The Unexpected Bride Read online

  Granny stared at him a second, then nodded, apparently satisfied to let the subject drop there.

  Caleb turned his attention back to the road, resisting the urge to give the reins another impatient flick. The fact was, he’d been told Miss Sinclare had run away rather than face unpleasantness at home, which didn’t bode well for her ability to deal with the unexpected. If she’d left with the stagecoach because there was no one to meet her when she arrived, he wasn’t sure what he’d do.

  He felt another trickle of moisture roll down his back, and knew the sweat wasn’t totally due to the spring heat. He had to have a wife within three days, or they’d take the kids from him.

  No one was going to split up another family of Tanner kids, not if he could help it.

  Twenty minutes later, Granny had been safely delivered to her front door, and Caleb had Whistling Oak Station in sight. He leaned forward, trying to find some sign of how things stood. Then he let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.

  A woman sat on the front porch, next to several trunks. It had to be Miss Sinclare.

  He studied her as he neared. Yep, it was her all right. Sitting primly on the wooden chair, as if afraid to dirty her dress, she looked pampered, like someone who’d never lifted a finger in her life except to crook it at someone. Her clothes were more appropriate for a tea party than a country kitchen. She even had a frilly parasol, more decorative than useful from the looks of it. He sure hoped the rest of her wardrobe was more serviceable. But at least she’d waited.

  Spying the dirty smudges on his pants leg, he frowned. His efforts to wrestle Granny’s horse out of the tangled harness and then clear the road of the crippled buggy had done more than make him late. Instead of the smart, at-his-best appearance he’d wanted to present, he looked like he’d just come in from a day in the fields. Compared to her prissy, neat-as-a-pin image, it put him at a disadvantage, and that irritated the fire out of him.

  Pulling up to the station, Caleb got a closer look at his intended. The first thing he noticed was her hair. A bold copper color, it had an unruly look to it as a number of coiled strands had escaped the confines of her impractical frippery of a hat. Once he looked past that, he saw a face that was generously freckled and a snub nose crowned by a pair of wire-rim spectacles. Not a beauty by any stretch but not altogether unpleasant in appearance either.

  He hopped down and looped the reins over the hitching post, trying to wipe his mind of doubts and censure. After all, no matter what her life had been up until now, she’d come here to marry him, a step that probably hadn’t been easy for her. He’d be willing to forgive her a wagonload of faults if she was good to the children.

  Caleb forced a smile that he hoped appeared welcoming and approached his future bride.

  Elthia watched the stranger with the nut-brown hair dust his hat against his leg as he climbed the three shallow steps. This couldn’t be Mr. Tanner. Mrs. Pembroke had described him as a well-educated, middle-aged businessman.

  This tall, lean man in the work-stained clothes couldn’t be but six or so years older than her, and he sure didn’t look like he spent his days behind a desk or counter. That tanned skin and animal like grace belonged to a man accustomed to physical labor.

  No, the Tanners must have sent someone in their place. After all, with Mrs. Tanner bedridden, Mr. Tanner no doubt wanted to stay close by to help with the children.

  The man stepped up to greet her. “Excuse me, ma’am, do I have the pleasure of addressing Miss Sinclare?”

  Elthia pushed her glasses up more firmly on her nose and smiled in relief. “Yes, sir. Did Mr. Tanner send you?”

  His smile twisted. “You could say that. I am Mr. Tanner.”

  Heat rose in her cheeks. Good heavens! She’d just insulted her new employer. “Forgive me, sir.”

  She stood quickly and extended her hand. The reticule that had rested, forgotten, on her lap slid to the floor. He bent to retrieve it at the same time she did, and the parasol whacked him on the side of his head.

  She straightened, appalled. “Oh, Mr. Tanner, I’m so sorry.”

  “No problem,” he assured her through gritted teeth.

  As he finished retrieving her bag, Elthia all but flung the lethally troublesome parasol on the chair behind her. She tried to paste an everything’s-just-fine smile on her face as she turned back to him. “I do hope I didn’t hurt you.”

  Then she stepped forward, studying his forehead to check for some sign of a bump or bruise. And promptly caught her shoe on the hem of her dress. Horrified, Elthia helplessly pitched forward.

  He caught her to him as she fell against his chest—a very firm, well-muscled chest.

  Elthia shut her eyes, praying a hole would appear and swallow her up. She’d so wanted to make a good first impression, but, as always, she turned into a clumsy twit when she got nervous, and she was definitely nervous now. Too bad she wasn’t the sort of woman who swooned. Oblivion would certainly be nice at a time like this.

  Before she could apologize yet again, Poppy shot out from around the corner of the porch, barking furiously and seeming intent on taking a bite out of Mr. Tanner.

  “What the—” He pushed her behind him, and his hand flew out as if to shield her.

  “Poppy, no!” She darted in front of her would-be protector and scooped up her pet, cuddling the excited animal protectively against her bosom.

  Mr. Tanner’s brows drew down. “What is that thing?”

  Elthia drew herself up, ready to come to Poppy’s defense. “Poppy, sir, is not a ‘thing.’ He’s a Yorkshire terrier, a very intelligent animal.” She stroked Poppy’s head. “I apologize if he startled you, but he’s highly protective of my person.”

  His autumn-brown eyes narrowed. “An annoying little lapdog wasn’t part of the bargain, Miss Sinclare. I have no use for critters who don’t earn their keep.”

  She bristled at his unflattering description of her precious pet. “I’m sorry you feel that way. But I made a thorough review of that contract before I signed it, and there was no mention of pets being disallowed. Mrs. Pembroke gave it as her opinion that his presence would not be a problem.”

  His expression hardened, and Elthia felt all her carefully made plans unravel, but she couldn’t compromise on this issue.

  Mr. Tanner wasn’t at all as she’d expected. Not only had he obviously overstated his social standing, but he hadn’t even had the courtesy to apologize for his late arrival. And now he was disparaging poor, sweet Poppy.

  The only thing keeping her from giving him a piece of her mind was the fact that she desperately needed this job. Returning home where marriage to a brute awaited her was unthinkable.

  Keeping that in mind, she pasted on a conciliatory smile. “Of course I’ll see to him myself so he won’t tax your time or resources.”

  When he still remained silent, she pushed her glasses up on her nose and took a deep breath. “I’m afraid, sir, that this is not a bargaining point. If you can’t abide having Poppy in your home, then we’d best agree to dissolve our contract right now.” She would strike out on her own to find another position before she’d give up her special companion.

  Mr. Tanner stared a moment longer. Finally, he nodded. “Just keep him out of my way.”

  She allowed herself to breathe again. “Of course. You’ll hardly know he’s about.” Despite her earlier stand, she wasn’t sure what she’d have done if Mr. Tanner had called her bluff. She couldn’t give Poppy up, but being fired before she’d even left the station would have been an outright disaster.

  Making a good impression seemed a lost cause now though. Flashing a diplomatic smile, she extended her hand. “Let’s start over, shall we?”

  Raising an eyebrow, he took her hand and gave an exaggerated bow before releasing it. “Welcome to Texas, Miss Sinclare.”

  “Thank you.” She ignored his sarcasm and pulled a sealed envelope from her handbag. “Mrs. Pembroke asked me to deliver this to you. I believe it’s yo
ur copy of the contract.”

  He took the envelope and tucked it into his pocket.

  Elthia tried to maintain an unruffled appearance as she marshaled her thoughts. It helped to know he wasn’t in a position to be too choosy either. According to Mrs. Pembroke, there hadn’t been a rush of women eager to take this position, and the Tanners had been in a bit of a hurry.

  She supposed it was the distance that had given most other applicants pause. Texas was a long way from Massachusetts. She, on the other hand, had seen that as an advantage—it would make it that much more difficult for her father to track her down. Besides, none of the other positions that were immediately available had fit her needs.

  Elthia straightened. “It’s been a very long journey,” she said brightly. “It’ll be nice to have an opportunity to freshen up and meet your family.”

  He nodded, taking her not-so-subtle hint. “Of course. Let me load your things, and we’ll be all set.”

  A few minutes later, he handed Elthia up onto the wagon seat. She placed Poppy’s basket at her feet, moving it as far from Mr. Tanner as possible.

  Unfortunately, they’d barely started when Poppy propped his front paws on the edge of the basket and barked excitedly. The horse tossed his head and skittishly broke stride.

  Mr. Tanner took firmer hold of the reins. “Miss Sinclare,” he said through clenched teeth, “will you kindly quiet down that four-legged hank of hair before he spooks the horse any more?”

  Elthia reached down to soothe her pet. “Behave, Poppy,” she scolded. “We don’t want you startling the poor wee horsey.”

  Her employer shot her a look that would wither an oak. He didn’t say anything though, just shook his head and turned his gaze back to the horse.

  “I apologize for not meeting the stage.”

  Elthia blinked. Even though his words had been conciliatory, his tone was begrudging.

  He continued staring at the road. “It must have been awkward to arrive at a strange place with no one to meet you. I’d planned to arrive sooner, but I ran into some problems along the way.”

  Perhaps apologies came hard to him. But at least he was trying. “Please don’t concern yourself. Poppy and I managed quite well.”

  He nodded, then spoke again. “Forgive me, but you don’t strike me as a woman who would be drawn to the life I’m offering. In fact, you seem like someone more used to being looked after than to looking after others. Are you sure you know what you’re getting into?”

  Elthia raised her chin, reminding herself he was her employer and she owed him a degree of deference. “I’m sorry my appearance doesn’t inspire you with confidence, but I assure you, I do love children and I’m certain I can provide proper care for them.” She was truly confident on that point. She genuinely loved children, and they instinctively responded to her in kind. They didn’t think her odd just because she liked to give rein to her imagination occasionally.

  But he didn’t seem appeased. “Loving them is one thing. But it takes more than that to manage the daily care of the active, prove-yourself-to-me kids who’ll be in your charge.”

  He spoke as if his children were an unmanageable pair. If she didn’t know better, she’d think he was trying to scare her away.

  “I hope you’re not having second thoughts,” she said when he remained silent. “There is the matter of our contract.” Elthia couldn’t believe her own audacity. Something about this man sparked a hint of rebelliousness in her.

  “I’m aware of my obligations,” he said stiffly. “I’m just making sure you’re aware of yours.” He raked a hand through his hair. “Sorry. It’s just that the kids have had to endure a lot of upheaval in a short space of time. It hasn’t been easy for them, and I won’t let you add to their distress.”

  Elthia’s heart softened at his obvious concern for the children. His wife’s long-standing illness must have been an even greater burden on them than she’d realized.

  This job was no longer just about proving herself. She was more determined than ever to do whatever she had to in order to make the children’s lives as happy as possible.

  CHAPTER 2

  Caleb gave the reins an irritated flick. He couldn’t figure out why someone like Lady Privilege would answer his posting, even given what the agency had told him about her broken engagement. This whole scheme would fall apart if she couldn’t make the necessary commitment to their contract.

  The woman was a mishmash of contradictions. While her pampered air and fancy clothes set her apart as a lady of means, there was also that awkwardness that made her seem little-girl vulnerable.

  The unusual copper-colored hair and liberal sprinkling of freckles across her nose and cheeks should have given her a schoolgirl appearance. The hair was pulled back into a prim bun, however, and her nose was crowned by a pair of spectacles that hid her eyes and gave her a bookish, schoolmarm look.

  Then there were her lips, full and soft and shaped so that they seemed to hint at something neither schoolgirlish nor schoolmarmish. He might have enjoyed the challenge of finding out about that something if the situation had been different.

  Caleb quickly shut down that line of thought. He wasn’t looking for any emotional entanglements, romantic or otherwise. He’d been down that road enough to know that it only led to disillusionment.

  Her silly excuse of a dog started yipping again, allowing Caleb to refocus his irritation. It was an absurd-looking thing, all hair and vocal cords, and small enough to fit in a milk pail. And to add to its ridiculous appearance, the animal’s face hair was pulled back and gathered in a topknot on its head with a prissy blue bow.

  All in all, a thoroughly useless critter.

  And she’d chosen to draw the line over that varmint, to issue him a nose-in-the-air ultimatum over it. That provided surefire proof she was more than a little spoiled and clearly allowed to get her own way far too often.

  But he needed to rein in his irritation before he let it jeopardize his whole plan. Good thing she’d obstinately ignored his fault-finding. Because marrying her was his best hope right now of pulling off his plan.

  Honestly, right now it was his only hope.

  At least she seemed ready to step up where the kids were concerned. And that was his line in the sand.

  He took a deep breath. “Miss Sinclare, to be frank, I know you came here because of a broken engagement, and it doesn’t speak well for your ability to stand firm in the face of trouble.” He ignored her indrawn breath. “I need to know you won’t decide to throw up your hands and run back home to daddy the moment things get difficult. I can’t put the kids through that.”

  Meeting his gaze, she tilted her chin up, though her face was still slightly flushed. “The circumstances in the matter of my broken engagement are immaterial to the contract I’ve made with you. No matter what happens, I won’t run out on the children. I’m not sure what else I can say to convince you.”

  Caleb nodded, feeling only a bit better about his soon-to-be bride. His preference would have been for a more down-to-earth, sensible miss. But that was beside the point now. “I’m glad to hear it. For better or worse, we are stuck with each other.”

  Her lips compressed, and she gave a short nod as she no doubt swallowed some comment on his harsh words. Feeling just a tad apologetic for saying what had to be said, he turned his attention back to the road. At least he’d let her know how he saw things. No point in sugarcoating the pill for her.

  Ignoring the dust stirred up by the wagon, Elthia stared straight ahead. It was mortifying to realize Mr. Tanner knew part of her reason for leaving home. She supposed it had been naïve to assume Mrs. Pembroke would handle her file with extra tact because of the slight family connection they shared. After all, the woman had to maintain the integrity of her business.

  She glanced sideways at her employer again. With his broad shoulders and see-through-you eyes, he was rather attractive. His lean build and tough, callused hands were those of a laborer. And that firmly muscled che
st she’d fallen against was—

  She straightened, aghast at the turn her thoughts had taken. Good heavens, the man was her employer and married no less.

  “There’s something you ought to know,” he said, providing a welcome distraction. “We’ve been dealing with measles the past few days. It was rough going for a while, but it looks like the kids are on the mend now. One of the neighbors has been helping out, but she’ll be ready to go back to her own family now that you’ve arrived.”

  Before she could respond, he continued. “Don’t worry though, they’re over the worst of it. Doc Adams says they should be up and about in another day or so. It’s just a matter of dealing with their fretting now.”

  She nodded, relieved she wouldn’t be responsible for nursing them. “Of course.”

  He returned his focus to the road ahead, and Elthia let the conversation die. Mr. Tanner obviously wasn’t interested in small talk, and right now she didn’t feel up to the task of navigating through his moods.

  Much easier to think about her soon-to-be charges. She could envision long hours spent teaching them appreciation for the arts, comportment, literature. They could also supplement their indoor lessons with outdoor activities related to botany and nature.

  Yes, there was a lot to look forward to in her first step toward independence.

  “Well, here we are.”

  Elthia drew her gaze away from the profusion of wildflowers she’d been studying and sat up straighter.

  What was this? They turned up a dusty drive, and she could see a large white house set cozily in a tree-studded yard. There was a barn and barnyard nearby, along with a variety of rustic outbuildings scattered about. Everything seemed well tended, but they were in the middle of the countryside with no neighbors in sight. Didn’t Mr. Tanner live in town?

  As hard as she tried to recall just what she’d been told, she couldn’t remember how much had been explained to her and how much she’d assumed. Unfortunately, her vivid imagination could occasionally fill in the blanks for her in the wrong direction.