Bicycle Built for Two (35 page)

She’d expected Alex to have driven her back
to Chicago yesterday evening, but he’d postponed the trip until
today. After he rearranged the baggage to his satisfaction, he
turned on her. “Dash it, Kate, You don’t have to go back to work at
all! I can’t understand you.”

“I know you can’t.” She sucked in air and
told herself not to throw a tantrum just because her heart was
broken and she felt as if she were dying and she didn’t think she’d
survive the day at all, much less a day of telling fortunes and
dancing to squealy Egyptian music.

She hadn’t yet informed Alex that he was
mistaken in assuming the two of them were destined to be wed. She
aimed to delay the announcement until they were alone together.
Mary Jo would be in the carriage heading to Chicago with them. Kate
really didn’t want a witness to what she knew would be a huge fight
between herself and Alex, especially since she had a hunch Mary Jo
wouldn’t understand Kate’s position on the matter. “But I need to
explain everything to Madame. And they’re depending on me at the
Egyptian Pavilion, too. It wouldn’t be fair to them if I just
didn’t show up again. I thought you were such a stickler for
principles.”

“Huh.” He heaved the last piece of luggage
into the boot and dusted off his hands. When he turned this time,
he placed his hands on her shoulders and grinned down at her. Kate
nearly melted into a puddle at his feet. She loved him so much.
“Kate, my darling, you’re right and I’m wrong. There. Does that
make you feel better?”

“Yes.” She swallowed so as not to sob
aloud.

“Good.” He hugged her hard. Kate hoped
nobody was watching. “You’re absolutely correct in that you ought
to inform your employers that your circumstances are about to
change. I’m sorry I urged you to do neglect a responsibility.”

“That’s okay,” she mumbled, struggling to
free herself.

With a loud exhalation of breath, Alex let
her go. “Let’s see if Mary Jo is ready to set out for town. If
she’s still dithering, I may just leave her behind.”

“You’d never be so cruel to your sister.”
Kate smacked him on the arm on the off chance that if she acted
playful, she’d feel playful. It didn’t work, but Alex
misinterpreted her mood, so the gesture worked out all right
anyway.

“I don’t know about that. Mary Jo can be a
pain in the neck sometimes.”

He grabbed her hand. Kate didn’t resist
because she wanted to experience as many of these tokens of his
affection as she could before she delivered the news. She knew he
felt obliged to marry her now that they’d be intimate, but she also
knew that if he’d only think about it he’d agree that she’d make
the worst possible wife for him. He needed some high-society lady
who understood his station in life, not a worm like her, who’d have
to learn how to be a lady. “You promised her you’d take her to the
fair,” Kate reminded him, trying her best to sound pious.

“I know it.” He heaved a melodramatic sigh.
“And I never go back on my word.”

“It’s a good thing, or I might have to sic
one of those big Egyptians on you.”

They were both laughing when they trotted up
the porch stairs and entered the house. The entry way was abustle
with activity. Kate saw her mother in the wheeled chair Alex had
either rented or bought for her, laughing along with Mrs. English,
Mrs. Gossett, and Louise as Mary Jo dashed here and there, dropping
things, picking them up, trying to straighten her hat, losing her
hat pins, and generally behaving like an addle-pated
adolescent.

Alex released Kate’s hand, put his fists on
his hips, and frowned at his sister. “For heaven’s sake, Mary Jo.
Aren’t you ready yet?”

Mary Jo yanked on a glove, stabbed a pin
into her hat so hard that Kate winced in sympathy, and skidded to a
stop before her brother. “Yes!” She slapped a hand over her heart
and panted.

Kate laughed, although she didn’t feel like
it. She’d surveyed her mother’s face during the last act of Mary
Jo’s show, and she didn’t like what she saw. She was
afraid—terribly afraid—that if she left now, she’d never see Ma
again in this lifetime. And, since Kate wasn’t sure a hereafter
even existed, much less that she herself was destined to go there
since she considered herself a less than stellar human being, she
hated to leave Ma here, even with the knowledge that Ma would be
better off in this lovely place with all these helpful people
surrounding her than she would be in the city. Alex even managed to
get the neighborhood doctor to visit the farmhouse twice a day to
make sure she had everything she needed. Within reason. What she
needed was good health, and nobody could restore that. And God, if
He existed, didn’t seem inclined to waste his time on such as Hazel
Finney.

Making her way to her
mother’s chair, Kate knelt beside her. “You sure you’re going to be
okay, Ma? You can come with us if you want to go back to
Chicago.”
To die
.
Naturally, she left out that part.

Hazel Finney kissed her daughter’s cheek
with lips that felt like dried rose petals. “Please don’t fuss
about me, Katie. You’ve done more for me than any mother should
expect from a daughter. You’ve even brought me to this beautiful
place and introduced me to the kindest people I’ve ever met. I’ll
be fine, lovie. Please don’t worry.”

Kate had meant to give her mother one of her
usual good-humored, saucy quips. What she did do was break down.
Laying her head on her mother’s lap, she sobbed, “Oh, Ma, I’m so
scared.”

“Ah, Katie, Katie. I know you are, darling,
but please believe me when I tell you that I’m not. I’m ready for
whatever happens. And you’ve made it possible for me to spend a few
of my last days in heaven—even before I get there.” She began
laughing, and the laugh turned into a painful fit of coughs.

Kate felt terrible about losing her control.
She fumbled for her handkerchief and brutally wiped her eyes. “I’m
sorry, Ma. Here, take this.” She handed her mother her tear-stained
hankie. Mrs. Finney nodded her thanks and pressed the
embroidered—by Kate’s own fingers—piece of cotton to her lips.

Sensing Alex close by, Kate lifted her head
and found him gazing at the two of them, concern plain to read on
his face. She tried to smile. “Sorry, Alex.”

“Don’t apologize, for God’s sake.” He knelt
beside her and put one of his big, warm hands on Mrs. Finney’s
shoulder. Kate knew from experience that her mother’s shoulders
were skeletal, all the excess flesh having been vanquished years
ago by hard work and ill health. “Will you be all right, Mrs.
Finney? I’ll be happy to leave Kate here, but she insists on going
back to the fair.”

When she finally caught her breath, Mrs.
Finney gasped, “My Katie knows what she has to do, Alex. That’s one
of the things that make her special.”

“I suppose so.”

Kate heard plenty of doubt in his voice. She
knew he wasn’t doubting her code of honor; he doubted her common
sense. She did, too, but she also knew that it was important, both
to herself and to her mother, that she fulfill her commitments.

“I’ll be back soon, Ma. Promise.”

“I promise, too, Mrs. Finney. I’ll bring her
back to you as soon as possible.”

“Thank you, Alex.”

Kate wondered if she was reading more into
her mother’s expression than was really there. She could have sworn
some sort of silent communication was taking place between the two
people she loved most on earth. She shook her head as she stood up,
telling herself that she was only being fanciful. Still, Mrs.
Finney clung to Alex’s hand for a long time before they finally
departed the English farm and headed back to Chicago.

Mary Jo chattered the whole way about what
she wanted to see at the fair and what she aimed to do there. Her
babbling made Kate’s head spin, and her mood went from depressed to
itchy to incredibly crabby before they’d been rattling along the
road to town for an hour.

Finally Alex, either sensing Kate’s mood or,
more likely, becoming tired of his gabby sister on his own, told
Mary Jo to pipe down. “I know you’re excited, kid, but why don’t
you give the two of us a break. We’ve got other things to think
about than seeing the sights at the Exposition.”

Mary Jo lifted her chin. “That’s because
you’ve seen it before.”

“No,” Alex snapped. “It’s because we’re both
worried about Mrs. Finney.”

If Kate weren’t so grumpy,
she might have felt sorry for Mary Jo. As it was, she could only be
glad the girl stopped chattering before Kate blew up and said
something nasty to her.
I’ve got to work
on my temper
, she told herself. Maybe most
of the people she knew deserved to be yelled at, but the Englishes
didn’t. Not even self-engrossed, adolescent, Mary Jo.

The rest of the trip passed more or less in
silence. Kate tried to respond appropriately to the speaking
glances Alex sent her way, but she only felt tired and cold and
alone, and it was difficult for her not to wish she’d never met
him. It was a selfish wish, because Kate’s introduction to Alex was
the best thing that could ever have happened to Ma, given her
health. As for Kate, she loved Alex to distraction, but since they
were destined to part forever soon, she’d as soon have spared her
heart and soul the pain of that parting.

She was getting morbid. Life would go on, no
matter what happened to Kate’s own personal feelings. It didn’t
seem fair to her, but as Alex had noted not long before, life
wasn’t fair. A body would think that a girl would know better than
to leave her heart vulnerable as Kate had done. Fool. Idiot. She
was so darned stupid.

Before Kate was done vilifying herself, the
carriage drew up in front of the Congress Hotel. Kate wished Alex
had taken her home first. On the other hand, she didn’t want Mary
Jo to see where she lived. It was probably better this way, even if
it prolonged Kate’s state of misery.

“We’ll get you settled,” Alex said
cheerfully. “After I take Kate home, I’ll be back, and we’ll decide
what to do first.”

“I want to see the Columbian Exposition
first. I want to ride on the Ferris wheel! Then I want to see
Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show!”

Even Kate couldn’t help but produce a smile
for this bit of enthusiasm. The Ferris wheel had become the most
popular attraction in the fair. Buffalo Bill’s Wild West wasn’t
even an official part of the Exposition, but was housed on the
grounds outside the fair. It was as popular an attraction as the
fair itself. It was said that some folks came to Chicago, saw the
Wild West, and went home thinking they’d seen the entire
Exposition. Kate didn’t know about that, and she’d never seen
Buffalo Bill’s offering to the world’s inquisitive mind, but she
didn’t fault Mary Jo’s choices in entertainment.

“We’ll all three go to Buffalo Bill’s Wild
West tonight,” Alex declared, winking at Kate. “Kate doesn’t have
to go back to work until tomorrow.”

“But—”

“I’ll see to it,” Alex interjected loudly,
trampling Kate’s protest as if he were swatting a bothersome
fly.

“But, what about—”

Again Alex forestalled her. “I’ll talk to
the Egyptians and Madame Esmeralda as soon as I see you home. Stop
fretting.”

Kate gave up. She might as well. Alex had an
answer for every one of her complaints and equivocations.
Therefore, nothing more provocative than social pleasantries passed
her lips as she and Alex went with Mary Jo to the room Alex had
taken for her. It was next to his. Kate had to suppress a gasp when
the bellboy, who had been summoned to carry Mary Jo’s luggage
gestured them into a cage, pressed a button, and the cage began
moving upwards. She didn’t want to look like a booby, but she’d
never been in an elevator before, and the experience was almost as
exciting as riding the Ferris wheel.

The suppressed elevator gasp was nothing
compared to the gasp Kate had to suppress when the bellboy turned
the key in the door to Mary Jo’s room and pushed it open. Why, the
room was bigger than Kate’s entire flat! She gazed with wonder at
the luxurious appointments. It was all so plush and modern.

“Oh, my,” she murmured. Then she felt
foolish.

“Oh, Alex!” Mary Jo exclaimed, easing Kate’s
qualms about being a booby somewhat. “This is so pretty!”

“The Congress is a brand-new hotel, sister
mine. All the appointments are modern.”

“It’s bee-yootiful, Alex!” Mary Jo ran to
the bed and flung herself on it, bouncing twice. “I love it!”

Kate, who had believed the luxury of the
English home could hardly be surpassed, stared in wonder at Alex’s
sister. Fancy that! A young, spoiled, rich girl could be impressed
by something. Would wonders never cease?

It didn’t take long to get Mary Jo settled,
and although she begged to be allowed to go with Alex to see Kate
to her apartment, her entreaties were rejected. Kate guessed she
was glad of that, but wasn’t sure, given the nature of the news she
aimed to impart unto Alex during the carriage ride.

But she didn’t impart it. She couldn’t. And
it was all because he was so happy.

He grabbed Kate’s hand and held it tight as
soon as she was settled in the carriage. “I’m going to take you and
Mary Jo up on the Ferris wheel tonight, Kate. And after that, we’re
all going to see Buffalo Bill’s Wild West.”

Kate opened her mouth to refute Alex’s
assumption of her evening’s time, but didn’t do it. Couldn’t do it.
This was the man who was responsible for making her mother’s last
days on earth happy. She couldn’t spoil the evening for him. There
would be time tomorrow to inform him she wouldn’t marry him.

He anticipated her. “Don’t say a word, Kate.
I’m taking you and Mary Jo to dinner in the hotel, and then we’re
going on the Ferris wheel, and then we’re all going to see Buffalo
Bill’s Wild West. I’m only taking you to that ghastly flat so that
you can have a few hours of rest.”