Elise joined him across the table once he’d laid everything out. He glanced at her several times, but she kept her attention firmly fixated on her plate.
Finally, she broke the silence. “This is really good.”
“Thank you.”
She lifted her gaze.“Did your wife teach you how to cook back in Canada?”
And just like that, she made sure to put up that invisible barrier between them by reminding him he wasmerelya visitor here, and that he didn’t belong.
He shook his head. “No. Actually my mother taught me. I can also make several herbal remedies if the occasion warrants it.”
A light smile touched her lips. “My mother was the same. She was known as somewhat of a healer around Charming, but her services weren’t always…welcomed.”
“Ah.” He knew that feeling all too well. “Many believed her to be a witch, didn’tthey?”
Her eyes widened. “How did you know?”
“My mother was an Indian. They’ve never been regarded all that favorably. Most of the new European settlers in Canada believed that they practiced dark magic or voodoo, that they were savages like your American tribes. AsMétis,Martha and I weren’t any different, as I had that same tainted blood running through my veins.”
She frowned. “People can be rather closed minded when it doesn’t suit their purpose and open to negotiations when it does.”
“That’s especially true when it comes to money or politics.” He looked down at his rough, scarred hands. “I’ve wondered if working for the railroad was something I should even continue pursuing. I’ve witnessedsome rather brutal treatment, especially theway they treat the Chinese…” He swallowed heavily. “The transcontinental mayfinallylink the Atlantic to the Pacific, but at what cost?”
They lapsed into silence, for neither of them had the right answertothat. In the end, they both knew it would be the men in the position of wealth and power who would succeed. It had been that way for centuries and wasn’t likely to end anytime soon. Chauncey would like to see a change, and the current War Between the States wasjustthe beginning.
Elisegot toher feet. “I have things to do this morning. My flowers need to be tended.”
“Of course.” Chauncey stood out of courtesy.
She eyed him for a moment, and then walked over to the door where she wrapped her woolen cloak about her.She lifted the hood, slid on her gloves,and walked out into the winter wonderland.
When she was gone, Chauncey gave a heavy sigh. He should do something to earn his keep here, other than fetching a pail of water the day before.
But what?
He set his hands on his hips and glanced about the small interior. His eyes settled on the pile of mending in a basket in the corner. It didn’t take him long to get to work.
***
Elise inhaled the scent of her favorite pink peony and exhaled slowly. It was no wonder it had been her mother’s chosen pick as well, for not only was it lovely in full bloom, but it had a fragrance that would surely rival the most expensive French perfume.
However, she forced herself to move on to the roses, lilies, and the array of rainbow colored blossoms that filled the hothouse. By the end of spring, most of these would be sold in the village and she’d have to start over from seedlings again.
It was a lot of work and tender care, but her flowers had always fulfilled the gap in her heart that her mother’s death had torn open.
She had to pause, gripping the edge of the table as awave of grief washed over her. Elise closed her eyes and wondered how Mr. Cade managed to do it, to face each day with that sort of burden. He’d lost his wife and his son without warning, innocently murdered in cold blood. At least with her mother, Elise had known she was sick. She’d been given a chance to tell her goodbye, that she loved her, while he’d been denied the same chance.
She shook her head and pushed away from the table. If Mr. Cade was strong enough to withstand such a loss, then she could too.
By the time she set down her watering can, Elise was feeling rather restored. Her stomach was rumbling, telling her it was time for lunch, so she threw her cloak back on and started the short walk back to the cabin. She glanced up at the sky and noticed that while the clouds above were still heavy and gray, the snow had ceased for a time. This was good news, for she would have to make a trip into the village in a few days to gather more provisions and she’d rather not traipse down to the valley through a foot of snow.
She had nearly made it to the cabin when an ear-piercing howl broke through the silence of the newly fallen powder. Elise froze as a gray wolf confronted her. She had always thought they made fearsome predators, and generally carried her rifle out to the hothouse as protection. But because of Mr. Cade, she had been distracted and forgot to take ample precaution.
She watched the wolf as they faced off against one another. It didn’t try to approach her from the copse of trees a short distance away, merely watched her with a discerning eye, as if trying to decide if she was a friend, or foe, or perhapsevenhis next meal.
Hoping that it wasn’t the latter, Elise jumped when a sharpretortrent the air, scattering the winter birds from the trees and echoing throughout the mountaintop. She watched the wolf turn and run away as Mr. Cade came into viewwith his bearskin coat around his shoulders,holding her rifleupright. The barrel wasstill smoking fromhiswarning shot. In that instant, he looked more fearsome than the wolf ever could.
He looked at her in concern, his dark eyes assessing. “Are you alright?”
