The Enchanted Land Read online

The smile vanished from his face. “I can’t say as he likes any women. He seems more to use them than anything. Oh, he’s nice to them, and they sure like him, but he never seems to think anything about any of them after he leaves them.” He paused. “Now me,” and his grin returned, “I’ve been in love so many times.” He laughed and slapped his thigh. “I remember a gal in Louisville once, had black hair and eyes. I was so in love with her that I couldn’t eat for three weeks. Thought I’d die without her.” He seemed to enjoy just thinking about the woman.

  “What happened?” Morgan asked.

  “Oh … she left me for some rich guy, but she’ll never forget me, that much I know.”

  Morgan was quiet awhile.

  “You don’t think Seth’s ever been in love?”

  “Well, I used to work for his daddy, and I’ve been around Seth since he was about nine years old, and as far as I know, he ain’t never been in love. Too bad, too. You miss a lot in life when you don’t fall madly in love at least once a year.”

  Morgan was quiet after that, just sitting, listening to Jake and watching Seth move to the rhythm of his horse.

  The first days were easy. At night they stopped at local inns where a hot meal and warm, clean beds awaited them. Seth always made sure Morgan had her own room, while he and Jake had another.

  Seth and Morgan stayed away from one another as much as possible, speaking only when necessary.

  A few days before they reached Kansas City, Jake began to tell Morgan about someone named Frank. Jake seemed to have a lot of respect for Frank and was glad Frank would be traveling with them.

  “Will anyone else be going with us?”

  It was a minute before she could understand Jake’s answer.

  “Joaquín. What a nice name.”

  Jake muttered something unintelligible.

  Kansas City was much more rustic than Louisville, and Morgan liked it. The people all seemed to be dressed for necessity rather than for fashion.

  “Seth!” A man as big as Seth came up behind him as Seth was tying his horse in front of the hotel. They shook hands vigorously, obviously glad to see one another. “And Jake, you little old toad, you’re still as ugly as ever.” His eyes stopped at Morgan.

  Seth followed his eyes. “This is my wife, Morgan.” Seth’s voice held no warmth.

  Frank reacted immediately to Seth’s voice. He knew something was wrong. Frank held out a tentative hand and helped Morgan from the wagon. “I am pleased to meet you, Mrs. Colter.”

  Morgan smiled, lighting up her face. “Jake has told me a lot about you—everything except your last name.”

  He smiled back at Morgan. “It’s Greyson, but everyone calls me Frank.”

  “If you call me Morgan, it’s a deal.”

  Smiling, they started into the hotel. As they were signing in, Seth said to Morgan, “My shy little wife sometimes loses her shyness. Do you think she saves it just for her husband?”

  Morgan was startled by the hostility in his voice, but before she could say anything, he had turned to talk to the hotel manager.

  Jake had overheard Seth and whispered to Morgan, “He’s jealous,” and then followed Frank up the stairs.

  Seth turned back to Morgan, taking her arm and leading her away from the desk. “They have no adjoining rooms. In fact, they have only one room left in the hotel. I could bunk with Frank and Jake.”

  Morgan’s eyes went to Seth’s. Somehow, she did not want everyone knowing the truth about her relationship with Seth. She would rather people thought theirs was a normal marriage.

  Seth was talking. “Jake already knows. But if you’d rather Frank didn’t, just say so and I’ll arrange something.”

  Morgan lowered her eyes. “I’d rather he didn’t know.” Maybe it was her imagination, but she thought she saw relief on Seth’s face.

  Seth escorted her to a small but clean room with one rather narrow bed which took up most of the space.

  Morgan sat on the bed, as there was nowhere else to sit. She watched Seth. He ignored her and began to undress.

  “Seth, what are you doing?”

  “I am planning to wash some of this trail dust off me before dinner.” He turned toward her. “You don’t have to watch if you don’t want to, you know.”

  She moved to the other side of the bed and looked out at the busy street, but she had difficulty concentrating.

  He had hardly spoken to her since the last night at his parents’ house. She tried to picture Trahern House, but saw only Seth’s angry eyes. She heard Nora’s voice saying that Morgan would fall in love with Seth.

  “Morgan?”

  She turned. Seth was standing so close to her. She felt like crying. Unwanted tears gathered in her eyes.

  Seth dropped to his knees beside her. She was such a child. “What’s the matter, little one? If you don’t want me to stay here, I won’t. I’ll find someplace else.”

  His voice was so gentle… She couldn’t be in love with him! She’d known him less than a month. Why was Seth’s image so clear, and the image of Trahern House so blurred?

  The tears started, and she couldn’t stop them. She turned and buried her head in the pillow and began to let out the tears that had been locked inside for so long.

  Seth knelt by the bed. After one puzzled look, he lifted Morgan into his arms and sat on the bed, leaning back against the headboard. He just held her and stroked her hair while she cried. After a while, as the sobs began to subside, Morgan began to hear Seth’s voice.

  “Shh, mi querida, be still. You are safe. No one will harm you. I won’t bother you again. You have nothing to fear.”

  Morgan raised her head to look at him, but he gently forced her head back onto his chest and began to hum a tune. It felt so warm, so sweet to be near him, to be protected. Maybe, if she loved him, he would love her in return one day?

  When Morgan awoke it was daylight, and she was in the bed, fully clothed, with a blanket over her. The last thing she remembered was lying in Seth’s arms hearing him sing to her.

  As she washed her face and combed her hair, she realized she was ravenously hungry.

  Jake knocked on her door, and they started down the stairs together for breakfast. She wanted to know where Seth was, where he had slept, what he was doing.

  At the foot of the stairs was one of the handsomest men Morgan had ever seen. His blue-black hair was perfectly ordered. His clothes were impeccable and in the best of taste. He looked like a picture Morgan had once seen in a magazine of Aunt Lacey’s, a picture of a man for whom a young woman had left her husband and children. Of course, the man in the magazine had turned out to be bad. But this man was smiling up at her and was now extending his hand to her.

  “Ah, this must be the lovely bride.”

  Morgan felt Jake’s arm stiffen under her hand.

  Ignoring Jake, the handsome man took Morgan’s arm as if they had known one another for years.

  “Allow me, Morgan. I may call you that, seeing that we are to be such close companions.”

  “I … uh,” Morgan stammered. The man certainly was charming. Morgan found herself standing a little straighter.

  He laughed slightly, showing perfect white teeth. “Excuse me, I am Antonio Joaquín Santiago de Montoya y García, at your service. You may call me Joaquín.” He took her hand from his arm, just as they were entering the dining room, and held it to his lips, his eyes never once leaving hers.

  Morgan had not yet said a word. The man’s eyes had a hypnotic effect. A loud laugh that she recognized as Frank’s reached her, and she turned toward the sound quickly. Seth looked at her with malice. Why was Seth looking at her like that? She moved to the table and seated herself.

  Frank laughed again. “Well, Joaquín, it looks like you won another of the ladies. But I reckon you better stay away from this one. If you don’t, you’ll be tangling with ol’ Seth here.”

  Seth looked at his empty plate. They had waited for Morgan before ordering. “I don’t put chains on my wif