by Sharon Sala
“Do you know what kind of trouble she’s in?”
“No, ma’am. Alice just came downstairs and told me to go get the doctor.”
“All right. I don’t know how much help I’ll be, but I’ll come. Just let me get dressed.”
“Oh… ma’am… I’m sorry, but I didn’t bring the wagon.”
Mildred Warren waved him toward a chair on the porch.
“Will your horse carry us both?”
“Yes, ma’am, but—”
“I can ride. I won’t win any prizes, but I can ride.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Robert Lee said, as he took a seat in the chair. “But if you don’t mind me asking… please hurry.”
The door closed between them. Robert Lee bowed his head, and for the first time in years, really prayed.
Within minutes she was back, wearing a pair of her husband’s pants and a long overcoat.
“If Letty can dress like this, then I suppose I can, too,” she said, and took the help Robert Lee offered as she crawled up on the horse.
As she claimed, it wasn’t pretty, but she was astride. Robert Lee climbed on behind her, and together, they rode back up the mountain to Letty.
Letty was tired—so tired she didn’t think she’d ever be rested again. She wanted to quit and just close her eyes, but she didn’t have the luxury. She was in the middle of a breath when the next wave of pain came, pulling and twisting at every muscle in her body until she felt as if she was coming apart. She arched toward the pain, and then screamed as it rolled down the length of her spine.
Delilah was in tears.
Mary was tight-lipped and frightened.
Alice was almost as weary as Letty, determined that this birth would not be a disaster.
They’d put Katie to bed hours ago, but unknown to them, she was still up and sitting in a corner of the upstairs hall, afraid to close her eyes.
She was the first to hear the commotion downstairs, and jumped up and hid. She saw Robert Lee dragging someone up the stairs, and scooted to her room before she was discovered. They were dripping mud and water all over Miz Letty’s clean floors, and thought about telling them they were going to be in trouble, but she decided against it and stayed put.
Mildred was shedding her coat and hat as she went, and it was all she could do to keep up with Robert Lee as he hurried her along. But his haste came to an abrupt stop when he heard Letty scream.
“God in heaven,” he muttered.
“It doesn’t mean anything except that it hurts,” Mildred said, and dumped the last of her weather gear in the hall by the door. She left the door ajar as she rushed inside, giving Robert Lee a clear view of Letty’s face.
Her hair was stuck to her face from perspiration, and she was holding on to the headboard of the bed so hard that her knuckles were white. Before he could move, someone shut the door. He felt as if someone had cut off his breath.
He didn’t know how long he stood there without moving, but it was long enough for Letty’s screams to be branded into his brain. When Alice came running out of the room sometime later, he was still there.
“Sakes alive!” she muttered, and had to side-step Robert Lee to keep from plowing into him. “I didn’t know you were here.”
“Why isn’t the baby coming?” he asked.
Alice rolled her eyes.
“I don’t know. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear Letty just doesn’t want to give it up.”
Robert Lee frowned. “What the hell are you saying?”
Alice swiped her hands up her face, pushing the hair from her eyes.
“As long as the baby was in her, she knew she could keep it safe, but once it’s born, a mother can do her best and still lose it. I learned that the hard way.”
Robert Lee remembered then that Alice had lost her baby.
“Oh… I’m sorry. I didn’t think.”
“It’s all right. Now, go on with you. This is women’s work.”
Robert Lee frowned as she sped down the stairs. What if Alice was right? What if Letty was putting herself and her baby in danger by an unwillingness to let go?
He ducked his head and started down the stairs, then stopped. By God, he hadn’t come this far with that woman just to lose her this way.
He set his jaw and turned on his heel. Moments later, he was standing in the doorway, his gaze fixed directly on Letty’s face.
“God damn it, Leticia! You can’t control everything. Give up the fight and let that baby be born!”
Surprised by his presence, everyone froze.
Letty threw her head back, meeting his gaze with something akin to desperation. She was still staring when he slammed the door shut between them. They heard his steps receding, and then heard him stomping down the stairs.
“What on earth?” Alice muttered.
“Pay him no mind,” Mildred said, as she braced herself for Letty’s next contraction.
The pain was subsiding, but Letty was already gathering herself for the next. She’d heard Robert Lee through a numbing fog, and only now, was absorbing what he’d actually said. Was he right? Was she delaying this birth by refusing to give up the control?
Alice’s hand was on her belly.
“Here comes another one,” she said, as she felt the muscles contracting again.
Letty closed her eyes, took a deep, weary breath, and then this time, instead of holding her breath against the pain, rode all the way through it.
“That’s it! That’s it!” Mildred cried. “You can do this. You’re a strong-willed woman, so make this happen.”
When the next pains came, Letty pushed—and pushed—and pushed again. She was somewhere between exhaustion and unconscious when she heard a loud, angry cry.
“It’s a boy!” someone cried.
Letty gritted her teeth, willing herself to stay focused, and held out her arms.
“Give him to me.”
“Just a minute,” Mildred said, as she quickly cut the cord and began cleaning up the baby.
The little fellow was wailing lustily as Mildred wiped him down. She wrapped him in a blanket and then laid him on Letty’s chest.
Within seconds, Letty’s arms closed around him, holding him close—holding him safe—as close to her heart as she could get him.
“Prop me up,” she said.
Mildred frowned. “But the afterbirth—”
“Will tend to itself,” Letty muttered. “I need to see my son.”
And she did.
His little face was red and puckered—his mouth wide open in a loud, toothless wail. His hair was thick and dark. She peeled back the blanket to count fingers and toes as he continued to complain about the mistreatment of his arrival into this world.
When she was satisfied that he was perfect, she rolled him back up in the blanket and held him close.
“Here… give him to me,” Alice said.
“Not yet,” Letty said. “It’s only fair that, as his mother, I am forced to listen to his first complaint.”
Having said that, she looked down at his angry, red face and grinned. The louder he wailed, the more she smiled. Finally, the baby’s cries eased somewhat, leaving him with a squeak, not unlike that of a baby kitten.
At that point, Letty laughed aloud.
Robert Lee was sitting at the bottom of the stairs with his head in his hands, struggling to stay sane between Letty’s moans and wails. The room was lit now by nothing but a single candlelight and the glow from the dying parlor fire in the other room. Sitting in the dark only added to the drama of the night. True panic hadn’t come until one long, agonized scream.
He stood abruptly, ready to dash back up the stairs and beg Letty not to die when, moments later, he heard a baby cry. Every muscle in his body went weak. Even though the cries continued, he felt certain the crisis had passed.
He leaned against the stair rail and then swiped a shaky hand across his face as the wails continued. One long, angry yelp after another ricocheted through the rooms downstairs. Fi
nally, the cries began to subside and there was a moment of blessed silence.
Then he heard Letty laugh.
After what she’d been through, it was the last thing he would have expected to hear.
He reached for the newel post as the echo of her laughter faded around him. He looked up—waiting for someone to give him the news.
Moments later, Alice appeared at the head of the stairs with an oil lamp in her hand.
“It’s a boy,” she said. “But if you ask me, I’m predicting here and now that he’s just a male version of his mother. Never heard so much complaining from a newborn in my life.”
Robert Lee grinned.
A boy.
Then his smile slipped.
Eulis would have been so proud.
“Reckon I can come up?” he asked.
“Oh. Yes… I almost forgot. Letty sent me to get you.”
Robert Lee took the stairs two at a time, then smoothed his hands down the front of his shirt, wincing as he felt the dampness. He should have thought to change into dry clothes, but quickly abandoned the notion. He’d had them on so long that they were almost dry again.
He entered the room behind Alice, his gaze going immediately to Letty.
She was sitting up in the shadows, leaning against the headboard with the baby in her arms.
“Come say hello,” she said.
Robert Lee could have easier faced a man with a gun. If she’d asked him to strip naked in front of all these women, it wouldn’t have been any harder than it was to walk to her bed.
Robert Lee looked at the baby. It was little and red and wrinkled. He wished he could say the same for Letty, and then maybe he wouldn’t be so damned tied to staring at her face, because she looked beautiful. He cleared his throat and nodded.
“He’s a fine baby. Eulis would have been real proud.”
Letty looked up.
“That’s part of why I asked you to come in. It’s because of Eulis and you that my child was born.”
Robert Lee looked startled.
“No, ma’am, I didn’t have—”
“Eulis gave me this child, but you kept us both alive.” Then she looked down at the sleeping baby and lightly ran her finger down the side of his cheek. “Eulis hated his name, but I got real fond of it and him.” Then she looked up at Robert Lee, watching the expression on his face as she announced. “I’m naming the baby Eulis Slade Potter after the two men who made this night possible.”
Robert Lee’s mouth went slack. His vision blurred.
“I don’t know what to say.”
“Well, for starters, sit down in that chair and hold out your arms. Alice… if you don’t mind, would you hand Little Bit to Robert Lee? I think the two men on this place need to get acquainted.”
“Little Bit?” he asked.
“He’s going to have to do some growing to handle the name I just gave him. For now, Little Bit will do.”
Alice grinned.
Robert Lee paled as the baby was laid in his arms.
At first, he couldn’t feel anything but the thunder of his own heartbeat pounding in his ears. Then the baby squirmed, and he felt the warmth and the weight, and reality dawned. He blinked away tears only to find that the baby’s eyes were open, and that he seemed to be looking right at Robert Lee.
“See there,” Letty said. “He likes you.”
“What do I do?” Robert Lee asked.
Letty leaned back against the pillows, watching the changing expressions on Robert Lee’s face.
“Exactly what you’re doing right now,” she said softly, then closed her eyes. Within seconds, she was asleep.
“Let her be,” Alice said, when Delilah would have scooted her back down in the bed.
Together, the women began gathering up the basins and bedclothes and carrying them out the door.
Delilah followed with an oil lamp to light the way.
Mildred glanced back at the sleeping woman, and the man sitting beside her bed.
“Wait!” Robert Lee said. “What am I supposed to do?”
“We’ll be back soon enough,” Alice said. “For now, you’re doing just fine.”
Robert Lee started to shake. What if he did something wrong? What if he dropped the baby? What if—
The baby squeaked.
Robert Lee held his breath.
Letty hadn’t moved.
The baby settled.
He exhaled slowly, then leaned back in the chair, shifted his hold, then looked up, and for the first time since he’d walked onto Potter land, gazed his fill of the woman who held his heart.
A Rooster In The Hen House
It was mid-morning of the next day when Alice drove Mildred Warren back home. Soon after that, the news began to spread.
Letty Potter had given birth to her dead husband’s child. That it was a boy baby was viewed by most as good fortune. At least Potter would have someone to carry on his name.
It was Milton Feasley who first coined the phrase, a little rooster in the hen house, but it soon took hold.
Letty basked in her new role as mother. Her manner was softer, her voice less strident. Everything in the Potter household was moving at a slower pace. But it wasn’t slowing down winter. It came blasting through the Rockies within two weeks of Little Bit’s birth, dumping six inches of snow and a drop in temperature that chilled a man all the way to the back of his teeth.
Robert Lee took on the role of tending to the animals and the wood cutting, as well as going into town for supplies. Letty had ordered new coats for everyone some time back, adding a good, long heavy coat made for riding for Robert Lee. She’d also ordered some knitting yarn, some school books for Katie, and a large assortment of embroidery cotton. With a houseful of females likely to be snowed in until spring, they needed to be doing something through the long, cold days besides getting on each other’s nerves.
She didn’t know how Robert Lee felt about a houseful of women, but so far he wasn’t complaining, and there was the draw of Little Bit to keep him satisfied. Every evening when he came in from doing chores, he made it his business to rock the baby while supper was being cooked.
Letty often watched the interplay of emotions between the only two males in the house—now and then feeling a tiny bit jealous. There had been a couple of times when Robert Lee had been the only one to calm the baby’s fuss. At those times, a part of her resented the fact that Eulis hadn’t lived to see this. But then Robert Lee would look up at her with a laugh in his eyes, forcing her to remember that it was Eulis who had died and not her.
Christmas neared. Down in the city, Letty Potter’s son had taken on a persona not unlike that of a young prince. Women who’d shunned her for her wild ways now hinted at an invitation to visit.
Finally, it was Alice who came up with the idea to have an open house, similar to the ones her family had held during the holidays back in Boston. Letty was hesitant to expose Little Bit to so many people, but Mary suggested that they hold the party, and at some time during the fete Letty could introduce the child to everyone, then he’d be whisked away. Curiosity would be satisfied, and maybe life would settle down for all of them.
And so the planning began.
Invitations were sent out, and Alice began baking. With Robert Lee’s help, Delilah and Mary were responsible for decorating the house with fresh pine and cedar boughs. Katie got the job of polishing the silver and spent hours working on everything from flatware to teapots.
Robert Lee secretly bought a new suit and boots for himself and had his hair trimmed to shoulder length. No one knew that he’d grown up in a whirl of grand parties and soirees’ his parents had often held, and he wasn’t about to admit it at this late date. Growing up, he’d taken wealth for granted, then learned the hard way how to live without it. The irony of how his life had come full circle was not lost upon him.
And then there was Letty. If she was going to host this grand party, then she needed a grand dress to mark the occasion. She had one that
she’d ordered right after they’d struck gold, but the occasion had never presented itself to be worn. Now she wasn’t sure if she could still fit in to it. Yet when she tried it on, she was surprised to see that it fit—even better than before. Where it had once been a little loose in the bosom, she filled it out nicely. The neckline dipped in all the right places and the skirt billowed out behind her as she walked. It would do.
The week passed in a flurry of excitement to which was added the arrival of Letty’s order from back East. She was excited when Robert Lee came back from town with the crate.
The back door opened with a thump against the wall, letting in a cold blast of air, upon which Alice promptly complained.
“Mercy sakes, Robert Lee! Close the door! It’s freezing outside.”
“Yes, ma’am, that it is,” he said, as he staggered toward the kitchen table with his load. “Milton Feasley sent this box along with the list he filled for you. He said to tell you it was Letty’s order.”
Letty came into the kitchen with her skirt flying out behind her and her hair coming down around her ears.
“Don’t open it! It has surprises for Christmas!” she said.
Robert Lee eyed the box and sighed.
“I don’t suppose you’re gonna let me leave it on the table?”
“Well, of course not, Robert Lee. Would you please carry it up to the sewing room?”
“I’d be delighted,” he muttered, and hefted it up again, before settling it on his shoulder.
Letty led the way out of the kitchen.
On a normal day, Robert Lee would have enjoyed the view and the sway of her hips beneath her dress, but the damned box was too heavy to linger on lust.
“In here!” she said, and stepped aside as he moved past her and set it down with a thump.
“You cut your hair,” Letty said, eyeing the new length. “It looks nice.”
Robert Lee looked up. Breath caught in the back of his throat. He wasn’t comfortable being under her scrutiny—ever. He’d made it plain how he felt about her, although he’d never stepped over the line. But being alone with her—in any situation—made him ache to touch her—hold her—to taste those lips that had a constant penchant for spouting sarcasm and wisdom within the same breath.
