“It’s not about the tag system. It’s about this bachelor idea as a whole.”
Is it happening? Is my brother truly realizing the errors of this entire concept and attempting to reason with his wife?
It won’t be easy, though. Serene’s shoulders are already tense. “Yes?”
“These men have pride. How are you not certain they won’t grow tired of bein’ paraded around like cattle and then discarded when you and Rainey decide you have no need for them?”
Serene thinks over the question for several seconds before she answers. There’s a spark in her eye that puts me on edge. “Because men love a good chase. They want what they can’t have. Case in point, I had thirty men in this ballroom vying for Rainey’s attention today. Why?”
“Because they were probably coerced here by you,” I cut in.
Serene continues without batting an eye. “Because all around them were men who were vying for the same woman, and they all want to say they were chosen. They want to be the one to win it all.” A wicked grin spreads across her lips. “That’s why this will work and not a single bachelor will back out.”
“My theory on why this won’t work is Rainey may start out sweet and demure with the bachelors, but that veneer will fade and they’ll see how opinionated and self-assured she is and immediately forget about this game you’ve created.”
Both Étienne and Serene watch me with wide eyes. With every word I spoke, my voice rose until it echoed across the ballroom, but I wanted to get my point across. Serene clears her throat and speaks. “Cool it, buddy boy. Strong words attract a strong mind and offend a weak one. Whoever stands by Rainey is the right man.”
It was of no use. No one was going to listen to me. Frustrated, I turn and walk toward the door just as Rainey walks back in. I don’t say a word to her, causing her eyes to widen ever so slightly.
Behind me, Serene rushes toward Rainey. “And then there were fifteen. Dun, dun, dun,” Serene says ominously before she begins recommending that Rainey meet with Beau first. Nat spoke so highly of him. He was so handsome, and shy, and bright … and so on and so forth.
While my sister-in-law mentally picks out the perfect gown for Rainey to wear down the aisle, I storm out of the ballroom. I need some air. Everyone in my family has gone utterly mad. Serene’s plan was drawn from boredom, and it’s not reliable. Something is bound to go wrong. That’s why my heart is pounding so rapidly, and fury courses through my blood.
Perhaps I should look into getting Nat on the first train to Charleston. With my sister home, maybe Serene can go back to being the levelheaded sister-in-law I’ve known her to be.
That is, if Nat agrees. As much as I blamed Oliver for limiting how often my brother and I were able to see our sister, there was no disputing the fact that he was decidedly different after he came back from the war. Everyone was, but the last time he visited, I saw the bleakness in his eyes. I couldn’t fault him for that.
“There you are!”
Lifting my gaze, I find none other than Conrad Duplass lingering in the foyer. Conrad and I go way back. He was the black sheep of his family, could drink until the sun came up, and never encountered a party he didn’t enjoy. I didn’t see him in the ballroom, but it makes me wonder how many men I could’ve possibly known upstairs. But I can’t very well ignore Conrad. He steps away from me. I suppress a groan and walk to him. No place is safe today. “Conrad, are you confused? Lacroix house is in Charleston,” I say with a smile.
Throwing his head back, he laughs heartily. “I’m well aware of your address. I’m here for Miss Pleasonton. I’m one of the fifteen bachelors that made it through.”
He says that with pride, as though he’s won a high achievement. What will it be like when it narrows down to ten and then five?
That will never happen, remember? You will find a better solution for Rainey.
“Are you still foxed from last night? There’s still time to change your mind.”
Because I’m Livingston. Because I’m the Lacroix brother who everyone can depend on to deliver a laugh, Conrad does just that. “There’s no need for that. Étienne spoke to me two nights ago regardin’ Rainey’s search for a husband.”
“You have seen her, haven’t you?”
“Yes, I have. Have you?” he counters with a wink. I’ve shared many raucous quips with Conrad in the past. However, this time I do not laugh.
“What can you tell me about Rainey?”
My brows furrow. “Pardon?”
“Rainey Pleasonton. I want to know everythin’ about her.” Conrad leans in and smiles. “Everythin’.”
I can think of many things I’d rather do right now than be pulled into Serene’s little bachelor debacle.
Such as learning embroidery. Maybe become locked in a sitting parlor with mommas anxious to marry their daughter’s off to the last Lacroix man. Perhaps drink paint.
It sounds severe, but if I open my mouth once to help a bachelor, I am positive they’ll all come running. In the wrong hands, powerful information can be a dangerous thing. Besides, how can I describe a woman who has a face from heaven and a mouth from hell? That requires liquor, and a lot of it.
“I don’t know if there’s enough time to define Rainey, my friend,” I say with a smile. There’d be no way to prepare any of the men. Rainey’s too skilled with an arrow and her words. She reads far too many books and will discuss every detail she finds fascinating, even if you do not. Her sense of humor is as wicked as the curse words that occasionally slip from her mouth. “I’m afraid to say she’s a wild animal that can’t be tamed.”
“Don’t tell me you still harbor anger from when she shot you in the leg all those years ago? I recall hearin’ she used a gun?”
“My God, no. It was a bow and arrow, and how many people know that?”
“Everyone in Charleston, Lacroix. Now tell me everythin’ about Rainey.”
“I know just as much as you. She’s still the same Rainey who chased after all of us when she wasn’t allowed to play with the boys.”
“Oh, but that’s not true.” Conrad leans in and lowers his voice. “She doesn’t look the same, and this time, the boys want her to play.”
As Conrad laughs at his own joke, my hands curl into tight fists. The smile on my face is strained, but it remains in place so Conrad is none the wiser.
If I don’t find a new solution to Rainey’s dowry fiasco, then the next few weeks will truly be torture.
God be with us all.
Especially the men because if Rainey doesn’t shoot them with an arrow in a fit of anger, then I’m bound to kill at least one in a bout of rage.
The question is, who? And how long will it take?
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Rainey
“I must say this is highly unorthodox.”
“Momma, I’m aware of that.” You’ve only told me twelve thousand times. “But my hands are tied.”
“And you’re certain Livingston approved of this?” This is Momma’s routine line of questioning ever since the bachelor game began.
“Yes. He approves.”