The Postmaster

Oliver started to look forward to Miss McInerney's daily visits on her way to the mercantile or to the Gazette or just on her way to or from a walk. She'd drop in quickly, flash him a beautiful smile and give him an update on her moving day. He wondered why he was feeling this way towards a complete stranger, as his own wife's face was starting to fade from his memory.

It'd been almost 2 years since Holly walked away and out of his life. He should have seen it coming, or at least, he shouldn't have been surprised. He remembered with a heavy heart that horrible 4th of July celebration 2 years ago when he caught her kissing sheriff Kimsickle (of all men!) behind the barn where the fireworks were stored. She always went on and on about how disgusting he was and how she couldn't stand him. It was obvious now it was a case of "The lady doth protest too much, methinks". What any woman could see in that sorry excuse of a man, he'd never know. But especially a married woman... and worst of all, one married to him? What was he lacking as a man that would drive his own wife into the arms of such a lowlife idiot?

The day after he caught the two of them together, he paid a visit to the jail to inform the sheriff in no uncertain terms if he ever mentioned to anyone what happened between him and Holly and destroyed his wife's reputation, he would kill him. The sheriff, however, just laughed and asked Oliver whose reputation was he really trying to protect? As he saw it, any woman seeking the arms of another man couldn't possibly be satisfied with her own husband. Only God knew how much those words continued to haunt him, day and night, up until this very day.

Then the circus arrived in town! When they visited at the end of that summer, Holly attended several performances. She appeared enthralled with its activities and certain performers had apparently enchanted her. She saw their lifestyle as something exciting to do for a living. He knew she was sick of her provincial life being married to a government official and being a school mistress in a tiny town. She told him that herself many times. At least she had tried to warn him, but he never thought she would actually do something as outrageous as abandoning her husband. He could only conclude, sadly that meeting her in Houston, Texas and bringing her here was probably one of the worst decisions he'd ever made. Holly wasn't exactly a loose woman, but she was far from a virtuous one. Deciding to marry her because she gave herself to him (she had actually, literally, thrown herself at him) probably ranked right up there as one of the worst decisions he'd made in his 29 years of life. She ran away with the circus when they left. She had obviously been planning it for some time because she took all the money they had saved in the cookie box. The money they had in the bank was only safe because Jack Marashak, the banker, had refused to give her access to it without Oliver present. Jack came to see him to let him know what Holly attempted. He thanked God Jack was not only an honest and God fearing man, but he was also shrewd and read people well. Her actions proved to him that not only did she not love him, but she couldn't care less whether he lived or died. She would have left him penniless if Jack had been fooled by her ploy.

Now he was stuck in this sham of a marriage. All the town knew was that she left him, but they had no idea how cruel she had been to him. He no longer loved her. In fact he didn't even know if he ever had. He had just been swept in a whirlwind romance that got out of control quickly. He thought he was doing the right thing by marrying her. Being the gentleman that he was, he felt guilty of taking their relationship to the next level before marriage. But hindsight is a useless thing since you can't change the past. Making her an honest woman didn't actually change her character, but it almost changed his by making him a bitter man. Now, with no idea of her whereabouts, he couldn't get out of it. Many times he thought about hiring a Pinkerton detective to find her, but the embarrassment of having to resort to that was just too much to bear. Should he force her to come back? How could a marriage survive under such circumstances? No! If he ever found her, it'd be to put an official end to this disgraceful marriage, not to rekindle... whatever it had been!

However, he had never had a strong enough incentive to find her... until now!

On Thursday, the Kellsers finally handed over the keys to the building. Shane went over to do a closer inspection before she moved in. The printing machine and office were in excellent condition. Mr. Kellser kept it clean and well oiled. Shane was pleased to see how much care he took with his work. He obviously loved his job and his vocation. She felt sorry she didn't have a chance to meet him.

However, the upstairs apartment was another story. It seemed the man put all his time and effort into his business and neglected his living conditions. His family obviously came second to his occupation. Shane's estimation of the man dropped considerably. She wasn't going to move in yet, she just couldn't! She'd remain at the inn and arrange for a renovation of the apartment. The good news was the Gazette could start operating as soon as she could get things going.

Her first line of action was to make a list of all the things in need of repair and find a builder who could tackle the project. She stopped at the mercantile to put in an order for a new stove, glass to repair broken windows, a couch and lounge chairs. The whole place needed a coat of paint including the kitchen cabinets. The cabinets also needed new hinges and handles. Next she went to see Mr Casey, the carpenter and furniture maker. She ordered a couple of doors, table, chairs, a book shelf, a double bed and a desk.

She also ordered timber to repair floor boards, holes in the walls and a gaping hole in the ceiling, which she was convinced, was home to a nest of mice. She shuddered at the idea of sharing her home with rodents, so she wanted them gone as soon as possible.

Once her orders were complete, she met with and successfully engaged Mr. Haywith to be the project manager. She then stopped at the post office to check her mail and tell Mr. O'Toole of her decision to make repairs before she moved in. He offered to help. He reckoned they could do it themselves with Mr. Haywith as supervisor. He would check the apartment and let Mr. Haywith know how much they would be able to do themselves. He'd go there once he closed the office at 5pm and meet her there.

As they were talking and arranging this, a woman came in. She was fully dressed in men's cowboy gear, including chaps, spurs and a lasso tied to her belt. Shane looked at her and gaped. Oliver stood up, rounded his desk, approached her and gave her a hug.

"Miss McInerney, allow me to introduce you to Mrs Dale Travers." The woman extended her hand, shaking Shane's hand with a firm grip. Shane was speechless for a moment or two.

"Oh, nice to meet you Mrs. Travers." Shane said when she recovered from her shock. Shane couldn't take her eyes off the woman. No amount of men's attire could hide the woman's beauty. She was simply stunning. She was as tall as Shane at about 5'7" with beautiful green eyes and long red hair tied in a bun at the bottom of her head. She had natural olive coloured skin, deeply tanned by working outdoors. She held her hat in her delicate, but calloused hands. She was obviously no stranger to hard work.

Dale looked lovingly at Oliver and he seemed to look at her with equal affection. Shane thought she was invisible for a few seconds. She cleared her throat and said goodbye to both of them, reminding Oliver she'd see him later. Nodding to Dale, she made her exit.

She went back to the mercantile almost in a daze. She was absentmindedly looking at soap when Rita approached her.

"Shane? Are you alright? You seem distracted."

"Who is Dale Travers?" Shane blurted out, before she realised the abruptness of her question and manner. Rita looked surprised.

"Oh, Dale is a rancher. She's a widow. She lost her husband about 3 or 4 years ago and works the ranch herself. She works like a man to keep that ranch. She's a very nice lady though. Why do you ask?"

Shane just shook her head. "Oh, nothing. I just saw her at the post office. Mr. O'Toole introduced us."

"Ah… they are old friends. At one point, the whole town thought they would marry each other as opposed to Jake Travers and Holly."

"Holly?"

"Yes, Holly O'Toole! That's Oliver's wife." Shane was itching to ask what happened to Holly, but she bit her tongue. It was none of her business and if Mr. O'Toole wanted to share events from his private life with her, he would do it himself in his own time.

As she was talking to Rita, Norman came in and greeted them both. All of a sudden Rita became this shy little girl, not saying a word or even looking up. Norman told Shane he had just dropped his mail bag at the post office and Oliver asked him to join them in helping with her house repairs. He'd meet them there at 5. Shane decided right there she'd try to help these two to overcome their shyness towards each other. She realised Mr. O'Toole was probably already taken by another woman. She would focus on helping her friend instead of wasting her time on a married man who was obviously already in love with another.

Shane agreed to meet them there and she would bring dinner from the Inn for everyone. She went back to the Inn and ordered dinner for the 4 of them. Hazel arranged it all for her and put it in a crate. She then borrowed Eleanor's wagon and went back to the apartment with the food. When she arrived, they were already there assessing the damage and what to tackle first. Norman decided eating first was the best idea. He and Oliver carried the food upstairs. They laid the food on the table and helped themselves. It was delicious roast beef with gravy, mashed potatoes, steamed carrots and cauliflower. They ate in good companionship, laughing and enjoying each others' company. Rita relaxed and was able to be herself a bit more in front of Norman. He looked at her as if she was the only person in the room. It was obvious to anyone they were both crazy about each other, but their shyness was getting in the way of romance.

As they started to remove old and tattered furniture from the building, the two couples teamed up together. Shane was giving instructions and pointing to old furniture that would be turned into firewood. As Shane passed a small box to Oliver, his hand brushed over hers. She gasped sharply and moved her hand as if she had been burned. She felt a jolt of electricity that reached all the way to her heart. Surprised by her sudden movement, he looked at her with his piercing blue eyes. She wondered if he felt it too, but then she remembered the beautiful woman dressed in cowboy's clothing. No, she decided! It was all in her head. The Postmaster was already taken, if not by his wife, then by the beautiful rancher... his old flame!

As they finished for the day, the sun was setting and Oliver would not allow Shane to return to the Inn alone. All four of them piled up onto the wagon and he delivered each one to their own home. Shane was the last one since the Inn was at the end of the main road. They sat side by side in an awkward kind of silence. As he drove the wagon to a stop in front of the inn, he turned on the seat slightly with his knee touching hers lightly. He looked direct into her eyes and said, "Miss McInerney, thanks for allowing us to help you with your project. There're not enough young single people in this town for Norman and Rita to fraternise with and I think they will greatly benefit from spending time together, getting to know each other in a safe environment. It is a very good base for a strong foundation." He looked so sad as he said this, it almost broke Shane's heart. Whatever it meant for Rita and Norman, it also meant something very deep to him as well.

"It's my pleasure Mr. O'Toole." Before she could stop herself, she reached out and touched his hand lightly resting on his leg and said, "Mr. O'Toole, I'd like you to know that you have a friend in me as well. If you ever need to talk to somebody without judgment or condemnation, please, I'm here."

He smiled at her and for a moment she thought she saw the same look that he gave to the beautiful rancher just that afternoon. Her heart skipped a beat.

"Good night, Miss MacInerney."

"Good night, Mr. O'Toole."