A Pony for Christmas

by P. Creeden

  When they got there, Nate handed off Emma to his mother. “I’m going to get May hitched to the cart and help Amanda get her horses settled. She’s going to follow along with us as we attach one of them to the cart to help guide it home.”

  Mrs. Evelyn’s brow furrowed. “Is something wrong?”

  He shook his head at the same time as Amanda did. Nate answered, “Mr. Tripp had a visitor from Ft. Bridger who has come to buy a pony.”

  “On a Sunday?” Mrs. Eugenia asked, her frown deepening and her eyes widening. “Shouldn’t Mr. Tripp turn that man around? Surely, he doesn’t make a habit of doing business on the Lord’s day of rest.”

  Amanda’s heart squeezed in her chest. Another reason for Nate’s aunt to dislike her.

  Nate shot a quick apologetic glance toward Amanda before shaking his head at his aunt. “No, John Tripp doesn’t make a practice out of doing business on Sundays. Because the gentleman has come a long way today, I’m sure that he’d rather show a stranger kindness and hospitality rather than turning him away. We do bring more sheep into the fold through our good works rather than our judgement, Aunt Eugenia, don’t you think so?”

  Eugenia continued to offer a tight-lipped frown and narrowed eyes. The cold look followed them both as Nate guided Amanda away and toward the livery to get her two horses. She sighed again and mumbled, “I don’t think your aunt likes me much.”

  Nate huffed a laugh. “Don’t let that get to you. Aunt Eugenia doesn’t like me much. She doesn’t like anyone much, for that matter.”

  A smile tugged at Amanda’s lips. It did make her feel a wee bit better that Nate didn’t put too much stock in the woman’s opinion, but what if his aunt truly did finagle a marriage out of him to a woman before the first train after the new year? What if that bride was any woman Mrs. Eugenia did approve of? It would be any woman who was not at all like Amanda, that is. The thought of it just put her into a melancholy.

  When they reached the horses, she and Nate worked together like a matched pair. They hardly had to speak to one another in order to get the job of saddling the horses up done quickly. Then they led Thunder and Lilly back to the wagon where May was already hitched by Paps. May nickered at the two approaching horses as though she remembered them from yesterday. Nate tied Thunder to the back of the wagon and then mounted the carriage. Once he was aboard, Amanda mounted Lilly as well, hitching up her skirt so that she could wrap it around her once she was mounted. She wore jodhpurs under her dress, so she could sit the pony astride the way that she always did. Together they drove the wagon to the front of the church where the three members of Nate’s family waited for them.

  As expected, Eugenia lifted an eyebrow at Amanda as the woman passed Lilly on her way to the wagon. Nate dismounted to help all the ladies into the wagon before mounting again himself. Then they walked together in the bitter cold, back toward their houses. The sky undulated with gray clouds, promising more snow. Amanda didn’t like the looks of it. “Did you see that sky, Nate?”

  Nate blinked toward the west, a frown tugging his lips. “Looks like snow, and a lot of it.”

  The horses even seemed to sense the urgency. Lilly hardly wanted to walk beside the carriage on the way back, but rather jigged most of the way. Then it wasn’t long before the first flurries made themselves known. When they reached the path to the Tripp ranch, Amanda reached over and unhitched Thunder so she could pony him the up the path to their ranch. She nodded toward Nate. “Thank you all for escorting me. Be safe making it the rest of the way home.”

  Nate

  By the time they made it home to the Halberson Ranch, a mile and a half farther up the road, the snow began coming down in earnest. And a sick feeling began to form in Nate’s stomach. This snow storm could keep the Gould family stuck at the Tripp ranch overnight. Possibly even longer. That worried Nate. What if they didn’t have enough supplies for the strangers and themselves? What if the snow storm had them stuck for even longer? He didn’t like the idea one bit.

  Once he’d settled May and the new colt into stalls in the barn, he headed up to the house. He kicked the snow from his boots once he reached the porch. They’d already had nearly two inches of accumulation. Once he got inside, the heat enveloped him. His mother had already gotten both the fireplace and the wood stove going, so the house was good and warm by the time he came in. He checked their food stock. His mother had spent a lot of time canning vegetables and fruits, they’d gotten plenty of flour and supplies from the general store. They had elk meat to spare. They would be fine whatever the weather decided to do. But Nate couldn’t help but worry about the Tripp family. He met eyes with his mother.

  She nodded to him. “Go check on the Tripps. Take the extra side of salted elk with you, just in case.”

  Without them exchanging a word, his mother could read his mind. “Will you and Eugenia be okay with Emma, even if it ends up being a day or two?”

  “Even if it ends up being a week before you can make it back, we’ll be okay.”

  “I’ll open the back door of the new colt’s stall, so he can go in and out of the barn at will. He’s got plenty of hay and should be fine for a while. His trough won’t ice over easily in the barn.” Nate hadn’t even pulled his boots off yet or taken off his coat. It was no wonder his mother had figured out what he’d wanted to do.

  His mother nodded. He gave her and Emma big hugs before grabbing the side of elk wrapped in burlap and heading out to tack up May. The mare jigged through the snowfall, eager to keep herself warm as they worked through the harsh winds. Nat tucked in his chin and rode with his collar up and his hat tilted so that he could avoid getting the precipitation into his eyes. More than four inches had accumulated by the time he made it back to the main road and it was a virtual white-out. If he didn’t already know the way like the back of his hand, he would have gotten lost. In fact, he almost rode past the turn to the Tripp ranch before he doubled back and headed up the hill of their path to the house and farm.

  When the house came into view, sure enough, he found the Gould family’s wagon sitting outside with the horse who’d been pulling it holed up in the barn like the rest of the Tripp’s horses. The snow kept coming. It didn’t seem like it would let up anytime soon. Maybe Nate should have stayed home and taken care of his family. No. That wasn’t right. The Tripps had always felt like they were a part of his family every bit as much as his own aunt Eugenia. And with strangers in the house, there was more danger for the Tripps than for the Halbersons in this storm. If anything, Nate knew he was doing the right thing. He’d needed to help where help was needed most. And if he wanted to keep all his family safe, then going to the Tripp house was, without a doubt, the right decision. He held onto the hope that he wouldn’t regret it.

  Chapter 7

  Amanda

  Outside the kitchen window, the snow had already piled up to five inches or more. By the time they’d gotten to the ranch, it was really too late to send the Goulds to the inn in Belle, as they only had the open wagon, and a five-year-old child traveling with them.

  “I’m sorry that I’m imposing my whole family on you during this storm, Mr. Tripp.” Mr. Gould stood by the fireplace with her father. “I tend to be too impulsive when it comes to things. My late wife used to help me practice temperance, but without her, I’m afraid I get myself into trouble, just like I have today.”

  Her father shook his head. “No, it’s no trouble. Our home will be cozy with the five of us, but we’ll make things as comfortable as possible.”

  “Of course, we’ll have no complaints, after all, we get to spend this time getting to know you and your lovely daughter. And once the weather clears some, we’ll discuss arrangements for that pony.” He smiled wide, his gaze lingering on Amanda.

  In the kitchen, Amanda had already put a kettle on for tea, and was working on getting some kind of hearty soup together. They were lower on meat than she would have liked, since her father had planned to go hunting in the morning. So, instead, she was b
oiling the marrow out of some bones to make the soup.

  A knock sounded at the door, taking them all by surprise.

  Her father bowed his head slightly as he stood and headed for the door. Amanda stood in the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron as she waited to see who it could possibly be that made it to their doorstep in this weather. Mr. Gould stepped toward her in the kitchen. “Whatever you’re making smells delicious, Miss Tripp. Even if it’s an inconvenience that we’re here, I’m glad to have the chance to get to know you better.”

  She blinked up at him and then offered a small, “Thank you,” before returning her attention back to the door.

  Her father pulled the door in, and blue eyes met hers. Before her mind could even catch up with who they belonged to, her heart already knew.

  “Nate?” she whispered, her gaze fluttering toward Mr. Gould before she scooted past him and out to the door. “What are you doing here?”

  He pulled in a side of elk. “I heard that John had planned on hunting tomorrow, so I wasn’t sure if you’d have enough meat in the house considering the weather and the fact that you’d had unexpected guests.”

  Amanda’s heart soared. Nate had always been a thoughtful neighbor, but when she saw the snow behind him, she regretted that he’d had to come all this way in the weather, only to likely be stuck with them, too. She rushed closer to take the side of meat from him. “Thank you so much. Come in. I just put the kettle on. We’ll have tea in a moment, so I can offer you something hot. Unless you think it’s best that you turn back right away?”

  He shook his head. “The visibility is getting worse, and the snow’s coming down heavier. I don’t think I can even find my way to my own house in this. I’m sorry to impose myself on you, too, but I think I’ll have to wait out the storm with you kind folks, as well.”

  Her father shook his head. “It’s no problem. Thank you for bringing the meat. It’s going to make a big difference in our rations for however long this storm takes for us to wait out. Go ahead and get May settled in the barn, if you haven’t?”

  A sheepish smile spread across his face. “I did. I took the liberty of settling her in.”

  “No problem at all. I’m glad you did so you don’t have to go back out in this weather.” Her father set a hand on Nate’s shoulder. “Let me help you with your coat.”

  Amanda returned to the kitchen where she found Mr. Gould still standing with his arms crossed over his chest. There was a look of animosity on his face that disappeared the moment his eyes pulled from looking at Nate and met hers. He jumped forward and put out his hands. “Let me help you with that.”

  “Oh, no. I’m fine to—” But she didn’t get a chance to continue before the meat was pulled from her hands. She shrugged and gestured toward the kitchen pantry. “This way then.”

  The pantry was slightly cooler than the rest of the house and a door to the root cellar was off to the side. It was a narrow doorway with a steep set of stairs designed for her mother to be able to go up and down in, and now herself. When they reached the root cellar door, Amanda hung a lantern on a hook midway down the steps and then returned to take the side of meat from Mr. Gould’s hands. “I can take it from here.”

  Though he frowned, he allowed Amanda to take the meat from him as he had to have recognized that his broad shoulders weren’t going to make it through the narrow doorway to the root cellar. Once down there, Amanda placed the meat on one of the hooks that hung from the ceiling and then wiped her hands on her apron before heading back up the steps to the kitchen.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that before,” Mr. Gould said, his eyes a bit wide as he stepped back from the doorway to allow her room to pass.

  “A root cellar?”

  “Well, nothing quite like this, a narrow door in the pantry.”

  Amanda shrugged. It seemed normal to her as she’d only lived in the same house her whole life. She stepped to the stove top and brought out the tin cups she had to pour hot water from the kettle to brew the tea she had for her father, Mr. Gould, his governess, and Nate. They only had four cups, since she and her father rarely had company. When she turned back around, she met eyes with Mr. Gould who watched her, unmoved from the pantry doorway.

  She lifted a brow. “The tea will be ready in a few moments, Mr. Gould, if you’d like to head to the sitting room to drink it with the company of my father and Mr. Halberson?”

  “I quite like the company in here. Are you promised to anyone yet, Miss Trip? Nate, maybe?”

  Heat rushed to her cheeks and for a moment, she felt very flustered. “Um, no, sir. I’m not promised to anyone yet.”

  A smile tugged at his cheek as he stepped closer to her. He entered her space, and she would have backed up a step, but the stove heated her back and reminded her of its burning presence. His voice dripped over her like molasses. “I believe I may like to talk to your father about more than buying just a pony, with your permission.”

  Dull pain, like an ache started in her chest. He was asking to court her. This stranger who’d just come into town and gotten stuck at her house saw something in her that was worth courting, something attractive, something womanly. And yet in years of wishing Nate would see something in her like that, she’d never once heard the words or intentions that she’d wanted to from him.

  A deep voice sounded from the doorway. “I think it’d be best if you kept to discussing the purchase of a pony with Mr. Tripp. Amanda may not be promised to me yet, but you should consider her spoken for.”

  Nate. Amanda’s heart leaped into her throat. She blinked at him. What was he saying exactly? She’d never heard that sort of talk coming from him in the past. What did he even mean by his words? Surely, he couldn’t mean what she thought he meant. He stood in the doorway with the brighter light of the fireplace fire behind him, lighting his hair and giving him a golden glow about his body. But his eyes were hidden to her, darkened in shadow. She tried to determine what he meant, but it was difficult to do when she couldn’t see his expression clearly.

  Mr. Gould backed away a step from her and then the smile he’d had on a moment before turned to a sneer. He narrowed his eyes at Nate. “Mr. Halberson, right? I’m not sure that I should consider her spoken for if she doesn’t tell me so herself, or her father. I wouldn’t want to give up so easily at the quick words of one man who hasn’t yet asked for the woman’s hand in marriage, even if he’s given every opportunity to do so.”

  The muscle in Nate’s jaw twitched. “What exactly are your intentions toward Amanda?”

  Mr. Gould shook his head. “My daughter needs a mother, and Miss Amanda Tripp seems to be the motherly type. I saw her with that young girl in the church yard. Additionally, she knows her way around a kitchen, and is strong, healthy, and warm—meeting all my criteria for a wife.”

  Amanda swallowed, watching the volley of words, shocked to her core. Never in her wildest imagination would she have thought that a stranger from Ft. Bridger would be making his intentions about her known the very afternoon of their meeting. Much less, did she ever expect for Nate to stand up for her and speak as though he, too, wanted her for his wife. She had to have it wrong. There was no way that he was saying what she thought she was. He must be seeing her as a little sister again. Maybe he’s taking on the big brother role and protecting her. That had to be it. It was the only thing that made sense. And suddenly, the shock to her system died down and she found her voice again. “That’s enough. Both of you. Go. Out of my kitchen now. I’m not in the mood for hearing your animosity toward each other or your supposed intentions toward me. And I don’t want to hear another word of it until this storm clears up. If we’re stuck here for days because of a storm, I do not want to be in a house filled with awkward moments and bickering.”

  She shoved shoulders and pushed them both out of the room. In the sitting room, she found her father on the floor with the young Victoria on his lap. It was enough to make Amanda’s heart ache. When he looked up at her
with that warm fatherly smile he’d always had for her, she smiled back. Her father was going to make an excellent grandfather someday, but would it be to Victoria or Emma?

  Chapter 8

  Nate

  Nothing about this night was going the way that Nate wanted. Even the weather. Outside the window at the front of the house, he saw in the silvery glow of a snowy night that the accumulation of the snow had reached the top step of the porch out front. They’d already had a foot of snow, easily, and the large flakes were still continuing to fall from the night sky. The quiet shushing of the snow moving against itself as the wind skimmed along the top was the only noise he heard from outside. Within, the crackling of fire in the fireplace was loudest, as everyone had settled down for the evening with cups of tea once more after dinner. The governess had settled the young girl, who was two years older than Emma, down to sleep on a pallet by the fire, and sat over her watchfully. No one wanted to break the quiet while the child slept, except in whispered tones.

  Amanda came and stood next to him at the window. He glanced her way for a moment but didn’t let himself linger before returning to peer out the window. Her brow was furrowed with deep wrinkles. He’d confused her. Of course, he had. She was young and bright and the last thing she’d ever imagined was tying herself down with an older widower with a child, and yet two of them had made their intentions clear to her tonight. And one of them had been someone who’d always loved her as a brother, not a husband or suitor. He cleared his throat quietly before starting, “I’m sorry that—”