Mail Order Bride and The Mix-up (A Western Romance Book)(COMPLETED)

Chapter 04

Ira had no idea what he was doing and even less what he was thinking. He'd never heard of Hale Mackery before, let alone did he know where to find the man. He'd only made up the lie because he'd seen Belle slipping through his fingers and was scared he'd lose her if he didn't act quickly, so he'd said the first thing that had popped into his head. It was just bad luck it had been nothing but a lie.

"So where are we going?" Belle asked after they'd finished with their breakfast.

Ira licked his lips and looked around, hoping something might jump out at him and give him an idea.

"Do you all have horses with you?" he asked. "If not, you can borrow one of mine."

"How many horses do you have?" asked Austin, who seemed the only one reluctant to go along with today's adventure. He kept looking at Ira suspiciously and asking questions Ira did not have answers for, such as "Where does Hale Mackery live?" and "What does the man do for a living?"

These were questions Ira thought Belle should have been able to answer, considering she was supposed to marry the man, yet she seemed as clueless as the others, including himself. He thought that a good sign. Clearly, she could not have been particularly close to Mr. Mackery, otherwise he would not have been such a secret to her and her friends.

"I keep a few horses at a stable nearby," Ira said in response to Austin's question.

"How is a hotel clerk able to afford so many horses?" Austin asked, and he suddenly felt everyone's eyes on him.

Ira kicked himself for not thinking before speaking, but he was not used to having to be so careful with people. Most people in town knew who he was, which meant they already knew of his wealth. Hiding it from Belle and her friends felt wrong in some ways, but if he was successful in gaining her favor, then he wanted to be certain that it was because of him and not just his money.

Several times at breakfast, he'd held his breath as one waiter after another had attempted to refer to him as 'Mr. Sullivan.' The only person he'd told his scheme to was Steven, who'd given him an uncertain eye and warned him that such a scheme was likely to backfire, and quickly at that. Nevertheless, Stephen had agreed to call him Mr. Barton for the time being and had said he'd get the other staff members to go along with it as well.

He realized everyone was staring at him, still waiting for an answer. "My uncle owns horses," Ira said quickly.

Belle looked at him quizzically. "I thought you said you had no family except for your mother in California."

"That's right," he said. "My uncle passed away some time ago now, and he left his horses to me along with a little money to provide for their feeding and care."

"Your uncle must've been a wealthy man," said Cadence.

"Hardly," Ira said. "He won the horses in a card game. He was quite good at cards." The statement so surprised the others that no one had any reaction to it beyond the raise their eyebrows, which was just what Ira had hoped for. These questions could not continue as they were, or he'd be found out before he was ready.

"We have our own horses," Gertrude said, a tad coldly he thought. Once seated, Ira led them through some trees at the edge of town towards the base of the smallest of their mountains.

"Hale Mackery lives here?" Belle said, and he heard the uncertainty in her voice.

"No," he said, knowing he'd be forced to admit it eventually.

"Then what are we doing here?" she asked him.

"I thought before I take you to see him, you'd like to see the waterfalls. Mellow Pass is quite proud of them. We called them the Twilight Falls because they're most beautiful night, especially just as the stars begin to come out."