Chapter 2

Standing aside was harder then James could have believed. He saw her as he stood in the shadows of the bar and every time, he could swear he was looking at his Lorretta. Ms. Lorretta Walker brought all his memories of her bursting forward. So much so that he somehow knew this was her somehow returned to him, but this time much to his frustration, he couldn't have her. To protect her, he had to stay away from her, but James found he couldn't. Now that he knew she existed, he couldn't unknow that, so that was why he hid in the shadows now. Protecting her from afar, noticing as he watched her just how much she resembled his Lorretta, both in beauty, and in mannerism. This Lorretta walked with the same flirty sway to her hips, she hummed in the same low tenor producing the same sound, and there was more. She even possessed Lorretta fine quirks. The way she scrunched up her nose before she sneezed or how she licked her lips when deep in thought as she tried to do something with care. With each little action that he hadn't seen in so long, the more James knew, this wasn't just a place of fate. This was his Lorretta returned to him, finally.

"Jimmy" James felt drawn back then as he remembered the way she used to say his name in that same moment hearing as Ms. Walker laughed making him even more sure of who she was.

James didn't know why she did it or who made her do it, but when the sound drifted back to him as he sat in a booth unnoticed in the depths of the bar, James found himself taken back to another time. He had been a budding youth of eighteen then, without a cent to his name, but he was trying to work his way up. He had been working as a shop keepers assistant among other things for the wealthiest man in the county, Walter Fitz, when Lorretta had walked in.

"If you want to be something in this world, Jimmy, you can't expect to have it handed to you. You have to work for it" Walter had taught him that from the very beginning, teaching him everything he needed to know to gain all he had today. He had just started letting James do his books and exiting the office, he had seen Lorretta leaning up against the counter.

She was in the middle of a brilliant burst of laughter. The sound of it had stopped James, leaving him to stand in the aisle closest to the counter, just staring. He hadn't come out of it until Walter spotted him as he came up from the freezer. His mentor had startled him as he clasped his shoulder his eyes on Lorretta as well. James had been drawn away from her then, glancing only briefly at Walter before letting his eyes return to Lorretta. James knew she had his heart from that very moment.

" Who is that young woman?" James whispered it as she turned as if feeling his eyes on her.

" That's Lorretta Wilson, her old man lives up the road. You've met Al Wilson, the farmer who comes in for supplies. He sends Lorretta from time to time" said Walter, James could tell he knew James was already smitten with her. James didn't have time to contemplate that though. He was too far gone to consider anything at that point. Because suddenly, Lorretta was looking back at him, and she was smiling. Her eyes shined as she did so and James could swear he stopped breathing. That everything stopped in that moment as their eyes met. She was still leaning heavily against the counter, but her head had turned. Her smile held a type of promise, though at the time, he had known what that promise was. She sealed that promise with a wave that nearly brought him to his knees. It beckoned to him, but in that moment, James couldn't move. He no longer belonged to himself alone. From that moment on, he was hers, and hers alone.

" Come on, Jimmy. It's time to be a man and go talk to the pretty girl" whispered Walter then not giving James a chance to move of his own accord as Walter pushed him toward where Lorretta Wilson stood flirting with him from afar.

" How are you, Lorretta?" called Walter stopping when they were close enough that James could really get a good look at her.

" Wonderful, Mr. Fitz. Just running some errands for daddy. He's busy getting the crops ready for harvest so he couldn't come today" she said it with such pride in her voice. She was proud of her hard working father. Proud to be his daughter. She'd never cared about money or the need to struggle. Lorretta had been prepared for it her whole life. He'd fallen in love with her because of that and so much more. It was that moment in the shop though that got them started. As she spoke then James hadn't said a thing. He'd stared at her without denying it. Lorretta Wilson didn't need jewels or furs or fancy things to be beautiful to him. She hadn't had any of those things on that day. She was just a simple country girl. She never pretended to be anything more. She never needed it, for to him, she was always magnificently gorgeous, like a human jewel. James had fallen in love with her that way and that love never waned even when he had the money to give her those things. Her strawberry blonde hair had been pinned somewhat messily atop her head. He had had to stomp down the urge to run his fingers through it even that first day. Her skin had been windchaffed, but still beautiful in the dim shop lights. It had only added to the pink hue of her cheeks as she smiled at him, a sharp contrast to the gray storm that was her eyes. They contrasted with his almost perfectly as the two sets of orbs met, a brilliant flash of lightning seeming to sound all around them in that moment.

She wore a simple dress of tan gingham and when her voice called to him, he looked up to find her smiling at him.

" Who's this?" whispered Lorretta, James could feel her eyes admiring him then though at the time, he hadn't thought himself much to look at.

" This here's Jimmy March...I'm teaching him a thing or two" said Walter putting his arm around him the way a father would a son. James felt pride at that as he nodded his head at the girl.

" Miss. Lorretta, your orders all ready" called the shop boy, handing her a bundle. When he drew her attention away, James had felt his first murderous urges. He wanted to be her sole focus, but she didn't turn away for long. She returned to him with that same smile that seemed to only be reserved for him.

" Thank you...I better start home now" she said as she was looking at James though the words themselves weren't meant for him.

" It was nice meeting you, Jimmy, hopefully we meet again" said Lorretta her voice almost seductive as she gathered her bags giving him a final wave before exiting the shop. That didn't faze James though, for his eyes didn't leave the place where she had been. He felt unlike himself. Like something life changing had just come upon him. He had just met the love of his life, only, he wasn't deserving of her quite yet. He knew that even as he longed to see her again. He knew that even as he vowed to make himself worthy of her. It wasn't until Walter gave him a good shake that James blinked.

" I don't regret much, Jimmy, but I'll tell you. I had a woman like that come into my life once, I let her slip out of it too. Listen to me, don't let that one get away or years from now, you'll be regretting it too" his tone of voice was almost wistful and somehow James knew he was thinking of the one he spoke of. The one who slipped away. James let him lead him back to the office to look over the books, but James mind wasn't there. James didn't know what the future held in store for Lorretta Wilson and himself, he was keen to find out though. He would follow Walter's advice to the letter as best he could. He wouldn't let Lorretta Wilson go. James hadn't either. He had only grown to love her more after that. He'd made a fortune and made her his wife. He'd made a life for them and they had been happy. Until the very end.

James had no regrets as far as Lorretta was concerned. He hadn't let her become a memory or a regret as Walter had warned, but he had courted her. Made her his girl, his wife, his soulmate. And yet now, she had returned to him. His Lorretta had come back to him and he was just going to let her slip by this time? It didn't sit well with James even as he knew his reasons for doing it. He had watched her unnoticed for days, a nagging inside himself telling him this was a mistake. Even now, he sat in darkness, watching her, and suddenly, he knew. He couldn't just walk away. His soulmate had been given to him again, all he had to do was reclaim her as his own. To woo her like he did all those years ago and to hell with Elizabeth, Lorretta was the woman he'd always loved, and he wouldn't let her go. He would never let Elizabeth harm her or anyone else. James knew his mind was made up. That's what made him rise from the booth where he hid. He sat down at the center of the bar where the whole room could see him and watching her out of the corner of his eye, he waited. Liz was on him as soon as he sat down though, a prodective mother, and suddenly, James felt like he was a boy again. He would have to win her approval even as he knew he didn't really need it. He watched her refill his glass feeling shaky as he took a sip. This reminded him of a conversation he had long ago when he'd asked Lorretta's father for her hand.

" I thought me both agreed you should keep your distance. This is far from that...what are you doing?" her words came as a low hiss. James didn't have a good enough answer really as Liz stared him down waiting for an answer. He knew she was only trying to protect her friend even as he avoided her gaze. The truth was he knew why he was pursuing Lorretta even as he didn't. Everything just seemed all mixed around in his head, for even as his reasons seemed sure, he was still so unsure of them.

" I was wrong, Miss. Taylor. I can't just step aside. That woman is the woman I've always loved returned to me, I know she is. I can't just let her go. Somehow I know that would be a mistake" James said it in a burst of words that seemed to be all rushed together. The truth was James really didn't know what he was doing. He was very unsure of it all, but he didn't tell her that. His words did it for him though because suddenly Liz was looking at him with sympathy in her eyes. It was strange, she'd never seen James March so flustered, and vulnerable before. It was almost endearing.

" What about Eljzabeth?" her tone was soft then and James knew there was fear there too.

" I'll handle Elizabeth. You must understand, I love this woman, she is my Lorretta. I can't walk away. Ms. Walker, she is my Lorretta returned to me, I know she is. I cannot just stand by while she walks around the very hotel I built in her memory with no knowledge of our past. This is our second chance and I will have it" exclaimed James.

" Elizabeth can't be handled. She is dangerous snapped Liz clearly afraid for her friend then. James knew she was right, but he only sipped his drink. He could handle Elizabeth, at least, he thought he could. After all, he still had her God hidden away in the bowels of the hotel, he thought that could work to his advantage. He had all the power in this hotel whether some disagreed or not didn't matter. He was the king who had built this hotel and he would sacrifice everything he had to protect his love.

" Elizabeth isn't as formidable as you might think. She is human with very human weaknesses. Just be assured, no harm will come to Ms. Walker, I won't allow it. This is still my hotel and on my honor, I will not allow her to be harmed by anyone within these walls" James said it on a whispered growl. As he said it, Liz didn't really believe him, but suddenly she saw into the future almost. She could see he meant what he said even as she was unsure if he could see it through and that made her smile. He would try to keep his word and that was enough to make her smile.

" So what's your plan? You can't just walk up to her and tell her she was your wife in another life" whispered Liz refilling his glass.

" I know that...why is it that everyone seems to think just because I'm dead that that has suddenly made me stupid as well. I fully intend to woo her first just as I did the first time" snapped James down the rest of his drink only to have her refill it again.

" Fine then, go woo fine sir. I wish you all the luck in the world" Liz said it with a hint of sarcasm in her voice her eyes telling him she expected him to storm off to declare himself to Lorretta.

" What are you waiting for?" that sarcasm was still there even as she watched him, leaning back against the bar watching him as he sat there not moving.

" It's been a very long time since I went about courting a woman" admitted James then suddenly feeling like a scared youth again as he contemplated his first move toward wooing the woman he had set his sights on.

His words made Liz shake her head holding in a laugh. She never would have dreamed she'd see the feared killer, James Patrick March, look scared, but he did now as he considered all the ways he could approach Lorretta. It was so endearing that Liz decided to make the first move for him.

" Lorretta, could you come over here? I have to go downstairs to the desk, so you'll have to man the bar alone" James eyes widened as she said it, not hearing anything else that transpired. All he knew was suddenly Liz was gone and he was alone with Lorretta Walker. He watched her move with the same fluid grace that his Lorretta had had. He watched her lick her lips and smiling as she hummed in contentment as she worked. It was as she was refilling his glass that he worked up the nerve to speak to her.

" Thank you" whispered James receiving a smile. He held his hand out to her then and when she took it, he saw her shiver.

" My name is James March, I own this hotel" whispered James.

" I know, Liz told me that day, when you were staring. I'm Lorretta Walker" said Lorretta and just like that it had begun.