Chapter Thirty-One

Samantha was exhausted when she stepped out of the post office that evening. She had stacked boxes of deliveries, sorted mail, dealt with customers, and worried over her friends all day—it took a lot out of a woman. All she wanted was to fall into her mans' arm, hear the steady beat of his heart beneath her ear, and feel the peace that only his embrace provided.

And she did not have to wait long. Nearly the instant she stepped onto the boardwalk, Zachary's strong arms snaked around her and she was pulled against his hard body as he buried his face in her curls. "Damn, woman, I missed you."

Samantha closed her eyes and sank into his embrace. "I missed you too."

Zachary's warm breath teased her ear. "I reckon I'm ready to get back to the ranch and get started on those plans you had for us tonight."

A tremble-inducing warmth spread over Samantha as she imagined all the ways her man would love her body beside that river. "That sounds good to me."

Zachary pulled away and took her hand in his, entwining their fingers. "Let's go get Athena and head that way then. Blaze is hitched at the livery."

Samantha leaned into him as they walked, resting her head on his arm. "Did you talk with Tim?"

"Yeah." Zachary sighed. "He wants a future with Eleanor and she doesn't seem to want the same thing, at least not right now."

Samantha felt her heart ache for her friends. "Something is very wrong with Eleanor. Something she won't talk about. I tried and I couldn't get her to open up."

"If you can't get her to talk, no one can."

She was humbled by the love and faith the man had in her. "Not until she's ready to be honest," Samantha agreed. "Where is Timothy? Is he okay?"

"He went to the bathhouse. Said he wanted to clean up before heading to the diner. I reckon he seemed in better spirits and determined to do all he could to convince Eleanor he was a good man for her." Zachary gave her hand a squeeze. "I also talk spoke with him about putting his name on everything at the ranch and making it his just as much as it is ours."

"And did he agree to it?"

Zachary grunted. "Yeah."

"Good. Your family was his family, and they'd want him to have a place there."

Zachary kissed her hair as he blew a long breath through his nose. "You're right. Thank the stars for you, Sam. You keep my head on straight. You've made everything in my life better."

They paused to allow a hound dog to pass in front of them. "I could say the same about you, Zachary Marston. I was hopeless before you came along."

"You're a smart woman," he was quick to counter. "You'd have figured things out."

"Well come along then, sir," Samantha purred. "You've sweet talked me right into that romantic evening at the river and I'm ready to get started."

A low growl rumbled from Zachary's chest. "Yes ma'am."

Just as they were nearing the livery, a voice called out from the other side of the road. "Zachary? Samantha?"

Samantha glanced that way to see Caroline rushing toward them. "Do you think something is wrong at the saloon?" she demanded, pulling away from Zachary and meeting the woman halfway, aware of Zachary staying in step behind her.

"I'm glad I caught you both together before you left town," Caroline admitted, sliding a stray strand of dark hair behind her ear and smoothing out the red blouse she wore.

A million different scenarios of bad news swirled in Samantha's head. "Is something wrong? Is someone else sick? Did Thomas do something?"

Zachary's hand fell gently on her shoulder and gave a small squeeze, calming her nearly instantly. Caroline shook her head and smiled. "No bad news. I did speak with Thomas today and that's what I was hoping to speak with Zachary about."

"I have spoke about enough for one day. I reckon we were on our way home. If it's nothing bad or life-threatening you can speak to me about it tomorrow morning when I come back into town."

Her face fell. Samantha sighed. "What is it, Caroline? He's not going anywhere without me since I'm a key pawn in his plans for tonight and I'm going to stand right here and hear what you have to say."

Samantha nearly laughed at the unintelligible grumbles uttered under Zachary's breath. Caroline nodded and led them both to a bench at the edge of the boardwalk. Samantha took a seat beside the older woman while Zachary stood beside them, leaning against a pillar as he hunted his pockets for a cigarette.

"Come on now, let's get to talking," he mumbled. Samantha rolled her eyes at his rudeness, but she couldn't blame the man. He had spoken to Timothy about serious topics today and that had no doubt taken a lot out of him. Zachary was not a man who appreciated dialogue.

"What is it, Caroline? And how can Zachary and I help?"

Caroline folded her hands in her lap. "I spoke with Thomas today about the business. I have been a paid woman my entire life, but I am nearing fifty years old and my days are numbered. Men won't pay to sleep with an old lady." Samantha winced at her bluntness, but Caroline seemed unbothered. "I have been thinking very hard lately about my future and what it will be. With Thomas' newfound desperation to leave town, an opportunity has presented itself."

"What opportunity?" Samantha questioned with a frown.

Caroline smiled, though Samantha couldn't help but notice the way her hands were shaking as she wrung them on her lap. "I want to buy The Hackney Saloon and Brothel."

Samantha could not hide her surprise. "You do?"

"Yes." Caroline chewed at her lip. "I have worked there most of my life. I worked closely with the Morgans' when they owned the business and learned the ins and outs of running the place. I know how to keep up with inventory, place orders, deal with customers, and there is no one who knows more about brothels than I do."

Samantha let that sink in. She had no doubts that Caroline knew how to run the business. Caroline was a very smart woman who had spent her life making her living in the very business she was hoping to run. But not many women owned businesses—and even less paid saloon women owned business. How could Caroline ever hope to have enough money to buy The Hackney Saloon and Brothel? And would Thomas honestly sell his place of a business to a woman who had been employed by him?

"I don't mean to be rude, Caroline, but you said you needed to speak with me," Zachary spoke up. "Can we get to what it is you're wanting me to do? I worked all day, it's getting late, and I'm tired."

"Zachary!" Samantha scolded. "Caroline, I'm sorry...."

Zachary grumbled and took a draw off a cigarette he had found. Caroline waved her hand. "He's right. I'm rambling. Zachary, I spoke with Thomas about selling me the business today. He is desperate to get back at least some of his money before he leaves and that made him a bit more open-minded to hearing me out. However, when I went to the bank today to see about a loan, I was laughed out of the building. They have no respect for women—especially one of my profession."

"How much does he want for the business? Are you asking me for money?"

Caroline was quick to shake her head. "No, of course not. I'm not interested in handouts." She shifted on the bench and met his narrowed gaze. "I would like for you to accompany me to the bank tomorrow morning. I think if they see you with me, they may be more inclined to hear me out."

Zachary took a long draw off his cigarette and blew the smoke out slowly. "And why would you think I would have that kind of influence at the bank?"

Caroline's gaze went skyward. "Don't pretend, Zachary. I've asked around and have come to the conclusion that you may just be the wealthiest man in Oklahoma."

Samantha was once again stifling laughter as Zachary grumbled under his breath. "People talk too damn much," he growled.

Caroline sighed. "I know I have no right to ask for your assistance, Zachary. But I thought this might solve both our problems. It will get Thomas out of town and it will provide me with a way to support myself as I get older. If you come to the bank with me, and are willing to co-sign the loan, I guarantee the bank will give it to me."

Samantha wanted to say yes and assure her friend that Zachary would help her, no questions asked, but she couldn't do that. It wasn't her place to make decisions for Zachary. And Caroline was asking for a lot. The business would not be cheap and if she couldn't pay the loan it would fall back on Zachary if he co-signed. Still, it was in Samantha's nature to want to help so it took a lot of willpower to simply sit and keep her mouth closed.

Zachary rolled his shoulder. "How much is Thomas asking for?"

It was clear that Caroline was nervous, but she sat with her shoulders squared and her gaze proud. "I was able to talk him down to one-thousand seven-hundred and fifty dollars."

*A/N: around $45,000 in todays money*

Samantha swallowed hard. That was a lot of money. More than she had ever seen in one place—or imagined hearing someone ask for. She spared a glance at Zachary but the man's face was an unreadable mask.

He took one more draw off the cigarette on his lip, tossed it to the ground, killed it beneath his boot, and nodded. "I'll be at the bank at ten in the morning and I'll expect you to be there. I'll co-sign the loan for you if they require me to, and then we'll go see Thomas and get the business signed into your name. I want no part in running it—that'll be up to you. If you're ever short on money and going to miss a payment, let me know so I can handle it and you won't hurt your standing with the bank."

Samantha's heart swelled with pride. Zachary was a good man—the best she knew.

Caroline leapt to her feet and was on Zachary in an instant. There was a flurry of skirts and arms as she threw herself against him and hugged him tightly. "Thank you so much!" she exclaimed. "You have no idea what this means to me!"

Samantha watched in amusement as Zachary raised his arms and appeared quite awkward as he threw her a helpless glance. Finally, Caroline pulled away, adjusting her shirt, clearing her throat, and glancing around to see the passerby's eyeing them curiously.

"I'm sorry. I got excited and that wasn't very professional. Thank you, Zachary."

"No problem." Zachary motioned for Samantha and she quickly jumped off the bench and went to his outstretched arm which he wrapped around her shoulders. "Is that all you needed?"

Caroline's face was nearly splitting in two as she smiled brightly. "Yes! Thank you. I was so nervous to ask... I know I had no right to, but I had to take advantage of the opportunity."

Zachary shrugged. "I'll co-sign any damn loan of any damn size if it means getting that jackass out of town. We're gonna be going now, Caroline. Don't forget to be at the bank at ten."

"I'll be there," she happily agreed.

As Zachary led Samantha back toward the livery, she smiled and rose on her toes to press a quick kiss to his jaw. "I'm proud of you, Zachary. That was a very nice thing to do."

Color rose beneath his black stubble. "I almost didn't do it. I almost said no because I figured it wasn't any of business of mine."

"What changed your mind?"

"You. I thought about you and what you would do. What you want me to do. Once I did that, I knew I had to help her."

"You're a good man, Zachary Marston."

"You've made me a better one," he agreed, kissing her hair.

They entered the livery and Zachary hoisted Athena's saddle onto her back. "Do you think they'll give her the loan if you're there?" Samantha asked doubtfully. She knew that Caroline deserved that money, but she also knew that the world was not a fair place—especially to women.

Zachary merely shrugged before tightening up the saddle. "Doesn't matter. If they do, great. If they don't, I'll just loan her the money myself and she can pay me back like she would the bank. Caroline deserves a chance to run her business." Zachary finished up saddling Athena and pulled Samantha into his arms, pressing a quick, hungry kiss to her lips. "Now, what do you say we get outta town? I reckon that river is calling our name."

***

The sun was getting real low in the sky when Timothy came out of the bathhouse smelling much better than he had when he had went in. It was six in the evening and his stomach had already eaten its way to his backbone. Supper was gonna have to happen soon.

He wondered if Eleanor might be getting hungry as well. He knew that she claimed she couldn't eat inside the diner because of her profession, but, since she had moved out of the brothel that wasn't her profession any longer—maybe if she came in with him they'd let her stay.

That is if the woman would even speak to him.

Timothy had no idea why she was so determined to keep a wall up. When she had been sick in the brothel that wall had come down a bit. She had leaned on him, asked for his help, trusted him.... Timothy had been honest when he had spoken to Zachary. Every time Timothy looked toward that future he was hoping to build, he saw Eleanor's face. What did that mean? Hell, he wasn't sure. But he was hoping for a chance to find out.

The doctor's shop was closed so Timothy walked around to the back, went up the wooden staircase and knocked on the door that led into the doctor's apartment above the office. It took several long moments for anyone to answer, and Timothy was about to give up and walk away, but the door was finally pulled open.

"Oh, hello Timothy," Lewis greeted.

"Hi there, Lewis." Timothy shoved his hands in his pockets. "I was hoping to speak with Eleanor."

Lewis shook his head. "She's not here. Her and my uncle left a little bit ago to go to the diner and eat."

Timothy's shoulders slumped. "Oh. Which diner?"

"Down by the mercantile," Lewis replied. "That's his favorite one. He loves their cobbler."

Timothy nodded, tipped his hat in thanks, and made his way down the steps a bit slower than he had made his way up them. If Eleanor had gone to the diner with the doc, it meant she wasn't pushing everyone away, only him. That hurt. His stomach rumbled, reminding him that he hadn't put anything in it since that slice of jerked beef at midday.

Stepping back onto the main street, Timothy let his gaze go toward the diner beside the mercantile. He was hungry. And the doc was right. That diner had the best cobbler for three states at least. He adjusted his hat, ensured his shirt was properly tucked in and headed that way.

The moment he entered the crowded diner, his gaze found her. It wasn't hard. The patrons of the restaurant were all crowded to one side leaving the back table where Eleanor sat with the doc empty all around. Tim's heart hurt for her. Why were people so judgmental and cruel to each other? He would never understand.

Tim stopped at the kitchen window, ordered a meal of steak, potatoes, and cobbler, and then made his way toward Eleanor and the Doc at their lonely table. Pulling off his hat as he approached them, Timothy felt more than a little nervous when their eyes found him.

"Well hello there, Timothy," Doctor Reynolds greeted jovially. "Would you care to join us for supper?"

Timothy kept his gaze on the doc, but he could see Eleanor in his peripheral vision as she watched him closely. "I'd like that, if it's alright with both of you."

Doctor Reynolds waved his hand. "It's just fine with me. Is it fine with you, Eleanor?"

"Sure." Her voice caused his heart the pound and his stomach to churn. Damn. What was wrong with him?

"Thank you, ma'am," Timothy replied, taking a seat at the table, placing his hat in his lap, and sparing a real glance at Eleanor for the first time. She looked better than she had last night and this morning. She had a better color to her skin and no longer seemed so pale or green. And it seemed as if her shoulders were a little straighter—like some of that weight had been lifted off them.

"You'll find that the atmosphere in the diner is a bit hostile tonight," Doctor Reynolds grumbled, glancing around at the many eyes watching them.

Timothy could hear the whispers, but he simply smiled. "Hell, so many folks owe you a fortune, it's no wonder they don't want to sit and eat near you."

Doctor Reynold's chuckled. "I'm a reasonable man. Just the other day I took a five pound sack of flour in exchange for some medicine. What am I going to do with flour? I don't know how to bake anything."

"You could always sell it to the baker in town. He must go through a lot of flour," Timothy offered.

The doc tipped his head. "You're a smart man, Timothy O'Neil."

It was Timothy's turn to chuckle. "You're the first person to ever say so."

"Yes, well, people say and don't say a lot of things. That's the problem with them."

Timothy simply shrugged and was happy when the waitress finally brought his food to the table. Digging in quick, he glanced up to realize that Eleanor had turned a bit green as she watched him and pushed her food around with her fork.

"You okay?" he asked, around a mouthful of steak.

"You seem hungry," she muttered.

Timothy felt his cheeks heat a bit as he swallowed hard and took a big drink of water. "Well, yeah. I've been working pretty hard all day." He wiped his mouth with his shirt sleeve. "Sorry if I offended you."

"You didn't," she quickly assured him and Timothy was sure her cheeks flushed.

"Aren't you hungry?" he asked, feeling his concern for her flare back to life. "You've barely touched your dinner and the doc's plate there is nearly empty."

"I'm a big eater," Doctor Reynold's spoke up.

"My appetite has been lacking lately," Eleanor replied quietly. "But I feel much better than I did last night, and I want to thank you, Timothy. You went above and beyond to see that I was okay and instead of being thankful, I treated you with suspicion. I'm sorry for that." She spared a quick glance at Doctor Reynolds before meeting Timothy's gaze again. "Life has taught me that everyone has ulterior motives when they help me and it was unfair of me to treat you that way."

Timothy wasn't sure what to say. That was the most Eleanor had ever said to him at one time. He had gotten a bit lost in the softness of her voice and the way it gently rose and fell with her words. He felt like an idiot as he sat there and simply stared at her. Here the woman was, finally opening up a bit, and he had been rendered speechless.

"Uh.. you're.. you're welcome, ma'am."

Doctor Reynold's cleared his throat. "Yeah, I heard about that watch. That it belonged to Paul Marston?"

Happy to have something to focus on so he no longer sounded like a bumbling idiot, Timothy nodded. "Yeah, Zach gave it to me."

"May I look at it? I want to see if it's the same watch I'm thinking of."

Timothy shrugged as he pulled the ornate silver watch from his pocket and laid it in the doc's open palm. The doc studied it carefully a moment as Timothy continued to eat his meal.

"Yes, this is the watch I remember Paul carrying quite often." Doctor Reynolds' shook his head as he handed it back to Timothy who took the watch, ran his hand over it carefully and then slid it back into his pocket. "Do you have any idea what that watch is worth?" Doc asked.

"No," he replied honestly, before shoveling a bite of mashed potatoes in his mouth. "It means more to me than any amount of money ever would."

"And yet you traded it without question to help Eleanor here."

Timothy's gaze drifted to the topic of the doctors' statement to see that she was studying him as if he were a complicated puzzle she couldn't solve. He shifted uneasily in his seat and swallowed hard to get those potatoes to go down his throat. "Things are just things, doc. People are a bit more important."

"That watch is easily worth one hundred dollars, Timothy. Paul Marston only carried top quality items."

This simply made Timothy smile. "And if Evelyn had known he had a one hundred dollar watch she probably would have slapped him."

"You've got that right," Doctor Reynolds laughed lightly before taking a drink. "Evelyn was a simple woman who appreciated simple things."

"She was special, that's for sure," Timothy admitted, his heart aching a bit. "I would have been a lost cause if not for those folks."

"No one is a lost cause," Doctor Reynolds' countered. "But you were dealt a poor hand. When was the last time you heard from your mother, Tim?"

Timothy sighed and ate the last bite of steak on his plate. It didn't bother him to answer the doc's questions. Timothy had always been an open book and didn't mind talking about things. "I haven't seen or heard from her in over twelve years, doc. I reckon she moved out west somewhere with that jackass husband of hers. The last time I saw that woman was here in town. I was about twelve I guess and saw her on the street. I tried to speak to her, but she made it clear that she never wanted to have children, was happy I was out of her hair and living with the Marston's, and that if I ever saw her on the street again, I was to simply keep walking."

"I never liked that woman," Doctor Reynolds' grumbled.

With a shrug, Timothy used his finger to swipe up the last traces of potato from his plate. "Me either. If there's one thing that I learned from the Marston's it's that blood don't mean much. And I always thought that if I ever had a chance to be a family for a child the way they were for me, I'd do in a heartbeat without question."

Timothy saw the pointed look that the doctor tossed Eleanor's way and he also saw the way her blue eyes widened a bit and looked at him as if he had just sprouted three heads. Timothy ran his hand through his hair. Still just one head. Then he downed the last of his water and decided to ignore their behavior since he didn't understand a bit of it.

"I had a good family," Eleanor spoke up, drawing Timothy's attention fully toward her and away from the cobbler he had been about to dig into. She wasn't looking at him, she was still pushing her half eaten meal around her plate with her fork. "My mama was an amazing woman who taught me what family means and how important mothers are. Then a fever came through town and my family was gone. I was only fifteen. We were dirt floor poor living in city slums back east. There was no food and no money and I was too old to receive much sympathy—besides most folks around us couldn't feed themselves let alone someone else's child. But I learned how to survive and did what I had to do."

Timothy frowned. He had known that Eleanor must have a story—everyone did. And he had known it couldn't be a happy story because happy, well-provided for girls with stable families and warm homes didn't tend to turn to prostitution to make a living. It still broke his heart to hear how hard things had been on her.

"I'm sorry you went through that, Eleanor. And I'm sorry you had to do what you did to survive—I was lucky and had the Marston's. It's easy to forget sometimes that not all folks are as lucky as I was and not all people are as warm and charitable as the Marston's were."

Eleanor met his gaze, her eyes holding more emotion in them than Timothy had ever seen in them before—he just wasn't any damn good at deciphering them. "I don't want pity, Timothy. I've told you that before."

"What do you want?" he asked.

She was quiet a moment before a quiet sigh left her lips. "Acceptance....To be treated as more than just a woman who works...worked...in a brothel."

Timothy smiled. "I reckon I can do that, ma'am."

When a smile spread across her angelic face, Timothy's heart thundered violently against his ribs, leaving him to wonder if it was gonna tear straight from his chest. She opened her mouth, no doubt to say something, but her gaze suddenly went over his shoulder and her face went blank as her eyes widened.

Before Timothy could turn to see what had caused the change in her, a familiar shrill voice was chirping. "How dare you bring such filth into a family establishment! You should be ashamed of yourself Doctor Reynolds! This whore needs to leave immediately!"

A/N: A long chapter for y'all! What Zachary lacks in friendliness  he makes up for in his willingness to help without fuss... and in the loving, sweet, tender way he speaks to Sam! And here's the doc, being a real hero again and bringing up family to have Timothy opening up and saying just the right things (even if Tim doesn't realize Eleanor needs to hear the things he's saying). Eleanor seems a bit more ready to open up to him--maybe she'll start letting our poor guy in soon!  And who is interrupting dinner? Shrill voice? Chirping? Judgmental harshness. Judith Channing has arrived! I hope y'all enjoyed the chapter! The next one should prove fun!