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  “Georgia,” she answered.

  “And you can’t go back?”

  Elizabeth seemed to balk at the idea. “No, I can’t. I don’t have the means. I used all my money to get here. I also have nothing to go back to.” As she said that last line, she hugged the baby closer to her breasts.

  Tom stared at her, trying to fight the familiarity of this lonely girl, standing in front of him with a baby in her arms. Regret hit him like a rock; he tried to fight the feeling, but it was overwhelming him. “It seems there are only two ways to go about this. You can go and work in the saloon to pay off your debts to Carl.”

  “Saloon?” Elizabeth questioned.

  “Yes, saloon. Carl Gaines owns the saloon in this town.”

  Elizabeth looked puzzled. “He doesn’t own a restaurant?”

  Tom shook his head, annoyed by her lack of knowledge. “No, he doesn’t. Is that what he told you?”

  “Yes,” she whispered. “He said he owned a restaurant. That we would live comfortably. He also said there was a school mistress job for me in town.”

  Tom could only stare at the girl, as she started to piece together her situation. “No, we actually don’t have a school.” At least, not yet, Tom thought. There was talk about it, but there weren’t many children around. He suspected people were waiting for the kids to get a little older before they invested in such a structure.

  He could see the tears building in her eyes. “Oh, how horrible of me. I’m such a fool, not to see it all. I was too happy; I should have known it was too good to be true.”

  Tom didn’t know what to do, as more tears started to fall. He didn’t know how to handle a crying woman. “Hey, it’s not your fault,” he said, going to grab her arm.

  Elizabeth walked out of his grasp. “No, it is my fault. I was too caught up in the thrill of an adventure. I should have known better. I thought I was smarter than this.”

  Tom scratched his head, in bewilderment. Most women would be blaming her circumstances not herself. What a strange woman. Elizabeth abruptly stopped crying, wiping the tears from her eyes. “What would working at the saloon entail?”

  He couldn’t believe she would be considering it. “It wouldn’t be anything that a woman like you would want to do.”

  She gave him a stony look. “I’m able-bodied, I can do manual work. Would it just be cooking and cleaning? I can do that. I used to be a governess.”

  Tom didn’t know what that was, but he knew that it wasn’t applicable to the kind of work Carl was talking about. “I know Carl Gaines, and the type of work he would want you to do, would be none of that. It would be work in the same way that saddled you with that baby.”

  Tom didn’t want to be so frank, but he didn’t know how else to explain her situation. Elizabeth’s eyes went wide, and words seemed to catch in her throat. “It’s also not a place where you could raise your child, even if Carl didn’t make you give her to an orphanage.”

  Elizabeth looked down at the child and back at him. “What is the second option?”

  “Second option?” Tom asked, even though he knew what she was talking about.

  “You said there was another option and I want to know what that is.”

  “You can marry me,” Tom said.

  Chapter 6

  Elizabeth gasped. “Marry you?”

  “Yes,” Tom continued, walking to Elizabeth so they were only a breath apart. “Marry me today, and I can give you protection. I will pay off the debt you owe Carl and I will take you back to my farm.”

  “And what are the strings? What do you expect from me?”

  “There are no strings; I only ask that you help around the farm as you can, maybe even cook a few meals.” Tom hadn’t thought about it much further than that. He was acting on impulse.

  “But why do you want to help me?” she asked, confusion etched on her face.

  “Because you remind me of someone, someone I couldn’t help.” Tom could see Elizabeth was about to ask more questions, but he wasn’t ready to explain himself, especially to this stranger. “You won’t have to worry about me expecting any intimacy. It will be in name only; love would have nothing to do with it. I promise I won’t fall in love with you and you won’t fall in love with me. It will be a marriage of convenience.”

  “I still don’t understand what you benefit from this arrangement. Is there something I am not aware of?”

  Tom sighed. “Let’s just say, I’m a man of many women. And having a wife will allow those around me, who are forcing me to consider marriage to settle down, seeing I will have a wife now.”

  He could see it in her face, she wasn’t impressed by his words. “This will be a loveless marriage? And you will still seek outside for companionship?”

  Tom let out a frustrated breath. “I’m offering you a way out. I can promise that my actions will not bring embarrassment to you. Just know, I don’t expect anything from you in that way. You will be my wife in all other ways, and I will go home to you. I will be faithful as long as we are together, but I can’t promise to love you, and I don’t want you to think that it will happen, if you are looking for that. For me, love isn’t possible.”

  Elizabeth seemed to think this over, dwelling on her thoughts for a few minutes. He could tell she was struggling with the decision. But he knew it was the best for her.

  Letting out an exasperated breath, she looked into his eyes and said, “Yes.”

  Tom let out a sigh of relief. Though he was happy she saw it his way, he couldn’t help but question the hurt he could see in her eyes.

  Gazing down at Madeline on her lap, Elizabeth could not believe her luck. Or rather, her lack of luck. How she had envisioned her life, only a few hours ago, was nothing like the life before her now. Sitting outside the church where she would be making vows to a man she had never met before, she thought back to the moment at the train station. Carl was nothing like she had imagined, and yet she was ready to forgive his lack of detail in his appearance. Maybe she had misread his letters? She could look past the way he looked, but the way he acted was not something Elizabeth could easily forget.

  When he slapped her, she didn’t know what to do at first. She wanted to hit him back, so hard he could see stars, but she knew such an act would not be wise, especially if she was going to have to figure out how to get out of this mess. The wheels kept turning in her head. She knew she would have enough money to pay him off, but the money would come in weeks, not days and she only had a minuscule amount of money in her bag. She cursed herself for not having the foresight to bring more with her. In fact, when she had gone to the bank to make the arrangements, the old banker, who had kept her and her aunt’s account for years, questioned why she wasn’t retrieving more. She smiled at the man, thankful for his concern, but brushed off his worry. Why would she need any more money? She was going to be married soon and her husband would be taking care of her.

  How foolish she was. She should have known that there wasn't a man anywhere with dignity and respect. What had made her think she could find someone out here like that? Madeline cooed in her lap and Elizabeth reached over and tickled her chin. She thought about the man who had saved her; he might possibly be her guardian angel. That was, until he spoke to her. His tone of voice was sarcastic and rough, and the way he looked at her, like she was a dumb girl, was disheartening. It annoyed her; she was not a dumb girl. Yes, she did get herself into this predicament. Yes, she didn’t really know Carl was going to act the way he did. But that didn’t give him a reason to act the way he did towards her. She was a respectable woman with a respectable pedigree, and he needed to act accordingly towards her.

  A shadow appeared over her and she looked around to see Tom standing behind her. As much as she wanted to be mad at the situation, she couldn’t help but sit in awe of him. The man was more handsome than all the men she had ever come in contact with in her twenty-two years of life. He was tall, with broad shoulders and muscular arms. Brown scruff covered most of his angular ja
w and his brown hair curled under his hat. But it was his piercing blue eyes that stole her breath. They looked like the ocean; Elizabeth had only been to the ocean once with her parents, when she was seven and they were still alive. It was one of the greatest days of her life. Looking into his eyes she recalled all the joy she felt; the way the wind blew through her hair, the sand between her toes. The memory was so vivid, she lost her words, until Tom clapped his hands together, breaking her out of her trance.

  “Elizabeth? What are you staring at?” he asked, annoyance edging into his voice.

  “Nothing of importance,” she sighed, as Madeline gurgled. She brushed the baby’s hair back, tucking it under the blanket encompassing the small form. “Is the pastor ready?”

  “Yes,” Tom said, as he held out his hand for Elizabeth to grab. She looked at it oddly, before taking it and standing up. They had walked to the church; it was less than a quarter mile from the town. It sat on top of the hill, quaint and serene. If Elizabeth had envisioned her wedding prior, she thought to herself this church would be in that dream. It was simple, and she liked simple. But the emotions fighting in her were not simple. “He said he would do the short ceremony, nothing too extravagant and then we will be on our way.”

  “And what way would that be?” Elizabeth asked. She was weary of her companion; she didn’t know if she could trust him or not. She thought it was highly suspicious he would run to her rescue like that. He didn’t seem like a man who was looking for a mail order bride; in fact, he didn't look like a man who was looking for any sort of wife. He seemed more like the type of man who would have multiple women in his bed. Anne had always told her to be cautious around this type; men who took many woman lovers and seemed to not care if anyone knew. Elizabeth had never told her aunt, but in a way, she always admired men like that. Not because of what they were doing; but because they were so open and fearless about it. They didn’t seem to care who knew and what the repercussions of such behavior would be. It was the men who slinked in the shadows, putting on a shadow of good behavior you had to worry about.

  Tom scratched his forehead, his brow furrowing. “My house,” he said. “It’s where you will live now.”

  “Oh,” was all she said.

  Tom looked at her and scratched his head. “It’s a nice farm, not too big but not too small. I actually live there with my best friend and his wife. I’m sure you are going to love it there, if you give it a chance.”

  As she followed him up to the church where she was about start her new life, she thought about what he had said. She needed to give this new life a chance, and she vowed to live it to the best of her abilities.

  Once Tom showed Elizabeth back to his room at the hotel and made sure she and Madeline were settled in, he made his way back to the saloon. He reached in his pocket, his hands scraping on the bills. There was a pit in his stomach he kept wishing away. His mind went back and forth about what that money would mean for the farm, how many cattle he could buy. He couldn’t help but think he was making a horrible decision. But then he let his mind travel, for a few moments, to that dark place and he saw her eyes. It was the resolve he needed.

  He entered the saloon, looking around the room. Various men were lounging around, drinking and laughing. He could see a poker game being played in the corner. Usually this scene would calm him; all it was doing now was angering him. He couldn’t even think why. Maybe it was the girl who was now his wife? He tucked that thought to the back of his mind. He still couldn’t believe he was married.

  He looked towards the long counter, finding Carl at the end of it. He was sporting a black eye, the bruise glowing under the low light. A snarl was curling his face, distorting his features, as he was looking at some pieces of paper. Tom had never really thought of Carl as anything but the owner of the saloon. He hadn’t really thought anything of him, just someone who couldn’t be trusted. But now, all he saw was a sniveling weasel.

  He stomped up to Carl and slammed his hands on the counter. Carl startled, taking a few steps back. Even Tom was surprised by the force of his hands, as movement around the saloon stopped. He could feel all eyes on him, as he sternly looked at Carl’s face. He grasped the bills in his pocket, taking them out and slamming them on the counter. “Here, your fifty dollars. Considered the debt paid.”

  Carl looked at the money on the counter and looked back at Tom, his lips curling in a sneer. “Your money isn’t good here.”

  Tom leaned over, pushing the money to Carl. “You are going to take this money and you are going to stay away from her.”

  Carl took the money. For a minute, Tom felt relief. But the feeling was short lived. Carl threw the money back at Tom, the paper money scattering on the floor. “You think this would be enough? Even as damaged goods, she was still worth more than what you are giving me.”

  Tom could feel his blood boiling. “What are you referring to?”

  Carl scoffed, laughter filling in the void of the room. “Don’t act all high and mighty Barrett. I know exactly why you decided to help her. She’s nice to look at, maybe even nice to get under you…”

  As quickly as he had said it, Tom lunged forward, stretching his fingers to grasp at Carl’s collar. All he could see was red and all he wanted to do was wipe that look of arrogance off of Carl’s face. But he didn't get too far until he was pulled back. Arms were restraining him, pulling him away from the counter. He looked back to see two burly men were holding his arms. He recognized them as men he had seen frequently in the bar, but never paid much attention to.

  Tom snapped his arms back and the men let him go. “You won’t speak about her like that. She is my wife. It’s over, and you won’t go near her again.”

  Carl smiled devilishly at Tom. “You don’t know what you are doing Barrett. You don’t know what you have gotten yourself into.” He looked over at the two men and cocked his head to the side. “And you’ll do best to remember your place. Now get the hell out of my saloon and don’t come back.”

  “Gladly,” Tom said, as he pushed past all the men and exited the building. As he heard the saloon go back to the usual sound, he tried to calm down his racing pulse. All he wanted to do was go back in and bash Carl’s head in. He had never felt anger like that before. So he tried to close his eyes and count to ten. Elizabeth’s face came into his head and before he knew it, he was calming his breathing.

  Everything that happened today seemed to hit him at that moment, like a weight dragging his shoulders. All he wanted to do was slip into bed and forget this entire day ever happened.

  After all the commotion, Carl watched as the patrons of his saloon settled back into their usual movements, as if the last few minutes hadn’t happened. Carl looked at the papers before him and scowled. He had plans for Elizabeth and now it was all gone to hell. He hadn’t expected her to have a child on her; he thought back to all those letters they had exchanged, and not once could he remember a time when she had mentioned she was with child. From the baby’s appearance, it couldn’t be any older than a few months. It means she must have been pregnant while they were corresponding.

  That just made Carl even angrier. What could he do with a child? That wasn’t a part of the plan. He looked down at all his correspondents. Another girl was coming in a weeks’ time; he couldn’t have loose ends running around at a time like this. They would be coming in a few days, expecting the girl and he didn’t have her in his possession. What was he going to say? They had already paid him handsomely.

  He couldn’t concentrate on anything, as his mind was going through a thousand thoughts. A patron came up to the end of the counter and motioned for his attention. He stared at the letters before him and tucked them under the counter. As he walked over to get the man’s order, he thought to himself: he needed to think of something and fast.

  Chapter 7

  Elizabeth couldn’t sleep. She was sitting on the bed, as Madeline laid sleeping soundly next to her in her small basket. Her mind was reeling, playing back the events of the
day. Once she settled Madeline to sleep, she tossed and turned in the bed for what felt like hours, until she couldn’t take it anymore. She sat up in the bed, looking around the room. Tom had left her at the hotel that night, saying he had things he needed to take care of and that she needn’t wait up.

  She wondered what her new husband was up to; she didn’t know if she had the right to ask. She knew nothing about him, and this marriage was a marriage of convenience if nothing else. She knew how she was benefiting from it; but she wondered what he was. Would he expect something in return? Would one of those expectations involve giving herself to him? He thought Madeline was her child. Therefore, he thought she was experienced, at least enough to get pregnant.

  Elizabeth felt her breath hitch and her stomach swirl. The anxiety of the act was starting to make her palms sweat. She knew that this would be a duty of a wife, and she had mentally prepared herself for the act. At least, she thought she did. Back when she thought she was marrying Carl. But now it was different, and the feeling of inadequacy was dogging her. Her feelings in the moment made her realize she had never really thought about it as she should have. Was Tom just going to take her without asking her? Now she was scared.

  When the door opened, she jumped up. She felt hands at her arms and a quiet whisper. “Shh, it’s me,” said a voice close to her ear. She opened her eyes and looked up into Tom’s face. A calmness fell over her, and she stared into his intense blue eyes. “I’m sorry I scared you. I didn’t think you would be up.”

  Elizabeth settled back on the bed. “I couldn’t sleep.” She looked over at Tom, looking at the sweat he was wiping from his forehead and his rapid breath. “Are you alright?”

  Tom took off his hat and wiped his forehead. “It’s nothing. But I can tell you that your debt has been settled.”