by Vivi Holt
Jane looked around in search of the new mother. “She did say she was tired earlier.”
“Well, I’ll start without her.” Genevieve motioned to Hannah, who hurried out of the room, returning moments later dragging several sacks full almost to bursting.
“What is it? What are you up to?” Jane laughed. Whatever it was, Genevieve was obviously enjoying herself.
“Since the fire, I know it’s been hard on you not having much of anything. Especially for your closet. Several of us got together – Sarah, Hannah, myself, some of the women from town – and we put together some clothes, linens and other things. New things, not hand-me-downs, and some specially made – all for you.” Genevieve sat on the horsehair settee beside Jane and began pulling gowns, petticoats, stockings, scarves and more from the bags.
Jane’s hand flew to her mouth. “These are all for me?”
“Well, these bags are for you. We have more in the other room for the Thompson children. I know how upset you were when the clothes you were making for them were destroyed.”
Jane’s eyes filled with tears. She couldn’t believe the generosity of her sweet cousin, along with women she’d never even met before. She let out a loud sob as she searched for a handkerchief in her skirt pocket.
Genevieve laid a hand on her arm and laughed. “Oh, darling Jane, everything’s going to work out just fine. You mark my words.”
“Thank you. You don’t know how much this means to me. It’s so very generous of you all. Thank you.” Jane’s wet eyes met Genevieve’s, then Hannah’s as she nodded her thanks.
“You’re very welcome. And you can thank the other ladies when you meet them.”
“And we’re sure lookin’ forward to seein’ ya in some o’ these ootfits.” Hannah held up a burgundy plaid gown with lace trim.
“They’re beautiful,” hiccuped Jane, as she reached for her handkerchief again.
***
The next day dawned bright and sunny, with a pleasantly brisk wind carrying a hint of the coming winter through the valley. Jane wandered out of the guest room where she’d slept soundly, after washing and dressing, to join the others for breakfast.
The scent of fried salt pork and freshly baked bread wafted out to greet her, and as she stepped into the kitchen she saw Hannah frying potatoes on the stove top.
“Good mornin’,” said Hannah with a cheery smile.
Jane responded in kind, and poured herself a fresh cup of coffee from the pot on the kitchen table.
Just as she took her first sip, Genevieve bustled into the room. “Good morning all. Did you sleep well?”
“I did, thank you. What’s on the agenda for today?” Jane took another sip, and savored the feel of the hot drink as it soothed her throat and warmed her belly.
“Didn’t I tell you? We’re having a barn raising.” Genevieve laughed, and patted Jane’s arm as she reached for a stack of plates. “You’re in for quite the ranching experience.”
“A barn raising?” Jane’s eyebrows arched in surprise.
“Yes indeed. Most of the ranchers in the valley will be here shortly. Thomas wants to get a third barn built in time for winter, since we have more stock this year. So, there’ll be plenty for us to do to keep the men folk nourished, and the women company.”
Jane felt her spirits rise at the thought. “Well then, you just let me know where you need me and I’ll do what I can to help.”
After breakfast, the first of the wagons arrived. The Drothertons, their closest neighbors, drove up the long, sloping drive in a wagon packed to the brim with four daughters, two sons and enough food to feed a small army.
Frank jumped from the wagon with a grin, and helped his wife Mary down before lifting the two younger children out. Mary hugged Genevieve’s neck, and shook Jane’s hand with a warm smile, welcoming her to the valley. The older children leapt to the ground, and stood impatiently waiting for the niceties to be over. No doubt anxious to begin their exploration of the property. As soon as they’d said their hellos, they disappeared around the outside of the house, shouting and laughing with glee at each new discovery they made.
Jane set about fixing pots of coffee, kneading and mixing batches of biscuits, cookies and cakes, and ferrying everything, as it was finished, to the table that had been set up outside to provide an ongoing buffet for the workers and their families. It was a jovial affair, and as each wagon load of families arrived, there were joyful reunions, long awaited catch-ups, and peals of laughter that rang through the crisp air and across the valley.
In no time, the men were working hard and fast on erecting the cavernous structure. Thomas had felled and dragged in as many logs to the site as he figured they might need in preparation for the event, and they set to work fitting the skeleton of the building in place, full of enthusiasm and without fuss. Pieces of conversation drifted her way, along with shouts of laughter and the constant beat of a hammer or whack of an axe against wood, as men expertly split logs for the walls.
Jane was impressed with how rapidly the barn was erected with so many hands to make the work light. On one trip out to the table to replenish a stock of sandwiches, she found Dusty quenching his thirst with a glass of ice tea. He caught her eye, and lowered the cup to smile at her.
“Havin’ fun?” he asked, with a glint in his eye.
She could see he was in his element — working hard under the warm sun with the rest of the men. He was vibrant with life. He’d pushed up his shirt sleeves, and the glow of his tan accentuated the swell of his muscular arms, making her pulse quicken at the sight. She felt herself drawn to him, as though being close to him would somehow make her whole.
“I am, thank you.” She pushed past him to set the sandwiches down on the table, and her arm brushed up against his. She felt the familiar spark snap the air between them, and her breath caught in her throat.
When she looked up, instead of finding him jolting back in shock, his gaze was locked firmly on her, his head lowered toward hers and his eyes full of unashamed hunger.
She licked her lips, and a tremor ran through her body at his closeness.
“Dusty, I…”
“What?”
He stepped closer still. So close she could feel the warmth emanating from his body onto her own.
“You’re making my head grow light, standing so close. I can’t think…”
He grinned, and leaned ever closer. “Good.”
His eyes never left hers, and she felt as though she might drown in their depths. If only she could look away. But she didn’t dare.
It was improper, the way he looked at her and leaned toward her. He was almost pressed up against her. What if someone was to see them? And yet, she was mesmerized — her pounding heart cried out for more, and her hands itched to reach for him.
His eyes drifted to her lips, and his voice followed in a hoarse whisper. “If we were alone right now…”
“Don’t,” she begged with a soft bite to her lower lip.
“You don’t know what you do to me,” he growled, his hands clenched into fists at his sides. “Ya have some kind of hold over me. Every time I think I’m free of ya, ya draw me back in. I don’t know what is goin’ on with ya Jane, but I’m tempted to kiss ya good and long and see if maybe that’s all ya need.”
With that he was gone. He strode back down the hill to the building site, leaving Jane standing there, on legs now to weak to hold her. She leaned back against the table, and let out a long breath that was held captive in her lungs while he spoke.
Then, she shook her head, pushed her shoulders back and stumbled inside the house.
By the time the sun began to set beyond the western horizon, the barn was complete. Jane was exhausted. All day long the women had kept up a steady stream of food and drink, while chasing after wayward children, and scrubbing pots and pans clean in buckets of soapy water. She’d made several new friends, and learned all about every family that lived in the valley. Her back ached, her feet throbbed, and she longe
d to sit in a rocking chair and drift off to sleep. But there was still work to be done.
She hadn’t seen Dusty since their encounter earlier that day, and most of the men were still packing away their tools and whatever timber was left over. Families loaded into wagons to make their long journey home. Most wouldn’t reach their destination before darkness fell over the valley, and still had their own chores to tend to. It was a long, tiring day for all involved, but in the midst of their fatigue, spirits ran high and the cries of farewell that carried on the breeze were filled with laughter and good wishes as everyone celebrated a job well done.
Jane helped Genevieve, Hannah, and Sarah wash the final dishes and tidy the house before they all retired wordlessly to bed. When Jane’s head hit the pillow, and she pulled the thick covers up over her aching body, she ran over the events of the day in her mind. She pondered the way the community had all pulled together to help Thomas and Genevieve. Each person there had worked hard, pitching in to help their neighbors out of the kindness of their heart. And she knew, from what Genevieve had told her, that every family in the valley was willing to do the same, each for the other. Her heart swelled at the memory of all those happy faces, all those people working together with cheerful smiles for a common goal.
Full of wonder, she realized how relaxed and accepted she’d felt among this group of strangers. By the end of the day, they’d become her friends. Deep down inside, she longed to be part of this community — part of this family, this fellowship — where each person was accepted, loved and treated with respect. Where strangers banded together to help each other and became lifelong friends in the trenches of an honest day’s hard work. She smiled as her thoughts drifted into dreamland, and sleep overtook her. Her final thought was of Dusty, his hat tipped back and a hint of mischief in his eyes as his steady gaze drank her in.
***
The next evening, after supper and chores, Jane let her thoughts drift down and down in a spiral of doubt until she could bear it no longer. She should have been happy after her time spent with new friends and old on the ranch, but instead all she could think about how she was soon returning to Bozeman and leaving it all behind.
She was certain now that she couldn’t marry Dusty with her secret hovering between them, and didn’t know what to do about it. Not that he’d asked her yet, anyway.
They were all still tired after the previous day’s exertions, and Hannah bid everyone goodnight early to retire to her room. Thomas and Vaquero headed outside to check on the livestock one last time before bed. Only Jane and Genevieve remained downstairs in the house. Jane had been quiet throughout dinner, and finished cleaning up the kitchen in silence.
Finally Genevieve cornered her. “Okay, Jane dear, tell me what’s going on. And don’t say nothing, because I know better.”
A slow tear found its way down Jane’s right cheek, followed by another.
“Oh my dear, come with me. Let’s sit in the den and I’ll make you a nice cup of coffee.” Genevieve grasped Jane’s arm and led her to the settee, then waddled to the kitchen to fetch them each another cup. Within moments, she was back and settled beside Jane with a frown. Taking Jane’s hand between hers, she pulled her close.
“I don’t know where to start.” Jane met Genevieve’s concerned gaze.
“At the beginning,” whispered Genevieve as she lifted a hand to stroke Jane’s hair.
“I’m not exactly sure … how much you know about my family …”
“Honestly, I don’t remember much.”
Jane pulled back and set her chin in her hands. “Well, when I was fifteen Father and Mother were thrown in jail.”
Genevieve’s eyes widened, but she didn’t say a word.
“We were never rich, but we always had whatever we needed. Pa was a bookkeeper for a big company in Boston and Ma played a lot of whist. That’s all I knew. What I didn’t know was that they were also thieves, embezzlers. They defrauded that company out of thousands of dollars. After they were discovered, they were sentenced to be hanged. My Aunt Priscilla, Mother’s sister, sent me away before it happened. She knew I wouldn’t want to see my parents hang.
“By then we were starting to get letters in the mail and people throwing things at our house. Everyone hated us, and the children at school treated me terribly. I had nowhere to go but Aunt Priscilla’s, but even there it wasn’t much better. She decided I’d do better as far away as possible. She saw an advertisement in the paper for a schoolmistress position in Missoula, so that’s where I went.” Jane stopped and waited for Genevieve’s response.
“I’m so sorry – I didn’t know.” Genevieve patted Jane’s arm. “The news never reached us in Fort Worth, I guess. Aunt Priscilla didn’t tell me why you’d gone west, other than that your parents died. That must have been a terrible time for you.”
“It was very hard. I started over in Missoula and did my best to build a new life. No one there knew me or anything about my parents. Back in Boston, they’d become quite infamous – they were in the newspaper all the time, ‘the Mr. and Mrs. Bandits’. Everyone despised them, seeing as how they weren’t poor and Father had a good job. Their thievery caused the business to close, and a lot of people lost their jobs.”
Genevieve shook her head sadly, and Jane continued.
“In Missoula, I always had trouble with Mr. Figway and the school board. For some reason he had it out for me from the beginning. But everything else was going really well – I even got engaged to a good man there, Dr. Donald Witt. He was kind and sweet, or so I thought at the time. Then somehow Mr. Figway discovered my history, and he told everyone in town.”
“What a cad!” Genevieve gasped, lifting a hand to her mouth.
“Donald left me right before our wedding. He said he couldn’t marry a common criminal, that our children would likely be thieves. I never saw him again, except from a distance.”
“Oh my dear, that is more than unfair. What a mean thing to do!” Genevieve squeezed Jane’s arm.
Jane cleared a lump in her throat. “It hurt. And the entire town turned against me, which made everything worse.”
“I’m so sorry, dear cousin. Now I’m even happier that I encouraged you to come to Bozeman. I feel terrible that the schoolhouse burned to the ground, but even that isn’t as bad as what happened in Missoula. At least you can rebuild here and start afresh. And Dusty really seems to love you. Things will get better, you’ll see.” Genevieve wrapped an arm around her swollen belly and smiled.
Jane frowned. “I hope so. It’s just that … what if Dusty finds out the truth? I doubt he reads the Boston papers or has any contacts back east much, but still, he could find out. And I’m all eaten up inside about not telling him, as though I’m being dishonest with him even though it’s not anything I did wrong. Am I lying to him?”
Genevieve grasped Jane’s hands in hers and held them tight. “You’re not lying. You didn’t do anything wrong, it was your parents. But if it feels wrong to keep it from him, that’s probably not going to change. I think you should tell him.”
Jane closed her eyes and breathed deep, letting it out as a soft sigh. “I know I should. I’m just so scared he’ll run for the hills like Donald did.”
“You’re not giving him enough credit. He’s stronger than you realize.” Genevieve’s voice was full of tears.
“So I should tell him?”
“Yes, you should.”
***
Dusty finished grooming the chestnut gelding with a curry brush, leaving the horse’s coat gleaming in the lamplight. He sighed, threw a heavy rug over the horse’s back, fixed it in place with a strap around the animal’s chest, then closed the stall door and made his way to the next one. So far, he’d groomed every horse but one. He thought the activity might give him some clarity – or at least a few moments away from Jane to think.
He’d been determined to propose to her, but something was holding him back. She wasn’t herself, and he didn’t know why. Was it him, something he’
d said or done? Or was something else going on? Every time he questioned her about it, she told him she was fine, but he knew there was something amiss.
The barn door slid open and Thomas walked in, marching over to where Dusty stood and folding his arms across his chest. “So … what, or who, are you hidin’ from?” he asked with a smirk.
Dusty laughed. “I ain’t hidin’ from anyone or anythin’. What makes ya say that?”
“Then why in tarnation are you out here groomin’ horses in the middle of the night when you have a pretty young guest up at the ranch house you could be spendin’ time with? I’ve let you off work to see her often enough. You finally get her to come out for the weekend, and you hide in the barn with the horses?” Thomas chuckled. “I know you love the animals, but really, there are better things to be doin’ tonight.”
With a sigh, Dusty planted his hands on his hips. “Yer right. I’m hidin’.”
Thomas slapped him heartily on the back. “I recognize it ‘cause I’ve done it myself. Sometimes womenfolk can get a man confused.”
Dusty nodded. “I was gonna ask for her hand today.”
“That’s great news!” exclaimed Thomas with a grin. “Wait … but why didn’t you?”
“Because something’s wrong. I don’t know what – maybe she don’t like me no more. Maybe somethin’ else is goin’ on. But whatever it is, she won’t tell me. And I’m beginnin’ to wonder if I should ask her after all.” Dusty groaned and rubbed his hands over his face.
“Well, I think you should do it,” said Thomas.
“Ya really think so?”
“Yeah, I do. She must like you to put up with you courtin’ her all this time. And maybe there is somethin’ on her mind. Tell her how you’re feelin’, get it out in the open. If she still doesn’t tell you what’s goin’ on, then maybe it isn’t meant to be. Or maybe you just need to wait some more.” Thomas slapped him on the shoulder again and turned to leave.