Damn right, he was angry. With himself. In his efforts to protect Faith and her aunts, he was becoming a man he couldn’t respect.
His brothers had accused him of being rigid to a fault, but laws were black and white, and meant to be rigidly adhered to, and enforced with diligence. He should have pursued the parasol theft until he found the thief. He should have charged Dahlia with killing Levens and let a jury decide her guilt. And he should have listened to Radford when his brother warned him to slow down. Because if he’d suspected Faith’s past, he’d have done things differently. He’d have done them right. He’d have shut down the bathhouse, married off those crazy aunts of hers, and sold the brothel.
Then he would have married Faith—because he loved her.
And that’s why her lack of trust wounded him so deeply. From the minute he met her, he’d wanted her. He’d opened his heart and his life and left himself open to her betrayal. To realize she knowingly misled him was like expecting a kiss only to get slammed in the gut with a hand maul.
It was his own fault for being too sure of himself. He’d known Faith was hiding something behind her smile, but he ignored the feeling because he wanted her, and because he knew she was the one, the woman he would love for the rest of his life.
His anger burned away, and his pace slowed, but he continued to walk. He headed out of town on Water Street, then cut over to Liberty Street where the whining sound of the saw at the mill echoed along the gorge and beckoned him closer.
There was commotion in the yard when he got there. His brothers were talking with Patrick and Cyrus, but they looked pissed off, especially Radford, who swore and slammed his hand ax into a pile of maple logs.
“What’s going on?” Duke asked, closing in on their gathering.
They all looked at him, but Radford got right in his face. “I was just going to come find you,” he said, all tensed up like he was ready to throttle somebody.
“Why?” Everyone was looking at him, but he spoke to Radford. “What’s going on here?”
“You have a damned brothel operating under your nose, that’s what’s wrong! My daughter walked into that greenhouse you own and saw Patrick fondling Iris’s bare breast.”
“What?” Duke’s gaze shot to Patrick. “Is that true?”
Patrick gave a shamefaced nod.
“Jesus.” His gut twisted and he felt nauseated. To think an innocent like Rebecca had witnessed something so base and intimate made him want to slug Patrick—and kick himself for being so goddamned blind.
“The greenhouse was closed for the day. We thought we’d be alone,” Patrick said. “We didn’t know Adam and Rebecca would be tromping upstairs.” Pat’s shoulders sagged. “I feel awful, Radford. I thought you should know so you could talk to her. She’s got to be shocked and confused by what she saw.”
“At the least. She should have never witnessed something like that.” Radford’s nostrils flared. “Whatever is going on at that damned greenhouse had better stop right now, Duke. If anyone hears about this, it could shred our reputation. You may not mind, but I sure as hell do.”
“So do I,” Boyd said. “We’ve each got a wife and children to think about.”
“And Mother,” Kyle added. “If she gets dragged into this, Duke, I’ll tear that greenhouse apart board by board and get rid of the problem.”
They had every right to be angry, but he was unable to believe what he was hearing. Archer wasn’t just trying to undermine Duke’s bid for election; the man had genuine cause for concern.
“Were you there too, Cyrus?” he asked, figuring he may as well hear the whole disgusting truth.
“Not that day.”
“Notthatday. What the hell does that mean?” he asked. “Archer’s wife said she saw you and Tansy kissing at the top of the stairs in the greenhouse. Was Tansy servicing you upstairs, too?”
Shock flashed across the man’s face, then his expression hardened with anger. “Tansy was accepting my marriage proposal.”
The announcement surprised Duke and left him momentarily speechless. He’d figured Cyrus would remain a bachelor for life. And knowing Tansy’s past profession, Duke assumed none of those bawdy women would ever marry. Did Cyrus know about Tansy’s past? Or was he an unsuspecting fool like Duke had been?
“We’re going to marry tomorrow afternoon.”
So soon? Was there a reason for haste? It wasn’t Duke’s place to share the information with Cyrus. All he could do was try to keep everything from collapsing and burying his family in a mess they had nothing to do with. His mind spun, groping for a way to undo the damage Faith’s aunts and Cyrus and Patrick had caused with their fooling around. Then it struck him. “I want you to marry Tansy in the Common,” he said, an idea forming in his mind.
Cyrus scowled. “We were going to do it quick and quiet.”
“You could have if you hadn’t been so careless in kissing Tansy in the greenhouse. You two are the cause of this rumor, Cyrus. If you and Tansy marry in the park, people will think you were just an eager fiancé who was stealing a kiss from your intended. That should silence any rumors the Archers may have started, and it will keep suspicion from being cast on my family.”
“All right.” Cyrus gave him a nod. “I accept the responsibility for that, and I’m sorry for it. I’ll let Tansy know.”
Duke faced his brothers and had never felt so cut off from them in his life. In all their spats, there was never a time when they all stood against him as they were doing now. Duke was the peacekeeper in the family. He was the one who calmed them down and made them see reason. But not today. Because they all had everything to lose. And it was Duke’s poor judgment that had put them in this position. “I’ll shut down the bathhouse and stop the massages,” he said. “But it’ll break Faith’s heart if I make her close the greenhouse.”
