Runaway (8 page)

Lane and Steve moved on to take a look at the rest of the buildings. When they passed the foreman’s small house, Steve’s wife, a pretty, dark-haired woman, came outside.

“Well, who’ve you got here today?” Caroline called out.

Steve took Lane over to meet her. “Caroline, this is the new owner of the Circle D, Seth Rawlins. Seth, this is my wife Caroline.”

“Nice to meet you, Seth, and I do mean that,” she said as she smiled up at him, liking what she was seeing. She thought the new man looked a whole lot sharper than Chuck. Caroline had never been one to mince words, so she just asked straight out, “I take it change is coming?”

Lane was struck by her forthrightness, and he was quick to answer. “For the better, ma’am.”

“Good. Good. And please call me Caroline. All the other boys do.”

“I’ll do just that—Caroline,” Lane replied with a smile.

She laughed good-naturedly. “It’s good you’re here, Seth. The Circle D needs you. There’s some hard work that needs to be done around here, and Chuck never had the money. Can’t say I’m surprised that he lost the ranch in a card game. I’m just real glad you’re the one who won it.”

“Well, I’m glad to be here,” Lane answered truthfully. He hated to think what might have become of Caroline and the other good people on the ranch if the real Seth had shown up, intent on providing a hideout for a gang of killers.

“I’ll be cooking your meals for you,” she continued. “I’ll bring ‘em on up to the house if you like.”

“Thanks. I know your cooking has got to be a whole lot better than mine,” he told her.

“I don’t get too many complaints from the boys,” she said.

Lane and Steve headed to the main house then so he could take a look around. It was a two-story structure with a full front porch that stirred memories for Lane of the house at the Bar M.

“Chuck didn’t come back for anything, so you’ve got some furniture,” Steve advised.

“That’s good.”

Lane followed Steve indoors, and they walked through the rooms. The house was sparsely furnished, but that didn’t matter to Lane. He only needed a place to sleep. The main floor had a kitchen, dining room, sitting room and a small study, and there were two bedrooms upstairs.

“Chuck always kept the books there in the desk drawer,” Steve explained when they went back outside again.

“I’ll take a look at them right away. Thanks for showing me around.”

Lane walked back to the hitching rail with Steve to get his saddlebags and gear.

“If you need anything, Seth, me and the boys will be down at the stable,” the foreman offered.

“I appreciate your help.”

“You’re the boss,” Steve said with a grin. “By the way, Caroline will have your dinner up here for you around five.”

“I’ll be looking forward to it.”

Lane returned to the main house and stood just inside the front door for a moment, looking around. He had been so focused on bringing down the Cooper Gang and making sure he could pull off playing the role of Seth Rawlins, he hadn’t stopped to consider that he was going back to his old way of life.

He was going back to ranching. Lane forced away the painful memories that threatened and concentrated on settling in.

He had a job to do.

Dan Cooper could show up at any time.

He had to be ready.

Two Weeks Later

Bluff Springs

It was near noon when Destiny spotted some buildings in the distance as she gazed out the window of the stagecoach.

“Gertrude—That may be Bluff Springs!” she told her companion excitedly.

The older woman quickly looked in the direction she’d indicated and smiled. “Looks as if we’re right on time, like Joe said.”

When they’d started out early that morning, Joe, the stage driver, had told them that barring any unexpected trouble, he expected to reach town by midday.

Destiny said no more as the realization that they had finally reached Bluff Springs began to sink in. Soon, very soon, she was going to be face-to-face with the man named Seth Rawlins—the man who was to be her husband. She was a bit unnerved by the prospect, but with Raymond undoubtedly searching for her back in St. Louis, she had no choice.

There was no going back.

Destiny had come to accept her fate as best she could as they’d traveled over the long, endless miles of the untamed West. Thanks to Sylvia’s quick thinking, she had a whole new identity and hope for a fresh start. Determined to make the best of her new life, she looked up to find Gertrude’s gaze warm upon her.

“It’s a little scary, isn’t it, Rebecca?” the wise woman asked. She’d become quite fond of the young woman she’d been assigned to escort and had been impressed by her ladylike ways. The man Rebecca was going to marry was one lucky fellow—he was getting a beautiful young woman who was a true lady.

Destiny nodded, smiling slightly. “You could tell?”

“It will be all right,” Gertrude reassured her. “You’ll see. Judging by his telegram, your Seth sounds like an upstanding man. Just think, by this time tomorrow, you’re going to be Mrs. Seth Rawlins. The wife of a successful rancher.”

Destiny said nothing, but the thought of this unknown ’Seth’ left her even more uneasy. If he was so successful, why did he have to send back East for a wife? She knew she’d be finding out all too soon.

The stagecoach kicked up a big cloud of dust as it came to a stop in front of the stage office in Bluff Springs.

“We’re here,” Destiny announced.

“Finally,” Gertrude replied.

Their trip across country had been long and tedious at times. They’d had to deal with some awkward situations on the way. Heavy rains had washed out a road one day, and then the stagecoach had become stuck in the mire. When they’d gotten out of the stage to lighten the load, they had been attacked by hornets whose nest had been disturbed by their presence. That was one day Destiny would never forget. Then there had been the passengers who’d shared the close quarters of the stagecoach with them. Some had obviously never heard of the words ’soap and water,’ and there had been a few screaming, crying children, too. Destiny and Gertrude had been the only passengers on this last leg of their journey, and for that they’d been grateful. Now, at last, they had arrived.

“Is Seth going to be in town to meet us?” Destiny asked. She tried to sound like an eager bride-to-be.

“No. According to what I understand, he’s asked that you be brought out to him at his ranch. As soon as Joe unloads our bags, I’ll look into finding a buggy and a driver who knows how to get to the Circle D.” Gertrude was more than ready to take charge now that they had reached their destination. She would deliver the mail-order bride and stay long enough to witness their wedding before heading back home to St. Louis.

Their conversation was interrupted when Joe, the driver, threw wide the stagecoach door.

“Ladies, we are in Bluff Springs,” he announced.

“You’re a man of your word, Joe,” Gertrude complimented him. “It’s almost noon.”

“I do try to stay on schedule. Here, let me help you down,” he offered, reaching up to take Gertrude’s hand.

She thanked him very primly as she climbed stiffly out of the stagecoach with his assistance. “It does feel good to get out and move around.”

The driver turned back to help the pretty young lady who was traveling with the chaperone. “Here you go, Miss Lawrence.”

“Thank you,” Destiny said as she, too, exited the stage.

“Looks like there’s no one here to meet you,” he observed, a little concerned that two such fine ladies would be alone in a strange town.

“We didn’t expect there would be,” Gertrude told him.

“Do you need any help?” he offered.

“We do need to find our way to the Circle D Ranch.”

“I’ll tell you what. I’ll go to the stable and see what I can find out for you. Just let me get your bags down first,” Joe said.

“We’d surely appreciate it.”

Joe swung the heavy bags off the roof of the coach.

“You stay right here,” he directed. “I’ll be back.”

Joe left them safely there by the stage office while he went to check. True, it was daylight and a weekday, but in these wild towns, sometimes trouble happened no matter what time of day it was.

The stage driver’s absence gave the women some time to examine their surroundings, and Destiny realized that life in Bluff Springs was very different from the existence she’d known in St. Louis.

“This town isn’t very big, is it?” she said to Gertrude.

“You’re not in St. Louis anymore, that’s for sure,” the chaperone replied sympathetically.

“One thing is certain—”

“What’s that?”

“I don’t think I’ll be seeing any steamboats here,” Destiny said with a grin, thinking of the St. Louis riverfront and all the boats on the levee.

They both laughed, knowing there was a big difference between Missouri rivers and Texas rivers.

“There is one thing I wish, though…,” Destiny said, looking down at her dust-covered, travel-worn clothing.

“What is it?”

“I wish there was time for me to get freshened up before we go out to the ranch to meet Seth.”

“I understand your feelings. First impressions are important, but I’m sure that under the circumstances, Seth will not expect perfect grooming. We’ve come a long way without the best of accommodations, and, honestly, even if we did take a room at the hotel to get cleaned up and change clothes, I’m sure we would be just as disheveled after the trip out to the ranch, especially if we end up riding out there in an open carriage.”

Just as Gertrude was speaking, they heard the sound of a vehicle approaching and looked down the main street of town to see Joe riding up in a buggy that was being driven by another man.

“Ladies, this is Mick Baylor from down at the stable. He’s agreed to take you out to the Circle D.”

“Afternoon,” called the wildly bearded, almost toothless Mick, giving them a big, warm smile.

“Hello, Mr. Baylor,” Gertrude returned.

Mick guffawed. “I ain’t no ’mister,’ ma’am. I’m just Ol’ Mick.”

“Well, Ol’ Mick, it’s nice to meet you.”

Mick smiled at the older woman and then looked down at her younger traveling companion. He gave the young one a good looking over, for she was real easy on the eyes. He couldn’t help wondering what connection these two had with that new owner out at the Circle D.

Joe spoke up. “I’ll load up your bags for you, and you can be on your way.”

“We appreciate everything you’ve done for us, Joe,” Gertrude said. Then she looked at the man named Mick. “I take it you know your way to the Circle D.”

“Yep, I sure do,” he responded as he got down to help the two women up into the buggy. “It ain’t gonna be an easy ride, so you’d better hang on.”

“How far is it?”

“Oh, ‘bout half an hour or so. What business you got out there? You know the new owner? That Seth fella?”

“Yes, Miss Lawrence is his fiancée.”

“Well, ain’t he going to be glad to see you—” Mick grinned. Seth Rawlins had not only won a ranch in a card game, he had found himself one pretty girl. Mick wished he had some of the rancher’s luck.

“We certainly hope so,” Gertrude replied. This wasn’t the first time she’d escorted a mail-order bride to her waiting husband, and she knew the first moments of meeting could be quite awkward and strained. She would have preferred to meet Seth in town in a more neutral setting.

“How far have you traveled?” Mick asked the younger woman.

“We’re from St. Louis,” Destiny answered politely.

“Welcome to Bluff Springs, missy. You’re gonna like it here.”

“I hope so.” She smiled at him, sensing he truly meant his welcome. “I’m glad we’ve finally made it. There were days when I thought the trip was never going to end.”

“Let’s get you out to the Circle D and deliver you to your intended.” Mick slapped the reins on the team’s backs, and they were off, covering the last miles of their journey.

As Destiny sat beside Gertrude on the hard, narrow seat, hanging on tightly as they headed for the ranch, she realized the moment had finally come. She knew from now on, she could never again think of herself as Destiny Sterling. She was Rebecca Lawrence, and soon she would be Mrs. Seth Rawlins.

Destiny offered up a silent prayer for the strength and guidance to get through what was about to happen. She prayed, too, that Seth Rawlins would be a man she could respect and enjoy living with.

Destiny knew little to nothing about the man she was about to meet and marry, but she knew Seth Rawlins was her future. She had to do everything she could to make this arrangement work out. Never in all her life had she imagined she would be a mailorder bride. She had always believed she would marry someone from St. Louis society, someone her parents would approve of and bless. She’d always imagined she would have a big, beautiful wedding.

The thought of her mother and father brought tears to her eyes, but she fought them back, struggling for control over her runaway emotions. It had been so hard losing her father; then she’d been heartbroken when her mother died too…She couldn’t be weak now—or ever again. Her mother had raised her to be a strong woman, and, if ever there was a time in her life when she’d needed to be strong, this was it.

Destiny forced a smile on her face and stared out across the unending Texas countryside. It was wild and untamed, but it was also vast and beautiful. Gazing at the vast landscape, she made up her mind to find the beauty in her new life.

Lane was working in the stable with Steve when he saw a buggy in the distance heading their way.

“We’ve got some company coming,” Lane remarked, frowning slightly. In the last couple of weeks, he’d been to town a few times and had spoken with some of the folks there, but he hadn’t expected anyone to show up at the ranch for a visit.

Steve stopped what he was doing and went to take a look. “That’s the buggy they keep down at the stable,” he observed. “It’s probably Ol’ Mick driving. I wonder what he’s up to?”

“I guess we’re going to find out,” Lane replied as he strode over to meet the approaching buggy.

Steve was too curious to keep working, so he followed Seth outside and went to stand with him as Ol’ Mick reined in.

The sight of the two women in the buggy immediately set Lane to worrying. Seth Rawlins certainly hadn’t had any family that he’d ever heard of, and he wondered if they were kin to the previous owner who’d lost the ranch in the card game. One way or the other, their presence might mean trouble.

If the women didn’t know of the ranch’s change in ownership, there could be an awkward scene. If they had any connection to Seth, his false identity was about to be revealed. He waited, his mood grim while he managed a welcoming, yet curious smile.

“Afternoon,” he greeted them.

“Afternoon, Seth, Steve,” Ol’ Mick replied and then nodded toward the ladies. “I got a special delivery here for Seth!”

“I can see that.” Lane smiled at the two women. “Hello, ladies.”

Lane had no idea who they were, and he felt a surge of relief when he saw no sign of confusion in their expressions as they looked straight at him. He was thankful that they’d obviously never met the real Seth.

“They came in on the noon stage, and I wanted to get them out here to you right away,” Ol’ Mick went on.

“I appreciate it,” Lane said.

“I take it you’re Mr. Rawlins?” Gertrude inquired before descending from the buggy. She eyed the tall, dark-haired man up and down critically. She had to admit that with a bath, a shave and a haircut, he might be very handsome. It looked as though Rebecca was going to make out all right on this arranged marriage.

“I am,” Lane replied, puzzled by her manner. It was almost as if she were inspecting him, looking for something, but he didn’t see any mistrust or doubt in her expression.

Gertrude smiled brightly at him. “Well, it’s good to meet you, Mr. Rawlins. I’m Gertrude McAllister from St. Louis, and this is Rebecca Lawrence, your mailorder bride.”