Switched Hearts: A Western Historical Romance Novel

by Ava Winters

  She didn’t have as many options as Ian’s mother had had since the Texas hills were not within walking distance from the ranch. Ian seemed to like what she had begun to do, though.

  They ended up on the other side of the ranch at the Wright family cemetery. The small plot had been fenced in and a few shade trees grew along its edges. She remembered how she had wished that morning that her mother was still alive, so she could meet this wonderful man that she had fallen in love with.

  “My mother is buried here,” Luisa said quietly.

  “Why don’t you show me her grave?” Ian suggested.

  Luisa nodded and led Ian through the small gate to her mother’s grave which was located at the edge of the cemetery.

  She had tried to keep flowers growing on her grave, but hadn’t been able to do much that summer, so she was surprised to see them still flourishing. Her mother had loved geraniums, so Luisa’s father had made sure a few of them were planted on the grave. Luisa had added smaller flowers, like violets and marigolds.

  “I wish you could meet her.” Luisa finally voiced her thoughts as they stood silently by her grave.

  “I can’t meet her, but I can imagine what she was like. All I have to do is look at you,” Ian commented. “I’m sure she would be very pleased that you grew into a lovely young woman.”

  Ian put his arm around her and they stood again in silence before they finally left the cemetery. As they walked back to her house, she had a sudden thought. She knew it was probably silly, but she somehow knew that her mother was aware of what was going on in her life, and she was pleased.

  Epilogue

  Amanda was surprised how quickly the next few days went by. She had spent another day at the orphanage with Stefan and watched him very carefully as he interacted with the boys.

  He was very good with them and they seemed to respond well to him. Mr. McAdams didn’t go back to his ranch after his talk with Ian. Amanda wasn’t at all happy when she found out that he had come to visit, but he didn’t cause any problems.

  Luisa had told her that he and Ian had talked and were able to work a few things out. Luisa didn’t seem concerned that Mr. McAdams had decided to stay, but Amanda just wanted him to leave. She didn’t want him to do anything that would hurt Luisa or the happiness that she could have with Ian.

  But Mr. McAdams surprised her and had seemed accepting of the situation. He still said whatever he thought and didn’t sugarcoat his words.

  If he had an opinion about any subject, he voiced it, except when it came to Ian and his feelings for Luisa. Instead, he kept quiet. She knew that he was watching his son carefully, but he didn’t seem upset at the way things were working out.

  Now, they were eating dinner all together at Whispering Horse Ranch. In fact, Luisa, Ian, Patrick, and her father had joined them for dinner all week. She watched her father carefully, glad to see that he seemed perfectly comfortable with Stefan.

  It didn’t seem to make a difference to him that Stefan was a horse trainer. Amanda knew that he was a bit worried that he might lose his job, even though Mr. McAdams hadn’t brought up that subject at all.

  Amanda had asked him what he was going to do if that happened, but he had been very vague. She started to make plans that if that did happen, that maybe her father could give him a job.

  She knew that he always could use good horse trainers, although she also was aware that he would need to work under Mr. Lopez. She knew he wouldn’t want to take a job from another man.

  That evening, dinner was very enjoyable. Her father kept everyone’s attention by a telling story of how he had gotten a newly born foal on its feet. He had been born that day and it had been a difficult birth.

  The mare hadn’t made it. Ian had helped with the care of the newborn foal. For a few minutes, they had thought that the foal was also not going to make it.

  But in the end, he was doing fine in a warm stall and with a stable hand keeping an eye on him.

  Luisa’s eyes sparkled with happiness throughout the entire meal. Amanda knew that she was holding hands with Ian under the table. She was very happy for her friend.

  It was obvious that things were working out very well between Luisa and Ian. Her gaze moved to Stefan who was sitting across the table from her.

  He was already looking at her and she flushed as she thought of the kisses that they had been sharing sporadically each day, when no one else was around them. Stefan winked at her, letting her know that he knew exactly what she was thinking about.

  When the last bite of the main course was eaten, and the plates cleared away, they settled in their chairs to wait for dessert to be served. Amanda noticed that Stefan and Ian looked at each other. As if in a prearranged agreement, they both stood up.

  “I have something to ask you, Luisa,” Ian said.

  “And I have something to ask you, Amanda,” Stefan added.

  Amanda looked at them both and then she focused her attention on Stefan. She noticed that he seemed nervous.

  She heard her father clear his throat and her eyes darted to his. He gave her a short smile and a nod, and she wondered if he knew what Stefan and Ian were going to do. Stefan walked around the table and stood next to Ian.

  Together, Stefan and Ian dropped to their knees. They both pulled out a small box from their pockets.

  “Will you marry me?” they both asked simultaneously.

  Luisa gasped with delight while Amanda looked at Stefan, to the ring and back to him. So many thoughts flooded her mind in just a few seconds. She looked at Luisa and they both nodded together.

  “Yes,” Amanda shouted at the same time as Luisa shouted the same word.

  A large smile spread across Stefan’s face. He stood up and Amanda launched herself into his arms. Luisa did the same to Ian.

  Stefan began to kiss her and everything, and everyone, around her faded away. A peace spread through her soul and she knew she was making the right decision.

  It took a few minutes, but she started to faintly hear some loud clapping as if in the distance. She broke away from Stefan and looked around.

  Her father, Luisa’s father, and even Patrick were clapping loudly, indicating that they were very happy with the turn of events. For the first time since Mr. McAdams arrived, Amanda began to breathe easier. She could tell that he had accepted Ian’s decision.

  Amanda began to laugh with delight as Stefan took the engagement ring out of the box and slid it onto her third finger of her left hand. She looked at it and saw that it was a basic gold ring, with a diamond in the center, and two small red stones on either side. To her, it was the most beautiful ring she had ever seen.

  “Your father gave it to me, to give to you,” Stefan said softly.

  She looked at her father, a question in her eyes.

  “It was your mother’s, my dear. I thought that you would like to wear it.”

  Amanda stared at him and then at Stefan. Tears began to run down her face as she looked at the ring again.

  “I can get you another one if you don’t want to wear your mother’s ring,” Stefan quickly told her, concern on his face. She could tell that he misinterpreted her tears.

  “No, I love it,” Amanda said as she grasped her hand into a fist as if to make sure that no one would try to take it from her. “Thank you.”

  She looked at both of them and then walked over to her father and gently kissed his cheek. “I’m so happy for you,” he whispered into her ear.

  He gave her a hug and then she moved back into Stefan’s arms.

  “Congratulations.” Ian stuck his hand out to Stefan and the two men shook hands.

  “Thanks,” Amanda said. She felt more tears run down her cheeks.

  The six of them shared dessert, an apple cobbler with whip cream on top, and talked about their future. Luisa’s father asked them when they wanted to get married and Ian immediately responded, with a firm nod by Stefan letting them know that he agreed.

  “I’d like to get married as soon as we c
an,” Ian said.

  Stephan studied his friend for a moment before he turned to Amanda. “How long will it take for you girls to get ready for a wedding?” Stefan asked.

  Amanda looked at Luisa. “Would you mind if we have a double wedding?”

  Luisa grinned at her. “Of course not, as long as you are okay with it.”

  “We’ve been through all of this together. We might as well share a wedding,” Ian observed.

  “I just want something simple,” Luisa said.

  “That sounds fine with me,” Amanda agreed. She knew that if she wanted a large wedding, it would take months to plan. She would rather plan something simple and get married quickly.

  They spent the next few minutes making plans for the double wedding. They eventually decided to hold it here, at Whispering Horse Ranch. They set a tentative date of a month from then, a few weeks before Ian and Stefan would need to start traveling to some races in nearby states.

  “There is something we’d like to talk to you about,” Ian said as he looked at James and then at Mr. Lopez. “I’m sure that you are probably wondering how we are going to support your daughters.”

  Mr. Wright waved a hand in the air. “I’m not too worried about it.”

  “I have already talked to my father about this, so he is aware of what I’m going to say next,” Ian continued.

  Everyone looked at Patrick who gave a firm nod. “I won’t say anything until Ian explains what he has in mind.”

  “What is your idea?” Amanda asked impatiently.

  “Stefan and I would like to purchase a large tract of land and start our own ranch.”

  “For horse racing?” Amanda asked as she looked at Stefan curiously.

  Ian shook his head. “I’d like to provide a place where retired racing horses can go after they are no longer able to race, for whatever reason.”

  Stefan spoke up. “We can work with these horses and train them for various jobs, like pulling carriages. Some might do well as mounts for riding.”

  Ian picked up the conversation. “Some might need more training than others. It will all depend on their temperament.”

  “What about the ones who are too high strung to be any good?” Mr. Wright asked.

  Amanda could tell that her father was very interested in this idea by the way he leaned forward in his chair, his arms planted on the dining room table.

  “If we can’t train them to do anything else, then we will let them live their lives out in the pasture.”

  “That can get mightily expensive,” Mr. Lopez observed.

  “We are hoping that there won’t be a problem long term with any of them,” Ian said. “We are aware that some of the horses will need more training than others. But we are prepared to have a field and barn for the ones who we won’t be able to sell.”

  “Tell them about Gladiator,” Amanda broke into the conversation. She felt very excited about this idea. She knew that Stefan and Ian had been planning something, but she hadn’t known what it was.

  The two men described what had happened to the black racing horse that now secretly lived on Thunder Valley Ranch and what they had been doing for him. Stefan explained about the training they had been doing and Ian explained the horse’s background with his previous owner.

  “He’s just about ready to be a great riding horse,” Stefan finally said. “In fact, I almost rode him here, but decided it might be best to give him a few more weeks.”

  “Of course, we’ll need other income besides what we’d get from these horses,” Ian added. “I thought that we could also raise long-horn cattle, just a small herd to supplement the income we get.”

  Mr. Wright leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I’ve always felt bad about the horses that have to be retired from racing. Of course, some of them can be used for breeding, but it’s not feasible to keep all of them for that purpose. I think you men have a great idea here.”

  Stefan grinned at his future father-in-law. Amanda could tell that he was pleased that her father seemed to support their idea.

  Ian turned to Luisa. “We’ll build two small homes as close together as we can, so that you both can visit each other whenever you wish.”

  “The homes won’t be as big as this one is, though,” Stefan added, his eyes carefully watching Amanda’s for any concerns.

  “I don’t care about that,” Amanda said firmly. “I love this idea you have. I’d like to help as much as I can.”

  “I know I won’t be much help with the horses, but I can help by growing a large garden and the meals,” Luisa added.

  The six adults sat around the table for hours after the meal had been cleared away. Eventually, Mr. Wright and Mr. Lopez left the two couples alone to plan their lives together.

  ***

  Amanda woke up late the next day. She hadn’t gone to bed until almost midnight and it took her another few hours to fall asleep.

  All she could think about was that she was now engaged to be married to a wonderful man. When she left Thunder Valley Ranch a few weeks ago, she didn’t think she’d ever see Stefan again but now she was looking forward to spending her life with him.

  She groaned as she rolled over in her bed and looked at the clock that ticked the seconds away on her bureau. She sat up in surprise when she saw that it was already ten o’clock. She couldn’t believe that she had slept so late.

  She had wanted to try to go to the orphanage that day, but she hadn’t told Mrs. Reynolds that, and she was now glad that she hadn’t. Otherwise, she would be showing up very late. She spent another fifteen minutes in bed, thinking about the plans that she had made with Stefan the night before. Finally, she got out of bed and quickly dressed.

  Since it was so late, she only ate a sweet roll and enjoyed some juice before leaving the house to find Stefan. She wanted to see him as soon as she could. She wanted to make sure that last night wasn’t a dream. She found herself giggling at that thought.

  She saw Luisa leaning against the fence of a nearby paddock and she headed in that direction. As she moved closer, she saw that both Stefan and Ian were inside the paddock working with one of her father’s yearlings. She approached Luisa and stood next to her.

  “I could watch Ian work all day,” Luisa murmured as she glanced at Amanda.

  Amanda laughed again, although she didn’t say anything. She felt the same way about Stefan. She remembered how she’d watched Stefan work with the Thunder Valley Ranch racehorses for hours.

  Stefan seemed to somehow know that she was there for he turned his attention from the yearling and looked at her. They stared at each other for a long moment and then he winked before turning back to the horse.

  Amanda stood next to Luisa and they watched their men for quite a while.

  “Can you believe that we are engaged?” Luisa asked.

  Amanda giggled again and then clamped her hand on her mouth. She couldn’t believe how much she was giggling that morning. “Are you really okay to have a double wedding?” she asked. It was the only thing she was concerned about among the many things the four of them had talked about the night before. She didn’t want Luisa to feel like she had to agree to a double wedding if she didn’t want to. “I won’t feel offended if you don’t.”