Carrie's Montana Love: New Montana Brides (New Montana Bride Series)

by Susan Leigh Carlton

  “Good.”

  “Can I ask you something?” she said.

  “Sure, go ahead.”

  “Lucy told me you loved me. Is that true?”

  “It was.”

  “And now?”

  “I don’t know, Carrie. All this change, it’s so sudden. I don’t know what I feel.”

  “I’ll have to work on that,” she said.

  When they arrived in Bozeman, CP saw several of his friends from the previous term. They exchanged greetings, and he introduced Carrie to them. They acknowledged the introduction, and said, “You’ve been holding out on us, CP.”

  He laughed and put a protective arm on her shoulder. “We’ve known each other since we were toddlers.”

  “CP?” a voice said from in back of him. “I thought that was you. I’m glad you’re back.”

  It was an awkward moment. “Barbara, this is Carrie Owens. Carrie, this is Barbara Turner. She used to be my study partner.”

  “Nice to meet you, Barbara,” Carrie said, sweetly. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

  “And I you,” Barbara said.

  Any woman would have recognized it for what it was. The significance of the two meeting each other was lost on CP. The two beautiful tigresses were eying each other warily, claws extended.

  “I hope we can study together again, CP,” Barbara said.

  “I’m sorry, But that position is taken,” Carrie said.

  “Oh?” Barbara said, then turned and walked away.

  “So that’s Barbara,” Carrie said. “Lucy told me she had a boyfriend in, where was it?”

  “Billings,” CP offered.

  “Yes, Billings. Wonder what happened?” she mused.

  “No telling,” CP said. “Come on, I’ll get a carriage to take us to the dorms.”

  “Is your dorm close by?” she asked.

  “Right beside it, and the classes are an easy walk.

  “Good. I’m looking forward to a fresh start,” she said.

  He gathered her things and walked up the steps. “I’ll have to leave them inside the door,” he said. “Men aren’t allowed inside the women’s dorm, and vice versa. It’s an expulsion offense.”

  “Darn, I was hoping you could be my roommate,” she said with her impish grin showing.

  “Our mother’s would love that,” he said.

  “Wouldn’t they just?”

  She turned to face him. “Thanks, CP, for everything. It’s good to be with you and I really mean that.”

  He wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her close. He kissed her on the forehead. “I’ll be around. When you get your schedule, we can make some comparisons and be able to meet more often.”

  “CP?”

  He looked into those incredible green eyes of hers and thought, I could get lost in there.

  She put her arm around his neck and tugged.

  He bent his head until his lips touched hers. They kissed, a long tender kiss. The feeling of his lips on hers sent tingles throughout his body.

  She felt her knees weaken, and stepped back. “That’s what I’m talking about,” she said. “Our first real kiss. I’m pretty sure Mama would approve.”

  “It was good, wasn’t it? Carrie ‘Lizabeth, I’m glad you’re back.”

  She laughed. “You used to call me that all the time. You lost the ‘e’. I’m glad I am back, and I’m glad you’re glad I’m back.”

  “I think your driver is getting impatient or freezing, I don’t know which. I’d better go in so you can send him on his way.”

  It was two days before he saw her again. She was enrolled, and had gotten her schedule. “Let’s compare schedules,” he said.

  CP’s animal husbandry classes were not held in the main building, occupying their own special section of the campus. “We’re going to have to have to work on this,” he said. “We don’t line up together anywhere. I was hoping for a better match.

  “Where do you plan on studying? I favor the library, because it’s quieter, and I go there most evenings.”

  “That sounds like a good idea,” she said. “I’ll meet you there.”

  “Why don’t I pick you up at your dorm tonight, and have dinner and then go to the library?”

  “Sounds good to me,” she said. “About six?”

  “I’ll be there,” he said. The arrangement worked pretty well, and they carried it out about four times each week.

  It was a Thursday evening, and they were preparing to leave the library. CP said, “I’m planning to go home this weekend. Can you make it?”

  “She smiled ruefully, “I don’t think I should. I’m trying to cut back on some of the expenses. My escapades at Northwestern cost Mama and Papa more than they could afford, so I’m saving all I can.”

  “I’ll get the tickets,” he said, “I really want you to go.”

  “I know you mean well, but I can’t… won’t sponge off you. I’m planning on Easter.”

  Nothing more was said. They met at the library on Thursday.

  Sunday morning…

  Carrie was sitting in the church closest to the school, waiting for the services to start. “Mind if I sit here?” the voice asked.

  “I thought you were going home for the weekend,” she said.

  “I didn’t want to go without you,” he said.

  “That’s not fair, CP.”

  “Life’s not fair. If Mama gets mad, I’ll tell her it’s your fault. I wanted to come, but you wouldn’t come with me.”

  “You would too, wouldn’t you?”

  “Count on it,” he said.

  Later…

  No arrangements were made for the evening, but Carrie decided to go to the library and work on a term paper she was researching. Entering the library, she headed to the table she and CP usually used, the one closest to the heater. It got drafty in the library in winter.

  She stopped short. He was sitting at their table, and as she watched, Barbara Turner came to the table and sat.

  Fighting back tears, Carrie left the library and went back to her room.

  The next night, she didn’t show up for their planned meeting. Nor the next night. Nor the one after that.

  It was now five days since CP had seen her. Knowing her schedule, he camped outside her building and waited until she came out. “What’s going on?” he asked.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You know very well what I mean. You haven’t kept any of our library meetings this week”

  “I’ve been working on my term paper,” she said.

  “Carrie, that’s crap and you know it. Are you going to tell me or not?”

  “If you don’t know, then I’m not going to tell you; now, let me by, I’ve got to get to class.”

  chapter Nine

  Back To School

  When she didn’t show the next two evenings, CP cut his last class on Friday and took the train back to Helena.

  His mother was surprised to see him. “We didn’t expect to see you this weekend. What’s the occasion?”

  “I just wanted to see you and Papa, and I needed some of Maude’s cooking.”

  “Did Carrie come too?” she asked, suspecting the root of the problem.

  “No, I think she’s trying to save money or something. I haven’t seen her in several days.”

  Relentless, his mother said, “I thought you were studying together.”

  “We were, but she stopped coming.”

  “Did you ask her why?”

  “Yes, and she said if I didn’t know, she wasn’t going to tell me. Mama, I don’t have a clue.”

  His father came into the kitchen, “Well, look who’s here. What brought you home?”

  “Well, they’ve got this great big thing that runs on steel tracks. They call it a train.”

  Case looked at his wife, and rolled his eyes. “Since you’re here, you can help out. The weather’s been tough on the herd. The men found several frozen carcasses.”

  CP’s interest was captured.
“What can you do about it?”

  “Nothing that I know of” his father answered.

  Couldn’t we move them somewhere the wind can’t get at them?”

  “I guess so, but we don’t have a big enough pasture for all of them.”

  “Pop, we can split them up. The pasture behind the ridge should keep them out of the worst wind. If we move the herd that’s getting hit the hardest, we could minimize the loss. Let’s do it.” The idea of doing something productive elevated his spirits.

  “I always knew he was more than a pretty face,” Case said, and winked at his wife.

  It was well after dark, when they came back. The hands had gone to the bunkhouse, CP and his father came in, chilled to the bone. Maude brought each of them some hot tea, and a bowl of hot soup.

  “The cook has the same thing for the hands,”, Carrie told her husband.

  “Good, I was going to ask about that. We’re going to get back at it in the morning. I’m glad he came home. I think he probably saved us a good bit of money today.”

  ”Be sure and tell him. He needs cheering up.”

  “Trouble in paradise?” Case asked.

  “I think so. I don’t know what, and he says he doesn’t either.”

  CP returned to Bozeman, tired from the weekend, but pleased with himself. His father had praised his idea, and had told him so in front of their hands.

  The next evening, he was waiting for Carrie when she returned to her dorm from her last class of the day. “What are you doing here?” she asked.

  “I’m waiting for you. I don’t know what you think I did, but whatever it was, you’re wrong. One day you’re fine, and the next day, you’re avoiding me like I have the plague.”

  “Shouldn’t you be meeting Barbara?” she asked.

  “Barbara? What does Barbara have to do with this?”

  “CP, don’t play the innocent farm boy routine. It doesn’t go over well.”

  In a stone cold voice, he said, “Be careful, Carrie. Don’t say something you’ll regret, and that was close to the line.”

  “I saw you. In the library. I was there.”

  “You saw what? You were where? You’re not making sense.”

  “I saw you with her. At our table. I came in and you were sitting at our table with her.” She was mad, hurt, and she was crying.”

  “Honey, I wasn’t with her. I was studying, and she sat at the table. I couldn’t be rude and tell her to leave, but I certainly wasn’t with her.”

  “Really?” she asked in a tiny voice.

  “Really. Carrie ‘Lizabeth, if I have my way, I’ll be spending the rest of my life with you. Not Barbara. Not anyone else. You.”

  “I should have trusted you.”

  “Yes, you should have.”

  “I didn’t see you at the library Friday, or over the weekend.”

  “I went home. As it turned out, it was a good thing. The weather has been tough on the cattle and we’ve had some freeze to death. Friday, after I got home, we moved a good many cattle to where they would have shelter from the wind. We were out that night and a good part of Saturday. I think it was the coldest I’ve ever been in my life.”

  “Did you see Mama and Papa?” she asked.

  “No, I took the coward’s way out. I had enough of an inquisition from Mama, I didn’t want to face one from your mother too, so I skipped church.”

  “Did you mean it when you said you wanted us to spend the rest of our lives together?”

  “I did. Carrie, Someday, maybe you can come to grips with it. Until then,...”

  That evening, Carrie sat down to write Lucy a letter, but the words wouldn’t come. She was troubled, and didn’t know why. Is CP the one for me? Am I willing to spend my life as the wife of a rancher? What is wrong with me? Am I willing to settle for the quiet life? For all of these questions, she didn’t have the answers. She touched the pencil to the tip of her tongue, and began to write.

  Dearest Lucy,

  I wish you were here. I need to talk to someone and don’t know who. I can’t talk to Mama. She wouldn’t understand.

  CP and I have really been getting along well. He is fun to be around, but he’s like a big old lap dog. There’s no excitement. He is as steady as a rock. I know I should be pleased with that quality.

  We’ve been studying together at the library several nights a week. Last week, we had made no plans, and I went to the library and he was there. His old study partner, Barbara was there, sitting at the table. I was hurt. It stung, and I left without them knowing I had seen them. I began avoiding him. A week went by and I didn’t see him. He went home this past weekend and when he got back, he confronted me about what was wrong.

  I told him I had seen them together, and he told me she sat down unasked. He can’t be rude to anyone so he didn’t ask her to leave. I believed him when he said he had never lied to me.

  Luce, he told me he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. And I just stood there. Like a knot on a log. I couldn’t say anything. I keep asking myself if I could spend the rest of my life as a rancher’s wife. I don’t know the answer. I don’t even know if I can live in Helena. There’s no excitement, It’s the same thing day in and day out. I want more than that.

  I apologize for dumping on you like this, I needed to get it out of my system. I still don’t know what to do. Even if I wanted to go back to Chicago, we can’t afford it. Why are things so hard? Both of you know just what you want and are going after it. I don’t even know what I want.

  Please write soon. I so need a friend,

  Carrie.

  chapter Ten

  A Serious Problem

  “I’m going home this weekend to see if I can help Pop. Would you like to go with me?” CP asked.

  “No, I’m going to hold out until Easter. Will you be coming back Sunday or Monday?”

  “Probably Sunday, I hate to miss classes.”

  Friday…

  CP boarded the 1:00PM train. He would be in Helena in slightly under two hours. His father met the train. “Carrie didn’t come?” he asked.

  “No, she said she’s trying to save money. Her time in Chicago depleted their savings, and she feels guilty about it.” I offered to get her ticket, but she doesn’t want charity.”

  “We need to see what we can do about increasing Jack’s pay. We actually get the services of both of them for the price of one. I’ll look into it.”

  “That would be good, Pop.”

  Saturday morning, the hands split up and checked on the various herds. Case had loaded the wagon with hay several times and distributed it. Foraging was difficult with the grass covered with a layer of snow. CP had been paired with one of the younger hands to search for strays.

  The wind had a bite to it, and the young cowboy’s winter coat was not as good as the one CP was wearing. “Clay,” CP said, go on back to the bunkhouse. I’m going up this canyon and see if there’s anything in there, then I’ll be on along.” “Are you sure?” the cowboy asked. “Mr. Case says we should stay paired up.”

  “Go ahead, you’re freezing, I’ll be along in a few minutes?”

  “If you’re sure it’s all right,” the grateful cowboy said, and wheeled his horse around and headed for the warmth of the bunkhouse.

  CP rode to the end of the box canyon without seeing anything. He had just turned and started back when his horse stepped into a hole, and broke his leg, throwing CP to the hard ground, then falling on top of him, knocking him unconscious and pinning him to the ground, beneath. The body of the horse broke CP’s leg just below the knee.

  When he regained consciousness, he couldn’t move. The pain in the leg was excruciating. He tried dragging himself from under the horse, but his good leg was trapped and he had no strength in the other. Well, CP, this is a fine mess you’ve got yourself into this time, he said. He drifted in and out of his fog. The intense cold dulled the pain from the leg, but he was cold, and getting colder. The wind velocity picked up to a howl.

&nb
sp; He fought to keep his eyes open, but they drifted shut. The blowing snow soon covered his face with ice. So sleepy, he murmured.

  Back at the Lazy J, Case came in. His wife handed him a cup of hot tea. “This feels good,” he said. I think I’ll just wrap my hands around the cup to warm them up.”

  “You go sit in front of the fire, and I’ll get a blanket for you. Where’s CP?”

  “He’s not home yet?” Case asked.

  “No, Carrie said. I’ve been here all afternoon, and he couldn’t have gotten by me.”

  “He was with young Clay. “I’ll go check on him.” He pulled on his heavy coat, and boots, and went to the bunkhouse. Clay was sitting by the stove, still chilled. There was no sign of CP.

  “Clay, where’s CP?”

  The question startled the cowboy. “He’s not back yet? He was going down the box canyon back there and told me to come on back, said he would be right behind me.”

  “You left him?” said an incredulous Case.

  “Mr. Case, he told me twice to come on back.”

  “Son, you don’t ever leave your partner, especially in the winter. Come on boys, let’s go find him, if he’s still alive. I’ll take the wagon in case we need it.

  Thirty minutes later, they entered the canyon, calling out his name. “Fan out, and let’s go all the way to the end,” Case said. They were close to the end wall of the canyon when one of the cowboys called out, “Over here. They’re down.” Case wheeled the wagon in the direction of the voice. He jumped down, and ran to the two bodies.

  “The horse’s leg is broken and Mr. CP is trapped underneath,” the man said.

  Okay, you three lift the horse, and I’ll drag him out. Once he’s out from under the horse, Luke, you take one of the men, change horses at the ranch, and go get Doctor Palmer. And hurry.”

  “Yessir.”

  CP emitted a weak scream when his father dragged him from under the horse. The two riders left to get the doctor.

  “He’s alive,” said Case. “Thank God for that. Let’s lift him into the wagon. Be careful now, it looks like his leg is broken. They laid him in the hay that had been left in the wagon. Case covered him with the blankets he had put in the wagon before he left the house.