The Rancher’s Second Chance Bride

by Maya Stirling

  "Which was?" Honora asked.

  "Marry Gideon," Reese announced as if it was the most obvious and inevitable thing in the world. And maybe it was, Reese told himself. Gideon and Rosalind were living proof that someone could come to the faith even under the most difficult circumstances.

  "Are you saying you feel the same way, Reese?" Honora asked in a soft voice. "That you've been resisting His call?"

  Reese sighed. He felt a knot of nerves twist in his middle. He felt like he was confessing something real private to her. Felt like he was maybe opening himself up to something truly momentous. He shifted awkwardly and placed the remains of his food back in the wrapper. Moments ago, saying these things to Honora had seemed like a good idea. Now, he wasn't so sure. "Sometimes, I don't know what I'm saying, Honora."

  "Since my ma and pa died, I've felt closer to God than ever before," she said. "I have to be honest. I didn't expect that. But, trials can be His way of bringing us closer to Him." Honora narrowed her eyes at Reese. "Does that make sense?"

  "I've seen it happen before," Reese admitted. "Some of the ranch hands have strengthened their faith in the face of terrible injuries and accidents. When I was younger, I never could understand that. It just seemed like the opposite of the way it should be."

  Honora was quiet for while. She finished eating her food and then stood, gazing down into the distant valley. Reese looked up at her and savored the sight of her standing there. She looked fine, dressed in her loose-fitting skirt and white shirt. Honora MacLeish was an elegant, strong woman. Perfect in so many ways. Longing welled up in his heart, but he knew it was his duty to restrain that emotion. That was something he surely had to hold back.

  He saw her squint in the direction of the border fence. She lifted a hand to her eyes, shielding them from the sun. "What's going on down there?" she asked.

  Reese stood and followed her gaze. Honora pointed. "Can you see that fence there? It looks like it's broken." She grunted quietly. "That's going to need fixing." She started down the slope and he followed close behind. Reaching the fence, Reese could see that the wiring between the posts was broken. And not just in one place. He gazed along the length of the fencing and saw many places where the wire was hanging loose between the posts. He walked the length of the fence for a while, examining the wiring. She followed behind him and halted when he stopped in his tracks. He kneeled down and narrowed his eyes at the wiring.

  "This isn't broken," he declared. "Someone has cut this wire."

  Honora gasped. "Cut!" she exclaimed. "Are you sure?"

  Reese ran his gaze along the length of the fencing. The wire had been cut in many places between the posts, making the fencing almost useless when it came to holding in cattle. Or keeping out unwanted intruders for that matter, Reese told himself. A hard knot formed in his gut. He'd seen things like this before. Whenever rustlers were making plans for nighttime raids. Or worse. When intimidation was the aim.

  They got on their horses and rode southwards for a short distance along the fence. The damaged fence stretched for some distance. They paused where the intact fence resumed. He exchanged a serious look with Honora. "Maybe we should be getting back," he announced.

  He saw a flicker of disappointment in her eyes. "Okay," she replied, taking his advice with a suddenness which surprised him. He wondered if their conversation had altered her opinion of him in any way. He quickly dismissed that notion. It would take more than that for Honora to overcome her obvious reservations about their relationship. He still had plenty to do if he was to succeed in proving himself.

  As they mounted up, Honora glanced over at the cut fencing. "That'll need repairing," she declared.

  He squinted at her. "Promise me you won't be coming back here on your own to try and fix any of that."

  Honora hesitated and he saw her bite her lip. She'd wanted to say something, probably something defiant, but she'd just about managed to hold it in check. "I promise," she said.

  He nodded, satisfied that, at least for once, he'd managed to persuade her to follow his advice. Then they started back. Honora had an afternoon of work to carry out. And Reese had a whole lot of new questions he'd need to ask. Like, who was dead set on causing more problems on the Ferguson ranch?

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Honora didn't need to ask if she could say grace that evening at the dinner table. Her aunt and uncle had come to expect it. Just before she bowed her head she saw Reese, who was seated opposite her, gaze, wide-eyed at her when he realized what she was about to do. Honora's gaze lingered on him for a moment. He got the message and bowed his head. Honora glanced at her Mabel and Rufus and saw them do the same.

  After she said grace, Honora lifted her head and glanced across at Reese. He smiled at her. She saw approval in his eyes. Mabel dished out the food onto everyone's plates. Honora knew that, for Mabel, serving the food was something which provided a simple pleasure.

  As she watched Mabel ladling out the soup, Honora thought about the day she'd had. She'd spent most of the time working, of course. And, for a large part of the day, Reese had been ever-present. Occasionally he'd tried to help her out with the odd task or two. But, each time, she'd politely and firmly refused his offers of help. Nevertheless, he didn't seem at all discouraged by her reluctance to let him get closer to her. In fact, the more she had resisted him, the more patient he'd seemed. She wondered if, by trying to keep him at a distance, she was actually bringing him closer.

  "What kind of day did you have?" Rufus asked as he took a piece of bread and dipped it into the bowl of soup.

  Honora saw that he was looking straight at her. "We had some problems with one or two of the younger cattle. Looks like they might be coming down with something."

  "A sick herd is the last thing we need," Rufus grunted. "We got enough going on around here," he added and drew Reese what could only be described as a dirty look.

  Reese glanced at Honora. She could tell he wasn't going to take the bait offered by Rufus. Ever since they'd arrived back at the ranch about an hour ago, Rufus had been trying to provoke Reese with one sharply uttered remark after another. But, every time Rufus had spoken to him, Reese had tightened his lips, refusing to respond. Honora had to admit she was beginning to admire Reese's self-control. That was definitely something new, she told herself. The Reese of old had been too quick to fly off the handle. But, the man sitting across from her right now had learned some lessons in the past year.

  "And you, Reese," Mabel asked brightly. "How was your first day as our sheriff's deputy?" Honora hid a smile. That was so typical of her aunt. She never missed a chance to lighten the atmosphere, especially when Rufus was determined to be grumpy.

  Reese smiled. "Just fine, ma'am." He glanced across at Honora. "Most of the day I was just admiring this fine young lady here. She sure does know how to put in a full day of work."

  Honora felt her face flush with heat. "He called me Miss Rancher, aunt Mabel," she complained. "Can you believe that?"

  Mabel laughed. Rufus just glared a bit more.

  "Well, you are a rancher, Honora," Mabel admitted. "Every bit as much as anyone else who works this spread." Mabel turned to Reese. "Isn't that right, Reese," she added.

  "She sure is, ma'am," Reese replied. Honora averted her eyes, sure that Reese was fixing her with one of his appreciative looks. She'd had so many of those today, she wasn't sure she could take any more. But, as she attended to her food, trying to avoid looking at Reese, she told herself that his attention to her today had made her feel a kind of happiness she hadn't felt in a long time.

  "How long you figuring on staying here, Buchanan?" Rufus asked gruffly.

  The good feeling which had been present at the table evaporated in an instant. Honora looked at her uncle and saw his penetrating gaze between furrowed brows. "His name is Reese, uncle Rufus," Honora blurted out.

  Rufus' gaze swept sharply toward Honora. "He's a Buchanan. And that's what I'd prefer to call him," he replied.

  Honora lo
oked at Reese. Yet again, she saw that stern look of self-control from earlier. He peered at Rufus. "I know you and my family haven't always seen eye to eye, Rufus."

  Rufus grunted. "You're right, Buchanan," Rufus responded.

  Honora dropped her spoon down onto her plate. "Please, uncle. His name is Reese," she said firmly.

  Mabel chimed in. "Honora's right, Rufus. You be civil to our guest," she ordered. "He's here doing what's right for this family. And you'd do well to show some appreciation."

  "For snooping around our holding?" Rufus asked, speaking more quietly. Rufus lifted his spoon and slurped his soup noisily.

  "Rufus," Mabel said sharply and gave her husband a look which Honora had seen on plenty of occasions. Mabel knew how to keep her husband under control, Honora reflected. And Honora couldn't help noticing that her aunt had referred to Honora as family. Was that what her aunt really believed?

  Rufus sighed. "Okay." He plastered a fake smile on his face and looked at Reese. "I figure I should be civil," he said. He gestured toward Mabel and Honora. "Reese, it is, from now on."

  Honora felt like they'd won a victory. She smiled at Reese, but he was still grim-faced. The main course was meat and vegetables, plain food, but wholesome. They all ate for a while. The conversation around the table shifted to easier matters. None that could provoke disagreement. Honora was grateful for that respite. The last thing she wanted was discord around the dinner table.

  Halfway through the main course, Reese changed the subject. "Honora and me found some fencing that's been cut. Out on the eastern side of the spread." Reese glanced at Rufus. "Do you know anything about that, Rufus?"

  Rufus frowned. "I surely don't, Reese," he said. "You and Honora were out there with some of the hands?" His eyes narrowed with suspicion.

  Honora felt her heart quicken. She glanced at Reese and, for the first time, she saw hesitation in his gaze. "Reese and I had a favorite place we used to go to. We went there and had us some lunch," Honora explained. She smiled at Mabel. "You know. That food you gave to Reese. It sure was tasty."

  Rufus glanced sharply at Mabel. "You encouraging this, Mabel?" he asked.

  "Encouraging what, Rufus?" Mabel retorted firmly.

  His head bent low, Rufus's gaze shifted from Honora to Reese and back to Mabel. He didn't need to say anything. Everyone around the table knew exactly what he was talking about.

  "Reese and Honora are old friends, Rufus," Mabel continued. "You know that. They both go a long way back. They were at school together."

  "I know that," Rufus said. "But this ain't no schoolhouse."

  This time it was Aunt Mabel's turn to drop her cutlery down onto her plate. "Let's keep things nice at the dinner table," she demanded. Honora saw Mabel's jaw tighten. Honora figured her aunt possessed a deep well of patience. That, or maybe, she was drawing on another source for that forbearance. One that Honora was familiar with.

  As if trying to change the focus, Reese returned to his original point. "That fencing we saw had been cut deliberately, Rufus," he reiterated. "Seems to me it might be connected with what happened last night. Might be a good idea to fix it before tomorrow."

  "You suggesting we might be getting some more unwanted visitors?"

  Reese shrugged. "I'm not saying anything. Just that there's easy access to the ranch. And not just for one individual. Maybe more than one."

  Honora frowned. "I sent the men out to start fixing it this afternoon," she stated.

  Reese shook his head. "The fact that it was done once, means that, whoever did it the first time won't be stopped by just fixing up the fence. We had a similar problem a couple of years ago. Cattle thieves made it their business to try and get on our land. They did the same, thinking the more men they could bring, the less likely they'd be stopped." Reese grinned. "But my brothers and I stopped them, alright."

  Rufus grunted again. "The Buchanans looking after their own," he muttered. "Why am I not surprised?"

  This time Honora heard Reese sigh heavily. He twisted in his seat and faced Rufus. "I'd advise you to keep some men on the lookout. That's all I'm saying, Rufus."

  "And your advice is something I should be inclined to take?" Rufus countered.

  "Reese is only trying to be helpful, uncle," she snapped. "With his experience, I'd think about taking his advice seriously."

  Rufus thought for a few moments. "Okay. I'll consider it."

  "Don't take too long," Reese said.

  "I said, I'll think on it," Rufus said sharply.

  After that, the meal passed in silence. Everyone rose from the table. Mabel and Honora cleared up and went to the kitchen. Honora had a vague hope that Reese and Rufus might take the chance to sit out together on the porch. Maybe if they did that, some of their differences could be patched up, she told herself. But, it turned out to be a vain hope. When she made her way out onto the porch, she found Reese sitting there on his own.

  She turned and started to make her way back into the house, but he saw her and smiled. He patted the empty space next to him. "Have a seat," he told her.

  Honora hesitated, considering whether it would be wise to sit next to him. Throughout he dinner, she'd felt emotions shifting through her. Ones that even yesterday she might not have felt. And they had all been prompted by being close to Reese.

  He gazed at her, waiting for her to make her decision. Finally, she drew in a deep breath. She sat down next to him. He settled back and rested a hand on the back of the bench. She fixed her attention on the dimly seen outbuildings, the empty corral, the stable. Anything except look at Reese, sitting so close to her.

  "I don't think your uncle likes me very much," Reese said.

  Honora glanced at him and saw a wry smile on Reese's face. Just seeing that expression was enough to ease the tension in her body. She laughed quietly. "I think you might be right."

  "I know he's had some trouble with my family in the past," Reese admitted. "But, we've always tried to sort things out in an amicable manner." He shrugged. "Seems like we might not have succeeded."

  "There's something bothering him," Honora said. "I don't know what it is. But it must be serious." She turned to Reese. "I tried talking to him, but he wouldn't open up to me."

  Reese lifted a brow. "It must be serious if even you couldn't get anything out of him."

  She squinted at him. "What do you mean?"

  Reese turned slightly. "Your powers of persuasion are famous in these parts," he explained. "You've always known how to get the truth out of anyone."

  His powerful body was facing her now. She tried not to glance down at his lithe and very strong-looking physique. But she failed. Her glance flickered downward, and he saw the look she'd given him. Honora's pulse quickened slightly. She felt her cheeks flush warmer.

  "I just try to be honest with people," she said quickly.

  "Even if people aren't honest with you?" he asked.

  She shrugged. "That's a whole different question. Lying isn't what He wants us to do. Being straight with folks is what He wants from us. Even if it's painful."

  "Can I be straight with you?" Reese asked.

  She gazed into his eyes, seeing a sudden tenderness in them. "Sure."

  "Today was real special," he murmured. He shifted slightly toward her. "In fact, it was the best day I've had in a long while."

  She knew she should react to his movement with one of her own. One that would maintain the distance between them. But, for some reason she couldn't comprehend, she stayed right where she was. "I'm glad," was all she could bring herself to say.