What had happened to the gold-bearing ore? As the next week went by, an atmosphere of gloom hung over the office of the Monarch Gold Mine. Iron cars heaped full of ore still rolled from the entrance, but as Tom pointed out, the quality of the ore “just ain’t worth a damn.” As yet, no one acknowledged they’d soon be shutting down, but the obvious threat hung over everyone, from the owners down to the lowliest shoveler.
In an unexpected fashion, the Trenowden brothers were first to make a change. One night, in the midst of a reading lesson, Kenvern blurted, “I’m quitting the mine, Ada. My brothers and I will be going into business for ourselves.” He explained that he, Petrok, and Steren never had any intention of spending the rest of their lives toiling in the darkness for somebody else. They’d been saving their money for years and now had enough to escape a life in the mines. Kenvern would be leaving first, being as he was now the educated member of the family. He would soon be opening a much-needed dry goods store in the town of Lucky Creek.
“Think of it.” Kenvern’s eyes sparked with enthusiasm. “I can see the sign, Trenowden Brothers Dry Goods Store. Petrok and Steren can soon be sending for their wives, and as for me”—he gazed at Ada with adoring eyes—“I’m only waiting until I have plenty to offer, but you know how I feel.”
Since then, Ada had been walking around in a blissful cloud of happiness, although she still hadn’t got up courage enough to tell her mother.
Since her frank conversation with Ada, Laurie had been in a quandary. She wanted very much to have an honest talk with Darcy, but he remained standoffish and never gave her an opportunity to speak her mind. But that would be difficult because what on earth was in her mind? Was she ready to forget Brandon? She wished she could sort out her feelings for Darcy, but how could she when she could never get past the rigid boundary of politeness he’d set up for himself? She still wasn’t sure. Pride alone would keep her from asking, and possibly making a fool of herself, and so she kept silent.
One day, when the day’s production of valuable ore had fallen to nearly zero, Darcy spoke to Laurie, a grim look on his face. “It’s not looking good. I’ll give it a few more days at best, but if nothing happens, we’ll have to shut her down.”
She’d been expecting this, but still, his news hit her hard. “The whole mine?”
“All of it. I hate to disappoint you. This is my fault. If I hadn’t expected that vein to keep going, I’d have told you a long time ago to get out, go back to Philadelphia.”
“No one’s to blame. You warned me of the risk.” She could hardly speak in a normal voice, just thinking what the consequences would be if they lost the Monarch. Mother’s worst nightmare come true. They could scrape up enough money to get home, but then the family would be poor, and Mother would be at the mercy of Aunt Florence. At least Ada would be spared. Laurie couldn’t imagine her lovestruck sister returning to Philadelphia now that she’d found Kenvern. As for Hugh, aside from a few quick visits with Ada and Mother, he wasn’t in their lives anymore. But no doubt Mother would be devastated. “There’s no chance at all?” she asked.
“Not much. We’ll go down a few hundred feet more, but I’m not expecting anything. I’m sorry, Laurie. I wish this had had a better ending. But at least you can feel free to go home now.”
And marry Brandon, she knew he was thinking. The unsaid words stood like a stone wall between them. She so wished she could unburden her heart, tell him she hardly thought of Brandon anymore, but how could she when his every word, look, and gesture were so guarded she never had a chance to speak her mind. “Thank you for being honest with me, Darcy. I know you tried.” She hated giving such an impersonal answer, but at least she could walk away from him with her pride intact.
That night, she got Ada alone and gave her the bad news. As expected, Ada stubbornly clamped her jaw and declared, “Rich or poor, you couldn’t drag me back to Philadelphia now. I dread telling Mother, but one of these days I’ve got to.”
Laurie hated giving Mother even more bad news, but she had a right to know about the impending closure of the mine, the sooner the better. When told, Elizabeth took the news more calmly than Laurie expected. “Are you sure?” she asked.
“Darcy said they’d dig a couple of hundred feet more, but he’s not expecting anything.”
“Then I shall pray for a miracle.”
“Let’s hope you find one,” Laurie replied, although she highly doubted any such miracle would occur.
* * * *
Late the following afternoon, Darcy, Tom, and Laurie were in the office when Petrok Trenowden burst in. “Mr. McKenna, Mr. Crain, you’ve got to come look.” The two rushed out of the office and headed for the mine, Laurie following. At the entrance, she stood anxiously waiting while the three men disappeared inside. She could hardly dare hope for good news, but why else had Petrok been smiling? After an agony of waiting, she heard a faint cheer go up from deep inside. She waited, hardly able to breathe until Tom and Darcy appeared again, both with broad smiles.
“By golly, we hit it!” Tom exclaimed.
In a quieter but still exuberant voice, Darcy told her, “We’ve found another vein, Laurie. It’s even bigger than the first one.”
She clasped her hands in front of her heart. “Then the Monarch won’t be closing?”
Both men broke into laughter. Tom grabbed her and swung her around. “You’re rich, little lady. You should see the size of that vein, a stream of golden ore at least thirty inches wide. I’d wager it’ll take years before it gives out.”
Men started pouring from the entrance, everyone in a jubilant mood. They’d been given the rest of the day off and were on their way to town to celebrate. “You should come along,” a beaming Tom told Laurie.
Happy though she was, she couldn’t picture drinking beer with a bunch of boisterous miners in a saloon. “Thanks for the kind offer, but I’ll just close the office and go home.” As the miners scattered, headed for town, she started back to the office and soon noticed Darcy following. “You’re not going to celebrate?” she asked.
“There’s time enough for that later.” He held the office door open for her, and they stepped inside. “I’ll close the office if you’d like to get home. You must be anxious to tell your mother and sister. Just think, you can go back to Philadelphia in style now. From what I saw of that vein, you’ll never have to worry about money again.”
He might be making a show of sounding calm and detached, but she hadn’t missed the suppressed excitement in his voice. Hearing it, a reckless mood possessed her. For once, she wouldn’t hide her true feelings like she usually did and would say exactly what was on her mind. “You’re not fooling me for a minute, Darcy McKenna. You’re just as excited as I am, and you might as well show it.”
He stared for a moment, then tipped his head back and burst into laughter. “Of course, I’m excited. But this means you’ll be leaving soon, and I won’t like that.” His gaze traveled over her face and searched her eyes. “I won’t like that at all.”
The next move was up to her. Common sense prompted her to step back, thank Darcy again for his efforts in saving the mine, then leave for home. That’s what she ought to do, but she wasn’t going to. She reached out to touch his arm and looked directly into those deep, amazingly blue eyes. “Finding that vein means a lot to me for a lot of reasons, and you’re one of them.”
For a moment, he didn’t move. Had she made a mistake? The prolonged anticipation became almost unbearable until he gripped both her arms and asked in a voice harsh with emotion, “What reasons, Laurie?”
“For one thing, I don’t want to go home.”
“And why is that?”
It was time to throw caution to the winds. She slid her hands up his chest and rested them on his shoulders. “Because I don’t want to leave you. And because—”
She never finished her sentence and soon forgot what she was going to say as he pulled her into his arms. With a pent-up emotion explosively released, he devoured her mouth with a kiss that ignited a heat that spread through her blood and made her forget everything except how much she wanted him.
“God, how I’ve been wanting to do that,” he said in a whisper when he came up for air.
“I haven’t forgotten.” Her heart slammed in anticipation as she pressed against the hard, flat planes of his body. Within the next few minutes, a blur that later she barely remembered, they had made sure the door was locked and the old couch in the corner cleared, its contents tossed unceremoniously to the floor. This was the second time they’d made love. After the first, she’d thought it couldn’t get any better, but it did. Afterward, as they lay exhausted on the rickety old couch, totally content, he asked, “So you want to stay here in Lucky Creek?”
She snuggled closer, running her hand over the hard muscles of his chest. “I don’t want to leave you.”
“What about Brandon?” Before she could answer, he touched a finger to her lips. “Wait. Don’t answer. You’ve got enough on your mind right now. You’d better get home before your family hears the good news from someone else.”
She agreed she better had. Together they straightened the office, carefully replacing the items so hastily tossed from the sofa. “Tom will never know,” Laurie remarked when they were done, and the office was neat again.
Darcy chuckled. “Tom doesn’t miss a thing, but don’t worry, he’ll be happy for us.” They left the office. He helped her hitch the horses and said he’d follow her down the mountain on Champ. “It’s almost dark, so be careful.”
By the time she got home, night had almost fallen. She brought the buggy to a halt in front of the house. He pulled Champ to a halt beside her. “Any regrets?” he asked.
She smiled and replied, “None, whatsoever.”
“Tonight belongs to your family. You’ll be wanting to give them the good news.” His eyes brimmed with tenderness and passion, sending the message she wanted to hear. “We’ll talk tomorrow.”
“Of course.” On a whim, she added, “I’d wager Mrs. Wagner has already heard the news. I’m sure she’ll be very happy for you.”
“I’m sure she will,” he answered straight-faced but with a faint grin that told her he knew she was teasing.
“Tomorrow.” He gave her a quick salute and rode away.
As she watched his horse disappear in the growing shadows, she repeated, “Tomorrow,” in an ecstatic whisper. A simple word, commonly used, but spoken in a tone that held a promise of wonderful things to come. In a matter of hours, her life had done a complete turnaround, so swiftly she could hardly absorb it. The new vein of gold meant they wouldn’t be poor after all. Darcy had revealed he cared, putting an end to those miserable weeks she’d spent thinking he didn’t. Tomorrow they would talk. She already knew what he’d say and what she’d say in reply. How could her life get any better?
Anxious to get inside with the good news, she drove around back to the stable, hurriedly unhitched the horses, gave them a quick brushing and fed them their oats. Stepping inside the house, she heard voices coming from the front parlor. Good. She’d hoped to find Mother and Ada together, and the children, too. But wait, was that a man’s voice? How strange. What man would come visiting at this hour? At the parlor door, she paused. All the family was there, and a man sat in their best giltwood chair. When he saw her, he stood and smiled. “Hello, Laurie, are you surprised?”
Surely her eyes had deceived her. But he was still standing there, real and in the flesh. She heard herself say, “Why, yes, this is quite a surprise.”
“Well, it’s me, sweetheart. I’ve come to fetch you home.”
She hoped she didn’t look as thunderstruck as she felt as Brandon Cooper strode across the parlor and swept her into his arms.