“I don’t doubt that you cared for him, Kenzie. You’re a good woman with a kind heart and loving nature. I’m just suggesting that if it were true love—love strong enough to overcome any and all obstacles—you’d still be sure of it. When Arthur showed up here, you would have left everything to be at his side when he declared himself innocent. The pain, the perceived wrongs—they would all have passed away in forgiveness and joy.”
“Just like that?” She doubted that was even possible.
“First Corinthians thirteen talks about love. It uses the wordcharity, but the original Greek wasagapewhich meanslove. But not just any love—it’s a deep, abiding, overcoming love that isn’t based on anything the recipient deserves or earns. The best example is God’s love for us, but Paul writes about us having it for each other. The chapter says that this kind of charity—love—beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Do you feel that kind of love for Arthur Morgan? Did you ever?”
Kenzie felt a glimmer of understanding. “If I had, then I wouldn’t have believed in his abandonment.” She looked at Caleb and smiled. “I would have gone to him and demanded an explanation. I wouldn’t have hidden from him and believed the worst.” She began to nod as the mist seemed to clear from her mind. “I would have stayed and fought for him ... for us.”
“Maybe you have your answers now.” Caleb looked past her and out the warehouse door. “And it would appear you have them just in time. Mr. Morgan is here.”
Kenzie looked out the door to see Arthur stepping out of a taxi. “I suppose I do need to speak to him.”
“I’ll be praying for you,” Caleb said.
Arthur looked up and flashed her a smile. There was a time when that smile had made her feel happy and safe, but now it meant nothing.Hemeant nothing. She thought of the loneliness she’d felt back in Missouri. It was the desire to be loved as she saw others loved that made her give in to his persistence and court him. She hadn’t accepted him for anything more than a desire to escape her loneliness. She had known better, sensed deep within that their relationship would never work—that it would never be more than a temporary arrangement—but she had buried that thought in her desperation to find love.
“I hope you will forgive me for showing up without warning,” Arthur said, tipping his hat to her as he entered the warehouse. “I know Mr. Coulter wanted me to stay away, but I had to see you.”
“I suppose it was inevitable.” Kenzie pointed past him. “If you’ll follow me, I’d prefer to sit outside.” He stepped back and allowed her to pass. “It’s a nice day, so the fresh air will do us both good.”
“But this is such a run-down, commercial area. Why don’t you let me get the taxi back, and we can take a drive?”
She turned when she reached the farthest outdoor table. “Because I don’t wish to take a drive with you, Arthur.”
He frowned. “That doesn’t bode well for me.”
She sighed and took a seat on the bench. She motioned to the opposite side of the table. “Please sit.”
He did and took off his hat. “I have so much I need to say.”
“Arthur, please don’t speak of love to me. I’m not the same girl you knew back in Missouri.”
“But I have to tell you how I feel. I have to convince you that I did nothing wrong.”
She almost smiled at his pleading tone. As usual, he was far more worried about his own feelings and clearing his name than about concerning himself with her. He’d always been this way, but Kenzie had overlooked it, thinking it merely the way of men. She’d been confident that in his own way, he truly did think about her needs. But of course, he hadn’t.
Her silence was all the encouragement he needed. “Kenzie, we were wronged, and if you refuse me now, then my father wins. He’s the one who sought to keep us apart. He doesn’t realize how much I truly love you. He thought that because I had a reputation for visiting my affections on many young ladies prior to meeting you, that I was no more committed to our love than I was my previous affairs. He was wrong, and once we are married, I will be able to prove it to him.”
“And that’s important to you?”
His brow furrowed. “Of course it’s important. He needs to realize that we belong together. It doesn’t matter that you have no money. It doesn’t matter that your family isn’t on the social register. Nothing matters but the fact that I love you.”
“Not even my feelings?”
Arthur shook his head. “I know your feelings. You love me. You may feel confused by Dr. Fisher, but that’s only because you thought I had betrayed you. You sought solace with him, but it was all based on a lie.”
“I was worried that might be the case at one time,” Kenzie admitted, “but not now. I don’t feel the same for you that I feel for him.”
“But if you would just come away from here with me, I know I could convince you that you still love me. No one writes the kind of letter you did, filled with emotion and passion, without feeling something.”
“I do feel something.” She got up from the table. “I feel regret. Regret that I allowed my loneliness and desperation to overrule my common sense. When you first came to me and asked to court me, I told you no. I knew then that our relationship was a lost cause. I could never fit into your world. I can’t play those games—pretend I’m something I’m not. I tried, and for a time I convinced myself that I could manage it, but now I see how mistaken I was. I’m sorry, Arthur. I can’t marry you.”
“But why, Kenzie? Why?”
“Because I have feelings for someone else.”
“Dr. Fisher?” He got to his feet and reached for her. “Those feelings will pass if you just give me a chance. Think of all the fun we had together, Kenzie. I was good for you, and you enjoyed our outings and time alone. You can enjoy it again.”
She backed up a step before he could take hold of her. “Go back to Missouri, Arthur. I’m confident that you will find another bride before the year is out.”
