Chapter Eleven
The Landowner's Meeting
Charlotte found her father in the banquet room. She walked up to him and kissed him on the cheek. Even he could not ruin Charlotte's good mood.
"Hello, father."
"Charlotte, you look lovely this evening," said her father as he kissed her on the cheek.
The waitress came by, and Charlotte ordered a whiskey.
"Don't you think you should order wine, my dear?" asked her father quietly.
"No. I prefer whiskey this evening. Tell me about your day."
"We looked over several properties and spoke with the landowners. Beautiful country here in the Cumberland Valley. How did you spend your day?"
"I had a most adventurous day. I went riding outside of the town. Yes, Oscar and the boys accompanied me, so I was safe."
"That is good to hear."
Charlotte scanned the room, looking for Reggie. She saw Tristan at the bar. He held up his glass to her and then drained his glass, ordering another. She turned away, ignoring him. Then she saw them.
She gasped as the two men entered the banquet room. The resemblance was uncanny; they were father and son. Reggie and Charlotte's eyes met, and like a magnet, they were drawn together.
Tristan watched the scene play out as Charlotte glided toward the tall, dark-haired man. They met in an affectionate embrace and then spoke intimately to each other. He watched her laugh and smile at the gentleman, and his blood boiled, still feeling the sting of her rejection.
"Hello Charlie. You look beautiful this evening."
"Hello Reggie."
Then Charlotte leaned in close and whispered in his ear.
"I found the coat. It's in my locked trunk."
Reggie smiled at her boldness and courage. Then he remembered his father.
"Miss Randolph, I would like you to meet my father, Gordon Thanturnam."
"How do you do, Mr. Thanturnam, and please call me Charlotte."
"Nice to meet you, Ma'am. My son has spoken highly of you."
"That is nice to hear. Reggie regaled me with many stories of his brothers."
"Charlotte? So, Charlie is short for Charlotte?"
"I believe Reggie is short for Reginald, if I am not mistaken."
Then the three of them laughed. The waitress brought them drinks and they toast to "chance encounters."
"Father, do you think it is too soon to ask Miss Randolph if she has all her teeth?"
"What?" exclaimed Charlotte.
"My brother Rupert will ask me."
Then Reggie told her the running joke amongst his brothers. Charlotte's eyes opened wide, and then she laughed out loud at the outrageously silly question.
"Please assure Rupert that I have all my teeth."
The men toasted her good sense of humor. Charlotte felt a brush against her leg and saw Kaiser.
"Hello Kaiser. So nice to see you. I bet you are hungry. Reggie, have you fed him anything today?"
"No, but I will order an extra steak for him."
Reggie saw Marge at the other end of the banquet room.
"If you will excuse me for a moment, I need to talk to Marge. Charlotte, I leave you in excellent hands."
Without waiting for a reply, Reggie left the group and Kaiser remained at Charlotte's side. She smiled at Reggie's father and found he was a delightful conversationalist with exquisite manners.
* * *
Senator Randolph walked up to Tristan at the bar and took the glass from his hand.
"You have had enough. I need you sober, and by my side when I give my speech to these men."
"Alright," slurred Tristan. "Who's the gent talking to Charlotte?"
"Oh, that would be Gordon Thanturnam. I need to say hello."
The Senator walked crossed the room to his daughter and Tristan followed behind.
"Hello, Gordon," said the Senator, shaking his hand. "I see you have met my lovely daughter, Charlotte. This is my aide, Tristin Albright."
"Yes, I have just made her acquaintance. Nice to meet you, sir."
Kaiser's keenest scent went off in an alarm, and he barked furiously. He moved in front of Charlotte to protect her. The deep, commanding voice shattered the air, bringing silence to the room.
"Kaiser, Platz" said Reggie in his clearest German to tell the dog to stand down.
The new dog owner rushed to Kaiser. Kaiser continued to growl as he sat on his haunches, ready to leap.
"Get that filthy animal out of here!" shouted Tristan.
Reggie had knelt next to Kaiser to calm him down. Charlotte also was comforting the dog.
"Charlotte, get away from that dog. He may bite," screamed her father.
"Nonsense, Kaiser would never hurt me," said Charlotte as she knelt next to the large German Shepherd.
Kaiser turned toward Charlotte and licked her face, releasing the tension in the room with laughter as the dog's show of affection towards the beautiful young woman. Reggie looked at the Senator and saw absolute terror etched on his face. He was sweating with fear of the dog.
Reggie stood up to his full height and calmly said, "I have always found dogs to be an excellent judge of character. Don't you agree?"
Reggie looked at the senator's aide with a steel glare.
"Get him out of here. He is upsetting the senator."
"It seems that Kaiser recognizes you, gentlemen. Now, how is that possible?"
"We have stopped a couple of time to speak to Mr. Polansky. We are still negotiating with Mr. Polansky, and I am sure we can reach a reasonable price for his land," said Tristan.
"I can tell you that the man who owns the property does not plan to sell."
"We need to hear that from Mr. Polansky."
"It may be tough to get an answer. Ivan Polansky is dead. I found him murdered in his cabin."
The men gasped at the news. Then Reggie announced to the men that he had inherited Ivan Polansky's estate, which included Kaiser. Reggie turned and walked out of the room as Kaiser followed him. He took Kaiser to the carriage house to spend the night. He stopped in the kitchen to retrieve Kaiser's supper and a bowl for water.
When he returned to the banquet room, he found Charlotte sitting next to his father. She had saved a chair next to her for Reggie. The waitress brought out cuts of thick roast beef, roasted potatoes, squash, green beans, and loaves of bread. They brought bread pudding and apple pie out for dessert, along with coffee, brandy, and cigars.
During the meal, Reggie was the most attentive dinner guest, especially as so many young men stopped at the table to greet Miss Randolph and tell her how much fun they had with her at Mayor Thornton's party.
"So, tell me, Miss Charlotte, how is it that such a beautiful woman as yourself is not married? I am sure you are the belle of Harrisburg society with plenty of offers for marriage."
"You are mistaken, Mr. Reggie. It will be my fourth season, and I am dreading it."
"It will be my sixth season if I accept any invitations this year."
Charlotte laughed at his remarks.
"You could always travel to Harrisburg and be my date for my cousin Juliette's party. It will be her first season."
"I may just take you up on that offer."
Dishes had been cleared, and the Senator and his aides moved to the front of the large room to prepare for their presentation. There was a commotion in the lobby. Mr. Berman was overheard yelling for the Senator.
He burst into the dining room and shouted at the Senator.
"You low belly coward. You are nothing but a liar," said Mr. Berman, shaking his finger in anger at the senator as he moved closer.
"Here now. What is the meaning of this?" asked Senator Randolph.
"We no longer have a deal. The check you gave me came back to the bank: insufficient funds. You, sir, are a fraud."
"Mr. Berman, I am sure it is a simple error. If you would step over here and speak to my accountant, Mr. Baldwin, I am sure we can straighten this out and get you paid."
"No. I am not selling my land to you. And neither should the rest of you. This man is a crook. I filed charges against you and your aides for cattle rustling and burning down my hog shed. I want compensation."
Mr. Baldwin and Mr. Armstrong moved toward the man and asked him to join them in the lobby to discuss the matter at hand.
"Get away from me. You are the one that threatened harm to my wife," said Mr. Berman, as he pointed his finger at Mr. Armstrong. "I don't want to hear any more lies."
Then the landowner turned and left the dining room, leaving the guests unnerved by what they had heard. After he left, the Senator tried to assure the men gathered it was a simple misunderstanding.
"I have a vision for the future of Carlisle. With the westward expansion, Carlisle could become grow to be a major hub for supplies. With the addition of warehouses,..."
Shouting interrupted the Senator's spiel.
"Not with our land. We want good roads," shouted the men.
Things went from bad to worse as different landowners asked about cattle rustling and buildings that have burned. Some of the Carlisle merchants let the crowd know they had been approached by the Senator and his aides with offers to buy their businesses. The small group of men felt the outrage of the crowd and did their best to calm the crowd.
When the men had had enough, they left the dining room for the bar. After the meeting broke up, the senator gathered with his staff and chewed them out for the horrible meeting, which caught the senator off guard.
He was especially irritated with Gordon Thanturnam's accusations of using government money to buying property for investments. They had caught him in his scheme and made it public, ruining any chance of enticing investors. The senator was furious with Tristan. He continued to chastise his junior aide.
Charlotte was getting tipsy as she nervously sipped on her third glass of whiskey.
"I must admit. I find whiskey to be stronger than wine. Reggie, would you escort me to my room?"
"I would be honored. I wouldn't want you to fall. Half this room would come to your rescue, and I would have to fight them off."
Charlotte laughed at his remarks, and then gracefully took his arm as she said goodnight to Gordon Thanturnam. Tristan noticed Charlotte leaving as Reggie walked her up the wooden staircase to her room. When they reached her door, Charlotte leaned her back against the door.
"Do you taste as good as you smell?" asked Reggie as he placed his hand on the woodwork and leaned in closer.
Charlotte lifted her head to look into his gorgeous eyes. Reggie took her chin and kissed her softly. Charlotte smiled and kissed him back. Each kiss became more passionate as he tasted her lips. She swooned with desire as her body came alive in his arms.
By the time the senator was done, Tristan was beyond angry at being humiliated at the meeting and chastised by his boss. He grabbed a bottle and went to his room to drink away his sorrows. When he reached the top of the stairs, he saw Charlotte and Reggie entwined in a passionate kiss.
"Miss Randolph. I don't think your father would approve of such a public display of affection."
Charlotte and Reggie pulled apart at the interruption.
"I was simply thanking Miss Randolph for a wonderful evening, and I don't believe it is any of your business," said Reggie as he turned to glare at Mr. Albright.
"You are right, Mr. Albright. I should have invited Mr. Thanturnum into my room to say goodnight."
"Charlotte," exclaimed Tristan.
"Now, if you would excuse us."
Charlotte took out her room key and opened her door. Reggie stood in the hallway and smiled.
"Don't you have a bottle to finish?" said Reggie, noticing the whiskey bottle in his hand.
"Wait until your father hears about this," said Mr. Albright.
He unlocked his door and entered his room, slamming the door shut.
Charlotte and Reggie burst into giggles.
"Now where were we?" asked Reggie with a devilish smile.
"We were saying goodnight when we were rudely interrupted."
Charlotte stood in the doorway of her room, and Reggie remained in the hallway.
"I am afraid, Ma'am, that if I enter your room and close the door, I can't promise you I will be a gentleman."
"Who said I want you to be a gentleman?"
It was Reggie's turn to laugh, knowing she had too much to drink this evening.
"Do you have to leave in the morning? Come to our estate and spend a few days, and I will make sure you get back to Harrisburg safely."
"Reggie, are you sure? We've just met."
"And I'm afraid I will never see you again. I just want to spend time with you."
"I feel the same way."
"You think about it. Let's meet early for breakfast. My mother and father always enjoy guests at the estate."
"Let me think about it."
Reggie stepped into the room and took her into his arms. Passionate kisses took over as they kissed like they would never see each other again. Finally, Reggie pulled away from their embrace.
"I hate playing the role of a gentleman."
Charlotte laughed and thanked him for a lovely evening. Reggie waited until she locked her door and then he went to his father's room, eager for the morning.