9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

S he did stop walking then, giving him her full attention. “What about Lucy?”

Noah’s unwavering gaze met her own. “Paul isn’t going to propose.”

“What?” Her shout echoed around the dunes, the sea oats atop them waving in a frenzy as the wind picked up speed. “Why ever not?”

Rubbing the back of his neck, he hesitated, but Hope would have none of that and nudged him with her snout. “Paul wants to marry someone else, and I’m telling you this to soften the blow for her, Willa. Ulrich plans to visit Haven House next week to deal with the news.”

She spun away from him, pacing on the sand. “But there is an agreement!”

“No, there was an assumption,” he corrected gently. “On your father’s part.”

“Don’t patronize me.” Hands fisted at her side, she yelled louder, utterly outraged on her sister’s behalf. “Paul Anderson would be lucky to have Lucy. How could he possibly object?”

Noah followed her. “Willa, watch your breathing.”

“Stop reminding me to breathe!” she screamed, chest pumping and eyes wild. “You will not tell me my sister’s one hope in life—her one dream—will be ruined because Paul Anderson doesn’t think she’s worthy enough to be his wife.”

He was in front of her in a heartbeat, grasping her by the upper arms. “I never said he didn’t think she was worthy. Lucy is a lovely girl, and Paul is an idiot. My uncle nearly killed him when he said he wanted to marry someone else.”

Willa sobered immediately. “What?”

“A young woman who came to The Gathering caught his eye, and they’ve been meeting secretly. It’s an entire group that gathers on the far end of this very beach, right where the bayou joins the sea.”

She stared at him as if he were insane. There had been plenty of women at The Gathering, but Paul didn’t show any of them attention except… “One of the serving girls from Port Michaelson?”

Slowly, he nodded. “Her name is Katie, and Ulrich wasn’t happy, but his own marriage was a love match, so he can’t fault his son for following his heart.”

Could anyone fault another person for following their heart? The answer was no, but at the moment, Willa’s single concern lay with her sister.

“My father…” Air wheezed past her lips, and she pressed a hand to her stomach. This wasn’t a breathing attack but pure terror manifesting itself. “He’ll blame Lucy.”

“But it’s not Lucy’s fault.”

“He won’t care!”

She couldn’t stand still and continued to march as fast as she could along the sandy shore. There was no destination in mind, only a burst of energy propelling her into motion.

“Lucy will find someone else.” Noah chased after her, as did Hope. “I didn’t lie when I said she was lovely. Lucy will make a fine wife to any man.”

“What man?” Willa halted, spreading her arms wide at the empty landscape. “What man, Noah? We’re in the middle of nowhere. Hollingsdale isn’t exactly a bustling city filled with available suitors, and Port Michaelson is worse. It’s nothing but dock workers and brothels. Where is she to find a gentleman among them?”

“Grace found love with a mill worker.” His own anger was close to the surface, and the muscle in Noah’s jaw ticked ominously. “Why can’t Lucy do the same? Why does it have to be some gentleman?”

It was as if he had struck her. Noah couldn’t possibly understand. He couldn’t possibly know what he was suggesting.

“Because there is no other choice.” She would not cry. Not in this beautiful place. Not with him watching. She had been broken a thousand times—in a thousand ways—but she would not permit it to happen now. “Lucy is to go to Paul Anderson so the mills can unite. I am to go to John Richards so the mills can use his land for future growth. There is no other option. Fairweather Lumber and the Anderson Mill cannot survive without them being united.”

He was in her space again, crowding her as the sun began to set behind him. On any other day, she would have marveled at the magnificent show playing out, but in the here and now, with the world crashing down on her, Willa didn’t care. Too lost in her anger and the pain she saw flashing in Noah’s eyes, her stomach turned completely over at his next words.

“Paul and Katie want to marry at Christmas. Ulrich has already approached your brother and asked him to announce the news to your father.”

“My brother?”

“I told you, a group of them meet. The girls from Port Michaelson, Paul, your brother, my brother, and… me.”

She had no right to want to claw his eyes out. He was her doctor. She was his patient. There was nothing else to it. No matter their long talks in the library. No matter that she had opened up to him more than anyone.

“I see.”

The evil man grinned. “Oh, do you?”

“I do.”

“No, I don’t think you do. ”

Crossing her arms, she refused to allow the quick prick of jealousy to rule and kept her voice even. “Where do you meet? In your little ‘medical’ cottage?”

Both she and Lucy had seen the place. It was surprisingly stocked, outfitted with equipment sent by Noah’s friends from up north.

His infuriating grin deepened. “If I didn’t know any better, I would think you were jealous, Wilhelmina Fairweather.”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

Noah was completely upon her. Swooping in to wrap an arm around her waist, their bodies collided together. “Yes, you do.”

“This is my brother’s doing,” she said, her body warring over whether she should try to wiggle free from his hold or stay put. “Cal and father have been arguing endlessly over Cal’s wild idea to end the mill and focus more on something called land development.”

“It’s a sound plan,” Noah replied, having the audacity to agree. “Advancements in lumber processing are happening far faster than the Anderson or the Fairweather mills can keep up with. The end is near, Willa. Ulrich already agrees it’s best to sell once Paul takes over their company in a few years. He’s begun looking into other ventures that will work best for our family, just as Cal has been trying to do with your father.”

“But if the mills unite and I go to Richards, both families can survive.” She pounded his chest with her fist. One good solid strike to make herself feel better. “We can make it work.”

He took her beating, almost looking happy to do it. “But for how long? It’s no longer possible to go on for endless decades like they’ve done before. The world is changing, Willa. Every corner of it.”

And she would have no idea. Tucked away at Haven House, she would have no idea what changes were occurring in the world or what new possibilities were on the horizon.

“I’m going to murder Cal.” She shoved Noah away so she could continue her march onward. “He’s been away all afternoon, but he’s here, isn’t he? He’s meeting with your women! ”

“They’re not my women, Willa,” he called after her, his denial only enraging her further. “I leave before things turn…well—before things begin.”

That had her stopping. “What things?”

“Things I’m not about to explain.”

Willa’s eyes narrowed into slits, mainly because of the sand blowing about in the wind, but she measured the look with just enough distaste that she hoped it made him think it was because of his reply.

“It’s Jennie.” She wrinkled her nose. “The one with the freckles and the ample bosom. That’s the one you like.”

Noah tipped his head back and said something to the sky before giving her his attention once again. “No, I don’t like her.”

“Why not?” she asked, seemingly upset on Jennie’s behalf, even though if Noah did find her attractive, she would hate the woman for life. “She’s stunning and seems to be lovely.”

“She is lovely,” he said as he edged closer. “And kind and clever and well-read.”

Well, there it was. Willa had never had a mortal enemy before, but she had always wanted one. A real Caroline Bingley to her Lizzie Bennett, and it would seem Jennie fit the bill. Lovely, kind, clever, and well-read Jennie.

“How wonderful for her,” she replied, pure acid dripping from every syllable. “It must be exhausting to be so very accomplished.”

Noah barked out a laugh, the sound competing with the roar of the waves. “I would imagine so, especially when using those accomplishments to make Cal fall in love with her.”

Her mouth dropped open. Cal? No. He wouldn’t dare. He knew his place. He understood the requirements of being an heir and would never jeopardize his position. “That’s not possible.”

“Perhaps he and Paul can have a double ceremony after the holidays.”

He was joking, but this wasn’t a joke. Her father…her father would murder Cal if he got wind of this. Women were nothing to her brother, and while he would eventually settle down when required, it would never be with someone like Jennie.

“Where is Cal?” Already hurrying ahead, she vaguely knew of the place Noah referred to as their meeting spot. When she and her siblings were children, their mother occasionally brought them to the beach to walk among the dunes. Willa had only been able to accompany the family twice, but she remembered every detail. “I must speak with him right away.”