by Lydia Olson
“As have you,” she reminded him.
“I’m used to long days, and I didn’t have to travel quite as far as you did today.”
Jane wanted to argue with him, but she didn’t see the point. She was so used to being of service to others that she forgot what it was like to just sit and smell your meal. At home she was the last one to eat, and the first one to finish.
“Was this your family home?” she asked. It stood to reason that it was, considering that Milton had his mother’s dishes. She hadn’t spent too much time exploring the house, but she had also noticed small trinkets around the drawing room and foyer that did not align with her idea of what would appeal to Milton. The house was grand, very large with a second floor that housed several bedrooms. The furniture was walnut, and ornate dyed rugs covered most of the floors. She was impressed by the tasteful display of wealth.
He did not seem the type to have anything in his home that was not of some sort of practical use.
“It was,” Milton said. “I’ve expanded it. Added a few rooms, but for the most part, this is the home I grew up in.” He spoke wistfully, but Jane could see a sadness in his eyes. He had mentioned in their letters that his father had passed, but he hadn’t said anything about his mother. Jane hadn’t found it too odd at the time, but now she wondered if she had been the cause of his sadness.
“Both of my parents passed,” Jane blurted out.
Milton’s face grew confused. “I thought you told me that your father owned a ranch …”
“Oh, he does,” Jane said. “He’s my step-father, but he raised me since I was five, so he’s really been the only pa I’ve ever known.” Jane knew that she was rambling, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself. When she was nervous, she tended to overtalk to try to fill the silence. That was especially true with Milton, who seemed keen to allow the silence between them to grow.
“Did you grow up in New Mexico?” he asked.
“No,” Jane told him. “I’m originally from Texas. Ma met my father when he came into town to buy some cattle. He was so struck by her that he came back for months asking after her. Within the year they were wed, and we were moving to his ranch.”
Jane left out how the following year had been one of the worst of her life. She’d only been five, but Kate had made sure to treat her worse than the dirt under her shoes. Jane had never experienced anything like it before, and it had taken some time to build a thick skin against her sister’s constant physical and emotional jabs.
Things had looked up for a spell, but then her mother caught ill and passed.
“I was born in New Mexico,” Milton said. “My pa bought this land a few years later hoping …” He trailed off without finishing, and Jane wondered what he had been about to say. She wanted to push and pry, but something told her not to. He’ll tell you in time, Jane thought, as she chewed on a piece of stew meat.
The two ate in comfortable silence, both lost in thoughts of the past. They allowed the clink of silverware on dishes to be the only sound between them.
“Once we are done, I’ll show you to your room,” Milton said. “I’m sure that you’ll want to get settled in and rest.”
“My own room?” she asked.
Milton nodded. “I thought it best for us to have our own spaces for now.”
Jane said nothing. She simply continued chewing her stew. She was glad to have her own space. She and Milton barely knew one another. But once more she couldn’t help but wonder … what does Milton want from a wife?
Chapter Six
True to his word, the next morning Milton was up and on the land before the sun rose. “Why are you here?” his foreman, Hank, asked. Hank was the only person who was on the ranch before Milton, which was why they got along so well, and why Milton allowed Hank to care for things in his absence.
“What do you mean?” Milton asked. He grabbed a muck rake. He had plenty of ranch hands who could take care of his horses, but he enjoyed the hard labor of mucking a barn first thing. It was always the job his father gave him. He told Milton that taking care of horses helped to build a man’s character, and Milton couldn’t say that he disagreed with him.
“You got married yesterday,” Hank said. “Most men would at least spend the day with their new wives.”
Milton shook his head. He had told the men that he would not be on the ranch due to his marriage, and though no one had said anything, they hadn’t needed to. Milton could tell that they were all shocked. It made sense, since he was not courting anyone. Unlike Hank, they’d all been too nervous to say anything to Milton.
“My new wife is ensconced in the house with Sara.” Sara was Hank’s wife, and she helped him keep his home in order. Now, she could serve as a companion to Jane. Milton thought it would be best to provide her with a companion that he knew wouldn’t turn her down a bad path. Milton had seen such a thing happen with his mother, and he did not care to see that happen with his wife.
“Sara was mighty excited to meet her. She can’t imagine what type of wife you might have gotten from a marriage agency,” Hank said.
Hank had ribbed Milton for going to a marriage agency, and Milton was pleased to tell him that he had been wrong.
“Jane is a nice girl,” he said. “She’s quiet and well-mannered.”
“How romantic,” Hank joked, as he started moving hay into the stalls.
“I’m not interested in romance nor is she,” Milton said.
“All women are interested in romance.”
Milton wasn’t sure about that. He’d only spent a few hours in Jane’s presence, but he could tell that she was a logical woman. She saw their marriage as a partnership in the same manner that he did. Last night, she had made a hearty, practical meal and hadn’t argued or put up any sort of fuss when he made it clear that they would occupy separate spaces in their home.
“Not Jane,” Milton said.
“Either way,” Hank said, “you should be home getting your wife settled. Things aren’t going to fall apart if you take a second day off.”
Milton didn’t say anything. He could hear rustling outside, and he knew that men were starting to show up for work. Milton and Hank had been talking and it slowed down their work.
“We need to focus,” Milton said. He rarely issued orders to Hank, but he no longer wished to talk about Jane. He cared to talk more about the cattle they needed to move, and the land that they needed to fence.
“I’ll let it go,” Hank said, “for now.”
Milton pursed his lips and kept working. Unlike the rest of the men who worked on the ranch, Hank was not scared of Milton, and he was especially not going to be deterred. It made him a good foreman, because he wasn’t scared to tell Milton the truth when it needed to be told, but it also drove Milton mad. He didn’t like people overstepping their boundaries.
“Besides,” Hank said, “Sara will just tell me about her later.”
This time Milton chuckled. He couldn’t help it. Hank was right. Sara would spill all the beans the moment she had a chance to talk with her husband.
***
The heat was getting unbearable. The afternoon sun was glaring down on the men as they drove fence posts into the ground. Milton enjoyed the hard work, but he could feel the rest of his men growing restless and rumbling with hunger.
“You men should take a break,” a feminine voice called out.
Milton groaned. He should have known that Sara would be making her way out of the house. Sara was Matthew’s oldest sister, and because of that they had known each other for years. Like her husband, she was always sticking her nose into things.
“We’ll take a break when we are done,” he said, hammering down another post.
“We need to get this fence done so that we can move the cattle,” Hank told his wife. For once, he and Milton were in complete and total agreement with one another.
“I’m sure that you’ll be fine to take a break,” Sara said. She had that tone of voice that made it clear that she was not g
oing to take no for an answer, so Milton made one last hit before he threw his hammer on the ground.
Looking over toward Sara, he wasn’t surprised to see Jane standing behind her. She had a basket in her hands, and she looked as if she were uncomfortable standing in their presence.
“Fantastic!” Sara said. She lowered her basket. “I thought you men would enjoy a bit of lunch.”
“That sounds wonderful,” one of the men said. Several others grumbled in agreement.
“Mrs. Johnson here put together some bread and cheeses for y’all,” Jane said. “I made some apple bread if any of you care for a bit of something sweet.”
When Jane removed the covering of her bread, the smell made Milton’s mouth water. He’d never smelled something so heavenly in his entire life, and though he wanted to continue getting the work done, he couldn’t deny that he wanted to eat some of that bread.
“I suppose it’s past time for us to take a break,” he said.
“I agree,” Hank nodded.
A slow smile overtook Sara’s face, and Milton knew that Sara had planned this. She never brought lunch out for all the men. Usually, they’d take their breaks in the barn or someplace where they could get some relief from the weather.
“Everyone gather around the new Mrs. Brennan,” Sara invited the men. “Be sure to get some of that bread. I had a slice, and it was delicious. Best thing I ever tasted.”
The men all clamored toward her, and he could see the heat blooming on Jane’s cheeks. “Back off now,” Milton said. He moved toward Jane, shielding her from the ravenous ranch hands.
“We apologize, Mrs. Brennan, but that bread is the most delicious thing we’ve ever smelled. I think you’ll be giving my Sara here a run for her money in the kitchen,” Hank said, breaking the tension.
Sara and Jane both laughed, and for a moment, Milton hated how easily Hank was able to interact with them. Yesterday, he had struggled to try and find words to say to Jane. They were married, but he felt tongue-tied in her presence. He did not know what would make her smile or what would make her frown, so he felt it best just to keep his lips closed.
“I’m pleased to meet all of you,” Jane said. “I wanted to make something to show all of you how glad I am to be here.” Her words were sweet and kind, and Milton appreciated them. He hadn’t thought about introducing Jane to the ranch help. It hadn’t even occurred to him. He realized now that he should have introduced her right away.
“We are pleased that Mr. Brennan brought us such a lovely lady to admire,” Hank said.
Milton frowned. He did not like Hank flirting with his wife. They might not have a marriage of love, but that didn’t mean Milton wanted Jane to get starry-eyed over Hank’s flirting.
“Why don’t I take you to see the horses,” Milton suggested. He wanted to get Jane away from Hank.
“I would love to see the horses!” Jane said. Milton was starving, but he could ignore the rumbling in his stomach if it meant getting Jane away from Hank’s flirtatious ways. Though Milton knew that Hank meant nothing by it and that he was a happily married man, it rubbed him the wrong way to watch Jane blush under Hank’s compliments.
“Take some lunch with you,” Sara said.
She thrust a cheesecloth full of food toward them. Milton caught it in his hands before he started walking Jane toward the barn.
They weren’t too far and there was nice breeze that brought cooling comfort. Milton took the time to observe Jane. Today she was wearing a sky blue dress with puffy sleeves. The light color brought out the pink in her cheeks, and the sun caused her eyes to sparkle. Looking at her did something odd to his heart.
“I’m sorry to leave so early,” Milton said. He could hear Hank’s words from this morning echoing in his mind. He did not know if Jane was the kind of woman who dreamt about romance, but he could still recognize that he should have stayed to take a meal with her and introduce her to Sara.
“It’s alright,” she said. “There seems to be a lot of work to be done.”
Milton was glad that she understood. He thought that she might, given that she was the daughter of a rancher.
“There is a lot of work,” Milton said. “We are preparing for some more cattle to join us in a few months. I’m working on drawing more irrigation lines through the land.”
Milton was sure that Jane would be bored by the conversation, but she was engaged and nodding at his words. “Sounds quite expansive,” she told him. “I’ve never seen such a big project before.”
“Your father must have been lucky enough to be close to a waterway,” he told her. He didn’t know too much about New Mexico, but he didn’t think that they had too much water. The land of Colorado was much more fertile, which was why his father had moved to Denver to start his ranch. He’d been a smart man.
“No,” Jane said. “He needed to irrigate, but he hired some people to do the work. I did not spend too much time thinking about how much work that must have been for them.”
“Your father didn’t work the land?”
Jane shook her head no. Milton was shocked to hear that. He did not know a single rancher worth their salt who didn’t work their own land. Of course, Jane’s father was now part of Milton’s family, which was odd to think about considering he hadn’t met his father-in-law yet, but Milton had to admit to himself that he didn’t think much about the things that he had heard in regard to Jane’s father.
“Are these all yours?” Jane asked, awe in her voice. They had walked through the barn doors. Jane stopped, looking around at the six horses that Milton owned. They were his pride and joy, and he didn’t allow anyone else to take care of them.
“They are,” he told her proudly.
Jane walked forward and a bright ray of sunlight spilled across her hair. She was wearing it in a long braid down her back, but a few curls had escaped. Milton felt an incredible urge to reach out and see if they felt as silky as they appeared.
“Do you ride them all?” she asked.
“When I get the chance.”
Jane walked up toward one of the horses, his favorite, and reached out. “Can I touch it?”
“Of course,” Milton responded. “They are all friendly.”
She reached out and brushed her fingers across the dark, black coat of the horse before her. He whinnied but stayed put and allowed Jane to run her hands over his coat. She stayed there for a moment, cooing at the horse as if it were a small kitten in her lap. Once more, it seemed that Milton and Jane had found something that they had in common. Matthew is never going to let this go, he thought. His friend had picked Jane very decisively for him, and it seems that Matthew had been correct in his assessment.
“What’s his name?” she asked, as she continued running her hands down the horse’s mane.
“Smoke,” he said.
“Because he’s so dark?”
“He’s fast too. One minute he’s here, and the next you see smoke over the horizon.”
It warmed Milton’s heart to watch Jane interact with his horses. He was still hesitant about what a wife could bring to him outside of the necessities, but he was glad to know that he and Jane shared similar interests. If Milton were truly honest with himself, he had been lonely these past few years. Matthew had moved away, and the other people around him had started their own families. Milton had no one. Until now.
“Is he your favorite?” she asked.
Milton chuckled. He set the cheesecloth on one of the bales of hay. He wasn’t sure how much time he’d be able to stay in the barn, and he knew that he should have made eating a priority, but he was enjoying his time with Jane too much to think about food.
“He is,” Milton said. “Though I enjoy all of the horses for different reasons.”
Milton had been serious when he told Jane that they would have to purchase a horse for her when she mentioned enjoying riding. Though he had plenty of horses she could ride, he felt it was important that she choose the animal herself. He wanted her to have a bond wi
th her horse, and since he could afford the purchase, he didn’t see anything wrong with it. Plus, it’s quite romantic, he thought, a bit smugly. Hank might think that Milton was completely incapable of romance, and while he wasn’t wrong, Milton was sure that he could show Jane he cared about her in other, more practical ways. A horse was the type of gift that was both lavish in cost and practical in nature.
“Oh goodness,” Jane exclaimed, “you must be starving!” She turned toward him, her gray eyes wide. “I was so enraptured by Smoke here that I didn’t even think about the time!”
“It’s alright,” Milton told her, his voice calm. “We have plenty of time for a quick meal.” He felt the need to reassure her. They’d barely even had a full day together, but Milton already noticed that Jane worried about pleasing him above all else. Last night, she cooked supper despite being exhausted.