Fate's Intervention (12 page)

First the accusations by the young girl in Georgia that got him fired, then Louisiana, then West Virginia,
Arkansas
, Texas, and now the attention of an insane little twit here in Wyoming was going to force him to quit. He
’
d never be able to seek employment with a household that had young women in it again.

“
Well, in that case, sir, I
’
ll make it simple for you. I quit.
”

“
Now, hold on there, son.
”
Stanharbor said,
“
I didn
’
t mean for you to up and quit. Now rescind that. I need you to keep on working for me.
”

“
I apologize, sir, but I won
’
t marry your
daughter,
and since she
’
s got her sights set on doing just that, I figure it best to remove myself from those sights.
”

“
But you haven
’
t even heard my incentive yet. She
’
s got a
hefty
dowry, son. I
’
d even be willing to toss in a plot of land and help you build you a nice little house. I might even consider
throwing that stallion I let you ride in on today into the mix. I know how much you
’
ve taken to it since you finished training it last week. It
’
s a
good
offer, so why not give it some
thought,
and then decide?
”

The thought of owning White Star free and clear made him pause for a moment, but only for a
fraction of a second
. He sure was going to miss the mighty stallion when Stanharbor sold it at the auction, but the idea of being shackled to Elizabeth Stanharbor for the rest of his life . . . he shuddered and quickly came to his senses. Maybe if he was lucky, he could purchase White Star as his personal mount. Still, not letting it sell to a stable that needed a good stud would be selfish. White Star was excellent stud quality
; however
, if he did manage to obtain the superb beast, it wouldn
’
t be through a marriage to Elizabeth Stanharbor.

“
I
’
m not of a mind to marry again, so with my sincerest regrets I
’
m going to have to turn down that handsome offer. This is simply one time your daughter isn
’
t going to be able to get something she wants.
”

“
Well, like I said, son,
”
Stanharbor pushed,
“
The
re isn
’
t any
reason
to rush into a decision of such importance, so why don
’
t you simply think it over and you can give me your answer when we reach Lander?
”

Matthew groaned inwardly.
As
far as dense went, the apple didn
’
t fall too far from the tree. Matthew
had made his decision
however, and the only thing that Stanharbor was getting from him when they reached Lander was his letter of resignation.
He only hoped he could find gainful employment from someone at the auction, without a letter of recommendation.

Damn!

“
So
,
”
Stanharbor said after a few more minutes,
“
didn
’
t know you
’
d been married before. What happened to your wife?
”

“
A
carriage accident took away my wife and two sons,
”
he said, and realized that he didn
’
t feel like the memory was ripping his heart from his chest. Then he remembered how long it had been and shook his head in bemusement. Had it really happened a decade ago?

“
That
doesn
’
t happen very often.
”

“
No
sir
and it wouldn
’
t have happened at all if someone had trained the horses properly. The man who sold the team to the carriage renter never bothered breaking them in properly. They were too skittish
, s
o when the driver crossed paths with a rattler, the horses bolted, taking the carriage with it. Unseated the driver and then ran straight off a cliff without even slowing. It took two weeks before anyone found the bodies and then the sheriff had to pry the bodies
from
the ground
–
literally. The impact
had driven them down a foot.
”

“
Damn
sorry to hear it, son. I guess that explains why you chose this line of work.
”

“
Yes, sir,
”
Matthew said softly.
“
I wanted to make certain that no one else lo
ses
his or her
lives to incompetence. I certainly can
’
t train every horse in the world, but the few I do train won
’
t bring harm down upon the owner
’
s head.
”

“
How long ago did this happen?
”

“
Ten
years.
”

“
A
nd
you aren
’
t ready to settle down again yet?
”

“
Never will be, truth be told,
”
Matthew asserted, wincing that the conversation had turned
back in that uncomfortable direction.

“
That
’
s
a damn shame. My
Elizabeth
would make a mighty fine wife.
”

Matthew cringed. He seriously doubted
Elizabeth
would ever be mature enough to handle a family. She
’
d probably give all her children monosyllabic names.

“
Well, while I don
’
t normally care repeating myself,
”
Matthew said with a little more force,
“
That
man isn
’
t going to be me
, s
o, if it
’
s all the same to you, I
’
ll be looking for employment elsewhere when we reach Lander.
”

“
Nothing can make you reconsider?
”

Matthew tilted his head slightly. Was that a mild threat he heard behind those words?
First,
his boss stares at him strangely and now his tone is less than pleasant.
Surely,
Stanharbor couldn
’
t be as rejection
-
conscious about his daughter as he was about himself. If he
were
, would he spread rumors at the auction that would prevent him from hiring on with another family? Lord, but he hoped not.

He didn
’
t bother answering Stanharbor
’
s question. He
’
d already started collecting enough trouble. He turned his head to look out the window and
gather
his turbulent emotions.

“
If you don
’
t mind, I
’
d like to
mount
White
Star and ride the remainder of the way,
”
he said after a moment.
“
It will probably be the last time I get to ride the magnificent animal again.
”

“
If you marry my daughter, you
’
ll be riding that animal every day.
”

Matthew opened the door and whistled at
Adam
to slow.
As
soon as the carriage was crawling along again, he leapt to the ground.
“
I
’
ll
see you in Lander, Mr. Stanharbor,
”
he said.
“
Would you like
Elizabeth
to rejoin you now?
”

“
No. Let her ride,
”
he said.

Matthew nodded and shut the door.
“
A
s long as she doesn
’
t try to ride next to me,
”
he muttered, placing a foot in the stirrup and pulling himself up onto White Star
’
s back. He glanced over his shoulder and winced when
Elizabeth
met his gaze, smiled, and dug her heels into the mare
’
s side.

Without hesitation, Matthew snatched the reins from
Adam
and spurred White Star into a gallop.
“
Let
’
s see just how fast you can really move, boy
,
and
if you manage to keep that mare from catching you, I
’
ll feed you
six
cookies when we reach Lander.
”

Marcelle walked around the stalls at the auction, admiring all the different breeds of horses that were available for sale.
She loved horses. She had loved them from the day her
father
decided she was old enough to go to the stables without
the huge beasts trampling her.
Ten years of age.
About
three years too late,
by
her estimat
ion
.

From that day on, she accompanied her
father
to the auctions and to their clients
’
homes to deliver the steeds purchased. It was an exciting life and one she was hesitant to give up. If she married someone outside the horse circuit, then she could very well end up losing, not only her
father
, but her precious horses. Her entire existence. She shook the thought away before it bogged her mind down into a depressive state, but the thought that replaced it wasn
’
t much better.

Normally her
father
would be accompanying her from corral to corral to examine potential purchases, but he was simply too tired. The trip had drained what little energy he had left. Even the cushioned seats in the carriage hadn
’
t helped any, so he remained behind in his room.
S
he was worried about her
father
’
s rapidly deteriorating health. How much longer he had with her was a mystery that the doctor couldn
’
t solve.
All
he could tell her was that her
father
was going to die
within the year, but he couldn
’
t tell her whether it would be next week or in several months. If his increasing frailty
were
any
indicator
, it wouldn
’
t be too much longer.
Another
indicator
was the fact that he was now entrusting her with the purchasing for
Weatherman
stables. Something he never would have done if he
were
in good health.
A
woman simply didn
’
t participate in business, he told her on occasion when she asked to bid or negotiate a purchase.

Today, however, because of his continued illness, she was on her own. She couldn
’
t prevent the tremor of excitement that coursed through her veins at the prospect of making all the selections and doing the bidding today and slowly her mind retreated for the marshy mire of depression into the light of eagerness. She wanted to do well and make her
father
proud of her.

A
soft whinny sounded behind her and she turned.

“
Well, hello there, fellow,
”
she purred softly. Marcelle giggled as the horsed nuzzled her hand, tickling her palm with his big lips.
“
You
are
a fine specimen of horse
flesh
, aren
’
t you?
”