The two of them stood there, just grinning at each other, until Ottie approached behind Abe.
“Abe! Time to get set up for the first event. They’ve been hollering for you for a few minutes now,” Ottie said, in a teasingly exasperated tone. He looked over at Laura and tipped his hat. “Good to see you out and about, Miss Laura.”
“I never got the chance to thank you properly, Ottie. All that you’ve done, everything you went through to apprehend that man and get me home, I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you,” Laura said, earnestly.
“You just help me keep this maniac out of trouble and we’ll call it square,” he said, gesturing to Abe.
Laura smiled at him. “I’ll see what I can do.”
Ottie clapped Abe on the shoulder, and with a quick glance back at Laura, he headed back to the other side of the corral, where Bruce and Midnight were patiently waiting.
Laura bit her lip and turned away to find her family. She headed to the general store, which was decorated top to bottom in red, white and blue fabrics. Inside, Mr. Mason cheerily stood behind the counter. When she walked in, he spotted her, and he nearly leapt over the counter.
“Miss Laura!” he exclaimed, as he shuffled over to her. “Oh, child, I cannot tell you how glad I am to see you returned to us unharmed. The horrors you must have been through! I can’t bear the thought of it,” he said, in rapid-fire succession. He clapped her hands in his tightly, as if he were afraid if he let go she would be snatched away again.
“Thank you so much for your kind words, Mr. Mason. It was a trial, but I had such fine men rescue me and bring the criminal to justice. All is back as it was,” she said, with a smile.
Mr. Mason’s face darkened with an uncomfortable sadness. “Well, pardon me for saying Miss, but I heard about your fiancé. Terrible accident. What a way for the whole ordeal to end.”
She cast her eyes down, mostly out of respect. “Yes, it’s a terrible thing. Which is why I’ve decided to stay here in Santa Clara for a while longer. I think a trip back to Tucson, after all that’s happened, would be too much for me.”
Mr. Mason’s face brightened again a bit. “Well, I wish it were under better circumstances, but I will never be disappointed to have my favorite customer around. Whatever you may need, you let me know,” he said.
“I will,” Laura reassured him. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her family approaching her. Her mother was still chirping around, as upbeat as always.
“I’m going to miss this place,” she said wistfully. “It’s quite a town…all things considered.”
Xavier was smiling too. “I talked to Mr. Mason about some trades. He’s got access to lots of goods that folks back in Tucson have been looking for. It could be the kind of partnership that turns the fortunes of the store around.”
“I’m so glad to hear that, Father!” Laura said, as she gave him an excited hug. He held her tightly, then took a long look at her. “You still doing alright, dear? Is this all too much?”
“I’m fine, really, I am. I’m glad to be out and around people. The hardest part of the whole ordeal was being alone,” Laura said, with a reassuring smile.
“Alright dear, you just let me know if gets to be too much,” her father said with concern.
“I think the roping competition is about to start. We should head back over,” Laura said.
The three of them headed back down the street, where a crowd of excited onlookers had gathered. The band was piping out excited, celebratory tunes and the energy in the air was electric. Around the corral the men and their horses waited, waving to family and friends in the crowd, which was met with hollers and cheers from their supporters. Abe waved to Laura and her family, who in turn cheered back. Even her usually proper mother hollered.
“This is so exciting!” her mother cooed, eyes scanning the arena.
The mayor stepped into the center of the corral where a wooden crate was set up. He stood up on it and began to address the crowd in his loud, booming voice.
“Good afternoon all! I cannot tell you how happy I am to be celebrating with you today. As we all are very well aware, Utah is now one of the states in the great Union!” On the last word, cheers erupted. He continued. “We’ve already had some fantastic events today, but I know that you have all been waiting for the show our town’s fine and skilled ropers have in store for you! So, without any further ado, let’s get this started y’all!”
With that, the mayor pulled out his shiny silver pistol and raised it in the air. With a loud bang, a shot rang out and the horses whinnied and stomped with fervor. The mayor stepped off the crate and the events were on. The riders took a lap around the corral, and as Abe passed, he puffed out his chest and threw a wink at Laura.
The games began in earnest, with the men all showing their best skills. The riding, the roping, every time a new rider stepped into the arena the entire crowd would erupt in rounds of cheers. Abe and Ottie’s round came up, and the two of them sat side by side, trading confident smiles.
The shot rang out, the steer was released, and they were off. But to Laura, that shot sounded like something else. It was the sound of the world returning to some sort of normalcy, like the pages of a book flipping backwards or the closing of a door. The beating hooves of steer and horses drowning out even the tunes of the band. Laura kept her eyes trained on Abe.
However, when the first rope laid itself around the neck of the steer and the knot tightened, Laura’s eye’s flashed back to the ropes around her wrists and ankles, how they burned her skin. She felt her knees weaken for a moment, but she collected herself, because the next memory was of Abe, looking at her, cutting through those ropes.
By the time she refocused, the steer was on the ground. Ottie and Abe were doing a lap around the corral, fists raised in victory. Abe rode by Laura and reached down, she reached up and their hands brushed, his rough calluses feeling better against her skin than the finest silk. Her mother looked at her.
“You know, Abe is quite a gentleman we’ve found. It was incredible what he went through to find you,” she said, with a smile. “And if I do say so myself, he’s handsome, as well.”
“That’s enough, Dorothy, Laura doesn’t need any of your nosing,” Xavier said, with a playful huff.
Singles came up, and Abe was the main event. When he stepped into the ring, rope in hand, every lady in the crowd cheered. But he didn’t take his eyes off Laura the entire time. His hands ran down the rope slowly, as he positioned himself. It seemed no later did the shot ring out, that the calf was on the ground, swifter than she’d ever seen him do it before.
“He’s won again! There is no way anyone will beat that time,” Aunt Ethel said happily.
Sure enough, contender after contender completed their rounds, but no one was nearly as swift as Abe, who leaned against the fence watching. Laura noticed something strange though. He looked nervous. There was concern on his face, she could see it even from a distance. She slowly started to walk around the corral toward him. He didn’t seem to notice her approach, just stared straight ahead. She came up next to him.
“Are you alright?” she asked.
He looked at her with a slightly crooked smile. “I’m fine, just a lot of young bucks here. They might give me a run for my money.”
“You and I both know that’s not true,” Laura said, as she gently touched his hand.
He looked at the hand, and then at her face. “Are you doing alright?” he asked.
“Besides everyone asking me if I’m doing alright every few ticks of the clock, yes,” she said, with an exasperated smile.
“Everyone’s just worried. You’ve been through a lot. It seems strange that you can just be out and about like this so soon,” he said gently.
She looked him in the eye and gently turned his face toward hers. “You should know me better than that. Besides, did I tell you how I got through it all?” she asked.
Abe shook his head. She continued, “I thought about you. The warm sm
iles you’ve always given me, our rides, and I always held out hope that you were going to find me. And you did. So, what do I have to be afraid of? Jacob Fisher was a coward, but you’re strong and brave, and I know you’ll always come through for me.”
Abe placed his hand on her face and smiled. “Always.”
At that moment, the booming voice of the mayor echoed from the center of the corral, and Laura and Abe turned to see the mayor back on the crate.
“Ladies and gentlemen, it’s been quite the showing here today but we do have a winner to announce. First, best single roping goes to…” Laura felt her breath stop for a moment and she grabbed Abe’s hand “…Abe Mavor!”
Laura jumped up and down as Abe strode to the center of the ring. The mayor continued. “And just to save some time, for partnering, our winners are also Abe Mavor and Sheriff Kinkade! Get on over here, Oratius!” he said, gesturing to Ottie, who slowly ambled to the middle of the corral. He was followed by the mayor’s wife, who held a large bouquet of roses. She handed the bouquet to Abe, who smiled at her gratefully.
The mayor looked over at Abe. “Do you have any sort of victory speech prepared Mr. Mavor? I know you’re usually not one for speeches.”
“Actually Mayor, today I do. Thank you,” Abe said. He turned and began to address the crowd. “Today is quite a day for our town. We’ve built our homes, raised children, and built a great life out here in Utah, and now, we get to be a part of something greater.” He paused, and then looked over at Laura. “But for the last few months, I’ve already been able to be a part of something greater. Because I met an incredible woman by the name of Laura Edmonds.”
Laura felt her heart begin to pound. Abe began to slowly walk over to her. The crowd had gone from loud and raucous to completely silent. Abe stood in front of her, his voice strong and confident.
“Laura Edmonds, I know you’ve been through quite a lot. But in the time we were torn apart, I realized just how much you mean to me. I love you. And it’s even more than just love. I’d cross the desert to make sure you were safe.” Laura was frozen in space, but she noticed that her family was now standing beside her.
Abe continued, taking her hand in his, as he held the bouquet in the other. “I know I’m not some fancy businessman like your late fiancé claimed to be, but I’ve got a good ranch and horses you can ride whenever you like.”
“Abe…I don’t know what to say…” Laura stammered. She turned to her father, but before she could even get a word out, he smiled reassuringly and nodded. Her face flushed and her heart pounded faster, as she turned back to Abe, who was now holding out the bouquet of roses to her. She took them, confused, until she noticed something glimmering attached to the ribbon wrapped around them. A shining, silver ring. She felt her breath completely escape.
“Oh, Abe,” Laura gasped.
At that moment, Abe got down on one knee, and a collective, awwww, escaped the crowd. Abe cleared his throat. “Laura Edmonds, I love you more than anything I’ve ever known or ever will know. Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
The world moved in slow motion, as Laura’s heart leapt out of her chest. She was breathless, as she stared into those beautiful grey eyes that had carried her heart so far. He knelt there, motionless, waiting. She finally found her breath.
“Yes! Yes, Abe, yes I will.” She breathed out. Abe leapt to his feet, took her face in his hands, and kissed her, long and deep. It was the sweetest kiss that could have ever been felt between two people, awash in love and tenderness and strength.
The crowd burst into applause and cheers as they embraced. After what felt like its own perfect, miniature eternity, they released and Laura was nose-to-nose with the strong, perfect man she would spend the rest of her life with, surrounded by her friends and family in Santa Clara.
Epilogue
Laura looked at herself in the warped dressing mirror. She reached down and picked up the delicate flower crown that her mother had made for her, from the flowers that Laura had planted in Aunt Ethel’s garden. Sprigs of lavender, delicate baby’s breath, and bright yellow carnations. Her hair fell in soft waves around her face, as she placed the crown on her head and carefully straightened it.
So this is it. This is what a woman who’s about to be married looks like. It’s nicer than I expected.
A few months ago, her eyes had been filled with fear and dread when she looked in the mirror. But now, her lips were drawn in a near-permanent smile, and her eyes sparkled with anticipation. There was a soft knock at the door.
“Come in!” Laura called out.
The door slowly opened and her mother slipped inside. She let out a small gasp.
“You look so beautiful, dear,” Dorothy said, as she positioned herself behind Laura and admired the reflection in the mirror. “This fabric suits you,” she said, as she gently adjusted her dress.
Laura smiled at her mother. “I’ll never live up to your sewing skills, Mama.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that. I’ve seen the stitch work on the things you’ve sewn around here. Once you have a little one to sew things for, I reckon you’ll get even better,” Dorothy said, as she brushed a lock of hair out of Laura’s face. “You ready?” she asked.
Laura stood up and admired the full picture. The delicate yellow floral pattern on her dress seemed to practically dance out of the fabric. Her long blonde waves cascaded down her back and the flower crown made her look like some sort of wilderness princess. She smiled.
“One more thing,” her mother said, as she reached for something behind her. She pulled out a beautiful bouquet of flowers, wrapped in the same yellow ribbon that had been wrapped around the bouquet of roses Abe had proposed with.
“For good luck,” Dorothy said, with a soft smile.
The backyard of Aunt Ethel’s house was filled with nearly the entire town. Ottie and his wife chatted with Mr. and Mrs. Mason. Mr. Leary was having an emphatic argument about the cost of wagon axels with Xavier. At the center of it all was a beautiful, hand-carved wooden arch. Beautiful flowers were carved into the polished wood. Standing under it was the minister and Abe.
Laura peeked out the window and stared at him. His broad shoulders were pushed back, his shaggy chestnut hair had been carefully wet down and neatened. He had never looked so handsome.
God could not have given me a better man than that.
Suddenly, a beautiful, lyrical melody began to rise above the chatter. The thin, weathered fingers of the old postman delicately danced across the strings of a violin. Laura took a deep breath. Her father stepped inside the house.
“Laura, you look absolutely stunning,” Xavier said, with a tear in his eye, as he offered her his arm.
She shakily took it, and the two of them stepped out together. Laura kept her eyes trained on Abe, who took a sharp, deep inhale the moment she stepped outside. They locked eyes, as her father led her toward him, and the rest of the world fell into soft focus.
As she arrived under the arch, her father took her hand and placed it in Abe’s. He then gave her a loving kiss on the forehead, and clapped Abe on the shoulder, then stepped back and stood beside Dorothy.
Laura’s hand disappeared inside Abe’s large, strong, callused hand. She looked up at him and caught the faintest hint of a tear in the corner of his eye.
“Hello,” Laura said, with a smile.
“Hello,” Abe replied. “You look incredible.”
Laura blushed and turned to the minister, who smiled at each of them.
“We are all gathered here together, to witness the union of two souls under God,” the minister started.
Laura gazed into Abe’s eyes, as the minister’s voice fell into the background. The way he looked at her was unlike anything she had seen from another soul. So soft, but so strong. So loving and so full of admiration. She felt the tears welling up in her eyes. Then Abe spoke.
“I promise to always protect you. To love you, to cherish you, and to build a life with you, now and for
ever, no matter what may come,” he vowed.
The tears began to spill down her cheeks. She brushed them away, as she cleared her throat.
“Abe Mavor, when I came to Santa Clara a year ago, I thought I was going to be on my own. And then I met you. And now loneliness feels like a myth. You are my rock, my protector, and my love. I promise to always support you and always love you, no matter what may come,” she vowed.
“And with these vows, you are pledged to one another as man and wife, in front of God and in front of family and friends. Mr. Mavor, you may kiss your bride,” the minister said.
Abe pulled her in and they locked lips, to the awwws and cheers of the crowd. Abe smiled at her, as he offered his arm.
“Mrs. Mavor,” he said, with a smile.
The Salvation 0f A Runaway Bride (Historical Western Romance) Page 28