Meadowlark

by Carolyn Lampman

  “Oh, Angel, it was so...”

  “Spare me your raptures,” Angel said caustically. “That sort of thing always loses something in the telling.”

  “I suppose so,” Becky said with a smile. Then she sighed. “One thing still bothers me, though.”

  “Only one? I’ve never met a man yet that didn’t have at least a dozen quirks that drove me crazy.”

  “This is different. I still don’t know why he wouldn’t make love to me.”

  “So? The important thing is that he finally did. Generally, once isn’t enough to satisfy a man. They almost always come back for more.”

  “He already did,” Becky smiled softly. “Several times.”

  Angel rolled her eyes. “Then what are you complaining about?”

  “I’m not complaining; I’m worried.”

  “What the hell for?”

  “Maybe I’m imagining it, but he seemed almost frantic.”

  Angel nodded wisely. “All that teasing you did.”

  “No, it isn’t that. When I asked why he avoided me for so long, he wouldn’t answer. The look on his face was, I don’t know, kind of desperate. Then he said something about not wasting any of the time we had.” Becky gave Angel a bleak look. “I’m afraid he’s planning to leave me.”

  “That’s ridiculous. He’d have no reason to.”

  “I know, but I can’t get it out of my mind.”

  Becky was silent for several minutes as she plied her needle through the seam she was sewing. “Angel,” she said at last, “How well do you know my husband?”

  “I’ve never slept with him, if that’s what you mean. It wouldn’t matter if I had. What happens upstairs here has nothing to do with anybody’s marriage.”

  Becky blushed furiously. “That’s not what I meant!”

  “Then what exactly are you asking me?”

  I just wondered if he ever told you anything about his life before he came here.”

  “Not that I remember.” Angel shrugged. “But then he’s not one to chatter much.”

  Becky smiled a little at the understatement. “What exactly do you know about him?”

  “Only what Ox has told me. Swede apparently came west with the Union Pacific Railroad after the war. That’s how they met. He was on the blasting crew, and Ox delivered supplies. When the railroad was finished, Ox talked Swede into coming here.”

  “That’s not much more than I know,” Becky said. “I think something awful happened in his past, something that drove him away from his home and family. Whatever it was, I’m afraid it’s going to come between us too.”

  “Then make his life so wonderful he doesn’t give a damn about what came before. Swede’s a man worth fighting for, Becky. You’ll never find another one like him.”

  “I know, but what if it’s something I can’t stop?”

  “I’d say you’d better do as he says and make the most of the time you have.”

  The change in their relationship was obvious the moment Garrick came home that evening. Instead of his usual cheerful greeting, he swept her into his arms and kissed her passionately. “I thought about doing that all day long,” he said when it finally ended.

  “Me too.” She smiled up at him. “I missed you.”

  He kissed her forehead. “This was the longest day I’ve ever had.”

  “You didn’t go to work until noon.”

  “I know, but I couldn’t wait to get home.”

  She snuggled closer. “I’m glad.”

  He kissed her again, leisurely this time, as though he were in no hurry. Her eager response ended all pretense of casual interaction. It intensified rapidly until they finally broke apart, breathing hard and wishing bedtime were closer. “I should go do my chores,” Garrick said, touching her cheek regretfully.

  “Supper will be ready in about half an hour.”

  Garrick bent down for one more quick kiss just as she went up on her tiptoes with the same intention. Their lips met in an almost painful collision. They backed away and grinned at each other a little foolishly.

  “I’d better go feed the horses.”

  “And I need to set the table.”

  “Plan on an early bedtime.”

  “All right.” Becky smiled to herself as Garrick walked out the door. So much for worrying about him changing his mind. He was as anxious to resume last night’s activities as she was. With a little thrill of anticipation, she went to finish supper.

  After supper, Garrick played peak-a-boo with Alaina while Becky washed the dishes. Becky couldn’t help smiling as Alaina’s delighted laughter filled the cabin. She wondered for the hundredth time how she ever got so lucky. Garrick had always been a wonderful husband and father. Now he was her lover as well.

  “Time for you to go to bed, sweetling,” Garrick said, kissing Alaina on the head. “Your mama and I have some important business to take care of.”

  “What business is that?” Becky glanced up and found Garrick’s warm gaze upon her.

  A hot thrill ran the length of her body as he grinned and stretched. “It’s been a long day.”

  “Garrick, really!” Becky blushed. “You can’t mean to go to bed this early.”

  “No, I had something else in mind.”

  “What?”

  “Wait and see.”

  By the time the dishes were finished, Garrick had Alaina ready for bed. While Becky sat on the rocking chair feeding the baby, Garrick threw several pieces of wood into the fireplace before unrolling his pallet and placing it on the hearth.

  “What on earth are you doing, Garrick?”

  “Something I’ve been thinking about all day.” He glanced up at her and smiled. “Looks like Alaina’s asleep already.”

  “She is. I couldn’t get her to take a nap this afternoon.”

  Here, let me have her.” Garrick took Alaina from her mother’s arms and laid her in the cradle. Becky watched uncertainly as he tenderly covered the baby with a blanket. Maybe he was trying to give her a gentle hint that it was time to get undressed.

  “No,” he said softly as she started toward the curtain, “I want to do that. In fact, I’ve been wanting to for a good long time.”

  The look in his eyes set Becky’s heart tripping in double time as he walked around the cabin blowing out the lamps. She didn’t know exactly what he had in mind, but she could tell it wasn’t their usual evening of pleasant camaraderie.

  The soft glow from the fireplace gave the room a romantic ambiance as Garrick turned to her. He looked almost predatory in the dim light, but it wasn’t fear that sent Becky’s heart thundering into her throat.

  “I’ve imagined this a thousand times.” His voice was a sensual whisper as he cupped her face in both hands and leaned down to kiss her. Becky thought he had pushed her to the limits of carnal desire the night before, but she soon discovered there were heights she’d never even dreamed of.

  With erotic deliberation, he removed her clothing, kissing each bit of bare skin as it was revealed. By the time he got to her stockings, she could barely breathe and collapsed onto the rocking chair with a soft moan.

  As Garrick rolled down her stocking, his lips traced the contour of her calf, and Becky wondered if it was possible to die of unrestrained lust. By the time he got to the toes of her right foot, she didn’t care.

  Garrick rapidly shed his own clothes before pulling her to her feet. Becky came willingly, her arms going around his neck, her lips seeking his as he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to the pallet.

  The reality of making love in front of the fireplace was even better than Garrick had imagined. Not only did the heat wrap them in cozy warmth, the mellow light made it possible to watch Becky’s face as he loved her. The passion and desire he saw there intensified his own. He’d never experienced anything like it.

  It was the beginning of a long night of loving, the first of three such glorious nights. Though it was never put in words, both Becky and Garrick seemed determined to make up for all th
e time they’d lost, and to store up memories against the day when cruel fate might rip them apart.

  The sound of Alaina’s crying woke Becky just before dawn on the fourth morning. “Garrick,” she said trying to wiggle out of his arms. “Garrick wake up.”

  “Huh?”

  “I have to get up. Alaina’s crying.”

  “Mmmm.” He kissed her then smiled sleepily. “Come back to bed when you’re done feeding her. We still have some time before we have to get up.”

  “You’ll hardly know I’m gone,” Becky said kissing the end of his nose. She slipped her nightgown over her head and went to pick up Alaina. The minute she touched the baby she knew something was wrong. “Garrick, come here!”

  The panic in Becky’s voice brought him out of bed like a shot. “What is it?”

  “She’s sick!”

  Garrick touched Alaina’s forehead worriedly. “She’s burning up with fever. It isn’t another tooth, is it?”

  “I don’t think so. She wasn’t this hot before.”

  “I’d better go get the doctor,” Garrick said as he pulled on his pants. He was dressed and out the door in record time.

  To Becky, it seemed as though Garrick was gone for hours as she paced the floor with the baby. Nothing she did seemed to help. Alaina didn’t even want to nurse. All she did was cry.

  Garrick returned with Dr. Caldwell at last, and Becky breathed a sigh of relief. It was short-lived.

  “Are you still going to The Green Garter every day?” the doctor asked as he examined Alaina.

  “Up until the last couple of days,” Becky said. “Why?”

  “Did the baby come into contact with the young woman they call Molly?”

  “Molly took her out to see Angel’s cat earlier this week. Why, is she sick too?”

  “She was. Came down with influenza two days ago.”

  “Is she better now?”

  “I’m afraid not.” Dr. Caldwell shook his head. “She died about five hours ago.”

  Chapter 21

  “You’ve got to get some rest, Becky.”

  “Oh, Garrick, she’s so sick.”

  “I know, but she’s asleep.” He gently removed Alaina from Becky’s arms and laid her in the cradle. “You’ve had less than five hours of sleep yourself in the last two days. I can watch her for a while.”

  When Becky started to protest, he put his arms around her and kissed her forehead. “It’s all right, little one. I love her too.”

  “I know.” She sagged against him. “Promise me you’ll wake me if she gets any worse.”

  He swept her up in his arms and carried her to his bed. “I promise, but only if you do what I say.” He pulled off her shoes and undid the first two buttons of her dress. “Now rest, and no more argument.”

  “You’re getting awfully bossy. Somebody ought to put you in your place,” she said with a weary smile as she snuggled down into the pillow. “Jeg elsker deg, Garrick.”

  “Same to you,” he said softly as he covered her with the blanket, but she was already asleep.

  Garrick settled onto the rocking chair with a book he’d borrowed from Angel and prepared to sit out the interminable night. Worry curled around the edge of his consciousness making concentration nearly impossible. The people of South Pass City had hired a nurse from Miner’s Delight to run the pest house where the sick were sent during quarantines like this one. Since she already had thirty patients, Dr. Caldwell had encouraged Becky and Garrick to care for Alaina at home. As he listened to the baby’s labored breathing, Garrick wondered if they’d made the right choice.

  Sometime after midnight, he awakened with a start. Disoriented at first, he couldn’t figure out what was wrong. Then he heard it, the loud raspy breathing. Becky! In three swift strides he was across the room. His throat tightened as he knelt by her side and smoothed the hair back from her flushed face.

  There was no doubt: she had come down with the influenza too. Dr. Caldwell had said it took two distinct forms, one attacked the stomach, the other the lungs. So far, the latter had proved the most deadly.

  As the night wore on, Becky’s symptoms progressed at an alarming rate. The conviction that he was going to lose both of them began to take possession of Garrick’s mind, and a feeling of helplessness washed over him. He sank his head into his hands in defeat. If there were only something he could do.

  Suddenly, a memory broke through the wretchedness. Once, when one of his sisters was on the verge of pneumonia, his father had constructed a steam bath. There wasn’t time to build one outside but maybe—

  It took a while to locate the large rocks he knew were within a few feet of the cabin and even longer to dig them out of the snow. By the time he’d lugged them into the cabin and buried them under the coals in the fireplace, the sound of Becky’s breathing was frighteningly loud in the small room. Though Alaina seemed to be holding her own, Garrick knew she, too, could take a turn for the worse at any moment.

  Desperation drove him on as he devised a tent of sorts next to the fireplace. Blankets and canvas made up the top and three sides while the mattress from Becky’s bed lay on the floor. As soon as it was all finished, Garrick undressed Becky, wrapped her in a blanket and placed her inside with Alaina. Then he used the poker to uncover a few of the rocks and drag them out onto the hearth.

  As the first dipper full of water hissed over the rocks, and the cloud of steam curled into the tent, Garrick began to feel hopeful. The odd contraption was working exactly the way he had planned. With any luck, the cure would be as effective. He thought he could see a difference in Alaina at the end of twenty minutes when he stopped the first steam treatment. She seemed to be breathing easier, but Garrick was afraid to believe it. He added more fuel to the fire and stripped off his shirt when the room became stifling. By the time he’d finished the second spell of steam, Alaina’s fever had broken, and her breathing was nearly normal. Relief rolled through him in waves as he changed the baby out of her wet clothes and laid her in the cradle. For the first time, he began to think he might win after all.

  His optimism didn’t last past the third steam treatment. Becky wasn’t responding, and the sound of her tortured breathing was like a knife in his heart. Garrick ignored the aches and pains that began to plague him as he doggedly continued the twenty-minute intervals of wet and dry heat.

  At last, just as the first glimmer of dawn began to stain the horizon, tiny droplets of sweat suddenly appeared on Becky’s brow. Hardly daring to hope, Garrick wiped them away. More appeared almost immediately, and an overwhelming sense of relief filled him as he turned to put more wood on the fire. Becky wasn’t safe yet, but with her fever broken she had a chance.

  “Garrick?”

  Startled, he looked back over his shoulder and found her staring at him. “You’re awake!”

  “What’s going on?”

  “You caught Alaina’s sickness. I tried one of my father’s cures.”

  “Alaina—?” Becky’s voice held a thread of panic.

  “She responded to it much faster than you did. She’s been sleeping comfortably for several hours now. Are you thirsty?”

  “Very. It’s hot in here.”

  “That’s to make you sweat.” Garrick propped her up and held the glass to her lips so she could drink. “The steam also relieves the tightness in your chest.”

  “It still hurts. I feel rotten.”

  Garrick smiled slightly as he set the glass aside. “I know, little one. It may be a while before you’re completely well again. Maybe you’ll be more comfortable if we get you undressed and into bed.”

  “It would be kinder just to shoot me and put me out of my misery.”

  “You’ll be surprised how much better you’ll feel in dry clothes,” Garrick said as he picked her up and carried her to the bed.

  “Are you sure Alaina’s all right?”

  “Positive. I just checked. I’ll move the cradle over where you can see her.”

  As soon as Becky saw that
the baby was sleeping peacefully, she relaxed. In fact, she was so limp, Garrick had a difficult time getting her into her nightgown. Her weakness was frightening. At last, she was settled in bed, and Garrick sank into his chair. If the truth were known, he wasn’t feeling any too well himself. It was all he could do to pull off his boots.

  “Garrick, you’re the best husband in the world,” Becky said suddenly.

  He touched her cheek tenderly. “I think the angels were smiling on us both the day you fell into that creek.”

  “And the meadowlark sang on the way to our wedding.” She reached up and captured his hand with shaky fingers. “Will you hold me?”

  “You’ll probably feel better if you sleep alone.”

  “No, I won’t,” she said petulantly. “I’m never going to feel better, so you may as well humor me.”

  “Oh, getting grouchy, are you?” Garrick said with a grin as he undressed and joined her in bed. “That’s a sure sign you’re getting better.”

  She gave a contented sigh and snuggled closer as his arms settled around her. “Now I am.”

  Sweet lassitude settled over Garrick. His head still ached, and he felt as if every part of his body had been beaten, but somehow Becky made it all right. He drifted off to sleep just as the sun rose in the sky and morning arrived in South Pass City.

  Becky woke up several hours later to the sound of Alaina’s crying. It was only when she struggled to sit up that she realized something was wrong with Garrick. Usually the slightest noise from Alaina awakened him. He didn’t even stir. Even more alarming was the heat radiating from his body.

  He muttered something as she touched his brow but made no other indication that he even knew she was there. Alaina could no longer be ignored. It took some doing, but Becky finally managed to untangle herself from Garrick’s embrace. She didn’t realize how weak she was until she tried to stand and nearly tumbled into the cradle.

  It was all she could do to lift Alaina into her arms before she collapsed onto the chair. As the baby nursed, Becky carefully checked to make sure she was truly all right. Other than a slight cough, she seemed fine. It appeared that Garrick’s Norwegian remedy, whatever it was, had worked. Worriedly, Becky transferred her gaze to her husband. Even if she knew exactly what he’d done, she wouldn’t be able to move him over to the hearth.