by Tia Siren
He’d always felt that if he let himself look at another woman, he would be betraying his late wife. He missed Annie still, thinking of her not on a daily basis anymore, thank God, but often. Little things around the house and around town still reminded him of her.
If he was not betraying Annie, he was putting yet another innocent woman in harm’s way. How could he justify doing that for his own selfish purposes? How could he go on with the thought that he may someday see another woman killed in front of his eyes and have his heart ripped out of his chest all over again?
The thought truly made him sick to his stomach.
He looked in the mirror hanging next to his front door and ran his hands through his dark hair. His brown eyes still looked sad. They always looked sad to him. He brushed his hands over his trim beard and sighed. He was going to do it anyway. He tried recalling the woman’s face in his mind but couldn’t. All he could see was Annie.
Perhaps Liz was right. Could it be time to put his heart on the line again? Was it worth it?
She’d been telling him for almost a year that he needed to brighten his life, find something new to be interested in, if not a woman, something else. But his job took precedence over everything. What woman was going to accept that?
Was that why Liz brought someone from afar to be his companion? He gnawed at his upper lip, staring at himself. He wasn’t a bad man. He tried very hard to be a good man.
“Lord, what do I do?” He asked aloud. “I don’t want to get another woman killed, especially one that I love.” He was quiet for a moment, hoping God would speak to him through the mirror. He pulled in a deep breath. It wasn’t going to happen. “I’ll see her tonight.”
His chest became tight with anxiety for a moment before it released and he felt peace fill him.
Maybe everything would turn out all right if he just kept his cool and talked to her to see what kind of woman she was.
And prayed.
Chapter Four
There were more people at the party than Hettie expected. She sat in a garden chair, watching them all. They talked and laughed, milling around the garden, admiring Liz’s fine work in such an arid atmosphere. The grass under their feet was green. Bushes and trees had been planted. Liz and John had placed stone tablets along the garden area and around the yard, so visitors didn’t need to step onto the grass or disrupt the vegetation.
“Aren’t you hungry, Hettie?” John asked, stepping over to where she was sitting. “You spent a lot of time preparing this food for everyone. You must have some, too.”
Hettie nodded. “I will. Don’t worry.” She smiled, reached over to the small white table next to her and picked up a thinly sliced carrot stick. She took a quick bite and chewed, still smiling at him. He nodded and laughed.
“Good for you.”
“John! Who is this lovely young lady?” An older man had approached and was leaning toward Hettie to take her hand. Hettie lifted it, and the man kissed it gently. “You are a refreshing breeze here in this dusty town, young lady.”
Hettie blushed. “Thank you, sir.”
“You must call me Charles!” The man announced. “And what might your name be?”
“This is Hettie, Charlie,” John answered, giving Hettie a look over the older man’s shoulder that made Hettie drop her eyes to keep from giggling.
“Hettie! It’s good to meet you!”
“Charlie runs the Little Boar Inn,” John explained, stepping a little closer so that the older man needed to edge away from Hettie. “Hettie is here to meet with James.”
Charlie raised his thick eyebrows and stood up straight, looking up at John. “Oh, I see!” He paused. “I take it this was an idea that came from Liz?”
John nodded.
Charlie looked back down at Hettie. “Well, young lady, let me tell you a few things about our Sheriff.” His voice had changed but not in an unfriendly way. “He is a good man. He’s taken good care of this little town, even after Annie was…killed, poor girl. It was a terrible tragedy and it hurt James greatly. But if he lets you in, you have a good chance of being with a good husband.” Charlie leaned back down and said in a low voice, “I do believe you are beautiful enough to catch his eye, I must say. If he doesn’t give you the chance, you will not have trouble finding a husband, should you want one.”
“All right there, Charlie.” John laughed. “Let’s go talk to Mary and Liz. You can quiz them about the social next month to see what plans they have made so far.”
The two men made off into the small crowd. Hettie watched them. Charlie seemed an amusing old man. As he and John walked off, he began talking excitedly about the social next month. Apparently, social gatherings were something this little town enjoyed frequently. With so few people populating the area, most knew each other. She had been greeted by each person at the party with open arms though she was a stranger and an outsider. She had the sneaking suspicion Liz had warned them all ahead of time that she would be there and had bolstered their opinion of her with her own opinion before they even met her.
She wondered if they had been told why she was here. John didn’t seem to have any trouble mentioning it. She had to assume they all knew what her purpose was. They were still kind and hospitable to her. She took that as a sign that they all cared about their sheriff as much as Charlie had implied.
She was brought out of her thoughts when she saw James come around the corner of the house. He was dressed in blue jeans, a well-fitting flannel shirt and had brushed his hair, from the looks of it. She pulled in a breath and held it for a moment. He was certainly a good-looking man. He stopped for a moment when he saw her. Before he could continue walking, Liz caught sight of him.
“James!” She called out. Everyone turned to look at him as he approached.
They all began to greet him. Hettie was amused to see the crowd gravitate toward James, wishing him well, almost hiding him from her sight. She caught his eyes straying to her while he responded to the people, smiling at them, removing his hat, shaking hands.
Hettie didn’t get up.
After a short time, the crowd dispersed somewhat, going back to what they had been doing. Liz and James stood to the side, talking in low voices for a few moments. Hettie tried not to watch them but was curious about their conversation. Neither seemed upset. Liz appeared to be apologizing, and James responded by nodding and pulling his sister into a hug. When they pulled away from each other, they smiled, and Liz moved off to find John, leaving James to gaze at Hettie.
She saw him looking and smiled at him, finally getting up.
“Hello,” Hettie said, approaching him. “I would have come over sooner, but you would think it was your birthday the way everyone gathered around you.”
At first, he didn’t say anything to her. Then he looked down at his hands, where he was clutching his hat firmly. “I must apologize for my behavior the other day, Hettie.”
“You must not worry about that.” Hettie shook her head. “I realize you were very surprised to see me. I hope that you aren’t upset with Liz about it. I am a grown woman and can take care of myself.”
“I am not upset with her.” James shook his head. “I am more upset with myself. I don’t generally treat strange, beautiful women that way.”
Hettie smiled at the compliment and looked down. “Thank you, James.”
“Shall we sit and talk?” He asked, holding out his hand to the chair she had been sitting in. She returned to it, and he pulled a similar chair nearby to sit close to her.
“How are you enjoying it here so far?” James asked, picking up a few of the same carrot sticks she had been eating from and taking a few bites.
“Actually, I find the atmosphere very refreshing. I know it is much warmer than my home in Virginia, but I like it. I would rather be warm than cold, wouldn’t you?”
He laughed. “I better. I live here.”
She laughed with him. “Yes, I suppose so. And now I do, so I better learn to like it if I don’t.”
She nodded. “I do.”
He looked around at the crowd and then back at her. “Would you like to go for a walk?”
Hettie looked up at the darkening sky. “Do you think we will be caught in the dark?”
James glanced around them. “There’s a lantern. We’ll take it just in case.”
“I would like to go for a walk then. But you carry the lantern.”
His wide smile made him, even more, appealing to Hettie. She tried not to let any kind of reaction come across her face. She couldn’t help smiling back, though.
They stood up, and she followed him to fetch the lantern and then down the garden path. “We’ll just walk around the house and land here, Hettie,” James said. “We won’t stray far from the path, I promise.”
“Good,” she responded. “I do like to stay on the proper path.” The one ordained by God, she thought but didn’t say.
He gave her a look that made her wonder if he’d known just what she was talking about.
“I want you to know that I’m not some big brute who likes to go around yelling at strangers…women or men.” His voice was low and gentle. Hettie found that she enjoyed listening to the sound of it when he talked. “I have been through a lot in my life, and it’s hard for me to…get by sometimes. I do hope you can understand what I mean by this.”
I do. Hettie didn’t speak the words aloud. She just looked at him with encouraging eyes. She nodded to let him know he should continue.
“When…when my wife was killed, it took a lot out of me. It took away the life in me for a long time. I only focused on the job. I keep the peace. It’s what I have to do to make sure the people here are safe. Safer than I…I had to work a lot harder to keep everyone safe. To make sure.” He stopped.
Hettie looked at him. “James, is it all right if we sit on the steps of the house to talk? I’m a little weary from being on my feet most of the day.”
“Oh, of course!” James nodded and they turned in the direction of the front of the house. He didn’t continue talking, and when they sat, it was Hettie who talked instead.
“James, Liz told me what happened with your wife and I’m so sorry to hear it. I’m sorry that you were so broken from it. I know how depressed you have been, and I understand it. I lost my mother in a tragic way, as well. She was killed when I was twelve. It took my father a long time to stop mourning. There’s just something you need to remember. When someone dies, you don’t want to let go. But eventually, you have to. You have to let God have it. It’s the only way to save your soul. I don’t know why your wife had to die or why my mother had to die. But God knows. And we have to trust Him.” She stopped and tilted her head, putting one of her small hands into one of his.
He looked closely at her. “Liz told me that you lost your mother,” he confessed. “She said that it should make me think about how we have something like that in common. She thinks we would be good for each other.”
Hettie felt a twitch in her chest, and she swallowed, smiling. “Do you think we would be good for each other?”
“I didn’t think so.” James wrapped his fingers around hers so that she couldn’t pull away. “I have thought about it and prayed about it for two days. I haven’t been able to see past the loss…the mourning. The anger I still feel…it eats away at me.”
She nodded. “Those kinds of emotions only hurt the one who feels them. There’s simply nothing we can do about the circumstances. We must rise above.”
They were quiet for a moment, sitting on the steps with their hands together.
“For years, I have been taking two steps forward and another back,” James said. “I feel like I’m not making any progress.”
“If you are taking a step forward then you are making progress. As long as it isn’t two steps back.”
James smiled.
“If you want to, James, I will stay here with Liz and John, and we can have a few more talks.”
“You want to see if you really want to stay with me?” James asked.
She giggled. “No, I was thinking the opposite way around. I was brought here for you. This must be your decision. I had already made mine.”
“Do you think you could love a man like me?”
“From what I’ve heard, you are a wonderful man whose heart has been kept in a prison of his own making for some time now.” She reached up and placed one hand on his cheek. He closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them to look into hers. “Don’t you think it’s time to let it out now so that it can heal?”
“You will stay and help it heal?”
“I surely will, James.”
James leaned forward so that he was inches away from her. “I don’t think it will take very long.”
Just before Hettie leaned in for the first of many soft kisses, she replied, “I will wait as long as it takes.”
THE END
The Mountain Bride – A Clean Western Historical Romance
Chapter One
Ella rinsed out the cooking pot and hung it on the nail to dry. She was almost done with the morning chores and was looking forward to the hour or so she would have to sit down at the kitchen table and read for a while. She was almost finished with her new book, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. She had no idea what she would be reading after that.
The newspaper was folded up on the table from where her brothers had left it this morning. They were out on the farm repairing a broken fence or something like that. She wasn’t certain. She’d been caring for them and their father since the death of her mother 16 years ago. Their blessing had been her youngest brother, Alfred. Their loss was their mother. At ten years of age, Ella had been given the task of raising her brothers. Their father was not a hands-on parent. He was rarely there, and when he was, he was unpleasant, loud and demanding. He had long ago decided that the first half of Ella’s name should have been “Cinder,” giving her a long list of chores to do every day.
She ran a cloth over the counter to clean it and looked around to see if she had missed anything. It looked clean to her. She hoped it looked clean to her father.
She sat down and unfolded the newspaper to run her eyes over the words without really reading them. There was almost always some kind of news about possible impending war, how President Lincoln was handling it and local good and bad news.
She was ready to set the paper down and go to her room for her book. She gazed out the window first, folding her arms over her chest and hugging herself. It was her dream to travel to the West and start a new life, but she couldn’t see how that would be possible in her current circumstances. Her father had never let her try to get any employment in town. She had the skills, she’d been cleaning, sewing her brother’s clothes and been their nursemaid for 16 years, starting from the newborn stage with Alfred, but he wanted her there at the house, keeping everything clean and in order.
For the last few years, Ella felt secluded, isolated from the world. The worlds in her books gave her a clear idea of where she wanted to be. She’d read a lot about the growing towns and cities in the west. That was all the way across the country. It was far away from here.
It was far away from her brothers.
The thought made her a little sad. It was useless to even think about it anyway. She wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. You don’t go anywhere unless you have the money to do it. And she had no valuable property to her name.
She heard the sound of her brothers stumbling through the outside door and loudly taking their boots off in the mudroom. They were joking around about something and tumbled into the kitchen, wrestling with each other. She stood up and moved to the cabinet to get out a few glasses for water. They were sure to be thirsty after working hard all morning. They were certainly dusty enough for it.
“You’re such a bum!” Oscar and Dave appeared to be directing their teasing toward Alfred, the youngest. Oscar gave Alfred a shove and the three of them laughed, pulling their hats from their heads.
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“Hello, sis!” Dave came over to where Ella was pouring water into the three cups from the cool pitcher. He took one of the cups from the counter and gave Ella a kiss on the cheek. “How’s your day been? Another long one of cooking and cleaning for ungrateful brats?”
Ella giggled, giving him a narrow look. Her green eyes were sparkling. “I certainly have. How did you know?’
He shrugged. “It’s what you usually do.”
He went back to the table and sat in one of the chairs. “That’s too true, my brother,” Oscar said.
“Don’t you think it’s about time you got yourself a life, sister?” Alfred said.
“What would you know about having a life, Al?” Dave said. “I’m older than you, and I know you don’t know anything about getting a life.”
“She needs a life outside this farm, outside this house.”
Dave nodded, moving his eyes back to his sister, who was setting the cups down in front of her other two brothers. She went back for her own drink. “I agree with you, Al. She is in need of controlling her own life.”
“You know Papa isn’t going to let me go anywhere. I’ll be taking care of him until long after you three are gone.”
“I’m planning on getting married next year,” Dave said. “You know that. It could be anytime that these guys leave this place. You can’t stay here. You can’t let Papa force you to stay here.”
“I am not sure I have much of a choice.”
The three boys didn’t look at her, and there was a quiet pause in the conversation. “Well, before we start feeling blue,” Dave said. “How are you doing with your new book, Alice’s Wonderland, is it?”
“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” Ella corrected with a nod, sitting next to Oscar. “I’m about done with it.”