Love Inspired Historical June 2014 Bundle: Lone Star Heiress\The Lawman's Oklahoma Sweetheart\The Gentleman's Bride Search\Family on the Range (19 page)

As they moved away, Ivy cast a guilty glance his way. “I'm sorry. I'm afraid I may have let more slip than I intended to.”

“What exactly did you tell her?”

Ivy quickly related the conversation. When she was done, Mitch grimaced.

“I'm so sorry.”

“You aren't the first to let a secret slip to that woman. She can sniff out gossip like a buzzard scents carrion.” He let out a heavy breath. “What's done is done. The question now is, what do we do about it?”

Ivy worried at her lip. “Do you really think it's that bad? I mean, she doesn't know anything for certain.”

“That won't matter. She'll relay what she knows and follow it up with ‘surely you don't think they...' or ‘far be it from me to surmise, but...' And before long the damage will have been done.”

Ivy didn't like the set, tight-jawed look on Mitch's face. She liked even less that she'd put it there. If he was right, then this development didn't just affect her—there would be repercussions for him, as well. And it was all her fault. She'd done to him what Lester had done to her, though in her case it hadn't been deliberate.

How could she have been so careless?

Chapter Nineteen

M
itch remained silent as he escorted Ivy to Mrs. Pierce's home. But his mind was churning furiously, trying to process what Ivy's slip of the tongue meant for the two of them. There was a small chance, of course, that nothing would come of it. But he needed to be prepared for the worst. He needed to prepare
Ivy
for the worst.

And come what may, he would make sure she didn't suffer for this. Even if it meant he had to go back on his vow to never remarry. Surprisingly that prospect didn't bother him as much as it would have a mere week ago.

He placed his hand on the gate to Mrs. Pierce's front walk, but didn't open it. He waited for Ivy to meet his gaze, but she didn't seem inclined to do that anytime soon.

“Ivy,” he said gently, “we need to talk about this.”

She finally looked up, and the regret in her eyes was almost his undoing. “I'm so sorry,” she said. “You warned me, but I didn't take it seriously enough.”

He touched her arm. It was supposed to be a gesture of comfort, but he felt something more pass between them. “It's not the end of the world. If the worst happens, I promise to step up and give you the protection of my name.”

She withdrew her arm from his hold. “I wouldn't dream of asking you to make such a sacrifice.”

By the tone of her voice and the injured pride in her expression he realized he'd flubbed his offer. “I truly wouldn't mind.”

She opened the gate, her posture stiff. “I know you mean well, but there's no need. Now, let me take care of the flowers so we can be on our way.” And with that, she marched toward the porch.

Mitch rubbed the back of his neck. What now? How could he make this right?

“Ivy, I'm sorry if—”

“You've nothing to apologize for. It was an honorable gesture. But we both know how you feel about getting married again, so you'll be relieved to know I release you from all responsibility.”

Was she wielding the garden shears with just a little more vigor than necessary? “Will you please just put that down and talk to me face-to-face for a moment?”

She ignored his request. “There's nothing further to say. And we don't want to keep your friends waiting.”

And no matter how much he tried, she refused to budge from her position.

It was a quiet walk to The Blue Bottle.

As soon as they stepped inside, it was obvious from the sympathetic looks that everyone had already heard the rumors.

Ivy excused herself and scuttled off to the kitchen as if she couldn't get away from him fast enough.

Mitch watched the kitchen door close behind her, his frustration curling his hands into fists at his sides. Surely there was something he could do to fix this.

He turned to find all three of his friends regarding him with sympathy. He grimaced. “How bad is it?”

Adam answered first. “Reggie was approached by two different people who heard second-and thirdhand that you and Ivy spent time together at our cabin.”

“Mrs. Ortolon was flitting around the churchyard like a bee in a flower garden,” Chance added.

“It was entirely innocent,” Mitch explained through his clenched jaw. “She was injured and her mule had come up lame. We had no choice.”

“We never thought otherwise,” Adam assured him.

The other two men nodded agreement, and Mitch felt some of his stiffness ease. He thanked them with a nod and rubbed his jaw. “I plan to do the right thing, of course,” he said. “I'm just having trouble convincing Ivy that marrying me
is
the right thing.”

Everett clapped him on the back, and Mitch remembered that the newspaperman had once been in a similar situation when Eunice Ortolon had discovered an unlocked door that connected his apartment to Daisy's.

“She hasn't had time to think it through,” his friend said in that clipped British accent of his. “Give her time. She'll come around.”

Mitch certainly hoped Everett was right.

* * *

Ivy stepped into the kitchen, tightly clutching the basket of flowers. What sort of reception would these women give her? If they turned cold or distant, she wasn't sure she could bear it. In fact, it might be best for everyone if she just found an excuse to leave now, before things got awkward or uncomfortable. If she said she felt ill, that wouldn't be a lie—her stomach was tied in knots so tight she'd never be able to eat a bite anyway.

But the women were so unbelievably supportive she almost broke down and cried right there.

Immediately she was engulfed by her friends. Mrs. Peavy took the basket of flowers, Reggie led her to the table and Eve placed a warm cup of tea in her hands.

What should she say? Explanations tumbled around in her mind, chaotic thoughts out of sequence and incomplete. What came out was “It wasn't Mitch's fault.”

“Of course it wasn't.” Eve patted her hand. “And I'm sure it wasn't yours, either.”

“Nothing happened.”

“You don't have to explain yourself to us.” Reggie took the chair beside her. “We know Mitch is honorable, and we can see what high regard he has for you.”

Mitch held her in high regard?

She looked at Reggie. “I stayed two nights at your cabin and borrowed some of your things—I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner.”

Reggie waved a hand dismissively. “Don't give that another thought. I'm just glad it was there when you needed it.”

Why were these women being so nice? Would they feel the same if they knew her whole story?

Daisy placed a hand on her shoulder. “You look like you could use a bit of fresh air. Why don't we step out back for a moment?”

Ivy frowned, not certain why Daisy had issued the unexpected invitation, but she saw something in the woman's eyes that convinced her to accept the offer.

They walked in silence for a moment, and then Daisy spoke up. “I understand how you're feeling, because something very similar happened to me.”

Ivy shot her a disbelieving look. “What do you mean?”

“I mean Everett and I were the subject of some rather unpleasant gossip, and were more or less backed into a corner where we had to announce our engagement.”

“How awful. But, I mean, it seems obvious you two love each other.”

Daisy's smile softened. “Very much. Only it wasn't so obvious then, and I didn't much cotton to the idea of marrying someone who didn't really want to be married.”

So Daisy
did
understand. But then again, Daisy wasn't dragging a sullied past into the marriage with her. “Thank you for sharing that with me.”

“I told you because I don't want you to lose heart. I've seen the way Mitch looks at you, and you at him. The two of you are good with and for each other.”

Ivy wished that were true. “Thank you, but this is more complicated than it appears. We're friends and that's as far as it
can
go. I'll be returning to Nettles Gap in a couple of weeks and then Mitch can get on with his life.”

“I don't believe that will be as easy for him as you think.”

Ivy's heart fluttered at that. But much as she wanted to believe it, she was sure Daisy was mistaken. Besides, what was the use? There were too many obstacles in their way. And now this.

She mustered a smile. “We ought to be getting back. It'll be time to set the table by now.”

Daisy touched her arm lightly. “Please think about what I said. And no matter what you decide, remember that you have friends here.”

There was no further mention of the gossip, and the meal proceeded as it had the previous Sunday. But this time Ivy studiously avoided looking Mitch's way.

She couldn't keep him from her thoughts, though. She remained acutely aware of his every movement, his every word. And try as she might, she couldn't forget what Daisy had told her.

Later, as they left The Blue Bottle together, Ivy nervously waited for Mitch to say something. Would he press her to marry him again, or had he accepted her refusal as the out he needed?

When they reached the crossroad where they would normally turn to go to his home, Ivy halted. “Perhaps I should leave you here.”

He frowned down at her. “We need to talk. The sooner we settle this matter, the better.”

“I consider it already settled.”

His frown deepened. “Do you really want to have this discussion here on this street corner?”

She glared at him. She was not going to let him bully her into giving in. “I certainly don't think it advisable for us to have it inside your house right now.”

His jaw worked for a moment, and then he nodded. “Agreed. We can have our discussion as we walk Rufus.” He arched a brow. “Assuming that's acceptable?”

She supposed she couldn't put him off forever. She gave what she hoped was a regal nod. “It is.”

No sooner were they following an exuberant Rufus out the front gate than Mitch said, “We must announce our engagement immediately.”

Well, at least he wasn't beating around the bush. “We'll do no such thing.”

“I understand that this isn't the ideal arrangement for either of us, but there's no other solution. You may think you don't care about your reputation, but believe me, when everyone starts whispering and staring, you'll change your mind.”

“I won't.” She took a deep breath. It was time to be totally honest. “And I'm not guessing. I've already been through that, and I know exactly how it feels.”

He stopped in his tracks. “What do you mean?”

She turned to face him, her gaze locked to his with all the intensity she could muster. “My reputation was already shredded five years ago.”

* * *

Mitch saw the pain behind her brave facade. Who had hurt her? He suddenly wanted to find whoever was responsible for that haunted look in her eyes and make him pay.

They were passing the deserted school yard, and he led her to one of the swings. He leaned against a tree and waited for her to explain.

She finally met his gaze. “Aren't you going to ask me what happened?”

“Only if you want to tell me. But I know whatever happened, you were wronged.”

He saw her eyes fill with tears then, but she didn't allow them to fall. Instead, she nodded and pushed the swing into a lazy rocking motion. “I'd like to tell you about it.”

“Then I'm honored to listen.”

“When I was sixteen, a young man decided to court me. To this day, I'm not really certain why. He was quite prominent in our community—the son of the mercantile owner—and several girls had made it clear they would welcome his advances. The thing was, I didn't share his feelings and tried to tell him so. But he apparently thought I was just being coy.”

Mitch thought of his situation with Mrs. Swenson. But how much worse must it have been for her?

She wrapped her arms around the ropes holding up the swing. “Finally, at one of the town dances, when he was being particularly insistent, I made my feelings very clear, telling him in no uncertain terms just how I felt. Unfortunately, the encounter was not as private as I'd thought and Lester felt humiliated.”

So this cad's name was Lester.

“Lester couldn't accept what I'd done—not when I'd so inadvertently but thoroughly stomped on his pride. So he figured out a way to get even.”

Mitch hadn't even heard what the cad had done and already he was ready to throttle him. It was probably just as well the oaf wasn't in striking distance.

“We had a goat that liked to wander off. He never went far, but one day I had trouble finding him and ended up going farther into the woods than I'd realized. Then I found the animal tied to a tree. Before I could do more than wonder what was going on, someone placed a bag over my head and tied my hands behind my back. Then, without saying a word, he forced me to walk what seemed a long ways. The more I struggled, the tighter his grip on my shoulder.”

She rubbed her shoulder, as if reliving the experience. Mitch's hands fisted helplessly at his sides, but, sensing she needed to keep going, he didn't say anything.

“He finally stopped and then pushed me to the ground. I struggled to get back on my feet, more afraid than I'd ever been in my whole life, wondering what would happen next. But nothing did. I couldn't hear anyone, and because the sack was over my head, I couldn't see anything, either. I finally realized he'd just abandoned me there. I stumbled around for a bit, then somehow managed to get that sack off.”

That was his girl, resourceful even when scared out of her wits.

“Whoever had tied me up was long gone. But I had no idea where I was. I didn't have any choice but to start walking. After about twenty minutes, a stranger found me. At first I thought it was the person who'd tied me up and I started running from him. But he caught up with me and was very kind. Said he'd been out hunting when he spotted me. He untied me and helped me find my way back to town.”

She stopped, but he had a feeling there was more to the story, so he bided his time without responding. But it was very hard not to pull her into his arms then and there.

“We came out of the woods in a spot near the Lowells' farm. They were having a barn raising and most of the town was there. It was late evening and folks were gathering up their things. I was so relieved to see familiar faces I almost sobbed.”

She paused for a long moment. “And just as we cleared the woods, the man who'd rescued me pulled me into a tight embrace and gave me a kiss, right on the lips. I could hear the gasps even from a distance.”

He wanted to gather her into his arms and give her what comfort he could. But not here in the open. He'd be doing her no favors if he did that.

“He finally stepped back,” she continued, “gave my cheek a pat, then turned and marched back into the woods, leaving me to face everyone alone. I knew I looked a sight—my dress was dirty and torn, my hair in wild disarray.” Her expression turned grimmer still. “And then I saw Lester, smirking at me, enjoying my disgrace. And I knew—deep in my heart, I
knew
—that he had planned the whole thing.”