“You think you know me.”
“I do know you.”
“And?”
They were close to the hotel. She stopped.
“And it is time for us to say good-night,” she said.
Even though he knew he shouldn’t rush things, he wasn’t ready to let her go. Alethea surprised him, and it had been a long time since he could say that about any part of his life. There was a strength in her, a determination. Too bad she wouldn’t let him kiss her.
He stared into her big, green eyes and searched for a hint of what she was feeling. Either there wasn’t enough light or she was doing a fine job of keeping her thoughts to herself.
He touched her cheek. “Say my name.”
“What?”
“You’ve been calling me Mr. Titan all evening. Say my name. My first name. Just once.”
He dropped his gaze to her mouth and imagined what it would be like to press his lips to hers. To taste her sweetness. Would she kiss tentatively, waiting to be convinced? Or would she give boldly, passionately?
“Mr. Titan, I-”
He pressed his index finger against her bottom lip, then ran it down to her chin. Her eyes widened.
“I’ll go first, if that makes it easier,” he murmured. “Alethea.”
“Good night,” she said firmly, stepping back and turning toward the hotel.
He stayed where he was, watching her leave. The game wasn’t over. He knew it in his gut. Sure enough, when she reached the door to the side stairs, she turned back. Her gaze met his before dropping to his mouth.
“Zeke,” she whispered, and then was gone.
Alethea awoke refreshed and ready to start a new day. She was pleased with her performance the previous night. Not so much the reading, but afterward, with Zeke.
Except for an unexplained sense of longing at the end of their time together, she’d stayed in complete control of her faculties. She’d done her best to convince him he was well on his way to seducing her. In truth, were he truly courting her, she would be hard-pressed to deny him.
He was nothing like Wesley, yet so appealing, she thought sadly. But she couldn’t know the true man-not when his goal was to force her into leaving town. However much she might enjoy his company, she had to keep reminding herself that Zeke Titan was out to defeat her, not win her.
She made her way to school, determined to keep her attention on her students. Matthew came running up to her, then spun in a slow circle. She took in the new shirt and overalls, the self-conscious but proud smile.
“Don’t you look especially handsome this morning,” she told the eight-year-old.
“My mom got a new sewing machine,” he said proudly. “She’s been workin’ day ’n night to make these for me.”
An impressive amount of work finished in a relatively short period of time, Alethea thought. “I hope you thanked her.”
“Yes, ma’am, I did. She’s gonna take in sewing work now.”
“Excellent.” She knew that Matthew’s mother, a widow, had been getting by on very little income. Although now that she thought about it…“A sewing machine is very expensive,” she said, more to herself than the boy. “She must have been saving for a long time.”
Matthew grinned. “Uncle Zeke bought it for her. It came in on the last wagon, just like him. He comes to our house a lot.”
Matthew saw one of his friends and ran off. Alethea stared after him. Uncle Zeke? As she had not heard that Zeke had any family left in the area, she had to assume the title was honorary. But what, exactly, had Mr. Titan done to earn it?
Later that morning, she had to separate two girls who simply wouldn’t stop talking. She quickly discovered that they, too, had new clothes. Dresses this time, all the way from Boston. Compliments of Uncle Zeke.
Alethea ignored the churning in her midsection as she gave the children their reading assignment for the morning. When she walked between the desks and helped her students with difficult words, she couldn’t help searching for similarities between Matthew’s brown hair and eyes and the girls’. Given Zeke’s reputation with women, she shouldn’t be surprised that he’d fathered children. Apparently the good people of Titanville were willing to embrace the results of his indiscretions. Very forward thinking of them, if slightly shocking.
At lunch, she passed out the buckets her students had brought from home. They ran outside to eat while she stayed in, still thinking about the fact that Zeke may have fathered children without the benefit of marriage. She heard heavy footsteps and looked up to see the man in question entering the schoolhouse. He smiled at her.
“It’s a fine day,” Zeke told her. “I brought a picnic for us to share.”
As he spoke, he held up a basket. It was large, and a brightly colored cloth spilled from one side.
She eyed his offering, then turned her attention to him. “You must find your circumstances very pleasant. This town where you are adored. The rules of society that don’t apply to you or your situation. The rights of a husband but none of the responsibilities.”
She wasn’t angry, she thought as she looked at him. She was disappointed. She’d expected more. No. That wasn’t right. She’d hoped for more, but she had been let down. Zeke wasn’t special. He was a charming shell of a man.
“What are you talking about?” he asked, looking genuinely confused.
“You have created your own kingdom,” she said, coming to her feet. “You seem to be all that is good in a man, but that is a facade. You may not hit women or speak ill of them, but you abuse their bodies and their characters all the same.”
The humor and anticipation faded from his dark eyes. “You assume a great deal.”
“I see Matthew in new clothes sewn on a machine you provided. The girls in their new dresses, compliments of their uncle. Yet you are not a relation to their mothers. Not in the traditional sense.”
Zeke’s mouth tightened. “You speak of my failings, yet you’re the one assuming the worst without knowing the true circumstances. Matthew’s mother was married to a friend of mine. When he passed, Elizabeth wouldn’t accept help from anyone. It took me six months to convince her to let me give her the sewing machine. As to the girls and their dresses, yes, I brought back pretty clothes for daughters of widows.”
He set down the basket and moved closer, his dark eyes blazing with anger. “You’re quick to judge things you don’t understand. A common failing of those with small minds. If you want to know about my past, do me the courtesy of asking me directly. Have there been women? Yes. Have I bedded them without the benefit of marriage? Only if they were willing. I might enjoy my pleasures, Mrs. Harbaugh, but I have never turned my back on my responsibilities. I have no bastards to gnaw at my conscience.”
He walked to the doorway and glanced back at her. “One would think that a woman in charge of impressionable minds would take care before forming her opinions. Apparently, one would be wrong.”
And then he was gone. Alethea stared after him, feeling her cheeks heat with embarrassment and her soul burn with regret.
Chapter Five
Guilt was an unfamiliar emotion, and one Alethea didn’t like. She’d always believed in being fair, to listening to both sides of an argument. After Zeke had gotten so angry about her assumptions, she’d decided to talk to Daisy.
“Zeke’s been very careful,” her friend reassured her. “Even before he came to terms with the town, he never got involved with married women.”
“I’m not sure if that’s better or worse,” Alethea murmured as they sorted through the wool shipment that had arrived. Spring meant time to start new knitting projects to be finished in time for cool fall nights.
“He has given a lot to people,” Daisy went on. “Much is done quietly.” She glanced around, as if making sure they were alone in the back of the store, then spoke in a lowered voice. “Whenever a woman loses a husband, we always send over a big box of supplies. Dry goods, fabric, whatever we know they need. Zeke helps pay for that. He
