The next day, however, she had an idea—and idea that would help her get the money she needed to pay back what she owed, and perhaps enough money to also pay for a train ticket away from there. If she could pay her own way out of Wyoming territory she wouldn’t have anything to be beholden to Chase for—which was exactly what she wanted in her life.
“May I?” she asked as she sat down in one of the chairs in the reading room. Scarlett was sitting in the reading room with her nose buried in one of the papers—her husband often took the papers in his room in the morning, and she didn’t get the chance to look through them herself. Though Scarlett often pretended she didn’t notice when this happened, the fact of the matter was that it bothered her dearly, especially now. She was looking for the opportunity to get to the coast and take her husband to England, but if that was going to happen, she had to find the right time to do it.
“Of course, My Dear, you are more than welcome,” she said with a smile as Charity sat down. She didn’t know what she really wanted with the woman—part of her wanted advice, at least, she thought that part of her wanted advice, but then there was another part of her that really didn’t want to ask her anything. She wished she could know what Chase was thinking, but that wasn’t going to happen with how things were going for her so far.
Perhaps if she were to get closer to his mother, she would be able to know the son better.
“How are you settling in?” Mrs. Cunningham asked, and Charity gave her a weak smile.
“I admit, I do miss my family,” she said, and Mrs. Cunningham nodded, reaching forward and putting her hand over Charity’s.
“I can imagine you do, but you know, when you do come of age, you are going to have to make sacrifices that you didn’t know you were going to have to make, and you’re going to have to do things that you never thought you would do,” she said with a smile. Charity looked at her with wide eyes for a moment, then she sighed as she sat back in the chair.
“I can see that now, but I can assure you, I never thought that it would mean that I would move all the way across the country to marry a man I had never met before,” she spoke aloud without really thinking about what she was saying, and she winced and looked over at Mrs. Cunningham with a smile. She didn’t wish to offend the woman in any way, and she worried that when she said such things without really thinking about it first that she was going to bother the woman. But, Mrs. Cunningham didn’t seem to notice, and instead merely nodded with a smile.
“I remember when I was your age. I never knew what life was going to require of me. I had imagined that I was going to spend my life struggling to make ends meet—to put food on the table and put a roof over my head. I thought that if I should be lucky enough to have children, I wouldn’t ever be able to raise them. But now look at me—here I am in one of the largest houses I have ever been in with a beautiful young lady waiting to marry the son that I raised.” Scarlett spoke with a smile, but there was a faraway look in her eye that made Charity wonder what the woman was really thinking.
“I guess I was the opposite. I never thought that life was going to be such a struggle. When I lived with my parents, I thought that they were going to take care of everything for the rest of my life—I had no idea that there was going to be a day when I had to do things like this.” She sighed and looked down at her hands, and Mrs. Cunningham put her hand over the girl’s, giving her a look of compassion.
“My dear, when I say that I have enough money to pay for a roof over my head and that I am proud of my son, I am not saying that my life is not full of struggles. There are just going to be different struggles for different people in their lives, and we are all meant to live out our own.” She gave her a solemn look, and Charity couldn’t help but ask her what she meant.
“Well, think of it this way, my dear. Upstairs sitting in one of his rocking chairs is my dear husband—a man that has taken care of me all these years. I thought that it would always be that way—I never thought that the day would come when I would be the one who was going to take care of him—to move across the world to be able to give him the best life he can have. The same is going to go for you. And Chase.” She added the words as more of an afterthought, once more looking as though she were thinking of something far, far away.
“Chase seems like he has things very much figured out,” Charity said with a sigh, and Mrs. Cunningham laughed.
“Don’t let the boy fool you, he might act like he has everything figured out, but that boy is in need of some support. That is part of the reason that I wanted him to marry so badly, and I am thrilled that he has found a young woman like you.” She gave Charity’s hand a final squeeze, then she sat back and smiled. Charity looked down at her hands for a moment, thinking about what Mrs. Cunningham had just told her. She had never really thought about things that way, and it made her wonder why Chase had told her that he didn’t want to get married to her.
Perhaps he really did worry that she was just like all the other girls that he had known in the past—perhaps there really was more to him than what met her eye. But, at the same time, she still didn’t know if he was the kind of man that she wanted to marry. She liked to think of her father, and the way he would handle anything that came his way as though it was no trouble at all. Chase also seemed to be very confident in his ability to do things, but there was another side to him that didn’t remind her of her father.
It reminded her of herself.
They both tried so hard to be the people that they knew they were expected to be, but neither one of them really knew how to make that happen.
“Well, Dear, I am going to go check on Mr. Cunningham and make sure there isn’t anything he needs,” Mrs. Cunningham said as she rose from her chair. Charity smiled and thanked her for her words, but the smile faded as soon as the door closed. There were thoughts rushing through her mind faster than she knew how to keep up with, and she didn’t know how to stop them.
Or even where to start.
Chapter 10
“I thought I saw you out in a buggy the other day with a pretty little thing by your side—are you seeing someone?”
“Oh, that was Charity—I guess you could say that,” Chase replied. Clark looked at him with a sly smile, and Chase shook his head. “It’s not what you think. I guess you could say that our arrangement is more for business purposes than anything.”
“Didn’t you learn your lesson with Annabelle? Business has its place in the world, but I’m not so certain it has its place in love,” Clark replied. Chase nodded, though he refused to look at the man. Clark Norman owned another large piece of land with a farm house and stables in the area, and he was an incredibly successful horse breeder. Though his horses were a little older than what Chase would have preferred choosing for his own, he knew that they were good stock, and he could train them to be what he needed around the place.
“My father isn’t doing well these days, and my parents are discussing leaving the area. My mother thinks taking him to England where the air is better is going to help his condition, but they don’t want to leave the estate in the hands of someone who isn’t going to produce an heir to the fortune,” Chase explained as he looked in the mouth of the horse. Clark laughed.
“So, you find some girl to marry before they go? How do you think love is going to come out of that?” Clark asked, and Chase shook his head. He shrugged as he turned back to his friend with a bit of a smile playing at his lips, though Clark could see in his eyes that he didn’t find the situation to be at all humorous.
“I’m not looking for love, Clark. I thought I loved Annabelle, and the woman broke my heart. She was everything I ever wanted in a woman, and look what she did to me. I’m not going to let that happen to me again. I’m not going to open myself up to anyone—only to have them hurt me like that all over.” He slapped the back of the horse then rubbed its shoulder. “I like this one.”
“I thought you might,” Clark replied, allowing the subject to be changed back to the hor
se. “I saved him just for you.”
“You say that, but don’t fool me—I know there has to be a reason you didn’t do anything with this animal. Look at him—with his breeding, you could get a lot for him in offspring if not through selling him.” Chase gave his friend a look, and Clark shrugged.
“What can I say? The animal is a little—spirited—I suppose. But, if I thought he was beyond hope, I wouldn’t sell him, just make sure that you have someone who knows what they are doing when they are around him. It took three of my men to get him in here in the first place—I would hate to see what he could do to you if you try to handle him on your own.” Clark spoke in a direct tone, and though it wasn’t what Chase wanted to hear, it did make sense. But, regardless of the horse’s temperament, he was a beautiful creature, and he could throw some mighty fine offspring if that was all he used him for. Chase didn’t want to think that he would have to wait that long to have good bloodlines on the property, but there were times when a man had to do what a man had to do.
“Are you sure you want to put this much work into an animal when Troy is out there finding you something better?” Clark asked with a teasing tone. He knew that Chase was frustrated with the anticipation of knowing what his brother was going to bring back, but he chose to tease him anyway.
Chase gave him a look and rolled his eyes. “You know Troy is going to do his best to find the top-quality animals he can, but who knows what that even means when it comes to Europe? There are so many different kinds of animals and breeders out there, I’m not sure what he’s going to have to deal with.”
“Have you heard from him lately?” Clark asked, and Chase shook his head. He didn’t wish to talk about the lack of communication that had been taking place between the two of them, and there was little that he could say about what he knew. Chase could only know what his brother told him, and since his brother hadn’t been able to write home lately, there wasn’t much for him to relay to the others who asked.
Not wanting to talk about it more than he had to, he changed the subject back to the business that was at hand.
“How much?” Chase asked. Clark thought for a moment, as though he hadn’t considered what the price would be before. Chase gave him an impatient look. If there was one thing about Clark, it was that he did business well. If he was planning on selling the horse, then he knew exactly how much he wanted to get for the animal.
But, Clark was also one who liked to put on a show, and Chase knew he was going to drag out the conversation as much as possible. He gave his friend an impatient look, and Clark returned it with an amused look of his own. At last, he spoke.
“How about we discuss what would be fair—I think I can give you a special price on him, and you can consider it to be a wedding gift.”
Chase slapped the reins on the backs of the horses, glancing behind him every now and then to see what the new horse was doing. The colt was just over a year old, and freshly broke—he was going to take a lot of work before he was able to be ridden the way Chase wanted him to be. It would have been a lot easier if the animal had been started earlier, but he didn’t know which horse he was going to choose at that time, and he had to make do with what he had.
He turned his attention back to the road when one of his hired hands came riding up.
“Wow Boss, he’s a beauty. You get that from Old Man Norman?” Hank asked as he rode around the back of the wagon then up to the front again. Clark nodded as he pointed over his shoulder.
“I think we can work with him and make a decent ride out of him. He’s not had the kind of training that he should have by now, but he’s young enough, and you know all the Norman bloodlines are good animals. Whether he wants to or not, he’s going to learn.” Chase laughed as he urged the horses on faster. “Get on then and tell them that I’m bringing him in. He’s spirited, and we could use a hand.”
Hank nodded and dug his spurs into the horse’s flanks, urging him up the road faster than what Chase could do in the wagon. He looked back over his shoulder once more, seeing that the young horse had its ears up and forward, listening to everything that was happening. The cold was large for its age, and he looked strong. Chase knew if he was able to work with the animal properly, he could make a good horse out of it, but it was going to take time.
There was a reason Clark hadn’t worked with the horse much—and there was another reason that he had given Chase such a bargain. Though the horse carried remarkable bloodlines and was very beautiful itself, he was wild and spirited, and certainly not the kind of animal that he would let just anyone ride. This horse was going to need an experienced rider who knew exactly what they were doing before they climbed onto his back—or he could seriously hurt someone.
Chase drove the wagon right up to the front of the barn and put on the brake before jumping off the side, and he noticed out of the corner of his eye that Charity was sitting on the front porch of the house. She was working on some embroidery, and she looked up when he pulled the wagon into the yard. He held up his hand in greeting, and she rose from the chair, seeing the horse he had in tow.
“Stay back!” he said sternly as she drew near. She stopped and looked at him with wide eyes.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“He’s skittish,” the reply was dry.
“I don’t mind.”
“I mind if you get kicked.”
“I happen to know a thing or two about horses.” She crossed her arms and lifted her chin, looking down her nose at him with a haughty air.
“Then you know you ought to listen to me, or you are going to end up with a nasty kick.” His tone was condescending, and Charity threw her arms down to her side in exasperation. She was about to say something else, but at that moment, Hank came running out of the hired hand cabin with two other men alongside him. Chase ignored Charity, but he could see by the look on her face that she was nervous when the other men came running over. She took a step back, and he was silently glad she was going to be out of the way of any danger.
The horse suddenly pinned its ears flat against its head and put its back to them.
“Easy boys, watch those feet,” Chase said. He walked around to the front of the horse and grabbed the bridle, but he jerked his hand away quickly when the horse suddenly turned its head and gave him a nasty bite right on the hand. Hank cried out and almost said something, but caught himself as he looked over at Charity. He bit his tongue, knowing that he had to be more of a gentleman in her presence, and once again he tried to grab the bridle.
“You’re moving too quickly. He’s scared.” Charity’s voice chimed in. Chase looked over his shoulder at her, giving her a condescending look.
“Oh, and I suppose you know how to handle a horse that has never been taught manners?” he asked in an incredulous tone. She looked at him with keen smile.
“I know enough to know when the horse is frightened, and shouldn’t be handled the way that you are handling him,” she said, her own condescending tone coming through her voice clearly. He looked at her and shook his head, then turned his attention back to the horse.
“Easy, Boys, I don’t want anyone to get kicked or hurt doing this.” He did his best to sound confident, though for some reason, Charity watching the situation made him feel nervous. He tried to shake off the feeling and focus on what they were doing, but it was difficult. Chase didn’t know what it was about the woman, but she made him feel things he had never felt before, and he didn’t know if he liked it, or it if drove him crazy.
No one, not even Annabelle, had had the power to make him feel nervous when he was working animals. It was what he had been born to do—it was what he had grown up doing, and it was what he would do until the day he died.
“Where are we taking him, Boss?” Hank asked, and Chase was brought back to the moment.
“Just into the corral. We can tie him to the post if he gets too rowdy, but I think if we give him his head he’ll calm down a bit,” Chase replied Jack ran to the gate and yanked
it open, and both Hank and Chase grabbed onto the reins of the horse. They were holding them out in opposite directions, doing their best to keep the horse from striking at one or the other.
“He’s scared!” Charity called out again.
“Shouting at him isn’t going to do any good!” Chase said over his shoulder. He sighed as he turned his attention back to the horse. Once again, he wondered why he allowed the woman to get under his skin like he did. She was just another girl from back East, and he was the one who knew what he was doing when it came to the horses. Her job was to sit there and watch, while his job was to take care of the animals. He didn’t want her advice or her input on the situation—he just wanted to take care of it himself.
“Easy there! Easy!” Jack said as they pushed the horse toward the gate. The animal reared its head and tried to rise onto its back feet, but both Hank and Chase had their own feet planted firmly on the ground, braced against the horse as it tried to yank them into the air.
“Do it now!” Chase shouted as Hank slapped the rump of the animal, while at the same time pulling the reins free of the bridle. Chase attempted to do the same, but with Charity watching, he felt nervous. He didn’t know why, but the nervousness made him hang onto the bridle for a second longer than he should have, and the horse gave his arm a terrible wrench as it bolted into the corral. Chase cried out in pain, but once again but his tongue before he said something that no lady should ever hear.
“Boss! You okay?” Jack asked as he shoved the gate closed.
“Oh shoot! I thought that you were ready!” Hank said, hurrying over with concern on his face.
“Normally, I would have been. I don’t know what happened,” Chase said as he looked at his hand. It was throbbing and red, but he could move his fingers. With an annoyed look at the hired hands, he tore the kerchief from about his neck and began wrapping his hand. He winced as he pulled the knot tight, and he couldn’t help but glance toward the Charity.
Mail Order Bride: A Bride's Unexpected Love: A Western Romance Book Page 7