Texas Rose

chapter 23

"Where the hell do you think you're going all geared up like that?" Standing on the boardwalk in front of the sheriff's office, Jace stuck his thumbs in his gun belt and eyed his younger brother skeptically as Kyle swung off his horse.

Wearing his best white linen shirt, a cravat, and a fawn-colored corduroy coat that had all too evidently been dragged from the back of his wardrobe, Kyle wiped the dust off his polished boots with his handkerchief and stuffed the now-dirty cotton back into his pocket. He merely grinned at his brother and joined him on the boardwalk.

"Pheewy!" Jace held his nose. "You've got on more stinkwater than a polecat. If you're not careful, you're going to resemble our resident dandy here." He nodded at Tyler who was leaning against the wall, carving an unoffending stick into a point. Tyler looked up at the reference, gave Kyle's Sunday clothes a disinterested look, and returned to his whittling.

Kyle grinned even wider. "He's just a boy. I'll show him how a man courts a lady."

Tyler closed his knife and put it in his back pocket. He pushed his broad-brimmed hat back on his head, revealing more of his golden curls, and gave Kyle another once-over. "I'd loan you my waistcoat, but I'd be afraid you'd stretch it over that paunch of yours. Why don't we have a game of cards and discuss fashion later?"

Kyle was admittedly a larger man than Tyler, but there wasn't an ounce of fat on him, and he took Tyler's insult for what it was worth. He gave the gambler's French cuffs and embroidered waistcoat a look of scorn. "I've got some time. I'll win enough for a bottle of fancy wine and some candy for the lady, then I'll be on my way."

Fatal last words.

While Tyler skillfully played one hand into another well into the afternoon, Evie excitedly tried on every walking dress in her wardrobe, debating the merits of the formal gray merino over the more elegant ecru foulard.

"Philly and Delphia have no reason to lie, Daniel," she called through the bedroom door. "You know your boss gets all the news first. Mr. Hale is back, and I'm going to see him."

"Evie, I don't want you seeing him until I can come with you." On the other side of the door, Daniel reached for his walking stick. He wasn't using his leg yet, but he was getting better at hopping around on one foot with the stick for support.

"Oh, pooh! He's just a lawyer. What can he do but look at me as if I'm deranged? It wouldn't be the first time." Evie decided on the foulard and rummaged in her jewelry box for a gold locket to add a bit of brightness. She was grateful Carmen had taken Maria with her to the store. There was never time for the little niceties like accessories when the children were around.

"I don't think you ought to tell him who you are. I think I ought to go over there as a friend of the family and make inquiries. There could be a lot of money at stake here. You don't want to rush things." Daniel pulled himself up and hopped toward the door.

Evie pointed back to the chair. "Sit, Daniel. The doctor said exercise the leg, but he didn't mean for you to walk on it."

"If you go without me, I'm sending Manuel after Tyler. I know he's still in town." Daniel met Evie's gaze defiantly.

Evie knew it would take time and effort to locate Manuel, and she could be there and back before Daniel's threat could have effect, but she didn't want Daniel walking even as far as the livery with that leg. She pointed at the chair again. "Sit. You can't ruin your future by damaging that leg. And that's what you'll do if you come with me. And I'm not about to let know-it-all Tyler have any part of this. It's none of his business."

Daniel sat, but the rebelliousness hadn't left his face. "He's your husband, Evie. The two of you can pretend all you want, but the fact of the matter is, you're married. And even if you're right and there isn't any baby, the marriage isn't going away by ignoring it. So as your husband, Tyler should be with you when you see Hale."

The only mirror in the house was the small one she had brought with her. Evie propped it on the mantel and examined her hair. Everything seemed in order. She turned back to her room to find the matching hat. It had a veil of sorts that would hold her hair in place. Keeping a decent coiffure in this heat and dust was a trial.

"Well, I'm not about to go into a saloon looking for Tyler, so you can forget it, Daniel," she called from the bedroom. Finding the hat, she turned to examine its placement in the mirror. "I won't tell Hale who I am. How's that?"

"What will you tell him, then?"

"I don't know. Whatever comes to mind." Airily, Evie adjusted her hat, inspected her skirt to be certain all the flounces and petticoats were in their proper place, and swept out.

It was Saturday and there was no reason to expect that the lawyer would be in his office, but Evie went anyway. She couldn't wait one minute longer than necessary to find out how much the man knew. She had waited a lifetime already. There really could be very little danger in just asking a few questions.

She climbed the stairs to the lawyer's office in full view of the town. There wasn't any reason why the local schoolteacher couldn't see a lawyer. They were both perfectly respectable people. Garbed in full regalia, her bustle swinging her train in proper elegance, Evie felt prepared for anything.

In the shadows, Manuel whistled softly in appreciation before darting off to inform the man who had paid to notify him as soon as she put in an appearance.

Evie knocked politely, then walked in at a call from someone inside. The room was cast in the half-light of pulled shades, but she could tell it was a lawyer's office. The stale air reeked of ancient cigars. There was a horsehair sofa in one corner that she knew would exude dust if she sat down. An oil lamp with a green shade to force its light downward sat on one corner of the old mahogany veneer desk. The veneer was coming loose in places, and the leather of the two chairs in front of it was cracked and mottled.

But Evie's interest was more in the man behind the desk. He wore unrimmed glasses as he studied a stack of papers that had apparently accumulated in his absence. His blond, thinning hair seemed barely able to cover his skull. But when he looked up, his smile was genial, and then appreciative, and Evie felt right at home.

He wasn't much taller than herself when he stood up. Accustomed as she had become to tall men like Tyler and the Hardings with their wide shoulders, she was slightly taken aback at Mr. Hale, who seemed almost slender and effeminate. But she remembered men like that from St. Louis—very successful men—she reminded herself, and she relaxed.

"Mr. Hale?" she inquired.

"Jonathan Hale, at your service, ma'am. How may I help you?" He gestured toward one of the leather chairs.

Evie chose the chair without arms and spread her skirts as she chose her words. "It's a rather delicate matter, sir. I don't know how to put it." She smiled a little, just enough to get him slightly flustered. It was purely ridiculous the way men would fall for a woman's smile, but she had very few weapons in her arsenal, and she had learned to use them skillfully. "I'm Mrs. Maryellen Peyton, the new schoolteacher here in Mineral Springs."

Hale had reason to remember the name "Peyton" well, and his interest intensified. As he studied the woman before him, he grew even more excited. The hair, the eyes, the clothes, all fit the description. The name was baffling, and her appearance here was a matter of some concern. Unaffected by her smile, he listened as she continued to speak at his nod.

"I've just come from Natchez, but I have corresponded for a long time with a friend of my childhood in St. Louis. When she heard I was coming here, she was most anxious that I make a few inquiries, and she gave me your name." Evie hesitated a moment to see how this elaborate network of lies was being absorbed. The lawyer nodded thoughtfully, waiting for her to continue. He wasn't being very helpful.

Slightly miffed, Evie elaborated a little further. "She's an orphan, but she has reason to believe her parents are from this area." Evie silently cursed her choice of assumed name. There would be questions about that "Peyton" if she wasn't careful. She summoned all her powers of creativity to the problem. "As a matter of fact, she was quite excited when I married Alexander Peyton, my late husband, because she thought Peyton might be part of her family name." There, that should do it. She had Tyler to thank for that little absurdity.

Hale formed his fingers into a little tent and studied her intently. "Are you asking me to find your friend's family, Mrs. Peyton?"

Evie took a deep breath, but the little man didn't seem to appreciate the sight. She exhaled slowly to give herself time to place this as delicately as possible. "She found your name on some papers, Mr. Hale. She thinks you might already know about her family. Her name is Evangeline Peyton Howell."

Evie waited in triumph while the lawyer took off his glasses and polished them. He knew the name all right. She could see it in the way his hand shook. The test of his honesty would come with his next words.

Hale replaced his glasses on his nose. "The Howells were a prominent family in this town, Mrs. Peyton. They paid well to keep their secrets. They're all dead now, of course, sad to say, but I can't ethically give secrets to a stranger. Perhaps you should have Miss Howell write to me."

Swamped with disappointment, Evie folded her hands in her lap. She wanted to know now. She had half a mind to tell him who she was just to shake him out of his complacency, but she had promised Daniel to be cautious. She didn't want to be cautious. This man had what she wanted, and she wanted it with every hair and particle of her body.

But she stood up and smiled sweetly. "I'll do that, Mr. Hale. I do appreciate your time. Evie will be quite delighted to hear you know of her family. You don't have any idea what that will mean to her."

Hale rose and saw her to the door and watched as she swept down the stairs in a flurry of silk petticoats and a cloud of cinnamon-rose scent. It was all he could do to keep his heart beating as she walked out of sight. When he closed the door, he gave a sigh of relief and felt what could only be a shiver of anticipation. It had been a long time since he'd had a feeling of anticipation. He'd given up hope long ago when he was just a boy and his father had informed him that he was going to be a lawyer and not a cowboy.

He no longer had a child's dream of roping cattle and riding a horse in the hot sun all day, but the life of a cattle baron could be a very lucrative one. The Hardings lived simply, it was true, but as their lawyer, he knew how much wealth had accumulated out there. And he knew to a dime how much more would accumulate now that the war was over and profits were skyrocketing. And that bundle of living joy who had just walked out owned half of all that.

The knowledge was sweet in his mouth. He wanted to savor it for a long time, a very long time. But he had to make plans.

He almost laughed at the pile of work on his desk. He had come back here a failure. He had searched St. Louis high and low for the elusive Miss Evangeline Howell, but she had disappeared with all her worldly belongings and hadn't been seen since the funeral of her guardian. Who would have believed that the little heiress would have turned up here, right under his nose?

And under the nose of her stepbrothers. Hale wondered what the Hardings would do if they knew their beautiful new schoolteacher was the owner of half their spread. He didn't think he would let them know right away. If things worked out well, he wouldn't let them know until his wedding day, his wedding to Miss Evangeline Peyton Howell, formerly known as Maryellen Peyton.

* * *

Tyler was waiting for her around the corner. Evie stopped in her tracks and regarded him suspiciously. After last Friday night, she wasn't at all certain that she wanted to speak to the cad. She certainly hadn't thought he'd want to speak to her.

"You're tricked out mighty fine this afternoon, Miss Peyton." He removed his hat and offered her his arm. When she didn't take it, he caught her gloved hand and pulled it through the crook of his elbow.

She didn't want to be this close to Tyler Monteigne. She could smell his shaving soap. And she smelled the smoke of the saloon he'd probably been in since this morning. She remembered the strength of the arm she was holding, and she tried to draw away.

It was a futile battle. His hand covered hers, and she couldn't struggle with him in full view of everyone. Digging her fingers in and hoping they hurt, she turned her sweet smile on him. "And it's a pleasure to see you, too, Mr. Monteigne. To what do I owe this honor?"

"I just thought you might be interested in telling me why you went to see the town lawyer as soon as he got back. Another man might think it suspicious after our discussion last week, but I'm a better man than that. I figure you're bound to be looking for your long lost sister."

"Maybe I was looking for a way to sue you for everything you have, Tyler Monteigne. After all, a man who does what you did ought to be forced to a little responsibility."

Tyler kept smiling as she was doing. He stopped in the window of the millinery shop and pretended to show her a hat there. "I had the clerk at the general store set up an account for you, and I've told Daniel about it so you can't pretend it isn't there." He had never tried to talk through clenched molars before. It wasn't easy, but it was better than shaking her until her teeth rattled. "I told you I was willing to support you.'

"Why, that's generous of you, I'm sure." Evie disengaged her hand now that he'd loosened his grip. "Perhaps I won't be needing a lawyer after all." She picked up her skirt and hurried in the direction of the livery but Tyler caught her arm before she could escape.

"I think I'll walk you back home. You never know when a lady will be accosted by strangers in this town.

His grip was hard as it steered her in the proper direction. Too furious to speak, Evie let the angry tap-tap of her shoes on the boardwalk speak for her.

Kyle Harding was just coming out of the house as they turned down the alley. He saw them approach and pulled off his hat.

"Monteigne, it's mighty thoughtful of you to find the lady for me. Mrs. Peyton." He grinned and saluted her with a gallant bow. His eyes danced as he noted Tyler's scowl and the lady's blinding smile. "I've come a-courtin', Mrs. Peyton, just as I promised. Do I pass inspection?"

Kyle held out his arms so she could fully admire his formal attire. The cravat was now askew and his linen crumpled, but he was a well-built man with masculine assurance that didn't require fancy clothes. Tyler didn't require the refinement, either, but she wasn't currently speaking to him.

Evie smiled her appreciation. "You are quite the most handsome man I've see today, sir. Have you spoken with Daniel?" She ignored the irritated grip on her arm.

"I have, and he gives me his permission to take you over to John's to eat and then to dance out at the church afterward. I think he regrets he can't go along as chaperon, but I very much suspect one or more of your little charges will have their noses pressed against the window to keep an eye on you, so I'll behave."

Evie could just imagine Manuel or Jose peeking in the church windows and hiding under chairs at Daniel's instigation, not to mention Tyler's. She threw her escort a look of indignation and discreetly removed her arm from his hold.

Kyle grinned easily, not having missed a moment of his opponent's discomfiture. After losing the better part of his cash to the gambler this afternoon, he wasn't extending him any sympathy. "Well, Monteigne, you know what they say about being lucky in cards and unlucky in love..." He held out his arm for Evie.

She took it and walked off without looking back.

And from the second-floor lawyer's office, Hale watched the woman he intended to marry emerge from the alley with Kyle Harding on her arm. First the fancy stranger, now Harding. He would have to work fast if he meant to capture Miss Evangeline Howell.

Knowing full well how his looks compared to her other two suitors, Hale applied his active mind to other methods of persuasion. Harding and Monteigne might look prettier, but he was smarter. He was certain to come up with something, sooner or later.