by Etta Foster
“Yeah, you and me both,” Gavin muttered, gazing numbly at the medicine he now held. “How much do I owe you?”
“There are no debts among friends, Gavin. Our families go way back. Consider it a gift,” Malcolm tipped his hat and made his way to his horse. Gavin accompanied him to the front gate, waving farewell as Malcolm slowly rode off. He watched the doctor retreat into the distance before turning back toward the house. I should go talk to Jessica. I don't want to keep her in the dark about this.
It was hard for Gavin to focus on the remainder of the chores he needed to complete that day as he trudged through his tasks. His thoughts were stuck on the notion that he might be yet another victim in a series of sabotages. Did I unwittingly bring the wrath of Virgil Gleason onto me?
“You look like you've got a lot on your mind,” Harland said as he came up behind Gavin, clapping him lightly on the back.
“I think this is just the first of many things we’ll have to keep our eyes out for, Harland. This wasn't done by accident. This was done deliberately, and I have no doubt this is just the beginning of these kinds of incidents,” Gavin replied wearily, rubbing his face with his hands.
“Tell me what you’re thinking.” Harland knelt next to Gavin, who was beside Caesar. He watched as his employer tried to coax the horse to eat the healing herbs mixed with some hay. He'd managed to get the horse to eat a little, but it was slow going.
“I think that Arnold came on the property last night and poisoned Caesar.” Gavin's voice was hard as he spoke. “I think that he came to try and get back at me for insulting him in town when Jessica and I were making our way back to the ranch.”
“Well, he does work for Gleason. We know that sabotage isn't outside the realm of possibility for them. Remember when I told you I'd heard about the Darbys’ chickens having been strangled? This situation sounds similar to that,” Harland replied, causing Gavin to turn his head toward his friend in surprise.
“You mean you've heard of stuff like this happening before?” This was all news to Gavin. Had he really been so out of touch with Virgil Gleason's actions that he'd missed something so significant?
“I hear them boast about it all the time in the saloon. Virgil goes to a successful farm and tells the owner he wants to buy it. He usually offers them much less than their land is worth. Then when they turn him down, awful things start happening around their property. Animals get sick, mysterious injuries befall the staff. We might need to put ourselves on high guard because of this,” Harland said while he rose to his feet, brushing away dust and hay that was clinging to him.
“That might not be a bad idea. I want to make sure things don’t escalate any further.” Gavin rubbed his chin gently, his fingers stroking through his beard idly. “I especially don't want the cattle being left unattended until further notice.”
***
A week later, Gavin was sitting astride his horse next to Harland. They'd just brought the herd out to the lake to have a drink, so there was plenty of time to kill. Harland was currently flipping through a small book he carried with him, scribbling in the corners occasionally with a pencil he kept tucked behind his ear.
“How are things going with you and Jessica?” The question came so unexpectedly that Gavin almost choked on the water he'd been drinking from his canteen. He thumped himself a couple of times on the chest to try and clear out his airway before casting a sour look at Harland.
“I guess it’s going okay. We've been trying to spend more time together in an attempt to get to know each other, but with Caesar being poisoned I admit I've been distracted. We share dinner each night, so it’s not like we don't see each other. But I doubt it’s as much time as she would like. She never complains, though. I try to remain reserved around her, but she's unwittingly bringing things out in me that I haven't felt in years. I'm kind of scared by it, to tell you the truth,” he confided, scratching the back of his head.
“Just sounds like you've been missing having a woman around. It helps that she’s pretty. Are you worried about her betraying you like Claudia?” Harland wasn't pulling punches with his questioning, his eyes drilling into Gavin.
“Honestly, I am. I don't want it to seem like I'm trying to keep her at arm’s length.” Hell, there are times when I just want to make excuses so that I can get away from her. This marriage of convenience is proving to be a little less convenient than I planned.
“I understand what you’re going through, friend. When your mind is plagued by things beyond your control, it’s usually best to turn your focus to other things. Maybe what you need is a little more time seeing to the various needs on the ranch. It’ll keep your mind off her when she's not around, and maybe it will lessen the bad mood you’re in,” Harland tucked his book into his saddlebag and dug his heels into his horse, spurring it forward.
I wish I knew what the right thing was to do. It would all be so much easier if I could just know what she was thinking. She made it sound like the men in her life up until now had been overwhelmingly negative. Especially that brother of hers.
Gavin shook his head in agitation as he realized his thoughts had once again turned to Jessica. Pulling on the reins of his horse to get it to turn around, he began making his way back toward the house. He was so caught up in his thoughts that he almost didn't register that his mother and Jessica were sitting out on the front porch until he was close to them.
“Gavin, would you like to join us for a game of cards? Jessica was saying that she doesn't know how to play poker, so I figured we could play a couple of games for fun. What do you say?” his mother asked with her usual chipper attitude on full display, making Gavin wince gently.
“Gosh, I’d love to, but I have a whole list of chores Harland recently brought to my attention that need to be done. It’s looking like we need to fence in the majority of our property. After that fiasco with Caesar being poisoned, I need to figure out a way to prevent unwanted guests from being able to mosey onto our property whenever they please. Maybe another time.” Gavin did his best to sound genuinely regretful, and for the most part, he was.
When he got in later that evening, he discovered Jessica waiting for him alone. “Are my parents not joining us for supper tonight?” he asked, raising an eyebrow as he eyed the single plate set out on the table.
“They said they didn't like feeling as though they’re chaperoning our meals. Viola said she trusts us enough to act like responsible adults together,” Jessica’s humor was dry as she gazed at Gavin over her folded hands.
“Thank goodness for that. They were making everything awkward. I love them to death, but they’ve never been good at reading the mood in a room. They’re simple, honest people. That simple honesty causes them to misspeak at times,” Gavin said, sitting down next to Jessica and lifting a forkful of casserole to his mouth. He chewed it gratefully for a moment, looking at her. “Did you cook this?”
“I managed to convince Viola to allow me to cook for you tonight. I wanted to repay you in some way for choosing me for your wife. I figured cooking a nice meal would be a start.” Jessica poured him a glass of milk to drink, returning to her seat soon after.
Gavin snuck an occasional glance at her when he thought she wasn't looking and found she was doing the same. It was the sweet sort of thing he used to do with Claudia, even if she had claimed it drove her crazy. The casserole shouldn't have been anything special as it was made of just vegetables and some leftover meat from their meal the night before, but to him, it was heavenly. There was a flavor in it he didn't recognize, and it had a slightly spicy kick he found rather pleasant.
“You've got that look on your face again,” Jessica whispered, her voice just loud enough so he could hear it.
“What look is that?” Gavin asked, figuring that he would humor her.
“You look like you have something you want to say, but you’re holding it in for some reason,” she said matter-of-factly. “I spent a lot of time having to learn to read people's faces, and yours may as
well be an open book.”
“Is that right? Well, what does my face tell you?” Gavin asked, taking another bite of the flavorful casserole sitting in front of him.
“It tells me that you have a lot of things on your mind, but you don't want to burden me with them. I see that you’ve been suffering greatly with what happened to your horse, and it makes me sad that there doesn't seem to be anything I can do to help with that,” she said, the sincerity in her voice causing him to bite the inside of his cheek gently. His heart skipped a beat, heat creeping up his face as he felt a blush streak across his cheeks.
“Lucky guess,” he grumbled softly, suddenly finding his plate to be very interesting. She hit just about every nail on the head. I'm going to need to be more careful around her. She is one sharp cookie.
“Can we spend a little more time together in the coming days? I'm sorry if I come across as needy, but I figure I won't be able to be of help if I don't learn how to do anything. I'm not the kind of person who just wants to sit around and do nothing all day, so I need something to keep my mind occupied. Surely you can understand that,” she said, batting her eyelashes at him.
I sure can. “We'll see what happens. I can't guarantee anything, but I’ll do my best to keep your request in mind.” He could tell that she wasn't fully satisfied with his answer, but it was the best he could do for now. He'd have to deal with his own feelings before he would have any chance of making their new relationship work.
Chapter 8
Is this what it is like to be a newlywed? You barely see your husband and when he does come home from work you sneak whatever bit of time with him that you can? Or is this just a difficulty of being a rancher's wife?
Coralee was standing in front of the small mirror that sat by the wash basin, her heart sinking gently as she saw the forlorn look currently plastered across her features. She knew she was probably just overreacting, but it felt almost as if the initial interest Gavin had shown was fizzling out like the flame of a windblown candle.
We've barely spent any time together, aside from taking our meals together and our ride around the property. He told me that he was going to try his best to spend more time with me and help me get settled in, but we've only been spending less time together. Was he lying to me before?
Coralee angrily brushed away the tears she realized were streaking down her cheeks. Her frustration was getting the better of her, and it wouldn't do any good to get all bent out of shape. This was supposed to be a marriage of convenience, she reminded herself. It's for his convenience, not mine.
Mama told me I should only ever marry for love. After witnessing what she went through with Father, I know why. He refused to admit to their relationship and denied me my birthright. He called me a bastard child, saying I'd disgrace his name if it were ever to be discovered. I can't imagine ever doing something like that to my own child.
She slowly paced back and forth, doing her best to make sure the sound of her footsteps didn't echo too loudly down the hallway. Viola was downstairs, the sound of her singing managing to echo up the hallway to Coralee's room.
She only recognized a few of the songs the woman sang, making a mental note to ask her at some point where she had learned the music. For now, she picked up the small hand mirror and set about applying a small bit of the makeup that Viola had been kind enough to give her.
If I pretty myself up a little more, perhaps he will pay a little more attention to me. She smiled gently as she applied a small bit of red lipstick, mimicking a kiss to her reflection. Though he did seem really upset about his horse getting sick. In fact, he looked almost panicked when we first found Caesar was ill.
She lowered the lipstick from her face and let out a gentle sigh, shaking her head as she set it back in the drawer of the nearby dresser and instead made her way down to the veranda.
Grabbing a nearby broom, she set about sweeping it free of the dust and debris that had managed to accumulate there. It felt different to be cleaning because she wanted to and not because it was her duty. Lucas had always complained no matter how much she cleaned.
As she was sweeping, she felt as though someone was watching her. It was only a faint sense, like a whispering in the back of her mind. I'm probably just being paranoid. I'll ignore it and it will probably pass in time.
“Jessica, there you are.” Viola's voice was so unexpected that Coralee yelped with fright. She dropped the broom as she whirled around to face the older woman, who was looking at her with concern. “Oh dear, I didn't mean to startle you.”
Coralee giggled nervously at that, shaking her head as she stooped down to retrieve the fallen broom. “Sorry, I was lost in my thoughts, and you were so quiet. I didn't realize you had left the kitchen.”
“Isaac used to say the same thing about me. Said that I seemed almost like a ghost at times because I could move from room to room without a sound. I can't tell you how many times I've made him drop things just like you did,” Viola laughed gently as she looked Coralee over from head to toe. “You look lovely, Jessica. My son doesn't realize just how lucky he is. It may not always seem like it, but I know he is very much interested in you.”
“Has he mentioned anything lately about being unhappy with me?” Coralee couldn't stop the question from slipping out before she could catch herself.
“Good heavens, no. Why would you think that?” The older woman crossed her arms gently in front of her chest.
“He just hasn't seemed to have any time for me since he found out his horse was sick. I can't help but think that alone shouldn't be reason enough for him to keep his distance the way he has been,” Coralee admitted, her hands gripping the broom tightly to keep them from shaking.
“Oh, sweetheart. You can't let that get to you. I'm afraid that doing chores around a ranch as large as ours requires the men to spend the better part of the day out and about. Don’t worry yourself too much about that. Once he manages to calm his nerves about Caesar, I'm sure he'll return back to his relatively cheerful self.”
That made Coralee feel a little better. She nodded at Viola in gratitude, though her smile soon faded as the older woman continued. “However, I was not aware that the daughters of the upper class in Boston were trained in caring for a household. You seem very familiar with sweeping, and you even used a trick that I had to learn for myself. That isn't something you can just pick up from a book.”
“It was just a lucky guess,” Coralee lied lamely, throat suddenly dry. “I spent a lot of time with my serving girl, Coralee, before she fell ill. I probably just saw her do it so many times that my mind filed it away.”
“It sounds like the two of you were close,” Viola frowned gently. “Seems kind of strange that you would have befriended your lady servant.”
“Is it, though? She was one of the few people who constantly accompanied me, so it makes sense that we would strike up a friendship eventually. I'm not the kind of person who could see someone day after day and not grow to be curious about them. Plus, she was the daughter of one of my favorite maids. We took her on when her mother died.”
“The poor thing,” Viola clicked her tongue in sympathy. “It was a good deed you did for that young lady. The Lord will surely look down on you favorably for that in the future.”
“I certainly hope you’re right about that. Coralee deserves all the blessings of the next world for the kindness she bestowed on me. I don't think I could have found anyone else in the world who showed me friendship like she did.”
Anything else that Viola might have said was stopped by the sound of Isaac calling loudly for her from the other room. She cast an apologetic look in Coralee's direction before retreating into the house. Standing alone on the veranda once more, Coralee simply went back to her sweeping. I can't help but feel like she suspects that I’m lying to her.
For the next couple of days, Coralee went out of her way to avoid Viola. Figuring that she could make a project of it, she spent her time in the sizable vegetable garden that lay just a f
ew feet away from the house.
The soil felt good between her fingers as she set about harvesting some of the carrots whose stalks had begun to reach high out of the dirt. Coralee overheard Viola talking about it to Isaac when she'd been walking past their bedroom the night before.
“When Ma told me you'd taken it upon yourself to do chores around the house, I thought she was just fooling. Yet I come back and here you are, elbows deep in the vegetable garden.” Gavin's voice was warm and touched with amusement, his shadow offering her some temporary relief from the burning sun.
“You know what they say about idle hands. Besides, it wouldn't feel right if I was the only one not helping,” Coralee leaned forward, dropping another one of the carrots into the basket she'd set alongside herself.
“I like your attitude,” Gavin said, smiling down at her. “Thank you for helping take some of the strain of the housework. We don't know how much longer Pop will be around, and I'm sure that is a constant weight on Ma’s mind. She'll be even more grateful for the extra time she can get with him until he's no longer around.”