Accepting His Love

Accepting His Love: Chapter Eleven

Abigail didn't confront Coraline that night. Don't get her wrong, if Coraline had tried to leave in the night, then Abigail would've most definitely gone after her. But as it was, Abigail watched as Coraline, unaware of Abigail's presence, sifted through Derek's money. And boy was it a lot. She had known that Derek owned a cattle ranch of sorts before coming out here, but apparently it had been huge and very much successful judging by the amount of bills Abigail saw Coraline count.

Yet, even as Abigail watched Coraline lick the pads of her thumbs to continue flipping through the bills, what astonished her was that she hadn't tried to run away in the night. That was why Abigail hadn't confronted her. Coraline had replaced each and every bill back into a brown leather case and hidden it beneath some boxes, turned the lantern off and simply went to sleep. It aroused Abigail's curiosity and she spent a few minutes just staring into the darkness, wanting to know what other motives Coraline was hiding.

After making sure that Coraline was asleep and wouldn't be running away, she then silently crept back to her wagon across the field, checking behind her every few seconds to make sure she had not been spotted. Covering in her bedroll, Abigail had laid there quite puzzled and unsure of whether she wanted to sleep or not. Sleep did eventually claim her in the wee hours of the morning but she had awoken a few hours later, not really getting as much rest as she needed. But, she had come to a conclusion. She would tell Derek what she had seen and she'd leave it up to him to decide what to do with Coraline.

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"Derek, I need to speak with you. Alone." She didn't even bother greeting Coraline. The woman didn't pay attention to her and simply rolled her eyes at Abigail's behavior. She directed the last word at Coraline and she saw Coral's eyes narrow at fraction as she glared at her. Derek nodded and turned to look back at Coraline .

"Will you give us just a second?"

"Fine." she relented, stepping closer to him so that their chests brushed and she trailed a finger slowly up his muscular arm before resting it against his neck. Abigail saw Derek's jaw twitch and he cracked a smile, even though it resembled a grimace, before hurriedly stepping away. "But hurry back, darling! I still have so much to tell you! " she called out to him.

Walking away, he scrubbed at his neck with his forearms, probably in an attempt to erase Coraline's touch. Together, he and Abigail walked a bit off and stopped in the middle of a field. "Yea, Abigail. What did you need to tell me?"

"You need to watch your belongings more carefully," she blurted.

"What?" he asked bewilderedly and she sighed.

"In fact, go check your things in your wagon right now. More specifically, your money."

"Abigail, where are you coming from with all of this? My money is hidden and locked away in a safe place in my wagon. It's safe. "

"Not as safe as you think it is," She pointed out and crossed her arms over her chest.

What are you trying to say?" he demanded slowly. She sighed again. She was probably beating around the bush in this situation, but he needed to know. He needed to know that that woman who was previously making his ears bleed was a good for nothing snoop and was probably planning to rob him blind.

"Last night, I was taking a walk, but when I was passing your wagon, I saw a lantern lit. I went to see who it was, but you were sleeping outside, so the only person it could've been was Coraline." She took a deep breath and looked behind her at Coraline, who was studying them closely from a distance, before continuing. "I looked inside, and I saw Coraline with this leather case. Except all around her were these stacks of money. Bills. Huge bills. Derek, she was looking through your belongings and counting your money. Coraline is planning something, and you need to watch your back."