Love Inspired Historical March 2014 Bundle: Winning Over the Wrangler\Wolf Creek Homecoming\A Bride for the Baron\The Guardian's Promise (39 page)

“Pip and Pops. I like it,” Danny said, offering another of those wide smiles.

That settled, Libby gave the grubby child a hug, not a bit concerned that he would ruin her beautiful walking dress. The trio started toward the door, Gabe promising again to pick them up at six. They had almost made the opening when Sarah swept through. It seemed God wasn't finished with him yet.

“Why, hello, Libby,” she gushed. “I heard you were in town.”

“I imagine you did,” Gabe's mother said. “Sarah, I'd like you to meet my daughter, Blythe, and my stepson, Win. Children, Sarah VanSickle.”

The Granvilles made the polite, appropriate responses, but Sarah hardly noticed. She was too busy looking around the room to see who was present.

“I see you met your grandson,” she said with a triumphant smile. If she was hoping to hear something negative about Gabe's conduct or Danny, she was disappointed.

“I did,” Libby said, her features schooled to serenity. “Isn't he the cutest thing?” She brushed past Sarah as if she were something distasteful. “If you'll excuse me, we really must run.”

“How long will you be in town?” Sarah called after her.

“As long as it takes.”

“To do what?” Sarah pressed. “I was hoping we could get together.”

Just outside the doorway, Libby turned. Gabe could almost see his mother biting her tongue. It was an expression he'd seen often enough on his brother's face.

“Oh, we will, Sarah,” she said in a pleasant voice. “But when we do, I want us to have a nice private conversation.” With that, she turned and started down the sidewalk as if she hadn't a care in the world, Blythe and Win trailing behind.

Gabe's gaze shifted to Sarah, who looked as if she were about to suffer a fit of apoplexy. What beef could his mother possibly have with Sarah VanSickle that she was intent on discussing? Whatever it might be, it was clear that Libby was wise to the viperous woman's tricks and had no intention of allowing Sarah to make the past, and whatever dicey tidbits it entailed, a public spectacle.

Chapter Ten

G
abe made it through the rest of the day and the gauntlet of questions thrown at him by almost everyone who came to make a purchase. Somehow he managed to deflect or ignore most of them with generic answers or the pretext of needing to help another customer.

Danny had returned to the mercantile after going home to tell Edward that he'd met his grandmother and informed Gabe that Rachel was out in the country checking on a patient. He drew a sigh of relief. He'd been granted a brief reprieve before facing Rachel to tell her that Danny had spilled the beans about who his mother was.

He was about to close when he saw Rachel coming down the sidewalk. She looked tired, frazzled and troubled. He wanted to pull her into his arms and tell her that everything would be all right, that his mother was not the least bit intimidating and that whatever happened he would be right beside her so she would not have to bear this newest crisis alone. But even though there had been a definite softening in her attitude lately, she'd made it clear that Danny was her primary concern. The rare times he'd felt they were connecting on a more personal level, he had been so afraid of her returning to her former scornful attitude that he'd backed down, afraid to push too hard.

He waited until she got inside before locking the doors and turning the sign to Closed.

“Danny told me he met his grandmother,” she said without preamble.

“Quite by accident, but yes, he did.”

“He also told me she really liked him and said something about an aunt and uncle and everyone going fishing tomorrow.”

“All true.”

Rachel's expression seesawed between relief and disbelief. “Do you mind giving me your version? Our son is a master at glossing over anything he feels might upset me or that might put him in a bad light. Somehow, I can't believe it—” she waved her hands through the air in a vague gesture “—was the happy occasion he portrayed.”

“Actually, it was,” Gabe said. “More or less.” He gave her a condensed version of everything that had transpired, including Sarah's contribution to the drama. He finished with, “Libby asked him to call her Pip, which was her father's pet name for her.”

“And she seemed to accept Danny, no questions asked?”

Gabe smiled. “Oh, there will be plenty of questions. Count on it. But there was no hiding the fact that she was quite taken with him, even though he was absolutely filthy.”

Rachel's dismay was unmistakable. “I wanted him to be nice and clean and on his best behavior when they met for the first time,” she wailed. Then she asked, “How dirty was he?”

“Extremely,” Gabe said, a smile surfacing at the memory of Danny's grimy condition.

Seeing how the corners of his mouth hiked up in amusement, she said, “This is not funny, Gabriel Gentry, though I can see how someone like you might see the humor in it.”

He refused to take offense at a statement he realized was rooted in some sort of motherly embarrassment.

“Danny had been digging worms,” he explained, “and he'd brought them with him. However, he
was
on his best behavior. Quite the young gentleman, in fact.”

“Really?” She still looked somewhat distressed, but her whole posture was more relaxed.

“You should have seen him, Rachel,” he said with a soft laugh. “It was very funny. He smoothed his hair.” Gabe mimicked the action. “And smeared more dirt on his face in the process, and when he started to shake her hand and saw how dirty it was, he stuck it behind his back instead.”

“Oh, no!”

He reached and took her hands in his, drawing her closer. For once she didn't resist. “She adored him, Rachel,” he told her, his eyes smiling into hers. “Who wouldn't?”

He brought her hands to his lips and pressed kisses to her palms. “Trust me when I say that everything will be fine.” He released his hold on her and drew his watch out of his pocket. “Unfortunately, I have to run you off right now because I'm supposed to take everyone to Caleb's for dinner.”

“What about you and Libby?”

He shrugged and gave her hands a squeeze. “We didn't really have a chance to talk. There were too many curiosity seekers milling about. I'll have a better grasp of things after tonight, and you and I will talk tomorrow, while we share your box lunch.”

“You seem very confident that you'll be the highest bidder,” she said, almost playfully.

“Confident enough.”

* * *

Libby was enchanted by Caleb and Abby's brood. She spent time talking to Ben about his trapping, telling him how much Caleb had liked it as a boy, and cuddling Laura—both were Abby's children from her marriage to William Carter.

After Abby put the children to bed, the adults retired to the parlor to enjoy coffee and a slice of Abby's buttermilk pie so that Libby could tell her side of the story, which was, she insisted, one of the reasons she'd come back to Wolf Creek. As it turned out, Frank
had
been correct in setting the story straight as far as he knew the truth. Libby filled in the blanks.

“I fell for Lucas Gentry the first time I saw him,” she said, a reminiscent smile on her face. “With my very different...upbringing, he was the antithesis of everything familiar, which I found quite exciting. He wasn't a handsome man in the traditional sense, but he was ruggedly good-looking, and there was an attractive brashness and self-confidence about him that drew me, at least in the beginning.”

A pensive smile softened her features. “I loved it here, too. I'd been brought up a city girl, but there was something about the rolling hills and the fresh air and the close-knit community I found appealing.”

“A blessing and a curse,” Abby volunteered.

Libby's smile held a touch of irony. “You're right, of course. I had no idea in the beginning that that closeness could also be a detriment, since it was next to impossible to keep a secret for long.”

She looked at Caleb. “When I came to town, Sarah Davis—Sarah VanSickle now—and Lucas were expected to marry, though there had been no formal announcement.”

Gabe and Caleb shared a look of disbelief.

“When it became apparent that he was interested in me, she was furious,” Libby said. “He ended things with her, and for the remainder of my visit, he pursued me rather intensely.”

“I don't doubt that,” Caleb said with barely concealed hostility. “Once he got hold of an idea, he didn't let it go.”

“No,” Libby said, “he didn't. The night before we were to go back to Boston, he proposed, and I said yes. My parents were unhappy that things had moved so fast, and my father was...oh, I don't know... There was something about Lucas he just didn't trust. But I was marrying age, so they agreed. They delayed their return for two weeks until we could put together a small wedding that was fancy enough to satisfy my mother.”

She drew in a deep breath. “Lucas was like a chameleon, able to adapt to a situation with very little effort. He became whatever he needed to be to get what he wanted, and then he changed into something...someone else. Once he had me, it was off to the next item on his list. At first he was generous with everything but his time, but it didn't take long for me to realize how he used his generosity for control.”

She looked from one of her boys to the other. “I know what you're wondering, but he was never abusive, at least not in the beginning.”

Caleb's face looked like a thundercloud. “Are you saying he hit you?”

She reached out and patted his hand. “No, nothing like that. But abuse can take many forms. You came along ten months after the wedding and Gabe four years after that. You boys gave me a reason to get up every morning. You helped fill the lonely hours that being alone so much created.

“Lucas was too busy making a name to have time for us. He was either working or off trying to buy more cattle or land—anything to make more money or gain an edge. He thrived on the power it afforded him. When I look back now, I see that his being away so much was really a blessing of sorts.”

“He did like having people in his debt and kowtowing to him,” Caleb said. “I remember that.”

“Yes,” Libby said. “He took us to Boston for a visit once, but he refused to go again, saying that he could have bought another parcel of land for what the visit cost. He wouldn't let me go alone with you boys, claiming it would be too hard on me.

“He became quite miserly, too. The three of us dressed like peasants except when he wanted to show us off, and he went around on a prize stallion decked out in the latest and finest so that he would look more impressive for his wheeling and dealing.”

“Did Grandmother and Grandfather Harcourt know how things were?” Blythe asked her mother, clearly stunned by her mother's confession.

“I never told them, but I think they suspected. They came as often as they could, but it wasn't enough. I have to say the church was a big support, but I'd been taught not to air my dirty laundry, and besides, it was too embarrassing. I didn't want anyone suspecting what my life was really like, and I don't think Lucas would have taken kindly to my exposing his true colors to the world.”

“He sounds like a terrible person,” Abby said, scooting closer to Caleb and taking his hand.

“It sounds as if
terrible
doesn't begin to cover it,” Win added.

“All I can say is that money and power became his gods.” She sniffed and continued. “One autumn when you boys were three and seven my parents came to visit and brought along my older brother, Tad, his wife, Ada, and her brother, who just happened to be Sam Granville.”

A collective gasp filled the room, and Libby offered a wan smile. “Sam's wife had died a couple of years earlier, and he was left with his two boys, Win and Philip. Sam was handsome and funny, and he made me laugh....”

Gabe and Caleb exchanged troubled looks but did not interrupt. Blythe's face wore a reminiscent smile, no doubt remembering her father.

“Lucas was jealous, though I'm not sure why, since by this time, our marriage was over in every way that mattered. The old dog-in-a-manger adage, I suppose. We lived in the same house. I cooked, took care of everyone, and he made more money and gathered more...of everything.

“One night Tad, Ada, Sam and I went for a walk down by the creek while my parents kept an eye on you boys. Lucas had gone somewhere and hadn't bothered returning for supper. We were walking back, and it was getting chilly. Tad and Ada hurried home, but Sam and I dragged behind, talking about plays and art and music...”

Her voice trailed away and she looked at her sons again. “As much as I loved you, it was nice to have a bit of time free of responsibility and to be able to carry on a conversation about things outside this house, this town. When I mentioned being chilly, he took off his jacket and put it around me, and there was one of those moments that seem—” she shrugged “—suspended in time.”

A muscle in Gabe's cheek worked. He wanted to ask if Sam Granville had kissed her, but before he could say anything, Libby's control broke and tears began to slide down her cheeks.

“At precisely that moment, your father came thundering out of the woods on that demon horse of his. The timing was so perfect I always wondered if he'd been watching and waiting for just a moment like that.

“I want you to know that Sam didn't kiss me. I took my marriage vows too seriously. I would never have let him even if Lucas hadn't arrived when he did.” She swiped at her eyes and blinked fast. “Of course, Lucas was furious. He got off the horse and...said a lot of terrible things to me and to Sam...accusing us of things I would never do. And then he hit him and hit him and—”

“Enough!” Gabe commanded. His stomach churned at the images filling his mind. He didn't need to hear any more. Frank had told Caleb that Lucas had almost killed the man he'd suspected his wife of cheating with. There was no need for a blow-by-blow description.

She nodded. “It was months before he healed,” Libby said, “and even then, he never walked quite the same. Some injury to his spine, I suspect. His last few years were spent in a wheelchair.”

Despite the pain of what he'd thought was her rejection, despite the troubled years, Gabe believed her, and if the expression on Caleb's face was anything to go by, so did his brother. But whether or not he believed her, Gabe's behavior left him in no position to cast stones.

His mother had wanted to make things up to him and Caleb, just as he'd wanted to make things right with Caleb and Rachel. She'd taken that all-important first step, and it was up to him to meet her halfway.

Standing, he reached out and drew her to her feet and into his arms in an awkward gesture of comfort. He heard her sob and felt her arms close around his middle, felt her press her cheek against his shirtfront and her tears wet the fabric.

Fighting the emotion thickening his own throat, he whispered senseless, meaningless words of comfort and crooned soft soothing sounds. It was a language universal in origin, one that God Himself had designed for the hearts and minds and lips of mothers. They were tender words and gentle murmurs passed down from generation to generation, a distinctive means of communication that some few men—those who did not consider themselves too manly for such nonsense—might awkwardly adopt for just such an occasion.

Blindly, Libby reached out an arm to Caleb, who rose and allowed her to draw him close. Gabe, who had never seen his brother shed a tear during their growing-up years, thought Caleb's eyes looked overbright.

After a few moments, she pulled back, gathering herself and her emotions. He remembered that about her, too. Libby Gentry seldom got emotional, but when she did, she masked it as soon as possible. At one time or another they'd all learned that showing Lucas any weakness only made it easier for him to inflict more pain.