“Well now,” he said when he finally let her go, “we’d best get back to the hotel before I kiss you again and ruin your reputation right here in the middle of town.”
“But no one here knows who I am,” she replied.
“That may be true, but it’s still not a risk I’m willing to take. Let’s head back.”
Rowena laughed as she followed his lead. She appreciated what he was trying to do, but even if someone had glanced outside and seen them kissing, she honestly didn’t care. She’d never worried overly much about gossip of any sort, especially when she knew the truth of the matter. Let people think what they wanted and say what they wanted—they were apt to do it anyway.
When they reached the hotel, Billy walked her to the foot of the stairs. “Goodnight, Miss MacDonald,” he said softly, giving her hand a little squeeze.
“Goodnight, Mr. Smits,” she returned, then headed up to her room with a smile on her face. Margaret had definitely known what she was doing by sending them off on this errand—but the wagon was still an unnecessary touch, in Rowena’s opinion.
Chapter Eight
“And so we’re officially courting.”
Rowena had been pestered for details the minute she got back to the ranch, and with Margaret included, she had five sets of ears paying rapt attention.
“Oh, I just knew it,” Margaret said, her face beaming.
“I’ll deal with you later, young lady,” Rowena told her, wagging a finger. “I’m not sure I approve of your methods.”
“You might not agree with them, but they were effective.” Margaret settled back in her chair, still looking quite pleased with herself.
“So, you’re courting,” Fiona said. “Not engaged?”
“No. I imagine that’s a little ways off yet.”
“All right. I just need to make sure that I’m keeping all the wedding cakes straight in my head.” She glanced at Wynonna out of the corner of her eye.
Wynonna let out a huff. “Yes, yes, I know. You’re all waiting on me. Well, I’m waiting on Jack—what am I supposed to do?”
“Maybe I’m the last person to offer advice because I don’t plan to marry, but why don’t you ask him?” Fiona raised an eyebrow. “If he’s not taking the initiative, you certainly could, couldn’t you?”
“You’ve already talked about marriage,” Helen added. “All that’s left is to make it official.”
Rowena could see a dozen different emotions flicker across Wynonna’s face. “I’ll think about it,” she said at last, and the subject turned back to Rowena’s trip to town.
After the other girls left and Rowena was getting ready for bed, she noticed Wynonna standing at the window of the room they shared, staring out at the night sky. Rowena finished brushing her hair and turned down the covers, then walked over to where her friend stood.
“You’ve been pretty quiet for the last half hour,” she said. “What’s bothering you?”
“Oh, I just keep thinking about Fiona’s suggestion. I couldn’t propose to Jack, could I? That seems so pushy and inappropriate.”
“And yet you’re still considering it,” Rowena pointed out.
“I guess I am. When she said it, I felt a little ray of hope, like that was my answer, but then I started having all these doubts.”
“Let’s say that you did propose to Jack. What’s the worst possible thing that could happen?”
Wynonna turned from the window with a sigh. “If I proposed to Jack, he could be so offended that he’d end our relationship right then and there. He’d have to get a new job because being around me would be too awkward, so he’d pack up and leave. On his way out, he could knock over the lantern in the barn, setting the whole thing on fire, and it would spread from building to building until the entire Lazy Q was engulfed in flames. Then everyone would be homeless, including Margaret’s baby.”
Rowena blinked. “Gracious. You’re a bit crazy, aren’t you?”
“Yes, I am. And it’s all Fiona’s fault!” Wynonna began unfastening the buttons on her skirt. “Why did she have to make the suggestion? Now I’m not going to be able to think about anything else.”
“Maybe it wouldn’t end with the entire ranch burning to the ground,” Rowena said. “Maybe he’d say yes and kiss you, and you could start planning your wedding.”
“Maybe,” Wynonna said, but she didn’t sound convinced.
Rowena chuckled. “Come on now. Finish getting ready for bed and go to sleep. After you’ve had some rest, things will look brighter.”
“Do you think . . . No, I shouldn’t ask.”
“Hmm?”
Wynonna stuck her arms through the sleeves of her nightgown. “I just wondered if men talk to each other like women do, and if maybe Zeke or Billy would know why Jack hasn’t proposed yet.”
Rowena shook her head, smiling. “You’re hopeless, you know that?”
“Well, I was just thinking that if I knew the reason, it might help me be more patient about waiting. There are some days when I wonder if I even do want to marry him or if we’re courting just because we’re handy.”
“That’s just silly. You two were practically made for each other.”
“Maybe, but I’d like that in writing, please. On a marriage certificate.”
“I tell you what.” Rowena fixed her friend with a look. “If you promise to lie down and go to sleep, and to stop letting this fester, I’ll talk to Billy, all right?”
“Oh, would you? That would really be a sweet thing to do, Rowena.”
“Yes, it would be very sweet, and you’d owe me a dozen favors or something like that. Now, in the meantime, I’m worn right out, and I’d like to go to sleep. How about you?”
“Yes, that’s a very good idea.” Wynonna finished getting ready for bed, and once the room was dark, she climbed into bed and let out a deep sigh. “I won’t think about it. Not at all.”
“Good. Now, close your eyes.” Rowena shook her head again, both amused and exasperated. All the girls looked to Wynonna as their leader of sorts—Fiona was the most outspoken, but Wynonna saw what needed to be done and charged forward with it. No wonder it was so difficult for her to wait for Jack—he was taking a different approach, and it was likely making all Wynonna’s hackles stand on end. Rowena would see what she could find out from Billy—if for no other reason than to keep Wynonna from jabbering her ears off every night so she could sleep.
***
Billy chuckled as he walked up to the corral and rested his arms on the top rail. “Hey, Jack, you got a minute?”
Jack was working with one of their newer horses, trying to get the animal used to the idea of a saddle. “Sure, I’m ready for a break.” He pulled his handkerchief from his back pocket and wiped his neck and forehead. “What can I do for you?”
Billy chuckled again. “I’ve been courting for less than two days now, but I’ve already been roped into some female shenanigans.”
“I’m surprised they waited that long. What’s going on?” Jack leaned against the railing as well, but on the opposite side from Billy.
“I’ve been sent to ask you why you haven’t proposed to Wynonna yet. It was put more delicately than that, and with some eyelashes batting and whatnot, but that was the gist of it.”
“Boy howdy.” Jack wiped his face again. “Nope, they sure didn’t waste their time sendin’ you after me.”
“Thing is, one of the girls thinks Wynonna should just up and propose to you. Says there’s no reason to wait for you, seein’ as how you’ve already been talkin’ about marriage.”
“I’m gonna guess that was Fiona.”
Billy shrugged. “Rowena didn’t say which one—just that they’d been talkin’ about it.”
“Well, that’s no good at all. I have every intention of proposing. I’ve just been tryin’ to figure out how to go about it. I want it to be special, something better than just turnin’ to her and blurtin’ it out.”
“So, you want me to tell Rowena to tell Wynonna to
hold off on proposing to you herself?”
“Yes, please. Although now Wynonna’s going to be expecting me to do it even more, and it won’t be a surprise. Shoot—I should have done it two weeks ago. Then we wouldn’t be in this pickle.”
“Seems to me that it’ll be special no matter when it happens.”
“True, but still, I had it all worked out in my head. She’d be so astonished, she’d look at me with her eyes wide open, and she’d only be able to nod because she wouldn’t be able to speak. Now every time I walk up to her, she’ll be expectin’ something, and things are going to be real awkward.”
“Sounds to me like you need a new proposal plan. Something she’d never expect in a million years.”
“And where am I supposed to get one of those? Can’t just buy one at the mercantile.”
“No, but we could give you a hand. Sully’s always got some romantic notions in his head, and Wes can be creative when he turns his mind to it.”
Jack groaned. “I’m supposed to let you men plan the most romantic moment of my entire life? You didn’t even shave very often until those girls showed up—what do the bunch of you know about romance?”
“Well, considerin’ that I’m courting Rowena now, I must not be doing too badly for myself.” Billy clapped Jack on the shoulder. “Let’s talk about it tonight after our dancing lesson. I’m sure that between the lot of us, we’ll come up with something.”
Jack finally nodded. “All right, I’ll let you help me, but only because I’m desperate. That’s what it takes for me to think your lunatic ideas might actually work.”
Billy chuckled. “You never know. We might just surprise you.”
***
“Tonight I’ll be teaching the men how to dance—Wynonna, Helen, and Rowena, you’re able to help with that, aren’t you?” Margaret asked.
Rowena felt a little warmth come to her cheeks. She was being included in the “taken” category, and she liked it a lot. The three girls nodded, and Margaret moved on to the next order of business. “I’d like to start decorating around noon tomorrow. That gives us six hours. Now, I can’t imagine it taking that long, but I’d rather be done earlier than run late. How are we coming on the food?”
“Helen and I finished the cookies this morning,” Cora replied. “We made three different kinds.”
“You’re making me hungry,” Margaret said, and everyone laughed.
“You’re always hungry,” Rowena replied. “You’re even worse than I am.”
“Well, I do have an excuse,” Margaret said. “What about the rest of the food?”
“Now that I no longer have freshly butchered beef all over my kitchen, I can make the cakes this afternoon,” Fiona replied.
“I’ve been meaning to ask you about that,” Rowena said. “Was it awful?”
Fiona shook her head. “It was actually fascinating. Jack and Frisco took care of all the gruesome parts before I saw anything, and then Jack showed me how to break down the cuts. If being a cook doesn’t work out for me, I could get a job somewhere as a butcher.”
Margaret grinned. “That would be something, wouldn’t it? A lady butcher? Definitely not what people expect to see.”
“All the more reason for me to learn how,” Fiona replied.
“Which reminds me.” Margaret tapped a finger on her lip, apparently thinking. “We’re getting pulled off topic and we really do need to discuss the party, but Sully came to me with an idea, and I think it has a lot of merit.”
“Is this the idea where we learn how to skin rabbits?” Helen asked.
Margaret looked startled. “I don’t recall any mention of skinning rabbits . . .”
“That’s good, because I just don’t think it’s possible,” Helen went on. “I’m willing to learn how to do other things, but that one . . . I can’t. I’m sorry.”
“I mentioned Sully’s idea to them, and I might have elaborated just a bit,” Rowena said by way of apology. “I don’t think skinning rabbits was ever seriously on the curriculum.”
“That’s a relief because I wouldn’t want to learn how either.” Margaret sat back and laughed. “All right, what happened to my nice little planning meeting? I invited you here to talk about cake and cookies and dancing, and we keep venturing off into butchering and skinning. This isn’t at all what I thought we’d be doing.”
“I’m sorry,” Fiona replied. “I’m the one who brought up the cow butchering.”
“Well, the rabbits were Sully’s fault,” Rowena added.
Margaret raised both hands in a conciliatory gesture. “There’s no need to worry about who brought it up. Let’s just get back to business, shall we? The point is that the food is under control, correct?”
The five girls nodded.
Just then, the front door opened, and Billy stuck his head inside. “Excuse me, ladies. Could I talk to Rowena for a minute?”
“Of course,” Margaret replied.
Rowena would be lying if she said her heart didn’t leap into her throat when she saw him. It had been doing that ever since he’d kissed her in Topeka. She stood up and crossed the room, overhearing her friends giggling behind her. She couldn’t help it if her extremely handsome new beau had just dropped by.
He held the door open for her so she could step out onto the porch. Then he glanced around, slid his arms around her waist, and kissed her solidly.
“That’s not why I’m here, but I figured I shouldn’t waste a good opportunity when it presented itself,” he said with a grin.
“I suppose not, but why are you here?” It would take a minute for her heartrate to go back to normal.
“I talked with Jack, and he says he’s planning to propose, but he wants it to be special.”
“So Wynonna shouldn’t take care of it herself, then?” Rowena asked, laughter in her voice.
“No. He promises he’s working on it, and it will happen soon. If she could just give him a little more time . . .”
“I’m sure she’ll be willing to give him whatever time he needs once she knows that he’s working on it. She was concerned that he might be changing his mind and didn’t know how to tell her.”
“Oh, he’s definitely not changing his mind. I’ve never seen a man so smitten—well, except for maybe Wade. Or Zeke.” He tightened his hold around her waist. “Or someone else we both know.”
“Someone else?” She looked up into his eyes and was immediately captured. She knew better than to let herself get lost in them, and yet, she hadn’t done anything about it yet.
“Someone else,” he whispered. He brushed another kiss across her lips, then let her go. “I’d better get back to work, and I think the girls are waiting for you inside. Or at least, they’re spying on us—the curtain keeps moving.”
Rowena laughed and shook her head. “Oh, gracious. All right, I’ll go back in, and I’ll tell Wynonna. Thank you for talking to Jack.”
“You’re welcome, although I have to say, it wasn’t the easiest thing I’ve ever done. For a minute there, I felt like I was sitting at a ladies’ tea party sharing gossip in the corner.”
“I’m sorry for putting you through that, but I do find the mental image quite charming.” She took a step toward the door. “I’ll see you later.”
He touched the brim of his hat, then trotted down the porch steps and walked off toward the stables.
She watched him go, admiring the confidence in his stride. He might not always feel sure about the things he wanted to say, but he knew his place on the ranch and he knew his job well, and she enjoyed seeing him feel that sense of belonging and purpose. It made him all the more attractive.
When she entered the house, she found all the girls sitting on the edges of their chairs, waiting expectantly.
“Well?” Fiona said. “Is Wynonna going to have to propose?”
“No,” Rowena told them. “Jack has every intention of doing it. He just wants it to be special.”
Wynonna sagged back in her chair. “That’s such a re
lief. If he’d changed his mind, I don’t know what I’d do.”
“Why on earth would he have changed his mind?” Cora asked. “You didn’t have an argument or something, did you?”
“No. It was just my imagination running away with me, I guess—thinking that he might have met someone else.”
Helen laughed. “Who would he meet? That’s why they sent for us to come here as mail-order brides—their options out here on the ranch were nonexistent.”
“I know, I know—I was being silly. You have to be nice to me, though—I’m a woman in love who just wants to get married.” Wynonna put on a dramatic pout.
“Well, now that you know he’s still as madly in love with you as ever, let’s finish planning this party,” Helen said. “Otherwise, Margaret will have had her baby before we’re ever done.”
“Good point,” Margaret replied, and she brought up the next topic. It was hard for Rowena to concentrate, though, because she kept reliving Billy’s kiss in her mind, and a glance at Wynonna told her that her friend wasn’t paying much attention either. Poor Margaret—trying so hard to put together a nice event, and her helpers couldn’t even stay focused. It would all turn out beautifully, though—Rowena had no doubt of that.
Chapter Nine
Margaret had asked Wade to move all the furniture to accommodate the dancing lesson, and he’d tried his best, but there were only so many places to put things. The sofa ended up in the kitchen, and two of the chairs were now in the room Rowena shared with Wynonna. An end table was on the front porch, and everything else was pushed up against the walls.
“Let’s just hope everyone gets the hang of it after this one evening,” Margaret said to Rowena. “I’m not sure my little house can stand being pulled to smithereens again.”
“It’s good that we did this, though, because it’s brought another problem to light,” Rowena told her. “If we can’t create enough space for dancing lessons, how are we going to hold a whole party here?”
Margaret’s eyes flew open wide. “Oh, no,” she said. “Dr. Wayment warned me this would happen . . .”
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