Seth (Prairie Grooms, Book Three) Read online

  Eloise looked at Annie, her eyes pleading. “Please don’t tell any of this to Seth. I do want to marry, but … until we find out who’s behind this, I’m afraid anyone that comes near me … will meet with a terrible end. He’d be the next target, I’m sure. I can’t marry him.”

  Annie stood. “We’ll get to the bottom of this, but one thing at a time.” She paced the room. “First, I’m afraid we can’t go to the sheriff.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because he’s not here. I forgot that he rode out this morning with the posse. But that’s a good thing, as they’re tracking the men who tried to kill Ryder. If they catch them, you and your sisters should have some light shed on your predicament.”

  Eloise also stood. “Yes, you’re quite right. I must speak with Penelope and Constance. We can’t hide from this anymore. Every time something happens, we tend to brush it under the carpet, as they say, and hope it goes away. But it’s not going to, that’s quite obvious. We must stop it once and for all.”

  “You’re right. But I think it would be much easier if Seth knew.”

  “Oh, I couldn’t; he’ll never want to marry me if he finds out.”

  “Miss Sayer … Eloise … he’s going to find out if the sheriff and the posse bring back those men. Besides, don’t you think he’ll want to protect you? It wasn’t August someone tried to kill, it was your sister.”

  Eloise wiped away her tears and straightened. “Which makes this so confusing. First Penelope, then Ryder. Who will be next?”

  “I don’t wish to frighten you, but …”

  Eloise’s eyes widened. “Me?”

  Annie nodded. “We have to tell Seth. He must know.”

  Eloise pressed her lips together to keep from crying again. Was she willing to take the risk? She just told him she didn’t want to marry him, but for good reason. Once she gave him that reason, would he still want to marry her? Or would he turn away, for fear of his life? That, she realized, was what she was really afraid of.

  * * *

  Seth got as far as the edge of town and stopped. Preacher Jo followed, barely able to keep up. “Wait,” he cried as he caught Seth by the arm. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  Seth turned to him. “Isn’t it obvious? Why should I stay? She doesn’t want to marry me!”

  “I don’t think that was it at all. She's obviously confused about something. You need to go back in there and talk to her.”

  “Preacher Jo, something’s bothered her all day and this has to be it. What else am I supposed to do?”

  “Talk to her! There’s nothing wrong with talking.”

  Seth let out a weary sigh. “I know I’m just … well, I don’t want to use the word scared, but maybe I should.”

  “Look, if anybody knows about being scared when it comes to getting married, it’s me. Annie and I had quite the time of it. I didn’t think she loved me, and wasn’t sure she could love me. But in the end she found it in her heart to love me anyway. Now, c’mon; go back to the house and give Eloise a chance.”

  “Yeah, you’re right. I guess I jumped the gun runnin’ off. I can’t imagine what she thinks of me now.”

  “Don’t worry; she’ll forgive you just like Annie forgave me. Trust me, I did a lot of stupid stuff, but she got over it.”

  “That’s comforting. I hope Eloise can do the same with me.”

  “She will. Besides, you’ll want to get to the bottom of this and find out what’s bothering her; that is, if Annie hasn’t figured it out already.”

  Preacher Jo slapped Seth on the back, and they returned to the house. Seth, however, would be the first to say he wasn’t sure how he was feeling at this point either. Sure, he wanted to get married, otherwise he wouldn’t have sent away for a mail-order bride. But said bride was having second thoughts, and that, in turn, was giving him second thoughts. Was this really the right thing to do?

  When they entered the house, they found Annie and Eloise still sitting in the parlor. Seth approached slowly, and stared at Eloise with wide eyes. She was so beautiful, even though it was obvious she’d been crying. The urge to comfort her was overwhelming; how could he not want to marry her? But her reservations gave him pause, and he had to make sure there wasn’t anything else between them if they were to move forward. “Eloise, I'm sorry for running off like that. I guess the word ‘no’ doesn’t set well with me.”

  “I’m sorry, too,” she said. She swallowed hard and stared at him the same way he was staring at her. The air between them seemed to crackle with … something. But what, neither of them knew.

  Annie stood. “I think Josiah and I will step into the kitchen for a moment. Give you two a chance to talk.” She waved at her husband to follow her. Preacher Jo smiled at them, and went after his wife.

  Seth stepped to the settee and looked down at her. “Is there anything else you want to tell me?”

  Eloise smoothed the skirt of her dress with nervous hands. “Yes, there’s something you ought to know about my family. There’s a reason that we had to come to America to find husbands.”

  “Ah, shucks, Eloise; I already knew that.”

  “You did? Then why didn’t you tell me?”

  He shrugged. “Because I didn’t think it was that important.”

  “Not important? Having some lunatic running around trying to kill us isn’t important?”

  “Lunatic! Who said anything about a lunatic?”

  “The sheriff, for one. Look at what happened to Penelope and Ryder! It’s the same thing that happened to us in England. It started with our brother, Charles. He died in a horrible way, and then things began to happen to any man who came near us!”

  Seth’s eyes went wide again. “What are you talking about? I thought you came here because you wanted to. We sent letters because that’s what you do with a mail-order bride. We wanted wives, Sadie Cooke said she could get us some, and here you are. It was that simple.”

  “Yes, well, that’s not exactly the reason we came. In short, we came because no one else wanted us. No man will touch a woman from the Sayer family… lest they die.”

  “What?!”

  “You heard me right. During the season after Charles died, men came calling, wanting permission to court, but those with intentions of marriage met with most unfortunate accidents. One broke his leg, another his arm, but Henry, ohhhh, let me tell you about poor Henry. He was pushed from a balcony and almost broke his neck!”

  Seth stared at her with his mouth open. “You’ve got to be joking,” he said, his voice flat. He shook himself as he grasped what he’d heard. “Besides, why didn’t Sadie say anything about this? All we knew was that you and your sisters were mail-order brides. Seems she forgot to mention about your murdered suitors.”

  “I didn’t say they were murdered, I said they met with horrible accidents.

  There’s a big difference, you know.”

  “Don’t I ever. Lucky thing for Ryder …” Seth closed his eyes a moment, then sat next to her. “What happened to him was no accident, was it?”

  “No,” she said as she picked at her skirt. “In fact, it’s amazing that Ryder and Constance escaped with their lives. Whoever’s behind this wants us dead, and if not my sisters and I, then it appears that killing any husband of ours will do just fine.” She looked at him. “I can’t marry you right now, at least not until the sheriff discovers what’s going on. Until he finds whoever is behind this, your life is in danger. Can you understand now why I had to say no?”

  Seth sat back and ran a hand through his hair. “Well now, don’t this beat all?”

  “Indeed.”

  “Looks like we’ve got ourselves one more reason to get married.”

  “What?!”

  “Of course. Don’t ya see? I can protect you a whole lot better if you’re with me all the time.”

  “But Seth, that’s exactly what the killer wants!”

  “Seems to me whoever’s behind this can’t make up his mind. First, they go after Penelo
pe, and then they go after Ryder. It don’t make sense.”

  “No, it doesn’t. To be honest, I don’t understand any of it, nor do I want to think about it.” She reached out, and laid a hand on one of his. “Seth, I’d die if anything happened to you. I can’t begin to bear the thought. I think you’ll be much safer if you just… leave me alone for a while.”

  “Not on your life—I don’t mean that as a joke-- but I can’t protect you if you’re out at the Triple C. Colin and Harrison are busy with the ranch and keeping track of their stock. You’d be safer with me.”

  “But…”

  “No buts,” he said as he stood and grabbed her by the hand. He pulled her up with enough force that she bumped into his chest. He put an arm around her waist and held her there, then looked at her and smiled. “Besides, if we get married, I can do this a lot more often.”

  “Do … do what?”

  He grinned ear to ear. “This,” he said as he bent his face to her.

  The kiss was unexpected, and she jumped in his arms as his lips claimed hers; but after a moment, she relaxed as his other arm came around and pulled her tightly against him. This was not the kind of kiss she’d shared in the street with him earlier, or seen August give Penelope; nor was it a kiss she’d seen Ryder give Constance at the Wallers’. Those were done in play or out of relief, but this… this was done out of possession.

  Seth’s kiss left no doubt in her mind that she would belong to him and no other. His kiss claimed her, and let her know that he’d brook no argument about getting married. He would have her, and that was that.

  He slowly lifted his lips from hers, and let his hot breath brushed against her face. His breathing had become heavy, and she noticed that hers had, too. She shuddered in his arms, not sure what else to expect. Would he kiss her again, or release her and chastise himself for being less than a gentleman? After all, they were in Preacher Jo’s parlor!

  “So, Miss Sayer,” Seth whispered. “What say we go find out when your dress is gonna be done, and get married?”

  “ I… I suppose we could do that,” she said breathlessly.

  Seth chuckled. “You suppose?”

  “ Well I… I… Oh, blast it all! Whatever have you done to me?”

  “Kissed ya senseless, is all.”

  “Senseless, indeed.”

  “Is it safe to come out yet?” Preacher Jo called from the kitchen.

  “Sure enough is,” Seth called back.

  “You may not come out yet,” Eloise said. “I am not done chastising Mr. Jones for kissing me!”

  Annie and Preacher Jo’s laughter rang from the other room. Seth and Eloise joined them. But whereas Annie and Preacher Jo’s laughter continued, Seth’s stopped as he looked into Eloise’s eyes, and kissed her again. When he broke the kiss, Preacher Jo's chuckles could still be heard. “Miss Sayer… Eloise…” Seth whispered. “Will you marry me?”

  She smiled as her eyes roamed his face. “Yes,” she said and nodded. “But you know what this means. Your life will be in danger.”

  “Darlin’, my life has always been in danger. I’m used to it. Now, let’s go find out when your wedding dress is gonna be done.”

  Six

  “Land sakes, you two; where have ya been? You’ve been gone for over an hour!” Grandma scolded.

  Seth and Eloise glanced around the mercantile. The ladies had left, leaving Mrs. Dunnigan behind the counter, a scowl on her face. Seth ignored her and turned to Eloise. “I guess I got you in trouble.” He turned to Grandma. “Where’s Sadie gone to?”

  “She done went down to the livery stable, looking for you.”

  “In the livery stable?” Eloise asked.

  “Yep, I guess maybe she thought he’d be sparking in a horse stall with ya,” said Grandma with a laugh.

  Seth shook his head. “Only if you were with us, would she think that.”

  Grandma’s laughter died to a chuckle. “Even I have my limits.”

  “Where have you been?” asked Mrs. Dunnigan.

  “For your information,” said Seth. “We’ve been at the church, discussing our wedding with Preacher Jo and Annie.

  “Well, it’s about time,” Grandma said.

  “Speaking of time,” added Eloise. “When do you think my dress will be done?”

  Grandma scratched her head. “Well, now; let me see. If everybody shows up again tomorrow, we can have most of it finished. Then Sadie, Belle, and you could put on the final touches.”

  “That means we could be married in two days,” said Seth with a grin.

  “Two days,” Eloise echoed in a soft voice.

  “What’s the matter, child?” asked Grandma. “Don’t you want to get married?”

  “No, it’s not that at all,” said Eloise. “It’s just … there are other things to take into consideration.”

  Grandma stared at her, but said nothing. She glanced at Mrs. Dunnigan, who gave her a shrug, and went back to filling a sack with nails.

  “Come on,” said Seth. “Let’s go find Sadie and tell her we’re getting married as soon as your dress is done.”

  “What? Like she doesn't know that already?” asked Eloise.

  “Why don’t you youngins wait until after the picnic?” asked Grandma.

  “In fact, maybe you ought to get married at the picnic,” suggested Mrs. Dunnigan.

  “What picnic?” asked Eloise.

  “Hey,” said Seth. “That’s a right fine idea.”

  “What picnic?” Eloise asked again with a wave of her hand.

  “We have one every summer,” explained Grandma. “Started a few years ago when Belle first came to town. That first picnic was a fun one, wasn’t it, Irene?”

  Mrs. Dunnigan scowled at Grandma, and threw the bag of nails down hard upon the counter.

  “Yep, that was some picnic,” chuckled Grandma.

  “When is the picnic?” asked Seth.

  “After you two left to go sparkin’,” said Grandma. “We talked about it, and decided that this coming Saturday would be a good time.” Of course, that’s five days from now. You think you can hold out that long?”

  Seth blew out a breath. “I dunno; five days is a long time for a man to wait when he wants to get married.”

  Eloise blushed. “I can wait.”

  Seth took her hand and held it. “Are you sure you want to wait the extra days?” he asked.

  “Maybe we should. That gives the sheriff more time to find out who’s behind this.”

  “Don’t make a difference to me whether Sheriff Hughes finds anything out or not. I’m still going to marry ya.”

  “I think it would be romantic to be married in a picnic setting, don’t you?” she asked, eyes hopeful.

  He studied her, and then shrugged. “If that’s what you want, then that’s what you’ll get.”

  She looked at him, her eyes sparkling, and smiled. “It’s what I want. And besides, with the whole town there, what could possibly happen?”

  * * *

  The next day, the ladies sewing circle resumed their work on the dress. Sadie said very little about the fact that Eloise and Seth had been gone so long the day before. Probably because she found out they were at Preacher Jo’s house, and for that, Eloise was grateful. She didn’t want to be questioned by her cousin’s wife. Seth had asked her enough questions the day before after making the decision to have their wedding at the picnic.

  Eloise stifled a yawn as she tried to finish a stitch. She’d tossed and turned all night, wondering if she’d made the right decision by telling Seth that she’d marry him, despite having told him everything about her family history. And even though he agreed to wait until the picnic, she still felt it wasn’t enough time. What if the sheriff didn’t find the culprit behind the attempts on Penelope and Ryder’s lives? Was the assailant lurking somewhere close to town, even now lying in wait to harm one of them? The thought sent a shiver up her spine.

  “What’s the matter with you?” asked Fanny Fig. “Have ya got wed
ding jitters?”

  “No, not at all,” said Eloise. “I ... had a chill.”

  “Speaking of chills,” said Grandma. “I hope it doesn’t rain on Saturday. There’s been storm clouds hovering over the mountains, and the wind’s picking up. Better pray it doesn’t blow them clouds to town.”

  “It wont’ rain on the day of our picnic,” snapped Fanny Fig.

  “How do you know?” Mrs. Dunnigan barked back.

  “Because it can’t rain on the day Seth and Eloise are gettin’ married! Wouldn’t be right,” said Fanny with a curt little nod.

  Grandma laughed. “What ya gonna do, Fanny? Perform a dance to keep the rain away?”

  “I said no such thing,” she snapped back.

  Everyone laughed at Fanny’s obvious discomfort. Mrs. Mulligan stopped chuckling, set her sewing in her lap, and sighed in relief. “I’m done with my part. How’s everyone else doing?”

  “I’m done, too,” said Mrs. Dunnigan.

  “And me,” added Sadie.

  “I’ll need a little more time,” said Belle. “Sleeves are always trickier.”

  Eloise leaned toward her. Belle was sitting in a chair on the other side of their circle. “How are you feeling today?” she asked.

  Belle looked up from her stitching, and gave her a weak smile. “I’ve felt better.”

  “You look terrible,” bellowed Mrs. Dunnigan. “In fact, I’ve seen you look a whole lot better!”

  “Auntie,” said Belle. “You don’t have to make it sound like I’m half-dead.”

  Everyone giggled at that. Mrs. Dunnigan glanced around the circle, snorted in disgust, and went back to checking her stitches.

  “When are you going to tell Colin?” asked Grandma.

  Belle sighed. “When I’m good and ready.”

  “She’s afraid of how he’s going to react,” said Sadie.

  “You can’t put it off forever,” said Grandma.

  “I know,” said Belle. “It’s just that once he finds out, he’s going to drive me crazy.”

  “How do you know?” asked Eloise. “Just because Harrison drove Sadie mad, doesn’t mean Colin will do the same thing.”