Kissing in the Dark (35 page)

His mind spun, gathering facts and sorting details as he walked to the greenhouse. Somehow he would figure out this mess, but his first order of business was to nail some female asses to the wall and put a stop to the rumors threatening his family

Chapter 32

The slam of the greenhouse door startled Faith, and she nearly dropped a jar of balm she’d been scenting with herbs. She looked up to see Duke standing inside the door, his face a mask of fury.

“Do you know what people are saying about you, Faith?” The indignant look on his face assured her it wasn’t good.

Her stomach plummeted and she clutched her fist to her belly, crushing the dried herbs in her hand. “What’s wrong?”

“Are your aunts here?” he asked.

“Everyone except Dahlia. She took Cora to the store with her.”

“Do you have any customers?”

“Not at the moment.”

“Good.” He lifted his chin and his voice cracked through the greenhouse. “Iris Wilde, get your ass out here! Aster and Tansy! Wherever you are, get out here.”

Faith gasped, fearing what was coming.

Tansy flitted out from behind a large cluster of Saint-John’s-wort, her eyes wide. Aster stepped in from the bathhouse, wiping her hands on her apron and scowling like a mother.

“What are you yelling about?” she asked, pushing her way through the plants.

“Where’s Iris?” he asked.

“Right here,” Iris said, descending the stairs with pinched lips and an arched eyebrow. “What are you riled about?”

“I’ll give you a list.” Duke lifted his fist and raised his thumb. “First, Wayne Archer says Doc Milton is bragging about the private treatments Aster is giving him on the second floor.”

“He is?” Aster’s lips tilted in a pleased smile. Duke’s scowl darkened.

“Second . . .” He glared at Tansy. “Archer says his wife saw you and Cyrus out here kissing like two overheated lovers.”

“We
are
lovers,” she said meekly.

“I don’t give a damn!” Duke swatted the bush of lemongrass in front of him. “Do you women realize that you’ve jeopardized my family’s reputation?” He strode five paces then slammed his fist on the counter. Faith dropped the jar she held, and it shattered on the floor.

“My mother and my sisters-in-law put their reputations on the line when they promoted this business to their friends. My brothers spent two weeks pounding nails in that building next door so you women could have a decent place to live. And what do they get for their kindness?” he asked, his voice cracking with righteous anger. “They get put in the middle of a nasty rumor that could shred their reputations. My brother’s daughter saw something no child should see. And I get the pleasure of being responsible for all of this.”

Iris braced her hand on the railing. “You’re overwrought, Sheriff—”

“You’re damned right I am!” He jabbed his finger toward her. “You’re the worst offender, Iris! My niece, an innocent little girl, saw you and Patrick . . . fondling each other upstairs last Sun-day.
No
child should see that, damn it!” He slammed his fist on the counter again. “I’m fighting the urge to send you packing.”

The smell of the resinous balm that was splattered on the floor and across Faith’s feet rose to her nose and made her nauseated. She looked at her aunts, and not one of them would meet her eyes. They were guilty of every sin Duke accused them of. Duke knew, and they were ruined. It was over with him, and over for them, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

“I’ll leave.” Iris descended the last few steps and crossed to the counter. “You’re right to despise me for what happened with your niece. My carelessness and inconsideration are unforgivable. I should never have come here.”

“You can’t leave.” Faith reached across the counter and grasped her aunt’s hand. “You’re my family. Adam and Cora love you. You can’t leave us.”

“She’s not going anywhere.” Anger etched deep grooves in Duke’s face. “But all this bathing and massaging and philandering upstairs stops, and it stops right now. Not one more person outside this family uses that bathtub. Not one man climbs those stairs or enters the bathhouse.” He looked at Aster. “That includes the doctor.”

Aster nodded. “I presume that will change when the doctor becomes my husband?”

Faith was as surprised by Aster’s announcement as Duke seemed to be, but his eyes narrowed as if Aster said something extremely important. “Are you marrying the doctor?”

The woman nodded. “Paul asked. I said yes.” She whacked dirt off her apron as if they were discussing plants and not her future, but Faith saw a happy spark in her aunt’s eyes.

“Would you marry him tomorrow?”

They all gaped at his odd request.

Duke looked at Tansy. “I asked Cyrus to marry you in the Common tomorrow. A public wedding should silence the rumors about why you two were kissing in the greenhouse.” He pinned Aster with his stony stare. “I’d like you and Doc Milton to do the same.”

“Makes no difference to me when or where I marry the man,” Aster said. “I didn’t realize his visits were causing trouble or I’d have stopped them myself. I’m sorry. I’ll go talk to Paul now.”

“I’m sorry, too,” Tansy said, plucking at her apron. “I was so overcome when Cyrus said he hadn’t been in the war and asked me to marry him, I kissed him like a darn fool.” She lowered her lashes. “I didn’t mean to start any nasty rumors.”

“I don’t fault your intentions, but I am holding each of you responsible for your actions.” He turned to Iris. “As long as you and Patrick conduct your romance in private and away from this business, you can stay”

And with that, he blew out the door like strong wind, leaving everything in his path trembling.

And that was that. Faith’s fist was still pressed against her stomach, where nausea returned full force. Her husband had just walked out, without a word, without a tender glance, without a single assurance that he would ever forgive her. She’d ruined everything for him and for their marriage. She’d married a tender, considerate, passionate man, and she’d single-handedly killed those parts of him, the best parts of him.

She’d shattered their marriage as swiftly and completely as she’d crushed the dried herbs in her hand.

o0o

Duke unlocked the door to his holding cell, regretting his harshness with Adam and with Faith and her aunts. Faith would never forgive him if Iris left. Adam probably wouldn’t forgive him either.

“Come on out,” he said, swinging the door wide.

Adam stalked out, chin high, eyes blazing with anger.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were with Rebecca last Sunday afternoon?”

“It wasn’t your business.”

“Maybe not, but there’s more at stake than solving the mystery of the stolen fishing rod, Adam. Rebecca is a beautiful young lady, and I can see why you would like her,” he said, “but there are consequences for giving your heart away when you’re too young. Ask my brother Kyle. What if Rebecca changes her mind about you someday?”

“We haven’t made any promises,” Adam said.

“Good.” Duke closed the door and leaned against it. “I’m not condemning you for caring about Rebecca, but you’re causing trouble between her and her father. Radford has forbidden her to see you, Adam. You either respect his wishes and stay clear of Rebecca, or I’ll put a stop to it myself.”

Adam’s scowl deepened. “Is this lecture over, Sheriff Grayson?”

Duke’s breath shuddered out and he nodded. The lecture was over because he was out of energy. He was out of answers.

Adam stormed out, and Duke went to his office. He sat at his desk, head in hand, missing the time in his life when he didn’t question his character or actions. He’d strayed so far from his ideals, he no longer knew what was right or wrong, or what he stood for.

Exhausted, he rubbed his aching shoulder and read through the list of names and comments in Faith’s mother’s guest book that spanned three decades. It was only a list of names, dates, and amounts, but Duke knew each name represented a man that his wife’s mother had sold her body to, and it disgusted him.

Two names stood out because they appeared frequently. Lawyer Steven Cuvier’s name was noted many times in the early years, then so infrequently Duke would have missed its next occurrence if he hadn’t been looking for the name. It disappeared altogether six years ago.

At that time, Judge Franklin Stone’s name started appearing regularly, then became the only name noted in Rose’s guest book for the last five years of her life. No amounts were noted with Stone’s entries, which was odd. Was Stone Rose’s lover? Is that why she didn’t charge him? If so, then who was Steven Cuvier, and why had Rose’s lipstick kiss decorated two of the early entries for Cuvier?

Had she loved both men?

If so, why had Cuvier paid for Rose’s services when Stone got the goods for free?

Duke rubbed the heels of his hands against his gritty eyes. God only knew what Rose’s life was all about. All he could gather from her book was that Stone and Cuvier knew her well. They were both in a position to help Rose with any legal work she may have needed. Maybe that’s why Stone was getting free visits to Rose’s bed. Maybe she owed him for legal work.

Maybe not, but Stone and Cuvier were the only leads worth tracking down. Even if neither man had done any legal work for Rose, one of them might know something about her that could head Duke in the right direction. Anything that could help him dump that damned brothel would be welcome. He’d already sent a letter to three banks in Syracuse, asking if they had any information about the deed to Rose’s property, but no one had yet responded.

He would try Stone and Cuvier too.

After forming his query in his head, Duke penned a letter to Stone, then wrote a similar letter to Cuvier. When he finished writing, he folded the pages into envelopes and used his official wax seal to keep his correspondence confidential. He would post the letters before he headed to Mayville.

Chapter 33

Tansy and Aster’s double ceremony in the park was simple but touching despite the dreary mid-October day. Faith stood among family and friends who sheltered themselves beneath umbrellas, but anyone walking through the park was welcome to watch the couples take their vows.

Intermittent wind gusts tugged the red and gold leaves off the maple trees and carried them through the air like small vessels. Faith wanted to sail away like the leaves and go back to the warmer, happy days of summer when she and Duke spent their days laughing and their nights making love; but she stood in the cold wind, shivering beside her distant husband. He hadn’t left her, but would be leaving for Mayville after the ceremony. He said he’d return in a week. Maybe he wouldn’t be so angry then. Maybe he would miss her. Maybe someday he would forgive her and welcome her back into his arms. Because he hadn’t touched her since the night he learned about the brothel, and she was losing hope.

She didn’t blame him for being upset, especially on behalf of his family. Faith hadn’t considered that she would be putting his family in jeopardy when she married him. All she’d thought about was giving Cora and Adam security—and herself a respectable life with a man she cared about.

She hadn’t counted on Dahlia killing a man, or her aunts having affairs in the greenhouse. She’d begun to believe that it was kinder not to tell Duke, that her past might not matter at all unless he learned the truth. Now it was all that mattered.

“You have a leaf in your hair, Mama.”

Cora was happily perched in her daddy’s arms. Despite Duke’s anger with Faith, and his earlier harshness with Adam, he’d been loving and affectionate with the child. He’d admitted to Adam he’d been too hasty in judging, but there was a rift between the two that worried her. Adam needed Duke more than ever, and she blamed herself for the distance between them. Duke was disappointed in her, not in Adam.

They walked home together after the ceremony, but instead of joining the small gathering in their parlor, Duke packed a bag, changed his clothes, and strapped on his gun belt.

Faith followed him outside onto the porch where he shrugged on his coat. He would walk to Radford and Evelyn’s livery to rent a horse for his trip. “How long will you be gone?” she asked.

“A week or so.”

She nodded, not wanting him to leave with this chasm between them, but having no idea how to bridge it.

“Sam Wade will know how to reach me if you need anything.”

Again, she nodded. “I’m sorry, Duke. I wanted so much for us . . . ,” she whispered, too choked by her emotions to go on.

He sighed and brushed his knuckles across her cheek. “So did I.”

She caught his hand and pressed it to her face, missing him desperately. “I’ll do anything to make you happy again.”

He embraced her and gave her a hug, the first affection he’d shown her in a week. “I don’t hate you, and I’m not even sure I blame you for anything. I’m just . . . I need to sort this out.”

She lifted her face, aching for his kiss. “Will you do that while you’re gone?”

“I’ll try.”

“Try real hard. For Cora and Adam. For us.”

He lowered his head and kissed her, and the day seemed to fill with sunshine. Faith clutched his wide shoulders, returning his kiss with passion, hoping he would find forgiveness on his journey and a reason to return and reclaim the joy in their marriage.

He backed out of her embrace. “I’ve got to go.” He grabbed his bag and descended the steps. “Wire if you need anything,” he said, but he walked away without looking back.

o0o

Eight days later, Faith raked leaves into a big pile, assailed by doubts and worries. Where was he? Why hadn’t Duke wired to let her know when he’d be returning home?

In the yard, Cora crawled through the leaves searching for Adam. When Adam lunged out of the pile, she shrieked with glee. They played all afternoon, raking the leaves into a pile, then scattering them across the lawn, before raking them up again.

Faith went inside to make supper, but she could hear Adam’s roars and Cora’s shrieks of laughter. They were happy sounds. They were happy children. She’d done the right thing for them. Maybe not for Duke or for herself, but she had made the right decision for Adam and Cora. Surely Duke would see that her choice was the
only
choice, right or wrong, good or bad. Maybe he would realize that there was no right or wrong involved, that she’d based her decision on what was useful, and perhaps then he could forgive her. Maybe then he would find his way back to being the tender man she married.