Emily nodded, wondering if deputies’ wives ever grew accustomed to their husbands’ often-perilous professions. Did Jake plan on continuing his role as a deputy marshal, even though it was, as he said, a widow-maker?
“I’ve been wondering if you should send a message to my father . . . about our . . . you know, courtship.”
Jake drew in a breath. “I ain’t interested in courtship, Em.”
A stab of disappointment. “I see.” Had she misunderstood something?
“I want to marry you.” The huskiness in his tone sent an exquisite shiver down her spine. “I’m praying you want the same thing.”
“I want it very much.” She stepped closer and slipped her fingers between his. “I can’t imagine my life without you.”
He gave her hand a gentle squeeze.
“Will you kiss me again?” She tipped her chin upward.
“Yes, but not this minute.” He grinned before his gaze skipped to the cabin door. “G’morning, Sissy.”
A shot of embarrassment flamed her cheeks. Had Deidre overheard?
“Well, good morning, you two.”
Emily turned to see Deidre step onto the porch.
“I hope you slept as well as I did.”
Emily nodded and smiled, hoping her blush wouldn’t give her completely away.
“I see you’re ready to leave, Jake.”
“All set.” He tossed the remainder of his coffee. “I’ll be back at suppertime.”
“Wonderful. In the meantime, I’ll do my best to entertain Emily and Iris. Cooking lessons, perhaps.” She winked at Emily.
“Cooking . . . lessons? Am I to understand that you can’t cook, Emily?”
She shrugged. “It can’t be that difficult, and I’m an expert assistant. Besta tells me that all the time.”
Jake didn’t seem too worried about starving to death. “Listen, you two, just keep Iris out of trouble. And I’ve got your list, Em.”
She smiled her thanks. Even with everything that happened yesterday, he hadn’t forgotten about the buttons, ribbon, and lace that she needed for Deidre’s sweater.
Jake handed his sister his empty cup. “See you ladies tonight.”
CHAPTER 26
JAKE FIXED HIS thoughts on Emily for most of the way to Glendive, although he kept a watchful eye on his surroundings and his shotgun close at hand. Wasn’t heard of for lone riders to get ambushed, robbed, beaten, or worse. Jake never feared death, but for the first time that he could remember, he had something to live for, something tangible and real: Emily Sundberg. He almost didn’t feel worthy of such a blessing, and he soon imagined her setting up housekeeping in Granddad’s house. Had he mentioned it? What if she didn’t want to live next door to her family? Was she and Deidre teasing him about Emily not being able to cook? What woman didn’t know how to cook?
Emily Sundberg. Jake chuckled to himself.
Reaching Glendive, his guard went up. Couldn’t afford distraction. After giving his sworn account of the night he arrested Jimmy McJeevers, he walked over to the general store and purchased Emily’s buttons, lace, and ribbon. Afterward he strode to the marshal’s office. He was glad to see Marshal Lloyd was in his Dawson County office today. The man owned a dairy farm and ranch near Butte but made monthly appearances in Dawson County, as it was one of the state’s largest with a vast amount of open territory. His visits usually corresponded with the judge’s appointments, although Marshal Lloyd had only been in office four months now.
“Nice to see you again, Edgerton.”
“Likewise, sir.” Jake shook his hand but didn’t mince words. He gave his resignation and turned in his badge.
The conversation that followed echoed the one he’d had with Roy yesterday afternoon. Was he sure? The marshal was sorely disappointed to lose such a valued deputy.
“But I’m glad to write you a reference, Jake.” The clean-shaven man with white-blond hair opened the side drawer of the wide oak desk, reached in, and extracted a piece of official stationery. Pen in hand, he scribbled out a few sentences, and as the ink dried he found a matching envelope. “Kind of a shame, though. You were sworn in by three of my predecessors as well as myself, although I assure you, I’ve been much more selective than they were.”
“Thank you, sir.” He respected Marshal Charles Lloyd, a West Point man who’d fought in the Sioux Wars. He’d only been appointed to his current position earlier this year, but Jake had a hunch they would have seen eye to eye on most things. Not all, but most.
“I’m partial to Wisconsin. My family moved there from Sweden when I was an infant.”
“Thought I heard you grew up in Iowa.” Jake tucked the marshal’s letter into his coat’s inner pocket.
“We moved to Iowa when I was about twelve, and I have connections in the Midwest still, so my reference should prove valuable.”
“I appreciate it, sir.”
They shook hands again before Jake left the office. Standing on the boardwalk, the world looked like a different place, now that he no longer was a US deputy marshal. The job had consumed him. He’d given it his all, done his best, and his efforts hadn’t gone unnoticed. Feelings of intense satisfaction spread throughout his being.
He strode up the walk and stepped into a local eatery, ordered some lunch. He figured he’d best send off a telegram to Captain Sundberg. No sense in waiting, and it’d cost him less to send it in Glendive than in Fallon. He doodled as he ate, playing with the wording of his telegram. Maybe something like, Permission requested to propose marriage to Emily. He should send an official missive in the next couple of days. Formal letter to follow. Might be good for Emily to write to her parents as well.
Thinking back on their conversations, Jake didn’t think Captain Sundberg would be surprised.
“Help!” A man stormed into the establishment. Jake turned and viewed the well-dressed, long-faced banking clerk. “Someone help. The bank’s been robbed!”
Two days later Emily stood on the shady porch and wiped the perspiration off her brow with the hem of her apron. Supper was nearly done, thank goodness! Cooking took a lot of effort, and today’s heat made the kitchen an uncomfortable place. However, they’d eat in a half hour, and hopefully Jake would be home by then.
Worry picked at her. Was he all right? On Monday he’d sent a message stating he was detained and that he’d be back in a couple of days. Did testifying put him in some sort of danger? Web didn’t think so, and Deidre said this sort of thing happened frequently. Emily couldn’t help but wonder if she’d calmly abide Jake’s unplanned absences when they married . . . or would she worry herself sick over him every time he went away?
The latter. Most definitely. Lord, forgive me. I know fretting is a sin. Please give me Your peace that passes all understanding . . .
She blew out a weary sigh and reflected on the past two days. They’d been filled with lessons learned from domestics to matters of the heart. While Emily had grown up on a small farm, Iris hadn’t, and the daily chores exhausted her. Then starting yesterday Rez seemingly lost all interest in Iris, discouraging her further. Worse, she seemed to resent Emily. Deidre said that Iris was just hurt and envious that Emily wouldn’t be husbandless for too much longer. The statement evoked great happiness in Emily as well as huge sorrow. She loved Jake but didn’t want to lose her best friend.
A lighter lesson learned today was that three women in one kitchen were more bother than helpful. Iris, God bless her, was a teacher at heart, and she wanted to show Deidre all sorts of new ways to create Web’s and Jake’s preferred dishes.
The only trouble was, Iris had book and magazine knowledge, but lacked experience, so Deidre’s Very Berry Pie, one of Jake’s favorites, didn’t turn out exactly right. The filling was too runny and the crust got overdone.
But Iris took care of the problem by giving the entire pie to Charlie’s hounds, Beet and Buster. Consequently there would be no dessert tonight. As for cooking lessons, Emily decided to learn from Besta before she and J
ake married.
But how could she learn from her grandmother if she lived out here? On the outskirts of Fallon?
Emily eyed Jake’s log-sided cabin in the distance. From the stories she’d heard, her great-grandfather, Karl Sundberg, lived in such a cabin in Brown County, Wisconsin. Seemed a step back in time. Would she be able to survive such a rudimentary existence?
Sounds of hoofbeats and a rattling wagon wafted through budding treetops from a short distance off. Emily strained to see if it might be Jake just as Charlie appeared, shotgun in hand. Around his neck hung field glasses, the kind Poppa and her brothers used when hunting.
He peered through them. “It’s Jake coming!” He cupped his free hand around his mouth and hollered toward the house. “He’s got someone in a wagon bed. Injured man, looks like.”
Emily pulled off her apron and tossed it onto a nearby chair before making her way into the yard. Web and Rez jogged from the barn. Deidre and Iris rushed from the kitchen.
“Stay back, ladies.” Web held up a hand.
Emily, Iris, and Deidre did as he bid them as Jake drove the buckboard up the long drive. Nickel trailed, tethered to the back of the wagon.
Jake pulled the team to a halt near his cabin. “Doc Fenske will be along shortly,” he called to Charlie.
Charlie gave a nod.
Emily moved forward, but Deidre took her hand.
Straining to hear, Emily couldn’t make out anything Jake said to Web and Rez, but the two men carried the injured stranger out of the wagon bed and into to Jake’s cabin.
“That’s Andy!” The horror in Iris’s voice made Emily take close scrutiny. Still she couldn’t quite tell.
While Charlie tended to Nickel and the other two horses, Jake strode over and confirmed it. “A couple of no-account gamblers robbed the bank in Glendive Monday and bungled the job. One of them confessed to beating a third man and throwing him off the train south of town.” Jake glanced down at his dusty boots. “I had a hunch it was Andy. I went searching and . . . sure enough, I found him.”
“Oh, my stars!” Iris’s hands covered her heart. “Poor Andy.”
Emily folded her arms. God forgive her, but she had a difficult time feeling sorry for the man.
“I took him to the doctor in Glendive,” Jake continued, “and stayed at the hotel until Andy’s conditional stabilized.” He aimed a gaze at his cabin. “The doctor tending to him said Andy was all right for light traveling this morning, so I rented a rig and a team, made up a pallet in the wagon bed. Even so, during the trip home Andy started bleeding again.” Jake glanced at Emily, then Iris, and finally Deidre. “I stopped in Fallon and told Aunt Susie to get a message to Doc Fenske, asking him to come.”
“Why did you bring this man all the way here?” Deidre appeared perplexed.
“He’s a friend of ours,” Iris answered quickly. “A good friend.”
Emily resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the good friend part and regarded Jake. “How on earth did Andy end up north of here near Glendive? Last we saw him, he was in Terry.”
“From the little I was able to get out of him, Andy hopped on the northbound train early Monday morning, since I’d left a ticket for him. Andy owed a gambling debt to a fellow who hired the outlaws to kill him when he couldn’t pay up. The men followed Andy onto the train, beat him, threw him off, and left him for dead. Then the outlaws disembarked in Glendive with plans to rob the bank.”
“Poor Andy,” Iris repeated.
“I’ll heat some water and find bandages before the doctor arrives.” Deidre ran back into the house.
“I’ll go see about Andy.” Iris stepped around Jake.
Jake’s dark eyes fixed on Emily. “I feel like this is my fault. Maybe if I would have given Andy the money he’d asked me for, he wouldn’t have gotten himself beat up. It’s just that he’d lied so many times that I—”
“Jake, you’re not responsible for what happened to Andy.” Emily reached for his gloved hand. “If you would have given Andy the money, he would have, in all likelihood, spent it and still gotten the same sort of beating—maybe worse. I hate to say it, but perhaps this is the only way he’ll finally learn to change his ways.”
A little grin twitched the corners of his mouth. “How’d you get so smart?”
She smiled and hugged him around the waist. Hands on her shoulders, Jake moved to kiss her, but Iris’s sobs banished any romance of the moment. Emily looked across the yard in time to see her run from Jake’s cabin.
Disappointment wove through the concern she felt for her friend. “I’d rather stay here with you, Jake. I missed you, but I should look after Iris.” Seeing a hint of something akin to confusion in his gaze, she added, “Rez has been avoiding her for two days, and this morning one of the dairy cows knocked Iris to the ground. And that’s not all.”
Jake chuckled. “In light of Iris’s trauma, I reckon you’d best tend to her.” He let loose an audible sigh. “Maybe you and Iris can sit on the porch. I’ll let you know what Doc Fenske says.”
“Good idea, and . . . thank you.”
He sent her an affectionate wink before striding toward his cabin.
Emily met Iris inside and walked beside her to the chairs at the far side of the porch. Iris continued to cry, so Emily draped her arm across her friend’s narrow shoulders.
“How could someone beat Andy so badly?”
A moment passed before Emily replied. “You heard Jake. Andy got himself in trouble with men of no integrity.” She’d never told Iris that Andy lied about why he needed money. The subject never came up again after they departed Terry.
Iris trained her eyes on Emily, searching her face for an answer. “You know something more about this, don’t you?”
“I only know that Andy asked both Jake and me for money when we saw him in Terry and that he’d lied about why he wanted it.” Emily paused.
“Jake didn’t lend Andy the money? Money that might have spared him?”
“Or money that might have killed him for sure.” Emily refused to allow Iris to blame Jake. “God didn’t allow Andy to die, did He? There’s a reason why things happened the way they did. Jake found Andy and acted like the Good Samaritan. Maybe now Andy will stop his gambling and philandering.”
“Emily!”
“It’s true, Iris. Up until now Andy has displayed ugly penchants for strong drink, gambling, and . . . well, you saw him with those women the night of the Memorial Day Dance. To be honest, I no longer respect the man.”
“But you must forgive him.”
“I do.” After Saturday she hadn’t given Andy another thought. “And I pray he’ll make good use of this second chance that God’s afforded him.”
They sat in silence for several long seconds.
“Em, something worse than Andy nearly losing his life has transpired.” Moist, pale-blue eyes filled with accusation stared at Emily. “Something has shattered our friendship.”
“Oh, please! Don’t start with that nonsense about living in my shadow. Deidre told me you spouted such silliness. I’m hurt and annoyed. All these years you never let on that you felt . . . stifled by my family and me.”
“The knife cuts both ways, Em. We’re supposed to be best friends who don’t keep secrets from each other.”
“But we did.”
“Yes, we did.” Iris folded her bony hands tightly in her lap and shrugged off Emily’s sisterly arm. “It seems I’ve outgrown my childhood best friend. I’m sorry, Em.”
The remark wounded her, and yet, try as she might, Emily couldn’t argue.
That night Emily laid wide awake, thanking God that Andy would most likely recover from his injuries. He’d regained consciousness enough to drink some broth that Deidre made, and Jake allowed Iris to visit for a few minutes. When she had left the room in which Andy convalesced, Iris looked drawn and pale.
“His face is simply hideous!” Iris’s hand had fluttered at the base of her throat.
“I’ve seen worse,” Jake
had countered.
But Iris refused to be consoled, and tonight she’d cried herself to sleep. Emily wondered what had come over her friend. She’d never shown such interest in Andy before. Or had she been hiding her interest, knowing that Emily was interested in Andy too? She sighed. Why did relationships have to be so complex?
She turned onto her side and stared into the darkened bedroom. She and Jake hadn’t found much time alone tonight. Even so, he managed to tell her that he’d posted a letter to Poppa, asking for her hand in marriage. At first he planned to send a telegram with the formal letter to follow. But he found time to write the latter as he sat by Andy’s bedside.
Marrying Jake. The idea sent a pleasurable warmth through her veins. But how would Poppa respond? Would he be shocked? She didn’t think he’d refuse Jake’s request. And just wait until Eden and Zeb heard the news. Emily wished she could be present to view her brothers’ astonished expressions.
An animal yowled somewhere outside. Emily pulled the quilt up under her chin and thanked God that Andy hadn’t been left out in the Montana wilderness with the coyotes, wolves, and rattlesnakes. He probably would have died then—and maybe not of his injuries. Either way, it was a miracle that Jake had found him. Web had said that once Andy healed up, he could work on the ranch. Web added that he’d need an extra man come the fall roundup. Meanwhile Andy could regain his strength and learn the many particulars of a ranch hand’s job.
As the faintest light of dawn Emily heard sounds coming from the barn. She slipped from beneath the bedcovers and strode to the window. Peeking out, she saw Jake leaving for Glendive to return the team and wagon. Keep him safe, Father God.
It was late afternoon when Jake returned to the ranch. Emily stood from where she’d been sitting on the porch, knitting. She’d almost completely finished the sweater for Deidre.
Setting it aside, she walked out to greet Jake.
“You’re back safely.” She smiled. “I began to wonder if something happened.”
“No . . . no need to worry.” After tethering his horse, he removed his hat and leather riding gloves while crossing the yard.
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