He left the desk and lifted his Stetson into his hands. He walked toward her, his spurs ringing in the small space. “Forgive me, Emma.” He set his hat on his head and tipped the brim at her. “I’ve never been more serious about someone in my life.”
Emma’s breath stilled.
“I like to joke about some things, but I’d never joke about my intentions toward you.” Hays turned and walked to the door. He opened it but then paused. “I look forward to seeing you at church on Sunday. In the meantime, I’ll go find you those bachelors.”
He stepped out and closed the door softly behind him.
She stood for several moments, staring at the door, and then rushed over to the window to watch him ride out of town.
Just before he disappeared from sight, he glanced back, but she didn’t bother to hide.
Hays Hart was full of surprises … and for some reason the thought made her smile—until she glanced at one of his WANTED posters fluttering in the wind across the road at the general store. Was he pursuing her because he genuinely liked her, or was he pursuing her to fulfill his father’s wishes and secure a bride for his inheritance?
The obvious answer left her feeling sadder than it should.
Chapter Four
Hays squinted as he tipped his head back and gulped from his canteen. The day was unseasonably warm, and even if it hadn’t been, his impending conversation with Gage was making him sweat. Overhead, the afternoon sun hung in a cloudless sky, and underfoot the brown grass crunched beneath the horses’ hooves.
Gage sat next to him, carelessly crossing his gloved hands over his saddle horn, his gaze on the herd of cattle grazing nearby. “Looks like it’ll be a successful drive up to Wichita come May. We’ve never had a better herd.”
The herd was remarkable this year, but it was the last thing on Hays’s mind. It had been four days since Emma had asked Hays to find bachelors for her auction—and nine days since his pa’s unexpected edict. He wanted to please both Emma and his father, and to do so he would have to find a way to make the auction a success.
“I’ve got a strange request,” Hays said. “And I don’t rightly know how to bring it up in normal conversation.”
Gage slowly turned his head, his eyes shaded under the brim of his hat. “You’ve made more strange requests than anyone has a right to.”
Hays had gotten him and Gage into a lot of trouble over the years—unintentionally, of course—but this was different. “It’s for a good cause.”
Gage gave him a skeptical look. “What kind of cause?”
“A schoolhouse.”
“You mean it’s for Miss Longley.”
“You can look at it how you want. I just need volunteers for a street dance.”
“I’m listening.”
Hays shifted in his saddle. Usually, he could make light of most situations and ease his way through difficult tasks, but for some reason, seeing how upset Emma had been at his carefree attitude after the meeting, he wanted to take this job seriously. “Emma plans to hold a bachelor auction during the ball, and she asked me to find at least a dozen bachelors who would—”
“A what?” Gage took off his hat and ran his hand over his hair.
“A bachelor auction. Each bachelor will stand onstage, and the women will bid for the chance to dance with him.”
Gage stared at Hays, his mouth tipped down at the edges. “You’ve got to be joshin’.”
“I thought it sounded a bit strange, too, but the ladies at the meeting seemed eager to bid.”
“What happens if you stand up there and no one bids?” Gage shook his head and set his hat in place. “Nope.”
“Come on, Gage. I’ve always been able to count on you.”
“Not this time.” Gage gripped his reins and touched his spurs to his horse. “Ask your brothers. They’re more desperate than I am.” He was gone before Hays could call him back.
His brothers? They were the last people Hays wanted to ask. He was still set on finding a bride before the rest of them, though none of them had shown any interest in the prospect of marriage, even after Pa’s declaration. But, beyond that, he couldn’t imagine them in an auction. They weren’t the type of men who liked to be on display.
Hays rode back to El Regalo and glimpsed Travis’s buckboard parked out front.
He hated asking his brothers for help, but the only way to prove to them that he wasn’t a child was to find a bride and move onto his spread of land.
And the only way to get his bride was to find her a dozen bachelors. What better place to look than the 7 Heart Ranch?
Hays strode toward the back of the house, knowing Perla would be in the kitchen. Even before he opened the door, he could smell the spicy aroma of steaming tamales. His stomach growled as he walked inside.
“Perla,” he groaned. “Are you gonna make me wait for supper?”
Perla stood at the stove with a large apron wrapped around her red skirt. She glanced at Hays, and the wrinkles around her eyes deepened when she smiled. “When have I ever made you wait for my tamales, Señor Hays?” She lifted a spoon from the pot she had been stirring.
He took two giant steps to her side and tasted the filling. The meat fell apart in his mouth and mingled with the spices. “Mmm. Me encanta sus tamales, Señorita.”
She patted his cheek. “I know you love them.”
Hays tried to take another spoonful, but she swatted his hand away. “You can wait for more.” She laughed and went back to her work. “What brings you into the house?”
“I need to talk to my brothers.”
“The only one here is Señor Travis. He is in the office talking with your papá.“ She added more spice to the pot and continued to stir. “The others are out working.”
“I know. I saw Travis’s buckboard and thought I’d talk to him first. If I can persuade him, then the others might follow.”
Perla didn’t bother to look at Hays. “I won’t even ask what trouble you are planning now.”
“Good.” He bent and kissed her wrinkled cheek. “Make sure you set aside the biggest tamale for me.”
She winked at him. “I always do.”
Hays left the glorious smells in the kitchen and walked through the dark hall.
Travis was just closing Pa’s office door. A frown puckered his forehead until he glanced up at Hays’s approach. He cleared the concerned look from his face. “Hays.”
“Is everything all right?”
“Everything is fine.” Travis took his pocket watch out of his vest and glanced at it before he tilted his head toward the front of the house. “Walk me out. I told Widow Hanson I’d stop by to check on her this afternoon.”
They passed through the front hall and into the vestibule, Hays trying to keep up. “I came to ask you a favor.”
“I’ll do what I can.”
“I’m helping Miss Longley raise funds to build a new school, and she’s put me in charge of a bachelor auction.” Hays followed Travis onto the front porch. “I need to find at least a dozen bachelors to auction off on the night of the street dance.”
Travis stopped on the top step and turned to face Hays. “You want me to volunteer to be a part of the auction?”
“Would you?”
Travis studied Hays for a moment, a glimmer lighting his brown eyes. “I thought you might be sweet on Miss Longley.”
“This has nothing to do with—”
“Of course it does.” Travis grinned. “And I’m not surprised.”
“Will you do it?”
His smile fell. “I don’t know, Hays. I hardly have time for a decent meal, let alone attend a dance. I don’t remember the last time I went to a social gathering.”
Hays hated to beg, but he was running out of time. He only had a few days before the next meeting, and he needed to show Emma he was serious about helping her. “Please. For me.” He knew his brother was busy, but he also knew that Travis had a hard time saying no to his family.
Travis sighed. “I
suppose. But I’m not doing it just for you, I’m also doing it for Pa.”
“Pa?”
Travis set his hand on Hays’s shoulder. “He’s serious about seeing his sons get married. I’m afraid I’m too busy to look for a wife, and besides, my life isn’t conducive to a family. You, on the other hand”—he squeezed Hays’s shoulder—“would make a good husband.”
It was the first time one of his brothers had recognized him as a man. “Thank you, Travis.”
“Good luck convincing the rest of your brothers. You’ll need it.” Travis turned and walked down the steps toward his waiting buckboard.
It would be impossible to convince Bowie, so Hays wouldn’t even try, but with Travis’s involvement, Crockett and Austin might say yes.
And there was still the matter of convincing Gage.
On Saturday morning, Emma stood outside the post office holding the packages she had picked up for Mama at the mercantile, as well as the letters that had just arrived from Minnesota. One in particular held her interest. It was addressed to Emma from the director of the Belle Prairie Mission, where Emma’s parents had served for years and where Emma had grown up. She had written to inquire if there was a teaching job available. Would Mrs. Greenfield want her to return? Emma was almost certain the answer was yes, but there was only one way to find out … though she couldn’t bring herself to open the letter here on the street.
She slipped the letters into her reticule and turned left to head back to the parsonage.
Her mama would be eager to hear the news from home. Minnesota held mostly good memories, though there were a few events in Emma’s life she’d rather forget. But it didn’t pay to dwell on the past—not when she had so much to look forward to.
Downtown Hartville was alive with activity. People greeted each other as they went about their business, horses kicked up dirt on the dusty street, and the sun cast short shadows across the dry earth. In Minnesota, she would have been bundled up on this January day, happily shuffling from store to store—she halted her thoughts, remembering her promise to Hays that she would stop comparing Texas to Minnesota.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them, she looked at Hartville with a fresh perspective. At first, it looked just like it had before, but then she started to notice the quiet hum about the town. It was punctuated with the drawl of the local citizens, the scents of spicy food wafting out of the hotel restaurant two doors down, and the ring of spurs on the wooden sidewalks.
An older cowboy passed by, tipping his hat at her with a kind nod before continuing down the street. His leathered skin suggested a lifetime of hard work under the Texas sun. What story could he tell her about life in Texas? By the contented look on his face, she sensed he wouldn’t exchange it for anything.
A gentle smile found its way to Emma’s lips as a soft breeze ruffled her hem and tossed the tendrils of hair against her cheeks. She felt as if she had dipped just beneath the surface of the town, and it felt strangely refreshing.
“Looks like you’re in need of a hand.” Hays suddenly appeared on the boardwalk. “I’d be happy to help carry those packages for you.”
Her heart sped up at the sound of his voice, and she couldn’t stop herself from smiling—but she didn’t meet his gaze. “I’m rarely in need of help, Mr. Hart.”
“Maybe you’re not in need of help, but I’m in need of helping someone. I haven’t met my quota for the day.”
Emma finally looked at him, and she swallowed the flutter of awareness. She hadn’t seen him since the meeting on Monday, but he had never been far from her thoughts.
Today, his face was freshly shaved, and his blue eyes sparkled with mischief. He wore a buttoned shirt tucked into fresh denim pants, and tall boots. She didn’t think it was possible, but every time she saw him, he looked more handsome than the time before. “How gallant of you—but I’m afraid you’ll have to keep looking elsewhere.”
His lazy grin appeared—the one she didn’t realize she missed until she saw it again—and he held out his hands. “Please let me help you, Emma.”
She loved hearing her name on his lips and realized she no longer wanted to say no to him. Sweet anticipation raced up her spine when she thought of spending a few minutes in his company. What would he say or do next? The prospect was … strangely exciting.
Emma offered him her purchases. “I’m heading back to the parsonage.”
Hays took the packages, a satisfied smile lighting his face.
“Do you know,” Emma said, “I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who smiles as much as you.”
His grin widened. “I try to always be happy.”
Emma started toward the parsonage—slowly. “It’s impossible to always be happy.”
“Maybe—but I try.”
“Why?”
Hays shrugged, and his gaze drifted to a far-off place, almost as if he was lost in the past. “My childhood was filled with a lot of sadness. I didn’t want to add to anyone’s sorrow, so I found ways to stay happy.”
Empathy squeezed Emma’s chest at the look of pain in his eyes. “Trying to make other people happy is a heavy burden to carry.”
He looked back at her, his eyes focused on the present. “Sometimes, yes, but when you love those people, it’s a burden you’re willing to carry.”
Emma glanced down at the packages he had offered to carry for her. It wasn’t the first time he had tried to ease her load, and she guessed it wouldn’t be the last. Was that why he had offered to help with the fund-raiser? To shoulder her burden, even though it wasn’t his to bear?
For a fleeting moment, she wondered who carried his burdens.
“I came to town looking for you,” Hays said. “I stopped at the parsonage, and your mama told me where to find you.”
What must Mama think of Hays showing up to see her? Hopefully she didn’t think he was romantically interested. “Why did you come looking for me?”
“I couldn’t wait until Monday to tell you the good news.”
“Monday?”
“The fund-raising meeting.”
“Oh.” Emma’s curiosity was now piqued. “What’s the good news?”
“I have secured over twenty bachelors for the auction—and I have a feeling there will be plenty more.”
“Twenty?” Emma stopped in front of Travis Hart’s medical building.
Hays also stopped. “It was the strangest thing. Once word got out about the auction, I had cowboys from several neighboring ranches show up to volunteer, not to mention those from the 7 Heart Ranch—and a few townies, to boot.” He chuckled. “I don’t think we’ll have trouble where the bachelor auction is concerned.”
“No.” Emma glanced around Hartville at the heavily male-populated town. “My concern now is that we won’t have enough women to do the bidding.”
“I think I have that covered, too. I’ve already spoken to several women, securing their promise to bid. Our cook, Perla, was the first to agree.”
Emma quickly calculated how much money twenty bachelors could bring in for the fund-raiser—but then she paused and studied Hays for a moment. “Why are you helping me?”
He also paused, all teasing gone from his voice. “I want to make you happy, and if that means helping you build a school, then I’ll do what I can to make it happen.”
“You hardly know me.”
“Something I’d like to change if you’d let me.”
Emma started walking toward the parsonage again, and Hays followed. She was silent for a moment. “I’ll be leaving Texas in a couple of months.”
“You told me.”
She looked out over the town. “So why take the time to get to know me?”
He put his free hand on her elbow, helping her around a broken board. “Because everyone benefits from a friendship, even if it only lasts a couple of months.”
His hand stayed on her elbow, and Emma liked how it felt. “Thank you, Hays.”
She would allow him to be her fri
end, but nothing more.
In less than two months she was leaving Texas, and she wanted no regrets to follow her.
Chapter Five
Hays rode into town and headed straight for the church. He hated to be the one to tell Emma, but someone had to do it.
It had been over a week since he had met her outside the post office, and in that time they had spent several hours working together on the bazaar. Just yesterday, after church, he had met with Emma and Connie to design the posters that he would hang all over town to advertise the fund-raiser.
He hated to think all their hard work might be for nothing.
It was midafternoon, and the children would still be in school. It was too early for their weekly fund-raising meeting, but there was no time to wait. Hays jumped off Bella and wrapped her reins around the hitching post outside the whitewashed church. He took the steps two at a time but then paused when he put his hand on the knob. Her voice was muffled through the wood door.
Slowly, he turned the knob and the door popped open. She must not have heard, because she continued to teach. He stood outside, but the opening allowed him to hear her perfectly.
“Now that we’ve studied the general history of Texas,” Emma said, “we’ll move on to local history. Many of you know Mr. George Washington Hart, but not all of you know that his father’s name was Benjamin Franklin Hart. Benjamin and his wife, Mary Ellen, were part of the ‘Old 300,’ the first white settlers in Texas. They came here with their four children, George Washington, whom you know as GW, John Adams, William Penn, and Martha Abigail Hart.”
There were surprised murmurs in the room, and Hays himself was amazed at how much Emma knew about his family’s history.
“In 1824 the settlements of Austin began, but Benjamin Hart ventured farther west than most of the Austinites. Here he established the Hart ranch and set aside a portion of his property to start the town of Hartville.”
“Miss Longley?”
“Yes, Adam.”
“Why do all the Hart brothers have such strange names?”
Hays’s laugh was drowned out by a round of giggles, until Emma successfully quieted them.
Seven Brides for Seven Texans Romance Collection Page 5