Carol: Sweet Western Historical Romance (Brides of Archer Ranch Book 2)

by Cindy Caldwell

  "Yes, ma'am, I actually was."

  "I see you have the stacking rack with you. I can't believe you did it so quickly. Thank you," Rose said as she lifted her skirts and climbed the steps onto the boardwalk. "I'm sure you have no idea how much that's going to help us here in the library. This is all brand new for us, but Carol and I both anticipate that things might get a little hectic."

  Rose fit the key into the lock and opened the door to the library, ushering Will in ahead of her.

  “No, ma’am, after you,” he said, waiting for her to go in first.

  As she entered, she asked, “What else do you have there with you, Will?” as she settled behind her desk. He placed the stacking rack to the right of the desk where Mrs. Tate had indicated she wanted it. He laid the poles down on the table beside them while he situated the stacking rack at the top and fastened it to the wall.

  Mrs. Tate stood and walked around the desk, picking up the poles that he’d laid on the table. "So, what are these for?"

  Will cleared his throat as he peered over his shoulder at the poles. It had all seemed like such a good idea before when he was drawing in the dark, but now he thought maybe it had been a little presumptuous of him to just assume that Carol might want some help. But Joe had gone to all the trouble to make them so he couldn't back down now. After he’d pounded the final nail in the wall, he set the hammer down on the desk and turned around to face Mrs. Tate.

  "Well, yesterday while you were at the post office, I spent some time looking at Carol's chair. I noticed that she really couldn't move around on her own unless somebody was pulling her the way that chair is designed. I didn't have materials to try a completely different chair, but I did think that maybe these poles would help.”

  He picked them up and showed her the clips on the end and the soft leather that Joe had wrapped around the ends for Carol's hands.

  Mrs. Tate's eyes grew wide as she looked at the poles and held out her hand for one. He gave it to her and she turned it over in her hands, gripping the soft leather. "I can see what you did here, Will. If this works, it'll be a big change for Carol.”

  Will’s ears burned as he reached for the pole. “Think she’ll want to try them?”

  “Try what?” Carol said as Andy pulled her into the room, slowing gently as the chair crossed the wooden threshold of the library and Carol grabbed the sides.

  Chapter 16

  Carol scanned the room as people began to leave the open house. The food table had been picked almost clean, and she searched for her plate of cookies. It had been in between the lemon meringue pie and the apple cake that Saffron had brought. She sat higher in her chair to try to see but couldn't find her plate at all.

  "Carol, this was marvelous," Saffron said as she sat beside Carol. "I had no idea you knew so many people. You've been busy all evening."

  "I suppose I didn't know I knew this many people, either," Carol said as she smiled at the approach of Mr. Bailey and his two children.

  "I can hardly wait to come to the afternoon book readings that you talked about," the young girl said as she held her father's hand. Carol looked up at Mr. Bailey, the owner of one of the cafés in town. She remembered the story that Rose had told her while they’d been stamping books about Mr. Bailey's children not being able to come to school because their mother died and they needed to work in the café. In fact, when she suggested to Rose that she actually do book readings for the children some afternoons, it was Mr. Bailey and his children that she had in mind. She knew that Mr. Tate gave them lessons a couple days a week, but it could never hurt to read more or be with people more often.

  Mr. Bailey twisted his hat in his hands and put his arm around his daughter’s shoulder. "Things sure are changing around here in Tombstone. And it's a fine thing to see. Thank you very much," he said as he placed his hat on, took his children’s hands and headed out toward the boardwalk.

  "Well, this is a sight to behold. Isn't this exactly what you wanted, Carol?" Carol turned to see her brother smiling down at her, his blue eyes twinkling. He put his hand on his wife's shoulder, and Saffron smiled at him with that look again, that newlywed look that Carol didn't seem to be able to get away from.

  "Yes, Adam, this is exactly what I wanted." As people filtered out, she searched the room to see if Will was nearby. They hadn't had much time to practice with the poles on her chair but she was having a hard time waiting to show Adam and Saffron. She knew they’d be excited for her and she actually wanted to practice more when she got home. She didn't see Will, but she lifted the poles out from each side of the chair.

  "Even better," she said. “Look what Will Stanton made for me." She reached out to her sides, gripped the soft leather handles in each hand, and pushed the wheels with the poles. Saffron stood up quickly and took a step back, her eyes wide. "Where did you get those? Will made them?”

  Adam put his hands on his hips and bent over, looking at the poles and where they grasped the wheels. "Well, look at that. That's remarkable. Are they easy to use?" he said as he stepped back, letting Carol pass by as she maneuvered the chair around.

  Carol smiled as she struggled to turn the chair and looked back at and Saffron. "Well, I think they'll take some getting used to, but I seem to be able to move a little bit from one place to another."

  "My goodness, that's terribly exciting," Carol heard from behind her.

  Carol turned the chair around and looked up into the beaming face of Mrs. Allen, one of the Archer girls’ mother-in-law. Carol always loved to talk to Mrs. Allen. She’d come from New York after her husband had died to join her son, Sam, who had married Meg Archer, one of Saffron’s sisters. She was quite elegant, very tall with black hair that was swooped up on top of her head. She always had a fan with her, usually beautiful feathers of different colors. Today, the feathers in her fan were green, and matched the color of her eyes perfectly.

  "Mrs. Allen, how nice to see you," Carol said as she reached out to take Mrs. Allen's extended hand. "I was hoping that you would be able to come to the open house."

  Mr. Archer walked up behind Mrs. Allen, and Carol thought he looked quite handsome. Maybe even dressed up a little bit.

  "How could we possibly miss such a spectacular occasion?" Mr. Archer said as he stood quite close to Mrs. Allen, Carol noticed.

  "We’re quite glad it worked out well and everyone had a wonderful time.”

  Carol gestured over to the food table. "I had no idea that we’d have so many things arriving for people to enjoy or that people would contribute quite as much as they did. In fact, I made some cookies this morning on my own and brought them in. They must have been good because they're all gone."

  Carol's younger brother Andy appeared at her elbow.

  "So that's what you wanted me to get all that stuff down for this morning," Andy said as he leaned up against Carol's chair. "It might've been a little better, though, if you'd asked me to get down the sugar."

  Carol turned quickly and looked at Andy. "I know I forgot to ask you, but there wasn't very much in the recipe so I thought it would be fine without it."

  Saffron laughed and patted her shoulder. "They really could've used the sugar. Rose actually put the plate underneath the counter."

  Carol was horrified that they had been bad enough to have to put under the counter, but she was grateful that someone had spared her from embarrassment.

  "If I had a penny for every time I'd ruined a perfectly good recipe, I'd be a rich woman," Mrs. Allen said as she laughed and put her arm through Mr. Archer's. "I've never been able to cook to save my life, Carol, so I don't think it'll make any difference."

  "Certainly not. At least you tried," Saffron said. "Rose mentioned that you got a letter from Dennis. What did he say? Is he coming through to visit?"

  Carol looked up as Adam and Saffron exchanged glances. She wished that they wouldn't worry about her so much. "Yes, he is stopping through. I don't think he’s spending very much time, but he has banking business here in town. He migh
t be here for just a bit,” Carol said, although she hoped he’d stay longer.

  Mrs. Allen opened her fan and tapped it lightly against her chin. She turned to Mr. Archer and said, “Well, Beau Archer, maybe this would be a good time to have a party at Archer Ranch."

  Mr. Archer put his thumbs in his vest pockets and tilted his head back, looking at Carol. "Do you have plans for when this young man arrives? The weather’s turned quite nice, and it certainly would be lovely to have a dinner and maybe some dancing at Archer Ranch. We could invite the whole family."

  Carol couldn't miss Mrs. Allen nudging Mr. Archer in the ribs. "A dinner might be lovely, and we could have music but nobody needs to dance if they don't want to."

  Mr. Archer cleared his throat as his cheeks turned a little pink.

  "It's all right, Mrs. Allen. I love to watch people dance. I used to love to dance myself. It would be very kind, Mr. Archer, if you'd like to do that for Dennis. And I do hope everybody can come."

  Saffron stood and crossed over to her father. She gave him a light peck on the cheek and said, “Thank you, Papa. That's very generous of you, and we would love to see the whole family. It might be a little overwhelming for Carol’s friend, but I suppose that it's a good way to introduce him to Tombstone."

  Saffron's twin sister, Sage, took Mr. Archer's other arm as Mrs. Allen moved over to the food table. "It sounds like a wonderful party to me, Papa,” Sage said as she squeezed his elbow. "I hope you don't mind if I invite the doctor. He's been working very hard lately and I'm sure he could use some frivolity.”

  Mr. Archer nodded to both of his twin daughters, one at a time. "It will be lovely to see everyone, girls. Of course he's invited, Sage."

  Sage sat down behind Carol and leaned forward. "Dr. Folsom asked me to mention to you that he's been through the articles in the medical journal and he’d like to see you."

  Carol's eyes flew open and she looked at Saffron. Saffron smiled and nodded at her. "I'll go with you, Carol," she said. "Any time you want."

  Carol looked around, her heart warmed at how she felt supported by her new family as well as her old family. "I think that makes me nervous but it is what I wanted to do, Saffron. And if you'll go with me, I'd love to go." Sage jumped up and headed for the door. "Good. It's settled, then. We'll see you tomorrow at the doctor's office."

  Chapter 17

  Carol's jumbled nerves had kept her up all night, wondering what it would be like when she went to visit the doctor. The open house had been a great success, and the poles that Will had given her had allowed her to move a little bit this way and that. The chair that the doctor had loaned her had small wheels that she couldn't really reach with her hands, and a wheel in the center in the middle connected to a metal bar that people pulled her around with.

  She thought she'd seen pictures of a different kind of chair with wheels, but this was the only one she'd seen in Tombstone. She’d seen several people with crutches, and she never told anyone but after she'd healed from the accident and wasn't in pain any longer, she tried to stand a few times but her legs wouldn't hold her. So crutches weren’t an answer for her, so she was glad for the help of the chair.

  As they pulled up in front of the doctor's office, Saffron waited with Carol in the wagon while Adam took the chair with wheels down from the back. Carol held the poles Will had given her in her hand tightly, anxious to show the doctor what she was able to do. Saffron squeezed her hand tightly, and she knew she was trembling. She wondered how things had changed so much. After the accident, while they were all grieving their parents, she hadn’t thought a great deal about walking.

  It had only been since she’d been in Tombstone that she'd even wondered about it. She’d been happy at home with her brothers, but now that Saffron lived with them, and after her experience with Charlie, the bird that was stuck in the fireplace that she couldn't help, things seemed a little bit different. Sitting in the back of the buggy with her brothers on Sunday at the mercantile didn't seem to be enough anymore. And when Saffron had taken her to the circus, things had changed forever for her.

  Saffron squeezed Carol's hand one more time before she hopped out of the wagon and into Adam's arms. Carol glanced sideways at them, expecting to see "the newlyweds stare" as she’d begun to call it, but she noted only concern on both of their faces. It occurred to her that they might be as nervous as she was.

  Adam situated the chair on the boardwalk and came back to the wagon, swooping Carol into his arms and crossing the dirt between the wagon and the boardwalk in two quick strides. He set her down gently and backed up. He pushed his hat back up on his forehead and crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes trained on Carol. "Do you want me to come in with you?"

  Carol’s stomach fluttered as she thought of the question that she had been debating over whether to ask the doctor, the one that kept her up most of the night. It was a delicate question, one that you would normally ask of another woman, but she didn’t know of any other woman who would know the answer, particularly in her situation. She didn't really think that she wanted Adam to come with her.

  "Adam, I hope this won’t offend you but I really think that I'd like to go in with Saffron." Carol smoothed down her skirts in the chair and looked up at Saffron. She was met with an understanding look, and Saffron patted Adam on the shoulder. "I don't think we will be very long, Adam. Carol and I can just run in quickly, and then we'll let you know what the doctor said right after. We can go get some ice cream."

  Adam sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets. He looked down and kicked the dirt with the toe of his boot. "All right. I understand. But I’ll be right out here if you need me."

  "Thank you, Adam." Carol gave him her best smile, and took the poles and turned the chair toward the door. Saffron opened it and said, “Do you think you can get inside on your own?"

  Carol took a deep breath. "I have to try, don't I?"

  Saffron and Adam both smiled as Carol used the poles to push herself into the waiting room of the doctor's office. Saffron came in right behind her and closed the door, saying, “It's remarkable what you can do with those poles that Will made for you."

  "What poles are you talking about?" the doctor asked as he came out from the examination room. "Did I just see you push yourself in here on your own?"

  Carol took the poles and held the soft leather in her hands once more. She pushed herself just a little forward so the doctor could see that yes, in fact, she had moved herself into the waiting room on her own.

  "May I see those?" the doctor asked as he extended his hand toward Carol for the poles. He turned them over in his hands and knelt down to look at the wheels. He frowned for a moment, then tried to use one of the poles on his own. When the chair moved, his eyebrows shot up, and he stood and took a step back. "Ingenious."

  Carol untied her bonnet and set it in her lap. "Will Stanton, the blacksmith, and his brother made these for me. I don't think he'd seen anything like them before, either, but it appears that he has a way of seeing things that need to be fixed and fixing them."

  "Well, that's certainly inventive of him." The doctor stepped back and held the door to the examination room opened wide for Carol. "Do you think you can maneuver yourself in here?"

  The door looked a little narrow, but Carol thought she might like to try. She went ahead and took the poles, pushing the wheels forward so that she could go through the door. The first wheel went through but the second two wheels stuck on the doorjamb, and she sighed with frustration.

  "That was a good try," the doctor said as he reached out to lift Carol onto the examination table. He set her down gently and Saffron pulled the chair back out into the waiting room. "Do you want me to come in with you, Carol?"

  "Thank you, Saffron, but I'll be fine. I'll see you right after."

  Saffron looked concerned as she glanced from the doctor to the table, but she closed the door gently behind her. Carol looked up at the doctor, anxious to see what he had to tell her. She’d been waiting for
this conversation for a long time, and she was ready for it to begin.

  Chapter 18

  Will poked his head out of the blacksmith shop one more time, not sure exactly why he was doing it. Stretch his legs? Maybe just get some fresh air away from all the smoke from the forge? Either way, it seemed that every time he stepped outside he ended up walking into the middle of the street, if there weren’t too many horses, and turning to look down at the Tombstone Public Library. And every time he did the same thing—shook his head once or twice, shoved his hands back in his pockets, and walked back inside the blacksmith shop.

  The last time he'd seen Carol, she'd been using the new poles that he’d given her and that made him happy. He wanted to ask her how they were working, but they’d been pretty busy and he hadn't had the chance. Besides, every time he walked by and peered through the large-paned windows, she was always talking to somebody. Dang, that girl had to know everybody in town. And they all seemed to like her, too. He wasn't necessarily one who would join in a conversation with people he didn’t know, so he pretty much kept to himself even though, for some reason, he always kept thinking maybe how he could help her.

  Once again, like always, he shoved his hands in his pockets and shook his head, walking back into the blacksmith shop.

  He sat back down at his desk, scooted his chair in and picked up his pencil. He leaned over the drawing he was working on, wiped his forehead with the back of his hand and got down to business. He hadn’t gotten far when his brother cleared his throat.

  He waited for a moment and didn't hear anything, a little glad that he didn't. Joe wasn't quite as quiet as Will was, and sometimes Will just wanted—well, peace and quiet. Thankfully, lately Joe had been pretty quiet himself and so Will hadn't had to make much conversation with him.

  Will listened to the steady sound of the hammer on steel as he looked up. His brother’s head was down as he pounded on the horseshoe, one hand holding it tightly in long, black tongs. He looked back down at his drawing and picked up his pencil again.