“Please, Grace, you have to believe me. Lucinda never meant anything to me. I have never been alone with her anywhere, and I barely speak to her when I see her. She has been after Wade and me both for two years. Wade enjoys her company, I never have. Please, Grace, it’s the truth.”
Grace tried to smile, but her heart ached. “I know. Grandpa explained it all to me.”
“Then why are you so unhappy?” Clay asked and reached for her hand.
“It isn’t you, Clay. I’m losing my heart to you and this beautiful country, but I believe Wade hates me. He’s jealous that you married first, and he looks at me with hatred at times and makes me frightened. He’s breaking Elizabeth’s heart. I hate that my being here is causing pain to others.”
Clay slid over next to Grace and pulled her into his arms. She smelled of vanilla and lavender, and the sun glinted off her auburn hair. Clay silently thanked God for his beautiful wife and asked for guidance in making her happy.
“I promise that you won’t have to fear Wade. He likes to talk big and brag, but he won’t hurt you. I don’t know what to do about him and Elizabeth. Mason told me a bit more about her. You and Mason must have gotten to know her quite a bit on the stage ride here.”
“We did. Elizabeth never traveled on a train or stagecoach before and was quite nervous. She talked a lot. She has no idea who her family is since she was dropped off at the orphanage as a newborn. She celebrates her birthday on the date she was given to the nuns, and they chose her name. The man who dropped her off didn’t stay long enough to answer any questions. He ran off into the night. It’s very sad and nearly broke my heart. She was looking forward to getting married, having children, and family life.”
Clay blew out a deep breath. “I don’t know what to say, but please don’t let all this unhappiness cause our marriage to fall apart.”
“It won’t,” Grace promised. “I told you I made vows. I was hurt and angry this morning listening to that woman, but I understand now. What you did before you married me is your business, but what bothered me is she made it sound as if since you couldn’t marry her, you chose me. I knew we’d have to learn to love each other, but I never wanted to be a substitute for another woman.”
Clay kissed the top of Grace’s head. “You were never a substitute. If I had known you before you arrived, I know I would have asked to court you.”
Grace looked up at Clay with tears shimmering in her eyes. Clay drew her closer and kissed her. Grace slid her arms around her husband and returned his kiss. After several more kisses, Clay whispered, “I know Cora wants you to get used to me and the ranch before we become closer, but I hope the time goes by quickly.”
Grace giggled and blushed a deep red. “To be honest, I do, too, but with everything that’s going on, I certainly can’t move into your room and leave Elizabeth alone. She is sure that Wade will come around. She has more faith in him than I do.”
“I understand. She has more faith than I do, too.” Clay said and kissed Grace again.
Sighing deeply, Grace snuggled into Clay’s chest. They sat not saying anything as they watched the sky change from yellows, reds, and oranges as the sun slowly sank in the Western sky. Just before it was too dark to see, Clay kissed Grace again and said, “We should get back to the house. I don’t want you to trip walking back in the dark.”
She took his hand when he offered to help her up from the bench. She held it tightly as they headed toward the house.
Clay offered a suggestion, “Maybe we could take a trip to find some privacy. I often need to travel to a neighboring town or another ranch to check out new stock. You could come with me.”
It was too dark for Clay to see Grace’s face turn a beautiful shade of pink as she whispered, “The family would know.”
Clay stopped and gave Grace a quick kiss. “At some point, they’re going to know no matter where we go or what we do.”
“That may be true, but our leaving for a trip might anger Wade more than he is and I’m worried he would take it out on Elizabeth. It’s too bad she married Wade. I don’t think he cares for her at all. I think Mason is smitten with her or at least he seemed to be on our stage trip here. She appeared so vulnerable, and he spoke to her telling her all about the town and the people to help her relax.”
Clay smiled. “It’s just Mason’s luck to find a lady he’d like to know better and have her come and marry Wade. Mason thought he was in love before he left for college, but Wade stole the girl from him and then broke her heart as soon as Mason left. I love him because he’s my brother, but he can be cruel.”
Grace shuddered and worried about what Wade might do next.
Chapter Ten
Grace’s eyes snapped open, and she wondered what woke her. The wind had picked up since she went to bed, but it wasn’t the sound that woke her. It was the lack of sound. She didn’t hear Elizabeth’s breathing coming from the bed across the room. Grace realized she was alone, but why? Slipping out of bed and pulling her robe on, Grace padded toward the bedroom door and opened it. The hall was dark, but she saw a faint light coming from the parlor.
As Grace approached the end of the hall, she could see Elizabeth sitting in the parlor alone. Staring out the window at the dark front yard, Elizabeth didn’t hear Grace approach. When she did she let out a squeal.
“It’s only me,” Grace whispered. “Are you all right?”
Elizabeth quickly wiped the tears from her eyes. “Yes, I was watching for Wade to come home. The woman he sees in town is a saloon girl, isn’t she? He’d rather be there than here, or maybe he's dead. Why didn’t he come home? What’s wrong with me?”
Grace dropped into the chair beside Elizabeth. “There’s nothing wrong with you. Clay said Wade is angry because he didn’t marry you before Clay married me.”
“But that isn’t my fault. He sent for me, and I came fully expecting a loving husband, not one that runs off to spend the night with a… umm, with someone else.” Elizabeth burst into tears.
Before Grace could answer Elizabeth, Grandpa Hutchison stormed into the parlor dressed in his nightshirt and carrying a rifle. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing, Grandpa,” Grace explained. “Elizabeth and I were just talking.”
“It’s nearly three in the morning. Something has both of you awake. Out with it. I’m sure I can help.”
The noise Grandpa made woke both Cora and Clay and they made their way to the parlor to see if there was an intruder.
“Grandpa?” Clay questioned. “What are you doing with that rifle?”
Grandpa started to explain, Elizabeth’s sobs increased, and Grace hurried to Clay's side to try and explain.
Cora mumbled something about making tea to calm everyone’s nerves and retreated to the kitchen.
The mantle clock chimed three, the front door burst open, and a staggering Wade walked into the house. “You shouldn’t have waited up for me,” Wade slurred as he stumbled across the parlor floor and fell to his knees.
Clay stepped forward to offer his brother a hand, but Wade slapped it away. “I don’t need your help,” Wade spat as he hauled himself up with the aid of the settee.
Elizabeth looked at Wade and asked, “Where have you been? I was worried about you.”
“What do you care? You’re supposed to be my wife, but you share a room with Clay’s wife, and I have to go to town for company.” Wade began to laugh and then his face turned red with anger.
“You belong in my room,” Wade insisted and reached for Elizabeth. She took three steps back until she hit the wall. “You certainly aren’t what I pictured when I ordered you,” Wade screamed at her.
Wade staggered closer to Grace and growled, “This is your fault. If you weren’t here, then I’d have the ranch and Elizabeth, or maybe I could’ve married Lucinda and been happy. This idea of having to marry a woman grandpa believes is a decent woman is madness. A man should have a choice.”
Grace stepped backward away from Wade and Clay pulled he
r closer. He held out his hand to stop his brother. “Stay away from my wife.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll stay away from your wife. I have to stay away from my wife, too and your wife shares a room with my wife and not you,” Wade continued to babble. “This house is full of lunatics. I’m going to bed.” Wade pushed past Clay and staggered down the hall to his room slamming the door loudly behind him.
Grace held onto Clay feeling his strength and protection. He whispered, “You’re shaking. You can spend the night in my room. I promise we’ll just sleep. I don’t want you to worry that Wade will come into your room and hurt you. I love you.”
Grace looked up into her husband’s eyes and smiled, “I love you, too and I know you would be a gentleman, but I can’t leave Elizabeth alone. She looked heartbroken and terrified. Besides, I might not want you to be gentlemanly.” Grace winked at Clay, and he pulled her closer.
Grace whispered to Clay, “I need to see to Elizabeth.” Clay nodded and reluctantly released his arms from around his wife.
Grace took Elizabeth’s hand and led the crying young woman to their room where she hoped Elizabeth could rest and Wade would leave them alone. Grateful for the lock on the door, Grace locked it behind them and urged Elizabeth to lie down and try to sleep. Grace doubted either of them would get much sleep but resting, and relaxing was better than sitting and worrying about Wade.
Clay turned to his grandfather and said, “I’m going to bed. We need to talk about Wade in the morning. He can’t spend his nights in the saloon and not work during the day. We need his help around the ranch.”
Cora had stood in the hall just outside the parlor listening to the chaos between the family. She stepped out and spoke to Grandpa Hutchison, “I made a pot of tea. You should have a cup before trying to sleep before you get sick again.” Grandpa nodded and followed her to the kitchen.
After pouring two cups of tea, she placed one in front of Grandpa. “Hutch, you need to tell the boys the truth. Life can’t go on this way. Elizabeth is heartbroken, Grace fears Wade, and Wade is worse and not better.”
Hutch absentmindedly stirred his tea. “I didn’t expect Wade to behave this way. I thought marrying would settle him down. The only way I knew that Wade would marry was to force his hand.”
“But look what it’s caused. You need to tell Wade he’ll inherit half the ranch the way he always expected. This joke or plan has failed miserably. I know you didn’t expect Wade to act this way, but all you can do now is try to fix it,” Cora said and took a sip of tea.
Hutch shook his head. “I think it’s too late. If I tell them now, Wade will have his marriage annulled and marry Lucinda to spite me. Do you want her living here with us? I know as a Christian I should love others as myself, but Lucinda is a…umm, you know.”
“Soiled dove is a kind way to express what you’re trying to say.”
“Yes, and I pray she and all others in her situation find peace and a better life, but God forgive me, I don’t want that woman around any grandchildren Clay and Grace are blessed with.” He dropped his head into his hands and rubbed his forehead.
Cora reached out and patted Hutch’s hand. “Finish your tea and get some sleep. If you get sick again, things will only get worse. You need to build up your strength and stand up to what you started.”
“I will, but I want to give Wade a little more time. I can’t believe there isn’t a good man inside him. He needs guidance.”
Cora wasn’t as sure as Hutch that Wade would change, but she smiled at the old man as he stood and headed off to bed.
Grandpa convinced that his plan would still work, drifted off into a deep slumber.
Clay tossed and turned worried about his wife and Elizabeth’s welfare. Surely his brother wouldn’t harm either.
Grace pulled the blanket up to her chin and didn’t relax until Elizabeth’s quiet sobs calmed and Elizabeth fell asleep. Grace lay there thinking about the night’s events and decided she needed to be more wary of Wade than ever. There was something in the way he looked at her that made Grace feel insecure. Surely, he wouldn’t harm her. She wished she could have spent the night in her husband’s room, but her fear for Elizabeth’s safety overruled her own need to feel protected.
Cora hummed quietly as she cleaned the teacups and put the pot away in the kitchen. She also prayed silently that peace would settle on the house, but she feared Wade’s behavior would cause more problems before he ever accepted his grandfather’s will. If only Hutch hadn’t started this nonsense of pitting the boys against each other, but there was nothing she could do now but pray and hope.
Wade, still furious over his family’s treatment, fell onto his bed asleep before his head hit the pillow, but his troublesome mind continued to work dreaming of ways to best his brother and take control of the ranch.
Chapter Eleven
Wade woke the following day with his face pressed into his pillow. As he slowly pushed himself onto his side, pain shot through his head from the bright sunlight streaming through his east facing bedroom window. Too drunk the night before to pull his dark curtains closed, he swore and blamed his brother for sneaking into his room and making sure the curtains would be pulled open to annoy him. Everything was Clay’s fault and Wade needed to make sure he paid for it.
Groaning, he flopped onto his back and pulled his pillow over his face. The darkness it provided eased the pain in his head somewhat. Muddled memories of the previous night filled his mind. He remembered coming home to find his family waiting for him, but his grandfather held a rifle and his wife was crying. His wife? That made him laugh, and then the anger burned again. He couldn’t connect the memories, but he knew Clay was at fault and Grace was going to make his life difficult.
From the position of the light streaming in, Wade knew it was closer to noon than it was dawn and he slowly began to sit up. His mind raced making his headache worse, but he remembered that he planned on wooing his bride to keep her happy. Spending the day and evening drinking and enjoying Lucinda’s company was not the way to do it and he tried to come up with a lie and a plan on making Elizabeth happy.
First, he needed coffee and food. A shot of whiskey might be good, but he knew better than to pull the bottle from his dresser. Not today. This was the day that he needed to convince his wife to stay with him and begin a plan on convincing Grace to leave.
Wade pulled the bedroom door open and didn’t hear any sounds except for the clatter of pans and dishes coming from the kitchen. He walked to the bathing room knowing he needed to wash the smell of alcohol and Lucinda’s perfume off him before he could speak to anyone. When he was clean and dressed, he wandered into the kitchen to find Cora, Grace, and Elizabeth busy at work.
“Good morning,” Wade said trying to sound cheerful.
“It’s nearly noon,” Cora answered glaring at him.
Wade shrugged, “Sorry Cora, how are you today, Elizabeth?”
“I’m all right,” Elizabeth answered without turning around from chopping vegetables.
Wade poured himself a cup of coffee and asked Elizabeth, “Could we take a walk?”
“I’m helping to prepare lunch,” Elizabeth answered curtly.
“Then after lunch?”
Elizabeth shrugged.
Wade finished his coffee, slammed the cup down, grabbed two biscuits from a plate on the table, and stormed out the door. How was he going to woo his wife is she didn’t want to take a walk with him?
Grace asked Elizabeth if she was all right and Elizabeth nodded. “I learned a long time ago that I had to be all right even when things went badly. I can understand that men occasionally get drunk, but the scent of perfume on his clothes was stronger than the whiskey on his breath. That I can’t understand or condone, but what can I do? We’re married.”
Grace looked at Cora and Cora closed her eyes and shook her head slowly. Neither had an answer to Elizabeth’s question.
Wade saddled his horse and rode out to the south pasture before Clay had a chance
to say anything to him. Clay was busy breaking a new horse in the corral and watched as Wade galloped off without a glance in Clay’s direction. Clay mumbled to himself, “This situation is getting worse. I can’t imagine how angry grandpa will be at supper.”
Clay looked up and saw Grace walking toward the corral. Her smile brightened his day, and he waved. She waved back and strode directly to where he waited.
“What are you doing?” Grace inquired. “The horses are beautiful.”
Clay nodded, “Just getting them used to me. Last month a neighbor died after falling from his barn roof while doing repairs. One of the adjoining ranches bought the ranch and cattle but didn’t want the horses. I bought the three mares and that black stallion in the other corral.”
Clay whistled, and the three mares trotted over to him. He pulled some sugar from his shirt pocket and gave it to the mares.
“Now, I understand why they come when you whistle. You bribe them,” Grace laughed.
“Not always,” Clay insisted. “They come to the whistle because they are well trained.”
“I suppose that explains why your shirt pockets are sticky when I washed them.”
“You wash my shirts?” Clay stammered.
“Of course. I wash your things, Elizabeth washes Wade’s, and we help Cora with grandpa’s and the rest of the wash. You men dirty a lot of clothes, and it’s too much work for Cora. I’m not sure how she managed before we arrived to help.”
Clay nodded and then his face turned white and then red, “You wash all my clothes?”
Grace bit back a smile. “Yes. Before my mother passed, she made sure I knew how to cook, wash, and clean house even though we had help. When father and I moved into the city, we eventually sent the washing out, but I did wash his things for about a year. I still remember my lessons from years ago.”
Thinking about Grace handling all his clothes gave Clay pause, and he stared across the corral.
The beautiful chestnut with four white stocking stepped away from Clay and closer to Grace. She lifted her hand slowly and gently ran it along the horse’s head. “She’s beautiful,” Grace said. “What’s her name.”
A Bride For Clay (The Proxy Brides Book 2) Page 5