Catching Kent Read online

  She decided to slip her cameo on her blouse. “I’m glad you let me get it for you. Now this is something we have that is uniquely ours.”

  “And this time Adam and Jacob won’t be trying to find out our secrets, not that there were any real secrets.”

  Thinking over the club she had created for the sole purpose of having something that belonged to only her and Harriett while they were growing up, Rose giggled. “So what if we made up things to entertain ourselves? We had a lot of fun in that club. Bugging Adam and Jacob about it just made it more fun.”

  “You’ve got a mischievous streak in you, Rose.”

  “If you can’t bother your brothers, then who can you bother?”

  “I’m glad I was your sister instead of your brother,” she teased.

  The carriage came to a stop and Rose winked at her. “You and I will always be close, no matter what.” The coachman opened the door, and Rose thanked him as he helped them out. “We’ll be going to my home after this,” she told him, eager for Harriett to see her new house. As she turned back to Harriett, she added, “Next time you come to town, you should bring clothes suitable for riding horses. I’d love to give you a tour of the grounds.”

  They entered the mercantile and Jacob glanced their way from where he was writing in his ledger at the counter. “Oh wonderful. I see it’s the troublesome duo. What mischief are you two up to today?”

  Amused at his joke, Rose walked over to him while Harriett went to get the items their mother wanted. “We’re not going to cause any trouble, Jacob.”

  “No?”

  “Of course not. We’re going to be perfect angels.”

  Though he made a big show of eyeing her warily, his lips curled up. “Since when have you been a perfect angel?”

  “All the time.”

  “Sure.” He broke out into a grin. “So tell me, is your poor husband tired of you yet?”

  “Why, Jacob Larson, I can’t believe you’d ask such a thing.” With a playful swat at his arm, she continued, “He’s very happy with me, just as I knew he’d be since the first time I laid eyes on him.”

  “Oh, is that so?”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Then why did he come in here yesterday crying and saying he needed more handkerchiefs because he was in agony over the recent mistake he made?”

  Noting the wicked gleam in his eye, she huffed. “You’re a horrible person.”

  He laughed and placed his pencil down. “Did you come in here to talk or is there something you’re looking to buy?”

  “Harriett’s picking up some items for Ma. I’m here to distract you while she sneaks some things into her coat.”

  “Harriett might have been a rascal when we were younger, but she has been a perfect angel ever since she became a woman. Too bad I can’t say the same for you.”

  “Can I help it if she got serious once she noticed the young men?”

  “I’d say that you should have acted more like her but I guess since you got married, your husband is doomed to put up with your antics. Poor man.”

  She debated whether or not to say anything but decided to let him win this round when she realized Harriett was finished gathering the things she needed. They could resume their good-natured banter another day. “Fine. You win this one. Lucky for you, Harriett and I have many things to do today.”

  “Or maybe you couldn’t think of anything clever to say,” he countered as he took the box Harriett gave him so he could total up the price.

  “Our brother thinks he’s smart,” Rose told Harriett. “I feel too sorry for him to tell him otherwise.”

  “So she says,” he retorted.

  “See?” Rose shrugged at her sister then smiled at Jacob. “It’s alright. We’ll let you believe it.”

  “But just this once,” Harriett added, a twinkle in her eye.

  Impressed, Rose grinned at her. “I didn’t realize you still had some of that old spunk in you.”

  With a shrug, she said, “Once in a while it comes out.” She directed her gaze to their brother. “How much for the items?”

  “$4.25. Should I put it on Pa’s account?”

  “No, Ma gave me the money.” Harriett dug into her drawstring purse and handed him the coins. “Here you go.”

  “So when are you getting married?” he asked her as he put the coins into the register.

  “I’m still waiting for the right man to come along.”

  “Maybe you should pay Stan Craftsman a visit,” Rose said.

  She grimaced. “Why would I do that?”

  “Because he has to care for a little girl and needs a mother for her.”

  “Stan doesn’t want to marry me. He wanted to marry you. I’m surprised he didn’t even ask.”

  Rose bit her lower lip, wondering if she should say anything. On one hand, it would upset her. But then, what if someone let it slip and her sister had to find out from someone else? It’d be much worse if she had to find out from another person. With a sigh, she admitted, “He did.”

  “He did?” Harriett grabbed the box and turned with Rose to leave the mercantile. “When?”

  “At Uncle Tom’s barn dance.”

  Her jaw dropped and her steps slowed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I was afraid to hurt your feelings.”

  She considered her words and nodded. “I understand. I would have done the same thing if I were you.”

  “I told him he should ask you instead.”

  Her face grew pale. “You didn’t!”

  “I was only trying to help.”

  “Oh, Rose! That’s not helping. He has no interest in me at all. I told you that already.”

  “But he has to get a chance to know you.”

  “He did have a chance. At the auction, remember?” Groaning, she proceeded to the door and opened it. “I hope I never run into Stan again. This is so embarrassing.”

  She hurried after her sister. “I’m sorry, Harriett. Really, I am.”

  “I know you didn’t mean any harm in it. I just don’t like him knowing I want to be with him when I know full well he has no interest in me.”

  “If he took the time to get to know you,” she began as she adjusted her gloves and headed for the carriage, “then he would be interested. Only a fool would not want to marry you.”

  “Rose, wait,” Harriett called out.

  Turning around, she saw that her sister was still by the entrance of the mercantile. She hurried back over to her. “Did you forget something?”

  “No.” She lowered her voice. “There’s a man who is on the other side of the street.”

  She laughed. “There are lots of men on the other side of the street.”

  “You didn’t let me finish. I think he’s following us.”

  “What?” She began to look over her shoulder when her sister warned her not to. “How will I know who he is unless I see him?”

  “I don’t want him to realize we know he’s been spying on us.”

  “Why would anyone spy on us?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never seen him before.” She shifted the box to her other arm and shrugged. “Do you think he saw the cameos we bought and think we stole them?”

  “Well, he doesn’t work for Uncle Owen, so I don’t think so.” Their uncle was a sheriff, and she could only imagine that a deputy would be interested in whether or not they bought the cameos.

  “You’re right. He doesn’t work for our uncle. Unless he’s new. But even so, he’s not wearing a deputy’s badge.”

  “What’s he doing?”

  “Sitting on a bench and pretending to read a newspaper.”

  “And what is he wearing?”

  “A dark gray suit with vertical stripes.”

  With a nod, Rose motioned to the carriage. “There’s no sense in us standing here on the boardwalk all afternoon.”

  “What if he follows us? I don’t want him to know where you live.”

  “If he follows us, I’ll have the coa
chman take us to Uncle Owen’s. He’ll know what to do about him.”

  The solution seemed to please Harriett since she visibly relaxed. “Alright.”

  As Rose turned to follow her sister to the carriage, she chanced a look in the man’s direction, careful not to be obvious about it. Like her sister, she didn’t recall seeing him before. She turned her gaze from him so he wouldn’t detect that she’d been studying him.

  At the moment, he appeared to be reading the paper, but he could have been glancing over it to see what she and Harriett were doing. But why would he care? She couldn’t recall upsetting anyone, and she knew for sure Harriett hadn’t. So why would someone be following them?

  She and Harriett watched from the window as they rode away. The man remained on the bench, still holding the newspaper up as if he was reading it.

  Sitting back in her seat, Rose looked over at Harriett and asked, “Is it possible he wasn’t following us? Maybe he just happened to be in the same places we were at?”

  “Probably. It must have been a coincidence.” Harriett laughed. “I’m getting as bad as you, imagining things that aren’t really there.”

  “I don’t imagine things that aren’t really there. I daydream.”

  “There’s not much difference.”

  “There’s all the difference in the world.”

  “Either way, there’s something out of nothing.”

  “Harriett, you couldn’t be more wrong.” As Rose continued to debate the matter, she forgot all about the man who’d been sitting on the bench.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Later that day, Rose’s heartbeat picked up with nervous energy as her lady’s maid finished buttoning the back of her evening gown. Tonight was the first time she and Kent were going to entertain a prospective client and his family. She started to take a deep breath to help settle her nerves, but the corset prevented her from breathing too deeply. It was going to take time before she got used to wearing one.

  “Is there anything else you need, ma’am?” her lady’s maid asked.

  “No, I don’t think so,” Rose replied. “Thank you.”

  After the older woman left, Rose inspected her dark blue gown in the mirror. It was absolutely gorgeous. She thought her wedding dress would be the fanciest gown she’d ever wear, but this dress put that one to shame. And to think she had an armoire full of more gowns!

  A knock on the door connecting her bedchamber to Kent’s drew her attention away from the mirror. Smiling, she hurried over to the door—at least as fast as she could go in her layer of petticoats—and flung it open. As she expected, Kent was on the other side, dressed in a suit that made him look more handsome than she ever remembered seeing him.

  He returned her smile and entered the room. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

  Her heart warmed at his concern for her. “I’m nervous, but yes. I want to do everything I can to help your business succeed.”

  “You’ll do fine, Rose. All you have to do is be yourself.” Drawing her into his arms, he gave her a lingering kiss that made her tingle from her head to the tip of her toes. “I think you’ll enjoy this kind of thing. You love being around people and you have a way that makes them comfortable with you. That’s the most important thing to remember when dealing with people. If you take the time to care about them, they’ll like you. And you’re the type of person who cares about everyone you meet. See? That makes you ideal for this.”

  She hoped so. He seemed so confident in her. She started to take a deep breath but stopped when she remembered her corset. “Kent,” she held his hands and looked up at him, “what are these people like? The ones who are coming here tonight?”

  “Well, Mr. and Mrs. Fields are elderly and are very nice people. Their concern, however, is their granddaughter’s future. She’s their sole remaining heir.”

  “She is?” Rose interrupted.

  “Their son and his wife died in train accident two years ago.”

  “That’s awful.”

  “Their granddaughter was seventeen when she lost her parents, and after that, she became withdrawn and quiet. Her grandparents are worried that she has closed herself off to everyone to the point where she won’t take any suitors. They’d like for her to have children she can pass on the family fortune to. I thought if anyone could help her come out of her shell, it’s you.”

  “I don’t know what I can do.”

  “Do whatever it is you did to get me to come out of my shell.”

  Rose considered everything she did but couldn’t think of any one thing in particular that finally made him agree that he was meant to marry her. “All I did was care about you.”

  “There you go. Care about her.”

  He made it sound so easy, as if it was some magical spell she could cast on someone and make whatever she wanted come true. “I’ll have you know that marrying you was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done.”

  “Oh?” he asked, his eyebrow raised.

  “Yes. You were most uncooperative. I had to find all kinds of ways to get close to you. It was difficult.”

  “You might have considered it difficult, but from where I stood, you had no trouble being there when I woke up from a nap or grabbing my crutch so you could hold me.”

  “I did have trouble. And lots of it. I delayed a lot of chores to do all that.”

  “I see. Then when you say it was difficult, you mean it was hard to get away from doing the work around the house so you could keep up your endless pursuit of me. In that case,” he leaned forward and kissed her on the nose, “I stand corrected. I do recall your family pestering you about not leaving me alone.”

  “But I prevailed and it paid off. I got you in the end.”

  Chuckling, he slipped his arm around her waist and led her to the door that would take them to the hallway. “Yes, you did. And that only goes to prove that if you have your mind set on something, you’ll get it no matter what. It’ll be even better now that we’re going to be vying for the same things.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yes. I’ve learned to never oppose you.” He kissed her then led her down the stairs.

  ***

  As it turned out, Mr. and Mrs. Fields were easy to like. They delighted in travel and spoke about Europe. Rose listened in interest. Having never been outside of Omaha, she could only imagine what beautiful places existed around the world. She’d read about some of them described in detail, and once in a while, she’d close her eyes and pretend she was there. But to actually be there and see it in person had to be much better.

  “Did you go to Italy while you were with your uncle in Ireland?” Mr. Fields asked at one point during the meal.

  “I did.” With a slight chuckle, Kent added, “My uncle wanted to give me perspective on life. In addition to all of Europe, he took me to India and China. He thought it was important that I realize how different but similar people are.”

  Rose furrowed her eyebrows. “That seems like a contradiction.”

  “When he first said it, I thought so, too, but it’s really not. The way people dress and their traditions might be different, but they experience the same thoughts and feelings no matter where they live.”

  “I see what you mean,” Rose replied then picked up a glass of wine and took a sip. “And it makes sense. People are people no matter where you go.”

  “You’ll get to experience it yourself firsthand when we travel,” he promised.

  Delighted he planned to take her to new places, her smile widened.

  After dinner, Rose offered to take Mr. and Mrs. Fields’ granddaughter, Madeline, to the library. She sensed that Madeline preferred to spend her time alone doing something that allowed her to escape from the world. And there was no better way to escape than to get lost in a book. Since Kent took Mr. and Mrs. Fields to the parlor where he could play some songs on his piano, Rose brought Madeline to the room with enough books to satisfy anyone for a lifetime.

  Laughing, she turned to Madeline
. “I know it sounds funny, but this house is so large that sometimes I fear I’ll get lost.”

  As she hoped, Madeline’s lips curled up.

  She waited to see if Madeline would answer, but she kept quiet. Beyond a greeting, she hadn’t said anything the whole evening.

  “I haven’t gotten lost yet,” Rose continued, “but you know, I did read a story once where a young woman was exploring her new house—one much bigger than this—and she ended up going through a secret corridor. But the problem was, she couldn’t find her way back. She spent the rest of her life going through the secret passageways but never found her way back.”

  Madeline’s eyes grew wide. “She didn’t?”

  “Nope. But she did end up in different enchanted worlds where all sorts of fantastical creatures lived. There were fairies, unicorns, and leprechauns. There were also horrible, nasty things, too. Goblins and ogres. She had a series of adventures in those lands. It was fun to read. For months, I imagined what it’d be like to be with her, doing the things she did. My sister thought I was silly, but she doesn’t like to read books so why would she understand what it’s like to be so immersed in a book to the point where you forget everything else?”

  “I’ve read books like that.”

  “Have you?”

  “Well, I didn’t read them. My mother did. She used to read to me before bed every night.”

  Noting the underlying sorrow in her voice, Rose said, “I’m sorry you lost her, and your father, at such a young age.”

  She nodded but turned her attention to the books. “Do you have those stories here? The one where the woman went to the other worlds and had those adventures?”

  “I do. They’re right over here.” Rose motioned to the books in the lower shelf. “They’re not in as good shape as some of the others. When I got married, I had a trunk full of books that I couldn’t bear to part with. They look so old and worn compared to the ones Kent has.”

  “I prefer them worn. That means they’ve been read, and the more they’ve been read, the more they’ve been loved.”

  “Well, there are ten of those adventure books, and you can take them with you to read. If you’re like me, you’ll get through one book in a day.”