The Traveling Kind (14 page)

“Would you like another slice?” she offered.

“No thanks, my supper is already spoiled,” he refused. “Speaking of which, it’s time I was getting back to my place.” He stood up, hitching his trousers higher around his middle. “Ray will be over first thing in the morning.”

As he turned to leave Charley came to a decision and stood up. “Chuck?” She waited until he glanced at her. “There’s a dance next week in town. I wondered if you would like to take me.”

“I—” He stared at her for a stunned instant, not quite certain he had heard her correctly. “I’d like that fine, Charley.”

“Good,” she said with a decisive nod. “I’ll be ready around seven.”

“I’ll pick you up then,” He was smiling as he pushed his hat onto his head and walked into the living room to the front door.

When she heard the door slam and his footsteps on the porch, Charley turned back to the table. Gary was staring at her with a dumbfounded expression. He shook his head as if trying to understand it all and rid himself of the confusion.

“Charley, are you all right?” he asked, combing his fingers through his hair. “What am I saying? You’re not all right. That’s obvious.”

“Why?” She looked at him calmly, a calmness born of a new purpose.

“I don’t understand you. You’re not making sense,” her brother declared. “Not an hour ago, you were crying your eyes out over Shad, shattered by a broken heart. I just heard you asking another man to take you out. What’s going on?”

“I told Shad I wouldn’t wait for him and I meant it,” she replied.

“Oh, Charley,” he moaned in dismay. “You don’t know what you’re doing.”

“Yes I do,” she insisted and started to clear the table.

“No, you don’t. You’re making a big mistake,” he warned.

“No, I’m not.” She set the stack of dishes down. “The way I see it I have two choices. I can either grow old and lonely waiting for Shad to come back, which he never will, or I can marry someone else and have a home and a family.”

“You aren’t serious?” Gary stared at her. “Are you saying that you are going to marry Chuck?”

“Why not?” Her hands were on her hips in mute challenge. “He’s a good man, solid and dependable. You’ve said so. Shad even said he would make a wonderful husband for me. He couldn’t have a higher recommendation than that, could he?” There was a trace of sarcasm and bitterness in her voice.

“That is no reason to marry a man.” Gary shook his head at her reasoning.

“Listen, Gary—” her chin quivered slightly “—chances are I’m never going to love anybody the way I did Shad again. So I might as well marry someone I like and respect. Chuck might not win any prizes, but he is nice.”

“Okay, maybe there is some logic in what you say,” he conceded. “But don’t rush into anything on the rebound, Charley. Don’t marry him for spite. Promise me.”

“I promise,” she agreed.

Chapter Eight

FOR THE NEXT two months, Charley managed to stay busy. There was a lot of work to be done on the ranch that occupied her time even though Gary had fully recovered from his broken leg. She continued to see Chuck on her free time, more frequently than she ever had before.

On the outside she appeared cheerful and fun- loving. But it was only on the outside. She worked a lot, played a lot and laughed a lot- trying not to feel the enormous emptiness inside. Where her heart had been, there seemed to be one big hollow ache. It throbbed through her with a never ending rhythm.

She never stopped thinking about Shad or remembering. Every time a vehicle pulled into the ranch yard she held her breath, hoping even when she knew it was useless. There was even a vague expectancy when she looked through the mail but she never heard from him—not a word.

Sometimes Charley would gaze at the ragged line of the Sawtooth Mountains and wonder where he was and what he was seeing. She would close her eyes and picture him as clearly as if he was standing in front of her—his thick and vital crow-black hair, his bold blue eyes always glinting with lively interest and his lean, handsome features. A tear would slide down her cheek, leaving a hot trail to remind her the pain of losing him hadn’t eased.

Charley wiped another tear from her cheek and turned away from the mirror. With a determined effort she shook away the hurt and fixed a smile on her mouth. Her shoulders were straight and square and her step was light as she walked out of her bedroom into the upstairs hall. She made it a point not to glance at the spare room to the right of the stairs, passing it to descend them.

Gary was entering the house by the front door when she emerged from the stairwell. He paused at the sight of her all dressed up, his glance warm with brotherly appreciation for the results.

“Do you like my new dress?” She did a slow pirouette to show it off. The plum skirt flared, then swirled against her legs when she stopped. “I splurged the other day and bought it. This is the ‘in’ color now. Next year no one will probably be caught dead wearing it but I couldn’t resist it.”

“It’s beautiful,” he assured her.

“I thought so.” Charley glanced down to check the fit and smoothed her hand over the waistline, enjoying the feel of the velour fabric. “Do you think Shad will like it?”

“Shad?” Her brother’s voice came back low and sadly questioning.

Her head jerked up as she realized what she had said, her pretense shattering for an instant before she recovered.

“That was a slip of the tongue,” she insisted with forced lightness. “I meant Chuck.”

“It was a slip of the truth,” Gary corrected.

“That’s beside the point.” Charley couldn’t argue with him. “Do you think
Chuck
will like my new dress?”

“Yes,” he agreed dryly. “Chuck is so crazy about you that if you were wearing a sackcloth he would think it was beautiful.”

“This is hardly a sackcloth.” She glanced at her watch. “I’d better get my coat. He’ll be here shortly to pick me up.”

“Where are you going?” Gary watched her walk to the coat closet.

“We’re going to Twin Falls for Sunday dinner and maybe take in a matinee.” She removed her suede coat with its fur collar from the hanger. “There’s a salad in the refrigerator and you can grill yourself a steak.”

“What time will you be home?”

“I don’t know,” she replied, folding the coat over her arm. “It might be late. We have a special occasion to celebrate today.”

“Oh?” Gary lifted an eyebrow and frowned. “What’s that?”

“It isn’t every day that a girl gets herself engaged.” The corners of her mouth were curved upward.

Her brother looked grim. “I suppose Chuck proposed to you again.”

“No.” She shook her head. “As a matter of fact he hasn’t even brought up the subject of marriage these last two months. Usually he would have mentioned it a half dozen times. But if he doesn’t propose to me today, then I’m going to ask him.”

“Charley,” he sighed. “You may be able to kid yourself but you can’t kid me. Shad might be out of your sight, but he hasn’t been out of your mind for a single minute.”

“I won’t deny that, Gary.” She couldn’t because it was true. Drawing a deep breath, she steadily met his gaze. “But if he hasn’t missed me by now, then he never will.”

“Are you being fair to Chuck?” he reasoned. “Don’t you think it’s wrong to marry him when you’re in love with someone else?”

“No, I don’t think it’s wrong—not if Chuck is willing,” Charley replied. “As long as we both go into marriage with our eyes wide open, we can make it.”

“You can make your lives miserable, that’s what you’ll do,” her brother insisted.

“Gary, it is
our
lives and
our
decision,” she reminded him.

“Yes, and I don’t like the idea of standing silently on the sidelines while you ruin it,” he stated grimly. “You are rushing into something you aren’t ready for, Charley. You’re doing it because you’ve been hurt. Stop and think.”

“I have. I’ve thought it all through very carefully. I know what I’m doing even if you don’t think I do.”

A car drove into the yard as Charley finished. She steadied the foolish leap of her heart. “Chuck’s here,” she said and walked over to kiss her brother on the cheek. “I’ll be home tonight sometime.”

A grim resignation kept him silent until she reached the door. “I only want you to be happy, Charley,” her brother said to explain his opposition to her plans.

“I know.” Her mouth twisted in a rueful smile before she pushed open the door and stepped outside to meet Chuck coming up the walk.

“Hi!” She adopted a bright lighthearted air as she paused at the top of the steps. Slipping into her coat, she breathed in the crisp autumn air. “It’s going to be a beautiful day,” Charley declared on a determinedly optimistic note.

The serrated peaks of the mountain range were cloaked with snow, standing out sharply against a turquoise blue sky. On the slopes the dark green of the pine forests ringed the white mountain crests. Stands of aspen groves shimmered gold in the bright sun.

“We’d better enjoy it,” Chuck replied. “Winter won’t be long in coming.”

Charley pulled her gaze away from the mountains that had called to Shad and insisted he come see what was on the other side. As she looked at Chuck his freshly scrubbed appearance reminded her of a little boy all slicked up in his Sunday best. It was strange how Shad seemed so much more a man in her eyes when Chuck was the older of the two. Yet Chuck looked at the mountains and resisted their beauty. His outlook was more practical. Winter was coming and Charley wanted in out of the cold.

“Are you ready?” He paused at the bottom of the steps and studied her closely when she continued to stand on the porch.

After a second’s hesitation she started down the steps. “Yes, I’m ready.” She reached out to take his hand. For a slim second she allowed herself to wonder if she wasn’t selfishly reaching out for the comfort and warmth he offered without considering that she was depriving him of something he needed in return.

It was easy to relax in Chuck’s company even though she made it a point to enjoy herself and act happier than she truly was. They had many mutual friends and mutual interests, incidents to recall and a background they shared in common. With Chuck she was comfortable. He was an old family friend, solid and reliable, someone she could respect and trust. He was also staid and unexciting, able to arouse her affection, but not her passion. But Charley refused to consider any of those things.

Chuck treated her to a big Sunday dinner, a full-course meal complete with soup, salad and entree. When Charley attempted to beg off the dessert, declaring she couldn’t eat another bite, he became insistent.

“Have some ice cream,” he said. “There’s always room for that.” When she shook her head to refuse, he glanced at the waitress. “Bring her a chocolate sundae.”

“Chuck,” she protested, “I’m stuffed, honestly. Besides, do you know how many calories there are in a chocolate sundae? Are you trying to fatten me up for market?”

“That is exactly what I’m doing,” he admitted. He smiled at her, but the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. “You’ve lost weight lately. You could do with some extra pounds.”

What he didn’t mention was why she had lost weight, but it didn’t need to be said. Both of them knew the cause—Shad. Even that veiled reference was enough to make Charley end her protest. The weight loss was one of the reasons she had bought the new dress. Most of her clothes didn’t fit her properly anymore.

“All right, you’ve twisted my arm.” She forced out a laugh and glanced at the waitress. “A chocolate sundae,” she affirmed his order.

As the girl left, Chuck eyed Charley with approval. “You’re finally showing some sense.”

“I don’t know about that,” she returned. “I probably won’t be able to move after eating that.”

After dinner their plans to attend one of the movie matinees fell by the wayside. There was nothing playing at any of the theaters that particularly caught their interest. When Charley suggested that they walk off some of their dinner, Chuck agreed.

Hand in hand they strolled along the business district and gazed into shop windows at the merchandise displayed. They stopped now and then to look and admire and wander on.

Charley pointed at a window. “Would you look at that? Christmas decorations!” she exclaimed in disapproval. “Halloween isn’t even here yet. Christmas is starting earlier every year.”

“Do you mean you haven’t started your Christmas shopping yet?” Chuck teased as they continued on to the next shop.

“No. I’m one of those who waits until the last week, then runs around trying to buy everything at once.” She smiled at herself. “To me, that’s the Christmas spirit.”

The next shop was a jewelry store. In its front window there was a display of wedding rings. Unwillingly Charley paused to look. The thought of exchanging vows with anyone but Shad gave her a chilling attack of cold feet. But she had made her decision earlier, and she wouldn’t retreat from it. The smile on her lips felt brittle when she glanced at Chuck.

“If you are interested in buying something to stuff in my Christmas stocking, one of those rings would be nice,” she prompted him.