Gideon paced anxiously in his hotel suite. He didn’t know if he was worried that she would be on the train, or that she might not come. He had never felt so nervous in all his days. He had far less concerns about whether or not he would be voted Governor or Montana than he did about meeting Miss Alberta Freemont. He needed her. He didn’t want her, but he needed her and that was a situation he did not like the idea of. He despised feeling beholden to anyone, it made him feel weak and powerless. If Alberta agreed to marry him he would be in her debt. Her family name, her Father’s connections could all hand him the election and he wanted the governorship terribly. But, he couldn’t stop asking himself if he wished to win, and never know if people had voted for him because of who he was and the policies that he stood for rather than his wife’s not inconsiderable attributes.
Aaron had wisely decided that their first meeting should happen in private. They did not want him to be seen greeting his future bride from the train, wanted no rumors to be spread that they had met in anything other than the most respectable manner. There was to be a ball, here in Great Falls this very evening, where they would officially meet and fall in love for the very first time. Gideon hated the need to stage every element of this, but there was little time and much to be achieved to negate the press coverage that had been ravaging his campaign. “Are you ready?” Aaron said popping his head around the door.
“No,” Gideon joked. “I don’t think I will ever be. But, thank you for everything you are doing for me.”
“It is my job, but I really think this is going to work out perfectly. Madelaine and William will be meeting her about now. They will drive here to the hotel and get her settled into her room. We will have a private lunch in the suite here, where the two of you can meet surrounded by friends. Freddy is just getting dressed, and Emily, Matthew, Christopher and the baby have just arrived and will be here shortly to stop you fretting. You know how Chris loves to play with his Uncle Gideon.” He did indeed, and he loved the young lad. He even found himself wishing that his friends had brought their talented donkey Claude with them, he would break any tension in moments with his circus antics.
“Gideon, you look more nervous than I was the day I collected Emily from the station,” Matthew’s booming voice said as he entered the suite of rooms. Christopher burst in front of him.
“Uncle Gideon, have you seen the carriages outside? This hotel must be full of lots of very important people,” the lad said as he hurled himself into Gideon’s arms for a cuddle.
“It is indeed,” he said solemnly looking at the little boy’s serious face. “And none of them are more important than you or your Papa.”
“Mama is with Clara,” Christopher confided. “She is too little, and is tired after the journey, but Mama will be here soon.”
“I am sure she will be. Now, if you look over there in the corner I think you will find that there is a large box with your name on it. I am sorry I was away for your birthday.” Christopher ran over to the large gift excitedly.
“May I Papa?” Matthew nodded.
“You don’t have to, you know,” he said to Gideon. “I know that you are fond of the lad, but...”
“I know I am not real family, but he is a good boy. Nothing could spoil him, not with you and Emily keeping his feet firmly on the ground.”
“Thank you, I think! Well, you look positively petrified, and I see you have no nails left,” Matthew said as he looked at the bitten tips of Gideon’s fingers.
“I can’t help thinking this is all going to go wrong somehow. I find myself more than a little concerned that the press will see right through such a ploy; that she will take one look at me and decide that I am a fool; or that we hate each other and cannot reconcile on any issue.”
“That is why we are all here now. This way you can get accustomed to one another a little more slowly. It is going to be a whirlwind romance, but this will at least help you find out if there are any major clashes before you are ever seen in public.”
“I am so glad Aaron told you about this, it is good to have your counsel my friend.”
“I have told nobody else, not even Emily. But it will all be well. Madelaine says that Miss Freemont’s father campaigns for many of the issues you do yourself, it is likely she will share his views. I think Aaron is right, we couldn’t have found a more perfect wife for you if we had searched every inch of the land.”
“I do so hope you are right!” Gideon said emphatically. So much was riding on this marriage. It had to happen, and everything must go smoothly. But, they stopped speaking of it as a column of waiters appeared, bringing a large round table into the room, and sufficient chairs to seat them all. They moved the furniture to accommodate it, and then laid it with immaculate linen table cloths and gleaming silverware. Gideon watched avidly, it helped to calm his mind as they paid such close attention to the position of every item, the deft manner in which they put a shine on the glasses and the dramatic flourish of the napkins.
Aaron entered as the waiters departed. “She is in her room freshening up. She and Maddy had a tearful reunion, and she seems utterly impressed with William. Let’s hope she finds you as favorable,” he joked.
“Don’t, Aaron I am not sure I can take this. Maybe we should just take our chances.”
“I don’t think so. I think you will be more than happy my friend. That photograph did her no justice. She is quite magnificent.”
“She is?” Frederica said as she entered the room behind her new husband with Emily and baby Clara. “Do I need to be concerned that you will throw me over for her?”
“Not unless she comes with a healthy dairy herd,” Aaron teased as he put his arm around his wife’s waist and kissed her affectionately. Matthew moved to embrace his wife too, and cooed at his little daughter. Gideon felt an unexpected pang of envy at the closeness they shared. He hadn’t ever felt that way about any of his friends as they had wed, but as he looked around him at the happiness these people shared, he began to wonder if being alone was such a good idea after all. He shook his head, trying to get rid of a feeling that just wouldn’t die. He was not a man who needed anyone else, did not need a woman to make him feel whole. Yet, if that was true why did he long to have the connection with another human being that he saw all around him? Why did he find himself hoping that Alberta Freemont truly was the kind and generous person that Maddy assured him she was?
“How much longer do I have to wait?” he said, exasperated with himself and the ridiculous way his thoughts were headed.
“You don’t,” a smooth and elegant alto voice said. There was a hint of laughter, but also a tension in it too. Gideon looked up, and saw Alberta Freemont standing in the doorway. She was a perfect vision. Her long blonde hair had been stylishly curled, and hung down over one shoulder. A neat hat was pinned at a jaunty angle on her head, and her elegant gown was at the height of fashion. It clung to her curves, and flattered her tiny waist. But it was her face, with the lusciously full rose-red lips and the brightly intelligent blue eyes that held his gaze. “I didn’t know if I should knock, but the door was open,” she added with a smile.
“Wwww...welcome!” Gideon stuttered. “I am so terribly sorry. We thought you were freshening up?”
“I was, it doesn’t take me long. I’m not one to primp and preen,” she said smiling.
“That is good to know.” Gideon could sense that his friend’s were finding it funny that he was so tongue-tied, it simply never happened to him before. But, he had been caught unawares, and he hated to be at a disadvantage. “Shall we sit?” he said pulling out a chair for her. She sat and unpinned her hat, he took it and put it carefully on the bureau in the corner. He tried to take a couple of deep breaths. He had truly not thought that he would find his future wife so very attractive, her pure physical impact was having an effect on his body and mind that he had not anticipated. What had seemed to be such a good idea, to have this meeting amongst friends to ease the mood suddenly seemed the most foolish thing in the world. He wished that they were having this meeting alone, so nobody else but she were witness to his discomfort.
He indicated that everybody should sit. Madelaine snuck to his side as the others chose their seats. “She is lovely isn’t she?” she whispered. He nodded, a lump unexpectedly had formed in his throat and he barely trusted himself with speech any longer. “She was so excited, couldn’t wait to meet you.” He took his seat at Alberta’s side, and took a large gulp from the water glass that she had filled for him. He wished it had been wine; that might have given him the courage he felt he was lacking to deal with this insane moment.
“My Father tells me that you are by far the President’s preferred candidate,” Alberta confided quietly. “He was a little surprised, I think, when I announced that I was coming here to meet with you – but he said I could do much worse.” Gideon knew she meant the words to reassure him, but just the sound of her voice seemed to make him feel even more nervous. His body was reacting in a strange way to her, his skin was prickling and he felt flushed.
“I am glad to have his approval,” he admitted. It was true, but he longed to be able to say something more, but he seemed to have lost every word he had ever known.
“Now, Madelaine told me that you wish to extend the scope of the Homestead Act, “she said. “Do you not worry that it may attract too many of the wrong kind of people to Montana? People that think they can get everything for free?” He could see that she was not being judgmental, was truly curious. He couldn’t help but find that attractive too. She asked sensible questions and there was a strong intellect within her, he was sure of it.
“All of us here have all benefitted from the old provisions, and I am sure every person here can attest that carving out a living from your acres is definitely not being given something for nothing,” he said with a grin. Matthew, Aaron and William all nodded their agreement. “I hope it will attract even more adventurous, hard working men like those that have already come to Sun River. We have all this land, and much of it lies unused. We could be as wealthy as Massachusetts, or New York – more so if we can get the people here to build Montana and help it take its place amongst the wealthiest States in the Union.” She nodded, and he liked that she didn’t immediately speak, that she took her time to think about what he had said.
“Yes, of course that makes perfect sense. You have truly grand plans then?”
“I do. Montana is a big State, with a big landscape – it should have big ambitions too don’t you think?”
“I do.” She smiled at him and he felt his breath catch. Her entire face lit up, as if she had an electric light inside of her. Her eyes crinkled at the edges, and he found himself wanting to kiss her delightfully plump lips. This was not what he had expected at all, but he couldn’t help but think that being so very attracted to this woman might make things more difficult. He could not afford to be distracted at this time, and Alberta Freemont was definitely a distraction. He simply could not afford to be attracted to his wife to be. This was to be a marriage of expediency, it could not ever be more than that. He needed his wife to support him, to appear in public as the perfect ambassador of his campaign. He did not want to find himself fascinated by her, could not permit himself to have feelings for her other than admiration. He would have to tell Aaron to send her back to Boston. He could not be seen in public mooning over her, even worse looking as he felt right now – as if he would ravish her if given the slightest encouragement.
The luncheon finally over his guests retreated to their rooms. “So, what do you think of her?” Aaron asked him quietly, after blowing out the smoke from his fat cigar. Gideon swirled the brandy in his glass, watching the golden liquid slosh around as he wondered if his life would ever be simple again.
“She is witty, attractive,” he said, trying to sound nonchalant. His all too visceral reactions to the woman would remain his secret.
“Attractive?” Aaron asked him, his eyes wide in surprise. “Good God man, are you blind? If I weren’t already happily married, I would be fighting you for her. I simply do not understand why her father hasn’t yet married her off. It certainly can’t be for wont of offers!”
“She is attractive,” Gideon asserted, doing his best to keep control of his words while his body still remembered the light touch of her hand on his arm as she had left and he could still make out the light scent of gardenias and jasmine lingering in his nostrils from her perfume.
“So, will she do?” Gideon sighed. It was the question he had tussled with from the moment she walked through that door. She was perfect in every way, but one. Most men would be more worried about that reason than any other when choosing a bride, and yet for him it seemed impossible that he should be so drawn to his wife. He did not want a slavish devotion, he needed a pragmatic union. His wife must understand that his work would take him away from the home for months at a time, and he must not dread the thought of leaving her. He could not afford to be enamored of his wife, it would make him weak and Alberta Freemont had everything in her power to make him adore her.
“There is no reason to reject her,” he said reluctantly.
“But...?” Gideon asked perceptively. Gideon had no answer for him. “I see, you think you may end up liking her too much.”
“It is a possibility.”
“One can never like one’s wife too much. The public will like you all the more if you seem to genuinely be in love with her. Trust me, as an ex-journalist I know that the gossip columns are the most popular in any edition. The public love a scandal, but they love a romance even more. Here, take the ring,” he handed Gideon a small box. He opened it. A sparkling diamond nestled within, set into a simple gold band. It was exquisite, and he had no doubt that it would look even more so on Alberta’s delicate hand. “Ask her at the ball tomorrow night. Let the newspapermen see that ring on her finger. We’ll see your popularity soar.”