Hank felt a stab of disappointment, but did his best to hide it. It was a big step, after all. She had every right to ask for time to think about it. He sighed softly and stood up. “Of course. You take all the time you need.”
He stood there for a moment in uncomfortable silence, then moved to put the dishes away in the cupboard. He had it all thought out so perfectly in the barn. This was the most reasonable solution to both their problems. Why could she not see that?
Chapter 3
Josephine was jarred awake in the middle of the night from a sound sleep, uncertain as to what had woken her. She lay there in the darkness and listened, but the only sound she heard was her own rapidly beating heart. However, once she was awake, she could not get back to sleep.
Her mind kept going back to Hank’s marriage proposal. It had completely taken her by surprise. She knew that she should accept, but she wanted to go over the pros and cons first.
She was alone, penniless, and had nowhere to live. She had no family back east to return to, at least none that would be bothered with taking her in. If she did not take this kind man’s offer, what kind of life would she have? Where would she live? Would she even find work?
She supposed she might be able to find a position in a hotel as a cook or a maid, or perhaps a position as a maid in some rich family’s home. However, chances of that happening were fairly slim. More than likely she would end up working in a saloon. She had no intention of becoming a soiled dove.
She could become a teacher, but she supposed she would need to know someone to get a position. No one here knew her and she had no credentials. Chances of that were slim to none.
If it were found out that she had spent even two nights in a home alone with a man, her reputation would be ruined. Even though he slept in his room and she slept in a spare bedroom, it would be highly frowned upon. Perhaps if she were much older than he was, it might be acceptable to be his cook or housekeeper, but she was definitely younger than he was. She guessed by ten years or so.
Once she had exhausted her list of other options, she considered what marriage to Hank would be like. He seemed kind, gentle, and caring. He was ruggedly handsome. She definitely felt an attraction to him, but she had always thought that she would get to know the man she married before she actually married him.
She blushed as she thought about the wedding night and all it entailed. She was twenty-two years old. She knew what would happen, even if she had never been kissed before. Would Hank be willing to marry her, but wait to consummate the marriage until they got to know one another better?
Josephine tossed and turned in an attempt to get comfortable, but her mind kept her awake. She was still awake when the sky first lightened as dawn approached. After a few minutes, she heard Hank’s soft footsteps in the hall. They paused outside her door for a moment, and she imagined him listening at her door to see if she were awake.
She could hear the soft thumps of his boots grow softer as he walked toward the stairs, then they faded to silence once again. A rooster crowed, and Josephine decided to get up and make some breakfast.
The room was cold enough that she could see her breath as she exhaled. She mentally braced herself and then hopped from the bed and dressed as quickly as she could. It was always hard to get out of a warm bed into a cold room, so she did not linger. As soon as she was dressed, she wrapped her shawl about her shoulders and made her way to the kitchen.
Hank was nowhere to be seen, but he had apparently started the fire in the wood stove. The stove itself was still fairly cool to the touch, but was rapidly warming near the firebox. Josephine warmed her hands by it for a moment before searching the kitchen for cooking supplies.
She found most of what she needed in the cabinet against an adjoining wall close to the stove. She was amazed that a bachelor had kept the kitchen in such good working order. Most everything was exactly where she thought it should be. It was almost as though a woman had laid everything out.
That thought reminded her of something Hank had said the previous day. He was keeping an eye on this house for his boss, Caleb. He had said it had belonged to Caleb’s brother. Past tense, which meant his brother had died. Had this brother been married? Did it belong to this Caleb person now?
Josephine moved about the kitchen to learn where everything was kept. She found the frying pan she would need to make flapjacks and placed it on top of the stove nearest the firebox to preheat. Next she set a pot of coffee on to boil. Once she had those in place, she turned and looked the room over more closely.
She saw the door Hank had used when she had first arrived and verified it did indeed contain stairs down to a root cellar. She smiled. Whoever had built this house had put a great deal of thought into little details like that. Her step-father had their cellar doors outside and it was inconvenient to have to go out in the snow and shovel her way to said doors to retrieve anything from it during the winter.
She had just begun to wonder if Hank would allow her to help plan their house if she chose to marry him when he walked in from outside. She nearly giggled when she saw him and covered her mouth with her hand to hide it.
Hank had a bucket of milk in one hand and a basket with some eggs in it clenched in his teeth. He had clearly needed a hand free to open the door. The sight he made was quite comical.
He saw Josephine standing in the kitchen and smiled as he shut the door against the brisk wind that blew at his back. As soon as the door closed, he removed the basket from his teeth and set both the basket and the bucket of milk down on a bench by the door. “Good morning, Josie. I didn’t expect to see you up so early.”
Josephine smiled in return. “Good morning. I thought I’d make you some breakfast. I assume you’ll be heading over to the ranch today?”
Hank nodded as he removed his hat, scarf, and coat, and then hung them on their peg by the door. “Yep. They need me. Hope you don’t mind.”
“Not at all,” she replied. Josephine moved to take the eggs to the table, where she had already set out a large stoneware bowl to mix up some flapjacks. Now that she had the eggs, she was ready to whip up a batch. It was easy to do with everything more or less in one spot.
“Thank you for making breakfast. It’ll be nice to eat something I didn’t make for a change,” Hank said with a smile. He took the pail of milk to the ice box and set it inside, then quickly washed up at the dry sink. He desperately wanted to ask if she had given his proposal any thought, but knew that he did not have much time before he had to leave. Perhaps it would be best to wait until he came home for the night.
Josephine quickly mixed up the batter for the flapjacks. She sprinkled a little water on the frying pan to make certain it was hot enough, then quickly melted a dab of butter on it so the flapjacks would not stick.
It was not long before the delicious aroma of cooking flapjacks filled the room. Hank breathed in deeply as he poured himself a cup of coffee and sighed appreciatively. “Josie, darlin’…Those smell delicious.”
She blushed at the compliment. Her step-father never offered her any. All he had ever done was complain. “I hope they taste as good as they smell.”
“I’m sure they will.” Hank retrieved some jam from the jelly cupboard and set it on the table next to the butter in eager anticipation of the flapjacks. He would have preferred maple syrup, but did not have any on hand. His stomach growled loudly in anticipation.
Josephine grinned as she heard his stomach growl, but did not embarrass him by turning around or mentioning it. She continued making flapjacks as quick as she could. Once she had four on a plate, she turned and set them at the table.
“Why don’t you sit down and get started? I know you have to get going soon.” She turned back and spooned more batter onto the frying pan.
Hank shuffled his feet nervously. He had always been taught to not sit until all the women in the room were seated, but she had a valid point. Suddenly he remembered his mother doing much the same thing when he was growing up and hurried
ly sat down to eat. He paused a moment to say a silent blessing, then began to butter his flapjacks. He started with the one on the bottom, worked his way to the top, and then topped it all off with some jam.
He dug in eagerly. As he slowly chewed his first bite, his eyes closed in delight. “Mmmmm,” he murmured as he chewed. “Josie, darlin’…that is the best flapjack I have ever eaten in my entire life.”
Josephine glanced back over her shoulder as she waited to flip the next flapjack in the pan. Hank seemed sincere as he eagerly dug into the stack. “I don’t know about that,” she said demurely. “My ma always taught me to add a little sugar and vanilla to the batter. I’m surprised you even had vanilla! I still think hers were better.”
Hank smiled. He found her humility rather charming. “Well, since I never tasted your ma’s, I can honestly say these are the best I’ve ever had. Even better than my ma’s. Madeline stocked my kitchen. I don’t know half of what’s here.”
Josephine could feel her ears burning. “Hush, now. Eat,” she demanded as she focused on flipping the flapjack in the pan.
Hank chuckled softly, but continued eating until he had his fill.
Josephine joined him when she had finished making the flapjacks. She was halfway done with her stack when Hank had finished his third.
He pushed back from the table with a satisfied sigh. “You’ll have to teach Cookie your secret. The boys will love you for it,” he said with a wink.
She smiled in return. She had not yet made up her mind as to how she would answer Hank’s proposal, but she liked how confident he seemed that she would stay with him. She hoped to have an answer for him by the end of the day.
Hank got up from the table and took his plate to the sink.
“Don’t worry about the dishes, Hank. I’ll do them when I’m finished.”
He turned around and looked at her questioningly. He did not want her to think that he expected her to do all the housework, as though she already thought of this as her new home.
Josephine smiled. “Please, it’s the least I can do after keeping you from work yesterday. I’ll be fine.”
Hank chewed his lip as he thought about what she might do while he was at the ranch. “Promise me you won’t leave while I’m gone?”
She nodded solemnly. “I promise I will be here when you get home tonight.”
Hank smiled a little, then bundled back up before heading back out again. He turned to her one last time before he left, caught her eye, and tipped his hat to her in farewell as he opened the door and stepped out into the cold morning.
Josephine watched him go and sighed softly. Now that she was alone, she could consider his offer without any distractions. She finished her breakfast and then began cleaning around the house, starting with the kitchen. It was the least she could do, after all Hank had done for her, and perhaps the work would help her sort things out in her mind.
*****
Hank rode up to Caleb’s ranch with a knot in his stomach. His mind had bounced back and forth between worrying about Josephine’s answer to his proposal and telling Caleb about her. Caleb had always been more than just his boss and more than just a friend. They were like brothers, and Caleb’s opinion mattered greatly to Hank.
He also knew that once he stepped inside and spoke to Caleb and Madeline about Josephine, his Josie was likely to be immediately removed from his house and brought to the ranch. He knew it was not proper for both he and Josephine to be sleeping under the same roof while unwed, but he also knew that she was safe with him. Not that she would not be safe here, with Madeline around. He just liked having her company.
He dismounted, took his horse into the barn, and quickly looped the reins around a post before heading to the back door of Caleb’s house. He knew that it would not be long before he would head out to check on the cattle, so removing the saddle and bridle was unnecessary.
He briefly wondered why he did not hear Pardner, George’s dog, barking, but then realized the dog must be out with Walter and the others. That dog sure loved to sniff around.
Hank quickly walked up to the house and, steeling his courage, knocked on the door. In the old days, before Madeline arrived, he would have just knocked and walked in. Things changed when there was a woman in residence.
Madeline opened the door with a smile and ushered Hank inside. She had flour on her nose and in her dark brown hair. “Hurry up inside! It’s cold out there today.”
Hank removed his hat as he hurried through the door and nodded in agreement. “Yes, ma’am. It sure is.”
Madeline gave him an all too familiar look that reprimanded him for calling her “ma’am” instead of “Maddy” and went back to her bread-making.
Hank looked around the kitchen and spotted Caleb’s nephew George sitting at the table, playing with a small piece of dough. Flour littered the table and floor around him. George was clearly the source of Madeline’s disheveled appearance. Hank walked over to George and playfully mussed the boy’s hair. “Hey there, Georgie. You having fun?”
George nodded and kept playing with the dough. Hank was not certain just what George was making with it, but was glad to see him having fun.
He was about to ask Madeline where Caleb was when Caleb walked into the room.
“Hank! There you are!” Caleb exclaimed in relief. “Everything all right?”
Hank nodded. “I’m glad you’re both here,” he stammered as he fiddled nervously with his hat. “Something’s come up.”
Caleb’s eyes grew concerned as he watched his friend fidget nervously. It was very unlike Hank to not come to work yesterday, even with the snowstorm. He had sent Walter to check on Hank, but Walter had returned and reported that all was well and that Hank simply could not make it that day. Caleb was curious to hear what had happened. It was very unlike his reliable friend.
Madeline also glanced over at Hank, curious as to what was going on as well.
Hank cleared his throat nervously. “I’m sorry I didn’t come to work yesterday. I was going to, but…” He chewed his lip nervously as he thought of the best way to phrase what he wanted to say.
Caleb and Madeline waited patiently. They knew that Hank would speak when he was ready.
After a moment, Hank continued. “I was just coming back from the barn yesterday morning…you know, with the milk and eggs…when I saw someone walking up toward the house. I quick put the milk and eggs in the house, then went to see who was crazy enough to be walking through the prairie at night in that weather.”
Hank paused as Madeline handed him a warm cup of coffee. He murmured a polite thank you and took a sip before he continued.
“The person was all wrapped up in a quilt and was stumbling through the snow. I hurried over and…well, I was sure surprised to find out it was a woman! Snow was so deep that I couldn’t tell she was wearing skirts until I got close enough. Poor thing was nearly frozen solid!”
Madeline gasped at the thought of some woman wandering across the prairie, alone, in the middle of winter. “Is she all right?”
Hank nodded. “Yes’m. She had herself layered up and bundled under that quilt. Good thing she did, too, or she might not have made it.”
Caleb chewed his lip thoughtfully. “Is she still at your place?” He knew that the woman would be safe with Hank, but he also knew it was not proper for her to be there, no matter how old she was. Whoever she is, she was very lucky to find Hank and not some of the other more unsavory types who had homesteads in the area.
“Yep. Made me breakfast this morning. She’s a nice young thing. Hasn’t told me much, but I could see that someone had hit her. Finally got her to tell me that her step-father had done it. It’s why she left home like she did.”
Madeline opened the oven door and slid her loaves of bread inside. Once the door was closed, she turned to Hank and spoke what was most on her mind. “She really shouldn’t be staying alone with you in that house. How old is she?”
Hank shrugged. “I don’t know, exactly. She�
��s gotta be somewhere around twenty or so, I reckon.”
“Madeline’s right. We should bring her here. If word gets out that she’s with you, alone…” Caleb did not want either of their reputations to be injured by idle tongues.
Hank nodded in agreement and sighed. “I know, I know. Hate to see her go, though. I…I asked her to marry me.”
A stunned silence met his declaration. It took a moment for that surprise to sink in before Madeline spoke up.
“Well, you sure don’t beat around the bush, do you?” she asked with a chuckle. “And what did this mystery woman say?”
Hank shuffled his feet nervously and could not meet Madeline’s eyes as he answered, “She’s thinking it over.”
Caleb cleared his throat. “She’ll stay with us while she thinks. You and I can head over with the sleigh at lunch.”
Hank looked up at his friend. “Funny thing is, I was gonna send off for a mail order bride this spring, like you did. And here this woman just walks right up to the house and into my life.” He shook his head in amazement.
“She might say no,” Madeline reminded Hank. “Does she have somewhere she was headed? Family she can run to, maybe?”
Hank shook his head. “She didn’t say she had any. I can’t think that she would have stayed with her step-father as long as she had if she did. I told her that I would protect her from him, if he ever comes around.”
Caleb walked over and began putting on his winter coat and gloves, which were on the pegs behind Hank. “Well, in the meantime, we’ll just tell everyone in town that we found her instead of you. I don’t like lies, but that will protect her reputation and give her the option of choosing to marry you. If the town heard that she was alone with you…”
Hank's Runaway Bride (Brides of Chimney Rock Book 1) Page 4