Love Blooms in Winter (25 page)

“I wasn’t alone with him. I sent the message with someone else.”

“You were alone with him yesterday. I caught you.”

She clenched her teeth and suppressed her objections to his ridiculous statement. “I’m sorry, Jake. It won’t happen again.” He stared at her for what seemed like an eternity, and then he paced a couple more times. He stopped in front of her again, and she wasn’t sure what to expect.

“First, I accept your apology. Second, I have business I’d like to get out of the way before we consume our evening meal.”

“Oh? Well, if you don’t mind, I need to sit down first.” Mae stepped over to the couch and sank onto the cushion, nudging off her boots. She’d been on her feet for hours. Unfastening a few hair pins, she allowed her hair to cascade down her back. “All right.” She couldn’t recall any pending business that affected both her and Jake, but then so many things were on her mind these days.

He eyed her sudden personal disorder with apparent disdain, absently straightening his shirt points. Normally she’d have taken the time to put a bit of rouge on her cheeks and a little powder, but her disheveled appearance was one more penalty for being late. She was just plain weary tonight.

Jake cleared his throat. “Shall we get down to business?”

“Let’s.”

“It has come to my attention recently that a certain woman in town is acting most improper for a woman betrothed to a man.”

She scratched her scalp vigorously. It felt so good. “Mmm—who’s that?” Couldn’t be Lil. She always acted improperly, and she wasn’t betrothed to anyone. Mae chuckled, recalling their earlier conversation. “Jake, do you know that Lil has her eye on Fisk? All this time she’s pretended to argue with him to get his attention. Can you imagine? That girl is—”

“Mae!”

She glanced up and immediately sobered at the disturbed look on his face. “What?”

“I am talking to you.”

“Yes.” Her hand dropped. Why was he acting so contrary? He seemed more serious tonight than usual. She had a lot of comments about his present behavior, none of which he would appreciate. She sighed. “Go on.”

“It has come to my attention that you have been spending entirely too much time with that railroad man.”

“Tom?”

“Is there another railroad man in town of whom I am not aware?”

He was using his lawyer’s voice on her now. She straightened. “Of course not, Jake. You can’t be serious.” She’d never known him to show an ounce of jealousy, but then she’d never given him a reason to warrant his concern. She’d been completely faithful, even though officially she wasn’t engaged to him.

“People are starting to talk.”

“Who? I can’t imagine anyone in Dwadlo who would find fault with my behavior.”

“You’re telling me that allowing a man to drip water on your head is appropriate conduct?” Jake shook his head. “How about the snowball fight? Do you think that was appropriate? If you do, then I have to say I question your judgment, Mae Wilkey.”

She was too tired to argue, and she had to admit she’d made some mistakes, especially in Jake’s eyes. “I suppose you’re right.” He was still making an ugly face at her, and she knew he wanted her apology spelled out and acknowledged. “You are right, Jake. My behavior was improper, and I regret it. I used poor judgment, and that will never happen again. I’m sorry.”

“Indeed. Then you would agree that folks have a reason to talk?” He stood in front of her. “It grieves me to have to speak to you about this, Mae. You must understand that as my intended wife I cannot have you running around like a common strumpet.”

Her jaw dropped. How could he think that after knowing her almost all of her life? “Strumpet? Jake, that’s most unkind.”

“How else would I define your recent behavior? Cavorting around with a man who appears to have no morals—”

“Tom has morals. Why would you say such things?”

“Because a decent man doesn’t try to move in on another man’s territory.”

Mae stood up and took a few steps toward the kitchen area. Jake’s accusations stung, but they were not without warrant. Her mind turned to Tom. She did act differently when he was around. He made her feel young and carefree, and he was without judgment and constant criticism. But Tom was not her suitor, Jake was, and she’d managed to make him angrier than she’d ever seen him.

“In the future, I will expect you to act in a respectable manner, Mae. There will be no more playing in the snow, and no more time spent alone with Curtis. Do we have an understanding?”

“Yes,” she murmured.

“Very well.” He crossed the floor and took her by the shoulders. “I have given this careful thought, and I’ve reached a solution I feel is best for all concerned.”

Her heart thumped. Shock—and then relief—filled her. He was going to break their six-year relationship, and she had no one to blame but herself. A sudden giddiness bubbled inside her.

“I am fully aware that women expect, shall we say, more adequate surroundings, but then I know you’re not like most women.”

His pinched look gradually faded into a pleasant smile when he let go of her shoulders and reached into his coat pocket to withdraw a small box. Her eyes focused on the object.

“Mae Wilkey.” He popped the lid open to reveal a sparkling diamond. Not too big to be gaudy, but not so small to be tasteless. “Will you be my bride?”

Something suddenly blocked her air supply and she couldn’t breathe. The room immediately became too hot. Her hair! She looked as though she’d been in a wind storm, and the toe of one of her stockings had a hole in it. Focused on the diamond, she realized this was it, the hour she’d waited six years for, longed for, and dreamed about. The prize in the little box twinkled at her.

Going down on one knee, he gently took her left hand. “This is what we’ve both wanted for a very long while, darling. We need to start our lives together—to become a real couple. Time is passing, and so is our youth.”

Mae’s eyes lifted. Not exactly dazzling talk, but true. “It’s… so sudden.”

“Sudden?” He cocked a dark brow. “I would hardly say that after six years this decision is based on an impulse.”

“No… certainly not an impulse.”

“Not that we’re old by any measure, but the days have a way of taking flight, and we want to be young enough to enjoy children and grandchildren…should we be blessed with little ones.”

Her eyes pivoted back to the ring he had removed from the box. “Well, darling? What do you say? Will you make me the happiest man on earth and become my bride?” He held the twinkling diamond at her fingertip.

“I…” She searched for the appropriate words. Her gaze fixed on a broken prong.

“There is one loose prong, but I’ll have that fixed right away.” He slipped the ring on her finger. “There. A perfect fit.” He smiled. “It belonged to Mother, you know.”

She didn’t know. Jake rarely spoke of his family, who lived in Branch Springs and never came to visit. Mae stared at the ring. It felt foreign and heavy on her finger, but the sincerity in his eyes reminded her of the long years she’d spent in pursuit of this moment. Most had been good years, years of memories and envisioning a future together. Jake wasn’t the most exciting mate, and she’d suspected as much long before Tom Curtis ever walked into her life, but he was solid and dependable. Jeremy’s and Pauline’s future would be assured. If she married Jake, she could quit her job at the post office and focus on her brother’s and Pauline’s needs.

And it wasn’t as though anyone else stood in the wing waiting to claim her hand in marriage. An image of Tom fleetingly skipped through her mind, but she crushed the fairy-tale thought. In a matter of days he would be gone and she would still be in Dwadlo. Lifting her eyes, she smiled. “I would be honored to marry you, Jake.” The affirmation neither sounded nor felt the way she’d pictured it would. She didn’t squeal with joy or swoon with relief, but then she was close to thirty. A woman couldn’t wait forever, especially not in North Dakota. She accepted God’s plan for her life. Most likely the path He’d chosen for her was far better than the one she’d started to envision.

Squeezing his hand, she said softly, “The ring is lovely.”

Rising, Jake gave his vest a satisfied pat. “Now that we’ve dispensed with that matter, there’s no hurry to set a date is there? We have the rest of our lives, and should we delay a few more years and having children becomes less likely, we’ll deal with the matter when the time comes.”

“No hurry.” She surprised herself with her willingness to agree with him. Planning a wedding took time, time she didn’t have at the moment.

He pulled her to him and gave her a hug. “I’d like to see you tomorrow night too.”

She realized suddenly that she would have to get used to seeing him more often now that they were betrothed. She studied the ring and was glad he couldn’t see the disappointed look on her face, or how she frowned at the broken prong that stood out like a sore thumb.

“Well?” he said, releasing her.

“Well what?”

“Tomorrow night?”

“Oh, yes. Tomorrow would be fine.” Looking at him now, she wondered how strange it was that a meticulous man like Jake wouldn’t have repaired the ring before he proposed. But at least he had asked her to be his wife.

M
ae sat on the cracker barrel and laughed. Word of her engagement had spread faster than fleas. All of Dwadlo had heard the news: Poor Mae had finally caught her man at last, and she had a ring on her finger.

She held the diamond up to the morning light and admired the setting. It was pretty enough—impressive yet tasteful. The ragged prong was a bit of a distraction, and the jewelry felt heavy on her hand, but Jake had given it to her.

She knew something was very wrong with her engagement, and it was important. She’d waited. What was she fretting about? She’d waited six long years for this celebration, yet she wasn’t leaping for joy or standing on the porch shouting the news to anyone who would listen: “Mae Wilkey is engaged to be married!”

She could finally take her mother’s wedding dress out of the trunk and try on the fine silky material, something she had never done. She wanted the excitement of the anticipated day to be new, fresh, and totally her own experience.

The door opened and she glanced up, smiling when she saw Tom. The wind slammed the screen shut. Sliding off the barrel, she walked to the cage, her stomach slightly edgy. Had he also heard the news? “Good morning.”

Nodding, he went to the root beer barrel, where only ice chunks floated. He’d heard. His cool demeanor and the way his lips pulled up at the corners confirmed her belief.

“Sorry. I’m afraid the root beer is gone, but we have plenty of sarsaparilla.”

The hunk of cold metal around her third finger itched. Swallowing, she stepped to the counter, unconsciously fussing with her hair. The edge of the stone’s setting caught in her thick tresses, and she discreetly tried to tug it free, but she only succeeded in getting it more tangled.

“Not today.”

He went to the back of the store, and she heard him rummaging through the nail bin. Her fingers worked to loosen the ring’s firm grip. Drats. Stuck tight as a miser. She heard him return and she straightened. Tom paused at the counter, setting down a sack of nails.

She met his gaze. “I’m sorry, but could you…help me? One of the prongs is caught in my hair.” She went around the counter and stood before him. After grunting as though she were a worrisome child, he set to work trying to loosen the ring’s hold.

“I’ve heard of nooses around the neck, but never one caught in the hair.”

“That isn’t funny. It not a noose; it’s a ring.”

Noose? Ring? Anchor might be more appropriate, because it felt like a lead weight. She clamped her lips closed to make sure the impertinent thought didn’t escape. The ring was lovely. Her life was perfect. She had everything she’d ever wished for—didn’t she?

“Ouch! Is it budging?”

“It’s getting more snarled. We’re going to have to cut it out.”

“Cut my hair?”

“Do you have a better solution?”

She kept an eye on the front window. If Jake came in and caught her with Tom like this…well, his patience did have limits. She’d just barely managed to soothe his accusations last night. Dragging Tom with her, she returned to the cage and picked up a pair of scissors. “Please don’t cut more than necessary.”