Free Courting Holly by Lynn A. Coleman Page B

feelings.”
    “What did you do?”
    “Expressed my feelings for her.”
    The clench of John Graham’s jaw said it all. “I told you to wait until she was twenty-one.”
    “And that is part of her problem. You decided for her to not be told about her real identity until she was twenty-one. You decided for her not to be allowed to court until she was twenty-one. And now most of her friends are already married and with children. You have made her a recluse in her own town. And for what purpose? How many suitors did you tell to wait until she was twenty-one?”
    John turned his back on Bryce and stormed back into the house.
    Bryce finished up his work at the Grahams’ home and headed back to his own place. He’d left his house unattended since the accident. Bryce resolved to finish his house, put it on the market and get on with his life. His dreams with Holly were lost. He understood how she felt manipulated, even though that had not been his intent. Even if they did have a slim chance of a future together, he couldn’t see them living in this house. Not now.
    * * *
    He found the house in the same state he’d left it in a week before. All the special-ordered cabinets were in the middle of the kitchen floor. He should have had the carpenter put them in, but he’d thought he’d save a few dollars and install them himself. All the details that had made his heart leap just a few days hence now weighed heavily upon him. The joy of making this house ready for Holly had left him. Bryce put down his tools and went to the cabinetmaker’s shop. He left with a date for the installation of the cabinets. Then he secured another craftsman to finish the floors the next week. He went back to the house and piled up the debris into his wagon.
    Exhausted after completing two hours of grueling work and a couple of dump runs, he unhitched the horse from his wagon, saddled the equally tired animal and headed toward his parents’ home. He had a date for the cabinet installation, another for finishing the floors. Tomorrow he’d secure someone to paint and wallpaper. In a couple of weeks he could put the house on the market. He knew he’d make a profit. But he had wanted a home, a special place where he and Holly could begin a life together. He hoped they still had a chance but...
    “Is that you, Bryce?” his mother called from the kitchen.
    “Yes, ma’am.”
    “Where have you been? John is fit to be tied. I have never seen him so upset. What happened between you and Holly yesterday?”
    “He is not upset with what happened between Holly and me. I suppose he could be, but he is really upset because I pointed out that if he had not waited until Holly was twenty-one she would not be suffering so. I am certain she had many a gentleman wanting to court her, and they probably got the same rejection I did. I never realized how controlling he was.”
    “That may be so, but something did happen between you and Holly, and I want to know what that was.”
    “Trust me, Mother. I shall fix it. Holly just needs time.”
    “No, that won’t do. Tell me what happened, Bryce. All of my female instincts are saying you declared your love to her and she rejected it.”
    “Something like that.”
    “Why are you keeping this such a secret?”
    “Because it is my secret, not yours, not Father’s. I made a mistake and I am paying for it. I will deal with it in my own way. Please do not push this matter, Mother.”
    “Very well, I will back away. But I am certain your father will want specifics. John says Holly is leaving on the six o’clock train with Emmett Landers.”
    “She is going to Tennessee?”
    “Apparently. You see why I am asking what happened?”
    “Yes, but...” He glanced at his watch then ran out to the barn. With any luck he could get to the station before the train left.
    * * *
    “Holly, please do not leave,” John Graham pleaded.
    “Father, I told you, I will return. I feel the best place for me right now is with the