A Life Restored (18 page)

As Caroline uncrossed her arms, Thomas wondered if she would let it drop so quickly.
 
He could tell the words hurt, even if that wasn’t the intent.
 
It made him wonder just how much truth there was behind the teasing—if she really managed to toy with men so easily.
 
She certainly had with Perry.

“Perry sends his greetings,” Thomas said.
 
“He was happy to hear you made it to your new home safely.”

Caroline sent a strained smile his way.

Adam rolled his eyes.
 
“Another beau already.
 
You’ve been here, what, a week?”

“Perry is not a beau.
 
He’s a widower.”

Thomas stifled a snort.
 
He’s a widower alright.
 
One that seems to have forgotten everything about his late wife.
 
One who peppered him with a dozen questions about Caroline as he changed out his horse, both on the trip to La Paz and on the return trip.
 
Yeah, definitely not a beau.

“He was a very gracious host when we stayed at his ranch overnight.
 
He even gave me several things to replace my lost wardrobe, out of Christian charity.
 
Nothing more.”

Thomas raised an eyebrow then caught himself.
 
He could not disagree more with her assessment.

“That was very kind of him,” Julia agreed.

Silence fell over the group as tension still sizzled from Caroline.

Thomas noted the gray dress she wore today was one of the ones from Perry, only it seemed she found time to tailor it to her curves.
 
The gray color made the green of her eyes that much more noticeable.
 
She looked stunning in the work dress.
 
He could only imagine what those poor boys in Texas struggled with when she wore something fancier.
 
Well, maybe he could imagine.

He found himself staring at her lips.
 
When she cleared her throat and offered a brief scowl, he knew he had been caught.

“So, Thomas, strange that you would happen to know Will’s wife,” Caroline said with a challenge.

“She was married to my brother before he passed on,” Thomas answered, looking off into the valley below.

Caroline’s voice softened.
 
“I’m so sorry.”

“It’s nice to have found her and to have some family nearby.”

Julia asked, “How did you end up in the Arizona Territory?”

Thomas recounted the story—at least the most innocuous parts of it.
 
He said nothing about the bank robbery or his jail time.
 
Only that he enlisted to fight for the North.

“It’s so perfect that you would go from dispatch riding to working for the La Paz Express,” Caroline said, smiling.
 
“Isn’t God amazing?”

“If you believe in that sort of thing.”

Her smile faded and he wished he would have just agreed with her.
 
He hadn’t wanted to leave the impression that he believed in God when he didn’t.

“Well, whether or not you see it doesn’t change the fact that He has a hand in your life.”

He glared at her.
 
Of course they were on the opposite sides of this issue.
 
Why not?
 
They had been on pretty much everything else.

Julia changed the topic to her wedding.
 
Caroline seemed less enthused about the picnic and any topic of conversation for the remainder of the outing.
 
He wondered if she was mad at him for his comment or if she had grown weary of the wedding details.
 
He certainly had.

After a leisurely hour, the four packed up and headed back to the ranch.

Once at the ranch, Caroline and Thomas volunteered to take care of the horses while Adam and Julia headed to the house with the picnic basket and blanket.

Thomas rushed through caring for his horse and Adam’s.
 
By the time he finished, Caroline had just started on Julia’s horse.

“Need some help?” he asked as she struggled to lift Julia’s saddle from the horse.

Caroline stepped back and motioned for him to take the saddle.
 
Then she grabbed the brush from where it balanced on the edge of the stable gate while he removed the rest of the horse’s gear.

Thomas couldn’t help but ask the question that had been on his mind since Adam brought it up at the picnic.

“So you like to toy with men?” he asked in a teasing tone.

Caroline stopped mid-brushstroke.
 
Propping one hand on her hip she turned to face him, as he removed the bridle from the horse.
 
“No!”

“Hmm.
 
You’re brother makes it sound like you left a trail of broken hearts back in Texas.”

When her cheeks flushed, he knew it was true.

“Then, of course, there’s Perry.
 
The man couldn’t hardly stop talking about you each time I stopped at his station.”

“Oh,” she whispered.

“I can see why,” Thomas continued.
 
Though his brain warned him to tread carefully, he ignored it.
 
“The way you flirted shamelessly with him, he probably thinks you’re madly in love with him.”

She lifted the brush to continue caring for the horse.
 
Without looking at him, she responded, rather calmly, “I did not flirt with him.
 
I was just friendly.
 
That’s it.
 
I thought we already covered this.”

He laughed, slapping his leg from the hilarity of her statement.

“You do know what flirting is, right?”

She flashed him an angry glance while she kept on brushing.

“It’s those coy looks you give a man that tangle with his feelings.”

She turned to face him, tilting her head down while moving her eyes up to connect with his.
 
“Whatever do you mean?”

She was doing it now and it drove him crazy.

“Please tell me you realize you just did it.”

She shook her head.

Really?
 
Is she that naïve?

Stepping closer, he pulled her to him.

“That look,” he whispered.
 
“To a man, that is an invitation.”

She swallowed and asked softly, “An invitation to what?”

He moved his lips to inches from hers.
 
“This.”

Then he lowered his lips to hers, savoring her sweetness.
 
When she didn’t hesitate to kiss him back, his senses exploded.
 
He quickly ended the kiss, taking a large step back from her.
 
His breath was ragged, as was hers.

Fool.
 
In trying to teach her a lesson, he learned one himself.
 
She was dangerous, stirring his desire even more this time than the last.
 
He couldn’t trust himself around her.
 
Perhaps this was the exact thing Adam understood too well—that Caroline had a natural ability to turn a man inside out.

He looked into her eyes and was surprised by what he saw there.
 
Innocence.
 
Embarrassment.
 
Desire.

Lifting his hat from his head, he ran his fingers through his hair.
 
Maybe she really was that naïve.

As her face reddened more, she turned back towards the horse.

“I suppose you’ve made your point,” she said, the hurt obvious from her tone.

Instantly, he regretted his actions.
 
“I’m sorry—”

“Caroline!” Julia’s panicked voice preceded her into the stable.
 
“Caroline!”

“Back here!”

Julia appeared in front of the stable gate.
 
She was shaking and her face had drained of all color.

“He’s here.”

Caroline moved toward her friend.
 
“Who is here?”

“It’s… It’s Reuben.”

Thomas frowned in confusion.
 
Who was Reuben?

Chapter 20

Caroline held back her gasp, hoping not to frighten Julia further.
 
She had to calm her friend down.

“Julia, there’s no way Reuben could be here.
 
He’s dead.”

“I swear it is him.
 
He looks different.
 
But… but the way he dismounted his horse… That’s just how Reuben did.”

She pushed past Thomas, still very upset with him for his little stunt.
 
Kissing her only to prove a point.
 
The nerve.
 
She put it from her mind, resolving to deal with him later.
 
She ushered Julia outside.

As they neared the stable entrance, Julia slowed her pace, digging her heels in.
 
“I don’t want to see him again.
 
Not after what he did to me.”

A sob broke from Julia’s throat and her shaking increased.

“Talk to me.
 
Tell me who you think looks like Reuben.”

“A man… He rode into the ranch… Talking to Adam and Will now.”
 
Her voice broke heavily with several sobs, making it difficult for Caroline to understand more.

“Thomas,” she said over her shoulder.
 
“Can you please go see who arrived?”

He grunted, not seeming too pleased about her request.
 
But, he walked towards the ranch house.

Caroline tried to comfort Julia, whispering soft words in her ear as she rocked her back and forth.
 
If it really was Reuben, then she could understand Julia’s fears.
 
He had hurt her in the worst way possible.
 
She had been there for Julia the night of his horrific deed, arranging for Julia to flee with Adam.
 
She couldn’t stand seeing her relive this.

But, Reuben was dead.
 
True, no one had ever found a body.
 
That wouldn’t be the first time someone encountered Hiram Norton’s men and mysteriously disappeared without a trace.
 
A few times the unfortunate soul would be found, or rather his remains, months later in some remote place.

Caroline remembered overhearing a conversation Mary Colter, Reuben’s wife, had with another woman at the mercantile.
 
Mary said that Hiram and his men showed up to collect on a debt Reuben owed.
 
Last she had seen him, he was in his office.
 
When she came in from hanging the laundry, Reuben was gone.
 
Instead, Hiram waited at Reuben’s desk with an offer for Mary.
 
Caroline hadn’t heard anything further that day.
 
It was later that the rumor circulated that Reuben had been killed.

Something in her gut told her he was gone.
 
It was unfathomable to think of him leaving his wife and children behind, much less the Star C in which he took so much pride.

Nevertheless, Julia held on to her tightly, very distraught over the unexpected visitor.

Thomas approached from the ranch house.
 
“His name is Robert Garrett.
 
Says he’s from Indiana.
 
Has a good Midwestern accent too.”

“There,” Caroline said to Julia.
 
“That proves it can’t be Reuben.
 
Why he could no more hide his Texas heritage than you or I can.”

Julia pulled away from her embrace.
 
Hesitantly, she asked, “Are you certain?”

“He said he’s got a ranch down near Wickenburg,” Thomas said.
 
“He heard of Will’s reputation for providing quality horses, so he made the trip to see about purchasing a few.
 
Neither Will or Adam seemed to recognize him.”

Caroline waited to see what Julia’s reaction would be.
 
Slowly she stood a little straighter.
 
Folding her arms across her waist, she said, “I guess you must think me touched.”

“Not at all.”
 
Caroline reassured her.
 
“If he did something that reminded you of Reuben—well, it’s no wonder that you would react that way.”

Will, Adam, and Robert Garrett emerged from the ranch house, walked towards the stables.

“Let’s take a walk around the lake,” Caroline suggested, steering Julia that direction.

As they walked past the men, Julia stopped, following Robert with her eyes for several minutes.

“I think I’d like to go lay down,” Julia said, before darting into the house.

She sighed.
 
For the first time in weeks, she lifted a prayer heavenward, asking God to be with Julia.

“Who’s Reuben?”

She jumped at Thomas’s voice sounding behind her.
 
In her haste to help Julia, she hadn’t noticed him following her.

“Her brother.
 
The oldest of the Colter children.”

Thomas nodded, not pressing for more details.

“Shouldn’t you be heading back soon?”

“Naw.
 
Hannah invited me to stay for supper and even offered up the extra bunk in the bunkhouse for the night.
 
I thought it might be nice to spend the time here.”

She walked to one of the rockers on the front porch and sat.
 
The temperature seemed more pleasant in the shade, especially with a hint of coolness on the breeze.
 
Thomas sat in the other rocker.
 
She wished he’d go bother someone else.

Her anger started to rise.
 
Even though she hadn’t fully understood what he was saying about her flirting and looking at men a certain way—that didn’t give him the right to kiss her.
 
His quick apology made her wonder if it had meant anything at all to him. She liked it as much as she had his first kiss.
 
She wasn’t really sure if she was mad at him or just mad at herself for enjoying it so much.

She let out a long slow breath, trying to dissolve her anger.
 
Maybe she was naïve in the ways of men.
 
She knew how to get her way with Papa.
 
But, beaus?
 
Well, if she was really honest with herself, there was a lot of truth in what both Adam and Thomas had said.
 
She did tend to get her way.

Perhaps Thomas’s warning was well-meant.
 
After all, she had no idea how deeply men seemed to react to her.
 
She was shocked when Nathan showed an interest in her even after her embarrassing scheme.

Then there was Perry.
 
From what Thomas said, Perry seemed smitten.
 
She hadn’t tried to win his affections.
 
She didn’t want him to think of her as anything more than a friend.

The broach.
 
She still had his wife’s broach.
 
She would have to see him again.
 
Maybe when he next came to Prescott she would be able to tell if what Thomas said was true.
 
She could fix this—tell him how much she appreciated his kindness when she was in need but make it clear that she held no romantic feelings for him.

She only thought of one man that way.

“Look,” Thomas said, disturbing the quiet, “I’m really sorry for saying all of those things earlier.
 
I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

At least he didn’t apologize for the kiss.

“What you said is true,” she confessed.
 
“I’m just a silly girl, ignorant in how my behavior affects others.”

He angled his chair to see her better.

“You are far from a silly girl.”

Caroline crossed her arms and looked away.
 
She certainly felt like a silly girl.

“Maybe a bit naïve.
 
But, you are an amazing, beautiful woman.”

She turned to look at him, doubting his sincerity.
 
His expression was quite serious.

Thomas fidgeted with the arm of the rocker.
 
He suddenly seemed very nervous.
 
He cleared his throat twice.
 
Then parted his lips as if he was about to say something else before locking them tightly shut.

An awkward silence settled over them.

Caroline pushed her rocker into motion, relaxing her posture.
 
She and Thomas always seemed at odds with each other.
 
Yet, she felt drawn to him.

“Seems to me,” she started, “that you and I got off to a bad start from the first time we met in Wickenburg.
 
Perhaps we should agree to start over?”

The right side of Thomas’s mouth turned up in a half-smile.
 
“I’d like that.”

“Me too.”

Baby James cried from inside the house, providing the escape she hoped for.
 
“If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to see how I can help Hannah.”

At his nod, she turned and went inside the house.

She found Hannah changing the baby’s diaper in her room.
 
She waited until Hannah entered the main room again before asking about whether or not they should begin supper preparations.
 
Hannah laid the baby in a bassinette near the kitchen then outlined the planned meal.
 
Caroline grabbed several potatoes and began peeling.

Her face flushed and she smiled, thrilled that Thomas called her beautiful.

“What’s the dreamy look for?” Hannah teased.

The heat on her face grew more intense.
 
“Thomas kissed me,” she expelled the words with a rush of air.

A frown crinkled Hannah’s forehead.
 
“How much do you know about Thomas?
 
Or even why Drew and I left Cincinnati?”

Caroline sighed.
 
“I know Thomas was in the war.
 
That he rode dispatches for an important major general.
 
I know that he rescued me when I was stranded in the desert.”
 
Her voice faded as she tried to think of something more.

“Rescuing you was probably one of the best moments in his life.
 
One of the few selfless acts to his credit.”
 
A hint of bitterness sounded in Hannah’s voice.

“It sounds as if you don’t care for him much.
 
Seems rather odd to invite him to stay for the evening, if that is the case.”

Hannah turned back to the food items she set out and busied her hands.
 
Sighing heavily, she said, “It has long been my prayer that he would act more responsibly and spend his time and energy pursuing good things.
 
While he’s changed some since leaving Ohio, I can still see the draw and pull of his old pursuits.”

Caroline continued peeling the potato, confused by Hannah’s cryptic words.

“Unlike you, I have known him rather well for a number of years.
 
I’ve seen the best of him, and the worst of him.
 
I know just what kind of heartache he’s capable of inflicting.”

“Why are you telling me all of this?”

Hannah turned to face her.
 
“Because, that dreamy look you just had—letting him kiss you—”
 
She shook her head.
 
“It’s far more likely to end in your broken heart than the dream in your mind’s eye.”

Tapping her foot unconsciously, Caroline bit back a sharp retort.
 
It sounded to her like Hannah didn’t really care for Thomas which made no sense considering she let him treat her son like his nephew and she let him visit her home often and sit at her dinner table.

“So you don’t think he is a good man?”

Hannah turned back to the meal preparations.
 
“I think he is a man who desires to be good but doesn’t quite know how to get there yet.
 
He’s torn between living up to the expectations he thinks Drew had and living for pleasure and for whatever he thinks freedom is.

“It was very difficult when he lived with Drew and I back in Ohio.
 
There was no peace in our house when he was there.
 
And his actions ultimately led to us leaving.”

“Do you hate him for it?” Caroline asked with an edge to her voice.

“No.
 
I have forgiven him for many wrongs.
 
And I see the man he is trying to be.
 
I just don’t think it is wise for any woman to give her heart to a man who is searching for something he can’t even define.”

Caroline rinsed the peeled potatoes and began cutting them into smaller chunks.
 
Though she barely knew Hannah, she felt like she could trust her judgment.
 
She seemed to be a wise and fair woman.

Yet, the memory of Thomas’s kisses was not easily erased.
 
He made her feel like a woman and she liked it.

“How old is he?”

Hannah paused, thinking.
 
“Twenty-two.”

Only four years older than her.
 
That was a reasonable age difference.