by Barbara Goss
“Not at all. I feel comfortable with everything…well, almost everything.”
Laura stopped walking and gazed up at him. “What aren’t you comfortable with?”
Max pressed his lips together and hesitated, unsure as to how to begin. “I don’t know a thing about horse breeding,” he blurted.
Laura gasped. Her hands flew to her cheeks. “No!”
“I’ve worked with cattle since I was in short pants, and I thought it would be similar. So I told you in my letter that I knew about horse breeding.”
“Oh, dear!” Laura’s face paled.
“I’m sorry, Laura. I promise to learn—in fact, I’ll start today.”
“The ranch has gone downhill since Edwin died, and I really need someone to straighten things out. I’d so counted on your expertise.”
“I’ll let you out of the agreement, if you'd like. I really thought it would be as easy as raising cattle. I know how to break horses but not how to breed them. I was desperate for you to choose me, so I sort of embellished my skills.”
“It’s knowing which horses to breed to make the most money and knowing how many we need to sell to make enough to last us. It’s running sales and making connections—that’s our bread and butter.”
“Laura, I’m so sorry. I’ll release you from the marriage. I had no right to mislead you like I did.”
“Honestly, Max. I don’t know what to do.”
Laura’s head was spinning. If she released him, it could take months to get another horse breeder, and she rather liked Max, besides. Though he'd deceived her, she understood he'd thought it might be the same as cattle breeding. She didn’t know what to do. There was something about him; she didn’t want to let him go.
She sighed. “No, let’s go through with the marriage. We'll figure it out together. At least we’ll have you to protect us.”
Max grabbed her hand, squeezed it, and he knelt down to speak to Caro. “What do you think, Caro? Should Mama and I marry?”
“Will you be my new papa?” she asked with wide eyes, still holding tightly to Laura’s dress.
Max took her free hand and said, “People only get one mama and papa in life, but sometimes they get someone like a papa who will love them and care for them just like a papa would.”
Caro smiled up at him. “You can marry Mama.”
“I want you to come to our wedding tomorrow. I think you should be a part of it.”
“Yes!” she said and let go of her mother’s skirt to hug Max, who almost lost his balance since he hadn’t been expecting the sudden embrace.
Since Max hadn’t unpacked, he decided to leave everything in the suitcase since he’d be moving in with Laura and Caro the next day. He felt good about having won Caro over and he had been wrong in thinking he couldn’t be a papa to a child that wasn’t his. He could. He already felt affection for her. He knew she’d soon grow on him—as would her mother.
As he prepared for bed, another thought struck him. He’d also deceived her about being a churchgoer. He’d only gone to church a few times before, mostly with friends. His father and brothers weren’t churchgoers either. He had nothing against going to church—he'd rather liked the services he’d attended. Should he risk another confession or should he try to bluff his way? He couldn’t risk losing his newly-found family, so he’d have to bluff his way through. He’d go to church and pretend he’d always gone. It wasn’t a big deal—it was only one hour a week, after all.
Laura was waiting for him at the church when he arrived, only a few seconds past noon. She was wearing a ruffled, orchid dress. Caro was at her side, wearing a pretty, yellow pinafore. They both smiled at him as he approached. The Reverend joined the trio, standing opposite them. He read from the Bible and then they repeated their vows. Max didn’t think much about the words—they were just words after all, and he said them without even thinking about them. When the Reverend said “You may kiss the bride,” he shocked them both.
Max looked quite handsome in his suit and string tie. She couldn’t take her eyes from his when she repeated her vows. Was this real? She was marrying the best-looking man she’d ever seen.
When the Reverend said, “You may kiss the bride,” she instinctively took a small step backward; she hadn’t kissed another man since Edwin.
Max hesitated after the Reverend’s words, but then he leaned over and touched his lips lightly to hers. It was so brief, she wondered if she’d imagined it. Max slipped the Reverend some money, and then he put Caro onto his shoulders—much to her delight—and he took Laura’s hand and walked them to the waiting buggy.
On the ride home, Laura thought about Edwin. Marrying so soon after having been married to Edwin seemed strange. She hoped Max would be a better husband. Edwin had been an excellent horse breeder, running the ranch with expertise—he’d grown up on a horse-breeding ranch on the other end of Silverpines.
After their marriage, Edwin had been congenial, but once Caro had been conceived, he'd turned somewhat cold and angry. While she'd carried the baby, he'd talked about it as his son. He even had a name picked out: Edwin Joseph, Jr. When the baby turned out to be a girl, he became angry, even mean at times.
They tried again and again but there wasn’t another conception. He became angry each month when she had her time. Once, he’d pushed her into a wall and screamed that she hadn't conceived on purpose. Later, he’d apologized, but she never saw the affable, and gentle man she’d married again. She felt herself slowly falling out of love with him because he technically wasn’t the same man she’d married anymore.
Presently, she was riding home with a handsome husband who was kind and sweet. Would he stay that way? If he did, she thought she could endure the hardship of his having to learn the business. Max seemed to have won Caro over, whereas Edwin hadn’t bothered with her much, having held onto his grudge that she hadn’t been a boy.
Laura and Caro showed Max to his room. He wanted to unpack and change his clothes, so she and Caro went to her room where they changed into everyday dresses. They met Max out in the stables. One of the barn cats had recently delivered a litter of kittens, and Caro sat in the corner playing with them, while she and Max spoke with Dexter.
Dexter shrugged. “I know Edwin would pick horses he no longer wanted for breeding and tag their stalls with a red ribbon, indicating they were the ones to be sold, but I have no idea how he chose them.”
“Are there any records that might show us which horses gave birth and when?” Max asked.
“Yes!” Dexter ran to the small office at the back of the stables and returned with a logbook which he handed it to Max.
“Well, I guess I have my night reading planned.” Max tucked the book under his arm and browsed the stalls. “Who cleans the stalls and feeds the horses?”
“I feed the horses, and we pay a neighbor lad to muck the stalls. He comes once a day. His name is Alfred.”
“I met a man at the livery who knows a bit about horses.” He turned to Laura. “Do you know Walter Myers?”
“Yes, I do. He used to work at the livery. I hear he’s back working there,” Laura said.
“He might be able to help me some.”
A bell rang in the distance, and Max gave Laura a curious look.
“That’s just Dawn calling us to supper.”
“Let’s eat, then,” Max said, holding his arms out for Caro.
She ran to him and he hefted her onto his shoulders, smiling when she squealed with delight.
Laura’s heart pounded in her chest. Caro and Max have bonded. What could be more perfect?
Chapter 4
Laura and Max had tea in the sitting room after supper while Caro played with her rag doll and their house cat, Smoky, nearby.
It was quiet, and Max felt the need to say something. “It was a nice ceremony.”
“It was.”
Why couldn’t he think of something to talk about? Probably because they were still strangers.
Finally, Max said, “Tell
me about your family.”
“Oh, they're not very interesting. It was just my parents and me for ten years. My mother had several other babies, but none of them survived.” She smiled up at him. “Being an only child wasn’t so awfully bad, but then, an Indian chief gave my father a slave girl in return for saving his life. Dawn soon became a part of the family instead of a slave. We grew up together and were extremely close. She’s our housekeeper by her choice, and we've always paid her. It’s what she loves to do.”
“Tell me about your family,” Laura said.
“Do we have time?” He chuckled. “I have a father and two brothers. My mother passed away about ten years ago. We own a large cattle ranch and every year we’d be gone for weeks, taking our cattle to the marketplace. It’s not so bad, now that we have railroads. We used to have to herd them all the way to Kansas, and we’d be gone for months.”
Caro ran over to them, teary-eyed, holding her arm. “Smoky scratched me.”
“Let me see.” Laura took hold of her arm. “I’ll wash it and put some salve on it.” Laura stood. “It’s bedtime, anyway.”
“Will you read me a story, Max?” Caro asked.
“Me?” he looked to Laura for a way to answer. When she smiled and nodded, he said, “Sure.”
Once Caro was washed and dressed in her nightgown, she scrambled under her quilt. “I want the story about the rabbit.”
Laura handed Max the book, and he read it for her. He saw her mouthing the words as he read. When he was finished, he said, “You know this book by heart.”
“It’s my favorite.”
“Time for prayers,” Laura said.
Caro made a steeple with her hands. “Dear Jesus, please bless Mama, Max, Dawn, Smoky, and all our horses. Amen.”
Laura bent down, tucked Caro in, and kissed her on the forehead. “Goodnight, sweetheart.”
“Can Max kiss me, too?” she asked.
Laura looked at Max, and when he nodded, she said, “Of course he can.”
Max sat down on her bed and kissed her forehead. “Goodnight, and have sweet dreams.”
“Like dream about candy?” she asked.
Max laughed. “That would be a very sweet dream.”
Laura turned off the lamp, and she and Max backed out of the room, leaving the door slightly ajar.
“What would you like to do now?” Max asked. “It’s too early for us to turn in.”
“We could take a walk,” Laura suggested. “It’s a lovely evening.”
Max and Laura walked along the dark lane. “I have to thank you,” Laura said. “I’ve already noticed an improvement in Caro. Since her father died, I've had to lay with her until she fell asleep each night. She didn’t even ask me to do that this evening.”
“Maybe now that there’s a man in the house, she feels more secure,” Max suggested.
“Maybe,” she answered.
Max had never felt so tongue-tied. This was his wife, and he didn’t have a thing to say to her. What did husbands and wives talk about? How long would it take them to get to an intimate stage in their relationship? It certainly wouldn’t be any time soon. They were in a most uncomfortable situation.
He could tell by the way Laura bit her bottom lip that she felt as awkward as he.
Finally, Max blurted, “Let’s talk about us.”
“Us?” Laura asked, stopping by the edge of the main road.
“Yes, let’s talk about what we expect from each other. We’re married, and I just don’t know what to do or say next. Since you’ve been married before, maybe you can tell me how this should work.”
Laura looked up at him. “Our situation is new to me, as well. Edwin and I met in school in the primary grades, so he was never a stranger to me. I have no idea what to do next either.”
Max sighed. “All right, I’ll start. I think it’s time we at least held hands—it’s a starting point.”
Laura shrugged. “Sure.” She slipped her hand into his.
They turned around and walked back to the house. “Would you like to sit on the porch until bedtime?” she asked.
“I would. It’s far too lovely tonight to go inside.”
When they were seated, Max said, “Does it rain every single day here?”
“At some point,” Laura said with a laugh, “but it’s the best place in the world to grow a garden. The soil is fertile and the rain makes everything grow fast and delicious.”
“Do you have a vegetable garden?”
“Oh, yes. Dawn and I tend it together. It’s behind the barn. We also have several apple trees and one cherry tree. In the fall we do a lot of canning.”
“It’s so different from Texas,” he said. “I’m in a different world here.”
“What’s it like in Texas, Max?”
“Hot, dry, brown, and dusty. At least, it was where we lived.”
“I don’t think I’d like Texas, because I love seeing green all over in the spring and summer.”
“Our spring starts out with some green, but the hot sun slowly burns it yellow or brown. What’s it like here, in the winter?” Max asked.
“Cold, damp, more rain, and we’ve been known to have snow a few times a year. I like the changes in the seasons.”
Dawn poked her head out of the screen door. “I’m going up, now. The lamps are out, the stove is off, and everything is set for the morning. Goodnight, you two.”
They both wished her goodnight, and then Laura stood. “I’m feeling tired, myself.”
“I’ll go up, too. It’s been a busy day, and I want to get up early and start working with the horses. I’m going to study Edwin’s breeding notes before I turn my lamp off.”
They went inside, locked the door, and started up the stairs.
They stood outside their respective bedrooms. Max felt even more uncomfortable than he had before. Now, what? Should he give his wife a handshake?
Laura stood on her tiptoes and gave him a quick peck on his cheek, which shocked him, but he smiled.
“Goodnight, Max, and thank you for a wonderful day.”
Laura awoke when she heard Dawn rustling around in the kitchen. She got dressed quickly and was slipping into her boots when Caro came racing in.
“Mama! Where’s Max? He’s not in his room!”
“It’s all right, Caro. He’s probably in the kitchen or outside in the stables.”
“Can we go and see?” she asked, teary-eyed.
Laura grasped her by the shoulders. “Why are you so upset?”
“I like Max, and I want to keep him.”
“I promise you he isn’t leaving. This is his home now.”
Caro seemed to be thinking. “Let’s go find him.”
Laura laughed. She hadn’t thought Max would have won Caro over so quickly. She supposed Caro was as starved for male attention as she was. There. She finally admitted it to herself: she was starved for male company and attention, too.
Caro and Laura found Max walking from stall to stall, hanging red ribbons. He turned around and looked pleasantly surprised when he saw them.
“Good morning! How are my two favorite girls?”
Caro laughed.
“Good morning,” Laura greeted. “You’re out early. Did you figure out which horses should be sold and which to be bred?”
“Yes. Edwin kept very good notes. How about the Saturday after next for the sale?”
“That’s perfect," Laura said. “I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
“I’ll need posters made, and I’ll need to post an ad in several newspapers. Do we have a telegraph office in Silverpines?”
“Edwin didn’t run the sales like that, Max. He had contacts he sent wires to. There should be a list in the back of his logbook of buyers who bought from him on a regular basis. Some are livery owners, and some are just wealthy ranchers who want the best stock. We even have one man who regularly buys the ones that aren't saddle-trained for his rodeo.
“We do have a telegraph office, but the man who ran it
was killed while rescuing miners. I’m not sure it’s open.”
“Can we at least check?” Max asked. “Otherwise, we can ride to the next nearest town to send wires. I’ll check the logbook for the contacts.”
“We can go later today, if you’d like,” Laura said. “Will you be joining us for breakfast?”
“No, I had some homemade bread with butter and a cup of coffee.” Max turned at the sound of horses pounding up the lane. “Are you expecting anyone?”
“I’m not, but Caro and I are going in for breakfast, and we’ll see who’s here on our way in.”
Laura took Caro’s hand and they left the stables, but Laura stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the two strange men who’d visited her a few weeks ago.
“Ma’am.” The tall one removed his hat. “You remember us? Otis Farley and Bart McMann.”
“Yes, and I’m not interested in selling my home,” Laura stated firmly.
“You can keep the house and stables. We really only want your land,” Bart said.
Laura sighed. “What for? There isn’t even a road going back to that land.”
“We’re just investing,” Otis said.
“I’m not interested.” Laura stood with her feet planted firmly. “This land’s been in my family for years, and I’m not selling.”
“We did some figuring,” Otis said. “I think we can give you eight hundred for the place and you can keep your house.”
Laura gave them a sideways look. “Why do you want my land so badly?”
“Otis just told you,” Bart said. “It’s an investment.”
“I’m not selling. If you check around in town, maybe some of the other widows might sell, but I’m not.”
“You know you can’t run this place—”
“The lady said she isn’t selling!” Max shouted from the doorway of the stables. “Move on, fellas. We aren’t interested.”
“So,” Bart said in an almost whisper, “I see ya got yerself some help.”