Romance: Detective Romance: A Vicious Affair (Victorian Regency Intrigue 19th England Romance) (Historical Mystery Detective Romance) (119 page)

“Of course, Hettie.”

“If you knew that he was still angry and bitter about the loss, why would you bring someone else here to meet him? Such a long way? I don’t want to sound
rude;
I have enjoyed the last two days getting to know you both. But if you knew about his feelings, why did you surprise him in such a way?”

Liz looked back down at the potatoes before answering. She set down the knife and potato she held and went to sit next to Hettie at the table. She looked into Hettie’s eyes and licked her small lips. “It seems that I’ve manipulated this situation in a way I should not have. I am sorry for that. I was only trying to do what I thought would be good for my brother. I
really
didn’t expect him to react that way. I thought he
was, at least,
give you time to get to know him and him to know you.” She sighed. “I reckon, I also hoped it would be enough of a shock to bring him out of this mood he’s been in, show him that there are other beautiful women in the world for him to love.”

“Beauty
is only seen
on the
surface,
” Hettie said, sadly. “He has not seen what is underneath.
He
may be afraid to see who I am. He may be afraid of his feelings. Did she die in a brutal way?”

Liz nodded, her eyes dropping to the vegetables as if they were
the most fascinating
things she had ever seen. “He watched it happen. And then he shot the man who killed her.”

It was Hettie’s turn to sigh. “I see.”

A shock was probably not what James had needed. Perhaps gently easing someone new into his life would have been better than bringing her and dropping her on his front doorstep like an abandoned animal.

She shook off her feelings of resentment. She understood that Liz was just a meddling sister who cared too much for her brother, stewing in his misery and pain. She
understood
that James was still mourning and having a terrible time pulling out of it.

What she didn’t understand was how she was supposed to react to it. Her life had been turned upside down to travel across the
country,
and now her future was very much in question. She had prepared herself to be married. Was she supposed to start looking for someone else?

“I have been praying for someone to get through to James for so long now. I can’t bear to see him like that anymore.”

“What would you like for me to do, Liz?” Hettie asked. “Do you want me to try to do something to get through to him? Because I
really
don’t know how I’m going to do that.”

Liz shook her head and put one hand on Hettie’s arm. “I don’t think there’s anything you can do, Hettie. I just want you to be yourself. He will be around. I believe John was right when he said that James would calm down. He will give you a chance
…
if you still want one.”

Hettie thought about James. He was tall, handsome, strong, everything she admired in a man. Everything she could see,
anyway
. But she didn’t know his mind or his personality. All she had seen was anger and rage.

“When I was young,” Hettie said. “I watched my mother die.”

Liz sat back, her dark eyes wide open. She pushed one hand through some of the dark hair that had escaped the bun. “Oh my! I did not know that, Hettie!”

Hettie nodded. “I have not mentioned it before. It was
…very bad
. I was upset about it for a long time. So was my father. I was twelve years
old;
my brother was almost fifteen. My mother’s brother moved in with us after her death and helped my
father
care for
us
children. Mother was
a wonderful
and bright light in our lives. And my
father
mourned her for many years, too.”

Liz pressed her lips together, tears filling her eyes. “Did he ever find love again?”

Hettie shook her head. “He wasn’t looking.”

“
Oh,
my.” Liz looked devastated. The implication that James may never have intended to find another woman was becoming more of a reality for her.

Hettie understood what Liz was thinking by the
distraught
look on her face. She took the opportunity to put her
own
hand on Liz’s arm, squeezing gently. “But I have something else to say that might make you feel better.” Liz blinked and looked at her through thick tears. “With my father, I could see that he didn’t feel destined to be with another woman. I still hope that someday
he
will find another love. But he didn’t want
to,
and he didn’t stay in a deep depressive state for a long time. He chose not to
find
another woman
himself,
but he remained who he was. You say that James has changed.”

Liz nodded.

“I believe that our Lord does guide our steps, just like you do. And since we are only humans, we often react in typical human ways, wouldn’t you say?”

“Yes.” Liz’s voice was soft.

“I don’t think God brought me here
to just be
a caretaker for you and your
little baby
.” Hettie smiled at her new friend. “I have faith that He knows what He’s doing. If it
was meant
that I should be with James, I
will
be.”

“How do you plan to act toward him now? You’ve only seen his bad side and oh, Hettie, he can be such a charming man, so fun and laughing and happy.”

Hettie nodded, picturing the handsome Sheriff in her mind. “I’m sure he can be. He’s just in that place right now. Perhaps we will give him a little time to come around? I will speak to him whenever he is here.”

“You will turn his head, Hettie. I just know you can change his mind. I’ve grown to like you quite a lot in the last two days and so has John. We believe you will be a respectful and good houseguest while you are here and if it is God’s will, a good wife for my brother.”

Hettie pulled in a deep breath. “I would certainly like to see what happens.”

“I will pray that things work out as they should.” Liz used her apron to wipe her tears away and
clear
her eyes. She pulled in a deep breath and released it slowly. “I still feel so
bad
for overstepping the boundaries.”

“It’s too late for all that
now,
” Hettie said. “We must look to the future and trust that God knows what He
wants,
and He will make it happen.”

“You are
very strong
in your faith. I didn’t know that about you, either.”

Hettie chuckled softly. “It’s another one of those things I didn’t mention in my letter.”

Liz smiled, her eyes lighting up from relief instead of tears.

For two days, James had avoided going to his sister’s or seeing her at all. He barely recalled the woman Liz had brought to town for him and was trying to avoid thinking about the fact that the woman would inevitably be at John’s birthday party that night.
He
felt like the lowest man on earth, remembering his actions in front of the strange
woman
. He hadn’t been able to help it. The shock was too much for him.

He’d always felt that if he let himself look at another woman, he would be betraying his late wife. He missed Annie still, thinking of her not on a daily basis anymore, thank God, but often. Little things around the house
and around
town still reminded him of her.

If he was not betraying Annie, he was putting yet another innocent woman in harm’s way. How could he justify doing that for his
own
selfish purposes? How could he go on with the thought that he may someday see another woman killed in front of his eyes and have his heart ripped out of his chest all over again?

The thought truly made him sick to his stomach.

He looked in the mirror hanging next to his front door and ran his hands through his dark hair. His brown eyes still looked sad. They always looked sad to him. He brushed his hands over his trim beard and sighed. He was going to do it
anyway
. He tried recalling the woman’s face in his mind but couldn’t. All he could see was Annie.

Perhaps Liz was right. Could it be time to put his heart on the line again? Was it worth it?

She’d been telling him for almost a year that he needed to brighten his life, find something new to be interested in, if not a woman, something else. But his job took precedence over everything. What woman was going to accept that?

Was that why Liz brought someone from afar to be his companion? He gnawed
at
his upper lip, staring at himself.
He
wasn’t a bad man. He tried very hard to be a good
man
.

“Lord, what do I do?” He asked aloud. “I don’t want to get another woman killed, especially one that I love.” He was quiet for a moment, hoping God would speak to him through the mirror. He pulled in a deep breath. It wasn’t going to happen. “I’ll see her tonight.”

His chest became tight with anxiety for a moment before it released and he felt peace fill him.

Maybe everything would turn out all right if he just kept his cool and talked to her to see what kind of woman she was.

And prayed.

******

There were more people at the party than Hettie expected. She sat in a garden chair, watching them all. They talked and laughed, milling around the garden, admiring Liz’s
fine
work in such
an arid
atmosphere. The grass under their feet was green. Bushes and trees had
been planted
. Liz and John had placed stone tablets along the garden area and around the
yard,
so visitors didn’t need to step onto the grass or disrupt the vegetation.

“Aren’t you hungry, Hettie?” John asked, stepping over to where she was sitting. “You spent a lot of time preparing this food for everyone. You must have some, too.”

Hettie nodded. “I will. Don’t worry.” She smiled, reached over to the small white table next to her and picked up a
thinly
sliced carrot stick. She took a quick bite and chewed, still smiling at him. He nodded and laughed.

“Good for you.”

“John! Who is this lovely young lady?” An older man had approached and was leaning
toward Hettie
to take her hand. Hettie lifted
it,
and the man kissed it gently. “You are a refreshing breeze here in this dusty town, young lady.”

Hettie blushed. “Thank you, sir.”

“You must call me Charles!” The man announced. “And what might your name be?”

“This is Hettie,
Charlie,
” John answered, giving Hettie a look over the older man’s shoulder that made Hettie drop her eyes to keep from giggling.

“Hettie! It’s good to meet you!”

“Charlie runs the Little Boar
Inn,
” John explained, stepping a little closer so that the older man needed to edge away from Hettie. “Hettie is here to meet with James.”

Charlie raised his thick eyebrows and stood up straight, looking up at John. “Oh, I see!” He paused. “I take it this was an idea that came from Liz?”

John nodded.

Charlie looked back down at Hettie. “Well, young lady, let me tell you a few things about our Sheriff.” His voice had changed but not in
an unfriendly
way. “He is a good man. He’s taken good care of this little town, even after Annie was
…
killed, poor girl. It was a
terrible tragedy
and it hurt James
greatly
. But if he lets you in, you have a good chance of being with a good husband.” Charlie leaned back down and said in a low voice, “I do believe you are beautiful enough to catch his eye, I must say. If he doesn’t
give you the chance
, you will not have trouble finding a husband, should you want one.”

“All right there, Charlie.” John laughed. “Let’s
go talk
to Mary and Liz. You can quiz them about the social next month to see what plans they have made so far.”

The two men
made off
into the small crowd. Hettie watched them. Charlie seemed an amusing old man. As he and John walked off, he began talking excitedly about the social next month. Apparently, social gatherings were something this little town enjoyed frequently. With so few people populating the area, most knew each other. She had been greeted by each person at the party with open
arms
though she was a stranger and an outsider. She had the sneaking suspicion Liz had warned them all ahead of time that she would be there and had bolstered their opinion of her with her
own
opinion before they even met her.