The Lady and the Mountain Call (Mountain Dreams Series Book 5)

by Misty M. Beller

  Cathleen lay against his shoulder on one side, and Mum did the same on his left. Mum’s soft snores made it easy to tell she slept, but he couldn’t be sure about Cathleen. He couldn’t quite see her eyes from this angle.

  At last she shifted, and he took the opportunity to speak. “Are you awake?”

  “Yes.” Her voice sounded a little strained. Most likely her arm paining her. He hoped that’s all it was, anyway.

  He forged on ahead. “Did you plan to tell me why you were coming back up the mountain? Alone?” He tried not to let any anger sound in that last word, but that was a tall order. What had her brothers been thinking to let her make that journey on her own? Of course, it was possible Cathleen had left without their agreement. She was just stubborn enough to try something like that if she felt she had a good reason. But still…

  She slowly straightened beside him, leaving his shoulder cold with the loss of her nearness. And when he glanced down to see her face, the solemn expression, tightened a cord in his chest.

  “I was coming back to care for your mum. I decided not to go to Boston with Alex.”

  He couldn’t stop the explosion in his pulse. He’d been afraid to even consider that she was coming back to them for good. But now to hear her say it…

  He turned to face her and nearly knocked Mum off his other shoulder in the process. “You were?”

  She met his gaze solidly. “I prayed hard about it, and feel like this is where God wants me right now.”

  She could surely hear his heart rate triple in speed. Had God actually answered his prayer? The prayer he’d been afraid to pray?

  So what did this mean for him? He wanted so much to take her in his arms right there and kiss her soundly. But he’d need to bide his time on that. Wait until she wasn’t in so much pain. And wait until a time when his mother wasn’t snoring right beside them.

  And he needed to sort through the questions still spinning in his mind. To wait until he knew exactly what his intentions were.

  They arrived at the O’Hennessey place soon enough, but Cathleen declined to go in with him. Her color had grown paler than when he’d first pulled her up the cliff. He had to get her to town soon.

  O’Hennessey agreed readily enough to go gather the horses and cow from the homestead and keep them at his place until Reuben could come back for them. It helped that Reuben offered another cow from the herd the man was already caring for. At this rate, they’d not own any stock by the time summer rolled around. But he needed to do this for Cathleen.

  “’Preciate the pain powder.” Reuben shook the man’s hand as he prepared to leave. “You’ll let the chickens out in the yard, too?”

  “If’n that’s what you want. Hope ya have some left when ya get back.” The man sent a sluice of tobacco juice over Reuben’s shoulder to land just past the stoop.

  “Thanks again.” With a nod, he headed back to the sleigh.

  Cathleen took the powder willingly, not even asking questions about what it contained. A sure sign she was hurting, yet she didn’t complain more than a grunt as the sleigh shifted under his weight.

  Soon enough, they were back on the trail again. As the miles fell behind them, he could feel Cathleen’s breathing grow steady. Maybe she finally had a bit of relief.

  But the silence left him too long with this thoughts, and the scenes on the side of the cliff began to replay in his mind. The sheer terror when he’d first looked over the edge and made out Cathleen’s still body so far below. How many times through the ordeal they’d come so close to death. Him. Cathleen. Mum. It was a wonder they’d all come out of it alive, with nothing worse than a broken arm.

  No, it was more than a wonder. It was a miracle.

  That feeling of utter helplessness fell over him again, the one that had overwhelmed him when he’d been down below with Cathleen and Mum had ventured so close to the cliff edge. He’d never meant a prayer more than that desperate plea.

  And God had answered.

  In the past, he might have said they’d gotten themselves out of that pinch. But too much had happened over the last few hours for him to discount God’s hand in it all.

  Cathleen surviving her fall. And landing on that tint ledge instead of the crashing to the rocks below.

  The strength of the ledge to hold them both up.

  Mum listening to Cathleen and obeying her direction.

  Even Cathleen’s ability to connect with his mother was a gift from God. He could see that now.

  And since the three of them had come out of the situation alive, he could acknowledge the best part of all. Cathleen had come back to them. After he’d given her up—even told her to leave.

  She’d come back. And that was a gift only a loving God could have granted.

  There on the road, with the reins in his hands and a sleeping woman leaning against each of his shoulders, he finally opened his heart.

  Thank you, Lord.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  “YOU DID WHAT?”

  Cathleen’s hackles rose at the accusation in Bryan’s voice as she stood at his door. She gritted her teeth against the response that itched to come out. “It’s a simple break, Bryan. I just need it splinted.”

  “And she needs something for the pain,” Reuben said. “And she was unconscious when I found her, so you probably want to check her head, too.”

  She sent a glare up to the man standing behind her. Honestly, Reuben was getting almost as protective as her brothers.

  He touched the small of her back, and the contact eased her ire the tiniest bit. It felt good to have him there, sharing his strength.

  Bryan motioned as he turned to go inside. “Come in. Let’s get you doctored.”

  ~ ~ ~

  REUBEN JUMPED TO his feet as Cathleen’s brother finally stepped through the doorway from the kitchen he’d been using as an examination room.

  Bryan motioned him back down into the chair, but his muscles itched to move. Even after the long, intense day they’d had, it didn’t feel right to be away from Cathleen. None of this felt right.

  “How’s she doing?”

  The doctor plopped into the overstuffed chair closest to the fire. “Not bad considering. A bump on her head, but her memory doesn’t seem to have suffered. There seems to be a minor break in her upper arm, but I expect it’ll heal quickly.” The tiniest hint of amusement played at the corners of the man’s mouth. “Must be that animal skin coat she was wearing softened the blow some.”

  One more mercy from God.

  Reuben scrubbed a hand through his hair and sank back in his chair. What a day.

  Bryan straightened and rose to his feet. “We have a bit to talk about, but it’ll wait until daylight. I’m going to get some sleep. Did the ladies get you and your mother settled?”

  Reuben let his hand drop to his lap and looked at the man. “Yes, Mum’s staying at your sister-in-law’s. Thought it might be best if I bed down in the corner there, since your brother’s out of town.”

  A line creased Bryan’s forehead. “You’re welcome to a cot in the clinic, or I imagine Marcus and Lilly have an empty bed.”

  Reuben was too exhausted to even raise his head, so he let it flop against the chair as he shook it. “I want to stay close. Probably sleep better on the floor anyway.” He’d not been in a bed for so long, his body wouldn’t know what to do with it.

  The doctor shrugged. “Suit yourself. I’m gonna get some shuteye.” But before he disappeared through one of the doorways, he turned back to level a gaze on Reuben. “Tomorrow, we talk.”

  ~ ~ ~

  BUT THE NEXT morning, Doc Bryan was called away before he’d eaten his second bite of boiled oats. An expectant mother finally reached her time, Reuben gathered.

  It was good to see Cathleen up and moving, even if her color still looked a little pale. But with the coddling her sisters-in-law gave her, she had no choice but to recover quickly. Which was good.

  Still, between them and the time she spent with his mum, he
barely found a spare second alone with her until late in the afternoon.

  “How do you feel?” He leaned forward in the parlor chair as Cathleen rocked Bryan’s little daughter with her good arm.

  It might have been his imagination in the dim room, but it looked like a flush crept into her cheeks. At least it was a bit of color.

  “Better. Bryan said it looks to be a minor break. With this knitbone tea Miriam’s been feeding me, I shouldn’t need to wear the splint more than a week.”

  He raised his brows at her. “Your brother said that?”

  She dropped her gaze to the baby. “Well. Close enough.”

  She was going to be a handful, this one. But he was more than ready to take on the challenge. If she’d have him.

  Reuben sank back in his chair. He’d have to wait for the right time to ask. Had to give her time to heal first. Even if he went stir crazy from hanging around this town that long.

  ~ ~ ~

  REUBEN BREATHED A sigh of relief when Bryan finally dragged himself in for a late dinner. Although the weary slump to his shoulders meant even if they did have a chance to talk, the man’s mood may not be especially genial. Still. It was time to make his intentions clear. To wipe away that distrust that tainted the man’s gaze any time he looked at Reuben.

  Cathleen had already left to walk the few blocks to Miriam’s house to put Mum to bed. He would have escorted her and helped, but with Bryan finally home, it seemed best to stick around.

  His patience was finally rewarded when Bryan clunked his coffee cup on the table and pushed up to his feet. “Well, Scott. You mind stepping outside with me for a minute?”

  Reuben followed him outside, and they’d made it off the porch and down the quiet street before the other man finally spoke.

  “My sister seems to feel some kind of obligation to you and your mother.”

  The words struck like a punch to his gut. Not that he hadn’t thought the same thing at one time, but he’d come to hope it might be more than that. Lord, do I have it wrong here?

  Bryan was waiting for his response, so he cleared his throat and tried to form an honest answer. “Your sister’s special. No doubt about that.” His mouth had gone dry, making it harder to force this next bit out. “I’m not sure if it’s just obligation she feels, or if maybe there’s something more. I’d like your permission to ask her.”

  The man gave him a sideways look, but with only a sliver of moon out and no house lights nearby, Reuben couldn’t decipher his expression.

  “You have reason to believe she might feel more?” Definitely reserve in that tone. But maybe not outright suspicion. Bryan seemed to have a smart head on his shoulders. Willing to consider all sides before passing judgement.

  “A slim hope. But if she says no, I’ll respect her answer and walk away.”

  They walked in silence for more long moments, and Reuben could almost hear the other man’s pondering. He tried to relax into the quiet, enjoy the solitude. But a ball of nerves still tumbled in his gut.

  “What Cathy wants isn’t always what’s good for her.”

  Reuben glanced over at him. “I know she can do a lot better than a mountain trapper. That’s why I told her to go in the first place.” How much should he say? How could he even put it into words? His mind scrambled for the best way to state his feelings, but nothing would come.

  So he stopped right there in the road and turned to face the man. “I love your sister. Didn’t think there was a way she could be happy tied to someone like me. Didn’t think God would give me the chance. But now I wonder if maybe He has, and I’m not willing to let that slip away without at least trying.”

  Bryan regarded him for a long moment, his features still shadowed. At long last, he spoke. “I guess you better ask her then.”

  ~ ~ ~

  THE EUPHORIA IN Reuben’s chest simmered over the next few days, as he watched for the right chance to talk with Cathleen. But people were always around—babies and neighbors and after-hours patients from the clinic. He couldn’t seem to find even two minutes alone with her.

  It didn’t help that she moved over to Miriam’s house to better care for his mum. He’d tried to stay close and be helpful where he could, and maybe get a chance to join her on one of her evening walks, but he couldn’t seem to get his timing right.

  Three days after his conversation with Bryan, they were all eating dinner at Bryan and Claire’s home—for once, everyone together.

  It was nice to have Cathleen positioned beside him, and the shy glances she’d been sending throughout the meal told him it was high time they talked. Tonight.

  But when Cathleen was the first to rise from the table and start carrying used dishes with her good hand to the wash bucket, he bit back a groan. She always had to be doing something. Was he going to have to cause a scene just to get her away for a moment?

  Miriam shot him a look, then stood and joined Cathleen at the sink. “Cathy, you cooked the meal. Take the night off for once and let us clean up. Go take your walk before it gets too cold out.” And with a nonchalance that seemed a little too forced. “Maybe Reuben would like to stretch his legs, too.”

  Warmth crept hot to his ears, but he pushed his chair back and stood. They couldn’t get out there soon enough, as far as he was concerned.

  Cathleen made some small protest, but when she glanced at him, the words died mid-sentence. She dried her hand on a cloth, one corner of her mouth pulling in the hint of a smile as she held his gaze. Did the woman know what he had planned? Or maybe she just needed fresh air like he did.

  At the front door, he held her coat while she slipped her uninjured arm into the sleeve. He pulled the other side over her shoulder to cocoon the sling.

  “I still love this fur, Reuben. It’s perfect.” Her words came out soft, a little shy maybe, but the room was too dark to see her expression.

  “Your brother said he thinks it might’ve saved your arm from a worse break.” He donned his own fur. “Gave you a softer landing.”

  She slipped her hand into the pocket as they stepped outside. He pulled the door closed behind them. A fresh layer of snow had fallen the night before, which had settled into slush and mud on the street. He kept them to the edge, trying to take the worst of the muck. Every day in this place made him crave the quiet of the mountain even more.

  A sigh drifted from Cathleen as she settled into the stroll. He glanced over, trying to see whether it signaled good thoughts or bad. Her face was turned up to the sky, which made her pale skin almost glow in the scant bit of moonlight. Just like an angel. He wanted so badly to touch her, to pull her close. But for now, he kept his hands pressed into this coat pockets.

  “Your mum doesn’t seem to be adapting well to her new surroundings.” Her voice held a tinge of worry.

  “Is she any better now that you’re staying in the same house?”

  Cathleen’s lips pinched. “A little. But we need to get her back home soon.”

  Home. Did she think of the mountain cabin as her home too? Even if she did, would she be willing to travel with him to his winter camp? Later, of course, after Mum was settled. For now, he could find enough trapping around the homestead to keep them going for a year or so. And either way, he’d do what he needed to for Cathleen to be happy.

  He ran his tongue over his suddenly dry lips. If only she’d have him. And now was his chance to find out.

  “Cathy, I don’t want you to come back with us as Mum’s nurse.” The words flew out in a burst, not sounding at all like he’d planned.

  She stopped mid-step, her whole body going still, but she didn’t turn to look at him. When she picked up the stroll again, tension radiated from her.

  “I mean, I don’t want you to be just her nurse.” He was making a muck of this. “I mean…”

  He stopped and turned to face her, and she finally did the same. Although her gaze hovered somewhere around his throat, nowhere near his eyes. This was probably his last chance to get it right. He fought the urg
e to scrub a hand over his face.

  “What I’m trying to say is, I’d like you to consider becoming my wife.” Her face turned up to his then, and he rushed on. “I know I’m not anything like a proper husband for you. Not what you deserve. You’re pretty, and kind, and”—he motioned down the length of her—“well, you take my breath away. You bring out the best in me. Make me want to be more. And the special thing is, when I’m with you, I feel like I actually can.

  “I know you deserve someone who can give you all the fine things you had in Boston. More, even. I don’t know that I can do that, Cathy, but I’ll sure try. But the one thing I know I can give you, the thing you already have, is my love.”

  And that was it. He’d rambled on for so long, he wasn’t quite sure what he’d said. But he’d gotten that last bit out, and that was really what she needed to know. Now it was time to wait.

  Something glittered in her eyes. Tears? The moon wasn’t bright enough for him to make out her expression. She didn’t speak for the longest moment, then when she opened her mouth, she inhaled a little quiver. Was she crying? That couldn’t be good.

  “Reuben, I wasn’t sure you’d ever say that.”

  She paused, which gave his mind too long to race through what that could possibly mean.

  She sniffed, then spoke again. “I don’t want fine things. I left Boston for a reason. It’s not the things that matter, it’s the people.” She slipped her good hand up to his chest, and for the first time, he dared to hope. “I’ve never been happier than these weeks I’ve spent in the mountains with you and your mum. With you.”

  She shifted an inch closer, and his hands came up to her waist.

  Another sniff, but this time he was pretty sure he heard a smile with it. “I love you, too, Reuben Scott. There’s nothing I’d like more than to be your wife.”

  The words sank over him slowly, but with a power that almost brought him to his knees. She’d said yes? But did she really know what she was agreeing to?

  He raised a hand to brush back a wisp of hair the breeze blew across her cheek. “Are you sure? I don’t know if I can be everything you need, even though I’ll try my hardest. I don’t even know if we can stay at the homestead. I’m not good at working the land like my pa was. We may need to travel to where the trapping is better.” He inhaled a breath. “Or, if you’d rather move back to town, I’ll find a way to support us.”