Robin Lee Hatcher (31 page)

“Hardly,” Fiona replied. “She’s only four months old, but she has grown a lot. She couldn’t help but grow. She eats all the time.”

“Four months. It seems so much longer ago since I left to work for the Blakes.”

“Emily . . . you can tell me whatever it is that’s troubling you. I’ll understand.”

“There’s nothing to tell, Fiona.” She drew a deep breath. “Things just didn’t work out the way I thought they would. That’s all.”

It was a long, cold journey from the central mountain country to the capital of the territory. The days gave Gavin many hours to replay in his mind the events of the past few months, and there were times he was tempted to turn around and go back to the Lucky Strike. But every time that happened, he heard Dru calling him bullheaded and stubborn again. He heard Patrick calling him a thickheaded idiot. Those thoughts kept him moving forward, even when he was sure that nothing he could say or do would convince Emily to forgive him, let alone agree to marry him. He hadn’t done one single solitary thing to deserve her love.

But neither had he done one single solitary thing to deserve God’s forgiveness and love, and he’d received them all the same. If one miracle could happen in his life, why not two?

Maggie had waited patiently for Emily to come to her, but it still hadn’t happened. It was time she took matters into her own hands.

“If she’s too stubborn to admit she loves him,” Tucker had said the previous night, “she comes by it naturally. Seems to me her sister was much the same way.”

Maggie couldn’t argue with her husband. Stubbornness and pride were two of her greatest faults. Combined they were lethal. She’d nearly thrown away her chance for happiness with Tucker because of her stubborn pride. Seventeen years later, she was more in love with him than ever, and she thanked the good Lord every day for bringing her to her senses in time. What would life have been like without Tucker and the children? She didn’t want to imagine it.

Now if only she could help her sister avoid making a similar mistake.

She knocked on Emily’s bedroom door, then opened it. “Is it too late for a visitor?”

Propped up in bed with pillows at her back, her sister set aside the book she was reading. “Of course not.”

“You had a big afternoon, what with Fiona’s visit with the baby. I hope you didn’t overdo this soon out of your sickbed.”

“I didn’t. I’m feeling much better.”

Maggie sat on the chair beside the bed and took hold of her sister’s hand. “You don’t know how relieved I am to see you getting some color back in your face. I was so frightened.”

“I’m just glad no one else got sick.” Emily shook her head. “I never would have forgiven myself if the children or you and Tucker had fallen ill because of me.”

Maggie squeezed the fingers within hers and took a breath. “Emily, dear, I think it’s time you told me what happened while you were with the Blakes.”

Emily lowered her eyes, remaining silent.

“All right. Let me tell you what I know.” Maggie released Emily’s hand. “You are in love with Mr. Blake, and you’ve been in love with him for some time. Perhaps too long?”

Color brightened her sister’s cheeks.

“I thought as much.” Maggie wanted to take her sister in her arms, to hold and comfort her as she had done countless times through the years. “Tell me.”

When Emily finally looked up, there were tears in her eyes. “I didn’t mean to fall in love with him, Maggie. I don’t even know why it happened. He was so disagreeable to me from the start. He thought I was some silly spoiled girl who wouldn’t be able to handle the work. But I proved him wrong.” A sad smile lifted the corners of her mouth, then disappeared as quickly as it had come. “I tried to leave when I realized what I felt for him. I knew it was wrong to have such feelings for a married man. Dru was my friend, and I didn’t want to betray her, not even in my thoughts. But she wouldn’t let me go. She held me to my promise to stay until spring. Even on her deathbed she made me promise to stay with Gavin and the children until they returned to the basin.”

Maggie reached out and patted the back of Emily’s left hand, wanting to comfort but not wanting to stop the flow of words.

“I wish you could see the Stanley Basin, Maggie. The mountains are so beautiful they take your breath away. When I was there, the aspen and birch trees were already turning gold, but there were still a few wildflowers in bloom. Purple and yellow amid the waving sea of grass. You can’t imagine it. You just can’t. I understood right away why Dru wanted to stay there as long as possible.” Emily stopped to wipe her eyes with the sleeve of her white nightgown. “Oh, Maggie,” she whispered. “I should have come home as soon as we went to Challis. I should have come home. I wish I had.”

Alarm tugged at Maggie’s heart. “Emily, was he . . . did Mr. Blake ever . . . was he inappropriate with you?”

“No.” She shook her head. “But not because I wouldn’t have let him if he’d tried.”

“Emily!”

“It’s true.” She covered her face with her hands. “It’s true. I loved him so.”

Maggie bit her lower lip to keep from saying something she shouldn’t. She was here to listen, not to condemn.

“He kissed me once.” Emily uncovered her face and met Maggie’s gaze again. “Only once.”

“When?”

“More than a month after Dru died.”

Thank heaven for that.
“If you loved Mr. Blake, why did you agree to marry Mr. O’Donnell?”

“I don’t know. It was all so complicated. Gavin didn’t care about me, and Patrick did. Patrick was kind and gentle. And perhaps I felt guilty for loving Gavin while Dru was still alive.” Her voice fell to a whisper. “It felt as if I was glad Dru died. But I wasn’t glad. I loved her. Her and the children.”

“Oh, Emily.”

“Patrick was so good to me after the funeral. To all of us. Gavin pulled away from everyone, even the girls for a brief while, but Patrick was there, helping us in every way he could. I knew he loved me, so I said yes when he proposed. I believed I could learn to love him in time. But that wasn’t fair to him. I made such a mess of things.”

Maggie stood. “I think we’ve talked long enough, dearest. You need to get some sleep.”

Emily continued as if her sister hadn’t spoken. “When Mr. Martin told me what had happened with Gavin’s parents, I understood a little better why he . . . why he’s the way he is. Why he’s so guarded with his heart. But I also realized that I couldn’t marry Patrick. Not feeling the way I do about Gavin. I was hoping, once I broke the engagement, that Gavin would realize he cared for me too.”

Maggie brushed Emily’s hair off her forehead and caressed her cheek. “Get some sleep, dearest.”

There was a world of pain in the pale blue eyes that looked up at Maggie. “He didn’t even let me tell him good-bye. He didn’t let me say good-bye to the children. I wanted him to love me, and I made him despise me instead.”

Maggie wanted to hate Gavin Blake in that moment. How dare he hurt her baby sister so? But hate was never the solution. Besides, if Emily loved him, there must be a great deal about the man that was good.

Thirty-Two

When Gavin reached Boise, he rented a room at the Overland Hotel and paid for a bath and a shave before inquiring about directions to the Branigan ranch. Once on his way, it didn’t take long to get there.

He pulled the gelding to a halt at the end of the long drive that led to the Branigan home. It was a sprawling gray clapboard house, built for a large family, two stories tall with a veranda wrapped around three sides. The house at the Lucky Strike paled in comparison. Familiar doubt surged through him, but he ignored it, nudging the horse with his heels.

He dismounted near the front door and twirled the reins around the hitching post before climbing the steps. On the porch, he paused, removed his hat, and smoothed back his hair. Even after taking the time to clean up, he feared his appearance was still a bit rough. But it couldn’t be helped. He knocked at the door and waited. There was a slight commotion from the other side of the door before it was yanked open. Two boys, approximately the same ages as Sabrina and Petula, looked up at him.

“Hello. I’m here to see Emily Harris. Is she in?”

“Who’re you?” the youngest of the two asked.

Before he could reply, he heard another voice, this one feminine. “Colin. Sheridan. Ask whoever is there to come in. It’s too cold to make them stand outside.”

The door swung wide and he caught a glimpse of emerald skirts on the stairway. A moment later, Maggie Branigan stepped into view. The smile of welcome vanished from her mouth. “Mr. Blake.” Her tone was flat and cool.

“Mrs. Branigan. I’ve come to see Emily.”

“Please come in.” She motioned toward an adjoining room. “Would you like a cup of coffee or tea to warm you?”

“Don’t go to any bother for me.”

The look in her eyes made him feel like something smelly she’d found on the bottom of her shoe. Not that he blamed her.

“Colin, run up to Aunt Emily’s room and tell her she has a visitor. Ask her to join us. Sheridan, go with your brother.” Maggie looked at Gavin again. “Please join me.” Then she led the way into the parlor. “We may have a while to wait. Emily hasn’t been down yet today and isn’t dressed.” She sat on a rose-colored sofa.

Not dressed? At this hour? He settled onto a chair opposite her.

“Emily fell ill with influenza upon our return to Boise.”

“She was ill?” His gaze darted toward the staircase. She’d had influenza at the same time as his daughters. If he hadn’t sent her away, he could have cared for her. What if —

“You needn’t worry, Mr. Blake,” Maggie said, bringing his attention back to her. “She’s recovering nicely. What business brings you to Boise?”

“I came to see Emily.”

“I find that rather strange, Mr. Blake, considering it was you who sent her away.”

There was a greater resemblance between these sisters than he’d thought at first. He recognized the steely resolve in both Maggie Branigan’s words and her posture.

“I made a mistake, Mrs. Branigan. We want her to return.”

“I see.” She rose from the sofa. “It may not be as easy as that, sir.”

“I’ll do whatever it takes.”

“You’ll have to.” She moved toward the doorway. “Excuse me while I see about the tea.”

“Who is it?” Emily asked Colin when he delivered Maggie’s message.

“Don’t know. Never seen him before.”

Him? Oh, she hoped it wasn’t Matthew Foreman. But it couldn’t be Matthew. Colin would recognize him.

It was tempting to send her regrets. She’d felt a terrible lethargy ever since her talk with Maggie last night. She would be very poor company for whoever had come calling. Then again, her sister wouldn’t have sent for her if she didn’t feel Emily should come down.

She donned a simple day dress of yellow linen and tied back her hair at the nape with a ribbon. She scarcely glanced at her reflection in the mirror before leaving the bedroom and descending the stairs.

She was prepared for anyone except for the person she found waiting in the parlor. Could she be seeing things, the way she had when her fever raged? She gave her head a slow shake and closed her eyes. But when she opened them, Gavin was still there. She sank onto the nearest chair at the same moment he rose to his feet.