Second Chance Brides (23 page)

“Are you all right?”

“Fine. I just need a cloth or something to use to wipe this blood off my face.”

The rag they’d wiped off the table with was still in the bucket. She swished it around the water to clean it and then squeezed out the excess water. She tried to dab the blood, but Mark reached for the rag.

“I can do it.”

“Just rest and let me tend to you.”

He sighed but sat on the edge of the table and allowed her to clean his wound. He stared at the dancers and sat stiff as a fence post.

Shannon wilted a little inside. Did he despise her so much?

He had no idea how being this close to him made her feel. She tried to hold her hand steady. She’d touched him so few times and was rarely close enough to see the variations of blue in his eyes. Pressing lightly, she turned his chin toward her and dabbed at the blood. His left eye was ugly and swollen. If only she had a cold slab of meat to put on it. “Does it hurt you?”

Mark flexed his injured hand. “Not too bad.”

Shannon took his large hand in hers and held it lightly, then laid the cloth over his knuckles and looked up. He’d been watching her. She longed to draw him close, to let him know how scared she’d been for him. No wonder he was so battered when he could use only his left hand to defend himself. He was too honorable to conk anyone with his cast, even if it meant he took the brunt of the fight.

Several stems of grass were stuck in his hair, and she boldly plucked them out. She longed to run her hands through his hair but instead dropped them to her side. He was staring at her, and she captured his gaze. Her breathing turned ragged, and she fought to control it. Her heart throbbed, and for a fleeting second, she thought he might kiss her. But he turned his head and stood, taking the cloth off his hand. He tossed it onto the table, muttered thanks, and strode off.

Shannon hung her head. What about her was so undesirable? Did he consider her nothing more than the hired help? Or was it the fact that she was Irish?

She’d read in the newspaper that in big cities like New York some employers had posted signs that said
NINA
—no Irish need apply.

Rinsing the cloth, she thought about that. He’d never treated her as if her heritage bothered him. Yes, he didn’t want her working at the freight office at first, but he seemed to have gotten used to the idea. So…she could work for him, but she could never be anything more than an employee. Tears blurred her eyes.

How did she explain that to her heart?

Dan strode up to Leah and grasped her shoulders. His frantic gaze ran down her body. “Are you hurt? Did anyone bother you? What happened here?”

Leah offered a smile to calm him down. Why was he so agitated? It was just a brawl. Certainly not the first one in Lookout. “I’m perfectly fine. What are you doing here?”

He released her and paced to the end of the table and back, curling the edges of his hat. Various expressions crossed his face, but she didn’t understand them. He stopped in front of her and looked around. “I need to talk to you. Alone.”

“Shall we take a walk?”

He shoved his hat back on and nodded, offering his arm. A slow tune followed them as they meandered past the church and down the road leading out of town. The sun had not yet set and still cast enough light so that walking wasn’t difficult. They crested a hill, and once they’d gone down the other side, blocking the town from their view, Dan stopped. He swiped his hat off again and resumed his pacing.

Leah almost smiled, but his anxiety seemed too real for jesting. She waited, twisting her hands behind her back, wondering what was on his mind. Maybe he was ready for her to clean out his mother’s bedroom, as she’d offered.

A determined look crossed his face, and he strode right up to her, stopping only a few feet away. “I know the timing is rotten, and some folks will look down on us—because I’m still in mourning—but knowing you were near that fight and I wasn’t around to protect you scared ten years off of me.”

Confusion clouded Leah’s mind. “It’s not your job to protect me, Dan.”

His mouth worked as if he were chewing something tough. “No, but I want it to be.” He slapped his hat against his pants leg and walked off a few feet.

He wanted to protect her? Her heart quickened. Was it possible that he had fallen for her like she had him? She clutched her hands to her chest.
Please, God
.

He turned again. “It’s lousy timing.”

“What is?” She moved closer, daring to touch his arm.

His gaze lifted to the sky, and she studied his square jaw. Some women might say he was too rugged, too big to be handsome, but she liked him just how he was. He looked strong enough to protect her from anyone.

His gaze locked with hers. “Leah…” Her name sounded special on his lips. Cherished in the deep timbre of his voice. “I–I’ve never done this before.”

“Done what?”

He studied her face, his dark eyes roving, caressing. “Asked a gal to marry me.”

Leah felt her own eyes go wide. She struggled to swallow. To find her voice. “Are you?”

A soft smile tugged at his lips. “You wouldn’t think me a cad to ask you to marry me when I just buried my ma?”

Leah smiled and tears blurred her vision. She shook her head.

Dan tugged at his pants leg, and knelt before her. A rainbow of emotions flooded her. Could this actually be happening?

He took her hands in his fingertips. “Leah, I know we haven’t known each other long, but I’ve cared for you since I first saw you. I couldn’t say nothin’ when you were uh—” He looked away for a moment. “When you were competing for Luke’s hand, but now you’re free of that. Would you…uh…would you consider being my wife?”

Leah squealed, and Dan jumped up and looked behind him. She broke into a fit of giggles. He stared at her like she’d gone crazy. “What’s so funny?”

Leah tried to sober but kept seeing him jump. “Nothing.”

“Was my proposal so ridiculous?” Hurt laced his gaze.

All humor fled, and she touched his arm again. “Not at all. I’m sorry.” She straightened and looked him in the eye, so he’d have no doubts to her seriousness. “I’d be delighted and honored to be your wife.”

“You would? You’re not joshin’ me?”

Leah grinned. “No, Dan. My feelings for you have grown quickly, too.” She longed to tell him that she loved him, but felt something so serious should come from the man first.

Dan grinned and shoved his hat back on. “When?”

“Whenever you’re ready.”

“How about tomorrow?” He chuckled, his eyes gleaming. “A lady needs time to prepare.” The thought of buying and making a wedding dress suddenly gave her cause for concern. Had she made enough selling pies and cookies to buy what she needed?

Dan took her hands. “What’s wrong? I can see that something’s bothering you. Is it the timing?”

Leah stared at the ground, not wanting Dan to know how little she possessed. He had a house, nice furnishings, food, even a business, but what did she have to offer? She didn’t even want children, and that thought burned a hole in her heart. Would he still want to marry her if he knew?

She needed to tell him, but she couldn’t do it now. She didn’t want to ruin the sweetness of the moment.

He gently took hold of her upper arms again. “Leah, if it’s money you need, I have some. Not a lot, but plenty enough to buy you a wedding dress and whatever other fripperies a bride needs.”

“You shouldn’t have to pay for everything. I just don’t have much to offer, and it doesn’t seem fair to you.”

He pulled her to his chest, and she nuzzled in close. His head rested on hers, and she wrapped her arms around his waist. “Darlin’, you’re all I want. I don’t care if you’re wearing all you own. It’s you that’s important to me. Whenever I see you, my heart perks up and sings, like one of them songbirds outside my window each morning. Knowing you’re near helps me to keep going even though ma is gone. If I have you, I’m not alone.”

She hugged him hard. “Thank you. I feel the same way.”

He released his grip on her slightly, caught her gaze, and slowly bent toward her. His kiss was all—more—than she had dreamed about, and far too soon, he ended it.

“I’d love to stand here all night, spoonin’ with you, darlin’, but I reckon we oughta head back before someone misses you.”

She sighed, not wanting the tender moment to end. “I suppose you’re right. Besides, we need to get the table back in the church.”

“Hmm…a dark church. No one there but us. Might be a good place to steal a kiss.”

C
HAPTER
17

M
ark watched his brother walk back to the dance after helping the marshal escort the cowboys to the saloon. Garrett’s eyes widened as he drew near. “Whoa, brother, looks like you’ve been in a fight.”

“Yeah,” Mark said. “And it looks like you all but missed it. There’s not a mark on you. How is that possible when you were on the bottom of the pile?”

“There are some wounds, but you just can’t see them.” Garrett held his side. “I suspect getting out of bed tomorrow will be a chore. Why are you so beat up? You usually hold your own better in a fight.”

Mark held up his dirty cast. He’d be getting it off soon—and good riddance. “It didn’t seem right to crack people over the head with this thing. Besides, I didn’t want to take a chance on breaking my wrist all over. And fighting left-handed isn’t all that easy.”

Garrett studied the dancers and then looked up at the sky. “I guess it’s about time to call a halt to this party. Be dark soon.”

“Yeah, next time you might want to start it an hour or two earlier since the sun is setting sooner these days.”

Mark watched a young couple walk away from the dancing. About twenty minutes ago, Dan and Leah had walked down the road to Denison. He glanced in that direction and saw them returning with Leah holding onto Dan’s arm.

Garrett watched, too. “Looks like our plan may be working. Soon, I hope, we won’t have to pay room and board for Miss Bennett anymore.”

“So, if both those boardinghouse brides get married, are you going to keep hosting the socials?”

Shrugging, his brother started toward the dancers. “Who knows? People seem to be enjoying it, and we’ve met new people who have become customers, so that’s always a good thing.”

“You do know folks are pokin’ fun and calling us matchmakers.”

Grinning, Garrett rummaged through the crate of dishes. “Yeah, I heard. Sure wish there was some of that pie left. That Miss Bennett is a good cook.”

“Yep, she’ll make some man a fine wife.”

Garrett ran a finger over the juice left in a pie plate. “Yeah, it would be nice to have a wife who could cook so good.”

“Why don’t you ask her to dance? Maybe you’ll like her.”

“Nah, Dan has his eye on her.”

Mark glanced at the couple as they drew near the dancers. Both faces were glowing, and the grins on their faces bested any among the dancers.
Hmm
…

“You could always dance with Shannon.”

Garrett scratched behind his ear. “Don’t think so. Someone else already has his eye on her. I predict two weddings before long.”

“Who are you talking about?” Mark swung his head sideways and glanced at Garrett, then sought out Shannon and found her dancing with Tommy Baxter, the twenty-year-old son of a local rancher. Didn’t she know he was just a wild colt who enjoyed wasting his father’s hard-earned money? Mark clenched his jaw.

His brother slapped him on the shoulder so hard, Mark jumped. “What was that for?”

“Are you so blind that you can’t see that you have feelings for Shannon?” Garrett waggled his brows.

“That’s nonsense.” Mark crossed his arms, knowing his response came too fast.

“Why? She’s a lovely girl, and smart, too. Look how fast she’s picked up the bookwork. In fact, I think we’ve gotten some new customers just because they come in to stare at her and all that pretty hair.”

Mark glared askance. “What business of yours is her hair? I thought you didn’t like her.”

“Maybe not at first. She was awful shy, but she’s coming around. It’s not so much I didn’t like her, as I didn’t think she had what it takes to live in Texas. But she’s proving tougher than I first gave her credit for.”