Ecstasy's Promise (Historical Romance) (27 page)

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That night Edward drafted several letters. After he finished them he called Price Williams into his study. He told his bookkeeper all the facts.

"You are to go to Georgia and see this thing
through. I would go myself, but I cannot get away at
the moment. This is the most important thing I have
ever asked you to do for me. I know you will not let
me down. Here are letters of introduction that will open doors for you and make your job easier."

"You can trust me, Edward," Price told him. . "That is why I am sending you. You get some
sleep now, and leave first thing in the morning. Take
the quickest transportation available." Edward handed him an envelope filled with money. "Spare
no expense, Price. Pull this off for me, and there will
be a bonus waiting for you."

"I will do my best," Price told him.

"I am depending on that. Now the hour is late, you had best get some rest."

After Price left, Edward walked over to the wall safe and removed a box that contained his mother's jewelry. He found the ring his father had given his mother when they were married. It had a huge
diamond and was surrounded by eight smaller ones.
Edward held it up to the light and watched as it shimmered. It will fit, he thought.

Edward sat at his desk long after the rest of the household slept. Tomorrow would be the most
important day in his life. His whole future depended
on Victoria's answer.

19

Victoria awoke to find Bodine sitting beside her.

"You cannot stay out of trouble, can you, Imp?" he teased.

"What is my condition, Bodine?"

"You have two bruised ribs, honey. We are lucky
that they were not broken like last time."

"When can I go home?"

"Not for a few more days, honey. How do you
feel?"

"Not so bad, Bodine."

"Liar," he said affectionately. "Honey, I want to talk to you, but you are not to get upset. Just try to remain calm."

"What has happened?" Victoria asked, expecting
the worst.

"Maj. Ray Courtney knows who you are."

"I was afraid of something like that," Victoria said, anxiously. "What can I do? Will he arrest me?”

"No," Bodine told her. "Edward Hanover has interceded on your behalf and has bought us some time."

Her eyes grew cloudy. "Edward knows all about
me?"

"Yes, I told him everything."

"Bodine, why would Edward want to help me? I do not understand."

Bodine shifted his weight. "Edward wants to talk to you this morning. He will explain everything to you then. You must listen to him and put your trust in him."

"He is coming here?" Victoria asked. "I do not think I can face him now that he knows about my
past.”

Bodine looked at Victoria for a long moment. "Edward understands it was not your fault, what
happened to you in Georgia. Now I am going to ride
back to the ranch. I will see you tonight. Try to rest." He started to the door and came back to stand by her bed. "Do you still love Edward?"

"Yes, Bodine, I do," Victoria said with tears in her eyes. "I wish I did not."

He smiled and chucked her under the chin. "See you tonight, Imp."

After he left, she lay quietly, her mind in a
turmoil. She wondered what Edward thought of her
now that he knew of her past. Bodine said he wanted
to help her. Oh, my love, she thought, there is no help for me.

She remembered that he was to be married and felt the old familiar ache. She thought of how kind he had been when Consuelo was having her baby.
Then yesterday he had stood between her and harm.
Somehow he always seemed to be there when she needed him, and now he wanted to help her once more. She could not understand him. What a complicated man he was. She remembered how he
had been at her grandmother's birthday party. He had been angry then, although she still did not understand why. Most probably she would never understand Edward Hanover.

Her grandmother, carrying a tray with Victoria's breakfast, came into the room. Bodine had told her all that had occurred, and she was delighted that Edward and Victoria would find each other at last. She said nothing, however, since Edward had not yet proposed.

"You must eat a good breakfast, child, and then we will make you presentable for Edward's visit."

In spite of everything that had happened Victoria could not help but be excited about seeing Edward again.

Dan came by and checked her over.

"Please," she begged him, "allow me to sit in the
chair."

"No, I cannot allow that, but if you are very still and do not move about, I will allow you to sit up in bed for a short time," Dan told her, unable to resist her plea. He offered her something for the pain,
which she refused. He told her he would return later
in the day, and left.

Her grandmother brushed her hair and helped her
into a pretty blue bed jacket which she did not recognize. "Clarissa sent it over for you," her grandmother told her. "She wanted to come up and
see you herself, but Dan left orders you were to have
no visitors with the exception of Edward."

And so the morning went slowly as she waited for Edward to appear. Finally there was a knock on the door, and her grandmother opened it to
admit Edward.

"Well," Mammaw greeted him, "how is it that
you can take off from your duties to squander your
time in town?"

"When I heard you were here, I dropped everything to rush to your side."

She smiled. "You have a silver tongue, Edward. Watch it does not get you into trouble."

"It already has on numerous occasions," Edward
quipped. He looked past her to where Victoria was sitting up in bed.

Mammaw smiled at him. "I will be in the next room if you need me." She went out the door.

The room was silent. Victoria was amazed that her
grandmother had left her alone with Edward.

Edward felt his heart tighten in his chest. He felt nervous and unsure of himself.

The sunlight filtered through the window, turning Victoria's hair the color of burnished gold. The blue color of the satin bed jacket made her eyes shine like deep limpid pools.

Victoria watched as Edward picked up a chair and
moved it to the side of her bed. He was so handsome.
The stubborn lock of ebony-colored hair fell across his forehead. He was dressed in tan, tight-fitting britches that outlined his masculine body. He wore high-topped brown boots and a yellow silk shirt. Victoria looked into his eyes—those beautiful fiery brown eyes—then, remembering that he knew about her past, she lowered her head.

Edward sat down and crossed his legs. "Should you be sitting up, Victoria?"

Victoria twisted Paul's ring on her finger ner
vously. "Dan said it would do no harm if I remained
very still."

"How are you feeling? Are you in any pain?"

"I am fine." She hesitated. "Bodine told me you know about my shooting the Yankee." She raised
her head and looked at him defiantly. "You might as
well know I am not sorry I killed him. If the circumstances were the same, I would do it again, Edward."

She saw a muscle twitch in his jaw. "May he rot in
hell for what he tried to do to you," he said coldly. Then he changed the subject abruptly. "Did Bodine tell you of our conversation yesterday?"

"He said you wanted to help me." She sighed deeply. "No one can help me."

"You are mistaken, Victoria. Trust me when I tell
you I can and will see you cleared of these false charges."

Victoria frowned thoughtfully. "Why would you want to help me?"

Edward wrestled with himself. Should he tell her
of his love? A love so all-consuming it burned like a
fire out of control inside his body. What of Paul
O'Brian? She loved him. Oh, Lord, he thought, give
me the right words to say.

He stood up, walked to the window, and looked down on the street below. He watched as two
barefoot boys ran down the street kicking up dust as
they tossed a ball back and forth. Chuck Benson, the owner of the general store, was loading boxes onto a wagon. The world looked normal outside this room. It seemed a day like any other, but it was not. Today
was the day Victoria would decide his fate. She would either make him the happiest man alive, or she would condemn him to a life of loneliness.

"I have a proposition for you, Victoria.
...
I have
been thinking for some time about taking a wife."

She frowned. "I know that, Edward. Everyone knows. You speak of Monica, do you not?"

He smiled and turned to face her. "What makes you think I speak of Monica?"

Victoria shrugged. "You brought her to my grandmother's birthday party. The two of you seemed . . . very close."

He sat on the window ledge and crossed his arms
over his chest. "I seem to remember wanting to be close to you at your grandmother's party."

Victoria blushed. "Monica has my sympathy,
Edward, if you are as faithless after you are married
as before."

Edward laughed. "Do not worry, Victoria. I shall
be a very devoted husband." He studied her face. "Do you remember the day of the box supper?"

"Yes, but what has that to do with Monica? Are
you telling me Monica is unhappy because you and I
spent the day together?"

"Damn it, Victoria, will you forget about Monica?" he said impatiently. "Just sit quietly and listen to me."

She opened her mouth to voice an angry retort, but the look in his eyes silenced her.

He walked back to the chair beside her and sat
down. Damn, this was going to be difficult. He knew
he was not handling it very well so far.

He took a deep breath. "The day of the box supper
is the day I decided to take a wife, Victoria."

Victoria felt the sting of tears in her eyes. Why was he telling her of his wedding plans? If he only knew how it tore at her heart to think of him being married.

Edward continued. "It was not Monica I wanted for my wife, Victoria, or any other woman, save yourself."

He stared out the window, giving her time to digest what he had related to her.

Victoria looked at him; her heart was racing wildly. He wants
me,
she thought. She could hardly believe her ears, or contain her joy as she waited for him to say the words that she wanted so desperately to hear. She wanted to hear him say he loved her as she did him. She wanted him to take her in his arms and kiss her. How often had she thought him unfaithful; yet if what he said was true, she had badly misjudged him. She was about to tell him her feelings when he spoke.

He still stared out the window. "As owner of Rio del Lobo, I have to do a certain amount of entertaining," he told her. "I need a wife who is bright and intelligent, beautiful as well as gracious. You meet those requirements."

Victoria felt her joy turn to anger. Her voice was cold. "You are asking me to marry you for the sake of Rio del Lobo?"

He turned to her and met her eyes. "That is partially true. You have a style and grace that would be a great asset to me. If you will consent to be my wife, my name will protect you from the charges lodged against you in Georgia."

"You speak as though we were two businesses merging for mutual gain," she said angrily.

"That is not a bad description, Victoria. You have what I require, and I have much to offer you."

"Let me see if I have it correct, Edward." Her voice sounded calm; it did not show the overwhelming anger she felt. "You want me for my intelligence and education?"

He raised an eyebrow; a smile played on his lips. "Not entirely, Victoria. You have other attributes which good taste forbids me to mention."

Victoria's face flushed. "That is a ridiculous reason to ask a woman to marry you, Edward. I am sure there are any number of women who would give you what you want without your having to marry them."

Edward laughed. "That may well be true, Victoria, but I do not want just any woman. ... I want you, and the only way I can have you is by marrying you."

Victoria closed her eyes. What he offered with one hand he took away with the other. She wanted to be his wife more than anything she had ever wanted in her whole life, but the cold, businesslike manner in which he proposed hurt her deeply and made her angry at the same time. Did he really suppose she would accept such a proposal?

"I am sorry Edward, but I will not accept your proposition." She felt very close to tears, and fought hard for control.

He looked at her for a long moment. "I do not see that you have much choice, Victoria."

"I do have a choice, Edward, and I do not want the position of hostess at Rio del Lobo. Besides, what makes you think the mighty Hanover name can protect me?"

"Make no mistake, Victoria; it is your only protection. I have already sent a man to Georgia this morning to clear you of the charges. I do not need to remind you that I have friends in high places."

She tried to shift her weight, and cried out in pain.

"Please to not move, Victoria; I do not want to upset you," he told her.

"You have done a very good job of it, Edward." Victoria leaned against the pillows at her back. Closing her eyes, she remembered how different Paul's proposal had been. If Edward had told her he loved her, she would have been completely defenseless against him. She felt a tear slide down her cheek.

"You are thinking of Paul O'Brian, aren't you?" Edward asked angrily.

"Yes ... I am tired. I wish you would go away."

"You will not marry me, then, Victoria?"

"I have already given you my answer."

No, Lord, please, he thought. Edward felt her slipping away from him. He had never proposed marriage to a woman before. He knew he had bungled it badly. Please, my love, he thought, do not turn me down. Do not sentence me to a life without you.

He remembered Bodine's suggestion, and took a ragged breath. "You are being very selfish, Victoria. Have you not thought of Bodine?"