any of this. “You mentioned an expedition?”
Brandon’s grey eyes suddenly gleamed with excitement. “Hugh has a map, and with it we’re going to find Lost Lake. Think of it, Laurie, a lake covered with a sheet of gold. I know it’s out there. Besides the map, Hugh has some solid leads as to exactly where it is.”
She was about to give Brandon her honest opinion concerning the insanity of such an expedition when, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a man and woman enter the restaurant. She paid no attention until they came closer, and then…
Darcy and Mrs. Wagner were about to pass by.
Chapter 19
Never in his life had Darcy awakened in a better mood than that morning. As he opened his eyes, the events of yesterday came flooding back. The discovery of the new gold vein alone would have filled him with elation, but it paled in comparison to what had happened between Laurie and him. Like he did every day, he climbed out of bed, walked to the window, and looked up at the sky. This morning it had never been bluer. The sun had never been brighter. Soon he’d be seeing her at the mine. They would talk, start making plans.
He had dressed and was on his way downstairs when he encountered Lucille. She took one look and declared, “You look as if your ship just came in. What happened?”
“Wait till I tell you.”
She invited him to her room where he related the news of the gold find, and then, the most important news of all, his new understanding with Laurie. “Turns out she doesn’t love that jackass in Philadelphia after all.”
Lucille caught his jubilant mood. Laughing, she asked, “So are you going to marry her?”
“If she’ll have me.”
“Then we must celebrate. Have breakfast with me, Darcy. The Monarch can wait. It won’t hurt if you’re late. After all, you own it, don’t you?”
He readily agreed, and they proceeded to the Bonanza Restaurant. As he walked in, his heart took a jolt. There sat Laurie at one of the tables, and not alone. What was she doing here with a man he’d never seen before? “Wait a minute, Lucille.” He walked to the table.
When she saw him coming, her eyes widened with surprise. “Darcy? I didn’t think you’d be here.”
“Good morning, Laurie.” Why was she staring at him like she couldn’t believe he was standing there? He flicked a glance at her companion. “I don’t believe I know your friend.” She continued to stare at him. What was wrong with her? Had she lost her tongue? The stranger tossed down his napkin and rose from his chair. Handsome. Well dressed. Big wide smile.
The man held out his hand. “The name’s Brandon Cooper. Are you a friend of Miss Sinclair?”
Brandon Cooper? If there was one thing Darcy had learned in the years he’d lived in the West, it was how to keep a poker face. He did so now, even though he felt like he’d just been kicked in the teeth. He shook Cooper’s hand. “Pleased to meet you. I’m Darcy McKenna. I work with Miss Sinclair at the Monarch Mine.”
Laurie finally got that stunned expression off her face and remembered her manners. “Uh, Mr. Cooper has just arrived from Philadelphia. I…uh, I’d ask you to sit down, but we were just—”
“Not a problem.” He got a kind of perverse satisfaction in seeing how flustered she was, and she damn well should be. All the more reason he must remain calm, collected, and looking as if he couldn’t care less. Casually he gestured toward Lucille who stood waiting. “I was about to have breakfast with Mrs. Wagner. Nice to meet you, Mr. Cooper. Good day, Miss Sinclair.” He gave them a pleasant nod and turned away. He and Lucille continued to their table. As he sat down, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Laurie and her companion get up and leave. He picked up a menu. “What are you ordering, Lucille?”
During breakfast, he shut his mind to the shock he’d just received and acted his normal, unruffled self. Or tried to, but Lucille saw right through him. He might have known she’d sense his shock at seeing Laurie with the man she’d planned to marry. Lucille had sense enough to realize he didn’t care to discuss it, but toward the end of the meal, he could see she was itching to ask. “I suppose you think I’m upset,” he finally said.
“The thought crossed my mind.” She chose her words carefully, like he might fall apart any second. “Did you know he was coming?”
“What do you think?” He intended to sound amused but couldn’t keep the tinge of disbelief from his voice, which of course, she would notice.
She arched an eyebrow. “What do I think? You just received a blow you didn’t expect. You must be devastated.”
“I got over being devastated about anything a long time ago, Lucille. Nothing touches me now.”
“But…” She started to protest but changed her mind. “What will you do?”
What would he do? Laurie Sinclair was the woman he figured he’d never find, if, indeed he’d even been looking. He loved everything about her—her laugh, those beautiful eyes, and rounded curves. But far more than the physical things, as he’d grown to know her, he’d seen what determination and true grit she had. Like when she carried Maryanne in her arms all the way to Hangtown. Like when she stuck with poor Valeria to the very end. Like how she chose to stay with her family because she was needed and didn’t hightail it back to Philadelphia when she had the chance. Last
night, she’d led him to believe she loved him. But did she? Brandon Cooper had everything. Handsome, good family, college educated. Whereas he? Never let it be said Darcy McKenna would ever feel sorry for himself. He’d spent a lifetime staying tough and wouldn’t give in now, despite the sick, despairing feeling in his gut. Maybe he should confront her, ask what the hell was going on, but why ask? Why else would Brandon Cooper be here other than to claim his bride? “I won’t do anything. If she wants him, she can have him.”
Lucille frowned. “You’re making a mistake if you’re assuming Laurie’s still in love with him. How do you know? Shouldn’t you at least talk to her?”
“Why? I won’t stand in the way of Laurie’s happiness.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. For heaven’s sake, Darcy, you can’t just walk away. At the least, you must find out how she feels. Who knows? You might be surprised.”
“If you think I’m going to beg and plead—”
“Of course not.” She rolled her eyes in exasperation. “Why must you men be so stubborn? Do what you please then, which of course, you will. You’re a smart man. I can only hope your pride doesn’t get in the way of your common sense.”
* * * *
“Just take me home,” Laurie told Brandon when they left the restaurant. She had nothing more to say to him and could hardly wait to get rid of him. Thank goodness, she’d fought off her impulse to leap from her chair and run after Darcy as he walked away from their table. She had desperately wanted to explain, but a lifetime of deference to good manners kept her in her place. Besides, he wasn’t alone, and she wasn’t about to make a spectacle of herself in front of Mrs. Wagner. What must he be thinking? She must get to him as soon as possible. Surely, after breakfast, he’d go to the mine, and she’d have a chance to talk to him then.
When Brandon brought the buggy to a stop in front of the house, Laurie scampered down, not waiting for help. She didn’t want him to touch her. “Thanks for the breakfast,” she called over her shoulder as she hurried inside. She’d loved him once. Now she couldn’t remember one reason why she had. She had no interest in his utterly foolish plans to search for a lake that didn’t exist, or anything else about him, for that matter.
She found her mother and Ada in the parlor. They both sat wide eyed as she marched in and ranted, “I’m done with Brandon Cooper. Sorry, Mother, but if I never see him again, it will be too soon.” Calming herself, she told them what happened. “Brandon lied. He didn’t come all this way for me. It’s the gold he’s after.”
“But you must be wrong,” Elizabeth replied, reacting just as Laurie expected.
“No, I’m not.” Laurie described Hugh’s upcoming expedition to Lost Lake, which, she gathered, Brandon was financing. “They’ve been corresponding for quite some time. That’s why he couldn’t wait to get to California.”
Elizabeth listened with growing dismay before saying, “I can’t imagine my son doing anything so foolish, and dangerous, too.”
Laurie wasn’t surprised that the first mention Hugh might be in danger brought a shift in her mother’s concerns. All else paled in comparison to her worry over her beloved son. But much as Laurie wanted to talk about the insanity of Hugh’s plan, she didn’t have time now. She must talk to Darcy. That’s all she cared about. She must get to the Monarch, find him, and explain. “We’ll talk later,” she said, fled the parlor, and hurried to the stable.
With frantic haste, she hitched the curricle and drove up the road to the Monarch faster than she’d ever done before. Champ was tied to the hitching post in front of the office. So, Darcy was there, thank God. Inside, she found him talking to Tom. She waited until Tom left, but just as he did, a wagon loaded with new mining equipment arrived and she had to check it in. She could never seem to find Darcy alone. Her impatience grew as the day went by until finally, toward the end of the shift, the office emptied out except for the two of them. She walked to his desk where he seemed engrossed in some kind of paperwork. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you.”
He looked up with mildly inquisitive eyes, as if he expected something trivial. “About this morning?”
Why the indifference in his voice? How galling. “What else? Last night when I came home and found Brandon sitting in our parlor I was shocked. I had no idea—”
“There’s no need to explain.” His gaze softened. “I want you to be happy, Laurie. Maybe you were shocked, but this is Brandon Cooper we’re talking about, the man you’ve been in love with for years, the man you were longing to marry. Maybe, because of what’s happened between us, you think you owe me something, but you don’t. I’m fine. I’m happy for you. You don’t need to say another word.”
Say another word? As she stood looking down at him, she doubted she could say her name, let alone put a sentence together. Maybe he thought he was being kind and magnanimous, but he might as well have thrown a bucket of ice-cold water in her face. Why hadn’t he asked for an explanation? She’d been eager to tell him she was finished with Brandon and had told him so in no uncertain terms. But now? If that’s the way Darcy felt, she wasn’t going to stand here and beg him to listen. “Then I have nothing more to say.”
She walked away, hoping he might call out to her, but he didn’t. She gathered the time sheets, left the office, and walked to the mine entrance where the daily exodus of miners kept her busy for the next hour. Darcy had left by the time she returned to the office. For a while, she sat at her desk and blindly stared into space. How ironic that only a day ago, she’d truly been giddy with happiness. Now, in the space of twenty-four hours, she’d lost not one man but two: Brandon, whom she thought she loved but didn’t. Darcy, whom she loved with all her heart, but about whom she now hadn’t the faintest notion what to do.
* * * *
That night, she arrived home to find Hugh sitting in the parlor, Mathew on his lap, Maryanne cuddling beside him. At least he was paying some rare attention to his children for a change. Surprisingly, Mother and Ada were listening with enthralled attention to what he was saying. Laurie had informed them of all the terrible things he’d done, but where was their outrage? She should have known. With her extra-kind heart, Ada would forgive anybody anything. Mother, with her blind love for her son, didn’t believe her in the first place, and even if she had, she would have instantly forgiven him.
When Elizabeth saw Laurie in the doorway, she motioned her to join them. “You must hear this,” she said. “Your brother’s telling us about his plans with Brandon.”
At the moment, the furthest thing from Laurie’s mind was Hugh and his stupid expedition, but she dutifully entered the parlor and sat down. In no mood for niceties, she looked at her brother and inquired, “So what makes you think you’ll find a lake covered in gold?”
Looking smug and sure of himself, Hugh was eager to tell. “Ever since I’ve been in Lucky Creek, I’ve wanted to find it. I know it’s there—the golden lake, high in the mountains, hidden and unimaginably rich, those sheets of gold dotting the lake’s surface like leaves in autumn—”
“Don’t forget those Indians fishing with golden fish hooks.” She made no attempt to hide her scorn.
Hugh threw her a look of contempt. “Not long ago I met an old prospector by the name of Stubbs who convinced me beyond all doubt he’d been there. What he told me was unbelievable. In the course of only hours, with no labor other than bending down, he’d walked along the shore and gathered nuggets ranging in size from marbles to walnuts. The only problem was whether his mules would collapse under the load of gold heaved onto their backs. I asked if he was going back, and he told me no, he didn’t need to. That man is set for life. I practically begged him to tell me where the lake was. He drew me a map, for a price of course, which I gladly paid. I call it my treasure map. With it, I’ll know exactly where to go.”
Elizabeth didn’t look convinced. “But, Son, such an expedition must be extremely dangerous, especially with wint
er coming on.”
“Of course, there’s drawbacks and dangers. For one thing, the lake is nearly inaccessible. Stubbs said his party had to crest the last high mountain before they could see the lake hidden below. The descent to the lake was so steep the mules had to be lowered and raised by rope. And then there’s the Indians. Fierce and hostile, he says. Several attacked his party. Some were wounded, and the rest had to flee. I don’t worry, though. Our expedition will be well armed.”
Both Elizabeth and Ada stared in alarm. Elizabeth pressed a hand over her heart. “You can’t do this, Hugh. It’s far too risky.”
“You’re taking a terrible chance,” Ada declared. “I still don’t believe it exists.”
“I know what I’m doing,” Hugh replied. “Have faith, ladies. When I return with a mule train loaded with gold, we’ll all be rich for life.”
Laurie couldn’t keep her mouth shut. “Really, Hugh? What if something happens to you? What about Mathew and Maryanne? Not that you’re supporting them now, but it would be nice if you could start contributing again.”
Elizabeth appeared shocked, just as Laurie expected she would. “Laurie, how can you say such a thing when poor Hugh is still recovering from the accident?”
“Because it’s true, Mother. You just don’t know…” She had to bite her tongue. Mother needed to be reminded of the truth about Hugh, but what good would it do? “This expedition is a terrible idea. Sheer insanity, as far as I’m concerned.”
Hugh laughed, not the least daunted by her candid opinion. “You’ll soon be proven wrong, my dear little sister.”
She hadn’t missed the contempt in his voice but why argue? Nothing would stop Hugh from doing what he wanted to do, and that was worrisome. Even now, knowing what she knew, she wouldn’t want anything bad to happen to him. More than Hugh, she worried about Mother. After all she’d gone through, if anything happened to her cherished son, Laurie didn’t think she could bear it.
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