Then he’d come to his senses and apologized. She’d forgiven him immediately, as if she’d understood.
When he’d been watching her work the day before, he’d noticed the rope holding the bucket was frayed, and he was surprised it hadn’t worn through altogether.
He was also surprised she hadn’t already fixed the rope herself. He’d asked her about it after supper the night before. She’d told him she couldn’t do it because she didn’t think she could tighten the knot enough. Then she’d reminded him she only attempted man’s work – and she’d emphasized those words – when she was sure she was capable.
He pulled the bucket out of the well and set it on the ground, then took a knife out of its sheath and cut through the knot tied around the handle. As he cut through the other knot and replaced the rope, his thoughts strayed back to his sister’s visit.
Dancing! As soon as Nora had mentioned it, he’d been all set to tell her he didn’t have time to go into town. He needed to clear brush, fix one of the fence posts a bull had rammed a few days ago before it knocked it down completely. And he still hadn’t gotten around to fixing the leak on the roof of the chicken coop. The chickens were none too happy when they got wet but luckily, they hadn’t had a bad storm for a while.
But then he’d met Josie’s gaze, her eyes bright with excitement, and he hadn’t been able to say no. Nora had obviously taught her well, he mused. Did that mean he wouldn’t ever be able to say no to her the way he never could to his sister?
What had gotten into him? He’d thought he’d managed to get away from a woman running his life when Nora married Lewis. He muttered a soft curse. Looked like he’d just traded one woman who could wrap him around her little finger for another.
With Nora, it made sense. She was his sister and he loved her. But Josie? What gave Josie the power to make him want to give her whatever she asked for. Hell, she hadn’t even had to ask for anything. One look from those bright whisky-colored eyes and he’d been ready to give her the moon if she wanted it.
With one last tug on the rope, he set the bucket on the side of the well and gathered up the rotting rope and headed to the field behind the barn where he threw it in the burn pile. He made a mental note to burn the trash the next time the wind was blowing away from the house.
Hearing a sound coming from behind him, he turned in time to see Josie going up the porch stairs. She caught his gaze and smiled at him, then disappeared inside the house.
What was it about her that made him practically fall over himself to give her everything she wanted without her even asking? He still didn’t have an answer by the time he’d finished his chores and he washed up for supper.
Coldwater Creek’s meeting hall was crowded by the time Josie and Cooper found an empty spot to leave the wagon near the edge of town that Saturday night.
Josie could barely contain her excitement, especially when Cooper lifted her out of the wagon and held her a few moments longer than he had to.
“You look really pretty tonight, Josie,” he said.
Her heartbeat fluttered. She’d been sewing furiously all week to finish the pale green dress she’d started three weeks before. It fit perfectly. She’d lost weight since she arrived in Coldwater Creek and it emphasized her new curves. She’d taken extra pains with her hair, and pinching her cheeks and adding a touch of lip rouge made her look older than her years, a look she was happy about.
It seemed Cooper was happy about it, too, she thought as he tucked her hand beneath his elbow and they approached the hall.
Lanterns brightened the boardwalk and the hall. Inside, dancers crowded the floor, the music loud. Josie paused at the entrance, watching, suddenly feeling very intimidated. She’d learned how to waltz, but not with the ease and skill of those twirling around the room.
Her spirits sank. She’d been looking forward to this night all week, and now … she just wanted to go home.
“Do you want to dance?” Cooper’s voice whispered in her ear.
She shook her head. No, she didn’t want to make a fool of herself.
Confusion crossed his face. “I thought …” He paused, peered at her. “Do you know how to dance?”
“Yes … no … well, yes … but not enough to join them.” Her gaze slid to one couple gliding across the floor.
“Me either, but I’m willing to give it a try if you are.” He held out his hand and smiled at her. She’d never been held in his arms other than when they were making love, and the temptation was too great to deny.
Taking his hand, she let him lead her onto the dance floor. “Ready?”
She nodded, and they began to move. She grinned when she heard him counting – one, two, three, one, two, three, one – as he led her around the floor. She didn’t care. His warm hand splayed on her back and the woodsy scent of his shaving cream filled her nose. The rest of the dancers faded away until there was just her … in Cooper’s arms, moving as if they were floating on air.
All too soon, the music stopped. Josie looked up at him, the man she loved. Somehow, during the song, the truth had hit her – she loved him. Loved him with every cell in her body.
“What’s wrong?” he asked. “You suddenly look so serious.”
“What … oh … nothing … nothing at all.” She sent him a smile she hoped would satisfy him.
“Did I step on your toes?”
“No.” She grinned. “Well … only once or twice.”
“Sorry. I’ve been told I do that sometimes,” he went on. “In fact, one time my dancing partner walked off and danced with somebody else because she said I’d stepped on her toes so much I’d flattened them.”
He was smiling while he told her about it, so Josie didn’t bother to squash the laughter bubbling up inside her. “I actually tripped my partner once. He was one of the taller boys in the orphanage, and when he fell, he crashed into a table and knocked over a vase of flowers.”
“I’m guessing he didn’t ask you to dance again,” Cooper commented.
“You’re right.”
They were both still laughing when Drew wandered over to stand beside them. “Looks like you two are having a good time,” he said.
“I am,” Josie replied.
“Can I have the next dance?” he asked Josie, then turned to Cooper. “You don’t mind, do you?”
Josie glanced at Cooper’s face. His smile had faded, and for a split second, he seemed … annoyed. Why, she couldn’t say, and the expression in his eyes disappeared so quickly she wondered if she’d imagined it. “Not a bit.”
Between Drew, Cooper and a few of their friends who politely invited her to dance with them, Josie barely sat down. She couldn’t remember when she’d enjoyed herself so much.
“Thank you so much for tonight,” she said softly when they were on their way back to the ranch. Drew had gone to fetch Andy from Mrs. Dawson, who’d agreed to watch him for the evening.
Cooper glanced over at her. “I’m glad you had a good time,” he said, reaching over and squeezing her hand. “I’ve never been much for socializing, but maybe it’s time we did a bit more of it.”
Knowing they’d be traveling home after nightfall, he’d rigged a lantern to light their way. He sent a smile in Josie’s direction, noticing how her eyes were sparkling and her hair glistened in the glow of the lantern.
She really was pretty, and what made her even prettier was the fact that she didn’t even realize it.
“Did you enjoy it?” she asked him.
Surprisingly, he had enjoyed himself. He rarely took time away from the ranch to catch up with the latest news, or to even talk business with the other ranchers in the area. He’d always counted on Drew to find out any information he might need to know.
Tonight was the first time in quite a while he’d gotten together with other men to share a drink. He hadn’t been able to put Josie out of his mind, though, and he’d caught himself watching her while she socialized with the other ladies.
But most of all, he’d
enjoyed dancing with her. Even though they’d made love, he’d never really just held her in his arms before for no reason.
Tonight, when his mind wasn’t on anything but the way she moved against him as they danced, he’d noticed she was a little thinner now than when she first arrived, and that bothered him. She worked hard. Was she working too hard? After all, she wasn’t used to the constant work of being a rancher’s wife. And if she got sick because of it … He didn’t even want to think about that possibility.
Wind howled and driving rain battered the house. Inside, Josie was at the table eating scrambled eggs and bacon, while Andy was stuffing “soldiers” – buttered bread sliced into narrow strips – into the yolk of a boiled egg.
“Where’s Papa and Uncle Coop?” Andy asked, then plopped an egg-soaked soldier into his mouth. “When they coming back?”
That was a good question,” Josie thought. They’d been gone since the evening before, and she’d spent the entire night waiting for them, trying not to worry.
Earlier, she’d gone out to the barn to milk the cow since they hadn’t come back. “I don’t know, Andy,” she replied. “Some of the cows got caught in the mud so they’re trying to get them out.”
“Why did the cows go in the mud?” Andy interrupted. “Papa doesn’t like it when I go in the mud.”
“I don’t know.” Josie got up and took her plate to the washbasin and slid it into the soapy water. “Now finish your breakfast.”
She should go out and collect the eggs, she supposed. She hated the thought of venturing outside, but it didn’t look like the rain was going to let up any time soon, and she needed eggs to bake the cookies she planned to take to the sewing bee she’d been invited to the next day.
Sheets of rain teemed down from a slate-grey sky and tree branches bowed from the force of the wind.
I won’t melt in a little rain, she assured herself, tugging on a slicker and boots. “I’ll just be a few minutes,” she said to Andy as she picked up the egg basket and opened the door.
Rain pelted her like tiny daggers as she crossed the yard. Even over the sound of the wind howling, she could hear the chickens squawking. What was wrong with them?
As soon as she reached the henhouse, she saw what the ruckus was about. Rain had seeped through a leak in the roof and flooded it.
Since they only had a few chickens, there was only one row of roosts, set just above the ground. They were already practically under water, and the chickens were flapping wildly, squawking their annoyance as they tried to escape.
Apparently chickens did not like to get wet and the problem was only going to get worse if she didn’t do something about it. There was no way of knowing when Cooper and Drew would get back to fix the roof, so it was up to her.
She knew what to do, but she didn’t relish the thought of climbing a ladder in this weather. Still, she had no choice. She didn’t know if it was possible, but if it was, she didn’t want to be responsible for letting the chickens drown.
Josie hurried to the barn, hoping she’d be able to find something to seal the leak, at least temporarily. The lack of light made it hard to see, but she found a pile of shingles in the corner, probably left over from the day she’d arrived.
A soft smile tugged at her lips as the memory washed over her. He’d been so angry that day. And now … how things had changed.
Since she wasn’t sure how big the hole in the roof was, she gathered up a few shingles, a hammer and nails. After taking them back to the henhouse and setting them on top of the small lean-to attached to it, she went back to the barn to get the ladder, half-dragging it through the muddy yard.
She wiped the rain and her hair out of her eyes and struggled to rest the ladder against the side of the henhouse. Depositing a few nails and the head of the hammer in her pocket, she tucked a shingle under her arm and put her foot on the first rung.
The ladder shifted, and her heart tumbled in her chest. Another rung. So far so good.
She’d almost reached the roof when the ladder slowly began to slide sideways. Panic surged through her. The shingle under her arm forgotten, she reached out, trying to catch hold of something … anything. All she grabbed was air.
The ladder toppled, and Josie fell. Cold, wet mud met her, and pain exploded in her head.
Then the world went black.
Cooper was exhausted, but he and Drew had managed to rescue at least a dozen calves from a mudhole near the river, and moved more than fifty head of cattle to a pasture on a rise, away from the worst of the flooding.
All he wanted now was food and sleep. Knowing Josie, she’d welcome him home with a smile, and have a hot meal keeping warm for them.
The rain had finally stopped, but the sky was still lead gray, with no sign of sunshine anytime soon.
“I’ll milk the cow if you take care of the horses,” Cooper said to Drew as they rode across the fields toward the ranch house.
Drew nodded. “Sounds fair. Doesn’t look like we’ll get much else done today.”
They rode in silence until the house came into view. There was no smoke coming from the chimney, no lantern light glowing in the windows.
Strange, Cooper thought.
“What’s that?” Drew asked, squinting into the dim light.
Cooper followed his gaze. Something was resting against the door, something unrecognizable. Suddenly, it moved.
“It’s Andy!” Drew sputtered. “What’s Andy doing sitting on the porch? Where’s Josie?”
“Something’s wrong,” Cooper said quietly, his heartbeat racing. A frisson of tension slithered up his spine. Urging his horse to a gallop, he raced toward the house, Drew right behind him.
Andy was sitting cross-legged on the porch. He was soaked but otherwise looked unharmed.
Both men dismounted. Drew bounded up the steps and picked Drew up, hugging him to his chest. “What are you doing sitting out here, Andy?” Drew asked. “Where’s Auntie Josie?”
Andy pointed toward the side of the house. “She’s sleeping.”
Fear … breath-stealing fear … exploded in his chest. “Sleeping? What do you mean, she’s sleeping? Where?”
“With the chickens,” Andy replied. “She went to get eggs, and fell asleep with the chickens.”
Cooper was already racing toward the henhouse, his heart in his throat when he saw the ladder lying on the ground, and Josie in a heap beside it.
Sliding in the mud, he dropped to his knees at her side. Was she breathing? If she wasn’t … He couldn’t bring himself to even think about it! His chest squeezed so tight he could barely draw a breath, and for a few moments, he was worried he might be physically sick. She couldn’t be … She just couldn’t.
Because he loved her. Somehow he’d fallen in love with her and he’d been too stupid and ornery to realize it until now. Now, when it might not get the chance to tell her.
He reached under her and drew her close to him. She was so cold! “Josie! Josie! Come on, Josie. Open your eyes,” he croaked past the lump of fear in his throat.
For what seemed like hours, she didn’t move. Finally, her eyelids flickered open, then closed again.
As if a weight had been lifted, he sucked in a breath. She was alive! She might be badly injured, but she was alive. “Drew! Ride into town and get the doc! Tell him we need him right now!”
He only hoped he wasn’t too late!
Chapter 9
Josie couldn’t remember ever being so cold!
A giant drum like she’d seen in the 4th of July parade the year before was pounding in her head, making her stomach roil.
She tried to move, but every muscle screamed in protest. She must still be alive to hurt so badly, she reasoned, and as long as she stayed perfectly still, only her head felt as if it was about to explode with every beat of her heart.
“Josie?”
She recognized Cooper’s voice, felt his arm slide under her and draw her against the hard wall of his chest. The movements were agonizing, but
she didn’t even have the strength to cry out.
His warmth seeped into her and the scent of leather reached her nose as he cocooned her against him with his duster.
“Josie, open your eyes, honey.” Cooper’s voice sounded strange, almost panicked.
Later, she thought. She’d open them later, once she dared to do more than breathe.
His voice filtered through the hammering in her head. “Oh, God, you can’t die. Not now!”
Oh, how she just wanted to be warm again. And to sleep.
She forced her eyelids to open. Even though there was no sunshine, the light stabbed them so she closed them again.
“That’s it,” he whispered in her ear, his hot breath warming her neck. “You’re going to be fine. Drew went to fetch the doc. You’ll be fine.”
She felt Cooper lifting her, her body jarring. She clenched her teeth against the pain. “I’ll be … fine …” she murmured as blackness claimed her again.
Soft lamplight illuminated the room when Josie woke and opened her eyes. She still had a headache, and she was sure she’d be bruised and achy for a few days, but she was warm, and she was hungry.
The door opened and Cooper walked in. He grinned when he saw she was awake, and set the basin he was carrying on the nightstand. Sliding into the chair beside the bed, he reached out and took her hand. “How are you feeling?”
“Better,” she croaked through the dryness in her throat. “Thirsty.”
Cooper poured a glass of water from the pitcher on the bureau and supported her while she took a few sips. Then he gently laid her head back on the pillow.
“Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
“You have no idea how scared I was when I saw you lying there on the ground, not moving.”
“It was really cold … and wet,” she commented with a small smile.
“But you’re really feeling better.”
She nodded.
His smile disappeared and a frown creased his forehead. “Good. Then, would you like to tell me what the hell you were thinking? You could have broken your neck. What were you doing up there?”
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