MB01 - Unending Devotion (20 page)

“That’s why I’m moving out,” Connell said. “If I keep my distance from you, then hopefully the rumors will die down.”

How could this have happened? Had she brought this upon herself with her foolish headstrong ways?

Her heart pounded against her chest. If the townspeople thought she was a prostitute, why would they join with her in trying to rid Harrison of Carr? They wouldn’t trust her. They’d consider her a hypocrite. They’d hesitate to join her efforts to start a Red Ribbon Society—if they would give it any thought at all.

“I’m sorry, Lily,” Connell said softly.

“It’s not your fault.”

“I take full responsibility. I should have moved out earlier in the week.”

“Busybodies will always find ways to spread gossip.” She pushed a hand against her heart, trying to fend off the pain and the shame. She’d never let discouragement defeat her in the past. She’d always stood strong against adversity.

Why should she do any differently now? She couldn’t let a few bad rumors ruin her plans.

With a burst of heated passion, she shoved herself back to her feet. “I don’t care what anyone thinks about me. I won’t let the rumors stop me from starting the Red Ribbon Society.” Her heart thudded forward, not with the usual fervor, but forward nevertheless. She might be having a slight setback, but she couldn’t let it change her determination to do all that God was calling her to do.

She could feel Connell’s gaze upon her, but she couldn’t bear to look in his eyes, not when she knew what people were saying about them—that they were lovers, that she’d lain in his arms and shared intimacies with him.

A flush stole over her. It was a good thing no one had to know she really had lain against him. But even as another wave of embarrassment coursed through her, warmth followed in its wake.

She was ashamed to admit how much she’d enjoyed being with him. And the truth was she couldn’t stop from dreaming about being in his arms again.

Chapter
15

F
rom his second-story office, Connell stared down at Stuart and Lily standing together on Main Street in front of the
Harrison Herald.
They’d been in and out of businesses for the last hour, passing out the flyer Stuart had printed yesterday announcing the start of their Red Ribbon Society.

With cheeks flushed from the cold, Lily beamed at Stuart, apparently pleased with their efforts. And Stuart grinned back, adoration lighting his face.

Connell’s fingers tightened with the need to run down and pull Stuart away from Lily. His friend obviously cared about her. From the way he rushed to do her bidding every time she uttered a word, it was clear he found great pleasure in being with her.

The question was, did Lily feel the same way about Stuart?

Connell’s gut twisted at the thought. He didn’t want Lily to care for Stu. He didn’t want her to care about anyone—except for him.

Yet, what hope did he have of winning Lily’s heart when they had such different goals and aspirations? On the other hand, she and Stuart seemed to work well together. And Stuart was such a decent guy.

He’d even invited Connell to move into his house with him—at least until Lily and Oren left Harrison.

Connell didn’t have the heart to refuse the kindness of his friend, even though he’d had to wade through the clutter and disarray that covered every square inch of floor in Stuart’s home. Connell doubted the place had been cleaned since Stuart’s wife had last set about the task before she’d become ill.

The modest two-story home sat on the edge of Harrison with a cluster of other residences. When Connell had shoved his bag under the single bed in the room Stuart had pointed him to, he had to fight back a depressing shudder.

A wooden rocking horse sat in one corner, the red paint of the saddle chipped and peeling away. A child-sized cowboy hat and a hand-carved gun lay on the floor next to the horse.

Connell wanted to gather all the reminders of Stuart’s past life and put them into a crate. It was time for the man to move on and find a woman who could make his house a home again, who could clear out the traces of pain and bring him new joy.

A weight pressed against Connell’s heart. Yes, Stuart deserved a good woman like Lily. They were alike in so many ways. She would most certainly bring him joy.

Connell leaned his shoulder against the window frame and watched the way one of her curls tickled her pink cheek.

If only he didn’t want Lily for himself.

“So I talked with Carr last night.” Tierney sat at the desk, pretending to flip through the books and take an interest in the figures. It was the first time his brother had made any attempt to think about business since he’d arrived. Of course, he couldn’t put it off any longer, since he was planning to leave in an hour.

Tierney’s eyes were glazed from the past several sleepless nights of drinking and whoring. And Connell doubted he could even read the careful calculations within the ledgers, much less make sense of them.

“Please tell me you didn’t go to the Stockade.” Connell glanced in the distance to the tavern towering on the hill above town. “After all I told you about the way Carr is tricking girls into working for him, I’d expect you to boycott him.”

“You’re exaggerating. As usual.” The chair squeaked under Tierney’s weight as he leaned back and combed a hand through his disheveled hair. What would Rosemarie think when Tierney returned home hung over, with bloodshot eyes and the sour stench of liquor in every pore? Would she notice? Or was she used to it by now?

“You know as well as I do that Carr is a scoundrel.” Connell didn’t care that his voice was testy.

“He’s a powerful businessman.” The legs of the chair thumped against the floor. “And according to him, you’ve been stirring up trouble lately.”

“I’d say it’s the other way around—he’s the one causing the trouble.”

“Stay out of his way, Connell.” Tierney’s voice was suddenly more sober than it had been since he’d arrived. “He said if you interfere again we’ll have more than a few damaging rumors to deal with.”

A gust of surprise whirled through Connell. Had Carr started the rumors about him and Lily? Had he made sure the ugly news spread far enough to reach Dad? It made sense. Dad, like most of the other lumber bosses, turned a blind eye to the way the tavern owners operated their businesses. The taverns kept the shanty boys happy and ensured the wild behavior stayed out of the camps.

Besides, if a man like Carr didn’t like a particular lumber company, he had the power to influence the shanty boys against the company. And Connell couldn’t afford to lose shanty boys, especially during the busiest time of the season.

“Don’t mess with Carr anymore.” Tierney closed the ledgers with a slap. “That’s all I have to say.”

Connell couldn’t keep his irritation from resurfacing, as it had many times over the past few days. He’d be glad when Tierney was gone. In his few sober moments, all Tierney had done was boss him around—as he was doing now.

Tierney tucked the ledgers under his arm and pushed away from the desk, letting the chair scrape the floor.

“You can’t take my books with you,” Connell said.

“How else am I going to show Dad what you’ve been up to?”

“Maybe if you’d actually taken the time to listen to my reports—”

“Aw, come on Connell.” Tierney stood and stretched. “Stop being so uptight. You probably have the numbers all memorized anyway.”

Connell wanted to rip the books away from Tierney and send him home empty-handed. What would Dad think of Tierney then?

“Guess I’ll head out now.” Tierney reached for his coat on the peg near the door. “That’ll give me time to stop at the Red Keg again before heading for home.”

“I can tell you’re in a hurry to get home to your wife and new baby.”

Tierney just grinned and then glanced out the front window. His grin widened. “Now I see what you’ve been looking at.”

Connell peered outside again to where Lily still stood talking with Stuart. Her eyes sparked with all the passion that bubbled inside her. The pale sickness in her face was finally gone, replaced with the usual warm tones. She was flushed, and alive, and vibrant. And when she gave a bright smile to Stuart, a jealous twine slid around his heart and cinched painfully.

Tierney’s glassy eyes narrowed and flamed with sudden lust. “She sure is pretty.”

Connell silently agreed. She was beautiful. But he didn’t need Tierney to say it. He’d rather Tierney leave. “You better get going.”

“Her face is familiar.” Tierney stared down at her. “I’m guessing I met her somewhere else. Maybe at one of the houses of entertainment in Bay City before she moved up here?”

“No. You’ve never met her. I guarantee it, one hundred percent.”

Tierney was silent for a long moment but then shrugged. “Maybe I’m just confusing her with Bella.”

Connell had heard the shanty boys talk about Bella, the young beauty Carr kept up at the Stockade. She was untouchable, or so they claimed. Apparently Carr only let his favorite friends see her and have turns with her. Or in the case of Tierney, those who paid good money.

“I’ll have to find an excuse for Dad to send me up to Harrison again soon. Now that I’ve met Bella.”

“Just stay home where you belong.”

Tierney grinned. “So you want to keep Bella for yourself too?”

Protest rose swiftly within Connell. “I’ve never seen the girl—”

“Oh, that’s right. You don’t need Bella. You’ve got Lily.” Tierney looked out the window down at Lily again. He studied her again and then whistled under his breath. “She looks enough like Bella that they could be cousins or sisters or something.”

Sisters? Connell tensed, and his gaze swung back to the Stockade. What were the chances that this Bella might be the sister Lily was looking for? Twenty-five percent? Fifty?

“She looks like Lily?” he asked.

Tierney’s eyes sparkled with mirth. “So now you’re interested?”

Connell shook his head, fresh irritation adding to the funnel cloud winding through him. “Is that all you think about? Bedding women?”

Tierney snorted. “What man doesn’t?”

“I don’t.” At least he worked hard to keep his thoughts from swaying in that direction. He’d long ago decided if he didn’t let his mind dwell on his lusts, he’d have a much easier time resisting the temptations when they came his way.

Tierney tugged on his hat. “The problem is you’ve always thought you’re better than everyone else. And you’re not. It’s time for you to finally admit it.”

“I’m not going to admit wanting to sleep with Bella when I don’t. I’m just trying to figure out if she’s the sister Lily’s looking for.”

Tierney’s brow shot up and his grin quirked.

“Her sister disappeared back in the fall, and she’s been looking for her ever since.”

“Well, there’s one way to find out if Bella’s her sister.” Tierney stepped toward the door. “I can describe her to Lily and see what she thinks.”

“Wait a minute.” Connell grabbed for Tierney, but his brother had already opened the door. “I don’t think we should involve Lily yet.” He didn’t want to think what Lily might do if Bella was the girl she’d been looking for all these months. Lily was too impetuous. She’d likely run up to the Stockade the first chance she had and get herself hurt.

“Stop!” he called after Tierney.

But his brother was descending the steps two at a time, tossing a grin over his shoulder as if they were playing a game of tag.

“Let me tell her,” Connell shouted, “after I’ve done my own investigation.”

Tierney didn’t look back. Instead he jumped the last four steps and darted toward the door, leaving Connell little choice but to follow him at full speed.

Connell raced outside, determined to wrestle Tierney to the ground and give him the thrashing he needed.

But Tierney skidded on the icy street away from him, nearly barreling into Lily in his haste. “Describe your sister to me.”

She took a step away from him, out of his reach, letting him fumble to steady himself. Her brow lifted, and she regarded him without a trace of warmth.

At least Connell could console himself with one thing—Lily hadn’t swooned over Tierney the way other women always seemed to. In fact, she hadn’t shown the slightest interest in him.

“Why do you want to know about my sister?”

“Never mind, Tierney.” Connell crossed his arms to ward off the cold air that was seeping through his mackinaw. “I’ll deal with it later.”

But Tierney was already speaking. “I think I might have found the sister you’ve been looking for.”

She drew in a sharp breath, and her eyes turned to the size of the winter sun. “What do you mean?”

“Don’t listen to him, Lily,” Connell said quickly.

She’d already fixed her gaze upon Tierney, and the determination in their dark depths was strong enough to chain a man. Connell knew Tierney wouldn’t be able to go anywhere until she got what she wanted from him.

And he knew Tierney was all too willing to divulge the information, especially now that Connell had asked him not to.

“I met a girl up at the Stockade this week,” Tierney said. “And she looks a lot like you.”

Lily’s mittened hand fluttered to her chest. “A girl who looks like me? How?”

“The same dark curly hair and the same eyes.”

“That could be any girl.”

“And she had a beauty mark right here on her chin.” Tierney pointed to a spot near the edge of his jaw.

Lily gasped and turned to Stuart. “It must be her. She’s always had a spot on her chin, and she loathes it.”

Stuart’s gaze connected with Connell’s. Hesitation filled his friend’s face.

Connell shook his head, hoping Stuart would read the unspoken message: They couldn’t let Lily do anything rash.

“Her name is Bella.” Tierney tossed Connell a satisfied glance. And Connell pretended not to notice the immaturity.

“But my sister’s name is Daisy.”

Stuart cleared his throat. “Carr makes a lot of his girls change their names.”

“Well now”—Lily’s face lit with growing excitement— “if Daisy changed her name, that might be why no one knew about her.”