Rancher to the Rescue

by Barbara Phinney

  “Which is also not the time for tomfoolery,” Miss Worth reminded them. “What started that nonsense upstairs?”

  Noah set down his plate. “Do you really want to know, Miss Worth?”

  The older woman colored slightly. “I want to know why my star student is engaged. When did it happen? Have you set a date?”

  Clare felt heat in her cheeks increase. She couldn’t lie, but to tell the truth...

  “We’re going to be married on Friday.”

  “And your parents left before your wedding?”

  Clare cleared her throat. “No. We became engaged after I learned of their ship’s disappearance. Let me explain. I have a full-time job at the Recording Office. Mr. Livingstone is the Recording Officer. It was there that I received a telegram about my parents’ ship. That day, I realized that there were outstanding bills to pay and that I could lose both my brothers and my house. Since my salary cannot stretch that far, Mr. Livingstone has suggested a solution.”

  “A compromise.” Miss Worth tossed a critical look toward Noah, who, as far as Clare could see, allowed it to deflect off him like rain off a cowboy’s long duster.

  “A sensible solution that will enable me to care for my brothers as my parents would have wanted. As a married woman, I will be in a better position to gain legal custody of them.” Clare kept her words low and calm, although her heart pounded. She fought for the right words that Miss Worth would appreciate. “To do as my parents would have wished. I also plan to rent out this house in order to generate the income I will need to pay my bills.”

  “A successful woman is a strong woman,” Miss Worth quoted. “And a strong woman is one who has enough discipline to manage her finances by herself. Our needs must be simple, Clare. It’s our wants that complicate matters. We must make do with the very basics and prove to the world that we are not frivolous.”

  “Clare has two young brothers to consider. By respecting her parents’ wishes, she’s proving she isn’t in any way frivolous.” Noah smiled suddenly, but Clare could see that it didn’t reach his eyes. “Miss Worth, do not be harsh with Clare. She has learned self-sacrifice from the best.”

  Tension crackled through the room, and Clare held her breath. While Noah’s words were diplomatic, his tone held an edge as sharp as the filet knife in the kitchen. She dared a glance toward Miss Worth, fully expecting the woman to leap to her feet and be thoroughly insulted.

  Instead, the woman colored. Until today, Clare had never seen the older woman’s skin anything but white. With a hint of blue from the spider veins.

  Of course, she thought belatedly. Miss Worth had been complimented. Who was she to deny his words?

  Clare bit her lip. Miss Worth was definitely unused to flattery and yet, if Clare was reading the woman’s expression correctly, she was just human enough to appreciate the accolade. Or had the train trip here dulled her usual severity?

  Perhaps Clare should better explain her dire situation, for surely the spinster had never experienced anything like this.

  However, after careful consideration, she held back. That would leave her father open to criticism. Surely, there were enough tongues wagging this afternoon. Clare didn’t need Miss Worth to add to the numbers.

  It would be better to let the subject drop. Noah had handled Miss Worth beautifully, defended Clare without putting her mentor on the spot emotionally.

  Yet, not once did Noah mention caring for her. They were simply two people sorting out a problem.

  Something cold dropped into her stomach.

  “What of Clare’s job?”

  “What of it?” he asked.

  “She’s to be married. Which means she will be expected to retire from her job.” As Miss Worth lifted her chin, there was a note of challenge in her tone.

  Slowly, Noah slid his gaze toward Clare. Again, she held her breath. Yes, most women retired from outside work once they married. She’d even brought up the matter, but it had yet to be settled.

  “The woman at the general store is married,” Noah said.

  “Is the man she married the owner of that store?”

  “What difference does that make?”

  “You know perfectly well the difference it makes, Mr. Livingstone,” Miss Worth countered. “They are partners in their business. Yours is a government office.”

  “Clare is a modern woman,” Noah countered. “I have no desire to see her pushed into old-fashioned notions like that.”

  Miss Worth’s expression flared. “Thrice you have called her by her Christian name and once I have caught you in a position where it appeared you were taking advantage of her so-called modernism. A gentleman would never do that. Not even her fiancé.”

  “In that case,” Noah answered tightly. “I should take my leave. Even with as esteemed a chaperone as you, I have no desire to risk sullying my fiancée’s reputation.”

  He nodded to both of them. “Good day, ladies.”

  With a sinking heart, Clare watched him stride from the room.

  Chapter Eleven

  Noah shoved on his Stetson as he slammed the front door closed. From the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Leo peeking at him from behind the tree that marked the boundary between the Walsh house and its neighbor. But he didn’t feel like telling the boy he would return for him and his brother. He didn’t feel like doing anything but telling off Miss Worth, which was why he left.

  The woman didn’t even want a piece of the cake given with love and charity. She certainly did live according to the austere guidelines she doled out like penny candy. At least the boys would get a decent-sized piece later.

  His steps slowing, Noah felt his jaw tighten. That was probably the only food Clare had in the house. Last night, the boys ate like ravenous wolves and it had been easy for him to coax from them the details of what they’d been eating lately.

  Clare had been rationing their food.

  Noah paused. He could make a sharp left turn and head to the parsonage to ask Pastor Wyseman if he could put together a hamper for Clare’s immediate needs, but he stopped.

  Clare was his fiancée now and his responsibility. Benevolence should be reserved for those with no one to help them. Noah could afford to feed her and her brothers. The general store would help him.

  Just as he reached his wagon, he slowed his steps. His own frugality this past year had allowed him to save enough money to hire a ranch hand. It would also allow him to buy some foodstuffs that he could have delivered immediately to Clare, in time for supper with Miss Worth.

  A short, humorless smile flickered onto his features as he climbed onto the wagon’s seat. Because of his own austerity, he would be able to feed a woman who expected all women to be austere so as not to rely on men. Clare might enjoy the irony, although not today.

  When he reached the general store, his heart plummeted. Of course. It was closed on Sundays. His mind had been so focused on the difficulties Miss Worth had caused that he’d completely forgotten what day it was.

  Noah grimaced. He appreciated the day of rest, but Clare had no food nor money to take Miss Worth out for a meal, if any decent place existed in Proud Bend. Yes, they had a small pastry shop, one that had been opened earlier this spring by a young couple from out east. They prepared simple meals, but their focus was on baked goods.

  They were also closed.

  Noah walked down through the nearby alley, between the haberdashery and the saloon. At the end, he turned right and put his back to the saloon until he reached the rear entrance of the general store. A young boy was sitting on the back step, whittling a stick.

  “Are your parents home?”

  The boy nodded and jumped up. A few moments after disappearing into the back of the general store, which Noah knew housed the living quarters of the family, the boy’s father appeared. Kn
owing the man through church, Noah quickly relayed his problem, and asked if there was anything he could get to tide Clare over.

  “I’m not supposed to open on the Lord’s Day,” the man explained. “But if I give you what you need, you can pay me tomorrow. I won’t exchange money on Sundays.”

  “Fair enough,” Noah said, reminding himself to send the money first thing in the morning, with a tip for the man’s inconvenience.

  Inside the store, Noah ordered half a barrel of beef, a large slab of bacon, which he chose himself for its meatiness, potatoes, even though they didn’t look that good this time of year, plus a generous selection of other equally sad-looking vegetables because Miss Worth ate no flour or sugar. Still, thinking of the boys, he did add flour, sugar, oil and tinned fruit to the order. And soap.

  On an afterthought, he chose a bundle of stick candy. With a smile, knowing Noah from the church, the owner ordered his son to box everything immediately. Noah was grateful and said as much before taking his leave. Now he needed to get it inside Clare’s house before she returned to the kitchen to scout out something for supper.

  The temptation to have it delivered grew in him, but he could hear Miss Worth now pointing out that Noah Livingstone wasn’t man enough to do it himself.

  He was man enough, all right.

  Why was he rising to an imagined provocation? For that matter, why was the woman so difficult? As Clare’s future husband, wasn’t it his responsibility to care for her and her brothers? Wasn’t that the Christian thing to do?

  Half an hour later, after Noah had retrieved his wagon, loaded it and returned to the Walsh house, he parked on the far side of the parlor.

  The boys were playing outside and both stopped to peer at him. “Come help me bring these in, boys,” he said to them.

  “What do you have?” Leo asked.

  “Food. Lots of it. I bet you’re hungry, too.”

  “Oh, yes! But Clare promised us cake.”

  Tim’s eyes widened when walked up to peer in the wagon. “What’s in there?”

  “Meat, vegetables, oil, tinned food and flour. Everything Clare will need to fill you up.” He thought of adding that there was also stick candy and sugar, but guessed that the boys would ask for those items first. Let Clare discover them and dole the treats as needed.

  “Will we have food like this when we come to your house?” Leo asked, his face lit with hope.

  Noah smothered a laugh. As long as he kept his pantry full, Leo would accept his new home. And with a swallow, Noah admitted to himself that he would like that very much.

  Tim eased open the back door that led to the kitchen. Both he and Leo quietly helped Noah unload the food into the pantry. They took away the empty beef barrel for return to the general store. Through the closed door that led into the hall and eventually to the parlor, Noah could hear Miss Worth’s booming voice lecturing on something about education and training. Clare’s answer was muffled, but the conversation told Noah neither woman had heard the delivery.

  Miss Worth was a determined woman, he thought, searching his mind for a word that could describe her in the most Christian way possible. He couldn’t find one.

  “Stay quiet and let your sister have a nice visit with her friend,” he told the boys hastily.

  “I don’t like her,” Leo announced far too loudly. “She told me I shouldn’t be climbing trees in my good clothes.”

  “Shh! She’s just thinking like an adult,” Noah chided softly. “And you shouldn’t be trying to get your good clothes dirty and ripped.”

  “I wasn’t trying. Sometimes, it just happens.”

  A tattoo of footfalls marching closer drew Noah’s attention from the young, precocious boy. He quickly shut the pantry door. The door into the hall swung open and wide-eyed, Clare peered in. “I heard Leo.” She gaped at Noah. “I thought you had left.” Her mouth shut into a thin line as her brows pressed together. “Or was it just a ploy so you didn’t have to talk to Miss Worth?”

  “No, it wasn’t a ploy, although I had to leave before I did say something unchristian.” He grimaced, hating that he even felt that way. “Come to think of it, I need to take the boys home with me. May I take them now?”

  * * *

  Relief skittered through Clare for the briefest of seconds. Then she cleared her throat. “That’s probably a good idea. Boys, go with Mr. Livingstone. If I have the opportunity to come by later, I will.”

  “There’s no need.” Noah knew he had the boys’ school clothes and tomorrow morning’s routine would be much the same as this morning. Besides, Leo and Tim would be hungry and would no doubt announce any second that they wanted some of the food Noah had brought. No need to embarrass Clare any further.

  “Let’s go, boys,” Noah announced crisply. He nodded to Clare but it was brief. “We will see you tomorrow. I’m sure Miss Worth won’t insist you take the day off.”

  Clare smiled. Noah could already predict Miss Worth’s words. “She would never deny me an opportunity to work.” She felt a bit more relaxed all of a sudden, the first time since she’d received that awful telegram. Noah was taking the boys, though, so she wouldn’t be sitting in the parlor wondering what mischief they were getting into. “Thank you. But keep an eye on them, especially around things like lamps.”

  “I shall. We need to check on Turnip and unhook and brush down my horse. We may even take a walk.”

  Noah stared at her for a moment, and in that time, Clare felt her heart trip up. Was he going to kiss her? Even on the cheek? His striking blue eyes lingered on her face, and she found herself holding her breath. Mercy, did she want him to kiss her? Like they’d almost done upstairs?

  “Come on, then!” It was Leo, ready, as always, for the next adventure and not in the least bit aware of the awkward attraction. “I want to eat lunch.”

  Noah’s expression flared. “We’ll eat as soon as we get to the ranch, I promise.” With that, he nodded to Clare. She watched him make a hasty departure. As she shut the back door, she frowned. As much as she might appreciate her brothers not demanding the cake she’d promised them, she couldn’t help but wonder why Noah was so anxious to leave. Miss Worth? Her mentor could certainly intimidate even the most stalwart of people, and Clare was sure the woman could stop a battalion of hardened soldiers with just one sharp look.

  She hadn’t considered Noah a coward, however.

  Standing in the center of her kitchen, Clare worked her jaw and could feel herself pulling an unladylike grimace. Noah had slipped in the back door. Why? To retrieve Tim and Leo? What had he said? ‘Come to think of it,’ as though the idea had been an afterthought, something that had occurred to him only after he’d completed another task. Such as what?

  She glanced around the kitchen in dismay. Miss Worth expected to stay here, but what on earth would she feed the woman?

  Then she spied it. A small sack of something sitting on the floor near the pantry door. She didn’t recognize it, and she had long since memorized the contents of her pantry. After throwing open the small room’s door, she felt her jaw go slack at the sight greeting her. Tins of food, baking needs, even some fresh vegetables, abounded in front of her. The lid on the beef barrel sat slightly askew, a position she would never leave it in. Cured beef could handle a bit of air, just not the flies. She lifted the sack at her feet to find it filled with coffee beans. The aromatic scent drifted up into her nostrils.

  She set it on the shelf beside the tea tin and walked over to lift the barrel lid to peer inside. It was half-full of preserved meat. Sealing it properly, she glanced around. On the shelf above eye level were more tins, a small, glimmering white sugarloaf, one that probably cost a small fortune, for the whiter the sugar, the more expensive it was. There was also an unfamiliar jug of molasses. Even a thick slab of meaty bacon, cured and ready to slice.

  All delivered
on a Sunday? Noah had enough influence in town to get Mr. Doyle to open his general store, although the man had done so before for emergencies. She would have to pour the molasses into her own jug and return his. She turned her attention back to the barrel and noticed that Noah had swapped the old one for a new one.

  She had enough groceries to last weeks. Touched by his generosity, she blinked several times. Noah had filled her pantry! He’d recognized the need and jumped to help. What Clare had thought was impossible, Noah had gone out of his way to resolve.

  “Is there a problem? Didn’t we hear your brothers?”

  Blinking rapidly, Clare spun. Miss Worth stood just beyond the pantry entrance, her expression stern.

  “No. And yes,” she answered hastily. “I mean, Mr. Livingstone returned to pick up the boys. He’s keeping them while I prepare the house for rental.”

  Miss Worth walked forward and peered into the pantry. Clare held her breath, fully expecting her mentor to somehow guess that he’d also delivered the groceries, and on a Sunday, at that.

  “So we have no need to make them supper?” Miss Worth asked primly. “It looks like it’s just the two of us. We should get started then. I haven’t had a decent meal in days, and frankly, for a while there, Clare, I wondered if all you had to eat was Washington cake.”

  Still staring at Miss Worth, Clare clamped down on her mouth to stop from confessing that indeed that was all she’d had. She didn’t want her mentor to know Noah had saved the day, but she also didn’t want to sound as though she was dressing down her mentor by pointing out one of Noah’s finer qualities. All she could hope for was that Miss Worth saw the value in this full pantry.

  Clare respected Miss Worth. But since the woman was now so careful with her diet, eating only vegetables and plain meat, all thoroughly cooked and washed down with weak tea, she doubted her mentor would see the value in all the food. Clare wasn’t sure if she herself knew the full cost.

  “You don’t need to help with supper, Miss Worth. I’m sure you must be exhausted.”