Chapter Two

Luke Addison stuffed Tulip Williams' last letter back in the envelope and contemplated tossing it in the slot on the wood-burning stove. Instead, he stacked it with the rest of the lavender-scented promises.

"Still feeling sorry for yourself, I see," his housekeeper taunted, nodding toward the pile of envelopes laying on top of the kitchen table.

Caroline Woods had been with him for years and had earned the right to chastise him when he was behaving foolishly. Still, he shot her an angry glare. "Minding my business, are you?"

"Someone's got to, or you'll obsess over that woman's letters far longer than necessary. Especially the last one."

He huffed out a long breath, and admitted, "It came as a shock, that's for sure. I was certain we were a good fit. And, being a doctor, she was the perfect mother for Josh."

"Joshua has a perfect, loving father. He'll do just fine whether you get him a mother or not. What you need to find is the right wife for yourself."

"No," he insisted, shaking his head. "I've given up on that idea entirely. First, Victoria left me… and Josh… for a more desirable life back in Texas. Then, the only woman I courted in Carriage Creek wanted a real doctor for a husband, not one who tends animals."

"They were both selfish women, Luke," Caroline reminded him.

"That's why I thought Miss Williams was perfect. She recognized my profession, and she accepted the idea of being Josh's mother and all it meant." Shaking his head, he added, "I don't begrudge her the wonderful opportunity she's been offered. I'm happy for her, in fact. But I've come to the conclusion that I'm too old to keep looking for something I'm never going to find."

"You're thirty-two," Caroline scolded. "Nowhere near over the hill."

"Maybe not over the hill, but tired. Tired of looking, tired of being rejected."

Caroline stuck her hand inside her apron pocket and pulled out a pristine white envelope. "Then, I guess that means you won't be wanting this?"

He recognized the stationery immediately. The Garden Belles were responding to his angry diatribe about their matching making abilities. No doubt he owed them an apology. Reaching out, he snatched the letter from Caroline's hand.

"I imagine it's another of their attempts to keep me from taking legal action," he grumbled.

"Which you were never truly going to do in the first place," she pointed out. "Open it," she urged. "See what they have to say."

Luke opened the letter somewhat hesitantly, sliding the three sheets of paper from inside the envelope but not unfolding them. Not yet. "Can I have some privacy?"

"Pshaw," Caroline huffed. "You don't have to read it out loud." Nodding toward the sink, she told him, "I'll be over here scrubbing the vegetables to go with the roast I've got in the oven."

He waited until her back was turned before nudging the pages apart. Drawing a breath, he read through the very detailed letter before setting it aside. "I don't suppose you've got coffee in that pot," he wondered.

Without comment, Caroline reached for a clean mug on the drainboard and filled it with the dregs from the bottom of the pot. "Here you go. Just the way you like, as bitter as the tone of your voice."

"I'm sorry," he said honestly. "I don't mean to take out my frustrations on the one person I can truly trust."

"What about Charlie?" she reminded him.

"Okay… one of the two people I trust. Speaking of which, where did that cantankerous husband of yours get off to with my son?"

"They're out back. Josh wanted to help feed the chickens. He took some scraps from the bucket to give to that rat of his."

Luke stifled a chuckle. "It's not a rat. It's a guinea pig."

Caroline shuddered. "Same thing as far as I'm concerned."

"Well then, I guess it's a good thing Charlie Junior isn't your responsibility."

"I still can't believe you named him after my old coot of a husband."

This time, Luke didn't bother to hide his amusement. "Charlie was good with it," he reminded her. "Proud as a matter of fact."

"That old fool is good with anything Joshua does. He's the grandson we'll never be blessed to have."

"Given the state of my own family, the two of you are the closest Josh will ever have to grandparents." Grinning, he told her, "Maybe we'll get a parrot next, and we'll name her Caroline."

Caroline's gaze narrowed in the closest she ever got to an angry glare. "So, are you going to tell what was in the letter? Or is it some big secret?"

"The Garden Belles have found a replacement for Doctor Williams. As a matter of fact, the woman is Tulip's best friend. They've known each other since childhood. She's not a doctor, but she is well educated. She's spent the last two years in England with her maternal grandmother working at the London Library as an intern."

"A librarian?" Caroline snorted. "Why in the dickens would a librarian want to come to Carriage Creek? We don't have a library."

"Why would she want to marry a vet? Who knows what goes through young women's minds when they've reached their mid-twenties and aren't married?"

"That seems awfully shortsighted of you, given you're an educated man and all."

"Like I said, I'm frustrated. As for this new possibility, she's also qualified to teach. Given Mister Collins keeps threatening to take off the next time there's a vein of gold or silver found nearby, we could use a second teacher."

"Did they send a picture?" Caroline asked. "Is she as pretty as Miss Williams looked to be?"

Luke slid the tintype from between the sheets of paper and offered it to his friend. "She's got darker hair, but she looks pretty enough. Not that it matters, because I've no intention of committing myself to a replacement bride."

"What's her name?"

"Daisy. Miss Daisy Chambers," he confirmed.

"They sure do live up to their name, don't they? The Garden Belles, indeed. First, Tulip and now Daisy. I wonder if they represent women not named after flowers?"

"Yes, they do. Remember the list they sent initially. There was Sara, and Delia, and… I believe… also a Frances. However, none of them could hold a candle to Tulip's qualifications."

"So, you've made up your mind, have you? You're refusing their offer?"

He nodded, and was about to comment, when the kitchen door flew open, and his son stumbled across the threshold. Pushing out his chair, Luke scooped the rambunctious five-year-old up in his arms. "I hear you fed the chickens."

"Yes, sir. And Charlie. He really likes the carrot peels, and the green tops too."

"Charlie is going to have to learn to share," he reminded his son. "He's not the only one of our animals who likes Miss Caroline's vegetable scraps."

"He is awfully fat," Josh conceded. "Kinda like the real Mister Charlie."

Caroline's snicker echoed through the cozy room.

Josh wrapped his arms around Luke's neck and snuggled close, before saying, "It's summer now. When is my new mama getting here?"

"There's been a change, Joshy," Luke said carefully.

"She's still coming to live with us, isn't she? I told all my friends in Sunday School I was getting a new mommy."

Luke's chest clenched tight at the thought of disappointing his son. "Why don't I get you set up at your desk in the parlor? I've got to ride into town to send a telegram, but Miss Caroline will be here to watch over you."

Once he'd set out Josh's books, pencils, and a handful of blank papers, Luke returned to the kitchen to find Caroline leaning against the sink. "Well?"

"Well, what?" he grumbled.

"Funny how no matter what we think we're going to do about things, it only takes a few words from those we love to change our minds."

He let loose a long sigh of resignation. "I'm going to wire them and accept their offer, under certain conditions."

"What conditions?"

"I've decided I'm just not meant to have a normal, loving relationship. When I try, I fail. But, for Josh, I will agree to the Garden Belles' arrangement, and welcome Miss Chambers into our home. She'll take her place as Joshua's mother."

"And your wife," Caroline reminded him.

"Yes, but in name only. I don't need to mess things up by expecting anything more."

Caroline shot him a sour look of disbelief. "Is that fair to her? I mean, men aren't the only ones who have needs."

"I wouldn't know about that," he insisted. Embarrassment flushed his cheeks, and he turned toward the door to escape Caroline's smug grin. "I won't be gone long. I'll set out my terms in the telegram. It'll be up to her if she accepts."

"Darned fool, that's what you are, Luke Addison."

"Maybe. At least I'll be a fool who refuses to risk his heart only to be hurt again."

Daisy sank down onto the overstuffed settee in the Williams' parlor. "He accepted?"

"Did you think he wouldn't?" Dahlia asked. "He's a man in need of a wife, and mother for his son."

"But I'm not Tulip," Daisy insisted.

"No, you're not. You're Daisy. A beautiful, accomplished young woman," Zinnia said, her tone gentle, comforting. "Of course, he's going to be fine with the change in plans."

Tulip slid closer to Daisy's side and enclosed her hand in a firm grasp. "He's going to love you, just as we do."

Daisy couldn't help but notice the look Dahlia and Zinnia exchanged. "Is something amiss?" she asked.

"Not in the least," Dahlia insisted.

Tulip obviously noticed the exchange between her aunts as well because she suggested, "Perhaps, you could share Mister Addison's acceptance telegram with us. Just to set Daisy's mind at ease."

"It just says, ‘offer accepted,'" Dahlia explained.

Tulip held out her hand. "Let me see it. Please."

Zinnia dug into the pocket of her shirtwaist, and withdrew the short telegram, handing it to her niece.

Tulip scanned the short missive before she spoke. "Offer accepted. Marriage in name only."

Daisy's head shot up, her gaze going from Zinnia to Dahlia, and back again. "In name only," she repeated. "He doesn't want to consummate the marriage?"

"It's only a minor stumbling block," Zinnia insisted. "Once he gets to know you, he'll be tripping over himself to make the marriage whole."

"This doesn't sound at all like the man who wrote those very nice letters," Daisy noted. "Perhaps it's me… and my not being Tulip. He obviously felt something for her, that we've not had the chance to establish." She gave a sound shake of her head. "I know I said I'd do this, not just to restore your good names, but to have an adventure of my own, and a family of my own. But now that I know the circumstances, I'm not sure I can go through with it."

"Like I've said at least a half dozen times, Mister Addison is a good man," Tulip confirmed. "He's just a bit apprehensive, given he doesn't know you. Like Aunt Zinni said, he'd soon come around. I'm sure of it."

Daisy twisted the skirt of her day dress between her fingers, a nervous habit she'd been trying to break. "When I told my parents, they were concerned about the hastiness of the decision. However, given they've decided to move back to England to take my place helping care for my grandmother, they couldn't very well insist I stay here. Still, I admit, I'm scared."

"It's not just my aunts' reputation I'm concerned about," Tulip explained. "I feel bad about backing out on him. I want Luke to be happy. I want you to be happy. I think the two of you are perfectly suited and, in time, will learn to love one another the way a husband and wife should. If I didn't believe that with all my heart, I wouldn't have asked you to take my place."

"Am I enough for his son?" Daisy wondered. "I mean—"

"You've got all the information I copied down for you. The item I ordered will arrive within the next month or so, along with the instructions you and Luke will need. I'm confident you'll do fine."

"When does my train leave?" Daisy queried.

Zinnia pulled an itinerary from her other pocket. "Day after tomorrow at ten in the morning. Once you arrive in Denver, you'll switch trains headed to Nevada. Once you arrive in Carson City, you'll take a stagecoach from there, cross the California border, and onto Carriage Creek."

Tulip snatched the itinerary from her aunt's grasp, and then tugged Daisy to her feet. "Come on, Daisy, let's go pack your bags. We can talk about your trip while we work."

"Never mind my trip," Daisy said as they went through the front door. "I've got so many other questions to ask. Questions about… well… married things. Relations."

"Your mother never had the ‘talk' with you?"

"Oh, heavens no. She still refers to it as a woman's duty and gives me some silly analogy about insects."

"Well then, I guess it's time I give you a lesson in human anatomy."

Daisy drew a trembling breath. "Oh… dear."