Camilla
Chapter Two
"If you're her father, you need to do right by her." That wasn't the only thing his mother had said to him while in the study, but it was the one that continued ringing in Nick's ears as he mounted Coco. While he didn't agree with everything that his mother had told him, Nick did agree he had to find out whether Camilla was really his or not. So much for a bit of time to relax, he'd have to wait for that one.
"See you, Nick!" Audra called out on the porch and watched him ride out. She then looked at the infant in her arms and hoped. All right, for her brother's sake, she probably should pray that a mistake had been made. So, why did she find herself hoping otherwise?
She turned when she heard footsteps behind her; it was Jarrod. However, nothing was said until Nick disappeared out of sight and even then it was Audra who initiated the talk. "How does it feel to be an uncle?" Her eyes laughed as she asked the question. She couldn't help it; Jarrod looked almost as uncomfortable as Nick had.
Jarrod threw his sister a smile as he answered, "I don't know yet. It still feels like we simply have a visitor in the house."
Audra couldn't argue with that one, but that wasn't going to stop her from playing the part of a doting aunt while she had the chance. She turned around and took the infant back inside, while Jarrod headed for the stables. He needed to talk to Ciego before he headed for town.
000
By the time night fell, Nick could only dream about his bed at home. He threw some more wood on the campfire he'd built and stared up at the few stars that hung in the darkened night sky. He let his mind wander to the previous fall, back to the trip that he had made to attend a friend's wedding. The churchyard was full of people, all congratulating the newly married couple. The children ran in and out, and all around the bushes and trees that had been planted next to the church and around the grounds. Nick had given his best to the groom and his bride and then headed out of the churchyard only to be stopped in his tracks.
The bride groom's brother, Charles, walked up beside Nick and smiled. He could easily see why Mr. Barkley had stopped walking. A young, dark haired woman sat on a bench underneath one of the trees. She was looking straight ahead, but at nothing in particular. "Her name is Rachel-Marie Ballard; she's blind. Her parents care little about her, as they don't think someone with problems like hers is useful. I'm surprised they even sent her to the blind school. The way Mr. and Mrs. Ballard are, Rachel-Marie will be lucky to ever get a beau, or a decent one anyway. Poor thing, most people look upon her as too much of a liability to worry about. Actually, I'm shocked to see her sitting there with this wedding going on. If you're looking for a gal, there's plenty of other girls available." Charles had then walked away and found the girl he was interested in and asked her to dance.
Nick didn't care that the young woman was blind and was appalled at the non-caring attitude that Charles had conveyed. Nick didn't think it at all right for people to treat her the way that Charles indicated they were. He'd taken his leave from Charles and headed over to where Rachel-Marie sat.
Nick sat up straight when he heard a rustling sound near the bushes. He pulled out his pistol, just in case he needed it, and waited. He had to start laughing when a small rabbit came through the bushes and darted off in the direction opposite from where he was. He was definitely too much on edge. He threw more wood on the fire and then went to get his bedroll off his saddle. His mind again wandered back through time.
Nick helped Rachel-Marie down from the buggy. He'd convinced her to go on a picnic with him in spite of the fact that she felt he should be interested in someone who had her sight. After all, a blind girl was just a liability for him. He didn't agree with her and said as much. It had taken a lot of talking, but Nick had been successful in persuading her to join him. The two laughed and talked most of the afternoon. Later, the night before he was to leave, he'd finished his business and was on his way to the boarding house when he'd bumped into her coming out of the back of the schoolhouse where one of her friend's was a teacher.
"May I look at you, Nick? I want to see what you look like," Rachel-Marie had asked somewhat hesitantly only to be pleased as Nick lifted her hands up to his face. She smiled as she ran her fingers across his forehead and down the front of his face, the whole time asking questions. Questions like; "What's the color of your hair?" and "What's the color of your eyes?"
Nick, now lying underneath his blanket, ran the events of the night over in his mind. After she'd looked at him, they'd talked and laughed longer than they'd ever dreamed of doing. When it started to threaten to rain hard, they'd hurried into the schoolhouse; they'd continued talking and getting to know each other. When lightning hit a bit too close for comfort, she'd flown into his arms. It was then he'd found himself kissing her. At first it was just an innocent kiss, only they hadn't stopped when they should have. Before either one of them knew it the heat they'd created was too much, and they just had to have each other. Silently he groaned, as he remembered how she'd made him feel, how they'd made each other feel. Afterwards, he begged her to tell him if a child had been conceived. Rachel-Marie had sworn she'd send him word if that happened. If the child on the ranch was theirs, why hadn't she done so? It wasn't until that thought entered his head that another one latched itself onto it and made him sit straight up. If Rachel-Marie was Camilla's mother, and the young infant was now in his house, did that mean Rachel-Marie had died giving birth to the young girl? If she had, who had dropped the child off?
Nick forced himself to lie back down; none of this was making any sense. As much as he wanted all the pieces of the puzzle linked together that night, he knew that was impossible. He had to relax and get some sleep. He would need his strength for the long ride ahead of him, then his wits about him when he started his search. He lay back down and did his best to do just that, relax that is. However, it was to be another two hours before he finally drifted off to sleep.