She had never been so afraid in her life. The train rocked and shook as the wind howled. Torrential rain pounded against the roof and windows as thunder shook the very seat she sat on. She clasped her hands together tightly in her lap to keep them from trembling. Lightning flashed so brightly and frequently, one would almost think it was closer to noon rather than midnight.
She could not see a great distance through the downpour outside, but what she could see from the lightning, was breathtaking. It was so very different from Charleston; just the thought of her hometown caused a shiver to run down her spine.
She could not wait to get to her brother's house. She had waited for ten long years to be old enough to leave without the worry of her father or other brothers chasing after her. Finally, she'd turned twenty-one last month. No time had been wasted in purchasing her train ticket out west. It had taken two years for the Pinkerton detective she'd hired to find her brother. Then, out of the blue two months ago, he had requested a private meeting with her. He'd told her everything she needed to know and more.
Of all her brothers, this one was her favorite, even though he was seven years older than her. It had almost killed her when he left. She was like him, not like the rest of the stuck up snobs they called family. And now, she'd finally found him, and hopefully would be at his house in a couple of days.
She'd saved nearly every penny of the quarterly allowance she'd received from her father and the money she'd inherited from her grandmother. They'd been lucky, her father was a very astute business man and had diversified his investments long before the war. While everyone around them was losing everything, her family's wealth had not diminished.
The only thing she'd spent her money on was the Pinkerton detective she'd hired to find her brother. Her mind played back the conversation she'd had with the detective less than a week ago. She was an aunt!! Well, she was already an aunt, but it was different being an aunt to this brother's children. She'd never thought that he would get married, let alone have any children.
He had always been the love 'em and leave 'em type. It had to be one special woman to rope her big brother into marriage and fatherhood. Her thoughts were interrupted when a very good looking gentleman cleared his throat in an attempt to gain her attention. Deep slate blue eyes framed with long dark lashes looked up at the man standing in front of her.
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God! The indignities of having to ride in the same car as commoners. It was disgusting, he thought as he curled his lip. Just the smell alone was enough to choke a horse, and the crying children was enough to drive him insane; at least the rail car was only filled to about half of its capacity. It was necessary though. Too much attention had been brought to his private rail car. He would have never thought that anyone would miss a whore, but he'd been wrong. That was not something he was used to, and it was a very bitter pill to swallow. Apparently, these hicks loved their whores.
To pass the time, he began to study the people around him. A dark haired beauty caught his eye. He studied her for a while, and realized that she must be alone. He decided to go sit with her and try his luck. Who knows, maybe she would be a lonely wife in need of comforting. Easily he swung himself up and began to make his way over to her. He stood by her for a moment, then cleared his throat and waited. She must have been lost in thought, because she did not notice him. He cleared his throat again, this time a little louder.
She looked up at him displaying a porcelain complexion with deep slate blue eyes with rich chestnut curls framing her oval face. Her full lips were a soft pink and very kissable. She was almost as beautiful as Hope, almost. "Excuse me, but is this seat taken?" He asked, indicating the seat directly across from her. He hated riding backwards, but for the opportunity to bask in her beauty, he would. She was the only thing worth having on this train.
"Um, no. It's not." She replied in a soft southern drawl, then looked around at the half empty car. For the life of her, she did not know why this man would want to sit with her when there were so many empty seats. Shrugging mentally, she decided that maybe he was just bored and wanted to talk with someone to help pass the time.
Dark brows shot up; what a delightful surprise, a Southern Belle out here in the middle of nowhere. Her midnight blue traveling dress was of the finest quality as well as the fetching hat that sat on her rich chestnut hair at a jaunty angle. This impressed him, it had been a long time since he'd been in the company of a true southern lady. "Allow me to introduce myself, I'm Philip, Philip Huntington. I know it's not proper to come and speak to you without a formal introduction, alas we are in the middle of nowhere. " He bowed slightly.
"I'm." She thought quickly, should she give her real name or not. Surely her family wouldn't send someone after her. She'd been gone for days without a proper chaperone and her reputation would be in shreds if she went back now. Her parents would rather die than be ostracized from society. "I'm Faith Matthews."
"Miss Matthews, how nice to make your acquaintance." Philip said in a velvety smooth tone that he knew the ladies adored. After bowing slightly, he took a seat across from the lovely Miss Faith Matthews. "I detect a southern drawl. Do you mind if I ask where you are from?"
It was all Faith could do to not roll her eyes. It took a whole two seconds to realize that Mr. Philip Huntington was just like all the other pompous asses she'd had to put up with her entire life. When she finally got married, it would be to somebody completely different from anybody she'd ever known. Someone capable of taking care of her the way a man should, not someone whose hands were softer than her own.
"You can ask, but I won't be telling you." She said with her most dazzling smile.
"Ah, well then, may I ask where you are going all alone? You know it's just not safe for a beautiful young woman to be traveling without an escort, especially out here in the wild-west." His smile was still easy but there was an undertone of danger lurking in his voice.
A tingle of fear very different from what she'd felt earlier ran down her spine and settled in the pit of her stomach. She would say and do all of the right things, just like she'd been taught her entire life. This was one man she did not want to cross, and she did not want him to know that she was not only alone, but running away from home. "I'm meeting my brother and his new wife in Red Valley. I was told that we should be there in a day or so. He was so excited when our Papa finally allowed me to travel out here to see him again." Faith said a prayer asking for forgiveness for the falsehood she'd just told. Her brother was probably going to be mad as hell when he found her on his door step, and insist that she turn right back around and go back home. Except that she was pretty positive that she no longer had a home to go back to, not that she would. But she was not going to let this man know anything about that.
A gleam entered the man's eyes, and she decided right then that she wanted as little to do with him as possible. Had there been any doubts about his character before, they were gone now. He was not what or who he wanted everyone to believe he was. "And you, Mr. Huntington, where are you headed?"
"As luck would have it, Miss Matthews, I'm headed to Red Valley to pick up my fiancé." Could he get so lucky that this was that man's sister? Quickly Philip thought back to the information he'd been given on Levi Matthews. He'd been from Charleston, came from a wealthy family, and had several sisters. He was almost positive that he'd read the name Faith. It was all he could do to contain the excitement coursing through him. This was unbelievable, and it almost made up for everything Hope had put him through, almost.
Faith had seen the change in his eyes and face during their conversation, almost like the realization of something. Every one of her senses was on high alert warning her that this was a very, very dangerous man, and she would definitely have to watch everything she did. Somehow she managed to keep the conversation light and steered clear of anything personal. The less this Philip Huntington person knew of her, the better.
The conductor opened the door at the front of the rail car letting in the pounding wind and rain sending droplets of water in every direction. Although, he'd only been outside long enough to go from one car to the next, he was soaked to the skin. Water trickled off his clothes and puddled on the floor. "Ladies and gentlemen." He said loudly, gaining everyone's attention. Once all eyes were on him, he cleared his throat and continued. "Due to the weather we will be making a stop in Flat Rock, the next town on the line. The engineer is concerned that the tracks may have washed out in several places. We will pull out as soon as we know the rails are safe."
"How long will that be?" A gentleman behind them asked.
"It could be as soon as tomorrow afternoon or as long as a couple of weeks. Again, it all depends on the condition of the tracks." The conductor was still speaking, but Faith didn't hear him. All she could think about was being stuck with this man in front of her. There was no way she would be able to deal with Philip Huntington for two weeks. Frantically, she began to pray that the tracks would be safe to pass.