"Can I introduce you to our daughter, Emma?" Abby said to Elise.
The little girl was dressed in a pretty blue dress, little boots and her hair was tied in pigtails. Elise felt her heart skip a beat as she looked at Emma. She'd never seen a girl look as happy as this little one.
Emma extended a small hand. "Pleased to meet to you ma'am," she said politely.
Elise shook Emma's hand. "Pleased to make your acquaintance, I'm sure," Elise said with a smile.
Emma squinted at Elise. "Are you Devlin's new wife?" she asked bluntly.
Elise looked at Abby and Nathan who just rolled their eyes. "I believe I most certainly am," Elise answered.
Emma narrowed her eyes. "You're real pretty," she declared.
Elise felt her face color. "Why that's kind of you to say so, Emma," she said.
"You're welcome," Emma stated with a nod of her head.
Abby smiled at Emma and took one of her hands. "Now Emma. I can see you've been out playing at that corral again," she said.
"Lyle said I could watch the horses," Emma explained.
"And that's fine," Abby said. "But I want you to go and wash your hands. We're going to have lunch soon."
Emma's shoulders sank. "Must I?" she said with a disappointed tone.
"You just do what your mother says," Nathan said softly.
Emma looked at her father and nodded. "Okay." Emma looked at Elise. "See you in a minute," she promised.
Elise nodded and Emma ran out of the room.
"What a beautiful daughter you have," Elise stated.
Abby sighed good-naturedly. "She's certainly a handful, but we love her to bits. Don't we Nathan?"
Nathan nodded. "We sure do. She's just getting over a little accident she had a few days ago."
Elise frowned. Nathan went on to explain how Emma had fallen into a nearby river and had developed a fever. Elise was shocked. The little girl had seemed so well. Nathan spoke about how Abby had nursed Emma back to health with a completely selfless devotion. Abby shook her head, obviously embarrassed by Nathan's gracious description of her. The way Nathan looked at Abby it was clear to Elise that the couple had developed a close bond. It looked like the crisis with their daughter had brought them together in a special way.
"Emma's obviously not my daughter by blood," Abby explained. Nathan's previous wife had died tragically young and Abby was now taking on the role of being Emma's new mother. It looked to Elise like Abby was doing a fine job already.
Suddenly Elise saw that her own life back at Devlin's ranch had nowhere near the same level of responsibility that Abby had had to take on. It made Elise feel momentarily ashamed that she hadn't realized how lucky she was with the life she had with Devlin. There were no children on the Cooper ranch. Life was a whole lot simpler for Elise than it was for Abby. But was it any better for the absence of children?
Abby interrupted Elise's thoughts. "How are you liking ranch life, Elise?"
Elise looked at Devlin and paused. Devlin's brows had risen in expectation, awaiting Elise's reply. Then he spoke up: "I think Elise is fitting in just fine. Considering she's never lived outside of town," Devlin said.
"It sure is different," Elise admitted. "Those ranch hands work harder than anyone I've ever seen."
"It takes a bit of getting used to," Abby said. Nathan glanced at her. "There are just so many men around. It's going to be a relief to have some female company, Elise," Abby concluded.
Mrs.Wardle, the friendly housekeeper, announced that lunch was ready and they all made their way to the dining room. Elise was impressed with the fine, long, wooden dining table as well as the expensive looking silverware and plates. The food looked good, and Mrs.Wardle fussed and bothered with everything despite Nathan's reassurances that everything was already perfect.
Emma came running into the room and leapt up onto a chair next to Abby. Emma showed her cleanly washed hands and got a nod of approval from Abby.
Before they started to eat Nathan raised a glass. "I'd like to propose a toast to both our beautiful wives. May life be always good and happiness abundant for all of us," he said with obvious sincerity.
The all concurred and drank the toast. "Well that makes it official then, "Abby said with a teasing tone of voice.
"What?" Nathan asked.
"Two of the three ranchers now have beautiful wives. There's only one left to go," Abby said.
Elise felt the color rise to her cheeks at being described yet again as beautiful.
"Trent will give in. Just you wait and see," Devlin said with a grin. "He can't hold out much longer."
"He'll never marry," Nathan stated firmly. "He's not the marrying kind."
Elise took a sip of the wonderful soup. "I imagine he's broken a few hearts in town," she said.
Devlin and Nathan exchanged looks. "More than a few, I'd say," Nathan admitted.
"Why doesn't he want to marry?" Abby asked.
Devlin cleared his throat. "Let's leave that for another time," he said with a look toward Emma, who looked puzzled.
Time to change the subject, thought Elise.
The meal was lovely and the conversation pleasant. All in all, Elise had a wonderful time. After the meal they went out onto the porch. Mrs.Wardle brought some cold lemonade out and they sat sipping it, watching the ranch hands keep themselves occupied.
Eventually Abby asked Elise if she wanted to go for a walk. Both women took their parasols. The sun was high and hot. They made their way over to a tree a short way off from the house. There was a seat underneath the tree and a swing made up of two lengths of rope and a flat chunk of wood which hung from a thick branch.
Both women sat down. The air was cooler under the protection of the overhead branches. They sat in silence for a while enjoying the view of the ranch house, the valley beyond and the mountains in the far distance. Everything seemed so perfect, so calm. Elise sighed contentedly.
"It's beautiful here, isn't it," Abby said.
Elise nodded. "The best place on earth. I feel so happy right now."
"Montana does that to people," Abby stated. "It's done it to me, and I grew up in Boston."
"I never would have guessed that living on a ranch could be so...peaceful," Elise said.
Abby nodded. "Having two good men sure makes all the difference."
"They are good men. That's for sure," Elise agreed.
"I took some persuading to come out here," Abby explained. "But I'm glad I did."
"I never would have believed I'd become a rancher's wife," Elise admitted.
"There are worse fates than that. You should have seen some of the men back in Boston. All they wanted was a wife to display at social events and to bear their children. You'd be lucky to see your husband once a month," Abby said.
"Billings isn't as bad as that. But there is a shortage of manners in the men there. My mother was always warning me against associating with the men of the town," Elise revealed.
"Your parents must be proud of you," Abby suggested.
"Marrying a rancher? They wanted me to marry one, just not this one," Elise told her.
"How come?" Abby asked.
Elise told Abby about the arranged marriage with Bart Caulfield. Abby's jaw dropped as Elise told her about the confrontation outside the church.
"That was a narrow escape. My father was more than happy for me to marry Nathan," Abby said. "In fact he positively went out of his way to make sure it happened."
Abby shared the tale of how Nathan had come all the way from Montana to Boston to claim Abby as his bride. He'd also brought little Emma along, just to be sure that Abby wouldn't say no. It had worked out fine in the end.
"Looks like we're both destined to be rancher's wives," Elise joked.
"It's in the stars," Abby agreed.
Elise and Abby laughed together. It looked like they had so much in common. All of a sudden Elise didn't feel quite so alone, that her predicament was quite so unusual.
Abby shared with Elise s
ome of the problems she'd had adjusting to life on the ranch.
"I'm still new here. There's so much to get used to after growing up in the city. But Montana is beautiful. I just love it out here. I can't imagine any other life but this one now."
Elise felt a stab of envy at Abby's expression of contentment. She seemed genuinely at ease here in her new home.
"It's not just living on the ranch," Elise said. "It's the man you're with that's important. If he's no good, then life isn't going to be worth living. Bart Caulfield would have been a terrible man to be married to."
Elise shivered at the thought of Caulfield pawing her in the dark. She would rather have died than be married to him. The prospect of the whole town looking at her with pity for the rest of her life would have been unbearable.
"I guess we both got rescued. There was a horrible man waiting in line for me back in Boston too."
Elise shook her head, hardly able to believe what the two women had just shared. "We've got so much in common."
Abby nodded. They sat quietly for a time, once again enjoying the tranquility of the place. The breeze blew gently though the branches. The sound of it started to make Elise feel sleepy.
Suddenly there was shout from a faint little voice and Emma appeared, running toward the tree. She had a broad grin on her face. Elise couldn't remember ever seeing a happier little girl.
"Why, look who's here," Abby said kneeling down and spreading her arms wide. Emma raced up to her step-mother and leapt into Abby's arms. Elise smiled, watching the two hug each other. This was what it meant to live and prosper in Montana. To have a child and to be loved. There seemed nothing better than that. Elise couldn't help but feel a powerful sense of envy at the simple sight of Abby hugging her step-daughter.
Abby kissed Emma on the cheek. "Why don't you go with Elise on the swing," she said.
Emma's eyes widened and she gazed at Elise. "Really? Can I?"
Elise nodded and went to the swing and sat down on it. She opened her arms. "Come here and sit on my lap," she called out to the little girl.
Emma ran to the swing and Elise lifted her up and placed her down on her lap. The little girl was heavier than Elise had anticipated. But it didn't matter as she pushed with her feet and they started to sway back and forth on the swing. Emma let out a squeal of delight, and Elise screamed too as they picked up speed and height. Abby watched with a broad grin and crossed her arms, scrutinizing every movement of the swing.
"Look mama. We're swinging," Emma screamed. Her voice echoed out across the field.
Elise held on to Emma tight. She wondered where Devlin and Nathan were; what they could be talking about. But, right now, the only thing in the world she wanted to do was enjoy this precious moment. She forgot her worries about the future and savored every last second of the peace and contentment which had suddenly overwhelmed her.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
"I tell you, Trent's behaving strange," Nathan said to Devlin.
The two men were leaning against the corral watching Lyle, the foreman, dealing with a particularly ornery horse. Devlin wondered where Elise and Abby were. She'd heard Emma say she was going to look for them at the swing. The fact that she hadn't come back probably meant Emma had found them.
"What do you mean strange?"
"I dunno. There's something he won't talk about. Even to me," Nathan stated. "He's been moody these last couple of days."
"He seemed fine when he came to visit us," Devlin said with a shrug.
Nathan cocked his head. "You know how he likes to put on a show. Especially when there are ladies around. But there's definitely something worrying him."
"Did you ask him what it was?"
Nathan frowned. "He wouldn't tell me."
"You think it's woman trouble?"
"With Trent? There's no such thing," Nathan said with a smile. "No woman has ever come close to causing him trouble. You know that."
"There's a first time for everything. I mean look at us."
"Yeah. What a pair we are. Marriages of convenience. Who'd have believed it."
Devlin looked at his friend earnestly. "The only thing that matters is whether the women we've married are good wives."
"I think they are. Don't you?" Nathan asked.
"Sure. But Elise is a fiery one. And no mistake."
Nathan made a playful throwing gesture. "Just keep away from her when she's baking. That's my advice."
Devlin smiled. "How are you and Abby getting along?"
Nathan nodded slowly. "We've sorted things out. She's starting to settle here. We had ourselves a fine time up in the cabin. That cleared the air. She has her own worries right now. But things are going to be fine."
Devlin quirked a brow at his friend. "Was that the special cabin?"
"The very one. There's something about being alone in the mountains with a woman that just brings out the best in a man."
Devlin punched Nathan gently on the upper arm. "You don't need to tell me anything else. I know exactly what you mean."
Nathan nodded and said nothing more about it. Devlin could only imagine how his friend must be feeling. Nathan had been devastated when he'd lost his wife. Devlin had tried everything to help his friend through the grief. There had been times when he'd worried that Nathan might be overcome with grief. But he knew that his friend wouldn't leave Emma alone in the world. That was unthinkable.
Gradually Nathan had regained hope for life and had sought out a new wife. He'd even travelled the breadth of the country to claim her.
That was something that Devlin could never imagine himself doing. After he'd been jilted, Devlin had felt that no woman was worth that trouble. But then Elise had come into his life, and all that had changed. Now he could easily imagine chasing across a continent to claim someone like Elise. That very thought gave him pause.
How had this happened? And so quickly.
Was it that he'd been storing up his feelings and that the mere presence of someone like Elise had let those feelings out? Whatever the explanation was, the truth was that Elise had found a way into his heart despite the wall he'd put; in spite of his initial determination that their marriage would just be a marriage in name only.
When Devlin had seen Nathan and Abby together he'd seen a vision of what might be for him and Elise. In his heart he felt drawn to that vision. But there was only one question he didn't have an answer to yet. Did he have the courage in himself to seize the chance with Elise?
A while later the two women returned and Devlin and Elise prepared to leave. Emma was disappointed at seeing them go so Abby let Emma show Elise some of her drawings. The little girl was definitely talented, thought Elise, as she spent some time in Emma's bedroom looking through the stack of colored drawings and paintings. Emma's excitement at showing Elise her work was truly infectious. Elise felt right at home in the little girl's bedroom. It reminded her so much of her room back at her parent's house.
Elise looked around the room and saw the dolls laid out on Emma's bed. She felt a stab of nostalgia as she picked up one of the dolls, a loose limbed, home made figure, dressed in a gingham outfit. Elise recalled her own collection of dolls and how possessive she'd been about them, competing with her sister about who had the prettiest one.
Now all that childhood was behind her, so distant in the past. It seemed a very long time ago. Elise was a grown woman now; a married woman, even though she was still getting used to the idea. Maybe it was time to truly leave the past behind. Elise drew her attention back to the present and she gave the little girl her full, undivided attention once again.
Later, when Devlin and Elise stepped up onto the buckboard Nathan, Abby and Emma stood arm in arm and waved them goodbye. The sight of the family standing on their yard, looking so much together and in love, touched Elise's heart to the core. They looked so happy, so contented, so together. That was what it meant to be a family, living on a ranch, here in beautiful Montana. Abby tried to hold back the emotion that welled up inside her
as she waved goodbye to the Grantly family.
After the buckboard rolled out under the entrance gate to the ranch Elise eventually let herself shed a tiny tear.
Devlin looked over at her. "You okay, Elise?"
Elise wiped the tear away with a gloved hand. "I'm fine. They're such a lovely couple. And that child is a darling.
"They sure are a fine family. I'm real glad everything's worked out fine for them all."
Elise sighed. "Seeing them has made me think, Devlin."
"About what?"
Elise paused. What could she tell him? That she had been up in Emma's room and that she'd decided that the time had come for her to seize the opportunity that fate had presented to her to be a rancher's wife? Could she really tell Devlin that?
"I've been thinking about lots of things," she said after a long pause that had him glancing with concern at her.
Devlin frowned.
Elise steeled herself for what she was about to say. She wasn't sure exactly how she was going to broach the subject, but she knew she had to.
"I've been thinking about us."
Devlin shifted in his seat.
"About our marriage," she continued. "I know it's all new and we hardly know each other, but the last few days have made me feel so many different emotions."
Devlin's knuckles tightened on the reins.
"I know Elise. I understand. I really do. And I'm sorry if I've made things hard for you."
"You haven't Devlin. You've been sweet. And I appreciate what you've done. I mean you saved me from a fate worse than death."
Devlin nodded slowly. Elise could see the concern written on his face.
"As long as you're happy Elise," he said. "That's all that matters to me."
"And I am happy, Devlin. I guess. It's just that you and I...We are officially a couple now. Aren't we?"
Devlin swallowed. "We sure are," he said hesitantly. She wondered what he was thinking about her in that moment. He looked confused, as if he wasn't quite sure where she was leading the conversation.
Devlin's Montana Bride (Sweet, clean Western Historical Romance)(Montana Ranchers Brides series) Page 8