She had so many things rushing through her mind. So many questions to ask—but she didn’t have the slightest idea of where to begin.
Chapter 14
“Did you find much to talk about with Cory?” Chase asked once they were on their way back to the mansion. He could see that she appeared to be distracted, and he could only assume that she was thinking about Cory. Chase had known Cory Jones for years, and he wasn’t at all impressed with what he knew. Cory Jones liked to impress women, and he did everything he could to accomplish his goal.
Chase had seen break more than one heart, and no doubt he would do the same thing to Charity if he was given the chance. It was upsetting enough for him to run into Annabelle, but it was even worse seeing how Charity responded to Cory when he was speaking with her. He could see it in her face when he walked up to the two of them—she very clearly enjoyed the attention he was giving her, and seemed almost disappointed when Chase walked up.
Of course, it certainly didn’t help that Annabelle said that the two of them were enjoying their conversation before he arrived—sure, he knew that she didn’t have any feelings for him, but at the same time, he didn’t want to see Cory get his hands on Charity. Once he got his claws into her heart and her life, he knew that it would be just a matter of time before Charity had her heart broken for good—or worse.
Charity was gorgeous, and Chase strongly believed that she was the most beautiful woman in town—in the entire area. If Cory was given the chance, he could well decide that he wanted to marry the girl, and perhaps he would even woo her. If he managed to convince her to marry him, Chase knew that it would just be a matter of time until he lost interest in the woman, and Charity would be stuck in an unhappy marriage for the rest of her life.
No, it didn’t matter how much of an argument they had as a result, he wasn’t going to let Charity get swept off her feet by that man—no matter what. Of course, Chase also didn’t want to admit that he felt jealousy well up inside him when he saw the way Charity was talking to Cory. She was smiling and laughing in a way he had never seen before—and he didn’t like it.
He had never been able to get her to laugh and smile like that—whether he was trying or not. Chase didn’t know why, but it really bothered him that he had never been able to get her to laugh that way. He wanted to—even more now that he saw that Cory Jones was able to do so.
“He was really just introducing himself. I thought he seemed nice,” Charity replied as she looked up at him. He could see the confusion in her eyes as she spoke, but he merely grunted and slapped the reins on the backs of the horses in reply.
“I hope you know I’ve seen that man in action more than once, and I can’t say that I am very impressed in what he does. I don’t want to take anything away from what you just had with him, but I want you to know that he treats all girls that way—I guarantee he was just trying to impress you,” Chase said without looking back at her. He slapped the reins one more, and Charity held onto the side of the buggy. He could sense she was feeling uncomfortable with the way he was driving the horses, but he was also feeling angry in a way—angry that she didn’t agree with him.
In fact, she seemed rather hurt that he said so, and he got the impression that she wanted Cory to be special to him in a way. Chase tried to take a deep breath and focus on what had really happened, but the more he thought about it, the more he could see Charity falling in love with Cory, and leaving him behind. He tried to tell himself that he didn’t care, but it was clear to both him and Charity both that he did.
He did very much.
“Who is Annabelle? She certainly seemed to know you.” Charity asked, and Chase felt his heart skip a beat. He had wondered how long the two of them had interacted, if at all, and that told him that they had.
“I told you, someone I used to court,” he replied with a rather irritated tone to his voice. She looked at him with wide eyes, and he could sense the jealousy and judgement coming from her body language. He kept his eyes on the road as they drove along, not wanting to make eye contact with her. He could sense that it was going to be a point of tension between them, and he often felt that Annabelle had caused enough trouble in his life. It was only going to be worse if she got involved with Charity as well.
“She mentioned that she was going to be involved with the sale of the horses on the estate, or something like that—I just wondered how involved that meant she was going to be,” Charity continued. She was looking across the prairie as she spoke, and Chase bit his tongue as they continued along the dirt road.
“I’m sure she’s going to be far more involved in every aspect of my life than I really want her to be. I hope you aren’t jealous, Charity, there is a reason we broke off the engagement when we did.” He looked down at her as they continued to ride along, but he could see that even now she wasn’t fully convinced he was telling the truth.
“To hear how she put it, you are still really interested in each other. I don’t know, Chase, but if you do still have feelings for her, I would like to know right now. I don’t want to find out the hard way.” Charity spoke softly, and Chase almost thought he could hear her voice crack. He glanced down at her, and thought he could see her fighting emotion in her face as she spoke. He felt another twinge inside him—she was clearly not wanting to show how jealous she really was feeling, but it was written clearly across her face.
There was no doubt in his mind that she was very jealous over Annabelle, but she, like him, would never admit that she had feelings for him, or that she was angry with the girl for any reason.
“I am not jealous!” she suddenly snapped, as though she were able to read his mind. He looked down at her once more, then turned his attention back to the road. Chase didn’t know what to say. It was clear that she was jealous, and he wished he could tell her that there was no reason to be—to convince her that there was no reason to be. He had chosen long before that he didn’t want to have anything to do with Annabelle or any of her family so long as he could help it, and even now, even with her father forcing his business on the estate, Chase was looking for another way to get out of it.
“Annabelle is far more interested in my brother than she was ever interested in me, let me assure you,” Chase said, deciding it best that he comfort her rather than humiliate her further. The look of insecurity was clearly written on her face, and Chase wished that there was a way he could make it go away. Although he didn’t know why, he didn’t like to see Charity feeling so upset—or even a little bit bothered by what was going on with Annabelle.
Annabelle had a way, much like Cory, of sinking her claws into the lives of other people and leaving them ruined by the time she was done, though Chase knew that there would be no way for him to effectively explain it to the girl, he was going to do the best he could.
“Your brother? You hardly ever speak of him—why should she care about him? Charity asked, her eyebrows raised in questioning defiance. Chase sighed as he looked at her.
“I don’t speak of him because it is not anyone’s business but my own. He is my brother, and I prefer to keep our matters behind closed doors. However, my brother is also younger and far more adventurous than I will ever be—which is why he is now across the ocean searching for some new stock for the estate. He is the kind of man who is always going to be full of stories, and she likes that in a being.” He answered rather abruptly. Charity was a little confused. She had always thought that he himself was the kind of man who would be full of stories, yet he spoke of his brother as though Troy was the only one of the two living an interesting life.
“Oh? Then why would you want to be with a girl like that?” Charity asked, clearly uncertain whether she ought to believe him or not. Chase was uncomfortable. He had never openly discussed what had happened between him and Annabelle, and he didn’t want to start doing it now. It was a valid question, and considering everything he had told her he knew why she would ask it, but it wasn’t easy for him to answer. The fact of the matter was that h
e didn’t know why he had been with Annabelle for as long as he was, and he would have happily taken it back if he could have.
She looked at him with raised eyebrows, clearly expecting an answer. Chase didn’t respond for a few minutes, then he sighed. He knew that she was going to have to have an answer, or she was going to continue hounding him. At the same time, he wanted to put her mind at ease, and the only way that was going to happen was if he told her the truth.
“Alright, I’ll tell you, but I want you to know that it was a mistake from the beginning, and I am not proud of it. I met Annabelle at one of the many dinners my parents used to put on for the people in the area. She was beautiful—I thought at the time—so innocent and young—so unaltered by the ways of the world.” He had a faraway look in his eyes, but he quickly shook his head when he realized Charity was staring at him.
“But, what I thought she was and what she really is were two different things. She was the daughter of a poor farmer, and I thought that would make her different from the other women I had met. At first, she was. But, as soon as she got a taste for money, she did everything she could to get her hands on more. Her life was marked with greed and envy, and nothing was ever good enough for her. I knew that she liked my brother, and there were times when I wondered if she liked him more than she liked me. We fought all the time and drifted apart, and eventually, she left me for another man.” Chase relayed the story in a flat tone, not wanting to go into too many details.
Charity looked at him with concern in her eyes. “I hope she didn’t leave you for your brother.”
“Troy? No. Troy thought she was beautiful, just as I did, but he was far too concerned with helping the family than he worried about marrying any kind of a charming woman. Besides, she cared only for wealth and money, and he didn’t really bother much at all with the inheritance that is rightfully his. He is far more interested in the horses than he is in money, trust me.”
Silence encompassed them, and for a while, Charity didn’t say anything at all. Chase wondered if she was trying to find the words to speak, or if she realized that there really wasn’t anything else to say. She appeared to be lost in thought, and though he wanted to ask her what she made of the situation, he knew it was better if he merely let the subject go.
“I am going to find a way to get the Jackson family out of our business. A few years back, Mr. Jackson, her father, found his way into the horse breeding business, and he has been doing quite well—unfortunately for me. I don’t want anything further to do with any one of them, but I have little choice as long as my parents are here and have a hand in things.” Chase let the frustration show in his tone, and Charity looked up at him. In the fading light of the evening, he could see that there was a different look in her eyes than what was there before. He could see that the jealousy had faded, and a look of concern had taken its place.
She reached forward and put her hand over his, and he looked down in surprise. He was still holding the reins, but she was not holding his hand in hers as he drove the horses, and the look that she gave him was full of understanding and compassion. For the first time in their relationship, Charity wasn’t challenging him or judging him for what he said or what he had done, but rather, she was supporting him.
“I know you’re going to get it figured out. I’m sorry that she did that to you—if she had any sense at all, she would have known that any young woman would be lucky to have you,” Charity said quietly. Chase looked at her for a moment, surprise clearly written across his face. He wasn’t sure he was hearing her properly, or if she really meant what she said. He reached over with one of his hands and put it over hers, sandwiching her palms with the reins in his hands.
“That is very kind of you to say, and I want you to know as a friend, I think it is a good idea if you are very careful about the things you do with Mr. Jones—or what you allow him to say to you,” Chase said. He didn’t want to tell her what to do, but at the same time, he wanted her to know just how strongly he felt about the situation. Charity smiled and laid her head on his shoulder, and Chase felt a shock run through him. He had never felt so close to anyone in his life, and the feeling of her head on him made his heart skip a beat.
“I’ll watch myself around him, though I must say, he’s not the first person to come calling on me. I know how to handle myself.” Charity spoke with a laugh, and Chase felt his heart skip a beat once more. There was something melodious about her laughter, and it made his heart pound with anticipation. He liked to hear it more than anything, and he suddenly realized, it was the first time she had truly laughed around him.
Leaning his head down for a moment, he gently leaned on her for a few seconds.
“I’m sure that’s very true,” he whispered, his tone a mix of laughter combined with seriousness. He didn’t want to lift his head from hers, but he didn’t want her to think that he was pushing himself onto her, either. After a lingering moment of leaning on her, Chase sat back up and slapped the reins on the horses, urging them through the gate and toward the barn.
He dropped her off at the door, then drove the horses back to their building. But, Chase couldn’t help but glance back as he did so, catching one more glimpse at Charity as she vanished inside the house. He didn’t want to let his heart think about what could happen if they were to fall in love with each other—she had made it clear that wasn’t going to happen.
Chase told himself it was nothing more than a fleeting feeling of being caught up in the moment. It was nothing more, and nothing less—and he could enjoy it for what it was without allowing himself to think that there could possibly be more between them. Both their minds were made up, and that was the end of the matter.
Charity would be leaving as soon as his parents did, and Chase—he would spend his life with his wealth and his mansion, perfectly content with what he had.
Chapter 15
“I hear that Miss Jackson is going to be stopping by to see to the horses—and how the bill is coming along for the Jackson family?” Mrs. Cunningham asked at breakfast the next morning. Chase looked up in surprise, and Charity felt her heart sink. She hadn’t been able to get the ride with Chase out of her mind all night, and the mention of Annabelle only made her chest feel tight with envy.
“Indeed, but do you mind telling me how you know that?” Chase asked his mother. Charity glanced over at the woman as well, though she was doing her best to keep her attention on the breakfast in front of her. Mrs. Cunningham held up a letter with a grim smile.
“She was more than happy to write ahead and let us know she was coming—but if you knew, why didn’t you tell me?” she asked her son as she handed him the letter. Charity felt her heart sink, and she would have given nothing more than to be able to see the letter for herself. But, knowing that it wasn’t her place, she held her tongue and took another drink of the coffee next to her plate.
“I knew that she was going to be involved somehow, but I wasn’t sure to what extent, or when,” he replied with a rather dry tone. Chase read through the letter then slapped it down on the table. “I will be darned if she thinks she is going to have any say in what I do with the animals that are on this property!”
“What do you mean?” Charity asked suddenly, speaking before she realized she was going to say the words out loud. She blushed, but Chase answered her simply.
“She claims in the letter until the full payment is made, she is going to have the right to see where the animals are being kept, and they are going to retain several breeding rights from a couple of the young stallions.” He then turned to his mother with raised eyebrows, “Mother! You can’t tell me that Father agreed to any of this—you know how proud he is, there is no way that he is going to allow an outsider—a Jackson, no less—tell him how he is going to manage his horses, or retain any breeding rights!”
Chase spoke with such passion, Charity felt her stomach twist. She didn’t at all like the sound of what was going on, though she had to admit that she didn’t fully understa
nd what the problem was. Chase seemed to be very upset by it, and she hated the thought of Annabelle having any sort of control over what Chase was doing with the estate, but it seemed to her that Chase didn’t have any control over it himself—he was just as trapped by the paper as any of them were.
“You were there with your father when he signed the contract, and we are going to be bound to that for as long as it lasts,” Mrs. Cunningham said simply. Chase rose from the table with rage in his eyes.
“They didn’t say anywhere that they were going to have any say or any rights with the animals—once they are ours, they belong to this estate, and if they want to breed their mares back to the stallions, they are going to have to pay for it, just like anyone else!” Chase said with such passion, Charity couldn’t help but look at him with admiration. He was walking back and forth in the room, but Mrs. Cunningham shook her head.
“I hope you read through this letter carefully. It says that she is going to be here right after breakfast, and you know the Jacksons are always punctual—and early with their own meals. I would recommend that you finish up and get ready, she is bound to be here any minute.” Chase gave his mother a defeated look, and Charity felt her heart sink. She didn’t at all like the thought of Chase getting dressed up to see Annabelle, not after the way Annabelle had spoken to her when they met in town, but she also knew that she couldn’t say anything about it.
Chase was going to be dealing with the Jacksons for business, and that meant he was going to have to act like it—including getting dressed up for the showings and the meetings. Chase looked from the letter to his mother and back again, then he let his eyes wander over to Charity. She smiled weakly, but there was nothing she could do about it. He excused himself from the room, and in a moment, she was left alone with Mrs. Cunningham once more.
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