by Etta Foster
His stomach churned as he watched Jacob open the barn door for Louise. Richard slouched in his seat, the anger slipping away.
There was no reason to be angry because there was nothing he could do about his situation.
Luanne had said what he had already been thinking. Even as he wanted Louise to himself, he realized there was nothing he could do about it.
What kind of man would he be to ask a beautiful young lady like herself to spend the rest of her life with a useless man in a chair?
“You’re right,” he said faintly.
The rocking chair creaked. “Oh?” Luanne’s eyes widened in surprise, not having expected him to agree. She leaned back to take in his reaction.
He would be a terrible person to attempt any relationship with Louise or with anyone else. That chair of his would keep him a single man for the rest of his life.
If he could even consider himself a man anymore.
His heart sunk lower into his chest, his heartbeat slowing down in disgust for his future.
There was no way he could run the ranch anymore without being able to see what was happening.
No more riding horses, traveling through the valley, or raising the cattle. Richard couldn’t do anything. As much as the ranch needed a woman, he couldn’t have one.
Perhaps it would be best if Louise did turn to Jacob. A sour taste filled his mouth. It was a sacrifice, but one he knew he had to make.
A strong union like that was just what the ranch needed. In order to keep the ranch thriving, it needed more support.
He had already known Louise would be the perfect addition.
That was a fact he had known for quite some time, back when they were just beginning to correspond with one another through letters.
Louise was intelligent, kind, and bright. From the moment she had arrived, Richard had known of her potential there. He had hoped to share his future with her.
He dropped his hands into his lap. They couldn’t hang by his sides any longer because the armrests were in the way.
It was a small change, but it bugged him. He would never get to walk with his arms down by his sides again.
Richard glanced at his hands and shook his head.
Luanne tutted. “They’re dirty, aren’t they? Being stuck in that chair certainly comes with unprecedented problems.”
Life came with unprecedented problems.
His eyes flickered over to meet hers as he wondered what was going on in her head.
Her sarcastic nature was fairly bitter. He hadn’t noticed as much at the beginning, but now he understood her clearly. Almost as if he understood the bitterness himself.
Swallowing, he shrugged. “We all must endure our own trials.”
She narrowed her gaze at him before eventually shrugging and turning back around to look out at the world before them.
The young lady sighed loudly and burrowed deeper under her blanket. But she appeared to be done talking and for that he was grateful.
There was enough on his mind to consider. And his parents had raised him to speak of good things, not ill. Luanne could use some practice on making conversation, but he wasn’t ready to offer his services.
Instead, Richard followed her gaze out onto the land before them.
It was a view he had seen for the majority of his life. Now he was at a different angle, one he hadn’t been at since he was a young boy. He didn’t care for it, but he didn’t have a choice.
The view he kept turning back to included that of Jacob and Louise.
They made a fine-looking couple from a distance.
Richard bit his tongue and tried to imagine the conversation he would need to have with her soon. To tell her to turn to Jacob and not him.
He was only a cripple, after all, a cripple who could hardly make it through the door.
When his brother and the young lady turned towards the house, Richard did the same. Heading inside, he returned to the quiet corner of where his room sat in the house.
He didn’t want to speak to them yet. All he wanted was some time alone to think and to wallow.
There was little else he could do from his chair, after all.
Chapter 21
“Now?”
Jacob’s thoughtful expression faded into a frown as he looked at her hopeful expression.
Louise could hardly believe the man. He was constantly switching up his moods to either be helpful or detrimental in their conversations and as they began to make plans.
She nodded furiously. “Of course. Why not now?”
“But… it’s Christmas Eve,” he shrugged. “Why not next week?”
Her eyes widened at the idea of delaying for so long. “Next week? Because it’s days away. Why should we sentence Richard to the house for all those days when he could be spending time out on his ranch?”
“Our ranch,” he muttered and shook his head. “It’s our ranch and he can wait.”
When he stepped to the side to get around her, Louise copied to block his path. “But it’s Christmas,” she told him pointedly. “We treat each other well during the holidays. Think of the Savior, would you? Of our God?”
That made him hesitate. Her heart leapt hopefully as she could see in his eyes that he was thinking about it.
Standing just outside the house, Louise tried not to shiver as a cold wind blew past her. She wrapped her fingers together and blew on them as she waited for Jacob to respond.
His eyes darted past her towards the barn. He worked his jaw as he mulled over the idea. They both knew she was attempting to guilt him into this.
Now she had to see if it would work.
“Fine,” Jacob agreed in resignation. “Find some gloves and a better hat. I’ll saddle the horses.”
Louise brightened up with a broad smile. “Wonderful! Yes, yes, of course.”
The man before her sighed wearily and waved her off as he managed to skirt around her and started walking towards the barn. His shoulders were hunched as he carried his box of tools on his way. There was not an ounce of excitement within him.
She didn’t mind. He had agreed to help.
The man owed her, and he owed his brother. Louise didn’t know what to expect about their ride into town, but she was certain it would work out well.
It had to.
Turning towards the house, Louise hurried. It was freezing cold; even as she blinked, she could feel her eyelashes freezing. Jacob had a point that she needed gloves and a better hat. It was too small for her head and wouldn’t tie properly any longer.
“What kind of plans are you kids making?”
Louise jerked up to find her older sister tucked into a ball under a blanket as she sat on one of the rocking chairs. She tightened her grip on the railing, praying she didn’t slip.
Louisiana never had weather like this and so she wasn’t quite used to it.
She turned her attention to her sister as she carefully climbed up the steps. Her heart skipped an anxious beat. “Plans? How did you know we were making plans?”
Her sister narrowed her eyes. “What else would you be doing? Exchanging secrets?” Luanne shrugged. “Or exchanging kisses? Either option…”
The words trailed off with meaning that Louise didn’t understand. She reached the porch to shrug. “What about them? You’re wrong. Just in case you desired to know.”
Then Louise hesitated, reminding herself she didn’t want to start a new argument.
She shook her head and sighed. “Jacob and I are going into town if you care to join us. We’ll be leaving in a moment.” And she went inside before Luanne could respond.
“Mrs. Pennyworth!” Louise called as she shook the snow out of her hair. She adjusted her jacket, dropped the hat, and rubbed her hands as she trotted down the hall towards the kitchen. “Mrs. Pennyworth?”
The woman turned as she opened the door to the kitchen. “Yes, dear?”
Louise offered a quick smile. “Jacob and I are going to make a trip into town. Would you perhaps
have a hat I could borrow? Along with gloves, if you don’t mind?”
As she talked, the older woman made her way around the kitchen to her and frowned. “My dear, your hands! Were you just outside? You’re nearly frozen. Why would you want to go into town now? With Jacob?”
It wasn’t judgmental like Luanne, only confusion. Louise appreciated that.
“We’re finding Richard a gift,” she said in a loud whisper. A thrill ran up her spine. She was certain Richard would appreciate her idea. “It’ll be a short trip, I’m sure.”
The woman glanced out the window warily. It was a white wonderland out there with little else to see. Even the sky was so white that it blended in with the ground.
Mrs. Pennyworth shook her head. “I won’t tell you no, but I will say I think that’s silly. But come along, I’ll find something to keep you warm. Another blanket or two would do nicely, I’m sure. This way, then, to the closets.”
Louise followed closely behind, still blowing warmth into her chilled hands. She kept her eyes out for Richard and could hardly stop smiling.
Hope beat proudly in her chest as she continued thinking about the right little horse that they would find for their project.
Soon the housekeeper had found her a much thicker hat, a cozy scarf, and gloves that were too large but would keep her warm all the same.
Mrs. Pennyworth helped her back outside onto the porch where they found Jacob nearby with two saddled horses.
“I’m not a very good rider,” Louise bit her lip.
Jacob waved his arm to her. “Then I’ll tie the bridle to my horse. Come along. We don’t want to be out after dark. Or did you change your mind?”
Her eyes narrowed. “Of course not.” Louise glanced around to see if her sister was still watching.
But the chair was empty and there was no blanket left there. Luanne must have returned inside where it was warmer.
Louise shivered before she forced herself to nod. Being inside beside a fire sounded much lovelier than being outside. The wind whipped around her like dull knives pressing against her skin.
But she still forced herself forward, out into the cold where Jacob helped her onto the horse. She inhaled sharply as she clung clumsily to the saddle horn as the bridle was taken and tied to the next horse.
And then they were on their way. Jacob kept them at a smooth trot through the cold, along the edge of the trail so they crunched through the snow instead of the slippery ice.
It took Louise several minutes until she felt comfortable enough to look around at the landscape before her.
Oklahoma was even lovelier than she could have imagined. Louise tucked the scarf up higher to cover her nose and hide her smile. There was something magical about being in a world of white. It made her want to laugh and dance until she grew dizzy.
Louise was so lost in her thoughts of wonder that she hardly noticed the time passing.
Soon they had made it into the blustery town where few people moved about in such windy weather. She could feel the wind stealing away her breath, but it only amazed her more.
“I’ll help you down,” Jacob climbed off his horse and shouted. She hadn’t realized the weather was loud until then. “Give me your arms.”
He grabbed her around the waist and set her down. Louise felt her feet sink in the snow and grinned. “Good. Let’s find that horse, shall we?”
Ignoring his hesitance, she marched forward to the building she assumed was the stables. One door was open, so she stepped through.
Moving to the right, Louise stayed out of the way as Jacob led the horses into the shelter. She followed him as he patted the horses down.
“There’s always oats there,” Jacob mumbled through his scarf.
Her eyes fell upon a nearby bucket. With a nod, she obeyed and fed the horses. Only once both animals were happily settled did Jacob straighten up and find the stablemaster, Jed. Jed ended up being a tall thin man with a raspy voice.
Louise’s eyes wandered around the large barn with all the stalls as the two men talked. It was a fascinating place, she decided. She’d never been surrounded by so many horses before. She leaned over one railing and watched a foal doze, wondering if they dreamed.
“Louise.”
She jerked up. Her boots squeaked as she turned toward Jacob who waved her over to them. The two men motioned over to a corner stall where she curiously stepped up and glanced over. It was a larger door than one she could lean on, one made for taller horses.
But it was not a tall horse behind the door.
A gasp of delight invariably left her lips as Louise stared at the shaggy blond pony before her. Hardly the height of her shoulder, she couldn’t remember finding anything half as sweet as the little creature.
“It’s beautiful,” she announced.
“It’s ours,” Jacob corrected her.
“Good disposition, that one,” Jed drawled with a pipe in his mouth. “Was a gift for the mayor’s daughter. Only she wanted a real horse, I s’pose.”
Louise counted that their blessing. She turned to them with a broad smile. “It’s a Christmas miracle, then.”
She was still smiling as Jacob checked out the pony, prepared all three animals, and led them all the way back to their house. Louise’s cheeks ached from the cold and smiling but she couldn’t help herself.
All she wanted to see was Richard light up again like he had in her letters. Surely this would do the trick.
“No, no,” Louise shook her head when Jacob tried to put their new pony into a stall. “Up to the house. Just for a moment? She doesn’t even need to go on the porch, only close enough for him to see.”
The dubious look she received in return still didn’t dampen her enthusiasm. Louise’s heart skipped a beat as she took the lead up to the house, wanting to make sure she could bring Richard out to see his early Christmas gift.
It was perfect; Louise felt certain of this. Richard would see the world open up before him with unlimited opportunities. They could go out for strolls and he could finish showing her all around the ranch he loved so much.
Whatever frustration he had felt before would fade and everyone would be cheerful again.
“Hello? Richard?” Louise scampered over to his bedroom door, breathless with anticipation.
She heard movement. “What is it?”
“It’s me,” she leaned against the door. “Louise. I - I have a gift for you. Would you come out here? I mean, outside? Just for a moment.”
Though she thought she heard something else, Louise couldn’t be certain. She bit her lip and waited until she was certain there was the creaking of floorboards.
Taking a step back, she tugged her scarf away from her face and grinned as Richard eventually opened his door.
“Come along,” she invited him.
She was too excited to say anything more. Louise walked quickly, realized her mistake of going too fast and turned back to him, and committed the same mistake repeatedly all the way to the door.
Louise grabbed the doorknob and then cheated a look outside to make sure Jacob still had the pony with him. He gave her a short wave and ushered her to move faster.
So she opened the door completely and jumped out onto the porch to make way for Richard.
“Surprise!” she cried out as she clapped.
Slowly she watched Richard roll his chair out the door. He glanced at her warily and then over at his brother. Jacob didn’t wave again, but he did bring the pony closer to the first step of the porch.
The pony dropped her head to consider the stairs. Then she licked up a pile of snow with her long tongue.
Louise grinned. “Isn’t she wonderful?”
“It’s a pony,” Richard stated.
Realizing he wasn’t smiling, Louise’s eagerness froze. “I - yes. Yes, Richard, it’s a pony.” Louise suddenly panicked because she hadn’t explained to him why there was another horse on their ranch.
“Oh, right,” Louise hurried over to his side and down
a step to gesture. “She’s a much smaller horse, but she’s strong, too. Jacob is going to build you a - a new chair that will allow you to travel over the snow. And this pony will drive you. You’ll have your very own sleigh!
“Isn’t that wonderful? There’s so much more we can do now. What do you think?” Louise turned back to Richard hopefully, praying in her heart that this was the solution they were looking for.