A Deal with the Cowboy’s Tangled Heart: A Historical Western Romance Book

by Cassidy Hanton

  Chester left the doctor’s home walking at a normal pace. But the moment the door closed behind him and he was alone, he picked up his speed and started to jog. Perspiration slipped down his collarbone.

  There was no need to make Blossom and her father wait.

  He went around the house and down the lane as he ran to grab his horse. The animal was still standing where he had left him. His horse nodded his head in familiarity and his tail swished as he realized they were going to head out.

  It only took the two of them a minute to return to the house.

  His heart was still hammering in his chest as he settled the animal and checked the saddle before hurrying over to the door. He was let back in. The doctor wrote a note for Blossom as Chester carefully picked up Mr. Everett and took him over to his horse.

  The man was heavy, but he was young and strong.

  “What’s going on?” Mr. Everett slurred as his eyes cracked open.

  That made him hesitate. What do I say? Chester shifted his hold on the man who was nearly seated in the saddle. He was almost there, just needing to get one leg over onto the other side.

  “It’s all right, sir,” Chester explained in a quiet voice. “We’re just getting you seated on this horse. Then you’re headed right home. Can you bring your leg around for me?”

  One of Mr. Everett’s eyes didn’t open and he couldn’t seem to find any words for a response.

  But he managed a grunt and clumsily brought his leg over. Chester was grateful that his horse was patient, and while the older man dozed in the saddle, he wrapped a rope around the man’s waist.

  Then he paused, sighing in relief. For a moment, he had been worried that it wouldn’t work.

  “That should do it,” he muttered under his breath.

  Blossom appeared beside him. “I hope so.” She looked up as he looked down. His heart skipped a beat. There was something about her that drew him in. “You’re very kind to lend us your time and patience. Along with your horse. Do you think there is any way that I can repay you for all that you’ve done?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t want anything.”

  They glanced back as Doctor Brown waved farewell before closing the door. “Take care,” he shouted at them.

  “Thank you again!” Blossom beamed before she quickly wiped away a tear.

  Chester pretended not to see. Instead, he checked on his horse. Then he looked back to Blossom, only to find her looking at him already.

  She had a shy smile and red cheeks. Chester wasn’t sure he had ever been smiled at like that before. Every part of his body tingled. His face flushed and he looked away.

  That left Chester holding the reins of his horse with an unconscious man riding in his saddle, and Blossom with a basket in her hands. They waved to the doctor and then turned back to the road. Chester didn’t know what else to do but started walking. He gestured to the young woman beside him to join him.

  “Are you sure there’s nothing you want that I can give?” Blossom waited until they had rounded the street and headed out of town.

  He realized then that he didn’t know where she lived. Chester glanced at her shoes and remembered how they had been walking into town. They had lived on the outskirts of the territory, much like himself, but on the other side.

  “No,” Chester assured her as he caught her gaze. “And I mean it. You’re not in my debt or anything. I’m just trying to be a good person.”

  “You are,” Blossom assured him before turning her gaze back to the road. “No one else was able to help me and my father. And now you’re walking us home. I just wanted to let you know that I really appreciate your kindness. No one else offered any.”

  “They would if they had known,” Chester said.

  Her lips curved upward before looking over to her father. While she was turned away, Chester quickly wiped his hands on his palms and shifted his shirt with the hope that the coolness would settle in soon. He didn’t want to embarrass himself. The heat was the only thing he didn’t like about Texas. He even wiped his brow before Blossom turned back to him.

  “I think my father would really like you,” she confessed. “Though I’m afraid we have already met before this. I simply can’t recall. Where were you before Livingsfield? ”

  His lips quirked up before he could help himself. “ Oklahoma is where I was born.”

  “That’s nice,” she offered. “I’ve never been there before. I’ve heard all the surrounding territories are rather majestic.”

  It was one word to describe the view in the mountains. He couldn't help but grin as he looked up to the view before them. Texas was a world on its own, something he had never really considered before. He thought he had, but as he walked with Blossom, Chester felt certain that he couldn’t have done it right on his own.

  She directed them down the road with a shy smile as he stood beside his horse and her father to make sure the man stayed upright. It was slow going, but he didn’t mind. There was something sweet about Blossom that made him want to never leave her side.

  It was further west than his own home, which would explain why he would have never seen her before. He never had any reason to go so far south in Livingsfield. Chester took the opportunity to look around and take in the view as they walked.

  Before they reached the end of town, they came upon the small church. He could smell the fresh layer of white paint that it must have recently received.

  The sight of it made his heart warm. Someday, he hoped, he would go inside. Perhaps when people didn’t glare at him every time they spotted him. The building had a small steeple with a bell in there. He had heard it ring out before, during special occasions. It was sweet music to his ears every time.

  The church stood at the end of town, so soon they were walking along a dirt path. It was smaller than the main road, and a little rocky. But Blossom walked comfortably as though she already knew every step.

  Farms sprouted up as they traveled.

  Chester kept his eyes open, not having noticed this side of town before. He didn’t like to travel there too much in case the people grew further suspicious and annoyed by him.

  It was beautiful out there, however, seeing the small log houses and red barns everywhere. There were men and women who worked in the fields and with the nearby cattle. Many of them waved at Blossom as they passed.

  She waved in return. Though worried, she managed to smile and greet a few people as they went.

  Chester’s hands were full with the reins, so he didn’t do anything. He didn’t think that anyone would wave back at him. Though most folks were too far to see just who he was, he didn’t want to risk irritating anyone.

  “It’s only a little further.” Blossom turned back to him before pointing down the road to a little brown cottage toward the end. It looked small with a dark roof and single chimney. He could see a fence around the small property and garden, along with a pen for a horse. It was a small, modest home, but looked nice enough.

  He nodded, offering her a smile. “All right. That’s good.”

  Blossom ducked her head down before turning back to the road. With her turned away, it gave him a minute to study her again. She’s beautiful. It was hard to take his eyes off her. She had dark blonde hair that curled prettily over her shoulders. When she looked at him, she had walnut eyes that drew him in. She was short and curvy with a heart-shaped face. He wasn’t sure he had ever met anyone so charming.

  “Thank you again.” She looked up at him. “I can’t say it enough.”

  Chester shook his head. “It’s all right. Anyone would have done the same for you and your father. I’m just glad the two of you are going to be well.”

  Her cheeks turned pink as she fiddled with one of her curls. “I am, as well. I worry so much about my father these days. He’s getting older, but doesn’t want to admit it. But I suppose all fathers can be like that. Is yours like that too?”

  “Ah, no.” Chester cleared his throat. “He died when I was younger.”<
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  “Oh! I am so sorry,” she murmured with a shake of her head. “Oh, that’s terrible. I can’t imagine… That must have been very difficult. I’m sorry for your loss, Chester.”

  He shrugged it off with a tight smile. “Thank you, but it’s all right. He wasn’t a very good man toward the end. But your father seems to be a good man, if he has a daughter like you.” When she passed him a quick look, Chester wondered if he had gone too far. He cleared his throat and tried to think of something else to say. “Well. So, have you always lived here?”

  Nodding, Blossom fiddled around with her bonnet. She couldn’t seem to be still. But he didn’t blame her. If he wasn’t busy keeping a close eye on Mr. Everett, then he wasn’t sure what he would be doing around someone so pretty.

  “Yes, this is my home,” Blossom told him hesitantly. “People tell me that it is rather small, but I don’t mind. I like it. I like seeing all the farmers that I know so well and taking care of my horse and helping my father at the school. It’s a good place, I think. And what of you? Have you always lived here?”

  He grudgingly shook his head. “It’s only been a few years. I wanted to move on from my past, and here I am.” There was a lot more to that story, but he wasn’t about to tell her the details. Chester felt the memories wash over him as he gritted his teeth.

  Some days he still felt haunted by the life he had left behind. Though he knew he had found something much better suited for him, it didn’t stop him from worrying about the men and his brother after he had left them. Even years later, he still looked over his shoulder everywhere he went.

  “Is that why people look at you?”

  Chester jerked his head down as Blossom glanced at him. He heard her swallow loudly. “What?”

  She was hesitant, but went on to explain. “I noticed some of the looks that people have been giving you. Back in town, and even some of the farmers we’ve passed. They don’t look, well, very nice. Perhaps it’s not my place to intrude, however, but I was wondering…”

  “Ah, that was nothing.” Chester said before he could help himself. “We all are just trying hard in what we can do. So your father is a schoolteacher? How long has he been the schoolteacher?”

  “Hm? Oh, yes. Yes, that’s my father, he loves working with the children. All my life he has been the Livingsfield schoolteacher. I can’t imagine him not teaching. There are adults I know now as well who were his pupils when he first started here. Don’t you think that’s sweet?” Blossom hardly noticed the change of subject as she answered his question.

  It was a happier topic, one that made her smile and brightened up their afternoon. After all, anything was better than talking about his past.

  Chester thanked the Lord that the young lady had not pursued the question. He pushed his past and the bad memories down as he listened to Blossom talk about her father.

  So Blossom and Chester continued to talk as they walked, thinking of happier things as the sun shined above them.

  Chapter Six

  Blossom’s Wish

  Everything looked as it always did. Blue skies, tall grass up to her thighs, and trees that stretched high into the clouds. It usually looked lovely no matter the season.

  The road was as familiar as ever, but a heavy weight settled on Blossom’s shoulders that kept her from enjoying the stroll.

  Her heart pounded in her chest as she checked on her father over and over. So far, he had slumped his chin down to his chest, but that was it. Chester kept a close grip on the situation to take care of him.

  He was a kind man, so thoughtful for someone he hadn’t even met.

  She appreciated Chester’s company and his help. No one else had come to their aid. But he had come running and had yet to leave her side. Blossom felt sheepish for thanking him over and over again, but she just wanted him to know how much his help meant to her.

  The idea that she could have been left kneeling over her father in the dirt for any longer than she had already done left her nearly terrified.

  They walked as they talked. She could hardly be still, so anxious to be home. Her father needed to rest and she couldn’t stop worrying about him. But knowing there was little that she could do during that time, Blossom searched for distractions. She waved to her neighbors and talked to Chester.

  He asked her all sorts of questions and then she found herself answering them. He was curious about school, since he had never had the opportunity to attend. That made her sad at the idea of not being able to read. The man must have had a hard life, Blossom decided, but was trying hard to live it right.

  “Perhaps my father could teach you,” Blossom offered to him brightly.

  She saw his face light up hopefully with raised eyebrows and a parted mouth. But then it fell. His face clouded over with a wrinkle in the forehead and a slight frown. It happened so quickly that she had to wonder if she had imagined that moment.

  “That’s very kind,” Chester said in a soft tone. “But I won’t impose on your family, and I’m not sure your father will feel the same way. Thank you, though.”

  He wanted to offer all the help in the world but refused it. What type of man was he to live with so little?

  Blossom frowned at the very notion. There was no reason for her father to turn anyone away.

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” she insisted. Her father was a kind man who was passionate about teaching. He would never refuse a new student. “He would love to. There was a whole family in town the other year, the Miltons, who didn’t know how to read. But in a month, my father had all of them reading the Holy Bible. You would do just fine. Besides, my father loves teaching. There shouldn’t be a problem.”

  It was a fond memory of hers. Often the Miltons invited them to sit with them in church at their favorite bench.

  Her father’s students were always treating them to special little gifts in gratitude for all that he had done for them. But her favorite part was always just seeing how thrilled they were upon learning something new.

  That simply filled her heart with joy.

  “We’ll see,” Chester responded, clearly unconvinced.

  She let it slide because he was most likely just nervous about the idea. Though she had been reading for as long as she could remember, she understood that was not the case for everyone else. He didn’t need to be so prideful in thinking that this couldn’t work. She felt certain of it.

  Surely her father would be grateful to the man and would love to repay the favor with such a small act of kindness.

  Reading was a special gift and it deserved to be shared. Blossom couldn’t imagine not having books made available to everyone. The very idea made her heart hurt.

  There was such beauty in words that deserved to be explored. Everyone deserved a chance to read at least the Bible on their own.

  When she glanced at Chester, she thought surely he would be able to understand what a delight that ability would be like to experience.

  The two of them continued to talk as they made their way up to her home. Blossom found herself pointing out the various farms and farmers, giving them names for Chester to understand.

  He was most interested in the Hopkins farm, of course. That made Blossom smile. She shouldn’t have been surprised. Of course he would be curious about what happened there. Everyone loved the Hopkins family and their animals.

  “Here we are,” Blossom announced as they finally reached her home. It was a small, three-bedroom cabin that fit her little family just perfectly. She looked around quickly before unlocking the door and turning to Chester.

  It was time for him to help her father down.

  She wanted desperately to be of more help and fluttered around the horse to see if there was something she could do. But mostly, Blossom feared, she was just in the way.

  Her heart constricted tightly as she tried to do something helpful. There had to be something she could do.

  “Sorry!” she managed sheepishly, moving around. “I’m sorry!”

  Finally, s
he took a step back as Chester carefully scooped her father up in his arms, and then grunted with a motion toward the door.

  Blossom gasped as she realized he wanted him to lead her on. So she nodded, running to the front door and guiding him through all the way into her father’s bedroom.

  “This way!” she managed. “Right over here! Onto the bed. I can help him get comfortable.”

  Her father moaned softly but didn’t wake up otherwise.

  Blossom hoped that was a good sign. A lump formed in her throat at the sight of her father all crumpled on his bed. He suddenly looked so small and weak after being such a giant in her life.