The woman nodded slowly. She seemed to like Ellen’s answers, but reserved judgment on the younger woman. “I’m Alice.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Alice. Do you need help with breakfast?” Ellen loved the idea of helping the cook out. She wanted to be able to do something with herself for the week she was here before any decisions were made.
Alice shook her head. “Of course not. You’re a guest! Are you hungry?” She pointed to the table in the kitchen letting Ellen know she wouldn’t mind the company while she worked.
Ellen nodded. “I woke up famished. Dinner was wonderful last night, by the way. I really enjoyed it.”
“Do you cook?”
“Oh, yes. I’ve kept house for my father since I was twelve and my mother died.” She sank into one of the chairs at the table. “I can’t imagine what I’ll do with my time rattling around this big house during the day while Patrick works.” She looked down at her hands which she was wringing together nervously. “To be honest, I’m much more suited to being a sheriff’s wife.”
Alice smiled. “I think you’re just what Mr. Patrick needs in his life.”
Ellen smiled at the compliment. She didn’t need the approval of Patrick’s cook, but it was nice to have it. “How long have you worked for him?”
“Ever since my husband died, so three years? That sounds right.”
“I’m sorry about your husband. Did you know Patrick before his death?” Ellen enjoyed knowing the history of the people around her.
“Mr. Patrick was the banker who held the deed on our farm. After my husband’s death, I had doctor bills to pay, and what little we had went to pay the bills. I knew I was going to lose the home, and it broke my heart. When I talked to Mr. Patrick about it, he said I should come and work for him. He offered to let me stay here, or I could keep on in my house and he would consider the hours I worked as paying for the rent as well as giving me a wage. I chose to just live here. There were too many memories there. Mr. Patrick’s a good man.”
The words confirmed Ellen’s suspicions about Patrick. He’d told her he didn’t evict people, but she could see now that he’d told her the truth. “Thanks for telling me all that.” She loved the idea of the tall, handsome man doing such a kind thing for an elderly woman. She was so happy to see that her instincts about him had been right.
“You could already see the good in him. I wouldn’t have told you otherwise.” She grinned at Ellen. “If you can’t see the good in others, then he’s too good for you.”
Malinda walked into the kitchen then, rubbing her eyes. “G’morning,” she mumbled to Ellen. She sank into the chair across from Ellen, obviously still sleepy.
“Malinda, this is Alice. She’s the one who made our delicious dinner last night. Alice, this is my younger sister, Malinda.” Malinda’s dark hair was pulled back in the braid she’d slept on. Ellen knew she’d fix it after breakfast, but was amused that she was willing to come down to breakfast looking like she did when either man could show up at any time.
Malinda nodded politely. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Alice watched Malinda for a moment as if taking her measure. “And you. I hear you may marry Mr. Wesley.”
Malinda tilted her head to the side as she studied her sister. “That hasn’t been decided yet.”
Once they were finished with breakfast, Ellen invited Malinda to go for a walk with her. She couldn’t stand the idea of sitting around all day when she could be doing something. “Have you thought more about the idea of marrying Wesley?” Ellen asked.
Malinda sighed. “I don’t want you to push me. I need to do what I think is right for me.” She was obviously annoyed with Ellen for even bringing up the subject.
“I’m not trying to push you. I just know that I could never be as happy with Wesley as I would be with Patrick. I could love Patrick. Wesley would be someone I would have to force myself to marry.” Surely she could convince her sister to make a decision within the next few days. Ellen hated the idea of waiting a full week. The men deserved to at least know who they would spend the rest of their lives with, and so did she!
“I feel the same way about Wesley as you do about Patrick, but I don’t want to be poor. Wesley doesn’t make the kind of money Patrick does, and I don’t want to have to spend the rest of my life working as hard as our mother always did. She died way too young, because she didn’t have a doctor when it was time to have the baby. I don’t want to go through that!” Malinda’s voice rose as she said the words, determined to make her sister understand what she was saying.
Ellen shook her head sadly. “I hate putting the men off so much. I like the idea of marrying as soon as we can. They expected to marry us today, not in a week.” She kicked at a pebble in the road. “I think I would go home before I’d marry Wesley. I know I couldn’t be happy married to him.”
“You were ready to marry him with no questions asked! Now all of a sudden you can only marry Patrick. Why are you being so difficult about this?”
“I’m not trying to be difficult. I’d never been attracted to a man before. I look at Patrick, and all I can think about is how much I want to be with him forever. Has Wesley kissed you?” She knew it was no business of hers, but she knew she could use the information as leverage.
Malinda blushed. “Yes, he has.”
“Did you enjoy it?” Ellen asked, determinedly pushing on.
Malinda nodded. “He made my toes curl.”
Ellen laughed. “That’s how Patrick makes me feel. I get this fluttering in my tummy that almost makes me feel sick. When he touches me, just touches my hand, I’m lost. I want to get closer and closer to him. I want to spend all day kissing him and not caring about anyone else in the world.”
“I know, but what if I can’t handle being poor? What if the housework is too much for me? You’ve always done most of the work.”
“You’ve been poor all your life. You can handle it as well as anyone. And you know how to do housework as well as I do. You don’t like it, but to be honest with you, other than sewing and cooking, I don’t much like it either. I don’t think there’s a woman out there who enjoys getting down on her knees and scrubbing floors. It’s just not something anyone would like.” Ellen was getting exasperated with her sister. She knew Malinda wasn’t as selfish as she sounded when she talked, but she needed to think of others for a change.
“I’ll think about it.”
Ellen realized her sister had given in as much as she would for the day. Hopefully when she thought about it, she would draw the same conclusions Ellen had. “Patrick is going to take us all to a restaurant tonight. He said there’s dancing on a terrace outside and an orchestra.”
Malinda smiled. “That sounds like a lot of fun. I can’t wait to dance with Wesley.” Malinda’s eyes danced as she thought about dancing with the sheriff.
“Well, maybe we’ll have to switch partners for a dance or two and see how it is with the other men.” Ellen watched her sister carefully to see the response to her suggestion.
Malinda wrinkled her nose. “Do we have to?”
The words brought a smile to Ellen’s face. Whether her sister knew it or not, she was going to marry Wesley. Ellen wanted to shout in relief.
*****
When the men arrived that evening to take them to the restaurant, Ellen made certain they both had their shawls laid out and ready to go. It was too chilly at night to go without them. They were wearing identical dresses because they’d used the same pattern for them both. Ellen’s dress was green and Malinda’s dress was blue.
Patrick kissed Ellen’s cheek and put the shawl over her shoulders. “Are you ready?” He was wearing a perfectly tailored black suit. Ellen thought he looked even more handsome than he had the day before. She hoped she didn’t make a fool of herself staring at him too much.
Ellen smiled. “I’ve been ready all day. I haven’t been able to think about anything else.” She knew most women would be coy about their feelings, but she saw no poi
nt in that. When you cared for someone, you should let them know.
“What did you do today?”
Ellen made a face. “Well, I got up early and talked to Alice while she cooked breakfast. I tried to talk her into letting me help, but she wouldn’t. Then when Malinda got up, we went for a long walk. And then we came back here for lunch, and in the afternoon we both read books. I’m going to need to find something to do if this continues as we are.” She sighed. “I hate sitting idle.”
Patrick smiled and slipped his arm around her waist. “After the children come, you’ll have more to do.” The look he gave her sent a tingle down her spine.
Ellen felt her face soften at the idea of having his children. “I’ll love that. Do you want a boy first or a girl?” She couldn’t wait to hold his baby in her arms whether it was a girl or a boy.
“Definitely a boy. If we have any girls that look like you, I’ll need help holding the boys off until she’s old enough for courting.”
Ellen laughed. “So you want eleven boys and one girl with the girl coming last?” She’d heard that many men felt that way about the birth order of their children, but she’d never considered she may marry a man who felt that way.
“You understand me already!”
They laughed as they walked, unaware of the couple walking a few steps behind them. The more time Ellen spent with Patrick, the more she realized she couldn’t marry Wesley. What was she going to do if Malinda decided she couldn’t marry Wesley?
The restaurant was beautiful. Ellen had never been in one, so she was in awe of the elegant surroundings. The beautiful chandeliers and the pristine table clothes had her feeling nervous that she would do something wrong. Once the maître d handed her the menu, she flipped it open and glanced down the list. So many things on the menu were foods she’d never heard of. After a minute, she peeked over the menu and saw that Malinda was in a similar state of confusion. She had no idea what to get either.
Ellen closed her menu and looked at Patrick who was watching her with a smile. “Would you order for me please?”
Patrick nodded. “I’d be happy to.”
When the food came, it was fantastic. He ordered her a filet mignon with a salad and a baked potato covered in butter. She took one bite of the small bacon wrapped steak and her eyes widened with pleasure. “This is delicious!”
Patrick’s hand grasped hers. “I’m glad you like it.”
Malinda was poking at her food, something that Ellen didn’t quite recognize. She started to ask what it was, but wasn’t sure if Malinda herself knew and didn’t want to embarrass her.
Once they were finished eating, Patrick stood and pulled back Ellen’s chair, taking her hand, and leading her to the patio with the dancing. He moved her into his arms, and the slow dance they did was nothing like she’d imagined dancing would be. In her mind, dancing involved counting steps and being careful not to step on your partner’s toes. With Patrick, it was more just staring into his eyes and moving when he did. It felt so perfect being in his arms.
At the end of the dance, she whispered, “I’d like to change partners. I want Malinda to see that you’re not right for her and Wesley is. I can’t imagine a better way to drive that home to her.”
He nodded skeptically. “I don’t want you to fall for my brother.”
She laughed. “There’s not a chance of that happening.” She squeezed his hand to reassure him as they walked back toward the table.
Back in the dining room, Patrick invited Malinda to dance. Wesley looked surprised, but he took Ellen’s hand and led her to the dance floor. He stepped on her toe almost immediately. She didn’t say anything, but she knew the grimace on her face let him know he’d hurt her. “How was work today?” she asked politely.
He shrugged. “It was work. There was little for me to do. My job doesn’t involve a lot of criminals or gun fights. It’s more just making my presence known so everyone knows there’s a sheriff in town. Just that scares most of the criminals off.”
“What’s the most exciting thing you’ve ever done at work?” It was so hard to talk to him, and so easy to talk to Patrick. She glanced over at her sister, and saw both of them looked as uncomfortable as she felt.
“Well, there was a claim jumper once who thought it was his right to take over someone else’s claim just because the other man had left to go get food. The man took a couple of shots at me, but he was so drunk, he just shot the tree branch above my head.” Wesley laughed as he talked about it. “The man was wearing his long johns at the time, so he looked a real sight.”
Ellen sighed. This was the man she’d been certain she needed to marry? What had she been thinking? She was so glad they hadn’t married as soon as they stepped off the train. She’d never have known how wrong he was for her then.
After the dance, she took Malinda into the ladies’ room to freshen up. “What do you think of Patrick now that you’ve danced with him?”
Malinda shrugged. “He’s boring. I don’t understand what you find so interesting about him.” She shook her head, eyeing her sister skeptically. “Talking to him is about as interesting as talking to a rock.”
Ellen smiled. “That’s the same thing I thought about Wesley.” She could have danced a small dance right there in celebration of her sister thinking Patrick was boring.
“I’m not making any decisions tonight.” Malinda crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the wall.
“I know. I’m not trying to force you to. I just want to get to know them both. What if I’m the one making a mistake?”
They made their way back to the table, and after a few more dances, walked home together. Malinda and Wesley went to the parlor, while Ellen and Patrick went out to the back porch. She hadn’t been out there yet, and as soon as she saw the porch swing, she smiled.
“I’ve always wanted a porch swing!” She sat down on one end of it, making sure she left room for him.
He took the spot she’d left vacant, and set the swing into motion with his foot. “Marry me, and it’s all yours.”
She smiled, leaning her head against his shoulder, amazed at how comfortable she felt touching him. “I’d rather share it with you. It wouldn’t be fun to sit in all by myself.”
He used his forefinger to tilt her chin up for his kiss. His other hand moved around to the nape of her neck, softly moving his fingers across her skin. “I’ll share everything I own with you.”
She had to force herself not to climb into his lap and stay where she was. She hadn’t been raised to be a wanton woman, but every minute she spent with him brought her closer and closer to it. After a minute, she tore her mouth away. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be alone together. I feel too much when you touch me.”
He chuckled softly. “That’s exactly what every man wants to hear.” He dipped his head for one more kiss, and then settled back against the swing with her head against his shoulder again. “Did you get a chance to talk to Malinda today? What does she seem to be thinking?”
“Oh, she’s going to drag her feet. She’ll take the entire week to make her decision, I have no doubt.” She paused staring up at the stars. “In fact, I’ll be surprised if she makes the decision before a month is out. She’s going to hold us all hostage for as long as she can.”
“Really?”
Ellen nodded. “Yes. She has strong feelings for Wesley, but the idea of being poor frightens her.”
“Maybe I’ll give Wesley some money and tell him to tell her he’s had it all along and was just waiting for the right woman to come along to spend it on.”
She laughed. “That’s a great idea. I don’t think she’d fall for it, but it’s a great idea.” There had to be some way to force her into a decision, though. Something would give.
“Wesley would never agree to it. He’s too honest for that, which is a good thing.” He sighed. “I just don’t want to have to wait.”
She snuggled closer to his side. “It is. I just wish we could find
a way to speed up her decision.”
“I’ll do my best to be obnoxious and unlovable tomorrow.”
She giggled. “Are you able to do that?”
“Don’t see why not! I’ve scared women off before. I can scare her.”
*****
No amount of talking did any good the following day. Malinda refused to make a decision. By the time the men arrived, Ellen was frustrated beyond belief. She wanted the whole thing over with. It would be so much easier if she could just get married and get on with her life. She enjoyed being courted, but she felt as if her life were in a sort of limbo as she waited for Malinda to agree with how they wanted to do things.
They had dinner at Patrick’s house. Ellen had begged Alice to take the day off, and had spent the day in the kitchen cooking. She’d made a pot roast with mashed potatoes and gravy and carrots. To go along with it, she’d made a dozen biscuits and for dessert, she’d talked Malinda into baking a cake. Malinda had a way with baking that always surprised Ellen, because she put so little effort into it. They could follow the exact same recipe, and Ellen’s dessert always tasted better when they were done.
When they were finished with dessert, Ellen went with Wesley into the parlor and watched as Malinda followed Patrick outside to the porch swing. She hated the idea of her sister going off with the man she had feelings for, but she didn’t know how to stop them.
Malinda sat down on the sofa and gave Wesley a tentative smile. He sat beside her on the couch, and took her hand in his, but she moved it to her lap, putting it out of his reach. She knew he was trying to be affectionate, but just having his hand in hers made her skin crawl. “So tell me about gold mining,” she said, trying to get him to talk about anything she could think of. She had nothing to say to the man.
“Well, we’d heard about all the gold that was here in the Rockies, so we decided to come out here and see for ourselves. We followed a wagon train that was heading for California, but we stopped off here.” He shrugged. “It was hard, but Patrick and I shared a wagon and took turns driving the oxen. By the time we got here, I was ready to give up, but Patrick kept pushing. We each found a claim. He gave me first choice, because that’s just how he is. I picked wrong, and he got the right one. As soon as he struck gold, he offered to share the claim with me, but I was certain mine would have more gold in the long run. So I asked him to pay me an hourly wage, and I worked for him until his claim was played out, and then we moved onto mine.
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