Cora didn’t find the man attractive or pleasurable, but women had to marry for survival more than luxury, so she removed her hat. Yet, there was something about the man that evoked a nauseating response, like the sight of a Union soldier at her front door. “I propose another solution. Perhaps you need a cook? I’m excellent.”
“No need of any more servants.” He licked his lips in a way that made Cora feel more like a slab of meat on a table than a woman. “Isn’t that the reddest of all hair I’ve ever seen. You are a beauty.” He tapped his cane. “I’ll take her.”
She felt like cattle for sale, and when his hand grasped her arm to force her to follow, she did the one thing she’d sworn she wouldn’t. She looked to Mr. Neal for help. But from the way he looked at her hair with narrowed eyes and pressed lips, she knew he didn’t find her to his liking. She knew well enough that if she didn’t take Mr. Grous’s proposal, she’d be forced into a less desirable position. Her skin burned in warning, and her breath came in strangled waves. Everything in her shouted to run from this man.
ChapterTwo
Ed couldn’t abideby Mr. Grous’s abrupt claim on the woman Ed had ordered for his partner. If this were his sister, he’d never let a man like that touch her. “Stop!”
Miss McKinnie halted and tugged her arm, but Mr. Grous didn’t release her.
“She’s already agreed,” Mr. Grous said, still dragging her away. “What, you don’t like someone stealing from you the way you stole my business from the railroad contract?”
“I didn’t hear her say she’d marry you.” Ed had to buy time to find her a good position in a respectable establishment or a proposal to a man worthy of such a beautiful bride. Not a man who would abuse and torture her for the rest of her days. “And before she answers, I too have a proposal.”
“Yes,” Miss McKinnie said. “I’m sorry for my confusion. I’ll marry you Mr. Neal.”
Ed choked and chortled. “Wait. I—”
“Want to get her home. Yes, sir.” Ghost grabbed Mr. Grous’s hand and pried it loose from Miss McKinnie’s arm, took her bag, and ushered her toward the carriage before Ed could form an argument.
Robert Grous rapped his cane into his palm. “You’ve interfered one too many times in my affairs. Rumors say your partner’s run off. He couldn’t even tolerate your superior attitude any longer.” With a snarl, he took Ed on nose-to-nose, his foul breath beating Ed harder than his stare. “I’ll uncover your secrets someday Mr. Neal and expose you to the world.”
Not wanting to cause more attention, Ed didn’t punch the man in his jaw the way he’d longed to do for years. Besides, he’d sworn long ago to use his intellect, not violence, to make his way through life, so he rushed on to his carriage and far from the danger of the rabid Robert Grous.
He withdrew his pocket watch and checked. The delay of his departure from the docks put him behind schedule, and he needed to send a telegram to see if Mr. Folsom would honor their agreement. If not, he needed a new plan.
Ghost held open the carriage door. Ed took a deep breath and readied himself to explain to the woman waiting inside that they weren’t to be wed.
He joined the woman, who eyed him expectantly, the green in her eyes brighter than his baby sister’s. How he wished he would’ve been able to send for her sooner, before she married. His chest ached at the thought that he’d abandoned her. He couldn’t abandon this woman, but that didn’t mean he had to marry her. “Listen, there’s been a misunderstanding.”
“I agree,” she said with a simple smile that added a spark of sunshine to an unseasonable foggy morning.
“You do?” He patted the top of the carriage to tell the driver to move on. Ghost had already disappeared from sight, but Ed knew he’d reappear whenever he needed him.
“Yes. We’ve both been abandoned and find ourselves in a difficult situation. You’ll not be able to secure another bride for months, if not years.”
She wasn’t wrong, but he’d figure something out. “Correct, but—”
“But I rushed into an agreement to avoid a potentially unfortunate situation.”
Ed shifted in his seat, shocked at the direction of their conversation. “Are you telling me you don’t wish to marry me?”
“I’m only stating that we were forced into something instead of agreeing. Perhaps we should take a day to consider all of our options.”
“You have options?” He didn’t like the idea of her not wanting to beg him to marry her. Sure, the ratio of men to women was in her favor, but he’d never had a woman turn him down.
“I’m breathing. I have options.” She smiled coyly.
“Miss McKinnie.”
“Please, call me Cora. I think we’ve moved beyond formalities already. I’m going to your home. A home which I have no idea is safe or happy.”
“Happy?” He hadn’t ever thought of a home as anything but a roof and a statement of wealth.
Cora leaned forward, a slight strand of red hair falling around her cheek, framing her face perfectly. Those eyes. They were the color of something. An emerald? No, not even an emerald shone that deep and mesmerizing.
She lit up like a shooting star on a clear night. “Yes, certainly you want to be happy. When I was young, my house was full of laughter. The parties and balls we threw were packed full of people who’d traveled miles to attend.” She peered through the curtain. Her snow-like complexion shimmered in the passing gas lamp light. “There are so many people here, so much life in this city. It reminds me of how things were in Georgia before the war.”
