A Prescription for Love (12 page)

The rest of the service proved long and boring. He itched to grab Heidi and pull her outside and demand to know what was going on. He needed to straighten a few things out with her before he left later today.

The service finally came to an end and they joined the line shuffling forward to speak with the pastor and exit the church.

Bright sunlight hurt his burning eyes when he stepped outside. Mrs. Lester immediately took her daughter’s arm and, heads together, strolled toward the buggy.

“Wait!” Clarence caught up to them. “Heidi, I would like to spend the day with you since I must return to Oklahoma City later today.”

Mr. Lester approached Clarence and slapped him on the back. Once again his brain slammed into his skull. “We all want to spend time with Heidi, so I suggest we have a nice supper at the hotel and visit in the lobby.”

Heidi smiled at the suggestion, and he didn’t imagine the relief in her eyes. Yes, definitely something was going on. No matter, he would find a way to corner her and demand some answers. If only he didn’t feel so dreadful.

Relief flooded her as Heidi resumed the walk with her mother. She scolded herself for not remembering to wear her ring. Of course Clarence would notice its absence first thing. He wouldn’t speak of it in front of her parents, but based on the anger in his eyes, he would definitely try to question her at some point. She wasn’t prepared to face him on the subject yet. Just because she’d decided she didn’t want to marry him, didn’t mean he would be amenable. For some strange reason, he seemed determined to have her as his wife, even though he’d made it clear she would be no wife in truth.

Five people in the buggy made for a tight ride. Heidi, her mother, and Mrs. Manfred all squashed in the back, while Clarence rode up front with Papa. Mrs. Manfred dominated the conversation, for which Heidi remained grateful, not anxious to once again defend her decision, which she would have to do before long.

The warmth of the blazing stove in the hotel lobby attracted them all like bears to honey after the cold ride from church. Heidi kept herself as far from Clarence as possible without bringing undue attention to herself. Her eyes grew wide as she contemplated Clarence’s face for the first time as he spoke to her father. She’d been so busy keeping her eyes downcast to avoid him, she’d never noticed the bruise on his jaw and high on his cheekbone, right under his eye.

She frowned. Strange. Michael had bruises on his face he refused to talk about. Had the two men been injured at the same time? Her breath hitched. Could they have been fighting each other? No. A ridiculous thought. Merely a coincidence.

They settled into seats at a round table, with Clarence taking the seat to her right. As Heidi peered closer, his appearance shocked her. Not only the injuries to his face, but his skin had a grayish hue and his eyes were so red, they appeared to be bleeding.

“How is Mr. Henderson’s breathing treatment working for you?” Mrs. Lester inspected her daughter’s face as she spoke, grasping her chin and moving her head one way, then the other.

“It’s working wonderfully, Mother. I haven’t had an attack in days. Mr. Henderson has me keeping a journal of what I eat and where I go because he said there’s evidence asthma attacks can arise due to allergies to food or plants of some kinds.”

Mr. Lester set his menu down and regarded her. “I don’t understand how a shopkeeper would know so much about medicine.”

“He’s not merely a shopkeeper, Papa. Michael graduated from the Norman College of Pharmacy. He’s a licensed pharmacist and knows a great deal about medicines and how each one works. Why, even Dr. Kane consults him on different medications to use for his patients.”

“Michael?” Clarence regarded her with raised eyebrows. “I thought his name was Mr. Henderson.”

Heidi felt the heat rise to her cheeks. “Since we work together every day, we address each other by our given names.”

“I don’t appreciate this situation one bit,” Clarence said with a shake of his head. “As my fiancée, I am against you working in a shop and I certainly don’t want you calling that man by his given name, nor him calling you by yours.” He glared across the table at Mr. Lester. “I see this as the problem with allowing men and women to work together. They become entirely too familiar, and that’s totally inappropriate.”

All eyes were on Clarence, and silence descended as he ended his rant. He fussed with his shirt collar and examined his menu.

“I certainly understand your objection, Clarence,” Mrs. Lester said, then commented to Heidi, “I think I prefer you reverting back to calling each other by your proper titles.”

There would be more important issues to discuss today. As none of those present would be in a position to hear what she and Michael called each other in the store, Heidi demurred. “Yes, Mother.”

Clarence smiled slightly, apparently happy to have won the battle.

The meal passed pleasantly, Heidi continually on her guard for when the assault would begin to convince her to surrender her ‘adventure’ and head back to Oklahoma City. She’d barely taken one sip of her after supper coffee when Mrs. Manfred fired the first shot.

“Heidi, dear, when will you stop upsetting your mother and return home with us?” The woman rested her chubby hand on top of Heidi’s.

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Manfred, but my parents have agreed to allow me a month to prove I can take care of myself, and I still have another two and a half weeks.”

Stay calm. Don’t let her comments bring on an attack. They’ll all be convinced I’m weak.

“Actually, Mrs. Manfred, Mr. Lester and I discussed Heidi’s job last night and we’re willing to let her have her month.” Mrs. Lester patted Heidi’s other hand as she addressed the woman. “We’re close by if anything happens, and getting any desire for freedom out of her system is good before she marries and settles down.”

“Yes. It’s probably best if she gets this out of her system before she becomes my wife.” Clarence jumped right in, apparently happy to re-state his claim.

Mrs. Manfred did not respond well to her mother’s words. Her frown increased and her chin came up a notch. “Of course, she’s your daughter. However, I’m concerned for Clarence having to come up by train to visit Heidi. He’s so worried about her being here.”

Heidi fixed her gaze on Clarence. “It’s not necessary for you to visit. As Mother said, she and Papa are close by.”

“Nonsense. I have the duty as your betrothed to see to your safety. I’m more than happy to visit with you. I may not be able to come during the week, but we can spend our weekends together.”

Sweat beaded her forehead. She could handle Mother and Papa dragging her off to supper or lunch several times during the week, but the thought of Clarence following her around all weekend scared her to death. As unpleasant as it would be, she needed to break off her engagement with Clarence. After kissing Michael twice now, the thought of Clarence touching her in any way caused shivers to run down her spine.

She may end up an old maid, but after the feelings Michael kindled in her, marriage to Clarence would never do. She’d felt the stirrings of desire, and if she couldn’t have passion in her marriage, she would have no marriage at all.

“Heidi, I would enjoy a walk with you before I catch my train.” Clarence took her hand.

There wasn’t much point in putting him off any longer. Her parents would certainly think it odd if she refused to spend even a little bit of time with her fiancé.

She smiled in his direction. “Certainly.”

He took her arm and they left the hotel. The air had turned distinctly colder since church that morning. She arranged her scarf around her nose and mouth, then pulled the collar of her coat up.

They continued on in silence for a block before Clarence cleared his throat. “Heidi, where is your engagement ring?”

How brave did she feel? Lie, or break the engagement now? “I-I wanted to talk to you about that.”

His eyes were hard and filled with dislike. “My dear, it’s perfectly all right if you’ve
forgotten
to wear your ring. I understand such a thing happens. Not to worry. Let’s enjoy our walk in the beautiful afternoon air.”

“Clarence, it’s freezing out.”

He tugged her closer. “I’ll keep you warm.”

Where Michael’s arms around her felt warm and secure, Clarence’s embrace made her uncomfortable. Almost painful, as if he intended to punish her in some way.

After a moment, he added, “I want to speak to you again about my concern with you working all day with that man.”

“Michael? I mean, Mr. Henderson?”

Clarence sighed and squeezed her shoulder. “Yes. I’m afraid his morals aren’t what they should be.”

She regarded him, eyebrows furrowed. “What are you talking about? Mr. Henderson is the most upright, moral person I’ve ever met.”

“Did you notice the bruises on my face?”

She nodded.

“How do you suppose I received them?”

When she shrugged, he continued. “Your Mr. Henderson involved himself in a brawl at The Blue Belle Saloon Friday evening, and I was forced to step in to save the poor man he beat up.” He scowled at her and gestured to his face. “You can see my thanks for getting in the middle.”

Heidi’s mouth dried up and she shook her head. “No. I don’t believe it.”
What about the bruises on Michael’s face? Could Clarence’s story possibly be true?

Clarence turned on his heel and headed them back to the hotel. “I’m afraid the fight is not the worst of it, my dear.”

Her heart fluttered at his solemn expression. “What else?”

“You understand, I would never speak of such things to a lady, but I must impress upon you how dangerous to your virtue an association with Mr. Henderson can be.”

She stopped walking and stared at him. “This conversation is ridiculous. I’m heading back to the hotel.” When she turned to move away, he grasped her upper arm to stop her.

“Your Mr. Henderson paid one of the whores in The Blue Belle Saloon to leave town.”

Heidi’s eyes grew wide. “What? I mean, why? I don’t understand.”

“As a lady you would not understand, dearest, but there is usually only one reason why a man pays a woman to leave town.”

She shook her head in confusion. “I still don’t understand.”

“Of course you don’t, and please remember I’m only relating the story to you for your own good.” He started forward again. “Generally, a man will pay a woman to leave town because she is carrying his child, and he wishes her out of the way.”

Chapter 11

The next morning Heidi remained silent throughout the breakfast of corn bread with butter and honey she’d brought from home. Her stomach churned as she ate, but pretending normalcy could get her through the day.

“Is everything all right?” Michael wiped his mouth with a napkin and sat back.

“Fine.” She barely got the word out with crumbs from the corn bread stuck in her throat. All the moisture in her mouth had dried up. Every time her gaze wandered to the bruise on Michael’s chin, she thought of Clarence’s revelations the day before. It seemed unbelievable Michael would be involved in a bar brawl, and then pay some woman of ill repute to leave town. She shook her head. Obviously, her lack of social interaction had left her with poor judgment of character.

“You seem to be doing some pretty heavy thinking this morning.” He grinned as he removed the plates and cups and deposited them into the sink. Then he leaned against the counter with his arms crossed. “How was the day with your family?”

“Fine.” She glanced briefly at him, then with her head down, pleated the skirt of her dress with stiff fingers.

He sighed and moved to the curtain separating them from the store. “I’ll open up.”

Although he wasn’t there to see it, she nodded. Clarence’s words had repeated in her mind all night, preventing her from getting much sleep. With rigid movements, she rose and removed her apron from the hook and tied the lengthy strings around her waist. Unbidden tears rose to her eyes. Her knight in shining armor was no more. Maybe she should admit her failure and return to Oklahoma City. She removed the thought from her mind as the tinkling of the front doorbell announced the arrival of a customer.

Heidi managed to avoid Michael most of the day and even made up an excuse about meeting someone for lunch in the little restaurant around the corner so she wouldn’t have to eat with him. His raised eyebrows indicated he didn’t believe her, since he knew she had no friends here except Ellie.

By six o’clock she had a pounding headache and fought the exhaustion of avoiding Michael every time they were alone in the store. She’d kept her eyes downcast and her hands busy. A few times she caught him regarding her with a frown, but he never again asked if everything was all right. She sighed with relief when he locked the front door and wished her good evening.

“Are you sure you don’t want a ride home?” He tugged on his brown leather driving gloves.

“No. Thank you, though.” She spun on her heels and hurried away.

Michael watched Heidi as she wove in and out, dodging workers leaving offices and stores for the evening. He walked in the opposite direction to retrieve his buggy from the livery. Something bothered her and with a sinking feeling in his stomach, he admitted it must have been the kiss Saturday.

As usual, he didn’t see her on Sunday since they attended different churches. After services, he’d spent the rest of the day quietly at home. He read, fixed something to eat, and took a long walk. The entire time a sense of emptiness tugged at him. Generally, he enjoyed the peace of Sunday after a busy week at the store, but for some reason his house seemed too quiet.

He’d spent hours thinking about Heidi. How much longer could he deny his growing feelings? His attraction to her would once again expose his heart to pain if he wasn’t careful. Her huge blue eyes, the riot of red curls, her slender neck, the way she felt in his arms, her lips. All these things scared him.

Michael unhitched the horse from his buggy and groomed him before entering his cold, dark house. He lit a few lamps on his way to the kitchen where he buttered a chunk of bread to eat with the onion and potato soup his housekeeper had left on Friday. After cleaning up the few dishes, he lit a fire in the parlor fireplace and settled in front of the warmth with a book. Which he didn’t open.