Undaunted Love (PART ONE): Banished Saga, Book 3 (29 page)

“What?” Colin gasped.

“Idiots!” Gabriel roared as he rose to pace a few steps. He spun to face me, studying me for a few moments, crouching down in front of me. He took my clenched hands into his, gently massaging them until they relaxed. “Why didn’t you tell me all of what they said, darling?”

I shrugged by way of response.

“The only one who need feel shame is Cameron. He is the one who grossly abused you. The only emotion you should feel is pride. Pride that you had the courage to live the life you wanted.” He waited a few moments for me to again meet his eyes. He nodded before leaning forward to kiss me along the side of my head, whispering into my ear, “And you know that neither of us was disappointed on our wedding night.” His husky, soft voice was like a caress.

“What am I to do? I can’t address their horrible gossiping. Because, no matter what anyone says, it’s true.” I glanced around the room, hoping for guidance from all present.

“Bull,” Colin snapped, “the essence may be the same, but it still smells like pure Cameron manure.” He looked toward Amelia, smiling apologetically for his plain speaking. “Anyone who would believe him over you is an idiot.”

“Which we know the two sisters are,” Amelia said.

“The problem is, everyone in town enjoys listening to them,” I said.

“What you must do, Rissa, is put it around that you wish to focus on Gabriel and your marriage. That you prefer now to provide a good home for him and that you no longer have time to work at the depository. Not the other way around,” Amelia said.

“How would I do that?” I asked.

“Let’s visit the seamstress tomorrow. If there is one person, other than those vile sisters, who can gossip, it’s her. And then we’ll visit a few stores and ensure we are talking about the same. Soon all will know it was your decision.”

“A sound plan, Amelia. And have the seamstress work extra hard to have Clarissa’s fall and winter dresses finished quickly,” Gabriel said. “I want there to be no doubt of my tremendous pride and good fortune to have married Clarissa.”

CHAPTER 26

“HOW ARE THINGS at the mill, Seb?” Gabriel asked.

I sat next to him in Sebastian’s living room in his house near the mill. Curtains hung to either side of the front windows, a gentle light entering during the early fall evening. A fire in a brick fireplace against the far wall smoldered, battling the chill of an early October night, while bookcases lined the other cream-colored wall beside the entrance to the room. A large opening led into the dining room with an adjoining door visible to the kitchen. Mismatched, comfortable furniture filled the room.

Seb sighed and stretched his long legs in front of him in the rocking chair Gabriel had built him. “Fine, if you don’t count that idiot who pursued you west.” Sebastian nodded toward me. “He’s not one to follow orders. Thinks he should already be runnin’ the place. Nearly got Jimmy’s arm lopped off last week being such a fool.”

I grimaced, and Amelia murmured her distress. Sebastian gave a chagrined look in our direction for his blunt talk.

“What can you do, Sebastian?” I asked. “It seems that the wedding is to occur the week before Thanksgiving. Mrs. Bouchard talks about how he’s such a bright young man and soon he’ll take over the running of the mill.”

“You know she’s full of hot air,” Gabriel said.

“And a whole lot else,” Ronan said with a snicker. I giggled.

“Unfortunately Mr. Bouchard has agreed with his wife’s plan. He wants Cameron to learn the running of the mill and to take it over for him. Seems to have forgotten how long it took him, or any of the rest of us, to learn things. Doesn’t seem to believe that Cameron should have to work all the jobs, like the rest of us, to fully appreciate how a mill runs.”

“And that can be dangerous,” Colin said. “I’d hate for someone to come into a forge who hadn’t any idea what was going on. And that’s a much less complicated place than a sawmill.”

Sebastian nodded his agreement.

Amelia rolled her eyes. “If you could have heard Mrs. Bouchard today at Allenstein’s when I was buying groceries. Never came up for breath, singing his praises. How lucky they were to have gotten such a fine, upstanding gentleman interested in their daughter.”

“As I told Mrs. Bouchard once, I hope she never has to suffer as much of his regard as I did,” I said, unable to hide the bitterness from my tone.

Gabriel reached over and clasped my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

“She’ll never have the sense to understand what you meant,” Amelia said.

“Other than the man from the East, things are going well. We’ve never had so much business.” Sebastian stifled a yawn as he shifted on his chair. “At times it’s hard to keep up with the orders. I often work late in the office, just to keep up with the paperwork.”

“That’s a good problem to have,” Colin said. “It’s always better to be too busy rather than worrying if there’ll be enough to cover your next paycheck.”

“I agree,” Sebastian said as he rose and moved toward a corner of his living room. He added wood to the fire, causing it to roar to life. I saw his violin case in the corner, but he didn’t move to open it.

“How are things for you, Clarissa?” Sebastian asked.

I shrugged. “I’ve dedicated myself to becoming a better cook.” I pinned Ronan with a severe glare as he choked on his coffee. “And I’ve cooked a few meals.”

“I would even venture to call them delicious,” Gabriel teased with a wink. “Although Rissa has a long way to go to match one of your pies, Amelia.”

“Wonderful, Rissa!” Amelia clapped her hands together with joy. “I knew you just needed time to focus. What do you do when you aren’t cooking or cleaning? I haven’t seen as much of you as I thought I would in the month since you stopped working at the depository.” Amelia pulled little Anne onto her lap and snuggled her as she began to fuss before falling asleep.

“As I had walked all over town talking about my wish to be at home, I thought I should remain there.” I shrugged as I thought about my days. “I write a lot of letters. I’m trying to improve my knitting.” I speared Colin with a fierce scowl as he guffawed.

“Do you think those shopkeepers believed your tale of a desire to become more domestic?” Amelia asked.

“I don’t think they did in the beginning. But now that they see how happy Gabriel and I are, I think they’ve begun to.”

Sebastian grunted. “Well, the only talk I hear about the two of you is how you’ve reconciled. Seems the townsfolk think you’re boring now, not worth gossiping about. More interested in the upcoming nuptials and what outlandish outfit Mrs. Bouchard will wear.”

“Her poor daughter,” Colin said. “I’ve never met her, but can you imagine having a mother like that?”

“I bet she’s just like her mother,” Amelia said.

“Well, then I’ll be interested to see her dress too,” I said with a giggle.

“Any word from Uncle Aidan?” Ronan asked Gabriel.

“Yes, I received a letter today informing me that his business is keeping him much busier than usual for this time of year, and he doesn’t know when he’ll return.”

“Thus we don’t have to worry about being forced out of his house just yet,” Colin said.

“In any case, I’m glad you all came to my house. It’s nice to have some company here for a change,” Sebastian said. We nodded our agreement, prepared to listen to music.

When Sebastian reached for his violin, I curled into Gabriel’s side. We all settled into our seats as Sebastian tuned the violin. Rather than the riotous sing-along songs we’d become accustomed to, he played a melodious, moody song. I blinked away tears at the plaintive longing I heard and leaned more into Gabriel, kissing him on the cheek. He tilted his head, resting it on top of mine.

I saw Sebastian stare at Amelia intently when he finished playing, before he switched tempo and played an upbeat song. After a few moments, Colin and Ronan began to sing along. I watched as Amelia swiped at a tear, hugging Anne to her.

“Give them time, Rissa,” Gabriel whispered in my ear before his harmonious baritone joined in.

***

I SAT UPSTAIRS, staring at a blank sheet of paper, Sebastian’s violin music from last night playing through my mind. I hummed the first song he had played but couldn’t remember the exact tune. I gave up trying to remember, raising the lid of the small music box Gabriel had given me for my birthday. It played “Fur Elise,” a song he knew I liked and one that would remind me of Boston and Lucas.

I focused on the music until I heard a shout coming from the workshop. When I heard a second one, I dropped the lid to the music box, abruptly cutting off the lilting music, rose and crept down the stairs. Ronan leaned over at his waist, his shoulders jerking. At first I worried he was crying, until I realized he was laughing. Gabriel was swiping tears from his eyes and shaking his head.

I sat on the stairs, hoping to remain unseen.

“An’ there I was, Sonny,” Mr. Pickens said, “naked as a jaybird, sittin’ in a tree, with an irate moose tryin’ to get at me with his huge antlers. They say bears are mean. An’ they are. But moose are just as ornery. ’Specially in the fall.”

Ronan lifted his head, his shoulders still shaking. “What did you do?”

“What do you think I did? Froze my tail off, sittin’ in that tree for hours till that beast got tired of pacin’. Probably smelled some nice female and took off. I scampered down out of that tree, bleedin’ from the scrapes from the pine bark in my nether regions. Never did get in those warm springs. Decided I’d better hightail it home while I still had a chance.”

I saw him swinging his cane around as he continued to speak. “My clothes were scattered all over the clearin’. Damn animal thought it was fun to paw and play with ’em as I sat as naked as the day I was born on a tree limb that seemed less sturdy the longer I sat on it.”

I heard Gabriel hoot, and I leaned over to see him watching Mr. Pickens with rapt fascination.

“Took me an hour to collect my clothes and still had to make do with only one sock. An’ my Bessie, do you think I got any sympathy from her? No sirree. She laughed as hard as Sonny here. Only wished she’d been there to see me jump near out of my skin and scamper up a tree. Did no end of teasin’ as she tended my scrapes and bruises.” He thumped his cane down, and I heard his whistling exhalation of a laugh.

“Ah, those were the days. Not many folk here, wild lands to be explored. Animals everywhere.” Mr. Pickens’s voice was filled with nostalgia.

“I’d think it’s pretty much the same now,” Gabriel said. I heard him begin to sand wood from the far side of the room.

“Oh, no. Missoula’s gettin’ too big. You mind me, Sonny. Soon we’ll have more people ’n we know what to do with.” He sighed. “But it’s still a glorious place for you young’uns to explore. Don’t you agree, Missy?”

I gasped at having been caught before giggling and peering around the corner to smile at all of them. “Interesting story, Mr. A.J.,” I said.

“Glad you didn’t hear the first part of it,” he said with a chagrined smile to Gabriel and Ronan. Ronan snickered.

“Have you heard the news, Missy?” Mr. Pickens asked. “We’re allowed back to the depository. Seems they can’t do without us.”

I rose and moved toward him. “Really?” I paused, battling any excitement I felt. “Why should I return simply because they want me to?”

“There’s the Missy I know,” Mr. Pickens said with pride. “Give ’em hell, Missy. I told ’em we wouldn’t work for their misterly pay but needed a decent raise.”

“
Miserly
,” I said as Gabriel shook his head in amusement and mouthed the word as I spoke it. “Did they agree?”

“Well, seein’ as they’ve lost track of a good portion of the books that used to be a part of the so-called library”—he thunked down his cane—“it’s why anyone with sense’d call the place a depository, they didn’t have much choice.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful!” I said as I spun with glee, tripping on my long skirts and landing on a heap on the floor. Gabriel hauled me up, dusted me off and helped me to a chair near Mr. Pickens.

“Before you two get excited about returning to your old ways,” Gabriel said with a mock-serious stare, “I want time away with my wife.”

“Oh, finally takin’ my advice, are you, carpenter?” He wriggled his brows up and down as he winked at me. “Finally goin’ to have some canoodlin’ time.”

“I’d thank you to speak respectfully about my wife,” Gabriel said.

“Ain’t nothin’ disrespectful about a man wantin’ to have some time with his wife. Seems the most respectful thing a man could want,” Mr. A.J. said in protest. “Why, my Bessie—”

“Old man, don’t even start,” Ronan said.

I studied Ronan, not having seen him this content since I had met him. “Mr. A.J., tell us about Hamilton.”

“Oh, so your young man is finally taking you to see the Bitter Roots.” He sighed as he closed his eyes for a moment. “I know some will argue there be prettier mountains, but I ain’t seen ’em. Course, with the time of year and the planned activities, you won’t have time to go into the mountains.”

“Why would I want to go into the mountains?” I asked.

“To truly be alone, Missy,” Mr. A.J. said. “To smell clean air. Nothin’ like a pine forest to soothe the nerves and make the world seem right again.” He nodded and had a distant look in his eyes. “Why, my Bessie ’n’ me’d go into the woods as often as we could. And it wasn’t often enough. But late fall ain’t the time.”