Alexander never believed he would meet a woman like Clementine. The fact she returned his feelings in kind made him feel as though God smiled down on him and granted him a second chance at life. He wanted her in his life, forever. He wished them to become a real family someday. He was not going to do anything that could put her or their love in danger, that he vowed.
Still, all these thoughts did not appease his mind. If everything was all right and as it should be then why did he had this strange feeling in the pit of his stomach as though something terrible was going to happen? He couldn’t shake it no matter what.
Was the gut feeling the result of his paranoia mixed with painful past or a premonition? Only time would tell.
Chapter Twenty-One
A couple of days passed and Alexander still couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong with Clementine. Something was troubling her yet for the love of him he could not decipher what that might be.
As of late, she always had some excuses for why she would not be available to see him. That kind of sudden change in behavior only further fueled his fear that he did, in fact, manage to push her away by all the outings he had been planning for them, and insisting on spending all their free time together.
She already saw him every day at work, perhaps she was getting tired of seeing him away from the store as well. He couldn’t say, especially since she kept quiet. Having all this on his mind, Alexander decided to give her some space if that was what she desired. He planned to continue helping with Pauline, however, he was going to pause everything else until she asked him to spend time with her.
Space was a rather good plan in theory but Alexander was facing a kind of challenging conundrum. How was he going to achieve that if he was proceeding to her house to teach Pauline how to ride a horse? With difficulty.
He was very much aware that was quite the opposite of what he wished to do, unfortunately, he made these arrangements a while ago and could not back out now. He gave his word after all. It would not be fair to Pauline. Or so he told himself. Truth be told he wished to see Clementine regardless of his plans to stay away.
Making sure the horse was tied up and wouldn’t wander anywhere, Alexander walked a few steps towards Clementine’s front door and knocked. Clementine looked rather pleased to see him when she opened the door for him and invited him inside. He took that as a good sign.
“Good morning, Clementine.”
“Good morning Alexander, please come in.”
“Thank you.” A sliver of hope appeared inside of him that he imagined the whole problem. He intentionally came early in the morning so Clementine could participate in the lesson as well. And looking at her now he was hopeful she would say yes. Some fresh air would certainly do her some good.
As he walked inside he couldn’t help looking at her with concern. She had pretty dark circles around her eyes like she barely slept for days and even though she smiled and tried to be lively he was certain it was all for show. Clementine was bone tired.
Alexander started to wonder what kept her awake at night. He barely contained himself not to ask her and if she tried to brush it off, demand a true explanation. He thought they were closer than that, and that she would certainly feel comfortable enough to confide in him. Besides if anything was amiss, wasn’t he entitled to the truth? Hasn’t he showed her so far he was always there for her, and only wished to help? Make her life easier because he loved her for heaven’s sake. He loved her, he realized with all his heart. And this whole situation perplexed him to no end.
He shouted all those things only inside his head. The only thing that stopped him from opening his mouth was Pauline who came running toward him, and he greeted her with open arms.
“Good morning, Lady Pauline. Are you ready for today’s adventure?” The question was intended for both of them.
While Pauline sing-songed her yes and nodded vigorously Clementine made a face as though she just swallowed something sour. Whatever she was about to say, Alexander guessed he would not like it.
“What is wrong?” he prompted since she kept looking at him and Pauline as though wanting to choose her words carefully.
“Nothing is wrong, exactly,” she started carefully. “I have some errands to attend to before my shift at the store so I have to leave the house much earlier than usual.”
“How much earlier?” Alexander asked.
“Now.”
He was right. He did not like that one bit. “That is quite all right,” he replied somewhat reluctantly, while maintaining a smile on his face, not wanting to hurt Pauline’s feeling even though he could not help feeling disappointed. Another activity canceled.
“We can do this some other time. Is tomorrow more preferable for you, or the day after tomorrow?” Alexander offered.
Pauline looked like she wanted to complain yet held her tongue, as though not wanting to be a nuisance. She was such a good girl, Alexander wished he could give her everything she needed and then some, simply to see her smile each and every day.
“Actually, I was hoping you would still have the lesson without me,” Clementine said, taking him by surprise.
Pauline was once again happy, looking at him pleadingly like her life depended on his reply. He could never say no to that face.
“Of course. I am happy to help,” and that was true on so many levels. Alexander just wished Clementine could actually hear it.
She looked relieved hearing him say that. “You are a true godsend,” she smiled.
“And I have a plaque with those exact words to prove it,” Alexander joked and both girls laughed.
With impressive speed, Clementine prepared a bag for Pauline with all the necessary foods, toys and whatnot’s before going for the door.
“Once again thank you for doing this for me, I really appreciate it. Goodbye sugarplum,” she added to Pauline, kissing her cheeks.
Alexander wanted to kiss her, yet refrained. “You don’t have to say thank you to me. You know I am always there for you, no matter what?”
She simply nodded. “We will see each other later then, in the store.”
It was Alexander’s turn to nod. “Yes,” he replied and with that settled she left, leaving him with even more questions than before.
A part of him, and he felt like accentuating it was a rather small part at that, wished to follow her. To tell Pauline they were playing a new game and follow Clementine to see where she was going.
What secrets she tried to hide from him? Because there has to be something terrible going on that she felt as dough she couldn’t confide in him. Perhaps she thought he wouldn’t understand. As soon as that wretched urge bloomed inside of him, Alexander felt utterly ashamed. That would be completely wrong. He did not have any right to do such a thing and it would be a complete violation of her trust.
It was obvious she did trust him and immensely since she felt confident enough to leave Pauline with him, he reminded himself, wishing he could slap himself a couple of times for good measure as well.
Sadly, he couldn’t do that either, not wanting to scare the little girl without a cause. Him being an idiot had nothing to do with her. Alexander did the only thing he could do at this moment, he focused all his energy and brainpower, however hard that might be, on Pauline.
“Are you ready for your first lesson?”
“What kind of a lesson?” she asked, frowning and Alexander realized Clementine didn’t tell her anything about their plans. She was better at keeping secrets than he was. That thought threatened to pull him back to the previous state of mind, yet he resisted. His problems were not important at the moment.
“You shall see. Come on, Beatrice is waiting for you.”
“Who is Beatrice?” she asked as expected and he couldn’t help smiling. He liked teasing her.
“Hopefully, your new best friend,” he replied vaguely taking her outside.
Pauline squeaked from joy realizing who Beatrice was. She looked at him as though asking permission and he n
odded. “Go ahead, say hello.” Alexander encouraged and she ran toward the horse.
Beatrice adored children, which was one of the reasons Alexander chose her for Pauline. The mare bent her head to be petted. At some point, she even licked the little girl and Pauline giggled in delight hugging the mare’s nose. It was a good match like he hoped it would be.
Before he completely focused on that little girl and teaching her how to ride, he sent a small prayer to his love. Whatever was happening to or with her, Alexander wished her good fortune, ample courage and return of senses so she would confide in him, and sooner rather than later. Because all he wanted in this life was to be there for her, assist her in any regard, protect her from any harm because he loved her with all his heart.
Alexander cleared his throat. “Now that you know one another, let’s begin.”
As planned, Clementine doubled, then tripled her efforts in finding extra jobs so she could save enough money and pay that wretched debt to Mr. Brewer. Blissfully, she was victorious in her efforts.
Mrs. Dawson contacted her and ask on behalf of her friend Mrs. Bane if she wished to work as a part-time maid at their house. Clementine instantly accepted. She didn’t even have to think about it. She needed the money and trusted Mrs. Dawson the employment was honest and payment prompt.
Mr. and Mrs. Bane were good people and even though the work was tiring, constantly being on her feet, cleaning, washing, helping in the kitchen, she was fairly compensated for her efforts and time. She couldn’t ask for more.
They lived in a mansion right outside Courtfield, and even though it was a bit of a walk Clementine would gladly make twice the distance simply grateful she had a job like this, to begin with.
And for that, she made a small mental note to find a way, make a small token of gratitude to Mrs. Dawson for recommending her. Jobs was scarce in Courtfield, especially for women, so Mrs. Dawson truly had a heart of gold for making an effort for Clementine.
On the other hand, she did feel bad for having to cancel her plans with Alexander, she so wished to see Pauline riding Beatrice. However, keeping them both safe was far more important than cheering her niece up, at the moment. It was sad but true, and she would find a way to make it up for her once this danger pass.
“Clementine, could you please take this to Mr. Bane’s study?”
“Certainly, ma’am.”
Maybe she was overthinking things. Nevertheless, she had a strange feeling as though Alexander suspected something. She tried to be coy, pretend everything was all right, but perhaps she was not convincing enough. He had been the sheriff after all for many years so dealing with people, and discovering the truth was something he was good at doing.
He looked at her with concern when thinking she wasn’t looking back, and the wheels were turning inside that head of his. She pretended not to notice it. Although it was getting harder and harder each day to keep everything from him Clementine knew she was doing the right thing, so she persisted. Praying to God he wouldn’t insist on his pursuit and leave her be because she did not want him in harm’s way. Even if he got angry at her for being aloof, that was a price she would gladly pay for keeping him alive. He helped her numerous times in the past and kept her safe, now it was her turn to do the same for him.
Checking the time, Clementine found her new employer, since she was done for the day and had to go to her next job. “Mrs. Bane, do you require anything else for me before I leave?”
“No dear, everything is perfect. Thank you for all your help today.”
“Thank you for employing me,” Clementine replied honestly while accepting her wages.
It wasn’t much. But she was still a bit richer than she was before and it did put her closer to collecting two hundred and fifty dollars for Mr. Brewer, and that was something. Clementine decided to change her perspective and from now on look at things from a more positive side. All that fear, doom and gloom attitude could only hold her down, paralyze her, suck her energy levels dry when she needed to act. That was not to say she was not already spent because she was, and her day barely started.
Passing through Mrs. Bane’s garden she ran into the owner’s son. He clearly played in the mud because he was covered in dirt and accidentally, while smacking into her used her skirt as a cleaning cloth. A small muddy ball hit her in the face as well. That little accident completely ruined her dress, so she used it to wipe her face to the best of her abilities. Mrs. Bane saw the whole affair and chastised her son, alas, the damage was done.
“It is quite all right, Mrs. Bane. No real harm done,” she reassured the other woman before saying goodbye.
Clementine would have to go home first and change before her shift at the store. It was true they did not have the cleanest clientele at times. That did not mean she could show up to work covered in dirt.
On her way home Clementine wondered how well Pauline did during her riding lesson. She was certain her niece was rather excited to have her first lesson once she learned why Alexander came to visit her. She begged Viola in the past to teach her. There was never enough time for that. It saddened her she had to miss Pauline’s first time on the horse. She and Viola had missed a lot of things because doing what was right and what was their heart’s desire were not always the same things. Actually, they rarely were.
She was certain Alexander was a great teacher to Pauline. He was always so kind and patient with her, not to mention generous, Clementine was confident he was the same about this as well. It was enough to picture them together, Pauline up on the horse, Alexander beside her offering guidance and protection to start smiling.
Getting up the steps toward the front door Clementine paused midway. Just like that she was not smiling any more while forcing herself to complete the distance. There was a big hunting knife stuck into her door. Just like the one Mr. Brewer used the other night to peel an apple. The message was loud and clear.
She had a limited amount of time to do what she was told to do, collect the money or the next thing that was going to get stabbed was going to be her. Or someone she loved.
Mr. Brewer was apparently getting impatient, feeling the need to upgrade his threats since that little speech at the circus simply wasn’t enough. Unfortunately for Clementine all that meant her chances of surviving all of this just went down.
Just my luck...
Chapter Twenty-Two
Glancing about if anybody saw this, even though there was nothing she could do, either way, Clementine pulled out the knife from the door. The blade felt heavy in her palm, its weight directly pressing her heart. Inspecting the damage to the door and realizing she could not fix that hole, especially not now when she was already late for work, she finally entered inside.
While she was changing, Clementine started debating if she should tell Alexander about this incident or not. He was bound to notice the door and would be curious to learn what happened to it. And Clementine utterly detested lying to him.
The problem with that was if she told him about this, she would have to tell him about everything. Once finished she turned back toward the threat. She could not believe Mr. Brewer did that.
Not knowing what to do with the blade, since Mr. Brewer might want it back, she hid it under the bed in the bedroom and left the house in a haste.
A couple of minutes later she was already putting her apron on. Garry did not comment on her lateness, he was such a good man.
“You are in a good mood,” Alexander came to greet her.
Just the sound of his voice made her smile.
Her stomach flipped because Alexander was here. Despite everything, his presence calmed her. He was helping her even when he wasn’t aware he was doing it in the first place.
Regarding this new threat, Clementine even considered if she should come to work or not, thinking she did not want to bring any more of her troubles to Garry’s doorsteps. She ruled against it. The main reason was that it would be counterproductive since she really needed the money. The other was that
not even Mr. Brewer was crazy enough to try and harm her in the middle of a store that was bound to be full of witnesses not to mention members of the law who popped in to buy their coffee and sugar.
Or so she hoped.
“Did you manage to achieve everything?” Alexander inquired.
Clementine frowned not understanding his question. For the briefest of moments, she even panicked he was referring to her new job. The job she got so she could gather the money for Mr. Brewer, which was utterly mad. There was no way he was privy to any of that.
“Excuse me?” She still had to ask.
“Your errands,” he explained.
Clementine was relieved to hear that. “Oh, yes. But tell me how did the riding lesson go,” she promptly changed the subject so he wouldn’t ask her anything else about her day.
A Courageous Bride to Bring Him Hope: A Historical Western Romance Book Page 20