The Golden Rules of Love: Western Romance by Tammy Andresen Page A

surprise. Rake hadn’t said a word of protest while Mack was there. “Then you can leave,” Tom glared at Rake as he spoke. “But my guess is you won’t have a job when Mack gets back.”
    “You both have gone woman crazy. It’s worse than gold crazy if you ask me.” Rake gave Annie a sour look that shocked her. Mary Beth shifted uncomfortably.
    “Make your choice, Rake…with us or not. You can find your own way back East,” Tom spoke with a quiet calm that let on he wouldn’t take any further discussion.
    Rake crossed his arms but didn’t move. Annie sat down on the water’s edge where she could keep her eyes on both Albert and Rake.
    Nearly an hour passed and the tension rose with every minute that went by. Annie had expected to hear Mary Beth rail at Albert but she had barely said a word. Annie remained focused on the prisoner and possible mutineer, but it was difficult.  She wanted to imagine what she would say to Jasper, if he were in front of her.
    Would she rail at him? She had never liked Jasper. He was always whispering plans into Garrett’s ear and it had meant trouble for her. Jasper had first convinced Garrett to head to Saint Louis to take jobs setting up wagon trains.
    Then, as word of gold started filtering through the wagon train, Jasper continued to spend long hours whispering to Garrett, this time about searching for gold. She had been so tired and sick that she had been unable to do anything about it. Later she realized she wasn’t sick…she was pregnant.
    Mack’s wagon suddenly crested the hill and began the descent down to the water. Annie breathed a sigh of relief.
    He hopped off the seat and walked toward the group. No one said a word, but his brow furrowed and his gaze pierced each of theirs. She would tell him what had happened later.
    Grabbing some ink and a quill, Mack set them in the back of the wagon. Next he pulled out a scale. “Stand up, Albert.”
    The man stood shaking. “P-p-lease.”
    Mack ignored the man’s plea. “Get out your papers, Mary Beth.”
    She whipped them out and all but ran to the back of the wagon. Mary Beth’s hand trembled as she set the papers down, whether from fear or excitement, Annie didn’t know but she stood too, and went over to embrace her friend.
    “What are you going to do to me,” Albert’s voice also shook. Mack took a knife and sliced the ropes, binding the man’s hands. Albert yelped as he did it. There was no blood but Albert must have been afraid there would be.
    “Take a nugget and put it on the scale.” Mack used the knife to point. The gold was large and it weighed in at half a pound. “It depends on the impurities. We won’t know until we melt it but that should settle the debt.”
    Mary Beth gave a single nod, looking pale.
    “You’re not going to take the rest?” Albert whispered.
    “Mary Beth wants what you took. If you were an honest man, you’d give her more for her trouble but I will leave you two to decide that.” He turned to Mary Beth. “Ready?”
    She nodded and set down the papers in front of Albert. He dipped the quill and signed. Annie held her friend as tears threatened to spill from her eyes. “I meant what I said. I never want to see you again,” Mary Beth snapped.
    Albert looked at Mary Beth with what looked like real sadness in his eyes, “I was gonna come back. I woulda been rich. I knew you could take care of yourself.”
    Mary Beth stopped shaking. She straightened up. “You don’t have the slightest idea what it means to really love someone. To be married and to give as well as take.”
    It was Annie’s turn to tremble. Is that what she would have said to Garrett? Would Mary Beth love again after what had happened to her? Could Annie? She suddenly understood that Albert was just a terrible husband. But that shouldn’t ruin Mary Beth’s life forever.
    Was she going to let Garrett ruin hers? She had never seen it like that before but if she didn’t love again, Garrett would not only