by Lilah Rivers
None of them had been prepared for the kindness and generosity of those who would compete with Mrs. Roberta for business, but they found themselves overwhelmed by kindness and opportunity. Everyone had been so good to them.
Mrs. Roberta had not only gotten back on her feet, but she was now thriving again.
A month later, to everyone’s surprise, there was an influx of people who had been coming out west from the city. Many of them were on their way to California, but a few had decided to stay.
Everyone in town pointed them to Mrs. Roberta as a source for their meat.
So it was that everything felt as though it had come together and David remembered the strange uncertainty that he had once had when he first moved to Feldey. He had been so full of anxiety, not knowing where it was that he belonged.
But God had opened these doors. God had made a way for him.
They finished their lunch and packed up the basket before settling it back on Mr. Longshanks.
“My dear,” David said, helping Clementine up on the horse’s back.
They were getting ready to head back towards the ranch where they would be hosting the Reverend for a bit of coffee and some time to visit. He was always coming over now to check on Chelsea since she and Hank were living in one of the other houses on the property.
“Are you certain your father won’t want any lunch?” Clementine asked Chelsea once more.
“I am certain. He always eats in town on Saturdays. He claims that it keeps him strong enough for Sunday,” Chelsea said.
David had seen his wife make every effort to feed people as often as possible. But he had also seen how worried she had been that morning as they left Mrs. Roberta behind. It appeared as though Clementine worried that her aunt was going to feel left out now that they are all married.
But Mrs. Roberta had been so kind and strong, frequently telling them all to go and have a nice time. She was still caring for them in every way that she knew how and David thoroughly appreciated it.
They began to ride back towards the ranch and Chelsea let out a song with that beautiful voice of hers. It sometimes made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up for it was so lovely, and he saw how Hank swooned under its power.
But David didn’t want a wife with a lovely voice or any of the other attributes that Chelsea may have had. He wanted his wife. He wanted Clementine.
He looked at those lovely eyes of hers as they rode and she smiled at him, completely unaware of what he was thinking about her and how he longed to scoop her up in his arms and hold her close.
But she rode along easily enough, without a care in all the world.
“Oh, there he is,” Chelsea said. David looked at the horizon and saw the Reverend on his horse, heading for the ranch.
“He is going to get there ahead of us,” Hank said.
“That’s all right. He will forgive us,” Chelsea said.
They rode forward at a quick pace, but not an uncomfortable one. After leaving the horses in the barn, they went inside and found Reverend St. Claire sitting in the living room while Mrs. Roberta was bringing him a mug of coffee.
“Aunt Roberta, that smells lovely,” Clementine said.
“I’ll get yours in just a moment. The Reverend comes first,” Mrs. Roberta said, having a great deal of respect for any man who served in the church.
A few minutes later, they were all seated together in the living room, their coffee in their hands and laughter in their voices.
“So anyway, I just wasn’t ready for that many people,” Mrs. Roberta said.
“But you are doing fine now? With your stock, I mean?” the Reverend asked.
“Oh, certainly. It is breeding season so I know that I will be quite prepared for the year ahead. Now that we have some new folks in town, things seem to be expanding. I often wonder what Feldey is going to look like a few years from now,” she said.
David nodded, wondering as well. He and Clementine had arrived on the same day and it was as though they had been the only new people for quite some time. It was strange to think that now, new people were coming all the time.
“I do hope that none of these newcomers bring a bad element,” Hank said, putting an arm around his wife.
Mrs. Roberta nodded solemnly.
“Me too, Hank. I often worry that things are changing so fast and wonder what will happen if they continue to do so. If someone comes to our town who does not have the best of intentions, I am not quite sure what we will do,” she said with worry in her voice.
David looked at his wife again and smiled.
“I think we have dealt with our fair share of difficulties and I do believe that we know how to handle them now,” he said.
“Well, perhaps,” Mrs. Roberta said.
David and Clementine had often gone to see Tabitha at the jail. She was doing much better, and starting to forgive the man she had once called her husband. Reverend St. Claire was also visiting her twice each week and prayed with her so that she might be able to move on and let go of the pain that she had been holding on to.
It had been a strange journey to get to this point, but David realized that God’s hand had been on them the entire time. He had been guiding them and leading them and helping them to find a refuge outside of their own strength.
Although there were still many unknowns about the future for Tabitha, at least she was finally getting the care and affection that she had been craving, even if it was in a different way than expected.
David was glad that he and his wife could be a part of it and he was relieved that Clementine had such a lovely heart that longed to see Tabitha free of her bitterness.
“Well, can I get any more coffee for anyone?” Mrs. Roberta offered.
They all accepted and she brought more, once again serving the Reverend first.
David placed a hand upon his wife’s arm and smiled at her, glad that they had these moments with the important people in their lives. Although his own family was far away, they had written that they would come out within the next few months, as soon as they had finished the breeding season.
David’s father had hired a few new hands to help and he thought they could run the ranch if he and David’s brothers were gone for a couple of weeks while they came out to visit and to meet Clementine. He had no doubt that they would love her wholeheartedly.
“Well, I don’t know about all of you, but I am glad for such a fine cup of coffee,” Reverend St. Claire said.
David saw a look in his eyes. Something special. Something unique.
It was a look that the Reverend had only when he looked over at Mrs. Roberta.
THE END
Can't get enough of Clementine and David? Then make sure to check out the Extended Epilogue to find out…
What is the new challenge that Clementine will have to deal with?
What is the important, plan-changing decision that Clementine and David will take?
How will prison affect Tabitha's behaviour and personality?
Click the link or enter it into your browser
http://lilahrivers.com/clementine
(After reading the Extended Epilogue, turn the page to read the first chapters from “Her Unintentional Pure Love”, my Amazon Best-Selling novel!)
Her Unintentional Pure Love
Introduction
Laila Anderson’s life has not been a bed of roses. She lives in a disrepaired ranch in Coleburn with her father and her brother, since a double disaster turned everything upside down: her dearest mother passed away and winter storms wiped out most of their cattle herd. Having to deal with her father’s gabling addiction, as well as her brother’s irresponsibility, she desperately hopes for things to get better. When a wealthy young rancher offers a helping hand with the critically damaged ranch, she will doubt his true intentions. Will his manipulative behavior become an obstacle to her growing fondness for him?
Jarrett Rains is the third son of the wealthiest family in Coleburn County. For many years, he
has dreamt of marrying Pauline Dixon and has no plans to escape that fate. When he loses a poker game to one of the most misfortunate farmers in the town, his pride is deeply hurt. Feeling completely humiliated and embarrassed, he decides to do whatever it takes to get sweet revenge on his family. Having the perfect plan in mind, he will start working for the Andersons. But will he succeed in fulfilling his insidious idea or will the Anderson family realize his underlying goal?
Life in the ranch brings Jarrett and Laila closer than they would ever expect to be, and undeniable emotions are growing between them. Will Jarrett get the future he has always been planning, and run off with Pauline? Or will he see that real respect, honor and love might be staring him right in the face without him realizing it?
Chapter 1
A bright array of colors splashed across the sky when Laila looked up. The scent of daisies filled her nose and she breathed in deeply, closing her eyes. She could feel a slight breeze lifting up her skirts as she stood still in the middle of shin-high grass. The field was broad and surrounded her on all four sides. She spread her arms out, pretending she was a bird that could lift up from the earth and soar through the blue beyond, with not a care in the world.
The sound of weeping distracted her from the beauty. She lowered her arms and looked into the woods beyond the field. The weeping was coming from within those trees. It sounded heartbroken, shattered, devastated. It made Laila sad.
She took a step toward the sound, though she really didn’t want to find out who was crying. The sound hurt her heart, the emotion behind it ebbing and flowing through the energy in the air toward her, penetrating her, making her chest tight and achy.
“Why are you crying?” she asked in the softest voice she could muster. “All is well. There is no reason to cry.”
But the voice didn’t respond to her. She took a few more steps toward the tree line and suddenly, she was almost there. It was as though space had closed together and she’d taken one step instead of twenty.
Laila pulled back, stunned that the trees were suddenly so close.
The crying resumed. This time, it was much closer and the tears were harder, more heartbroken than ever.
“Don’t cry,” Laila whispered, tears of her own forming in her eyes. “Please don’t cry.”
“Laila…” the crying voice began calling her name. “Laila…”
She recognized the voice. It was her brother, Reuben. His voice sounded younger than she knew him to be. He was thirteen years old. But the voice made him sound ten. It was shaky, it was soft, and she could clearly tell it was him.
“Reuben.”
“Wake up, Laila,” her brother said from beyond the tree line. “Please wake up. Pa says we have to go to Ma now. We have to take in this wood right now. Wake up. Wake up.”
Laila frowned, confused. What was going on? Why was she suddenly cold? Her skin tingled as chills covered her arms.
She wrapped herself in a tight hug and without further thought, ran into the woods, following a narrow path between the trees.
Laila sat up, her eyes wide open, her brain fully awake. She looked into her brother’s misty eyes.
“Laila,” he was saying, gripping one of her arms with both his hands. He wrapped her hand in his and tugged softly. “Laila, you have to come now. We have to talk to Ma. Pa says she might not make it through the night.”
Laila was suddenly back in the cold reality she faced every day in harsh winter storms. Over the past week, the sudden snow, rain, mud, and sleet had destroyed the crops in their garden and killed off nearly half their cattle. The weather wasn’t looking too clear anytime soon.
Their mother, Rebecca Anderson, had taken ill within a few days, after securing the cows in the barn when the wind blew the barn door off its hinges. She’d been out in the blasting wind all night and half her body was frozen. She described it saying she had shards of glass flowing through her veins. She’d immediately taken to bed and woke up the next morning with a high fever and delusions.
The doctor was unable to get to them for several days. By the time he was there, the few methods the family knew of to treat an illness they knew nothing about weren’t good enough to stop the procession of the disease. It marched through her body, depleting her of all her fluids and nutrients until she was left a shell of the woman she was just one week ago.
Laila’s heart ached as she slid out of bed, shivering from both the cold and what she was about to go through. She wasn’t able to keep her tears from sliding down her cheeks as she slid her small feet into the padded slippers near her bed.
Her brother was holding her robe open so she could turn around and slide her arms into the sleeves. She did so but it didn’t stop her from shivering. She noticed Reuben had started a small fire in the fireplace in her room. That meant he knew she would be up for a while when she returned to her room.
Laila went ahead of her brother through her door, down the hall and into her mother’s room. Her father, Bart, stood at his wife’s bedside. He was holding her hand up against his chest. He turned to look at his children as they entered.
“Laila and Reuben are here, Becky.”
Laila’s chest tightened again when she heard the distress in her father’s voice. He was such a strong man; tall, muscular, intimidating. To see him deflated, to hear his voice distraught, it was almost too much for Laila.
She hurried to the other side of her mother’s bed and leaned over to kiss the pale cheek her dear mother had been left with. She remembered when it was plump and soft. Her tears dropped down to soak into her mother’s dark brown hair.
“Ma,” she whispered, trying to be strong but failing. She felt Reuben’s hands on her shoulders. He put his forehead down and she soon felt his tears soaking through the fabric of her sleeve.
“My sweet girl,” her mother whispered back, looking into Laila’s eyes. “You two stay strong. Please… please don’t give up. You can have a good life. I know you will have a good life if you keep the faith.”
“Momma,” Laila whispered again, her heart breaking. “Momma, I love you.”
She closed her eyes and prayed that God take her mother away from her pain and help them heal from the loss as quickly as they could.
Chapter 1
Jarrett gave his opponent a blank look shadowed by a knowing smile. He’d played poker with the man before. Bart Anderson was barely holding onto a failing ranch out on the outskirts of Juniper, the small town in Texas where they both resided.
Jarrett didn’t come from a failing ranch, however. He was the son of Elliott Raines, one of the wealthiest ranchers in the entire county of Coleburn, and the wealthiest in the town of Juniper, which was in the heart of Coleburn County.
He was also an excellent poker player. He’d been bluffing Bart Anderson all night long and it wasn’t gonna be hard to take what the man had left from him. He wasn’t looking at an impressive hand of cards but it was good enough to beat most of the plays Anderson knew.
He’d been surprised when Anderson sat down before the game started. The older man was a bit drunk, which always made him easier to beat. His words were a little slurred. He stumbled just a bit when he slid into the seat opposite Jarrett.
Jarrett never had to worry about getting men to play with him. Sometimes, he’d give up a small pot and let them think they were winning. Then he would pull out the big guns and knock them for a loop. He didn’t let that happen often. Soon, if he kept winning the way he was, he’d have built up a big enough kitty to take Pauline, marry her and go off on their own, and start their own lives together.