Abigail (Angel Creek Christmas Brides Book 12)

by Peggy McKenzie

  Will stared at the fire for a minute or two, his mind a whirlwind of random thoughts. He supposed there was something about staring into a fire that mesmerized and calmed a man’s mind. Just a few weeks ago, he had been a contented bachelor indulging in the decadent behavior one would expect from a single man with no responsibilities other than his own needs. But now, he was a father caring for three beautiful little angels. He knew he would have no problem providing for their physical needs. He had money from his family’s estate. Money he hardly ever touched. And now that Daisy was gone, he was the only survivor left. He also knew his sister’s husband had made a good living at ferrying freight up and down the Mississippi just outside of St. Louis, so there was that money to draw from too. He intended to put all of that money into trust funds for the girls so that when they were old enough—and wise enough—they could make their own decisions on how to spend the money their parents left them.

  The fire popped and the flames once bright yellow now settled into an orange glow while the embers beneath were red hot. He could feel the heat on his face and legs from his chair. The flickering flames hypnotized him. His body relaxed and all the pressures and worries of the day slipped away.

  Thoughts of his new responsibilities morphed seamlessly into contented visions of his nieces laughing, the sadness and tension of their new surroundings forgotten, and all because of his miracle find in Angel Creek.

  Without warning, the visions of his nieces’ happy faces and smiling dark eyes changed into another pair of dark eyes. It dawned on him how much his nieces looked like Abigail. To the unknowing eye, they could easily be related. He found the thought interesting.

  The fire popped and belched out a hot ember onto the braided rug. He quickly picked it up with the shovel by the fireplace and scooped it back into the fire. Then, he placed the fire screen across the opening and turned out the lamp. A quick look through the front window confirmed his previous suspicions. Snow was already stacking up on the front lawn and the flakes were coming down without a hint of stopping anytime soon.

  The clock in the hallway announced the hour with a single strike to its bell. He should get to bed, especially if he wanted to surprise Abigail and his nieces with a hot breakfast of johnnycakes and pork sausage. Then, he would bundle them all up in a wool blanket, fill a tin with hot chocolate, and take them on a sled ride into the woods.

  Christmas was a week from tomorrow, so perhaps tomorrow, he would help the girls choose a very special Christmas tree for their very first Christmas with him...and Abigail.

  Will checked the locks on the doors, turned the last lamp off, and made his way down the hallway to his own bedroom by the glow of the fireplace. He hesitated at the door of Abigail’s bedroom for a moment listening for what, he wasn’t sure. Nothing stirred except the contented sigh of Baby Rose asleep in her crib. He started to move away when Abigail’s voice surprised him from the darkness of her room. “Goodnight, Will.” Her voice just above a whisper.

  Taking a moment to analyze his feelings at hearing her call out to him in the darkness, he decided he liked her here in this house, under the same roof as him. He also knew he was walking a dangerous line between wanting to keep her from leaving because of the splendid care she provided for his nieces and wanting to keep her from leaving because—

  Without giving her a reply, he hurried down the hallway to his own bedroom. A sanctuary, with a door that served as a barrier between him and the object of his confused and misguided feelings.

  He undressed in the dark and slipped beneath the ice-cold bedcovers. He should leave his door open so the warmth of the fire could keep the chill at bay, but right now he wanted his privacy. He needed to think.

  Will folded his arms behind his head while he stared at the ceiling in the darkness. What was he going to do? He desperately needed Abigail to stay for the sake of his nieces, but how was he going to be around her day in and day out if he couldn’t stem these feelings for her? It would be a different matter if he thought she would be agreeable to staying, but she had made it crystal clear from the beginning that this was only temporary. This was just a job and no matter how much she cared for Violet, Lily, and Rose, she would be leaving after Christmas.

  He stared at the ceiling for a while trying to come up with a plan to convince Abigail to stay and care for his nieces without having to give her something of himself. He wasn’t ready for that kind of commitment. Charlotte had all but cured him of ever wanting to have those sort of feelings ever again. The cold-blooded woman had seduced him, pretended to love him, and then stomped his heart into a million pieces on the way out the door with her lover of the month. No, he couldn’t see himself being committed in that way again, but if he could convince Abigail that she belonged here with the girls, and provide a solution that she could find acceptable, then perhaps he could hold on to this modified version of a family.

  The clock struck three and he knew he needed to get to sleep if he wanted to get up early. He pulled the covers over his head and snuggled down into the darkness. “Goodnight, Abigail. Sweet dreams,” he whispered and drifted off to sleep where visions of a dark-haired, doe-eyed beauty waited.

  Chapter 9

  Squeals of delight pulled Abigail from a deep slumber. “What on earth?” She rose from her bed and went straight to Rose’s crib to check on the sleeping baby, but the crib was empty. “What the—” Her sleep fogged brain tried to make sense of what was happening as she rushed next door to check on Violet and Lily. Their beds were empty too.

  Laughter drifted from the kitchen. “What could possibly be going on?” she mumbled to herself and hurried toward the kitchen doorway, but when she rounded the corner she stopped short, blinked twice, and rubbed her eyes with her fists. She must be dreaming.

  “Good morning, sunshine.” Will spoke to her from the stove. His clothes were covered with a lace-trimmed apron and his face was covered in…flour?

  “What are you doing?” She slowly circled the children, all sitting at the table, forks in hand and stacks of johnnycakes a mile high. “Why didn’t you wake me?” It was all she could think of to say.

  “We didn’t want to wake you because you were sleeping so soundly.” Baby Rose and I were up first and then Violet and Lily joined us. You aren’t the only one that knows how to cook,” he bragged.

  “I can see that.” Abigail was still in a state of surprised shock when she realized she was standing in the kitchen with only her nightgown on and bare feet. Her eyes shot up to meet Will’s and she knew he knew what she was thinking.

  “Why don’t you go get dressed and then come join us. There’s plenty, I can assure you. I may know how to cook johnnycakes, but I don’t know how much batter to make. As you can see, I’ve probably made enough to feed the whole of Fort Benton.”

  “I think you may be right.” She nodded in agreement. “I’ll go get dressed.”

  “And after we’ve eaten, I’m going to take everyone for a sled ride, how does that sound?”

  The girls shouted their delight. Abigail stopped in mid-stride. “A sled ride? But doesn’t that require…”

  “Snow?” Will turned and grinned. “Have you taken a look outside?” He nodded toward the kitchen window over the sink.

  Abigail didn’t bother to hide her delight. “Snow? Real snow?” She rushed to the sink and pulled back the curtains. “Oh my. I can’t believe it. Look at how pretty and white it is. And how the sunshine makes it sparkle. It’s like a fairy tale world covered in diamonds. It is so beautiful.”

  “Yes, it is. Very beautiful.” She caught the hint of something in his tone that perhaps he was no longer talking about the snow. She turned, but he was busy at the stove flipping johnnycakes. She must have imagined it.

  “I’m going to get dressed and I’ll be right back to help clean up. I can’t wait to get outside. It’s going to be amazing.”

  She rushed out of the kitchen and down the hall to her bedroom. She could have sworn she heard Will say something that soun
ded like “yes, absolutely amazing” but she couldn’t be sure of that either.

  Abigail quickly dressed and hurried back to the kitchen. Will was sitting next to Rose feeding her bites of food while the other two were fully occupied with their heaping plates. “I had no idea you could cook. I would have recruited you to help out every morning. What else are you able to cook?”

  She pulled the coffee pot off the stove and refilled Will’s cup, filled hers, then replaced it on the stove and took her place at the table.

  “Here’s a fork. Dig in.” Will invited and shoved four patties of pork sausage on her plate.

  “Oh my goodness. I’ll founder eating all this food.” She stabbed three or four johnnycakes and put them onto her plate then covered them with butter and maple syrup.

  “Like I said, I’ve no problem cooking, it’s the calculations of how much batter to make I struggle with.”

  Abigail sipped hot coffee and ate pork patties and johnnycakes until she couldn’t eat another single bite. “Well, if I’m ever in charge of feeding an army, I know who to call for breakfast,” she teased and stood to collect the dirty dishes. “While I clean up, you girls go put on your warmest clothes. Make sure you have woolen socks and find your mittens. I put your coats and hats on your beds. Now hurry up. We don’t want to miss a minute of the snow today now do we?”

  Violet and Lily ran down the halls. Abigail called after them. “Girls, remember. Ladies do not run in the house.”

  She heard their footsteps slow and grinned with affection at the little girls.

  “They are really growing fond of you, you know?” Will surprised her with his comment. She turned to him to see him gently wiping Rose’s face and hands.

  “I know and I’m growing fond of them too.” She wondered how it happened. It had only been a little more than three weeks since Will had come to Angel Creek looking for help. She would have sworn she’d have been on her way by now. And she would have, if not for Will’s inability to choose a proper caretaker for the girls. But now it was more than her obligation to her job or her promise to stay until after Christmas that kept her from leaving. She had formed a bond with these girls and that posed a problem she hadn’t foreseen.

  Will stood and helped to clear the dishes. Abigail stopped him. “I’ve got this. You go do whatever it is you need to do to get that sled ready. The girls and I will be ready to go within the hour. Will you?”

  “I certainly can be. But before I go, I planned to make us some hot chocolate to take with us on the ride.”

  Abigail grinned and took the dirty plate from his hand. “Now, where would you get chocolate all the way out here?”

  Will gave her a devilish grin. “Let’s just say children aren’t the only things the stagecoach brings to Fort Benton.”

  “Oh you,” she teased him back. “Well, what are you waiting for? I’ll do the dishes and you get after that hot chocolate. How did you know that’s one of my favorite things?”

  She and Will worked together in the kitchen in amiable silence. Baby Rose pounded on her wooden high chair tray with a spoon. Violet and Lily could be heard chatting with each other in their room down the hall. Their excitement evident in their squeals of laughter. Abigail made quick work of washing and drying the dishes while Will poured milk into a soup pot and stoked the firebox with kindling. When the stove’s plate was the right temperature, Will set the pot on the stove and stirred the milk gently to keep it from scorching. Then he began adding ingredients. Some, Abigail had never seen put into hot chocolate.

  “What’s that?” She hung the damp dish towel on the hook and joined Will at the stove peering into the pot.

  “First, I added whole milk, then some heavy cream to make it...well, creamy.” He grinned. “Then I added a smidgeon of brown sugar and two sticks of cinnamon.”

  “Cinnamon?” Abigail was fascinated by the recipe.

  “Yes, it gives the hot chocolate a bit of spice and makes it tastes like Christmas.”

  Abigail watched him get something out of a box and split it open. She crowded close to him to see what he was doing. “Is that...a vanilla bean?”

  “Yes. Don’t you have those in Charleston?”

  “Yes, we had those. Charleston was a seaport after all. We were able to get all sorts of things, like spices, but I’m just surprised you’d get that out here? In the middle of the wilderness surrounded by mountains? I just never thought I’d find modern conveniences out here, that’s all.”

  Abigail had to admit she had more than one surprise this morning. Will was capable of cooking breakfast for the girls. He had fed Baby Rose and cleaned her up. And now he was preparing a special family recipe of hot chocolate—her favorite. What other surprises did the good captain have up his sleeve? That thought took an unexpected turn when she remembered how he had almost kissed her the night before and without warning, her eyes searched and found his lips.

  “Do you want some?”

  She heard Will’s words and it took a moment for them to push past her wandering thoughts. “What? What did you say? Want some...of what?” she stammered and felt embarrassment heat her cheeks.

  “Vanilla. From the vanilla bean. Is something wrong? Abigail, you look flushed. Are you feeling okay? We don’t have to go on the sled ride today. The snow will still be around tomorrow.”

  “No, I mean. I’m fine. And we can’t go tomorrow because Violet has school tomorrow. It’s Monday or have you forgotten what day it is?” She tried to pass off her discomfort with as many words as she could get into the conversation without sounding like a babbling idiot.

  “Well, if you’re sure?” Will frowned at her and bent down to catch her gaze. “If you’re sure?” he repeated and she had to look away to keep from giving too much away.

  “I’m certain of it. Now, let’s finish this hot chocolate and get on the road, shall we?”

  “Sure thing.” Will finished scraping the rest of the vanilla bean into the pot and stirred it with a long wooden spoon until he was satisfied. “There you go. All finished. Want a taste?” He offered her the wooden spoon full of the creamy chocolate beverage.

  “I sure do.” She leaned in and placed her lips near the spoon.

  “You might want to blow on it to cool it down a bit. You wouldn’t want to burn your lips.”

  Her heart stuttered a beat at his words. She raised her eyes and knew it was a mistake the moment her eyes met his. His dark eyes dropped to her lips and his gaze heated.

  Will dropped the wooden spoon into the pot of hot chocolate and turned to Abigail. He was going to kiss her. There was no doubt in her mind. Will was going to kiss her.

  She had a decision to make. There was no doubt she wanted him to kiss her. More than anything. But if he did, then what? Would their relationship change? And if it did, how would that influence her decision to leave after Christmas? So many conflicting thoughts and feelings flooded her mind in that short span of time.

  Will grew closer. “Abigail, you’re an intelligent woman. You can’t miss the fact that I want to kiss you. But I won’t if you don’t want me to.” She watched him hesitate giving her plenty of time to oppose his intentions.

  She wished she knew what to do and prayed for a sign to guide her. At that very moment, Violet and Lily ran into the room dressed from head to toe in their winter clothes. “We’re ready,” they announced.

  Will pulled away and returned to his pot of hot chocolate. It seemed he stirred it with a little more muscle than it required.

  Abigail crossed the room and pulled Baby Rose out of her high chair. “I think that’s my cue to get Rose and myself dressed for our very first sled ride in the snow.”

  She stopped at the kitchen doorway and caught Will watching her. “I’ll take a rain check on that offer for a taste, if you don’t mind.” She couldn’t believe she was behaving so brazenly, but twice Will had almost kissed her and twice they were interrupted. If that was the sign she had asked for, she found herself contemplating the possibility of
ignoring it completely.

  Chapter 10

  Will continued to stir the hot chocolate after Abigail left the room with Rose. He was playing with fire and he knew it. Did Abigail’s parting comment mean what he hoped it meant?

  “Uncle Will?” He heard Violet, but he was lost in his own thoughts until Lily tugged on his shirttail. “Uncle Will, can we go now?”

  He pulled himself together. “Yes, we are just about ready. I’m going to pour this delicious stuff into a tin and then I’m going to go get the horses and sled. You girls wait right here and don’t touch that pot. It’s very hot.”

  “We won’t.” The girls promised.

  He grabbed two padded pot holders and carried the pot to the sink where he had placed the tin jug, and poured the hot contents into it. Clamping down the lid, he covered the jug with a large dish towel. “Now, I’m going to get the horses. Remember, don’t touch the jug in the sink. Promise?”

  “Yes, we promise,” both girls said in unison.

  “Good. I’ll be right back.” He shoved his arms through his heavy canvas coat, buttoned it all the way up to the top, and threw his wool scarf around his neck. He shoved his hat on his head and pushed his hands into his gloves. “Abigail, I’ll be back. I’m going to get the sled,” he called out.

  “We’ll be ready,” he heard her say from her bedroom.

  He rushed outside and was surprised by the sunshine’s warmth. It was cold, but in the thin mountain air, it seemed warmer than it actually was. The walk to the stables led him through town, but his long legs made quick work of it. Will was a half block from his destination when a female voice called out to him.

  “Will, where are you going in such a hurry this morning?” Lanora’s voice called to him from the sidewalk. He turned to her and waved, but he had no intention of stopping to talk to her. Unfortunately for him, she didn’t mind running to catch up with him.