Valentine's Rose (16 page)

Unbelievable. Hardt had just complimented him more with one sentence than his father had in all the speeches he’d delivered over the course of Val’s life.

“You ought to consider staying. Open the mine and operate it. Based on this,” Hardt motioned to the drawings, “I’d say you have a solid plan.”

Stay here? Val shook his head. He had to go back and make some attempt to repair the damage he’d done, even if he couldn’t erase the past. “I plan to take Rose to England.”

Hardt arched his brows, a look of surprise. “What does she say about that?”

“We haven’t discussed it at length.”

“How do you think she’ll get along with your family?”

Val leaned forward, bracing his hands on his knees. This
uncle
business had gone on long enough. “What’s your interest in Rose?”

Hardt lifted his hands. “Not what you think.” His expression softened. “She reminds me of my sister.”

Val blinked. “Astounding.”

“What’s astounding?”

“That you have a sister, and yet know so little about women.”

Hardt’s features hardened. “You’re married, and yet you to appear to know little about your wife.”

Val kept his hands glued to his knees. He would not hit this man no matter how tempting. “What could you possibly know about Rose?”

Ross Hardt dropped his hands to his sides. “That she’s none of my business. But I urge you to ask yourself, will she fit in?”

No.
Val didn’t voice the answer. Hardt’s purpose wasn’t to learn it, but to challenge him to consider Rose’s best interests. Imagine, an adversary acting like a friend. Or had Hardt ever been an adversary? It didn’t appear so.

Val stood slowly, prepared to make an apology, as a gentleman should.

“Do you have a better offer in England?” Hardt asked.

“Not a better offer. An obligation...” Val hesitated, not sure he wanted to share something so personal, even though he’d accepted that Hardt was being decent. “My family, I need to make...” Retribution. “Provision.” That was his pride talking. “I owe them a debt.”

Hardt didn’t bat an eye. “Does this debt involve more than money?”

Money. That sounded crass. But money was all his family would care to have from him. Any idea they might welcome him back with open arms was foolish imaginings. The sooner he accepted that, the better.

“No, nothing but money.”

“Then why not send them money from the mining operation?”

“Operate a mine?” Val released a sardonic laugh. “Even if I wanted to, I don’t have the resources to open a mine, much less operate one.”

Hardt took off his hat and set it on the desk...back to being the railroad agent. “The railroad has resources. I’ll send a letter to the directors. In the meantime, I can arrange a personal loan to get you started.”

Val stared at the drawings on the table. The more he thought about it, the more logical it seemed. No, not just logical, superb. He looked at Hardt, trying to figure out what the man might want in return for his liberality. “You wish to be my partner?”

“No, not a partner. I won’t invest that much.”

“Then a percentage of the business. I insist.”

“Fine, then. We’ll come to an agreement that’s fair for both of us.”

Val couldn’t quite fathom what had just happened, except he felt sure he’d been granted some sort of miracle—he just hadn’t expected it to come from this quarter. He held out his hand. “I owe you an apology and my gratitude.”

This time, Hardt shook his hand. “Am I to take it you’ll be staying?”

“If Rose agrees, and I believe she’ll be pleased. I know she likes it here.”

“Then I think a drink is in order.” Hardt pulled out a desk drawer, set a bottle and two glasses on the desk. “Whiskey?”

“Why not.”

Val held up his glass. “To the...” he hesitated. “I’ll need to name the mine.”

“Just call it Valentine’s Rose.” Hardt clinked the glasses together.

Another surprising revelation...the dour man had a sentimental streak.

“I should’ve thought of that,” Val muttered. He took a sip. “This is smooth.” Too smooth. “After a few drinks, I won’t remember what we called it.”

Hardt’s mouth pulled into a sly smile. “Maybe I should offer Mrs. Braddock some of my whiskey, so she’ll stop interfering.” His brows drew together in a look of puzzlement. “Wonder why she came out here? She’s not acting like she wants to be married.”

The man had business sense and apparently even a smattering of sentimentality, but he was hopeless when it came to women. He’d made an enemy of the one person who could help him most.

“Let me offer you a suggestion. Put Mrs. Braddock in charge of matchmaking. Better still
hire
her as a matchmaker, and she’ll be compelled to prove she’s capable. I predict it will speed up the process considerably.”

“Hire her?” Hardt snorted. “What makes you think I want her working for me?”

“She’s a natural leader, has the respect of the other women and likes to be in charge. She’d be perfect for the job.” Val set down his glass and picked up his drawings, rolled them into a tube. “You have to admit, you’re terrible at matchmaking.”

Hardt finished off his drink. “Oh, I don’t know. I did a fair job setting you up with Rose.”

––––––––

T
hree hours later, Val brought a buggy around, just as he’d promised. Rose insisted on walking outside, but she allowed him to help her up into the seat. He took the reins and turned the horse around, heading out of town.

“Where are we going?”

“I thought we might ride out to the property. There’s something I want to show you.”

“You found a buyer.” She tried to sound happy for him.

“Not exactly.”

She didn’t know what he meant by that, but it didn’t matter. The time had come to tell him he didn’t have to worry about her any longer, that as soon as he sold his land, he could go, and God speed. At least, those were the lines she’d rehearsed. Actually saying them was another thing entirely. “When...when will you return to England?”

He glanced over at her, reproachful. “You’re spoiling my surprise.”

“I didn’t realize that was a surprise.”

“Not that, you’ll see...”

The day had turned out to be perfect, warm, with a nice breeze, unless one was riding in a buggy behind a fast-trotting horse. She reached up to tighten the ribbon beneath her chin so her opera bonnet wouldn’t fly off in the wind. “This horse is fast.”

“Not nearly as fast as the ones I prefer to ride.”

“Remind me never to ride with you.”

“I’ll purchase a gentle horse for you.”

Rose hugged her shawl closer. He’d opened the door for a conversation about the future. She’d put it off as long as possible. “Val, I want you to know how much I appreciate all you’ve done for me. You’ve been a kind, attentive, caring husband.”

He arched a brow at her. “Have you confused me with someone else? I’ve been terrible to you, with the exception of these past few days, which doesn’t make up for my previous ill treatment.”

“Don’t be silly. You haven’t treated me ill, and you saved my life. You’re
good-wooled
.”

“Good what?”

“
Good-wooled
. Means you’ve got courage and don’t flinch.”

He smiled a pleased smile. “Sweet Rose. I love your colorful adjectives.”

She had no idea what that was, but the fact that he loved something about her eased some of her misgivings. Maybe she was wrong about his motive. Her heart beat faster.

“Do you love more than my, er, adjectives?”

He burst out with a laugh. Had she said something funny? “Oh yes, the list of things I love about you is much longer.”

The tiny flicker of hope burned brighter. “Will you tell me what’s on it, this list?”

He turned the horse down the road she’d traveled when she’d come out to see him. The wheels dropped into a rut, sending her sliding across the seat. He lifted his arm and brought her closer, remaining in control of the horse.

“On my list of what I love about Rose Muldoon Valentine: your height, a perfect fit to mine, your lovely elegant hands, your
long
legs....”

She blushed as he eyed said limbs with a knowing smile.

“Your pretty blushes, smooth skin, sweet lips...”

Rose sighed. “Aye, I love your lips, too.”

“My turn first, then you can list all the things you love about me.”

She nodded and bit her lip, smiling.

“Let’s see, where was I? Oh yes, more body parts are on the list, but I think I’ll wait until we’re alone so I can pay special attention to each one of them.”

And she would return the favor. But not until she’d established the reason he’d changed his mind after telling her he didn’t want her love.

“Do you still think it’s your fault, what happened?”

He was silent for a moment. “I do blame myself because Jarvis wouldn’t have hurt you if you hadn’t been with me.”

“Are you keeping me because you feel obliged?”

“What?” He slowed the horse and turned onto the path. The tall grass slapped at the sides of the buggy as they headed toward the homestead. “Haven’t you heard anything I’ve said?”

“Your list, you mean? It’s nice, yes.”

He drew back on the reins until the horse came to a halt, and then turned to her, frowning. “Nice? I’m telling you I love you. That’s more than
nice
.”

She searched his earnest face, afraid to believe. “You...love me?”

“You sound surprised. Have I done such a poor job of showing it?”

“No, you’ve been so good to me, spoiling me. But I thought you were doing it because you felt guilty about what happened. And, you told me you didn’t want my love.”

He gathered her hands, looking down at them, rubbing his thumb over hers, as if he couldn’t bear to look at her. But then he did, and his eyes were very bright. “That was a lie. I need your love, Rose. I crave it. But...I was afraid I couldn’t love you like you deserve to be loved, and that I would disappoint you.”

“Oh Val, you never—”

He put his finger to her lips, silencing her. “I know. You don’t seem to see the things that are wrong with me. Or maybe you do, and like you said, you don’t care. You told me I needed to let love do its work, and that’s what I’m willing to do if you’ll give me the chance.”

Replacing his finger with his lips, he gave her a reverent kiss. “Marry me, Rose. Be my wife in every way. Teach me how to love. That’s what I love best about you. Your heart.”

Rose went into his arms, laughing. Pure joy welled up and spilled over. “I love you, Val, and I’ll marry you as many times as you want.”

She hugged her husband, and he hugged her in return, and they kissed and hugged and kissed some more. At last, she laid her head on his shoulder and knew she would never know more happiness, or if she did, it would be with him.

“What is the surprise you’re wanting to show me?”

“Just this.” He reached behind the seat and withdrew the rolled paper, then spread them out on his lap. “These are drawings for a mine. Our mine. We’ll be staying here, Rose. I’ll be opening a mine and operating it, and we’ll eventually have enough to build a very nice home—out here or in town, it’s your choice.”

She thought she couldn’t be happier. She was wrong. Tears of happiness coursed down her cheeks.  “What made you change your mind about leaving?”

“Besides falling in love with you?” He tweaked her nose and a smile lifted one side of his mouth. “I realized there was no point to going back. You’re right. I can’t change the past or what I did. I can only try to live a better life in the future. I plan to give my father and my brothers a share in the mine, if you agree. They may never want to see me again, but this is something I need to do.”

“Of course, whatever you think is the right thing.” She reached up and stroked his cheek, gazed into his eyes. “What are their names, your brothers?”

“Julius and Hadrian.”

“Constantine, Julius and Hadrian...” Rose smiled, amused. “Where did those fancy names come from?”

“My father wanted to name his sons after Roman emperors. He fancied creating a dynasty.”

“Constantine was a Roman emperor? I heard they were bad.”

“There were some bad apples. But Constantine converted. He brought Christianity to the empire, so he did do some good.”

“Ah. So you’re saying that men who’ve done bad things can turn around and do good, and be remembered for those things?”

His smile started slow and then spread. “Are you trying to teach me a lesson?”

She leaned up and kissed him. “Just telling you something you already know.”

––––––––

The End

The Bride Train
series continues...

Coming in April,
Patrick’s Charm, Book 2 The Bride Train series.

Find out more about the series at my website

www.eeburke.com

––––––––

American Mail-Order Brides Series

Victoria, Bride of Kansas

––––––––

Steam! Romance and Rails Series

Passion’s Prize

Kate’s Outlaw

Her Bodyguard

A Dangerous Passion

Fugitive Hearts

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Did you love
Valentine's Rose
? Then you should read
Victoria, Bride of Kansas
by E.E. Burke!

From an award-winning author, an 
American Brides Series
novella:

A starry-eyed bride, an unwilling groom, a secret matchmaker and a troubled child… When the truth finally comes out, it’ll take a more than a miracle to deliver a happily ever after.

Jilted society miss Victoria Lowell travels a thousand miles to marry a suitor she's never met, but whose romantic letters won her heart. Upon arriving in Fort Scott, she's met at the train station by a man who doesn't seem like the same person she met through correspondance. 

Divorced shopkeeper David O’Brien wants nothing to do with matters of the heart. However, his young daughter needs a mother and his meddling sister believes she’s done him a favor by corresponding with a mail-order bride. He holds off on revealing the true author of the letters Victoria received and sets a date for their marriage. Love isn't part of the bargain. But love is what Victoria has come this far to find... 

Victoria, Bride of Kansas
, is the 34th book in the unprecedented 50-book series,
American Mail-Order Brides. 

Order
Victoria, Bride of Kansas
 today...and don't forget the sequel:
Santa's Mail-Order Bride.
Two stories that will warm your heart year-round.

Read more at
E.E. Burke’s site
.