Unlawfully Wedded Bride (Love Inspired Historical)

by Noelle Marchand

  Ms. Lettie nodded as she pressed her lips together to keep in her laughter. “I’m so sorry, dear. I didn’t think you’d take the bait. You really are upset, aren’t you?”

  “Yes, I am,” she admitted as she shoveled two spoons of sugar into her tea. “I know it doesn’t make sense to be angry that Nathan and Lawson are doing what I’ve hired them to do, but I am.”

  Ms. Lettie tilted her head and shrugged. “At least you know it doesn’t make sense.”

  Kate set her teacup on the table and leaned forward. “I think what bothers me is that I’m not really paying them. In fact, it’s the opposite. Nathan is practically paying me to let him work for me.”

  “I don’t think that’s really bothering you, Kate.” Ms. Lettie took a sip of her tea then met Kate’s gaze knowingly. “What bothers you is that you’re sitting here enjoying tea with me while someone else takes care of the farm, and you’re actually enjoying it. What’s bothering you is that you like not having to work until you’re exhausted, then go to bed to get up and do it all over again. Am I right?”

  Kate took a nice long sip of her tea so she wouldn’t have to admit the truth. “I was fine on my own.”

  “I’m not questioning that.” Ms. Lettie took one of the tea cakes from the plate and placed it on her own. “In fact, I doubt anyone in town questions the fact that you can take care of yourself and your siblings. We all know you to be a strong, determined woman. My only concern is that you might become too strong.”

  “How could I be too strong?” Kate asked.

  Ms. Lettie swallowed a bite of her cookie before continuing. “Before Nathan came along you shunned help from anyone. You were in danger of believing you could get through life on your own. You can’t. No one can. God didn’t create us that way. We need to give help and receive help. I don’t mind telling you that you hadn’t been doing either.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “After your parents died you accepted help for a while until that episode with Andrew Stolvins. You say he didn’t break your heart but I don’t think you can deny he broke your trust. You shut almost everyone out. Rachel and I managed to maintain our relationships with you simply because we wouldn’t take no for an answer. You were grieving, vulnerable and hurting then. What about now?”

  “I’ve recovered somewhat.”

  Ms. Lettie nodded decisively. “You have and it shows. You’re accepting help from others by allowing Nathan to work for you. You’re helping others by opening your home to an orphan who has no real hope for a better life outside of the opportunity you’re giving him.” Ms. Lettie reached across the table to touch Kate’s arm. “These are good things, Kate. You shouldn’t fight them.”

  She glanced away from Ms. Lettie’s sincere gaze. “I don’t want to get used to it. I know Nathan is going to leave. When he does, the burden will fall back on my shoulders.” She bit her lip. “Do you think God may have allowed this to give me a reprieve?”

  “It’s possible,” Ms. Lettie said. “Or, God could have allowed this to happen because he wants you to fall in love with Nathan and stay married.”

  “No, that’s why you allowed it to happen.” Kate sent the woman a pointed gaze, then tried one of the cookies.

  “Why don’t you trust God to reveal it to you? Find out what He wants you to do in this situation.”

  “You make it sound so easy.”

  Ms. Lettie looked at her with new interest. “You mean it isn’t?”

  “I tried that with Andrew. Look how that turned out.”

  “He put on an act, dear. He was one person with you, and another person with the rest of the town.” She smiled sympathetically. “You were so desperate for something good to happen after your parents’ deaths that you ignored some of the more obvious signs. For instance, Sean and Ellie despised him. He talked about building that saloon whenever you weren’t around.” She shook her head. “Everyone in town knew he was wrong for you.”

  She set her cookie down and stared at Ms. Lettie. “So I really was just oblivious?”

  “You were physically, emotionally and spiritually exhausted. It isn’t surprising that you missed a few things.” Ms. Lettie placed a comforting hand on her arm. “You made a mistake. That’s all it was. It wasn’t the end of the world.”

  “Why didn’t God keep me from making it?”

  “How would you ever learn?” Ms. Lettie laughed. “Besides, I think he kept you from making the greatest mistake of all.”

  Kate frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “Your last name isn’t Stolvins, is it?”

  “No.” She breathed a sigh of relief. “It’s still O’Brien.”

  Ms. Lettie smiled as she raised her teacup toward her lips. “Actually, Kate, I believe it’s Rutledge.”

  Nathan stopped outside the Post Office to stare at it, then removed his hat and fiddled with the brim. He nervously stepped inside the small building. A white-haired man peered up from the book he was reading. “Howdy. How can I help you?”

  Nathan stepped up to the counter. “I wanted to see if you might have any mail for me. I’m Nathan Rutledge.”

  “I know they’re here somewhere.” The man grabbed a pack of letters and sorted through them. “Here you are.”

  Nathan stared at the letters the man offered to him. He checked the return addresses on the envelopes. The first was from Davis Reynolds in response to his job inquiry. He didn’t need a job immediately, so he was free to focus on the other one for now. It was from Mariah Rutledge of Rutledge, Oklahoma. His youngest sister had written back. He swallowed the emotion rising in his throat, then choked out his thanks to the postmaster before he hurried out the door.

  He glanced around the busy street for a private place to read the letter. With none in sight, he ducked into the alley next to the Post Office and opened the letter. Several other envelopes were inside but a sheet of paper enclosed them. It was a letter from Mariah. He decided to read that first.

  Dear Nathan,

  I can’t tell you how happy I am to hear that you are alive and well. We are all fine but we’ve all missed you. Pa has, too, even if he won’t admit it. I was only fifteen when you left but even I knew Pa was too harsh with you.

  Oh, Nathan, I wish you had contacted us earlier. Even a few months would have made a difference. You see, Pa found out about what happened when you lived in Noches. Your business partner, Jeremiah Fulton, wrote him a letter about his brother’s death, your trial and escape from justice.

  I’m sure it can’t all be true, although Pa believed every word. He had softened where you were concerned but now I fear all of that has been lost.

  Mr. Fulton has written several times to Pa to check if we’ve received any information about your location. Pa usually tosses them in the waste basket after he’s read them so I’ve enclosed them…?.

  His sister went on to talk about what had changed since Nathan left, but he stopped reading to look at Jeremiah’s letters. He glanced at the postmarks on the envelopes. If Jeremiah was trying to find him, he was looking in the wrong part of the state. He frowned as he scanned the contents of the letters. They presented an account of what happened skewed by Jeremiah’s anger and grief and his stubborn certainty that Eli’s accidental death was actually murder. No wonder his pa was upset.

  He leaned against the wall of the Post Office and took a deep breath. Mariah had written back. That’s what he needed to focus on. It was a big step in the right direction. Now if he could just get the misunderstanding that Jeremiah had caused under control, then perhaps he could improve his relationship with his pa. He walked back into the Post Office and wrote a response immediately.

  Dear Mariah,

  Thank you for writing me. I will send another letter soon. In the meantime, please write to the sheriff of Noches, Texas, and ask for a full explanation of what happened. I’m sure Pa will be pleased to find out the truth.

  Please refrain from giving Jeremiah my information. He doesn’t seem to want reconciliatio
n and I’d prefer to leave the past in the past.

  Love,

  Nathan

  He mailed the letter, then tucked the others safely into his saddlebag. It wasn’t long before he reached the edge of town. He pulled his Stetson lower with a jerky movement, then gave Delilah her head. The horse set out at a gallop. The ground flew beneath her feet but no matter how fast he went, he couldn’t seem to outrun the memory of his past.

  With the Fulton brothers in Noches, he had been so focused on his dreams that they’d blinded him to everything around him. If nothing else, he’d learned there were no “take backs” in life. There were no “do overs.” There was only the present and it was to be lived, protected and cherished.

  He reined Delilah in to a smooth canter. The stakes were higher now. He realized he could lose something much more important than any ranch. He’d tried to ignore the attraction he felt for his wife but he couldn’t. Worse, he was starting to care for her as more than just part of an ideal future. If he couldn’t rein in the emotions he was beginning to feel for Kate, then he could very well lose his heart. And not just to her. It would be too easy to love Sean, Ellie, Lawson—even the puppy they’d named Lasso. It felt like they were building a family, and he wanted to keep it more than he’d ever wanted anything before.

  Nathan was stunned at the thought and even more at the truth of it. He’d just have to remind himself that this family wasn’t his to keep. He would leave soon and he was determined to leave nothing behind but good wishes and fond memories. He had a feeling that was all Kate expected from him anyway.

  He reined in Delilah and settled her in her stall of the O’Briens’ barn, then grabbed his saddlebag and went in search of Kate.

  He found her kneeling in the loose dirt of her vegetable garden. The sound of his footsteps on the softly packed earth made her glance up and give him what could pass as a welcoming smile. He met her gaze with a determined nod. She tilted her head questioningly. His gaze shot around the barnyard. “Are the children around?”

  She shrugged, brushing her hair from her face with dirt-streaked fingers. “They’ve been running wild the past few hours so I haven’t the slightest idea. Did you get everything taken care of in town?”

  He realized he was still wearing his Stetson so he quickly removed it. “Yes. I just wanted to send off a letter.”

  “Good.” She rubbed the dirt from her hands and glanced up at him curiously. “Is everything all right, Nathan?”

  “Yes.” He tapped his Stetson on his leg then decided to get on with it. “I just want to get a few things straight between us.”

  Suddenly incessant barking erupted from the house, followed closely by Ellie’s scream. Nathan’s heart skipped a beat. Kate scrambled to her feet and ran toward the house and he hurried after her. He reached the door a moment behind Kate and burst through it into the sitting room. His heart pounding in his chest, he surveyed the scene in confusion.

  “What is going on?” Kate asked.

  Sean whirled to face them and over the painfully loud barking managed to say, “There is something furry under the settee. Lasso chased it in.”

  “Is that all?” Kate met Nathan’s gaze with shared relief. “I’ll get the broom.”

  He set his saddlebag by the door then said, “We need to quiet that dog.”

  Sean jumped to orders, calling the dog’s name over the frenzied barking. Ellie was standing on the settee and seemed to be trying to dance. “I think it’s a rat. I think it’s a rat. Oh! Get me down.”

  Lawson was hunkered on the ground trying to get a view of the animal. “Ouch, Ellie, that was my finger you stepped on!”

  Kate reappeared holding the broom like a sword with one hand and covering her ear with the other. “Everyone calm down. We’ll deal with this in an orderly way.”

  “What? I can’t hear you,” Sean yelled.

  Nathan walked over to the settee, picked Ellie up and set her down beside Kate. Then he firmly commanded, “Lasso, sit.”

  The dog looked over his shoulder at Nathan and let out a moaning sound. Then it obediently lay down to stare under the settee. With the noise under control, Nathan turned to Lawson who was peering beneath the settee. “Now, do you have any idea what’s under there?”

  “I think it’s either a cat or a skunk.”

  “A skunk!” Kate exclaimed. Ellie resumed her dance. Lasso took that as a cue to start barking again. Sean tried to shush him. Lawson hunkered down for a better look. Nathan took in a deep breath, commanding, “Sit, Lasso.”

  The dog growled deep in his throat.

  “Sit.”

  Lasso moaned but lay down.

  “With this racket, a skunk would have let us know it was here.” His words seemed to have a calming effect on everyone.

  “It’s a cat,” Lawson said confidently, then added, “I think.”

  “Nathan, we need to get Lasso out of here before we can do anything else,” Kate said. “He needs to go to the barn.”

  “Right,” he agreed. “Sean, do you think you can help me with that?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Nathan scooped up the gangly pup and headed out the door that Sean held open. He didn’t stop until he’d set the dog in the barn. He quickly closed the barn door behind him then hurried back inside with Sean trailing after him.

  As he walked inside, Lawson said, “It’s a cat. Either that or a snake with fur.”

  Ellie gave a pronounced shiver.

  Lawson grinned, watching the effect of his words on Ellie until she glared at him, then he turned to look under the settee again. “Listen.”

  Everyone was quiet a moment and they heard a soft hissing sound.

  Sean shifted his weight. “If that’s a cat it isn’t happy.”

  “The poor thing it’s probably scared to death,” Kate sympathized.

  “I have an idea,” Nathan said.

  Soon Lawson and Sean stood at one end of the settee while Nathan stood at the opposite end with a sack. He was ready to slip it over the cat upon its appearance. Kate stood beside Sean and Lawson just in case the cat went that way. Ellie had a sheet to throw over the poor animal in case it didn’t go either way.

  “On the count of three,” Nathan commanded. “One. Two. Three.”

  The settee moved and Nathan saw the cat. He lunged for it but the cat was already moving his direction to get away from Sean and Lawson. It completely missed the sack and instead it ended up clinging to Nathan’s shirt. He let out a startled yell then decided to catch it in the sack anyway. Just as he brought the sack up, the cat fell from its precarious position. It landed on its feet with a thump then took off running.

  In a split second it was in Ellie’s arms, its face hidden in the crook of her elbow. Everyone stared in astonished silence filled only by Lasso’s faint bark from the barn. Ellie stared back at everyone for a moment before her large green eyes lifted to Kate. “May I keep it?”

  Chapter Ten

  Kate nearly groaned at the pleading look on Ellie’s face. Instead, she shook her head. “No, Ellie. You have a dog. You do not need a cat, especially not that one. It can stay in the barn until we find another home for it, but that is it.”

  “But Nathan—”

  “I’ll not go against your sister, Ellie. We’ll have to find another home for it.”

  Her little sister lifted her chin. “Fine, but at least I get to keep it until then. Come on, boys. Let’s go play with it outside.”

  She flounced toward the door in her shirt and bloomers. Her pert little nose was in the air so high she tripped over Nathan’s saddlebag. She would have fallen if Sean hadn’t managed to catch her arm. Lawson knelt down to pick up the envelopes strewn across the floor. “Hey, what’s this?”

  Nathan hurried across the room to gather the letters. “It’s a letter from my family.”

  Lawson stilled then glanced up at Nathan. “They wrote you back.”

  Nathan stacked the letters in his hands then nodded. Silence sounded througho
ut the room for a heartbeat then the children erupted in cheers. Kate smiled at their exuberance. Ellie shifted the cat in her arms to get a better look at the letters. “Those are a lot of letters. They must have had a lot to say.”

  He placed the letters in his bag and set it upright. “Just one was from my sister. The others were letters she forwarded about some business I need to take care of.”

  Sean leaned against the door frame. “What did she say? Do they want you back?”

  “I haven’t read all of it yet. She said Pa is still upset but she’s going to try to help me.”

  Kate smiled as she sank onto the end of the misplaced settee. “That’s wonderful, Nathan.”

  He sat back on his haunches to glance up at her and shrugged. “It’s a start.”

  She held his gaze, wondering why he didn’t seem as excited about the letter as the children were. Perhaps he didn’t want to get his hopes up. Did he hope to go back to his family? Would he head to Oklahoma after the annulment? He was working hard on their crop, but she knew he wasn’t really a farmer at heart. The children began asking question after question but Kate admonished them, ignoring the fact that she had some questions of her own. “Nathan hasn’t even had time to read the whole letter yet. If he wants to tell you about it later, then fine, but give him some time to think about it first.”

  Nathan sent her a grateful look as the children reluctantly went outside to play with the cat. He helped her set the room to right. Once they were finished, he slid the settee back into place then collapsed onto it. Kate settled beside him with a sigh. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with Ellie. She knows just what to say to get her way.”

  He laughed. “She’ll turn out all right.”

  “I certainly hope so. I’m all she has so if she doesn’t we’ll know who to blame.”