The Cowboy's Convenient Proposal

Ward drew abreast of her. “He isn’t going to let you hang.”

“I guess not. Who would look after Belle if he did?” Did she manage to keep a defensive note in her voice?

“I expect Linette would give her a home. She’s given Grady one.”

Red had seen a little boy previously but assumed he was Linette and Eddie’s son. “Good to know someone would show my sister some Christian charity.”

Ward sighed long and loud. “Linette is a very sweet, patient woman.”

He didn’t need to say what he really meant. That Red wasn’t. But before she could point out that it was hard to be sweet and patient under her particular circumstances, the cowboys poured from the building she knew to be the cookhouse. They didn’t make a sound.

“They’re staring.” Belle sounded scared.

“Guess their mamas didn’t teach them it was rude.” She kept her attention fixed straight ahead.

The door in the house up the hill opened and Eddie stepped out, Linette on one side and a little boy on the other. They waited as Ward escorted her toward them. They stopped ten feet from the watchful trio.

Ward swung from his horse. Red would have dismounted on her own, but her skirts made it awkward at best and with Belle pressed to her back, impossible. So she allowed Ward to grasp her by the waist and assist her. It meant nothing that his hands were steady, and his shoulders where she was forced to rest her hands, solid. As soon as her feet touched the ground she sprang away, brushing her skirt clear up to her waist trying to flick away the feel of his touch.

Ward’s eyes narrowed as if realizing what she did. Then he quirked one eyebrow and lifted Belle down so quickly she didn’t have time to protest. But she skittered over and grabbed Red’s hand, burying her face in the brown cotton of Red’s borrowed dress.

“It’s okay, honey. You’re safe with me,” Red assured her.

“With me, too,” Ward said, his voice so quiet she could almost persuade herself she didn’t hear. Just like she could almost believe he wasn’t more than a bit offended that she tended to put him in the same category as a man like Thorton. Not that she really thought he was. But still, he was a man and she and Belle were at his mercy and that of his boss. She intended to be cautious around them.

“I see you found them,” Eddie said.

“You have a child.” Linette sounded every bit as sweet and patient as Ward said she was and it almost made Red want to weep.

Ward turned to his boss. “This is Belle, Red’s sister. They both need a home. You have your horse and saddle back so if you’re okay with that, I plan to take them to my cabin.”

Linette sprang forward and grabbed his arm to shake it. “You’ll do no such thing. It’s isolated up there. They’ll stay here with us.” She reached for Red’s arm, but Red backed away.

Isolated sounded about right to her. “That’s very generous of you, but we’ve already accepted Ward’s offer.” Once Linette heard where Red had spent the last few months, she’d want her as far away as possible.

“I won’t hear of it.” Her eyes flashed determination.

Ward neglected to say his sweet, patient boss’s wife was every bit as stubborn as Red. Red allowed herself a moment of admiration for the woman before she rallied her arguments.

“Belle’s been through a difficult time. I think she needs some time alone to get over it.”

Linette studied Belle, who buried her face in Red’s skirts. Each breath released on a shudder. “The poor child.” She nodded as if she’d made up her mind. “If you think she needs time alone, then you can live in the little cabin across from the cookhouse.” She pointed to the place.

In the dusky shadows, Red saw a tiny log cabin facing the roadway that ran through the midst of the ranch buildings but tucked into a cluster of trees that went on and on to the river. It was almost tempting to live where she could dream of finding friends. But once they knew the truth, no one would accept her. Better to be isolated.

Linette, guessing at Red’s resistance, spoke to Ward. “I won’t hear of her living alone in your cabin.”

Red turned to Ward as well. “We had an agreement.” She kept her voice low, but knew from the flash in his eyes that he understood she wanted to jerk every word from her mouth and spear him with them.

Linette appealed to her husband. “Eddie?”

Eddie cleared his throat and spoke to Red. “I don’t know what your circumstances are, but in the future if you are in trouble and need help, I hope you will come and ask rather than steal a horse.”

She’d forgotten the threat of hanging. “I apologize. But I had to rescue my sister.”

“In that case...” He seemed to consider his next words. “I won’t seek justice, seeing as the horse and saddle have been returned, but I think you owe it to Linette and I to accept our offer.”

Linette grinned like the decision had been made.

Red sent a silent appeal to Ward, who shrugged.

“Can’t argue with the boss’s wife,” he said.

Red seemed to have little choice in the matter. But she vowed it would be temporary. Only until she found something else. “Thank you,” she murmured, managing, she hoped, to sound grateful as no doubt they all thought she should.

“I’ll show them the way,” Ward offered. “And make sure they have food.”

Linette thanked him, then turned back to Red. “I’ll check on you in the morning and see if you need anything. In the meantime, get settled, make yourself at home and have a good night’s sleep.”

Red allowed Ward to take the reins of her horse and struggled down the hill with Belle still glued to her skirt. Evening had crept in and filled the hollows, so she felt as she and Belle were alone with Ward.

A cowboy stepped from the cookhouse and Ward handed him the horses. Ward signaled Red and Belle to follow him to the cabin, where he opened the door and indicated they should enter.

Red took a step forward. She paused at the doorway, unable to make out the interior in the darkness.

Belle whimpered and pulled on Red’s skirt, hampering any further progress. Red extricated Belle from the material and tipped her face up. Even in the growing dusk, Red could make out Belle’s eyes—so wide they practically swallowed her face.

Red’s heart burned. Why should her little sister know such insecurity, such terror? Had Thorton’s treatment of the past few months, and before that, the death of their parents and Red’s attempts to support them, robbed this child of any childhood innocence and faith? “Belle, honey, what’s wrong?”

Her hand still clutching Red’s skirts, Belle lifted one finger toward the cabin. “It’s dark. Like that other place.” Her voice shook.

Red straightened, silently cursing herself for not taking into consideration where Belle had spent the past three days. In almost total darkness in an unfamiliar cabin. Not unlike the one they now faced.

Ward must have had the same realization as he sprang forward. “Wait there while I light a lamp.” His footsteps thudded into the darkness of the cabin.

Belle shuddered. “He’s disappeared.”

Red knelt and pulled her little sister into her arms. “No, honey. He’s only inside.”

A yellow light flickered and grew stronger. It shifted, making Ward’s shadow lurch like something alive. Belle squeaked in terror. Red feared Belle would shred the brown skirt as she squeezed her little fists tighter and burrowed closer.

“It’s a lamp, honey, so we don’t have to go into a dark room.”

The light steadied, grew larger as Ward headed for the door. He stepped out, the lamp before him. The yellow light filled his nostrils and highlighted his eyebrows, giving him a wild appearance.

Red swallowed a nervous giggle. “It’s okay—” She meant to reassure Belle but Belle didn’t hear her as she tore from Red’s side with a piercing scream and ran into the dark.

“Belle!” Red called, racing after her. “Belle, come back.”

But Belle continued her headlong flight.

* * *

Ward stared past the golden lamplight, trying to see where Red and Belle had gone. But the light effectively narrowed his vision to a tiny circle. Not that he needed to see to know what happened. His ears proved more than sufficient.

Belle had run screaming into the woods, Red in her wake.

Birds exploded from the trees at the noisy disturbance.

Belle’s fear of him, and Red’s distrust, were starting to wear his patience a might thin. He only wanted to help them. Get them away from men like Thorton Winch and that creepy guy with the boarded-up shack. Two or three times he’d considered he might have taken on more than he anticipated. His already tense jaw tightened further, making his teeth hurt. He would not abandon this pair, no matter how difficult they proved to be. One thing he’d learned...walking away was not the answer, even if he’d done so with the best of intentions.

He lowered the lamp and hurried after Red. She stood at the back of the cabin, calling into the darkness.

“What happened?”

“You.”

That was it. One word, chewed up and spit out like something dirty. “What did I do this time?” He didn’t care that he sounded put out.

“You looked like a monster the way the lamp flared on your face.” She gave a brief, humorless chuckle.

“Thanks.” He’d about had his fill of insults.

“Well, it’s true. You scared her whether you meant to or not.”

“Whether?” His frustrations of the day were about to boil over. “You think I might have intended to frighten her? What kind of a man do you take me for?” He held up one hand. “Don’t tell me. I don’t think I want to hear.”

“Good, because I don’t want to say something I might regret.”

He snorted. Not something he usually did around ladies. But seeing as she wasn’t acting like a lady, he didn’t think it counted. “Do you mean to say you sometimes regret what you say?” He expected she caught the way he emphasized sometimes and the way doubt dripped from his voice, but he was beyond caring what he said to this woman.

“Not often.” She gave him a look of pure defiance. “Now are we going to look for Belle or not?” She stomped away without waiting for his reply.

Great. Now the pair of them was going to wander around in the dark. If he’d known how much aggravation they would turn out to be...

Who was he fooling? He would still have done the same thing. He would have rescued Red even if she accused him of kidnapping. He would have followed her back to the saloon, confronted Thorton and, yes, offered them his cabin. Having her in Eddie’s cabin suited him even better. He’d be able to make sure she and Belle were safe.

He’d not done well on that front so far.

He had to find Belle. Chasing after her would serve no purpose. She’d just hide. But he recalled she’d complained of hunger. “I have an idea.”

“I hope it’s better than your last one.”

He wondered which idea that was, because so far he thought his ideas had been good. “What idea do you mean?”

“Holding the lamp to your face and scaring a little girl half to death.”

“That wasn’t— I didn’t— Oh, what’s the use? You’re determined to twist every word and action of mine into some sort of attack.”

She stepped back into the circle of light to glower at him. “I most certainly do not.”

“Uh-huh, you do. Now can you keep quiet long enough to hear my plan?” He paused for good measure. “Unless you’ve thought of one?”

Her glower deepened as she was forced to acknowledge she had not. “Go ahead. Talk.”

He chuckled. “Knew you wouldn’t admit you had no plan.”

“You gonna tell me this wonderful plan or flap your jaws?”

He grinned at her. “Like I asked before, you ever lose an argument? No, wait. What I mean—” He leaned closer until they were almost nose to nose. “Do you ever admit it?” The lamplight reflected in her eyes, filling them with something he hadn’t seen before—wasn’t sure what to call it. Perhaps fear. Or loneliness? Even though it was barely a shadow, hardly a hint, he knew it was there, and knowing, all resentment left him.

He straightened. “Belle is hungry.”

“So what? We’ve been hungry before. Expect we will be again.”

He decided it wise to refrain from saying they would not go hungry while they lived in this cabin. “I’m going to build a nice fire over there.” He pointed to where Eddie had dug a fire pit, lined it with rocks and placed logs around it at a safe distance to use as benches. “And start cooking up a meal. I’m guessing she’ll soon come out of hiding when she smells the great food I cook.” He grinned, meaning it as teasing. After all, he was a cowboy and only cooked out of necessity, and even then it was the simplest of fare. But at the way her eyes widened and the loudness of her swallow, he guessed she was as hungry as Belle. Right then and there he vowed to make the best meal he’d ever made.

He led the way to the fire pit and soon had a roaring fire going. Red reached out her hands to the flames. For the first time he considered she wore only a brown dress. Belle had on a shapeless gray thing that had seen better days. That observation coming from a cowboy who spent weeks in the same clothes indicated a large degree of wear and tear. Good thing he could count on Linette to help him on that score.

“You stay here. Maybe she’ll come back when I leave.”

Red’s gaze jerked from staring at the flames to look at him. “You’re going?”

“Just to get supplies.”

He dashed across the road to the cookhouse. “Cookie, quick, lend me a bottle of that meat you put up.”

Cookie crossed her arms and looked at him like he’d suddenly sprung a second head. “What for? My cooking not good enough for you?”

He jerked to a halt and swallowed hard. He had no desire to offend Cookie. “I’ve got two hungry females over there.” He gave a wave in the general direction of the cabin.

“Didn’t the boss send you out to bring back his horse and saddle? Instead, you come back with two women?” She sniffed her disdain.

“The horse and saddle are in the barn. Red and her sister are going to stay in the cabin.”

“A horse thief! Whose idea was that?”

“Linette’s.”

Cookie’s scowl disappeared in a wreath of confusion.

“They understand why she had to do it.” As quickly as he could, Ward explained how Red had to rescue her little sister. “And now she’s out in the trees, hiding in fear.” Before he finished, Cookie started filling a basket with jars of meat, bottles of preserved vegetables, fresh produce and some biscuits.

“You tell her to come over in the morning and I’ll have freshly baked cinnamon rolls.”

“I’ll tell her.” He grabbed the supplies and hurried back to the cabin. He dumped meat and vegetables into a cast-iron pot. As he worked, he thought of how Red looked and sounded scared when he said he was going. She’d unwittingly allowed him to see that she liked having him there, though she would deny it with every breath she had. Not that he intended to mention it. He would simply accept it as a step forward. Balancing the lamp in one hand and the makings of a meal in the other, he made his way back to the fire. No one sat beside Red or anywhere around the fire. “She hasn’t come back yet?”

Red shook her head. “Belle?” she called. “Come on, honey. It’s nice and warm here.”

“She do this often?” Ward asked as he fashioned a spit over the fire and hung the pot. He dug a hole nearby and dropped in several hot stones, put a pan of potatoes still in their jackets on top and left them to bake.

“Do what often?” He doubted Red tried to keep the challenge out of her voice.

“Run away.”

“Did you see the little room in the saloon? Well, that’s where she’s spent the last four months. Apart from when Thorton thought to take us out for a walk, and he made plenty sure to hold tight to her hand. So, no, she doesn’t do this often.”

“I’m sorry. I never realized, though I suppose I should have.” He’d seen the little room, even noticed how the window was barred, allowing only slits of light to enter. “She’ll have lots of chance to roam free out here.”

“Hope she doesn’t get lost.”

Ward thought it best to not echo his worry along the same line. After a bit the stew bubbled, and he moved it down the spit to simmer while the potatoes cooked. The smell of food was enough to flood his mouth with saliva. He’d eaten a fair-sized breakfast but nothing since. He guessed Red hadn’t eaten since the day before, and who could guess when Belle had last eaten. He hoped the aromas floating from the pot should soon bring her in. “How’s your leg feeling?”

“It’s fine.”

“I suppose your head is fine, too?”

“Yup.”

“Would you admit if it hurt like fury and your leg pained clear to your eyeballs?”

She laughed, a sound that startled him, expecting, as he was, another fierce argument. “I’ll admit it hurts some, but seeing as there’s nothing for it but to endure, doesn’t seem much point in bemoaning the fact.”

He’d told himself the same thing many times so couldn’t argue. Somehow hearing her say it made him like her just a little. “You will keep an eye on your leg and make sure it doesn’t get infected? If you see any sign of it, let me know. Linette will have ways of treating it.”

“I can manage on my own.”

“I was only being helpful.” He felt her wariness and recalled her earlier words. “And I don’t expect any form of repayment in return.”

“I would pay cash for the use of the cabin if I had any. I don’t. Nor do I aim to repay favors with favors.”

He sighed loud and long. “I would not take either.” He tested the potatoes with a fork. They were cooked. He trotted back to the cabin for dishes, paused to fill a bucket of water at the well. Back at the fire, he handed her two plates, forks and cups.

“Thank you,” she said.

He chomped down on his teeth to keep from saying it was good to see she had a measure of manners. “Call out and tell Belle the food is ready.”

“Belle. There’s food. It smells mighty good. Can you smell it?”

They both waited silently for a sound of the little girl. To his right, the grass rustled.

“She’s coming,” he whispered.

“Ward made lots of stew and there’s baked potatoes. When was the last time you had a whole potato?”

The grass rustled some more, then Belle hovered at the edge of the darkness.

“Come on, honey,” Red urged.

Belle darted glances at Ward as she made her way to Red’s side, going the long way around the fire to avoid having to pass him.

He tried not to let it bother him and failed miserably. Instead, he had to be content with handing them a heaping plate of food. He handed Red a potato. She took it. But when he held out one toward Belle, she shrank back. Red reached for it but Ward withdrew. He wanted Belle to trust him enough to take it from him. After all, he had provided the food. Besides, he was getting tired of being treated like one of the bad guys.

Belle’s fear was palpable, but so was her hunger. He offered her a towel. “It’s hot. Hold it with this.”

She snatched the towel, took another moment to consider the potato carefully, then, doing her best not to touch his hand, took it.

It was a start. Satisfied, he sat down with his own food. “I’ll say grace.”

He didn’t need to look at Red to feel her resistance. But Belle met his eyes steadily a moment before she bowed her head.

He prayed, and then they ate in silence. When he saw they’d cleaned their plate, he offered them another helping, which they didn’t refuse.

The evening deepened. Despite the warmth of the fire, he felt coolness moving in. “I need to do my chores.” Though likely Slim or Roper had seen to them by now.

Red sprang to her feet. “You go. We’ll be fine.”

Ward picked up his hat from beside him and slammed it on his head. “What’s your hurry?”

“I didn’t mean...”

“Don’t bother backpeddling. But if you don’t mind, I’ll see that you’re settled in the cabin and the fire is dowsed before I leave.” He grabbed the lamp and strode back to the cabin. He set the lamp on the tiny table.

Red slipped into the room. “Guess you can’t blame me for being leery. I want to make it on my own. Owe no man anything.”

“I could carve it in the log by the table so you don’t forget.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Lady, my stepfather made no secret that my presence set his teeth on edge. So I walked away from my family because I figured if I left they’d be better off. But I’ve never known if it was so or not. Instead I wonder. And I regret leaving. My only reason for helping you is to make up for leaving my family. It’s nothing to do with you. So don’t think I plan to take advantage of you. You mention it again and I will carve ‘I want nothing in return’ in that there log.” He slapped the chosen place.

“Well, fine then. Just so long as we understand each other.”

“I’m pretty sure we do. There’s the bedroom.” He pointed toward the door. “There’s the stove. I can light it now if you think it’s too chilly in here, though likely you would then roast like trussed chickens. There’s food in the cupboard. Not much. I’ll be back with more in the morning. The place is yours.”

He headed for the door, which was all of three steps away, and Red bolted out of his way. He stopped to give her a long, steady look.

She lowered her head and mumbled something that sounded vaguely like “thank you.”

He nodded briskly and stepped outside. “Call your sister. I’m going to put out the fire.”

At her call, Belle dashed past him to join Red.

He carried the dishes to the cabin and set them in a pot without any comment, then grabbed a shovel from the corner.

Smacking out the lingering flames and covering the embers with dirt allowed him take care of most of his frustration.

He wondered if rescuing this pair would in any way ease his guilt about having left his own family, or if he had bitten off more than he cared to chew.

Chapter Four

Red and Belle stood silent and motionless as Ward called from outside, “Goodbye. Be safe.”

Red knew Belle didn’t breathe any louder than she did as they listened to him stomp away from the cabin. As the sound faded she strained, but couldn’t tell if she still heard his footsteps in the distance or if it was the pounding of her blood against her eardrums. So she waited, not daring to move until she was certain. It seemed he had truly left, and her breath whistled out.

“Is he gone?” Belle whispered.

“Yes.” Thankfully. She was grateful for his help. Truly she was. But she didn’t plan to accept more than she was forced to.

“Are you glad?” Belle asked, easing away from the dark corner as if still uncertain it was safe to do so.

“We’re finally on our own. Just you and me.” Apart from Linette and Eddie up the hill, a cookhouse and cowboys across the road and Ward, no doubt, flitting back and forth. She would have much preferred Ward’s isolated cabin, but this would do for now.

“I’m glad, too.” Belle turned to study the room. “We gonna sleep here?”

“Yup. Just the two of us. Let’s have a look around.” The room held a small stove that would serve as a kitchen range as well as a welcome source of heat on cold nights. There was a tiny table, two chairs, a shelf with a few supplies and a bookcase with a few odds and ends. There was another doorway and they went to the small bedroom.

Belle edged over to the bed and touched it. “How long we staying here?”

Red crossed to Belle’s side, perched on the bed and caught her sister’s chin. “Honey, we need some place until I can come up with a plan. But as soon as I do, we’ll leave. We’ll find a place on our own where we’ll always be safe and always together.”

Belle’s gaze clung to Red’s. She could see her little sister wanted to believe in a future that held promise and possibility. Understood her hesitation to do so. Her faith in good things had been shattered in the past few months.

Red pulled Belle to her lap and held her tight. “We got away from Thorton and Old Mike. They’re both in jail and will never hurt us again.”