A Chance at Love (17 page)

Jake hastened over to give her a hand up. She accepted the help with a tight face. Once she was seated behind the reins, she looked down at Jake. “You're making a big mistake marrying that one, Jake. Hope you can live with your choice.”

His lips tightened beneath the mustache. “I think I can, Rebecca.”

Rebecca snapped the buggy whip angrily over the horse's back and turned the buggy back to the road. Only after it seemed certain that she was gone for good did the twins come out of hiding and show themselves.

Loreli asked, “Are you ladies ready?”

“Now we are,” Dede said cryptically.

Loreli could see the mask Jake had lowered over his features. Did he regret not asking Rebecca to be his wife? Loreli couldn't imagine him viewing the situation that way, but who knew. Maybe he wanted to change his mind. “Regrets?” she asked him.

He turned her way and shook his head. “No. None. I'll see you all when you get back. Girls, be good.”

“We will, Uncle,” Bebe offered reassuringly.

Dede waved. “Bye, Uncle.”

“Bye, De. Have a good time.”

He and Loreli shared a look, then he nodded a good-bye.

The girls hopped in the buggy and Loreli headed toward town. On the way, the girls sang: “The Flying Trapeze,” “Oh, Susannah,” and “Listen to the Mockingbird.” Their little voices warmed Loreli's heart and soul.

Loreli drove to the boardinghouse and parked the rig
out front. Loreli let Bebe tie the leads to the post to keep the horse from wandering away, then all three ladies skipped up the walk to the house.

They were met at the door by the landlady, Mrs. Boyd. She stepped outside and stood in front of the entrance like a guard. “I see you've finally come back,” the old woman declared frigidly.

Loreli replied warily, “Yes, I have. May the girls and I go in?”

“No.”

“No?”

“No. I don't want your kind here.”

Loreli surveyed the woman for a moment, then turned and said quietly to the twins, “Girls, how about you wait for me in the buggy? Okay?”

Eyeing Mrs. Boyd, they nodded and went back down the walk. Once Loreli saw that they'd climbed aboard, she directed her attention to the cross-armed Mrs. Boyd and asked tartly, “Now, you were saying?”

“I said, I don't want your kind here. Our colony was nice and calm until you wagon-train hussies came to town. Taking our men—”

Loreli chuckled, but there was no humor in her eyes. “Mrs. Boyd, because I was raised to be respectful of my elders, I'm going to ignore you. If you want me out, just say so, and I'll move my things someplace else.”

“I want you out, and there ain't another place in town that'll take the likes of you. I already made certain of that!”

Loreli's lips tightened. She was determined to remain calm; the girls were watching. “Then let me retrieve my belongings and I'll be out of your hair.”

The old bat stepped aside. “Ten minutes.”

Loreli was so angry that she didn't even look at the woman as she entered.

Upstairs, a muttering Loreli packed her things. She was furious but not surprised by Mrs. Boyd's actions mainly because it was just the kind of reaction Loreli had been expecting once word got around about her upcoming marriage. The next few weeks were going to be challenging, she conceded, and before it was over more than a little fur was going to fly around here. She and the brides had driven cross-country in a wagon train, endured heat, axle breakings, and swarms of biting insects. No one was going to be intimidated by a bunch of old bats bent on making life hell.

Loreli walked over to the armoire and took down her small cache of gowns. Having been thrown out of places before, she rarely removed all of her belongings from her trunks when she was on the road. Being able to beat a hasty retreat was necessary at times, so she'd learned to fill her trunks quickly. Today, though, she took her time. She didn't give a flying fig about the landlady or her ultimatums, but Loreli did keep in mind the twins waiting outside.

After making two trips back and forth, Loreli managed to get all of her trunks and hatboxes in the buggy. The girls were squeezed in tightly but didn't complain.

As Loreli took her seat behind the reins, Dede asked, “Are you coming to live with us now?”

“Looks that way, pumpkin.”

“Why is Mrs. Boyd so mad at you, Loreli?”

“Mrs. Boyd wanted Uncle to marry Rebecca too, didn't she Loreli?” Bebe answered.

“You may be right, Be, but she's not only mad at me—she's mad at all of my friends for coming here.”

“Why?”

“Some people don't like strangers.”

“But your friends came to be mamas,” Bebe protested. “Mamas aren't strangers.”

Loreli smiled softly at Bebe's innocent logic. “Maybe someone should tell Mrs. Boyd that.”

B
y the time Loreli and the girls returned it was late afternoon. Jake met them on the porch, and was surprised by all the items crammed into the buggy. “Welcome back. What's all that?” he asked.

“My things,” Loreli explained as she and the girls stepped down to the ground. Loreli pulled off her gloves.

“What things?”

“My belongings. Mrs. Boyd no longer wanted me as a boarder, so I've decided to move in. All this going back and forth to town is making me dizzy anyway.”

Jake was puzzled. “What do you mean she didn't want you as a boarder?”

“She asked that I leave.”

He stared.

Loreli told him, “I don't know why you look so surprised. This is only the beginning, I'm sure.”

Bebe asked, “Beginning of what?”

“A bunch of adults acting like children, that's all,” Loreli told her.

“Oh,” Bebe replied, then she asked her uncle, “aren't you glad Loreli's going to live with us?”

Loreli waited.

Jake met her eyes. With the girls staring at him so expectantly, he knew a negative answer wouldn't sit well. “Yes, I am.”

Loreli noted his hesitancy, but kept that to herself.

“Can Bebe and I help take in your things?” Dede asked Loreli.

“Sure. Grab some of the hatboxes, and I'll get the trunks.”

Jake came off the porch. “I'll help too.”

So for the next few minutes, Loreli's belongings were moved from the buggy to the house. Initially everything was placed in the sparsely furnished parlor.

Dede asked her uncle, “Is Loreli going to move upstairs into grandpa's room?”

Jake's lips tightened beneath his mustache.

Loreli remembered one of the girls mentioning that their grandfather lived in the attic room before he died. Ignoring what appeared to be the beginnings of a protest by Reed, she told the twins, “Let's see if it'll do.”

They led her to the door, and Dede said, “It's always locked, Loreli. Uncle has the key.”

Loreli turned to ask Jake for the key, but found him right behind her. His face was grim. He put the key in, turned it, and the door opened on a stairway filled with cobwebs and dust. It was quite apparent no one had been up the stairs in a long time. Wiping away the cobwebs, Loreli and the girls climbed up and into a shadowy, nearly
airless room. Loreli swept away more of the cobwebs guarding the entrance and looked around. She sensed Jake behind her. “This was your father's room?”

“Yes.”

It was difficult to see the room's true dimensions due to the boarded-up windows, but it appeared to be more than large enough for Loreli to turn it into her own. The ceiling sloped in response to the house's roof, yet was high enough to accommodate Jake's height, so there was no danger of Loreli hitting her head. “I'll take it,” she declared.

Even though there was little light to see by, Loreli had no problems seeing Jake's terse face.

“The roof leaks,” he told her.

“We'll get it fixed.”

“It's probably infested with insects.”

“We'll clean them out.” Loreli observed him for a moment. “If there's a reason I shouldn't move up here, you should tell me.”

He shook his head. “There's no reason.”

Loreli sensed he wasn't telling her the truth, but she didn't press. “Then as soon as we find a roofer, I'll start cleaning this place up. How long has it been closed up?”

“Since my father died.”

“Do you know someone we could hire to fix the roof?”

“I can do it.”

“Are you certain?”

“Yes. I just need to buy new shingles.”

“Okay, then our first order of business will be to get the roof repaired and take down the wood on the windows so we can let in some light and see what else needs doing.”

Now that the room had been given a bit of air through the door, the mildew could be smelled.

“It stinks in here,” Bebe said.

Loreli smiled. “Yes it does, but we'll fix that too.”

So after giving the dark place one more glance around, they all trooped back downstairs. The girls went out to play, leaving Loreli and Jake alone in the parlor.

“How badly does the roof leak?” Loreli asked him.

“Enough to soak the floor when it rains.”

The mask had fallen over his features again, letting her know something was bothering him, but she knew he'd not reveal his feelings willingly. Deciding to let him wrestle with his demons alone, Loreli stated, “Well, I still haven't had a chance to wash up, so is it okay if I use your room to take a bath?” She was still dressed in the muddy clothes she'd had on yesterday. Her plan to clean herself up while in town this morning had been ambushed by Mrs. Boyd's eviction.

“Sure, I'll get some water heating.”

“Thanks.” She glanced at him, then asked, “Did you and your father get along well?”

“No.”

And he left her for the kitchen.

The tub he dragged into the room was the same hip tub the girls bathed in. It was only large enough to stand in, and so ancient the white enamel paint had chipped off in some places. Loreli would've given gold for the chance to leisurely loll around in something big enough to sit and stretch out in, but since this was the only tub available, she'd have to make do.

He brought in the first caldron of heated water and poured as much of it into the tub as the vessel would hold.

Loreli had already removed her jacket. “Thanks.”

“You're welcome. Will you need more?”

Loreli walked over to see how much water was left in the caldron. “Nope. This should be enough.”

She began undoing the buttons on her blouse. “I shouldn't be long.”

Jake found himself watching her well-manicured hands freeing her buttons. When she began in on the tiny buttons on her cuffs, he looked back up at her face and found her watching him. Boldly holding his eyes, she eased the tail of the blouse free from the waistband of her skirt, then removed the blouse and tossed it onto the old chair near his bed.

Jake subconsciously blinked, and blood roared through his veins. Her camisole was lace-edged and feminine and the soft tops of her breasts tempted him so badly his hands ached with the need to stroke her skin. Her hands went to the button at the back of her skirt to undo it, and the skirt whispered to the floor to pool at her feet. Clad in her camisole, pink satin drawers, garters, stockings, and boots, she stepped out of the skirt and let him feast his eyes on her long firm legs, the curves of her hips, and the bare expanse of her neck and arms. “More?” she asked softly.

Jake drew in a steadying breath. He wanted to leave the room, lord knows he was supposed to, but his feet seemed to have grown roots.

Loreli, her own desires rising, said, “I'll take that to mean yes.”

And in response, she slowly drew off the camisole. The thin chemise that remained was made from a thin, clingy fabric that revealed the shape of her breasts, the tight buds of her nipples, and the sweet curve of her waist. Without a moment's hesitation, she slowly drew it off also.

Jake was on fire. The sight of her breasts moving gently with her motions made him instantaneously hard. He wanted to ease her back onto the bed and fill her with his need, but his hastiness last time had resulted in disaster. He didn't want that. Finally finding his voice, he asked, “Is this part of your plan to seduce me?”

Wearing nothing but her drawers, garters, and shoes, her eyes sultry in the shadowy room, she asked, “Is it working?”

He closed his eyes on the rush of heat that filled him. “Yes.”

She walked toward him, slowly, purposefully, then stopped close enough for him to touch.

He looked down into her eyes and couldn't hide his smile. “You are such a fast woman,” he whispered.

She gave him a small smile in response, then reaching out, picked up his hand and slowly moved his palm over the passion-hard tips of her breast. “Remember those buttons I said you should play with…?”

The tight bud burned Jake's skin. He felt fire licking through his blood. Knowing he had to touch her or cease breathing, he slid one long finger under the soft curve, then traced a path back up to her mouth. Leaning down, he kissed her, gently at first, learning her, inviting her, then fueled by all that made him man and her woman, he gathered her roughly into his arms and kissed her fully and possessively. He moved his hands over her breasts, then down the silken golden skin of her back. He lowered his mouth to her nipples and swore he'd been given paradise. Her soft moans of response floated over the silence. Now that he knew how she wished for him to proceed, he blazed his own trail. He cupped her breasts and brought
the sandy brown points to his lips, and pleasured each until she arched her back for more.

“Slow enough for you?” he rasped out.

Loreli's lips parted, but the sound of pounding on the closed door startled them both.

“Uncle! Loreli! Bebe's cheating! She missed her three-sies in jacks and she keeps throwing over!”

Jake kissed Loreli's mouth for another moment or two, then raised his head and yelled out, “Tell Be I said give you a turn!”

“Okay!”

They heard footsteps running away.

Holding each other's eyes, they said nothing for a moment, then Loreli reached up and caressed his strong jaw. “You should probably go check on them.”

He nodded. “I will, but your bathwater is probably cold by now. Do you want me to heat more?”

“No need. I'll make do.”

Neither of them was really concerned with such mundane matters; their bodies were still aroused and their hands wanted to further touch and explore.

“You're not making it easy for me to leave by standing there like that,” he told her.

“No?” she asked, her face a study in sultry innocence.

He ran his eyes over the provocative picture she made standing before him, so beautifully undressed. “No.” He reached down and picked up her skirt. He pressed it gently against her breasts, then he picked up her hand and placed it against the skirt to hold it in place. “Now, get washed up.”

She said with a mock pout, “Yes, Jake.”

He chuckled. “Fast, fast,
fast
woman.”

Jake headed to the door. His manhood was hard and thickened by his desire, but he knew if he didn't leave now, he never would. He'd tasted sapphires, and he wanted more. He turned back to look at her and damned if she didn't look just as fetching covered by the skirt as she had bare. “No more seducing until the wedding night, Loreli.”

That caught her by surprise. “Why?”

“Because, regardless of the pretense of this marriage, we're going to be man and wife and that should mean something.”

“Sounds like the son of a preacher talking.”

He nodded. “It is. As much as I've enjoyed these last few minutes. I do respect you, Loreli, and this is how I choose to show it.”

“And suppose I don't want to wait?”

“Get washed up,” he said softly.

“Jake—”

“I'll see you when you're done.”

And then he was gone.

Loreli wanted to curse, throw something, anything, but in the end she smiled.
Lord, what a man
.

After washing up, Loreli stepped into clean underwear, put on a fresh camisole and donned a brown shirtwaist and matching skirt. She stuck her bare feet into a pair of soft flat-soled slippers, then, after braiding her hair into a long plait and circling it low on her neck, she looked down at herself to gauge her appearance. Making a note to order a mirror for this room the next time she went into town, Loreli left to search out her family.

She found the girls sitting on the back porch. They were facing each other and playing a hand game that involved the alternate clapping of their hands against each
other's. The exchange of handclaps was done in rhythm with an old slave ditty called “Sangaree,” a song Loreli knew from her own childhood, so she lent her voice to the game.

The song continued and the girls incorporated a few verses that were new to Loreli, but as they clapped their way to the chorus again, Loreli joined in, singing:
“Oh, Babe—Sangaree. Oh, Babe—Sangaree.”

When the game ended, Loreli's smile matched the girls'. She looked around. “Where's your uncle?”

“He's out in the cornfield looking at the corn,” Dede answered.

“I see.”

Before Loreli could ponder what he might really be doing out there all alone, Bebe asked, “Are you really going to do our hair today, Loreli?”

Loreli remembered Rebecca's visit. “Do you want me to?”

“Yes,” Dede said. “My head's itching.”

“Well, let's go get some soap and oil and get started.”

Dede was first. Seated on the porch, Loreli spread a towel over the lap of her brown skirt to keep it from being stained. Dede positioned herself between Loreli's legs, and Loreli went to work. With Bebe looking on, Loreli quickly undid Dede's slightly cockeyed braids. As the strands untwisted and the long hair came free, a foul smell rose up with such force Loreli quickly drew back. “De, what is that smell? You two tangle with a skunk this morning?”

Bebe said tightly, “No, it's the oil.”

Loreli bent and smelled the top of Dede's head. “That's hair oil smelling like that? What's your uncle put in it, bear grease?”

“It's not Uncle. It's Rebecca.”

“Rebecca?”

“Yes. Uncle tries to do our hair, but he isn't very good at it,” Bebe explained.