Cowboy Father

by Linda Ford

  Cowboy Father

  Linda Ford

  Contents

  Exclusive invitation

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Epilogue

  Exclusive invitation

  Sneak peek of Cowboy Groom

  Dear Reader

  Also by Linda Ford

  Exclusive invitation

  Are you a member of Linda’s email newsletter? Right now you can receive a special gift, available only to newsletter subscribers. Following My Heart is a short story and will not be released on any retailer platform—only to newsletter subscribers.

  The story of the Kinsley family begins long before they take up residence in Glory, Montana Territory. It begins with a young woman, married to a preacher man. Both of them desire to serve God and have a large family. But their lives aren’t the dream they’d imagined. There are disappointments that threaten their hearts. Will their faith endure and their love survive?

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  1

  Glory, Montana Territory, 1884

  The sound of horse hooves brought twenty-three-year-old Adele Kinsley Roberts to her feet. As usual, her heart raced, and she glanced about to check on the whereabouts of her eighteen-month-old son, Jacob, before she hurried to the window. She did her best to calm herself with the reminder that her son was having an afternoon nap, as were the other residents of the house who were at home.

  The rider stopped at the back gate. He wore a cowboy hat that shadowed his face, but she immediately recognized him as one of the men she had intently studied at her husband’s funeral. Her limbs turned to butter, and she grasped the window sill to keep herself from folding to the floor. She had no doubt it was the same man. She’d gone out of her way to study and memorize the features of every stranger at the graveside. Although she couldn’t see his face clearly from across the yard, she could recite every detail. He had well-trimmed, dark blond hair and blue eyes. She’d noted his slightly prominent, square chin. Had thought at the time that he would be a stubborn adversary. Or a loyal friend. And now he was here.

  To be an adversary? But the two children accompanying him, one cradled to his chest, clinging to his light gray shirt front, the other sitting behind him, clinging to his back, confused her. What sort of an adversary came with children? But she couldn’t believe he came as a friend.

  He dismounted with one child in his arms and lifted the other to the ground. Adele could see the older child was a girl wearing a rumpled blue dress.

  Her heart kicked into a gallop as the man took a step toward the house. No doubt he had heard that the Kinsley home was a place that offered hospitality. Seemed he meant to take advantage of that. For what purpose? She spun around. She was alone. Ma was sleeping. Pa had gone visiting. Two young men, sick with influenza and with no nearby family, occupied one room in the addition. They were too ill to care who might come to the door. Their other guest, Stella Norwood, and her children were resting as well.

  The stranger drew closer, the little girl glued to his side, the younger child practically wrapped around his neck. Even across the distance, Adele felt the fear coming off the children. An echo of her own feelings.

  She pulled back from the window, her hand pressed to her throat as if she could silence the frantic throb of her pulse. If the man was alone, she would simply pretend no one was home. Except repeated knocking would rouse Ma. Adele didn’t want that. Ma was suffering the same symptoms as the two young men…a type of grippe that had them coughing and feeling wretched.

  But even if she could have ignored the man, she could not turn away the two children.

  What if it was Jake needing help? She would do anything to protect her son.

  Knuckles rapped the door. Silence as deep as the darkest night followed. Then a little voice said, “Maybe nobody’s home.” The anxiety in the child’s tone sent Adele into action.

  She crossed to the door and pulled it open. “Yes? How may I help you?”

  Eyes as blue as a mountain lake and equally as deep held her gaze.

  She forced herself not to blink or look away. If he had followed her, she must guard every word, every expression, and even a careless sigh.

  “The man at the livery barn directed me here. Said I could get help with the children.”

  Livery barn. A reminder that sliced through Adele’s thoughts. Her husband had found working at the livery barn back in Verdun, Ohio to be an ideal place to learn about the business dealings of others. It enabled him to know who would be carrying a heavy purse and when. Then he would proceed to relieve the person or persons of that load.

  It had gotten him killed.

  It was all she could do not to let her face twist with regret and fear. Regret over her disastrous marriage. Fear of repercussions stemming from her husband’s choices. Repercussions that might be standing right in front of her.

  She lowered her gaze to the child in the visitor’s arms, still clinging tightly. “This is the Kinsley residence. My father is the preacher. We certainly help those in need.” She tipped her head toward the addition. “That’s why my pa built that.” She leaned over to speak to the little girl. “What’s your name, honey?”

  “Susie. I’s five.” She pointed to the little one in the man’s arms. “He’s my brother, Georgie. He’s only two.” She held up two fingers to illustrate.

  “Pleased to meet you.” Adele touched Susie’s head. “And where is your mama?” She glanced past those on the doorstep, wondering if another horse and rider would appear. After several seconds, she guessed not.

  The man cleared his throat, bringing her gaze back to him. “Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Ethan Sandburg, and I found these children alone.” His eyes signaled he didn’t care to say anything more.

  She gave her own name. “Pleased to meet you.” It was the right thing to say even though her insides shouted, danger, danger. There was no reason a man who had been at her husband’s funeral would suddenly appear in Glory, Montana Territory unless he was following her. Nevertheless, there were two children to consider. “Why don’t you come in and have some milk and cookies?” She led them to the kitchen table. Susie perched on a chair and folded her hands on the tabletop. When Mr. Sandburg tried to put Georgie on a chair, he whined and clung to the man.

  “Georgie, little man, sit here so I can help get cookies for you.”

  Georgie’s bottom lip quivered, and tears pooled in his eyes as he let himself be put on a chair.

  Mr. Sandburg joined Adele at the cupboard, his back to the children. He spoke quietly. “I found them yesterday crying beside a wagon that had been pulled off the road. I went over to have a look. Found a man and woman dead and these two little mites. At first, they would have nothing to do with me, but I gave them some food, and they ate like they were starved. Far as I can make out, their parents were sick some time, and the children had been managing on their own. Young Susie did her best to take care of her little brother.”

  Adele blinked back tears, took cookies and milk to the children, then returned to talk to Mr. Sandburg. “Those poor children. Of course we’ll take care of them. I don’t suppose you were able to discover if there is family anywhere?”

  “I found a few documents, but nothing to indicate a family. I’ll turn what I found over to the sheriff, and he can investigate.”

  The sheriff! Adele did not want to be part of anything that brought her to the sheriff’s attention
, but she could hardly tell this Ethan Sandburg of her concern.

  They stood side by side studying the children.

  Georgie crawled down, ran across the room, and wrapped his arms around Mr. Sandburg’s legs. “Up.”

  Mr. Sandburg lifted the boy into his arms. “He’s been stuck to me like a burr since we left the wagon behind.”

  Susie finished her cookie, drained her glass. “Thank you. May I be excused?”

  “Of course. What nice manners you have.” Adele smiled her approval.

  “Mama said I should always remember my manners.” She got halfway across the room before she broke into tears. “Mama’s gone to heaven, hasn’t she?”

  Mr. Sandburg squatted down and caught the little girl, who threw herself into his arms and sobbed on his shoulder. “Yes, she has,” he said.

  Little Georgie started wailing.

  Adele glanced toward the hall. This noise would surely waken those napping. Sure enough, Ma emerged from her bedroom, her fading blonde hair untidy. She wore a dark blue cotton wrap that brought out the blue of her eyes. Despite her age and her illness, those eyes didn’t miss a single detail. She took in the crying children, the cowboy holding them and, no doubt, saw the distress in Adele’s eyes. The thought of these orphaned children, missing their parents, held so many poignant memories for her…her own fear when she was younger because her birth mother had abandoned her on the Kinsley’s doorstep. Her fear of being left had intensified when Tilly was dropped off with them when she was a baby. How could parents leave little ones they had borne? How could God take parents from children who needed them?

  When Adele was eight, Flora and Eve joined the family. Four and six at the time, they were a little older than this pair, but Adele’s throat closed off as she recalled the pain her sisters had gone through as they adjusted to having new parents.

  Looking at Susie and Georgie weeping loudly, she made the same silent promise she had made to help Flora and Eve in every way she could as they struggled to accept their loss. Teaching them to trust God had strengthened her own faith. In the same way, she would do everything in her power to help Susie and Georgie adjust to their loss and their new home.

  With a start, she realized she expected Ma and Pa would adopt this pair as they had adopted the six Kinsley girls. But the last two girls to join the family had done so at ages twelve and fifteen. Taking in two toddlers would be a lot of work. And her parents weren’t getting any younger.

  That must be why Adele had arrived here. Led by God to her parents’ home to help them with the influx of little people.

  Not, as she had thought to this point, to escape the memories of her husband’s criminal activity or the threat of his partner, who had come to the door the evening of the funeral demanding to know where Floyd had hidden the money.

  She managed not to shiver as she recalled the man’s menacing tone.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She’d barely managed to squeeze the words from her tight throat.

  “It’s simple. He took the money. I want my share.”

  She’d tried to slam the door, but he had his foot in the way. Thankfully, her friend had emerged from the other room at that point.

  “Is there a problem? Should I send for my husband?”

  The man had slipped away so quickly and quietly, Adele would have liked to believe it was all a shadow, a figment of her imagination. But she knew it wasn’t. She’d shook from head to toe as her friend held her.

  “Who was that?”

  “I don’t know.” Though she’d glimpsed him half a dozen times before…in the barn talking to Floyd or lurking about. Guessed him to be Floyd’s partner. Or one of them. How little she’d known of her now dead husband’s activities. She hadn’t wanted to know. She would have left him except she took her marriage vows seriously—through better or worse. Never in a thousand years would she have guessed how bad things could be. He had pretended to be something other than what he was. Her love for him had dried up with the knowledge of his activities.

  The authorities had questioned her about Floyd’s death. She could provide few details. She was aware of Floyd’s evening raids, but he never let her know anything. So she’d been able to honestly say she had no idea where he had been or what he’d been doing. They couldn’t tie him to the robbery that took place twenty-five miles away, nor could they explain how he’d been shot.

  She had left for Glory the next day on the early morning train.

  And now Mr. Sandburg was here. She would be naïve to think it was purely coincidental.

  Ethan Sandburg had his arms full. Literally. Two children clung to him, weeping loudly. His heart went out to them in their loss although it served Ethan’s purposes to have an undeniable reason for calling on the house. He intended to find the money Floyd Roberts had stolen from Ethan’s boss. Floyd’s wife was the most likely person to know its whereabouts. The fact she had left Verdun so quickly only added weight to his suspicions.

  Mickey, at the livery barn, had assured him the Kinsleys would give the children a home. He only needed to drop the children on their doorstep, and his excuse for calling at the manse would vanish. He’d have to find a different reason for watching Adele Roberts’ activities. One that allowed him to observe who she visited and where she went when she left the house.

  Intending to leave the children, he tried to set aside Susie and Georgie. But they clung all the tighter to him.

  “Kids, you will be safe here with the Kinsleys.”

  Adele Roberts watched his attempts to untangle himself from the children, her eyes guarded. He wished he knew what secrets lay behind her look.

  Susie clutched one of his arms. Georgie wailed louder.

  “D-don’t leave us.” Susie managed to stutter out the words.

  The older woman who had appeared in the hallway grabbed the wall and moaned. Mrs. Roberts rushed toward her. “Ma, you need to be in bed.”

  She wrapped her arm about her mother and guided her back into the room.

  From across the hall, two children emerged. A young boy who rushed into the kitchen and stared at the newcomers. A small girl hung back, staring.

  A woman with brown hair and brown eyes and a weary look followed them. She coughed several times.

  Mrs. Roberts came from the first room. “Stella, you should be in bed. I’ll tend the children.”

  From overhead came a call, “Mama, Mama.”

  “I’ll be right there,” Mrs. Roberts called as she guided the woman she’d called Stella back into her room.

  She returned and raced up the stairs.

  Quiet sobs filled Ethan’s ears. Coughing came from both rooms down the hall. He’d heard coughs from the other building as well. He sank back on his heels, holding two children and being stared at by two others. No one spoke. The air grew heavy with uncertainty.

  Then Mrs. Roberts came down the stairs, a child in her arms. She stood in the doorway, taking in the scene.

  Ethan studied her. Her brown dress had spots on the front that he thought would have come from cooking, and her white apron needed a good laundering. She had dark brown hair that glistened. Blue-green eyes that carried a cartload of caution. A good-looking woman, but looks had nothing to do with honesty.

  She blinked as if making up her mind. “Maybe if I introduce everyone it will ease things. This young fella in my arms is my son, Jake.

  Her son? He hadn’t expected that. Blond hair, dark brown eyes, and a flash of mischief. “How old is he?”

  “Eighteen months.” Her look of love as she smiled at Jake unsettled Ethan. Maybe she needed the money to support herself and her child.

  Whoa. The money was not hers. It belonged to Ethan’s boss. And he needed it as badly as anyone.

  Mrs. Roberts guided the little girl forward. “This is Blossom, who is three.”

  “Aptly named,” he murmured. The child had blonde hair and big blue eyes.

  “Indeed.” Mrs. Roberts nodded. “This curious young m
an is her brother, Donny. He is five and very helpful.”

  The brown-haired boy’s chest expanded with her praise. “Mama says we have to be good and help ’cause she’s too sick to.”

  Mrs. Roberts introduced Susie and Georgie to the other children. The children regarded each other.

  Susie left Ethan’s arms and faced the others. “I’m the oldest girl here.”

  Donny scowled. “I’m older than you.”

  Mrs. Roberts sat her son at the table. “We were just having milk and cookies. Who would like some?”

  Susie, Blossom, and Donny chose a chair and sat at the table. Susie’s glass of milk was almost empty, but she seemed set on establishing her role in this household of children. “Georgie, you come sit beside me.”

  The little guy’s arms tightened around Ethan’s neck. Clearly, he did not want to leave the shelter and protection Ethan offered. An unfamiliar urge to provide Georgie with both swelled within Ethan’s chest. Then the boy unwound his arms and went to the chair next to his sister. Susie scrambled down and tried to help him up. Mrs. Roberts lifted him into place, then filled the glasses and put two cookies in front of each child.

  From beyond the outside door came the sound of more coughing. Ethan had heard it several times already.

  Mrs. Roberts glanced that direction. “There are two sick men out there I need to check on. But—” The way she looked at the five children at the table, Ethan knew she wondered how she could be in two places at the same time.

  “I can watch the kids while you tend the men.”

  She studied him a long, silent moment as if assessing if she could trust him.

  He wished he could assure her the children were safe with him. Even more, that he could likewise assure her she could trust him. But that was impossible. He was here to discover what she knew about the missing money and get it back. Hardly a task to invoke trust on her behalf.