Here Comes the Bride (26 page)

“I’m happy for you, Gabriel,” she said, her lips now as dry as the dust at her feet. “I hope she makes you very happy. You deserve at least that much.”

Something flickered across Gabe’s face, but Tess tore her eyes away. She couldn’t bear for him to see her pain.

“I’ve never loved this way before,” he said softly. “I’m hoping to make her my wife before the week’s end.”

Tess’s hand flew to her mouth in a vain attempt to stifle the sob that tore free from the back of her throat.

“That’s wonderful for you, Gabriel,” she said, knowing the tears were only a heartbeat away from falling. “Collette and Frankie are waiting for me. Please offer my congratulations to your bride. I wish you the best.”

She hurtled away from the tree—and Gabriel—and raced toward the Langman carriage, with Gabriel’s voice echoing through the black void between them.

“Tess! Come back!”

“Just go,” she cried when Frankie turned to look at her. “Go!”

Tess continued to sob uncontrollably long after they arrived back at the ranch. Collette fretted and fussed over her, unable to make any sense out of Tess’s incoherent sobs until finally Beau appeared and hauled both women out of the carriage and into the house. Unable to walk, let alone stand, Tess’s legs would have collapsed under her if Collette hadn’t insisted Beau carry the distraught woman up the stairs to her room.

Hours passed, tea went cold, food went uneaten, and the only word Collette could decipher through her friend’s anguish was “angel.”

Gabe reined Zeus to a walk as he neared the Langman ranch. He’d taken enough cues from both Collette and Tess to understand Wyatt would probably greet him with his shotgun shoulder high and the safety off.

Instead, it was Stupid Frankie who met him halfway down the road to the house.

“What d’you want?” he demanded, resting his right hand on the butt of his Colt.

“I need to see Tess.”

“I don’t reckon she wants to see you right now, Calloway.”

“This isn’t any of your business, Frankie. It’s between me and Tess, now let me by.”

“You’re trespassin’ on Langman land and you know how we deal with trespassers.”

Gabe sighed, but his glare never wavered. “I don’t want to fight you, but I will if I have to.”

“There ain’t gonna be no fightin’, Calloway, only one shot. And since you ain’t armed, it’s pretty easy to see who’ll be doin’ the shootin’.”

“Take your best shot then, Frankie.” He nudged Zeus on ahead, his eyes still fixed on Frankie’s Colt.

Gabe saw him swallow hard, once, twice, his hand twitching against the revolver.

“If he don’t shoot you, I will, and you know I ain’t bluffin’.” Wyatt Langman rode out of the trees ahead of Gabe. “Now get off my land, Calloway.”

“I need to speak to Tess,” Gabe said, keeping his voice even. “I won’t be here any longer than needs be. . . .”

“You’ve already outstayed yer welcome. Now git.” Wyatt waved his gun in the air, pointing back down the road.

“Wyatt . . .”

“Git.” He released the safety on the gun, leveling the barrel at Gabe’s chest.

Still Gabe hesitated. He needed to talk to Tess, to explain. He couldn’t bear seeing her that upset, even if he knew it would only last a short while. He had to tell her everything, but Wyatt Langman was making that a little difficult at the moment. Gabe knew Frankie never would have shot him, but Wyatt, well, he wouldn’t put anything past the old man. Ornery as the day is long, that was Wyatt Langman.

Gabe nodded. “Fine. Would you at least give her a message for me?”

“No. I done told both her and Lettie they ain’t to have anythin’ to do with you or your no good brother, so you just ride on outta here and I won’t hafta shoot ya fer trespassin’.”

Gabe gritted his teeth and turned Zeus around.

“I’ll be back,” he promised, eyeing Wyatt steadily.

“An’ I’ll be waitin’.” The old man nodded back.

Gabe spurred Zeus down the road, a string of curses trailing out behind him. Now what the hell was he going to do? How the hell was he ever going to get to talk to Tess with her holed-up at the crazy Langmans’ place? Maybe Bart . . . no, Wyatt’d shoot Bart long before he thought to ask any questions.

Gabe was stuck. He’d made one hell of a mess out of this. If Tess hadn’t run off so quickly, he’d have been able to explain it to her, make her see the humor in it. But now he’d be lucky if she ever wanted to speak to him again—no matter what the reason.

He needed a plan; he needed to think. Hell, what he needed was a miracle.

He found Bart on the side of the house, unloading the rest of the planed boards from the wagon.

“Your lady friend sends her regards,” he said with a slight sneer.

“Wha . . . ?” Bart started, then shrugged. “How’d you know?”

“Wasn’t hard to figure out, Bart. You get the stupidest look on your face when she’s around, and she ain’t exactly ugly.”

“No.” Bart grinned, wiping the sweat from his brow. “She sure ain’t. How’d it go with Tess?”

Gabe shook his head. “You’re not going to believe it.”

Bart eyed his brother for a moment and adjusted his hat.

“If it’s somethin’ stupid you did, I sure as hell will believe it.”

“Stupid doesn’t even begin to describe it,” he muttered. “It started out all right, was actually kind of funny, but then . . .”

“Then you blew it. Right when you had it all figured out, you blew it.” Bart pulled another board from the wagon and laid it on the ground behind him. “What the hell d’you say to her?”

Gabe heaved a heavy sigh and filled his brother in on what had happened.

“So you figured it’d be best if you didn’t let Wyatt shoot you, is that it?”

“Something like that. But now how the hell am I going to get near her? There’s no one here that can get onto Langman land without meeting the angry end of a shotgun.”

“You really are stupid, ain’t ya?” Bart never stopped moving; it was beginning to drive Gabe crazy. “Go to the restaurant tomorrow, talk to her there.”

“The restaurant,” Gabe repeated. “Bart, my boy, you’re not as dumb as you look! That might just work.”

“’Course cranky ol’ lady Lutz’s likely to fire her if she sees you anywhere near the place, but that ain’t a worry, is it? I mean, Tess will marry you, won’t she?”

Uncertainty suddenly crept into Gabe’s brain.

“Y-yes,” he stammered. “Of course she will. Why wouldn’t she?”

Bart quirked his brow. “D’you really want me to answer that?”

“Bart,” he snapped. “I’m serious.”

“So am I,” Bart said, laughing all the while. “If today went half as bad as you made out, you’d best tread lightly with ’er or she’s likely to bolt again.”

Gabe set his jaw and walked away, leaving Bart to his work. Tomorrow was an eternity away.

 

 

Shadows deepened under Tess’s eyes; her face was ghostly pale and pinched. Still, she had to go to work. She washed and dressed with stiff movements, refused any breakfast, and wordlessly climbed into the wagon so Mr. Langman could take her into town. No more walking for her or Collette.

“You shouldn’t be goin’ anywhere, young lady,” Wyatt said, climbing up beside her. “I’ll go to town and tell Lutz you won’t be in today.”

Tess forced her lips to smile. “Thank you, Mr. Langman, but I need to stay busy, to keep my mind thinking of something else.”

“I tol’ ya them Calloways weren’t good fer nothin’.”

“It isn’t Gabriel’s fault,” she said quietly. “He can’t help how he feels. Or doesn’t feel. I’ve known that from the very beginning.”

“Cur dogs, the whole lot o’ them.”

“Mr. Langman,” she said gently but firmly. “You’ve been so kind to me, letting me stay at your home, and I do appreciate your generosity, but I cannot allow you to speak that way of either Gabriel or Bart. They’ve been more generous with me than they ever needed to be, and although I’m sure no one in town would ever believe it, they were perfect gentlemen when I stayed at their ranch.”

“I ain’t buyin’ that fer a minute, Tess. There ain’t a man’s bone in either of them coward’s bodies.”

“You’re wrong.” Tess held up her hand when he meant to argue further. “Clayton Calloway made a few bad decisions after his wife died. So deep was his sorrow he forgot everything else, including his own children. Have you never loved someone so deeply that losing them was the same as losing your entire being?”

Wyatt’s face paled. He cleared his throat and clicked to the horses.

“Lettie’s mother, my Maggie. When she died, I wished I’d a died, too. Only thing that kept me goin’ was my girl, Collette.” His face crinkled into a sad smile. “She’s so much of her ma in ’er.”

“I’m sorry,” Tess murmured. “It must have been terrible for you. Collette told me about her mother, about how much Margaret loved you. She told me the story about her and Clayton, too.”

Wyatt’s lips tightened.

Tess touched his arm. “You know that was a lie, don’t you? Silly, idle gossip started by someone with far too much time on her hands.”

Wyatt barely nodded. “I know that now.”

“You’re a good man, Wyatt Langman.” Tess reached for his hand and squeezed it gently. “And so are the Calloways. You should take another look at them one day.”

Wyatt didn’t answer, just bobbed his head and pulled the wagon to a stop in front of the restaurant.

“Thank you, Mr. Langman,” Tess said, forcing strength into her voice. “For the ride, for your home, and for listening.”

“One of us’ll pick you up at three o’clock.”

Tess smiled weakly and stepped toward the restaurant, no longer interested in the job, the money, or the farm she dreamed of. It meant nothing now. Gabriel was marrying someone else; it was real now, he didn’t love her, and he never would.

“You look like you’ve died and just haven’t fallen over yet,” Miss Lutz said. “What’s the matter with you—are you sick?”

“No,” Tess answered flatly. “I’m fine.”

“You’re not fine,” the woman snipped. “And if you intend on keeping your job, you’d best find a way to look like you’re still alive or take your bag right now and leave here. I won’t have my employees looking like death itself.”

Tess nodded silently. She stood before the small mirror in the kitchen and pinched her cheeks as hard as she could, but they would not pink up. Instead, her face became blotchy and swollen. Heaving a resigned sigh, she tied on her apron and set to work. With her arms loaded down with clean plates, she pushed through the kitchen door out into the restaurant.

“Tess.” Gabriel’s voice cut through her faster than any bullet, stopping her heart in mid-beat. The stack of dishes tumbled from her trembling arms, crashing to the floor in a million pieces. Neither Tess nor Gabe even flinched.

“What the . . .” Miss Lutz ran out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on her impeccable apron. “You!”

Her accusatory tone went completely unnoticed.

“You will pay for those, Tess.” She pushed a broom toward Tess who let it fall to the floor in front of her. “I don’t pay you to stand around talking.”

In the back of her mind, Tess could hear someone talking, like a faraway buzz, but she had no interest in whatever was being said. Gabriel was there, standing in front of her, dressed in his Sunday best, a bouquet of daisies clutched in one fist. The buzz faded farther and farther away.

“Gabriel,” Tess breathed, reaching for the nearest chair. He was getting married today. Why else would he be dressed like that and carrying flowers? “What are you doing here?”

Gabe’s face paled slightly. He licked his lips over and over before speaking.

“I, um . . . I think maybe I made a bit of a mess of things yesterday and I wanted to talk to you for a minute.”

“I can’t,” she croaked. “Miss Lutz . . .”

“It’s you,” he said, taking hesitant steps toward her. “You’re the one.”

“What . . . what one?” Her voice shook harder than her hands. She felt certain she would throw up.

Gabe was in front of her now, a nervous smile on his face. With painstaking languor, he lowered himself to one knee.

“You,” he said softly, taking her cold hand in his. “You’re the one I love. You’re the one I need. You’re the one I want to marry, the one who makes me happier than I’ve ever been in my life.”

The room blackened around her, swirling and dipping until she thought she’d fall off the chair.

“But . . .”

“No buts,” he said, pressing his finger against her mouth. “I love you, Tess Kinley, more than I can even begin to tell you.”

“But yesterday . . .”

“Yesterday didn’t go well,” he admitted with a slight blush. “I wanted to tell you, but you took off so fast, and then Wyatt wouldn’t let me . . . well, never mind about that.”

“I thought you said . . .”

“Don’t think,” he whispered. “And forget anything I’ve ever said before now. I love you.”

“Oh, Gabriel.” Her heart leaped in her chest and began to beat again, harder, faster, and larger than ever before. “I don’t know what to say . . . I never thought . . . after the other day . . . and you came for me . . . but you said . . . what about . . . ?”

“Tess.” He laughed softly. “Forget everything else. Do you love me?”

His smile faded when she hesitated.

“Tess?” He searched her face looking for a hint of an answer, but all she did was cry. Huge, hot tears rolled down her cheeks, landing on their folded hands.

When minutes passed in painful silence, Gabe stiffened.

“I guess I made a mistake coming here,” he said, rising to his feet. “I’m sorry, Tess.”

He turned to leave but Tess grasped his hand and pulled him back, knocking the flowers to the floor.

“Gabriel,” she said, “how do I know this isn’t just another dream? How do I know I won’t wake up crying again like I have every night since I came to Porter Creek? How do I . . .”

Tess’s words were smothered by Gabe’s lips. His kiss was urgent and hungry, demanding and yet exquisitely tender. Knees quaking, she leaned into him for support. His huge hands locked against her spine, pulling her closer until she could no longer determine where she ended and he began.

Her fingers wound themselves through his thick, still-damp hair as she returned his kiss with reckless abandon, oblivious to everything else around her. This was a kiss for her hardened, weary soul to meld with, a kiss that joined their hearts forever, a kiss that was in no way a dream.

“Miss Kinley!” Pauline Lutz gasped in horror. “Just what do you think you’re doing?”

The kiss ended, but barely. Their lips still pressed gently against each other, both of them afraid to break the connection. Tess’s eyes remained closed, but she smiled.

“I’m certainly not dreaming,” she breathed.

“No,” Gabe murmured back. “You’re not dreaming.”

“Miss Kinley! Get hold of yourself, for goodness’ sake.”

“I’ve got a good enough hold on her for the both of us, thank you very much,” Gabe smirked. “And I’m not about to let her go.”

Tess laughed lightly, feeling awash with new life.

“She has work to do!” Miss Lutz snipped in a tight voice.

“Sorry,” Gabe said, shaking his head. “Tess doesn’t work here anymore, ma’am. I’m taking her home right now.”

“Gabriel,” Tess said softly, finally opening her eyes. “I can’t leave her without any help. She was kind enough to give me a job when I needed one, the least I can do is finish my shifts for today.”