Margaret Brownley - [Rocky Creek 02] (21 page)

Mr. Hampton met every requirement stated in
The Compleat and Authoritative Manual for Attracting and Procuring a Husband
. The unfortunate truth was that he was the only one in Rocky Creek who did. He was rich, educated, owned a great deal of land, attended church, dressed like a banker, and soundly denounced the habits of spitting and cussing. According to the book’s author, he was the perfect candidate. According to his PHAT score, he was the answer to every woman’s prayer.

Brenda denied being attracted to him, but Jenny suspected she was more interested in Mr. Hampton than she let on. Brenda had grown increasingly quiet over the last several days. Even more amazing, the girl had no appetite. She had hardly eaten a thing, and as unlikely as it seemed, Jenny found herself coaxing Brenda to eat.

Could it be? Dare she hope?

Was it possible that despite her protests to the contrary, Brenda had fallen in love with, or at least had feelings for, Mr. Hampton?

She raced to the desk and picked up Miss Jenkins’s book. Turning to the chapter on “How To Know if You’re in Love,” she ran her finger down the “Signs of Undying Affection”:

• Loss of appetite

Check
.

• Staring into space

Check
.

• Insomnia

• Anxiety

• Irritability

Check, check, and check
.

She closed the book. Brenda could very well have feelings for Mr. Hampton.

Still, Jenny couldn’t shake away the notion that something was amiss.

That belief started in jail and kept gnawing at her. After the marshal took away her visitor privileges, there was nothing left to do but pace the tiny cell and think. She thought about the things she wanted to forget, but mostly she thought about her sisters. She tried to imagine Mary Lou and Brenda having marriages like the one that Sarah and Reverend Wells had. A marriage filled with mutual love and respect.

She didn’t dare hope to know that kind of love personally, but was she wrong to want it for her sisters? She tried to imagine Brenda and Mr. Hampton having the kind of love that Justin and Sarah Wells had, and couldn’t.

She rifled through the desk for Mr. Hampton’s application. Everything was in order. He’d even listed the marshal as a reference. The latter made her think. Miss Jenkins
did
emphasize the importance of checking references. It might be interesting to know what Rhett had to say about him.

The thought brought an unexpected quickening of her pulse.

Since her release from jail, she’d purposely avoided Rhett. The truth was the entire jail episode embarrassed her. When she got something in her mind, she plunged ahead and nothing and no one could stop her. This had been the source of her trouble most of her life. She never learned to consider all the options before whirling into action. Nor had it ever occurred to her that God might have other ideas until Sarah brought it up.

The Bible says that no matter your plans, it’s the Lord’s plan that prevails
.

Did that mean that God even had plans for her? She was afraid to hope that such a thing could be true. Pushing her thoughts aside, she grabbed her notebook.

Moments later, she entered the marshal’s office only to find him gone. She waited for several minutes then turned to leave just as he walked in the door.

He looked surprised to see her. “Jenny.”

Following his lead, she addressed him by his first name. “Hello, Rhett,” she said. How she missed him, missed their lighthearted banter, missed everything about him.

“I had a couple of questions to ask you. That is . . . if you’re not busy.”

“What about?” He flung his hat on its hook and sat on the corner of his desk, arms folded.

Anxious to gain control of her racing pulse, she got right to the point of her visit. “Mr. Hampton has asked for Brenda’s hand in marriage, and he named you as a reference.”

He looked surprised. “I don’t know anything about his marital qualifications. Perhaps you should talk to his banker.”

With cool efficiency meant to hide her hurt, she opened up her notebook.

His words stung. Somehow he always managed to break down her defenses, but never more so than at that moment. Swallowing hard, she struggled to maintain control beneath his probing stare. Was that rancor in his voice? Reproach in his eyes? She was used to censure. Since her release from jail, the townsfolk seemed even more hostile toward her than before. Wherever she went, she heard the whispers, felt the stares, was confronted by the newly posted signs of The Society for the Protection and Preservation of Male Independence. For a town as humble as Rocky Creek, its citizens certainly had the nerve to criticize her.

Still, nothing anyone said or did disturbed her more than Rhett’s disapproval. Not that she could do anything about it. Her primary consideration was her sisters’ welfare. Nothing else mattered. Nothing else could.

“I believe he listed you as a
character
reference,” she said with pointed emphasis.

“Ah. That I can easily confirm. Hampton is a character if I ever met one.”

She leveled him with a look of disapproval. Unless he took her seriously, this was a waste of time. She cleared her throat and began again. “Would you say he is a man of integrity?”

He considered this a moment then shrugged. “He’s an honest businessman. I’ll say that much for him.”

Gratified that he had dropped his derisive tone and turned serious, she made a notation in her notebook, but only as an excuse to break eye contact. “A good Christian?”

When he didn’t answer she looked up to find him staring at her. “Reverend Wells would be a better judge of that than me,” he said.

Cheeks burning beneath his heated scrutiny, she forced herself to continue. “A pillar of society?”

“I believe so. There’s been talk about making him mayor. He’ll probably fence in the town with barbed wire, but he’s the best we’ve got so far.” He chuckled.

She laughed too. Apparently, her sisters hadn’t exaggerated Hampton’s barbed wire obsession.

The moment of shared humor seemed as intimate as a kiss—and radiated similar pleasure. Heart pounding, she quickly recovered her usual businesslike demeanor.

“I guess that pretty much covers it,” she said abruptly, closing her notebook. “Thank you for your comments.”

Rhett gave Hampton a better recommendation than she expected. It should have put her mind at rest but, oddly enough, it didn’t. Or maybe it was simply that she couldn’t think straight in his presence.

His eyebrow arched slightly as if he expected more questions. “Glad to help.” He stood. He was so close to her it was hard to think.

She stepped back. “I won’t take up any more of your time.”

He took a step closer. “If you need any other character references—”

“I think you told me everything I need to know about Mr. Hampton.” She turned to leave.

“Actually, I was thinking about Kip Barrel.”

Hand frozen on the doorknob, she looked over her shoulder. “You know what I think about Mr. Barrel.”

“What about Brenda? Don’t you care what she thinks?”

She bristled. “I care very much what my sister thinks. If I didn’t believe she had feelings for Mr. Hampton, I wouldn’t be here.”

He assessed her frankly before turning away. “Before you go . . .” He reached across the desk for a folded newspaper. “There’s a disclaimer here in the
Lone Star Tribune
that I’m sure you’ll find interesting.”

Turning, she glanced at the page he held up. “A disclaimer?”

“Yes. It seems that they misprinted the name of the town with the richest men per capita.”

Her mouth went dry.

“It’s not Rocky Creek after all,” he said, his voice flat. “It’s
Rockland
Creek.” He dropped the paper on his desk. “They aren’t the first to get the two towns confused.”

She stared at him. “
Rockland
Creek?” She’d never heard of that town.

His gaze settled on her lips before he looked away. “Sometimes the best laid plans have a way of going astray.”

“They certainly do.” Without another word, she swept out of his office.

Her mind awhirl, she headed for the general store. Rockland Creek? She couldn’t believe it. She had wasted all this time and money, and for what? She wasn’t even in the right town.

Just as she reached the store, Sarah’s little girl Elizabeth ran outside. Sarah, her arms filled with packages, followed close behind.

“Whoa, there.” Welcoming the distraction, Jenny swooped the two-year-old into her arms and held her close. “Where are you going in such a hurry?”

Elizabeth giggled and wrapped her arms around Jenny’s neck.

Jenny laughed. “
Mmm
, you smell like peppermint.” She buried her nose against the child’s smooth skin.

Elizabeth wore a blue gingham dress with a matching bonnet that all but hid her long blonde hair. A frilly white apron over her dress was tied in a wide bow in back.

Sarah placed her packages in the back of her buckboard. “Either I’m gettin’ slower or she’s gettin’ faster.”

“I suspect it’s a little of both,” Jenny said. “How are you feeling?”

Sarah flashed a smile. “Never felt better in my life. What about you? Bet you’re glad to be out of jail.”

“I can’t tell you how much. Your visit meant a lot to me. I really don’t know how to thank you.”

“I enjoyed it too.” Sarah suddenly brightened. “I have a gift for you.” She reached into the back of her wagon and pulled out a package wrapped in plain brown paper and tied with a blue ribbon.

“For me?” Jenny couldn’t remember the last time anyone had given her a gift, and she was deeply touched. She lowered Elizabeth to the ground and took the offered package.

“May I open it now?” Without waiting for an answer, she tore away the paper and stared down at the book in her hand—a leather-bound Bible.

A million thoughts ricocheted through her mind, and she felt a twist of guilt. She hadn’t opened a Bible for years. Her parents’ copy was damaged when the roof blew off their farmhouse and she never thought to replace it. She looked up to find Sarah watching her.

“What a lovely gift. Thank you. I will treasure it always.”

“I asked my husband to mark all the passages about marriage,” Sarah said, and laughed. “I didn’t know there were some five hundred of ’em.”

“Oh, no!” Jenny laughed, too, then grew serious. “I had no idea that God—”

“Cares so much about marriage?” Sarah finished for her.

“I know marriage shouldn’t be taken lightly. That’s why I’m working so hard to find suitable husbands for my sisters.”

“Have you prayed for God’s help?” Sarah asked.

“Well I . . .” Her face tingled with heat, and she looked away. “I told you that God and me—”

Sarah touched her arm. “Open up your heart and give Him a chance,” she said softly.

Elizabeth tugged on her mother’s skirt. Sarah looked down at her daughter with a fond smile. “I reckon you’re hungry.” She looked up at Jenny. “We best be goin’.”

Jenny gave Elizabeth a boost and she scrambled onto the wagon seat. Sarah climbed on from the opposite side and adjusted a homemade harness around the wiggling tot’s waist.

“Have you seen Scooter?” Jenny asked.

“No, but I know the marshal’s been out to the Maxwell house several times. He really cares for the boy. For both those boys.”

“He said he hoped that by putting Scooter in jail, it would make their father see what he was doing to his sons.”

Sarah made a face. “That man’s not sober long enough to know what he’s doin’.” She tugged on a leather strap. “The marshal’s a good man. One day he’s going to make some lucky girl a fine husband.”

Jenny held her breath.
But not me. It can never be me
.

Sarah finished buckling Elizabeth in her harness and handed her a handkerchief doll. “I don’t reckon there are many men who would spend three nights guardin’ a prisoner.”

Jenny stared at her in bewilderment. “What are you talking about?”

“You don’t know?” Sarah’s eyebrows shot up. “The marshal slept at his desk every night you were in jail. He told Justin he wanted to keep you safe.”

Jenny was barely able to control her gasp of surprise. “Keep me—” Her thoughts ran rampant. Was it really true? She’d convinced herself that the sounds she heard were merely the wind or the creaking building. Never once did it occur to her that it was Rhett.

“I–I didn’t know,” she managed at last.

Sarah gave her a penetrating look. Next to her, Elizabeth tried to wiggle free from her harness. “I better mosey on home.” Sarah picked up the reins. “Say bye-bye, Elizabeth.”

Holding her doll with one hand, Elizabeth waved with the other. “Bye-bye.”

Jenny waved back. “Thank you for the gift,” she called after them.

He wanted to keep you safe
. Sarah’s words filled Jenny’s head until she could think of nothing else. Forgetting about the general store, forgetting about everything but the words that kept repeating in her mind, she walked back to the hotel in a daze.

She didn’t know why it mattered. Why thoughts of Rhett keeping watch over her filled her with such yearning. All she knew was that it had been a very long time since anyone worried about wanting to keep her safe.

The hotel room was empty. Both girls were taking their daily walk. Grateful to have the place to herself, she sat down at the desk and opened the Bible to the first verse Reverend Wells had marked. “
And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone
,” she read.

She leaned back and closed her eyes. No, it wasn’t good to be alone, but sometimes it seemed like there was no other way.
He wanted to keep you safe
.

All those nights in jail . . . She had been so alone. Had she known that Rhett was watching over her, it would have made all the difference in the world. Had she called out to him, would he have come to her? Comforted her? Somehow she knew he would have. She imagined his arms around her and her eyes filled with tears.

She thought about the dark days of her past. The day she buried her mother . . . the day she buried her father. She thought about the day the roof blew off their farmhouse and how she was so certain that Brenda was going to die. How utterly alone she’d felt then, how afraid.