“Engaged...” Caroline's mother said, giving Caroline a quick assessing look before setting her stitching aside and approaching the traitorous couple. “Why, this is wonderful news,” she went on, clasping Jackson’s hand and enveloping Amanda in a hug. “I’m happy for you.”
A wave of congratulations and well-wishes rose around her, but Caroline heard none of it—could utter none of it. Her world had suddenly tilted on its axis. Her vision narrowed in on the man she loved and the sister she adored, standing side by side, driving a dagger of betrayal through her heart.
Jackson cleared his throat, interrupting her mother’s happy chatter about planning the wedding. “I’m afraid there won’t be time. A fellow officer has been helping me secure a farm in southern Nebraska Territory, near a town called Sagebrush Springs, and the sale just went through. Amanda and I will be leaving on Monday.”
“Two days?” her mother exclaimed.
“I know it’s sudden,” Jackson said, “but don’t worry. My parents and I have taken care of everything. We’ve planned a feast and secured a minister. You’re all invited to our home after services tomorrow for the wedding.”
He’d been planning this since before his return?
That was the final blow.
Caroline smoothed the fabric of her skirt—the simple act a desperate attempt to regain control over her turbulent emotions—and began walking. Each step felt like a mile as she made her way toward the door leading to the garden, her head held high despite the fact her heart was breaking.
“Where are you going?” her mother asked.
Caroline paused and turned, forcing a tight smile. “I just need a moment of fresh air. I won't be long.”
Amanda finally looked at her, her eyes filled with guilt and a plea for understanding. It didn’t help.
Caroline’s chest constricted so tightly it hurt. Each breath was a battle against sobs trying to escape. She slipped from the room and hurried to the garden, ripping the silver comb from her hair. What a fool she’d been, thinking it was a token of Jackson’s love.
It was a parting gift.
She hid herself in the shadows and cried.
Chapter 3
Caroline had thought the day Jackson left to go to war was the worst day of her life.
She’d been wrong.
She stood motionless among the crowd of well-wishers, her face a carefully composed mask. The autumn morning sun cast long shadows across the dusty street as family and friends gathered to bid farewell to the newlyweds. Jackson’s smile was bright as he shook hands and accepted congratulations, but when his gaze met hers, she saw a flicker of guilt in his eyes.
“Godspeed, Jackson!” her father called out. “May you find prosperity out west!”
Caroline's hands trembled slightly, hidden in the folds of her skirt. After pleading a headache the evening Jackson proposed and spending the rest of the night alone in her room, she’d been a proper—albeit reserved—sister of the bride throughout the wedding the following day. But now the reality of the sudden marriage threatened to overwhelm.
Amanda walked to the fringe of the crowd where she stood, her hazel eyes brimming with unshed tears. She wrapped Caroline in a firm embrace and held on, even though little effort was made to return the gesture. “Thank you for coming to the wedding,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “I know how difficult it must have been.”
No, you don’t.
“I...” Her sister’s voice broke. “I’m sorry.”
Caroline's throat tightened. “Have a safe trip,” she managed, her voice still raw from crying herself to sleep.
As Amanda turned away, Caroline caught a glimpse of Jackson watching them. He took a step toward her, and she took a step back. A troubled countenance came over him, along with an unmistakable look of appeal in his eyes. She would forever wonder what possessed him to make the choice he did, but it no longer mattered. The wedding was done. All their fates had been sealed.
Caroline shook her head enough to send a message. She couldn't bear to hear his explanation or see the pity in his eyes.
She flinched when the driver called out that the bags were loaded.
“Best climb aboard,” he bellowed, “or you’ll miss your train.”
With one last look in her direction, Jackson turned and helped Amanda into the waiting carriage.
As it pulled away and disappeared down the road, taking with it the future she’d imagined for herself, Caroline's stoic facade began to crumble.
