A Groom for Ruby

by Laura Ashwood

  They sat in silence for several moments before Everett began squirming on Ruby’s lap. She gave him one last squeeze before he slid off and returned to sit on his wood box. Cullen placed one of the packages he’d brought in with him in front of Everett and Ruby’s eyes widened when he placed the other in front of her. She hadn’t expected anything from him, and did her best to blink back the tears that threatened to spill over her eyelids as she picked up the packages she’d made. She placed one in front of Everett, and saw the same surprise in Cullen’s eyes as she handed him the other.

  Everett looked at Ruby, his pale brown eyes searching hers for permission. She nodded and he reached for the package she’d given him, then hesitated, his small fingers touching the twine she’d used to tie it together.

  “What’s wrong, Everett?”

  “If I open it, it won’t be there anymore,” he said sadly.

  Ruby felt a tug on her heart. “Yes, but if you don’t open it, you won’t know what’s inside it.”

  Everett nodded and pulled the twine. Inside the package was a little blue shirt Ruby made him out of the fabric she’d purchased at the mercantile, and two gumdrops. He held the shirt tightly against his chest and closed his eyes for a moment.

  “Thank you, Miss Ruby,” he finally said. “May I have one of the candies?”

  The back of Ruby’s throat burned and her nose tingled as she nodded her head. Everett popped the candy into his mouth and reached for the package from Cullen. This time he didn’t hesitate but unwrapped it right away, revealing a wooden ark.

  Cullen reached across the table and slid a compartment open revealing a storage area inside the ark. Everett’s mouth dropped open as he watched Cullen tip the ark on its side and a little wooden plank fell out, followed by several pairs of carved animals.

  Ruby recognized pairs of sheep, cows, horses, several different kinds of birds, and pigs. Cullen gave the ark one last shake and two carved figures toppled onto the table.

  “It’s Noah!” Everett exclaimed, picking up one of the figures and examining it. “Noah and his animals!”

  “It’s incredible,” Ruby breathed, reaching for one of the carved birds. She looked at Cullen. “You made this?”

  A flush crept up his neck and he nodded.

  “When…when did you have time? The craftsmanship is incredible.”

  “At night,” he replied, with a slight shrug.

  “It’s really mine?” Everett looked at Cullen in disbelief.

  Cullen nodded, and Everett looked back at his gift in wonder. “Thank you, Mr. Parker,” he said, his voice filled with awe. His gaze shifted to Ruby. “Now your turn, Miss Ruby!”

  Ruby felt her cheeks flush as she reached for the gift in front of her. It was the second time in a week she’d been given a gift she hadn’t expected. She carefully untied the string and unfolded the paper, revealing a brown leather covered sketch book and two pencils. A soft gasp escaped her lips and she covered her mouth with her hands.

  “Don’t you like it, Miss Ruby?” Everett asked.

  Ruby shook her head, then nodded. Tears clouded her vision as she tentatively reached out a hand and ran her finger along the smooth leather. “I love it, Everett,” her eyes shifted to Cullen. “Thank you,” was all she could manage.

  “Then how come you’re crying?”

  “Sometimes people cry when they’re happy too,” Cullen answered.

  “Oh,” Everett glanced back and forth between Cullen and Ruby, then shrugged. “It’s your turn now, Mr. Parker,” he said gleefully, leaning forward on his elbows.

  Cullen picked up the small package and unwrapped a shirt identical to Everett’s. He ran his fingers along the fine stitches and knew it must have taken her hours to sew both shirts by hand.

  “Oh!” Everett exclaimed. “It’s just like mine, we can match!”

  Cullen chuckled and looked at Ruby, who was still sitting in stunned silence. “Thank you, I’ve never had such a fine shirt.”

  “I made something,” Everett said, sliding off the stool and rushing to his pallet. He dropped to his knees and fished under his blanket for a moment. He pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Ruby with a triumphant grin. “Miss Ree—I mean Mrs. Taylor gave me the paper. We were supposed to draw what we wanted for Christmas.”

  Ruby unfolded the paper and brought a hand up to her mouth. She was unable to stop the tears that flowed down her cheeks as she looked at the drawing Everett had made. It was similar to the one she’d seen on his slate of the two figures representing him and her, with the house and the dog. Only in this drawing, the dog was slightly more recognizable as a dog and a third figure joined the other two and the house was somewhat larger.

  “Mrs. Taylor said that was a family,” he pointed to the figures, then looked at Ruby, his expression suddenly serious. “Are we a family?”

  “Yes, Everett,” Cullen answered, and Ruby could hear a thickness in his voice that wasn’t usually there. “We are a family.”

  “Then…does that mean you’re my new pa? And Miss Ruby is my new ma?”

  Cullen cleared his throat. “Would you like that, Everett?”

  The boy’s eyes filled with tears as he nodded his head and ran into Cullen’s arms.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Cullen and Ruby drove the wagon into Last Chance a couple of days after Christmas. The first place they stopped was to see Heather Barnes, the town’s midwife. Heather had indeed been present when Everett was born, and kept detailed records of all births she attended. After a few minutes of looking through her records, she smiled triumphantly.

  “It’s June third.” Her smiled faded. “Poor Ida, had such a hard time. We almost lost her.” Heather looked lost in thought for a moment, then looked back at Ruby. “It’s so good that you’ve taken Everett in. He’s a sweet boy.”

  “Thank you,” Ruby said shyly. “I’m glad you had the records.”

  “You’re welcome, and congratulations again. Your wedding was lovely.”

  Next, they met with Judge Bringegar to sign the papers, making Everett’s adoption official. Cullen also signed the papers for the Henzel property, and told the Judge that for the time being, they were going to hold onto the Fulton place. Cullen knew that land prices would continue to increase and he hoped that by waiting, they’d be able to sell the small parcel for a larger profit at a later time.

  They drove from there to the mercantile where, despite Ruby’s protests, Cullen had her select several bolts of fabric so she could make herself some new dresses, as well as clothing for their growing son. It was still odd to think that in a matter of days, he’d gone from being a single man to being a husband and a father, but Cullen found it suited him just fine. He also had her select new pairs of shoes for both herself and Everett. Mrs. Talley was more than happy to help Ruby with her selections, and after adding a few dry goods, Cullen paid Mr. Talley and loaded the wagon with their purchases.

  “Can we stop at Altar Penn—Laingsburg’s home for a minute? I’d like to give this to her,” she held up a roll of parchment. She’d finished the drawing of Altar’s twins, and Cullen thought it was her best yet.

  “Of course,” he nodded and she gave him directions. He helped her out of the wagon and told her he’d wait, but to take her time.

  “I’ll just be a minute,” she smiled and hurried up the path to the front door. He watched as the door opened, and Wolfe let her inside giving a quick nod of his head in Cullen’s direction before he closed the door behind her. True to her word, a few minutes later, the door opened again and she waved over her shoulder as she hurried back to the wagon.

  “You didn’t have to rush on my account,” he said, wondering if he should have offered to go with her. He’d met Altar, Wolfe, and the twins at their wedding and looked forward to getting to know them better, but he’d hoped to be able to pick up Everett at school before he left with the Gruby children. Today was moving day.

  “It’s fine, the twins were just getting ready
to go down for a nap, and Altar looked like she could use one too,” Ruby said as she settled next to him on the seat.

  “Did she like her gift?”

  Her face flushed, and she looked down at her hands, folded in her lap. “She did, very much.”

  Cullen knew it had taken a lot of courage for Ruby to give Altar something so personal, and he was proud of her. He clicked his tongue and with a snap of the reins, the wagon headed toward the school. Cullen sat proudly next to his wife and nodded a greeting to several people as they drove through the town. Everett was pleasantly surprised to see them waiting for him and he readily climbed into the back of the wagon. He told them in great detail about the game of kick the can they’d played at recess, and before long they were at their new home.

  Cullen lifted Ruby out of the wagon and held her in his arms as he walked toward the house.

  She tilted her head and arched a brow. “What are you doing, Cullen? Put me down.”

  “It’s tradition for the groom to carry the bride into their new house,” he said. “I didn’t feel the cabin was truly ours, but this,” he opened the door and stepped inside, “this is our house.” He gingerly set her down, holding her a bit longer than necessary before reluctantly letting her go.

  “Come with me, I want to show you something,” he smiled, and took her by the hand. He led her to the small room behind the fireplace where Everett’s bed had been.

  “Cullen, I don’t…,” she began, then gasped as they entered the room. Against the wall stood a brand new Singer sewing machine. He’d had Mr. Talley special order it for him from Grand Platte, and had made arrangements for it to be delivered.

  Ruby walked up to the machine and ran her fingers along the curve of the black machine and across the wood cabinet. She turned to him and shook her head. “How…when…it’s too much, Cullen.”

  He put his finger on her lips to quiet her. “It’s not,” he said softly. “You deserve this, and more.”

  She pulled his hand down. “But the cost, surely we can’t afford such an extravagance,” she looked back over her shoulder and gestured toward the front of the house. “And all the purchases today…” she trailed off.

  “I had more gold than I thought,” he said simply. “And you let me worry about what is an extravagance and what isn’t from now on,” Cullen looked down at her wide brown eyes and his gaze trailed to her lips. Let her come to you. He cleared his throat and took a step back, then another, needing to put some distance between them before he broke his promise to her.

  “Pa, can we put my ladder up?” Everett ran into the room and stopped short. “What’s that?” he pointed to the machine.

  “It’s a sewing machine. It’s so your Ma can make us clothes easier.”

  “It’s very shiny,” he examined the machine from a safe distance, then turned back to Cullen. “Can we get the ladder?”

  After they were done opening their gifts on Christmas day, Everett insisted they start working on his ladder so it would be ready when they moved.

  “Yes, let’s get your ladder,” he gave Ruby a wink before following Everett out of the house.

  Spring was approaching and Cullen had been busy getting the mill up and running again. He’d made several trips to Grand Platte to talk to the mill owner there, getting tips and ideas for improvements he wanted to make to his own mill once he could afford it. So far, there’d been a slow, but steady stream of customers, and Cullen was enjoying getting to know the people from town. Some of the men even brought their wives with them so they might visit a bit with Ruby while the men took care of business, and Lotty was a regular visitor.

  He and Ruby had settled into an easy routine and although the pillow still rested between them at night, Cullen found he very much enjoyed being married to her. Her personality shone through more each day, as did Everett’s. She’d sit in the rocking chair each night after supper and read story after story from the Bible, while Everett played with his ark.

  After some trial and error, and some help from Lotty, Ruby had mastered the sewing machine, and had been busy making not only some new, well-needed clothing, but new curtains to hang in the window. She loved the large cook stove that was in the house, and Cullen had gone on several successful hunting trips, bringing home rabbits, squirrels, and even a wild turkey. Ruby was a fine cook and had actually had to let out some of his pants.

  Frequently, he’d catch her watching him when she didn’t think he could see, and she often found silly reasons to come check on him while he was working in the mill. It gave him hope that someday soon, she’d come to him and tell him she loved him too.

  It was late in the afternoon and Cullen was adjusting the belt on the saw, when a man on horseback came down their road. He straightened and wiped his hands on an old rag, then stepped out of the mill to get a closer look. He felt his stomach clench as he recognized the rider. It was his brother, Ben. How had Ben found him, and what was he doing here? Cullen squinted his eyes and looked farther down the road, but there was no sign of Frank.

  Ben tipped his hat as he brought the tired-looking animal to a stop and climbed down from the saddle. He looked tired, and significantly older than the thirty-three years of age that Cullen knew him to be.

  “What do you want, Ben?” Cullen asked, glancing at the house and saying a quick prayer that Ruby hadn’t seen him ride in through the window.

  “Frank’s dead,” he said somberly.

  Cullen felt the air leave his lungs and he took a step back as if he’d been struck by an invisible force. “What happened?”

  Before Ben could answer, Ruby stepped out of the house and waved. Ben glanced over and waved back. “You get married?” he looked at Cullen incredulously. “That your wife?”

  Cullen felt his muscles tense. He hadn’t planned to tell Ruby about his past. He’d been content to leave it where it was. Behind him. Now, it was standing right in front of him, waiting to be reckoned with.

  “Hi Pa,” he heard Everett call seconds before he saw the boy running toward the house.

  “You’re a pa, too?” Ben frowned and scratched the side of his head as if trying to figure out if it were possible for Cullen to have had a child since he’d last seen him.

  Cullen glanced at Ruby, who was still standing in the doorway of the house, and his stomach tightened. He should have told her before they got married. He’d used the pardon he’d gotten from the governor of California to rationalize it in his mind. He figured if the state of California wiped his sins off their records, then he could too. Only, Ben knew his sins. And Ben couldn’t keep secrets. After being married to someone like Cyrus, Cullen knew Ruby wouldn’t take kindly to finding out she’d married a convict.

  Ruby walked toward them, a friendly smile on her face and Cullen’s mouth went dry. Ben removed his hat as she drew near, and she stopped next to Cullen and looked up at him with her beautiful brown eyes, waiting for him to introduce her to the man that would take everything away from him.

  “Cullen?” she furrowed her brow when he didn’t say anything.

  “Hi, ma’am,” Ben smiled broadly at her. “I’m Ben Parker, Cullen’s big brother.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  “What do you mean you spent four years in prison?” Ruby’s head swam and she clutched her stomach. Surely she misheard him.

  “I’m not the same person anymore,” Cullen said, his eyes pleading with her to understand.

  It had been a shock to find out Cullen had a brother, but Ruby couldn’t have imagined that she’d find out she was married to a stagecoach robber. A thief. She should have known he was too good to be true.

  Ruby rose to her feet and paced back and forth in their bedroom. After Ben had introduced himself, she invited him to join them for supper. She’d thought Cullen was acting a little strange, but attributed it to the surprise of his brother showing up unexpectedly. He was uncharacteristically quiet while she finished preparing the meal, and twice had tried to take her aside to talk to her. She should have
known then that something was wrong. But, not wanting to be rude to their guest, had told Cullen they could talk later.

  It hadn’t taken her long to realize that something wasn’t quite right with Ben. While he seemed very nice, there was a certain vacancy behind his eyes that she recognized in some the children she’d seen at the orphanage that the nuns referred to as simpleminded. She watched Ben and Everett play with the ark, and it was almost as if Everett was playing with another child. It was during the meal that she’d found out that Cullen had another brother who had been killed while trying to rob a train.

  Ruby had quickly changed the subject and sent an objecting Everett to bed a little earlier than usual with an extra hug and kiss. She’d have to figure out how to undo the little bit that’d he’d heard later. Once Everett was up in his loft, Ruby sat at the table with Ben and Cullen and listened to Ben tell story after story about how they had robbed stagecoaches, and how Cullen was supposed to help them rob the train the previous fall but had disappeared in the night. Cullen seemed to shrink lower and lower in his chair. It was all Ruby could do not to throw them both out, but her compassion for the simple man, and the fact that there was still snow on the ground won out, and she reluctantly agreed to let him stay in the barn.

  Now, she was regretting that decision. After Ben was settled in the barn, a very contrite Cullen came into the house and told her the rest. At least that’s what he said. She didn’t know how she could believe him. An image of the sewing machine filled her mind and Ruby’s stomach dropped. She collapsed on the bed, letting her hands fall to her sides.

  She looked up at Cullen through tear filled eyes. “The gold…”

  He paused, then turned pale and shook his head vehemently. “No,” he dropped to his knees in front of her and held her hands. “The gold wasn’t from a robbery. I panned that gold in Deadwood, Ruby. I swear.”

  She pulled her hands away and turned her head. “I think you better go out to the barn with your brother.”