A Careless Wind (Kansas Crossroads Book 7) Read online

  When he finally pulled back, he didn’t let go, but kept her in the crook of his arm. “What do you say, Rachel? Another chance, another opportunity to see what this could be?”

  Her eyes were moist again. “I think I’d like that.”

  He grinned and pulled her close again.

  ***

  What had she done? Rachel paced the floor of her attic bedroom, worrying the end of her braid. A second chance, he’d said. A chance to get hurt, a chance to be rejected, a chance to feel pain . . . She never should have told him yes. But he’d always had that power over her—he could cast a spell just by looking into her eyes and smiling. It was a power Daniel had never mastered, and maybe that’s part of why she chose him—he couldn’t sway her like Nicholas could.

  This wouldn’t work. It couldn’t work. They’d argue all the time. They’d bicker and nitpick, and before long, they’d wish they’d left well enough alone. But that kiss . . . it had been a wonderful kiss. She’d missed him so much—the circle of his arms, the tenderness of his lips. She hadn’t realized just how much she’d missed him until that afternoon. Now she wanted to fling herself in his arms again . . . and that was confusing. How could she feel so many conflicting emotions at once?

  Realizing she couldn’t stay locked up here in her room forever, she went downstairs and found Sarah and Margaret, who were making pies. She snitched a bit of dough and sat down across from them, telling them everything that had happened.

  “You realize the problem,” Margaret said after hearing the whole story. “You’re a girl.”

  “Of course I’m a girl,” Rachel replied. “What does that have to do with anything?”

  “Everything. Absolutely everything. These conflicting emotions, this tug-of-war . . . it’s all part of being a girl.” Margaret spooned cherries into the crust she’d just prepared. “What do you want, Rachel? What do you really want?”

  “I want him.” Until she said the words, Rachel hadn’t been sure, but now she was.

  “Then tell yourself that it’s all right to want him and see where this leads. Your brain is telling you to run away—don’t you think your brain deserves a little vacation? You can tell it to be quiet, you know.”

  Rachel laughed. “I like that idea. Very well, that’s what I’ll do.” She stood up and snitched another piece of dough. “Starting right now.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Rachel and Nicholas sat together on the porch, watching people walk up and down the street. She’d point out the people she knew, and they’d invent stories about the people they didn’t know. They had just decided that the portly gentleman making his way toward the train station was an international man of mystery when Ho came bustling up the sidewalk, waving a letter.

  “Nick! Nick!”

  Nicholas sat upright and disentangled his arm from Rachel’s. “Yes? What is it?”

  “Best news ever. I have letter from friend in New York. Company in China wants me to come and build a building for them, and I can bring workers. Listen! Come to China with me, Nick. I have job for you—good job.”

  Nicholas raised an eyebrow. “You’re going to build a building?”

  “Yes. In China, I’m . . .” He paused. “I look at the pictures of the buildings, and then I build them. I don’t know the word.”

  Rachel was surprised. Why hadn’t Ho ever mentioned this before?

  Ho continued. “Come, Nick. You want to see China, my friend needs workers. You decide—I’ll go write letter. Oh, and send telegram to my wife.” He went inside the hotel, leaving Nick and Rachel in stunned silence.

  “You might go to China?” Rachel asked, her voice small.

  “I don’t know.” Nicholas passed a hand over his face. “This is such a big decision—I need time.”

  Rachel tucked her arm through his again. They’d agreed to take things very slowly, just spending time together to see where things led, but she liked having him here, with her. Now that she’d made the decision to open her heart up to him again, she felt peaceful, like things were falling into place. It was bad enough that he wanted to rejoin his railroad camp—China was literally half a world away.

  “Just how much time do you think you’ll have?” she asked. “Ho seemed to be moving pretty quickly.”

  “Maybe he’s just excited,” Nicholas replied. “I’ll go ask him.”

  He stood up and went inside the hotel, leaving Rachel alone with her thoughts. She’d lost Nicholas once when she chose Daniel over him. She lost him again when he went off to the railroad camp. She nearly lost him to laudanum addiction. Was she about to lose him again to China?

  If she did, it would be entirely her own fault. She’d never once told him that she wanted him. Giving their relationship this second chance was as close as she’d ever come. Why couldn’t she just open up her mouth and tell him what she was feeling? Why was it so hard to say the words?

  And then she knew. She didn’t want him to laugh at her.

  She’d only ever told one person she loved them, and they had laughed at her as though it was the funniest thing they’d ever heard. The memory rose up before her as crystal clear as though it had happened just yesterday. She’d been in the kitchen with her mother, and they were rolling out pie crust. Her mother had been less critical than usual that day and had even showed some good humor. Eager to please, to find her place in a family that seemed more distant than the moon, Rachel had told her mother that she loved her.

  And her mother laughed.

  Then she picked up the rolling pin and went to work on the next pie.

  She never said a word, but her laughter was enough. Rachel determined then and there that it hurt too much to tell someone you loved them, and she was never going to do it again.

  She wasn’t aware that she was crying until Nicholas knelt before her, a handkerchief at the ready. “What’s the matter?” he asked, his voice gentle.

  “Oh, nothing.” She took the folded square of fabric and dabbed at her cheeks. “Just an unpleasant memory, something I thought I’d forgotten.”

  “I’m sorry.” Nicholas took the handkerchief and finished the job, catching a tear that had come to rest on her jaw. “It must have been very unpleasant to cause all these tears.”

  “It was. But it’s in the past—it’s of no consequence now.” She smiled at him. “What did Ho say?”

  Nicholas rose from his kneeling position and sat down next to her again. “The letter from his friend took a while to get here. It was forward from the railroad camp, which was an additional week.”

  “So he doesn’t have long at all,” Rachel surmised.

  “They’d like him on his way by the end of the week.”

  Rachel leaned her head back against the chair and closed her eyes. That was so soon—far too soon for anyone to make a proper decision.

  “He’s going to leave here on Friday, pick up his wife and their belongings at the railroad camp, and then they’ll continue west to California, where they’ll board their ship.” Nicholas sighed, and Rachel opened her eyes to look at him. “He says my passage will be paid, and all I have to do is come. Once the building is complete, I can either stay or come back.”

  “What sort of building is it?”

  “Something rather fancy, from what I could tell. Ho has a hidden skill, it seems.”

  “It’s unfortunate that he ended up having to work on the railroad just to support his family.”

  “It is,” Nicholas replied. “Perhaps this job will lead to other jobs for him, and he can work in a field that appreciates his talents.”

  Rachel smoothed her skirt and flicked off a bit of dust that probably only she could see. She had no idea what to say. Didn’t love mean wanting someone else’s happiness above your own? Should she wish him well, even though it would tear her in two? That’s what he’d done when he gave her his blessing. Perhaps that’s what was required of her now, the way she’d test the strength of her feelings.

  “I think I’m going to tell him yes,”
Nicholas said after a long moment. “This opportunity seems too good to pass up, and I don’t want to regret it the rest of my life.”

  Rachel nodded, not able to find the words to reply. That was that, then. He was leaving. He was going around the world, taking a dangerous sea voyage, and he might not ever come back. He was following his dream, and that was good for him, but it wasn’t good for her.

  Nicholas stood up and went inside the hotel. Rachel followed just a moment later and saw him going up the last few stairs to the room he shared with Ho.

  “Wait,” she called out.

  He turned and looked down at her. “Yes?”

  “What if . . . what if I said I love you? Would you stay?”

  He grinned. “Why, what’s this? Is Miss Rachel finally admitting that she loves me after all this time?”

  She folded her arms. “Just answer me. Would you stay?”

  He mimicked her stance by folding his arms. “Would you go?”

  “What?” She had no idea what he was talking about.

  “Would you go? Would you go with me to China?”

  She stared at him, feeling the floor disappear from under her. What had he just said? She must have misunderstood him.

  “I’m serious, Rachel. Will you go to China with me?”

  She blinked a few times, still in shock.

  He came back down the stairs, a little slowly because he was still healing, and took her hand. “I know this is sudden. Believe me, I didn’t even think about it until the words were out of my mouth. But listen, Rachel. Marry me. Come to China with me. Have the adventure of your life with me. We’ll see things we’ve never even dreamed of, meet new people, and learn new things. Oh, the stories we’ll have to tell our children. And now that you’ve finally admitted that you love me, we’ll spend our nights in each other’s arms, staring up at the stars from a whole new angle. What do you say?”

  Rachel swallowed. She almost couldn’t feel her tongue, she was so taken aback by what he’d just said.

  “Please, Rachel. I love you. You’re the only person I can imagine spending my life with. If you won’t go, then I’ll stay—that’s how much I love you. But if you came, if we explored this dream together, wouldn’t that be amazing?”

  The look in his eyes and the tone of his voice melted the ice that was holding Rachel motionless. “Yes,” she said at last. “Yes, I’ll come.”

  Nicholas let out a whoop. “Thank you! Thank you, beautiful girl.” Then he cupped her face in his hands and brought her in for a kiss full of promises and destiny.

  ***

  Pastor Osbourne stood in front of the group assembled in the Brody Hotel dining room, a smile on his face. “It’s always a pleasure to officiate at a ceremony here at the Brody, although I do wonder why so many of you decide to get married here instead of taking advantage of the nice little church that’s just a few streets that way.” He nodded up the road, and everyone chuckled. “Never mind, though. God honors your union because it’s forged in love, not because of the building where the service is held.”

  Rachel wiped tears of laughter and joy from the corners of her eyes, hardly daring to believe this was all really happening.

  “Nicholas and Rachel, you have been through a great deal to find each other once again. Now circumstances dictate that you make this decision quickly or lose the opportunity. I admit, this is the first time I’ve ever been asked to perform a ceremony with three hours’ notice, but I do believe it’s justified in your case, and a longer engagement wouldn’t do anything to prove or disprove your love for each other—it has already been proven through the fires of adversity. Please take each other by the hand.”

  Rachel glanced around the dining room, at these people who had become her family. She didn’t want to leave them, but she was moving toward a new life, a new family, a new beginning with Nicholas. Her friends had given her courage to reach for her dreams, and Nicholas had been the reward for opening her heart and daring to say how she felt. As she said the words that would seal her commitment to this man, she looked into his eyes and knew this was the right decision. They would have this adventure together, succeed or fail, and there would be love.

  The End

  And now, a special sneak peek at A Narrow Road, Book #8 of Kansas Crossroads …

  Chapter One

  Topeka, Kansas

  1875

  Margaret felt the ground rumble beneath her feet as though a thunderstorm had suddenly come up with all its might. The sky was clear, though, with not even a wisp of a cloud. She tossed the tablecloth she was scrubbing back into the washtub and raced around the corner of the hotel to the front, where the noise seemed to be coming from.

  It looked like a stampede. Heads upon heads of cattle were charging up Main Street, sending people up onto the sidewalks and even into the stores to take refuge. Men on horseback rode alongside the animals with whips, urging them onward.

  “What on earth?” she whispered as she stood there, mesmerized by the pounding hooves and the rush of bodies going past. She was so interested in what was going on that she didn’t notice one of the steer breaking loose and heading right for her until one of the men rode up and knocked her out of the way, cracking his whip at the steer and forcing it back into the group.

  “Margaret! Are you all right?” Sarah cried out, running up from behind and taking her arm to help her up.

  “I’m fine,” Margaret replied. “Just a little shaken.” She wiped her forehead with her arm, still watching the procession down the street. “Are they getting on the train?”

  “That’s what it looks like,” Sarah said. “Off to auction, I’d say. Now come on—let’s get you cleaned up. You’re covered in dust.”

  ***

  Wade Watkins stepped into the Brody Hotel and took off his hat. This place was nicer than any hotel he’d ever stayed in, but that wasn’t saying much. He’d spent far more nights sleeping out under the stars than he’d ever spent in a real bed, and that’s just how he liked it. Leave the fluff and pillows for the city folk—they’d never know the richness of being able to count every twinkling light in the sky as they fell asleep.

  A kind-looking woman stood behind the hotel’s front counter, and he stepped over there to say hello. “My name is Wade Watkins, ma’am, and I’m looking for the young lady I knocked into the dirt a short time ago.”

  A smile played on the woman’s mouth. No doubt she’d heard the whole story—women did enjoy sharing that kind of thing with each other. “I’m Elizabeth Brody, and I believe the young lady you’re looking for is Margaret Smith. I’ll go get her for you, if you’d like to have a seat in the parlor.”

  “Oh, no, but thanks anyway. I’m too dusty from the trail. I’ll just stay right here and wait.”

  “Very well.” She gave him another smile before moving off down the hallway.

  A moment later, he heard a light footstep, and he turned to see the girl he’d come looking for. Seemed she’d changed her dress, which was probably for the best—he didn’t imagine she’d been too clean after their little encounter.

  “Miss Smith, is it?”

  “It is,” she replied.

  “Well, Miss Smith, my name is Wade Watkins, and I’ve come to apologize for throwing you in the dirt. Those steer can be plenty mean, and that one was headed right for you. I did what I thought was best, but I was worried that I’d harmed you in some way. Are you all right?”

  She nodded. “I understand, Mr. Watkins. I was a little surprised at first, but I was never offended.”

  “That’s quite a relief. Thank you for your easy forgiveness.”

  She motioned behind her. “May I offer you a slice of pie, Mr. Watkins?”

  Gracious and generous and beautiful? All those things in one woman? “I wish I could stay, but I have to get back.”

  “Another time, then.”

  “Yes. Another time. Good day, Miss Smith.” Wade nodded, then turned and walked out of the Brody. Oh, how he wished he wasn’t in a hu
rry. He wouldn’t mind sharing more than one slice of pie with that young lady.

  I hope you’ve enjoyed this sneak peek at A Narrow Road, book #8 of the Kansas Crossroads series. Please join me at www.ameliacadams.com to learn more about me and stay on top of news and upcoming releases, and follow me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Amelia-C-Adams/584870491648423

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  The Kansas Crossroads Series:

  A New Beginning

  A Free Heart

  The Dark and the Dawn

  A Clean Slate

  A Clear Hope

  The Whisper of Morning

  A Careless Wind

  A Narrow Road (coming November 2015)

  And many more to be announced …

  The Nurses of New York series:

  Sea of Strangers

  And many more to be announced …