The Anonymous Bride Read Free

he’s got no business treating a girl like that. Made my belly ache.”
     
    Rachel’s gaze swerved down to her daughter’s stomach. “I’m sure he didn’t mean to hurt you, but you still haven’t explained yourself.”
     
    Jacqueline shrugged. “We just yelled at him for watering his horse in our swimming hole.”
     
    That didn’t seem such a bad thing. Why would Luke take offense to that? Maybe he had changed in the years he’d been gone. Gotten cranky as he’d aged. Still, she couldn’t help thinking there was more to the story than Jacqueline was sharing. “Let’s get home and have dinner; then it’s back to school for you.”
     
    Jacqueline hung her head. “Aw, do I have to? I wanted to go fishing with Jonesy and Ricky this afternoon.”
     
    “We have extra guests staying with us since the mayor’s family is in town to celebrate his and his wife’s twenty-fifth anniversary. I could use your help. Besides, you know how I feel about you skipping school to fish and hang around with those older boys.”
     
    “You just don’t like them because they’re poor.” Jacqueline glared up at her.
     
    Rachel stopped on her front porch, noting that the white wicker rockers were all aligned neatly and the greenery in the potted plants was filling out nicely. Too bad she couldn’t keep her daughter so orderly. “That’s not true. My family was poor. Folks who don’t have much are just as good and decent as anyone else. The reason I object is that you’re ten, and you have no business running around with boys who are three years older than you.”
     
    Rachel held on to her daughter’s shoulder to make sure she didn’t bolt. Why couldn’t children come with instructions? She hated the way Jacqueline challenged her constantly and dressed like a boy every time Rachel turned her back. She dearly loved her daughter, in spite of everything, but she wished that she was more obedient and ladylike.
     
    Two boys dashed across the road toward them. “Hey, Jack, that was a close call, wasn’t it?” said Ricky Blake. The tall, towheaded youth skidded to a halt, and Jonesy almost ran into his back.
     
    “My daughter’s name is Jacqueline, not Jack, and I’ll thank you to remember that.” Rachel narrowed her eyes, just realizing what the boy had said. What had been a close call?
     
    Jacqueline scowled, and her gaze roved back and forth between the boys and Rachel. Her daughter was hiding something, but for the life of her, Rachel didn’t know how to get at the truth.
     
    The boys dashed past them, and Jacqueline suddenly jerked away and chased after them.
     
    “Jacqueline, you come back here this instant!”
     
    The trio disappeared around the corner. Ray and Margie Mann and Thelma Jenkins all stopped on the boardwalk outside the bank and stared. Rachel ducked her head. Everyone in town knew her daughter ran wild, despite her efforts to control her.
     
    And now Luke was back in town. Her troubles had quadrupled in a single day.
    ***
     
    The bell over the freight office door jangled as Luke strode in. He couldn’t shake Rachel’s image from his mind. She’d seemed as stunned to see him as he’d been to see her again. She’d looked good, too good for someone he was trying to forget. But she was a married woman, and he’d best remember that. She’d made her choice a long time ago.
     
    A blond man sitting behind the desk looked up with curious blue eyes, and Luke honestly couldn’t tell which cousin he was. The gangly youth he’d left years ago was now an adult. “Garrett?”
     
    The man’s brows dipped. “Can I help you?”
     
    “Yeah, I want to know when your next gold shipment is due in so I can steal it.” Luke struggled to keep a straight face and was careful to keep his hands clear of his gun. Both of his cousins were crack shots.
     
    “Pardon?” Garrett stood and walked around his desk.
     
    Bold move for an unarmed man. Luke grinned. Evidently the confusion ran both