“What? No, you should sleep in the hotel too.” Elise’s sudden concern caught Ronan off guard. She seemed to catch herself quickly. “But if that’s what you want to do, it’s fine too.”
Ronan chuckled. “I don’t necessarily want to, but it’s necessary. There are a lot of wagons out there. Others are waiting for the wagon train. I don’t want to risk anything being stolen. Besides, I don’t mind.”
Elise nodded, but he could see that she wasn’t convinced.
“Are you all right?” Ronan asked softly. Despite being in one of the largest cities in Texas, he was surprised that there weren’t many people in the dining room, and they were far away enough from other people not to attract a lot of attention, and their conversation was still private.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean … well, you look really sad. I know that all of this has been really fast for you. Everything is happening all at once. With losing your father so recently, I was just wondering if you were all right.”
“I’m doing fine. I haven’t exactly stopped to think about my father. I know that if I do …” Elise trailed off, and somehow Ronan knew what she was going to say.
“It’s all right to miss him and be sad.”
“I know.” Elise bit her lower lip, and she looked like she was about to say something, but right at that moment, a waiter walked up.
They ordered their food, and then they spent the next hour talking about the trip. Ronan made sure to tell Elise the names of the towns they would pass through. He told her everything he knew about the wagon train and everything they would have to face. He wanted her to be prepared, and he didn’t want her to be afraid if they had to face difficult hardships.
He didn’t doubt that she would adapt and handle things well when the time came, but he just wanted to mentally prepare her and try to make it easier for her.
“What are we going to do if something happens on our way to California?” Elise asked. Her eyes were wide and full of worry. Ronan suddenly thought better of his decision to tell her every terrible thing that could befall them, even though he had left a few out.
“We’ll deal with it as it comes along the way.” Ronan grinned when he realized that Elise had said ‘we.’ It was still refreshing and nice to hear that she had accepted him coming along.
“Okay.” Elise took another bite, and Ronan looked down at his plate. He had finished all his food a while ago.
“I’m going to go and set you up with a room for the night, and then we should get some rest. I know it is early, but we will need it for tomorrow.”
Elise nodded with no argument. Ronan realized that she might be more tired than he was after the night before and his resting during half the day.
“All right. Let me know if you need … help.” Elise looked uncomfortable and out of her element. He knew it must be hard for her not knowing what to do with herself.
Even at twelve years old, she had taken care of a lot on her father’s ranch. Once he had joined her family, she had taken care of him too. She had washed all the clothes, kept the cabin clean, did the cooking, took care of the hens, and many other little things that needed doing and no one else seemed to have the time for. And in her spare time, she had taken up the large clothes that barely fit him and made them much more comfortable with her sewing.
“Just enjoy your dinner.” Ronan smiled and stood from the table, heading over to the counter of the hotel. There were still a few free rooms, which he credited to the fact that the hotel was so large.
He purchased a room for Elise for the night, and then he walked her up the stairs, down the hall, and made sure she got settled before he headed out with the horses and the wagon.
Even though he told Elise to rest, he still needed to make sure the wagon was properly packed. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Elise. She just didn’t have as much experience as he did. Then he needed to make sure that the horses’ shoes were on properly and there were no other issues with their team of horses and wagon.
He wanted the next day to go smoothly for everyone. The best way to do that was to make sure that everything was in order the night before.
When Ronan had taken care of everything and was ready to rest, he climbed into the wagon and ignored the ache in his back. He was more tired than he would have expected after resting as much as he had.
He covered himself up with the thin blanket and situated his hips on the blankets that Elise had put down on the floor of the wagon. She had a way of making anywhere comfortable, and it seemed she hadn’t lost that skill, even in the years they had been apart.
When he was ready, he looked up at the sky and offered a quick prayer to God to protect them the next day. He was ready to have a good day for once. Today had been all right. The next day had to be better.
He’d already met some of the men they would be traveling with. They seemed kind enough and willing to have friendships with new people. He was actually looking forward to joining the wagon train the next day.
Chapter 11
Ronan was right. Sleeping in the hotel was definitely more comfortable than sleeping in the wagon. This made Elise feel guiltier, if anything, that she had been the one to sleep better yet again.
Even though Elise felt bad for Ronan, that didn’t mean she had changed her mind about him.
When she met him at the table in the dining area right after dawn, she made sure to keep the frown on her face.
“We have to talk,” she said as soon as Ronan walked up.
“What about?” Ronan sat down at the table, looking up at her with a lazy grin. He always seemed so relaxed and calm. He seemed like he had everything under control. She was fairly certain that it was one of the things that drove her nuts.
Elise wanted to talk to him standing up, but since he had chosen to sit down, she too sat down at the table.
“About you coming with me to California. I don’t want you to come.”
“What changed your mind? Yesterday you were referring to us as we and even asking about solutions to our problems.” Ronan looked slightly bothered but not nearly as much as Elise expected him to be.
“I mean it this time. I can’t drag you with me on this journey. It’s much too long. I was talking to the woman who works here at the hotel. Three whole months. It’s too long for you to come and then to go back.”
“I don’t need you to worry about me, Elise. I may stay in California. I have nothing to go back to anyway.” A waiter walked up with their food, and Elise’s eyes widened.
“I didn’t ask for anything.”
“I told them what to bring for both of us. Don’t worry about it.”
Elise sighed and took another breath. She needed to find a way to convince Ronan to stay behind.
“I don’t want you to come. I can do this alone. I can pay you for the horse; I already have the supplies. You don’t need to come.”
“Listen, Elise, I know you think you don’t want me to come, but the fact is I am coming. You can ignore me. You can be angry at me, or you can treat me badly all the way to California. If you really don’t want me to come, you could poison me.”
Elise groaned inwardly. “You aren’t taking this seriously.”
“I know. But I am coming to California with you. Whether you like it or not, I will make sure you get there safely. Now, we should really eat our breakfast before we need to go.”
“Fine.” Elise wasn’t happy about how he had shut her down. She really didn’t want him to go with her to California. The day before she had tolerated him, and by the end of the journey from Richwater, Texas, she had even started to accept Ronan being around, and that scared her.
She needed to remind herself of who he was and what he had done to keep her resolve. Her father still thought of him on his deathbed, and yet Ronan couldn’t be bothered to come back in seven whole years. That sort of thing couldn’t be erased in two days.
After breakfast, Elise followed Ronan to the wagon, and they were off toward the me
etup for the wagon train. It passed by San Antonio, not through it. It seemed there were others headed in the same direction as they were. In total, Elise counted around twelve covered wagons ahead of them.
Some of the wagons had children, and others were only a husband and wife, and even a few were just a man or a woman. It made Elise feel even more sure that she could have managed it alone to see others in the predicament she would have been. She had to admit those people doing it alone did not look happy, comfortable, or even sure of themselves.
“I know you are still upset I am coming, but the sooner we try to work together, the sooner this trip will go smoothly.” Ronan’s voice beside her made Elise tense. She looked over at him and was surprised to see that he looked almost remorseful.
“I am upset. I don’t like being a burden on people. I am supposed to take care of myself and even others if that is what needs to be done.” Elise snapped her mouth shut. She hadn’t meant to say that out loud. All the changes in her life were driving her crazy. It felt like she had nothing under control any longer, and it wasn’t a good feeling. Her life felt like it was slipping further and further out of control, and she wanted it to go back to being something she could recognize and adapt to.
She had no idea what was awaiting on the wagon train for her and Ronan, even though he had tried to prepare her for it. The things he had told her had only worried her, if anything at all.
At first, Elise was worried about not being able to find the wagon train, but as soon as she saw it, she knew they had found it. It was huge. There were at least a couple hundred wagons. They all looked like the one that she and Ronan brought. The difference was that some had oxen and others had horses.
Children ran in groups, playing and talking with one another. There were also a few groups of women, talking with one another and enjoying a short time before they started traveling again.
Elise found herself longing to join them. Maybe she would make a friend, or even two. Ronan was talking to one of the men who seemed to be in charge of the order of the wagon train. They were led down the line and placed between two wagons.
“This is where we will travel?” Elise asked.
“Yes, we will be toward the end once we start moving.” Ronan looked worried.
“Is something wrong?”
“No. not necessarily. We are one of the later wagons to come and join. We will make it forward eventually. It’s just … the end of the wagon train is one of the most dangerous spots. But don’t worry. It will be fine as long as we can keep up.”
“What do you mean?”
“If we start to fall behind, they won’t wait for us. It’s important that we keep up.” Ronan’s worry was starting to get to Elise. She didn’t like seeing Ronan worried as much as she was annoyed when he was overly confident.
“Why not? Shouldn’t they wait for us? I mean, aren’t we paying something to go with the wagon train?”
“Yes, we are. But in the end, they can’t wait for everyone who has some sort of setback. They can’t wait for someone if they don’t manage to bring the right things with them. If they did, they would never make it to California. They will guide us there, but it is our responsibility to make sure that we make it there.”
“Will we?” Elise didn’t like the fact that her voice squeaked, but she couldn’t help it.
“We will. Don’t worry. That’s what I’m here for, isn’t it?” Ronan grinned, and for a second, Elise felt like things were better. Somehow, Ronan had that ability to set her at ease even when she didn’t want him to.
“What if we don’t?” Elise started to think of all the things that could happen. “What if something on the wagon breaks? What if I brought too much? What if we have too many supplies; I heard it was going to be raining on part of our journey, are there rivers to cross?” Elise knew she was letting herself get anxious over nothing, but she couldn’t help it.
“Whoa, calm down. Nothing is going to happen. I made sure that everything was right with the wagon. We are going to be fine. If we did bring too much, we will leave some of it on the side of the road. It has been done before.”
Elise nodded, but she hated that idea. She hadn’t brought much, and the things that she had brought were very important to her. She made a mental note to pack the very most important things in a satchel in case she had to abandon some of it.
“It looks like they are ready to go today. They’ve already been in San Antonio for two days now. We got here just in time. See? Things are going right already.”
Before Elise could answer, an older woman approached them. If Elise was right, the woman had come from the wagon in front of them. She was definitely older than both Elise and Ronan and had soft brown hair streaked with grey. Her shoulders slumped forward slightly.
She had that look to her that made her look fragile, but as soon as Elise looked in her eyes, she was certain that this woman was strong.
“Why hello there. I take it the two of you are new to the wagon train? Such a handsome couple the two of you make. How long have you been married, and why are you off to California?”
Elise felt her cheeks blushing a deep red at the woman’s words.
“We- we’re not married.” Elise barely choked out the words. She looked to Ronan for support, but he had that amused smirk on his lips and didn’t seem in any hurry to correct the woman.
“I am so sorry. I saw the two of you and jumped straight to conclusions. I’m Mrs. Winters, by the way. I’m actually Miss Winters if you want to be particular, but I prefer Mrs. Winters. It just feels right.”
Elise found herself smiling. Mrs. Winters had an energy about her that made Elise want to jump into the conversation. It also made Elise feel more at ease as if all the things she’d been worrying about weren’t quite as bad as her mind was making them out to be.
“So, tell me, what are two good-looking young folks doing on the wagon train to California together but not married?” Mrs. Winters looked like she was disapproving, but Elise caught the mischievous glint in the woman’s eyes.
“It’s a long story.” Elise felt uncomfortable putting her family history out there to a basic stranger, even if that stranger was nice and bubbly and made her want to talk all day long.
“It’s not that long. Elise here needs to get to California, and I’m a family friend who didn’t want her traveling alone with all the dangers she could run into.”
“Why, look at you. Such a gentleman.” Mrs. Winters was staring at Ronan as if she had just met her long-lost son and couldn’t be prouder.
“Nothing of the sort, just trying to keep her safe.” Ronan was blushing, and Elise couldn’t help staring. She was fairly certain even she had never managed to make Ronan so uncomfortable.
“So, the wagon in front of us, that is yours?”
“No. It’s actually the Franks’ wagon. Mr. and Mrs. Frank are so kind. They allow me to ride with them on occasion. Of course, there are several families who allow me to ride with them.”
“What about your wagon?” Elise asked, regretting the question as soon as it came out of her mouth.
“I don’t have one anymore.” Mrs. Winters looked sad for a moment. “My husband passed away on my journey from Chicago. I am all alone now. Had to leave my wagon behind.”
Mrs. Winters spoke about it as if it were recent, and once again, Elise felt like she had overstepped.
“If you ever need a place to ride or stay, you are welcome to come with us. I could use the company.” Elise smiled.
A Long Way to Love: A Historical Western Romance Book Page 8
