The Rancher's Fiery Bride

by Amelia Rose

“No, not exactly.” Jenny searched for a way to explain it to them. “Eli and I have always been very close and very competitive. We made a bet with each other and we came up with outrageous things that the other would have to do if they lost.

  “Eli decided that if I lost, I would have to answer a mail-order bride advertisement. He’d seen the advertisement for an agency in the newspaper and thought that it would be funny. If he lost, he had to call on one of the neighbor girls and take her for supper at least once.”

  Mason stopped chewing and put his fork down. “So, you lost the bet and wrote to me?”

  Jenny’s heart lurched at the anger brewing in his eyes. “No, I mean, yes... I lost the bet, but that’s not why I wrote to you.”

  “I’m confused,” he said.

  “You’re not the first gentleman I wrote to.”

  “I’m not? How many did you write to?”

  “Four.” Jenny knew she was bungling this, but she couldn’t figure out how to make it better. “I wrote to the first gentleman as a bet, but I never heard back from him. I hadn’t thought seriously about marriage until then, but it made me wonder if it wasn’t time.

  “There were a few men I’d seen at parties or church, but none of them had ever interested me much. You’ll think me fanciful, but I found something romantic about finding a husband by exchanging letters. Some things are easier to discuss in a letter than in person.”

  Mason wasn’t sure what to think. He didn’t like the idea of his search for a bride being treated like a joke. On the other hand, he’d only started looking because of Herb and Cecilia’s prodding, which he imagined would upset some women. “You said you wrote to a few other fellas before me. What made my advertisement different?”

  His question gave her the perfect opportunity to explain it all. “I liked your honesty. You weren’t promising all sorts of unrealistic things or using a lot of flowery language to explain what you wanted in a wife. It was simplistic and to the point.”

  Cecilia asked, “What did the advertisement say? He would never tell us, and he wouldn’t let me write it for him.”

  Her nosiness annoyed Mason, but he figured that it couldn’t harm anything to tell them now. But Jenny beat him to the punch.

  “I still have the advertisement and all his letters. Mason, may I read it to them?”

  Although he was a little bashful about it, Mason decided that it would be easier than trying to remember exactly what it had said. “I guess that’d be fine.”

  Her smile mesmerized him, and he wondered what was wrong with him. He’d never considered himself the kind of man whose head was turned by a pretty face, but there was something about Jenny that addled his brain a little.

  “Thank you. I’ll do that after dinner,” she said.

  Her excitement about it reassured Mason that she was happy about coming to Montana and, once again, he was taken aback by how much that mattered to him. As they continued eating, he made up his mind not to resist it. After all, wasn’t it better to enjoy being with the woman he married instead of spending the rest of his days with a wife he couldn’t stand? He was grateful that Jenny had picked his advertisement and sent a prayer of thanks heavenward.

  Chapter Four

  An hour later, the four of them sat out on the front porch, enjoying some coffee and shoofly pie that Cecilia had made earlier that day.

  Jenny pulled a folded piece of newspaper out of her dress pocket and moved a little further into the light from the lantern that hung overhead. “Are you sure you are happy for me to read this to them, Mason?”

  Mason swallowed a bite of pie. “Sure. I’m curious about it myself because I don’t quite remember what it said.”

  Jenny opened the clipping and read, “Twenty-nine-year-old rancher in the Montana Territory seeks marriage-minded woman.”

  Mason smiled. “I sorta copied that beginning from a few others I saw. I never looked at them before, so I didn’t know how it worked.”

  “Well, I think it’s commendable that you took the initiative to find out,” Jenny commented before continuing. “My folks raised me to respect women, and I’ll be a good husband. I can provide for a family, and some people say I’m not bad to look at. I’ll be happy to send a picture if I get one in return. We don’t have servants or the like, so it’s best if you can cook and keep a house. Knowing how to sew wouldn’t be unwelcome since I work with a lot of fencing and I’m always tearing my shirts.”

  Cecilia let out a snort of laughter. “Don’t I know it? It seems like I’m repairing a shirt or replacing buttons every week. I never saw a man so hard on clothes.”

  Herb laughed. “That’s because he’s a hard worker and he’s not afraid to get his hands dirty.”

  Jenny tried not to blush as she thought about the pleasant way Mason’s rough palm had felt against hers, but she wasn’t sure she was successful. She read on to distract herself. “One last thing; the woman I marry must like to dance. I look forward to receiving letters of interest and promise to reply back.” Jenny smiled. “Your whole advertisement was very nice, but those last two lines were the ones that really captured my attention.”

  “Why’s that?” Mason asked.

  “Because they showed that you like to have fun, and that you are a man of your word. Those things are very important to a woman,” Jenny answered.

  Cecilia said, “Truer words were never spoken. A man doesn’t have to be the most handsome man to be attractive to a woman. If he can show her a good time and make her laugh when she’s unhappy and he’s honest, kind, and principled, that’s what matters most to a woman.”

  Jenny sent a sidelong glance Mason’s way. “I can see that Mason is all those things, but I will say that it doesn’t hurt that he’s also quite handsome.”

  Mason couldn’t control the way his chest puffed out at her compliment. “Thank you. It doesn’t hurt that you’re pretty as spring flowers.”

  Jenny blushed, which made Herb chuckle.

  “It does my heart good to see you two getting on so good,” he said right before he yawned. “Well, that’s my cue to go to bed. Tomorrow comes early.”

  Cecilia joined him when he rose. “Yes. We’ll let you two have a little privacy, but don’t be up too late.” She pointed at Mason. “Behave yourself.”

  Mason mentally rolled his eyes, but said, “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Goodnight, and thank you for such a warm welcome,” Jenny said.

  “You’re welcome, dear. Goodnight.”

  VOICES WOKE JENNY EARLY the next morning. She lay in bed and smiled as she thought about the previous night. She and Mason had talked for almost an hour after his aunt and uncle had gone to bed. He’d told her about some of the townspeople and explained a few things about the ranch. She’d enjoyed his funny stories about the trouble he and two of his friends used to get into. It had been easy to picture a young Mason playing jokes on his classmates or sneaking off to fish.

  Mason had also asked her about her family and formative years. She’d appreciated the way he’d paid attention to her. It had been clear that he was genuinely interested in her. He hadn’t been bored by their conversation and, more importantly, he hadn’t found her tedious or annoying.

  Jenny jumped when someone knocked on her door. “Yes?” she called out.

  “Good morning,” Mason answered. “Aunt Cecilia drew you a bath downstairs.”

  The sound of his voice made Jenny smile. She got out of bed and put on her robe. “A bath sounds wonderful. Please thank her for me.”

  “Of course. Uh, did you sleep well?”

  Jenny suppressed a giggle as she moved closer to the door. “Like a baby. Thank you for asking.”

  “Sure thing. Well, I’m off to do the milking, but I’ll see you at breakfast.”

  “See you later.”

  When Jenny heard him walk down the hall, she hurried to gather a few toiletry items, then opened the door. She felt a little apprehensive about walking through the house in only her nightclothes and robe, but s
he was covered and the men weren’t there, so she continued downstairs to the kitchen.

  “Good morning,” she greeted Cecilia, who stood at the sink.

  Cecilia turned around and smiled at her. “I’m jealous.”

  Jenny’s brows jumped up. “I’m sorry?”

  “It’s not every woman who looks that pretty first thing in the morning.”

  Jenny ran a hand through her hair as she laughed. It was a little mussed, but she was glad that it wasn’t sticking up all over. Cecilia led her into a little room off the kitchen where there were a chamber pot and a decent-sized metal bathtub. Steam rose from the hot water inside the tub. White linen curtains provided privacy but allowed light to enter the room, even though they were closed. A small chair stood next to a narrow table in the corner but, otherwise, the room was empty.

  “I’ll leave you to it,” Cecilia said before closing the door.

  Jenny hung her robe and nightclothes on a peg on the back of the door and stepped into the tub. She sank into the water and sighed. It had been over two weeks since she’d had a proper bath and it felt incredible.

  She allowed herself to soak for several minutes before starting to wash off the travel dust and sweat. Remembering that Mason was showing her around town that day, she wasted no further time in finishing up. Once she was in her nightclothes and robe again, she brushed out her hair and left the bathing room.

  The kitchen was empty, so she went upstairs, making a mental note to ask where she should empty the bathwater when she came down. She didn’t expect Cecilia to wait on her. Once in her room, she donned a dark green skirt over several petticoats. She didn’t wear as many underskirts as usual because she’d noticed that Cecilia’s skirt wasn’t as full, probably because she did a lot of housework and farm chores.

  Once she was dressed, she brushed her hair again and pulled it back, tying it at the nape of her neck with a piece of green ribbon so it would be out of her face while it dried. Descending the stairs, she entered the kitchen just as Cecilia came in the door carrying a basket.

  “Got quite a few eggs this morning. I’m surprised the hens are laying so good in this heat,” Cecilia told her.

  Jenny resisted the urge to correct Cecilia’s grammar. “That’s good news.”

  “That’s right. If nothing else, we’ll always have eggs to eat.”

  Jenny smiled in response. “Where is your bathwater emptied? I’ll get rid of it. I insist on looking after myself, so please don’t treat me as a guest.”

  Cecilia nodded approvingly. “Very well.” She had Jenny follow her into the bathing room. “There’s a trough right outside this window and we just scoop the water out into it. There’s a hole in the bottom of the trough and underneath that is a French drain. It lets the water drain away slowly and doesn’t harm anything.”

  “A French drain?” Jenny asked as Cecilia opened the window.

  “I don’t understand it all, but Herb said that it was used in olden times to drain water away from places, so he thought making one here would be easier than carting the water outside and dumping it somewhere,” Cecilia replied.

  When Cecilia moved away from the window to get the bucket that sat under the table in the room, Jenny poked her head out the window. The wooden trough was empty at the moment, allowing her to see the hole in the bottom. Looking to her left, she saw a long line of rocks, about as big as large potatoes, running away from the house.

  “That’s ingenious,” she remarked. “Not only does it get rid of the dirty water, but it keeps it from damaging the foundations of the house.”

  “That’s right. Does ‘ingenious’ mean smart?”

  Jenny withdrew from the window and smiled. “Yes. I’m sorry. I don’t mean to sound like a know-it-all.”

  Cecilia wagged a finger at her. “Never be sorry for being smart.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “That’s better. You empty that, and I’ll get breakfast started. Those men will be back soon, and they’ll be as hungry as a couple of bears.”

  Jenny smiled and got on with the task at hand.

  MASON WAS GREETED BY several people as they entered town, but he didn’t stop to chat. He planned to introduce Jenny to everyone, but he wanted to get to the schoolhouse that doubled as the church when Pastor Gibbons was in town. Paul Gibbons liked to take care of his clerical business in the morning before going to visit shut-ins, and Mason wanted to catch him before he left.

  He explained his reasoning to Jenny; he didn’t want her to think he was being antisocial or trying to slight her. He was relieved that she was understanding and agreed that this was the best course of action.

  Arriving at the schoolhouse, Mason helped Jenny out of the wagon. He’d brought the wagon because he needed to get some staples that wouldn’t fit in the buggy. Jenny took a few moments to look the schoolhouse over. The clapboard structure wasn’t large, but it looked sturdy and there were three windows on the side facing her. She assumed there were three on the opposite side as well.

  A shiny brass bell hung in a small belfry on the roof, indicating that it was new. Various shrubs and flowers had been planted around the outside and four wooden steps led up to the front door. Along with the door, all the windows were open to let the cool morning breeze in. Excitement filled Jenny’s breast as they walked to the stairs. This was where she’d start her career as a schoolteacher, and she couldn’t wait to begin.

  Jenny mounted the stairs and blinked in the dimmer lighting of the cloakroom where children would hang their winter coats and cloaks and store their lunch buckets. Her eyes adjusted as they went through the cloakroom into the schoolroom, and she saw a middle-aged man with dark eyes look up and smile from behind a desk.

  “Ah, Mason!” The man stood and walked toward them. “It’s good to see you again.”

  Mason said, “Likewise, Pastor Gibbons.”

  He introduced the clergyman and Jenny to each other.

  “So, this is your bride-to-be. Word travels fast in small towns like this,” Paul said in response to Jenny and Mason’s surprised expressions.

  “Yeah, that’s right,” Mason said. “We came to see when you’d be able to marry us before you leave.”

  Paul beamed at them. “I have exciting news! I was going to wait until the town meeting to announce this, but I won’t be leaving. I’m starting a permanent church here in Spruce Valley!”

  “How wonderful!” Jenny exclaimed. “Congratulations. I’m sure everyone will be thrilled.”

  “I certainly am,” Paul said. “I’d also like to congratulate you on taking over as our schoolteacher. I hope you won’t mind continuing to share the building until the church is built.”

  “Not at all,” Jenny assured him.

  Paul gave her a slight bow. “You are as gracious as you are pretty.”

  Jenny chuckled. “And you are a flatterer.”

  “Perhaps, but it’s true. Don’t worry, Mason, I won’t try to steal her away,” Paul said with a wink.

  Mason grinned. “Glad to hear it. I’d have to fight you if you did.”

  “Now, now, gentlemen,” Jenny chided them. “No fighting in the church.”

  “Right you are.” Paul pulled out his pocket watch from his suit vest pocket. “My, look at the time. I must go, but we’ll talk soon about the wedding.”

  Mason said, “How about you come to supper tonight, Pastor? The folks would be glad to see you, and you’d get a home-cooked meal.”

  Jenny thought she detected a note of urgency in Mason’s voice, but she didn’t remark on it.

  “How can I refuse such a generous offer? I hate to rush off, but we’ll catch up this evening. A pleasure to meet you, Miss Carson.”

  Jenny gave him a small curtsy. “Good day, Pastor Gibbons.”

  Paul gave them a parting smile and hurried from the building. A few moments later, they heard hoofbeats fade away. Jenny started inspecting the schoolhouse. Five rows of oak double-desks were separated by a center aisle that led up to the teac
her’s desk, which sat in front of a large blackboard.

  Windows were situated on either side of the blackboard. In front of each window stood a long, short bookcase that was filled with books. Turning around, Jenny saw that each of the double-desks had two slates sitting upright, which meant that each child would have their own slate, assuming that there weren’t too many pupils.

  A black pot-bellied stove stood in the righthand corner at the back of the room. A floor-to-ceiling wooden cabinet took up the rear left-hand corner. Jenny surmised that it must contain supplies. Going to inspect the teacher’s desk, Jenny noticed a small lectern off to the side that must be used by Pastor Gibbons during Sunday services.

  She sat down in the wooden chair. It had a burgundy cushion on the seat and castors that made moving around on it easy. The desk wasn’t huge, but it would be more than adequate for what she needed. It had a center drawer and three more down the right side. A cup of pencils, an inkwell, and the attendance ledger sat on the desktop along with a kerosene lamp. On a small table next to the desk, a globe stood proudly.

  “What do you think?” Mason asked.

  She rose and looked around the room. “It’s a lovely school, and it will be an honor to teach the children here. It has everything I need and more.”

  Mason’s shoulders sagged a little with relief. It was important to him that she approved of the way the school was set up. “Glad to hear that. I’m the chairman of the town council, so just let me know if there’s anything you need and I’ll pass it on to the rest.”

  Jenny’s chin rose and she gave him a direct stare. “Did your last teacher sit on the council?”

  Mason’s mouth thinned for a few moments. He saw where she was going with this, but he wasn’t sure how to approach it. “Yes, he did, but...”

  Jenny arched her right eyebrow. “But I’m not welcomed on the council since I’m a woman, correct?”

  These subjects with women were always tricky for Mason. He wasn’t prone to lying, so he couldn’t deny what she’d said, but he also didn’t want her feelings to be hurt. Something occurred to him. “We’ve never had a woman in an important position like this before, so I don’t rightly know.”