Too Rich for a Bride (37 page)

A good day, indeed.

Thank You, Lord. For grace and mercy. For redemption. For relationship with You
.

And that Tucker Raines plans to remain in Cripple Creek
.

FORTY-TWO

ucker took the long way home from the church. He hadn’t intended to, but then, he hadn’t expected Ida Sinclair to show up in the sanctuary and then leave as quickly as she arrived.

He thought she’d returned to work, but shortly after his meeting with Reverend Taggart, he disproved the work theory. As he reached for the door at the stenography firm, Miss O’Bryan and Mr. Miller stepped out of the office.

“You
are
a persistent one, Mr. Raines.” Miss O’Bryan clucked her tongue and locked the door behind her. “But you won’t find Miss Sinclair here. She quit today.”

He felt a jump in his chest and a catch in his throat. Ida was apparently following her heart, and he hoped it would lead her to him.

His second detour didn’t prove successful either. At least not where Ida was concerned. Stopping by the boardinghouse had, however, earned him a piece of cherry pie and a chat with Miss Hattie. Amazing how quickly a story could spread and grow arms. He’d assured her there were no brawls in the mud or gunfire involved in last evening’s happenings and went on to tell her his plans for the future.

Tucker’s other guess as to Ida’s whereabouts involved her sisters. But he couldn’t be sure she was with them, and since showing up at Kat’s or Nell’s
home unannounced wouldn’t be appropriate, he walked toward Warren Avenue and headed toward home instead.

As he cleared the intersection at his property, he glanced toward the creek.

A lone figure sat at one end of the bench beside the small, now leafless willow tree, wearing a navy blue silk turban hat and a wool cape. Her presence set his heart to racing.

“Ida.” He called out to her long before she could hear his footfalls. He did not want to startle her.

She stood and watched him walk toward her. “You said you wanted to see me later.”

“I did.” He stopped directly in front of her. “Thank you.” He felt twelve years old again and just as awkward.

Ida pressed her lips together as if to stunt a grin. She looked down at the bench, where a large hatbox lay. “I have something for you.”

“Let’s sit down, shall we?” Tucker motioned to the bench and then picked up the box.

“Can’t take seeing another one of my presents standing up, huh?” Ida giggled and lowered herself onto the bench at the far end.

“You’ve figured me out.” Tucker placed the gift between them and removed the lid. He ran his fingers down the edge and under the wide brim of an austere, handsome black felt hat. He slowly lifted it out of the box and inspected it from every angle. He reached up and removed his old hat and set it in the box. Then he held the new beauty with both hands and lowered it onto his head. “Thank you. It’s a perfect fit.”

So was she. And he believed with all his heart that God had brought them together.

Tucker cast his big, brown-eyed gaze her way and Ida thought her heart might thump right out of her chest.

He liked the new preacher’s hat she’d given him. He wasn’t leaving town. He was giving up the life of a traveling preacher to settle down in Cripple Creek. Was it too much to hope they could have a life together?

“My father and mother plan to remain in Colorado Springs.” Tucker paused. “Father agreed that Otis can manage the day-to-day operations of the ice company, including caring for the horses and wagons. I’ll be moving into the parsonage, if the church votes to call me as their new pastor.”

“That makes sense.”

“Mind if I ask you a question?”

She nodded, her heart responding favorably to the twinkle in his eyes. “I mean go ahead, ask me.”

Tucker switched places with the hatbox and moved to her side. “My question has to do with courtship.”

“Courtship?”

When Tucker reached for both of her hands, she wished her gloves were tucked into her pockets so she could feel his tender touch. Clearing his throat, he looked directly into her eyes. So this was what it felt like to swim in a pool of hot chocolate.

“Do you suppose our two creekside talks, a chat at the post office, three buggy rides, Thanksgiving and Christmas suppers with the family, and a showdown in the street could comprise a proper courtship?” There was that sunny smile of his again.

A sudden wave of lightheadedness threatened to overcome her, and she squeezed his hands. If Tucker hadn’t been holding on to her, she surely would’ve slid right off the bench onto the snow. He wasn’t asking to court her.

After courtship came marriage.

Ida gulped. “Are you asking if we might forgo a formal courtship?”

“I didn’t want to love you, or anyone else. I considered my plate full.” He removed his new hat and set it on top of the box. “But I do love you, Miss Ida Sinclair. I love that you are sensitive to God’s Spirit.”

“A little late.”

“I love your no-nonsense approach to life and your determination to be equal to any person, man or woman. And I want to spend the rest of my days on earth—many or few—with you at my side.”

Tears streamed down Ida’s face. The preaching ice man loved her. And he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

She blinked back her tears and looked up into his glistening eyes. “I love you too.”

Tucker let go of her hands and reached into his coat pocket. He pulled out a jewelry box. “Miss Ida Sinclair, I would be honored to call you my wife.” His voice cracked, and he opened the box. “Will you marry me?”

Ida stared at the delicate gold band. Two leaves flowed outward from the center, joined at the stems by a single diamond.

She so wanted to tell him yes. She wanted to shout it. So why couldn’t she so much as whisper her heart’s desire?

“I haven’t been voted in yet.”

“I’ll move into the parsonage, if the church votes to call me as their new pastor.”

If
. The congregation, without a moment’s hesitation, would call Tucker Raines—the single man—to be their pastor. They loved him, his heart and his preaching.

But they didn’t feel the same way about her. She’d given them no reason to. Her heart had deceived her, and them. She’d seen the raised noses, heard the whispers and the gossip. She’d felt the cold shoulders on the boardwalk
and in the pews. The church wouldn’t choose her. And if she agreed to marry Tucker, they wouldn’t choose him either. They could only see his choice for a wife as bad judgment. An undesirable quality for a spiritual leader.

She wouldn’t stand in the way of his calling. Tucker Raines was a preacher from his hat to his boots. Being a pastor coursed through his veins just as freely as being a family man did. But he couldn’t form a family with her
and
pastor a church here in Cripple Creek.

“I can’t.”

She wasn’t sure what hurt her most—the reality of those two simple words, or seeing the pain etched in Tucker’s eyes.

Tucker blinked hard against the stunned disbelief. When he opened his eyes again, nothing had changed. Ida still sat on the bench beside him, shaking her head. But the tenderness in her royal blue eyes said
yes
.

Had he missed something? He was certain she felt the same.

Just moments ago, she’d said she loved him. He’d seen the joy on her face when he told her he was staying in Cripple Creek. She’d blushed when he mentioned courting.

“I can’t.”

“If you’re worried about my family, don’t. My parents and Willow already know how I feel about you.” He glanced down at the ring box. “This ring belonged to my grandmother. Christmas morning at my aunt’s house, my mother asked about the pretty girl with the flying hatpin and gave me the ring.”

“She remembered me from the depot?”

“You’re unforgettable, Miss Ida Sinclair.” Tucker closed the jewelry box and set it inside his new hat. He was sure God had purposed for him to shepherd the people of the First Congregational Church. Had he been wrong about God’s plans for him and Ida? He had if she didn’t want to be a pastor’s wife.

“You don’t want to be married to a preacher?”

Ida stood and moved down toward the creek, and he followed her. Not that there was much to the creek this time of year. It was frozen solid.

“It’s not the preacher, Tucker. It’s the preacher’s church.” Ida brushed a curl back from her face. “God has forgiven me for the grief I’ve caused. But even if the people in the church could forgive me, they won’t approve of a businesswoman with connections to scoundrels in the role of the pastor’s wife. They won’t let you do what you were born to do.”

“I think you’re wrong.”

She bit her bottom lip and turned toward the path that led to the gate.

He drew in a deep breath. “Promise me you’ll pray about it.”

“I have.” She looked at him one last time, then walked away.

He hated to let her go, but he too needed time to think and pray.

FORTY-THREE

da sat with Hattie on one side and Faith on the other in Morgan and Kat’s new carriage. She wanted to hear Tucker preach that morning and witness the voting, but she didn’t want to distract him from the life of ministry God had set before him here in Cripple Creek.