Give My Love to Rose

by Nicole Sturgill

  “Well, I guess I better go out and feed the critters before I feed myself,” Langley announced, clearly wanting to escape the tension in the tiny cabin.

  He stood from his chair, hugged Rose tight and then darted outside.

  “Did you hurt yourself?” Rose asked, when she saw Marston rubbing at his arm.

  “I’ll be fine,” he assured her. “It’s just a little bacon grease.”

  “Do you want some help with breakfast?”

  “No, I can take care it. You’re supposed to be resting,” he replied, never once looking her way.

  “If I rest much more, I’ll be stuck to the sofa,” she grumbled.

  The hint of a smile tugged at the corners of Marston’s mouth. He carried three empty plates to the table before laying out a platter of eggs, bacon, and homemade biscuits.

  “Where did you learn to cook like this?” Rose asked, hating the awkwardness between them.

  Marston shrugged. “When there’s no one around to cook for you, you learn to do it on your own.”

  Rose nodded and silence fell over the cabin.

  “Rose, I’m sorry….”

  “About last night….”

  They both spoke in unison and quickly stopped speaking. Marston held up his hand as if he were a student seeking permission to speak in class.

  “Go ahead,” Rose urged before crossing her arms and chewing her bottom lip.

  Marston leaned back against the counter. “I’m sorry I looked at you….” He began but then he stopped and shook his head. “No, you know what? I’m not sorry. I’m a red blooded man and you were a naked woman so of course I looked. But looking is all that I did. What I wanted to do was make love to right there under the spray of water, but I didn’t.”

  “You couldn’t have!” Rose quickly countered, feeling her panic rise. “I wouldn’t have let you! There will never be another man to touch me against my will.”

  Marston fought back the rising rage within him. He’d suspected that Rose had been taken against her will in the past but to hear it spoken with such fear and pain from her own lips, caused his blood to freeze and boil red hot all at once.

  “Rose…” Marston swallowed hard, working desperately to control his temper. “Rose, I would never, never, force you to do anything. You are the only person in this whole world who ever saw me as something other than a bad man. You told me you didn’t think I was all bad and I want to believe you… but then you go and say something like that and leave me to wonder if all your pretty talk is nothing but horseshit. It leaves me to wonder if you really trust me at all.”

  Rose felt her heart fall at the pain she could hear in his gruff voice. He was so strong, so confident and so tough that it was easy to forget how sensitive he was—at least when it came to his newfound goodness. Rose closed the distance between them quickly and stood on her toes so she could throw her arms around his neck and hold him tight.

  “I trust you, Marston. I’m sorry.. I’m so sorry!”

  Marston was quick to throw his arms around her in return and hold her fiercely. He kissed her hair. “I’m sorry for what you went through,” he whispered against her tightly pulled back curls.

  Rose pulled away and slowly smoothed out the black wool of her skirt. “I’m sorry I stormed away from you the way I did last night. That was terribly childish…”

  Marston shrugged. “I understand why you did.”

  “I just.. I was ashamed and embarrassed to know that you saw my scars.” Rose stared at his feet, unwilling to look up at his face. “I know how ugly they are.”

  Marston simply stared at her with disbelief. “You’re brain addled,” he stated bluntly.

  Rose rolled her eyes. “No, I’m not.”

  Marston nodded. “You must be because that was the most brain-addled comment I’ve ever heard and that’s saying something seeing as how I’ve been around quite a few men suffering sun stroke.”

  Rose nearly laughed before catching herself. “Marston, I’m serious…”

  Marston sighed and took her hands, wishing she would let her blue eyes gaze up at him. “Rose, you are a beautiful woman. I wish you could see for one second what I see when I look at you. You’re soft, warm, caring, gentle—all the things that I’ve never known before. I feel like the luckiest man alive just to know that, for some reason, you want to keep me around.”

  Rose shook her head and she tilted her head up toward him. A tear rolled down her full cheek and Marston kissed it away, causing her to gasp. “I still wish you hadn’t seen them,” she whispered. “I wish they were gone.”

  “Duke said something to me once and now I’m gonna say it to you. Don’t you ever be ashamed of your scars. Each one of those damn things made you stronger and helped you become the person you are. Now, granted, the person I was back then wasn’t exactly something to be proud of, but the person you are is. Look how damn strong you are and what a great kid you’ve raised. You did that, Rose.” Marston stroked her wrist with his thumb. “If my opinion counts, I think that you are a beautiful and desirable woman.”

  Rose was unable to speak as she stared up at him. What had happened to that cold callous man he’d been just a few short months before? “Are you sure there aren’t two men living in that head?” she asked, remembering that he had asked her a similar question all those months ago.

  Marston smiled. “There might be,” he admitted. “One for you and Langley and one for the rest of the world. Are you okay with that?”

  “I’m fine with that,” Rose replied, drying her face on her shirt sleeves.

  Marston pressed a tender kiss to her brow before taking her arm and leading her to the table. “Now sit,” he ordered. “You’re supposed to be resting.” Rose did as he commanded simply because her legs were protesting the fact that she’d been standing on them for so long.

  Marston chuckled and his voice raised. “I’ll go tell sir-talks-a-lot that he can stop trying to listen through the door.”

  Stifled laughter sounded from outside and Rose shook her head. “You knew he was out there?”

  Marston sat down across from her, those line around his mouth deepening as his smile grew. “The boy thinks he’s slick, but you’ve gotta get up real damn early to pull one over on Marston Jacobs.”

  ***

  “Marston there’s something we need to talk about,” Rose announced the next morning after Langley had eaten his breakfast and gone outside for the day.

  Marston nodded, dried his hands on a towel and took a seat across from her at the table. “It sounds serious.”

  Rose blew out a long breath. “It is.”

  Marston reached across the table and took her hand. “Tell me about it and I’ll fix whatever it is.”

  “I’m not sure it can be fixed,” Rose countered. “If it could I would have done so. Money has been a constant issue since Langston was taken away. I have had to scrimp and save just to keep food on the table and clothes on our back. I couldn’t find much work since most people around here assume the worst of an outlaw’s wife…I was forced to take a loan from the bank in Millerton and used the home and property as collateral.”

  Marston snorted as he glanced around. “This place?”

  “Yes, this place. It might not be much but it’s our home and now the banker who approved the loan, Winston Meade, is demanding his money in full. He’s been very patient over the years, but it seems his patience has run out. He’ll be back any day and if I don’t have his money he let me know he’ll take our home from us and toss us out in the cold.”

  “How much do you owe the bank?”

  “He says it’s three hundred dollars once they add the interest,” Rose admitted shamefully.

  Marston let out a whistle. “That’s a lot of money.”

  “I know… I didn’t know much about money or loans or interest… I feel quite foolish for accepting the terms that I did, but I was uneducated and desperate.”

  Marston growled. “And he took advantage.”

  Mars
ton didn’t even know Winston Meade and he hated him already. Marston thought about the money in his saddle bags. He had three-hundred dollars that belonged to Langley and Rose. Not to mention all the money had had stashed away from his life of thieving and looting. It might not have been an honest way of life, but it had kept his pockets lined nicely. He had enough money to keep Rose and Langley fed, warm and clothes for years to come without lifting a finger to make more.

  “Langley and I will hook up the cart and go to town. I’ll send a payment to that bank and pay off what you owe.”

  “Marston, I couldn’t ask you to do that! I wasn’t telling you so you’d pay the loan. I was telling you so you wouldn’t be caught by surprise when we end up homeless.”

  Marston shook his head and released his hold on her hand. “No woman of mine will ever be homeless. Don’t you worry about money, I have plenty. You and Langley are my responsibility now and I’ll see that you’re taken care of.”

  “Marston…”

  “Stop arguing.” Marston got to his feet. He came around the table and stooped low to kiss the top of her head. “You don’t have to be the rock solid Rose who does everything for herself any longer. You’ve got me now so let me help.”

  Rose swallowed hard and nodded. “Okay.”

  Marston headed toward the door. “Do you need anything from town?”

  “No.. Marston, where did the money you’re using come from?”

  Marston’s jaw tightened as he turned his gaze away from her. “Does it matter?”

  Rose stared down at her dirty fingernails and shook her head. “No, I don’t suppose it does.”

  “Glad that’s settled,” Marston grumbled. “You stay and rest. Langley and I will be back after awhile.”

  Rose watched him shoulder his rifle and scoop up his saddlebags. Rose had tried talking him into unpacking those saddlebags, but he said that would feel like he’d cut off his arm. He said he’d been packing them around for most of his life and couldn’t see himself not packing them around.

  As she heard him call for Langley, Rose sent up a silent prayer of thanks for Marston. She truly had no idea what would have become of her and Langley if Marston hadn’t come around when he had.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “I don’t like that banker man,” Langley admitted as he and Marston rode down the winding road toward town.

  “Why is that?” Marston asked, moving the cart around a deep puddle in the muddy road.

  Langley pulled his coat tighter to ward off the cool December air. “He says mean things to mama and she’s always upset when he leaves.”

  “Bankers get mad if you don’t pay them their money,” Marston assured the boy.

  “It’s not just that, Marston,” Langley insisted, a seriousness in his tone that wasn’t generally there.

  “What else is there?” Marston demanded. A silence that frightened him followed Marston’s question. Buck’s hooves slapped in the mud, the river rushed beside them and the birds sang in the trees, but Langley remained completely silent.

  “Boy, you ain’t never had a problem talking so don’t start having one now,” Marston scolded, his voice tense with unease. “What else is there?”

  Langley picked at the knee of his trousers. “Last time he was here he told mama he’d get his payment from her one way or the other even if it wasn’t money he got and he was touching her face… Mama was scared, I could tell. I don’t know exactly what that means, but I know she’s been real worried ever since.”

  Marston’s clutched the reins in a white-knuckled grip and his jaw popped as his teeth clenched. “And what did your mama tell him?”

  Langley shrugged. “She just promised him she’d have his money and she begged him not to make us homeless.” Langley met Marston’s gaze, his blue eyes pleading. “You won’t let him hurt mama, will you Marston?”

  Marston shook his head and patted Langley’s hand. “No, kid. There ain’t nobody gonna hurt your mama.”

  Langley seemed satisfied with that answer and instantly his demeanor changed and he was once again bouncing around in the cart seat. “Do you know what’s coming in a few days?” Langley asked.

  “No,” Marston replied honestly, his mind still on that bastard banker and the way he’d been threatening Rose. “What’s coming?”

  Langley laughed. “Christmas! How could you not know that? Mama doesn’t ever have money for a present from the store but she always make me a new sweater and I always smile real big and tell her it’s the best one I’ve ever gotten.”

  Marston felt his throat get tight. Langley was lucky to have a mother like Rose—there weren’t very many like her. “You’re a good kid, Langley.”

  Langley sighed. “I wish I could get mama something this year. I never have been able to get her a present for Christmas.”

  “You can,” Marston replied. “Just pick out something at the mercantile and we’ll see that she gets it.”

  Langley shifted in the seat and looked up at him. “But Marston I don’t have money—I can’t steal a Christmas present!”

  Marston couldn’t see why that would be a rule, but he didn’t tell Langley so. Instead, he smiled. “You do plenty of work around that house, Langley, and you’ve earned a bit of money.”

  Langley’s excitement increased ten-fold and the boy launched into a rambling, long-winded dialog about just what he was going to get for his mama. Marston simply sat there grunting in response now and then.

  His mind was on things other than Langley’s conversation such as that bankers threats toward Rose and the realization that Marston had no idea what in the world to buy for the woman.

  The first stop that Marston and Langley made upon arriving in town was Doctor Brinkley’s office to send a wire and money to the bank in Millerton. Doctor Brinkley insisted that Rose usually sent her payment directly to Winston Meade, but Marston had refused and demanded it be sent to the bank.

  When Marston and Langley stepped into the H&H Mercantile the boy’s eyes widened. “I can really get mama anything I want?”

  Marston nodded as he walked to the case where the guns and ammunition were kept. “Yep. Whatever you want.”

  Marston knew exactly what he was going to do for Langley for Christmas. He was going to fix up that gun of Langston’s. The boy was constantly rambling on about that gun and had even shown it to him more than once. Marston had known instantly that the gun was a good one and just needed to be cleaned, oiled and worked with. He knew he could have it working good come Christmas.

  “Well, my stars! If it ain’t Marston back again,” Hester sneered as she came breezing in from the back office and pushed her giant spectacles up on her thin nose. Her cow eyes blinked several times as she stared up at him. “I see you finally got rid of that horrid beard.”

  Marston put on his smoothest smile and leaned against the counter. “Hello there, Hester. How did I survive live without gazing upon you all these months?”

  “Probably about the same way I survived without the sight of you,” she sniffed. “Tell me, are you still keeping the Widow Howell company?”

  “Sure am,” Marston replied, refusing to let he woman’s mouth get under his skin. “I would like to purchase a few items.. that is if you ladies have figured out that’s how a store works.”

  “Of course we do, sir,” Hattie assured him, waddling in on her stump-like legs. “Tell me, how is Rose? Are you still carrying her supplies?”

  ‘I say we hit her right in the nose,’ that voice chimed in. ‘Or would hers be considered a snout?’

  ‘Aren’t you my conscience? Shouldn’t you be telling me not to hit her?’ Marston demanded.

  ‘What the hell gave you that idea? I just like to make you talk to yourself.’

  Marston let out a cough to cover his chuckle and shook his head to clear his rambling thoughts. “Nice to see you again, Hattie. You’re looking well. You know my Rose is a real good seamstress. I’m sure she’d be able to let that dress out a foot or two.”


  “Well, I never!” Hattie exclaimed, covering her heart with a meaty hand.

  The charming grin never left Marston’s face. “Now ladies if you’ll be so kind…”

  “Tell me, Marston, are you going to make an honest woman out of that trollop or simply live in sin with her forever?” Hester inquired.

  Marston’s patience snapped. He slammed his fist upon the counter with so much force, the dried fruit rack fell and scattered across the floor. Hester and Hattie both leaped backward and Langley gasped from across the store.

  Marston’s golden eyes flashed. “Your bravery is commendable, ladies. Not many grown men have the nerve to rile me.” Marston leaned closer and lowered his voice. “There’s a good damn reason for that too and it’s a reason you sisters are gonna learn all too well if you speak another ill word about my woman.”

  “Yeah you witches need to leave my mama alone,” Langley agreed.

  Hester’s jaw trembled while Hattie’s wobbled. “Of course,” Hattie whispered politely. “We apologize. My sister and I were out of line.”

  “Glad we could agree on that,” Marston snarled. He turned his attention to Langley who was watching him as if he were some kind of hero. It turned Marston’s stomach to be looked at in such a manner. “Aren’t you supposed to be finding something for your mama?” he grumbled and Langley quickly went back to searching.

  “So, what is it we can do for you, Marston?” Hattie questioned accommodatingly.

  Marston turned back to the sisters and forced a polite smile to his own face. “That’s more like it,” Marston said. “That’s the treatment I expect to receive when I come into a store to spend my hard earned money.”

  Hester snorted. “I’m sure you earned that money at gunpoint.”

  Hattie elbowed her in her bony ribs. “Hush or he’s going to kill us,” she whispered sharply.

  Marston raised a brow. He was fairly certain that he hadn’t threatened to kill him but if these women wanted to think him capable of their murder that was fine with him. It might just cause them to hold their tongues a bit better.

  “If you ladies would be so kind as to gather up some gun oil, rags and cleaning rods for me, I’d be much obliged.” Marston tipped his hat. “I’ve gotta find the trollop something for Christmas.”