The Mail Order Bride's Secret

by Linda Broday

  Violet wobbled, and one foot missed the board. She gave a little cry and by God’s grace managed to keep her balance. Clay jumped to his feet and stalked over to Earl one step ahead of Jack. One grabbed the man and the other hit him, knocking Earl unconscious. Good. That should keep him quiet.

  One slow, careful step at a time, Princess Shiloh kept inching along until she reached the second sawhorse where she stopped. Sawyer helped her down amid thunderous applause.

  The girl stood, arms raised in victory, a huge grin on her pretty face.

  Tait touched Melanie. “You can look now.”

  “Was she good?”

  “She showed no fear. I think that girl has ice water in her veins.”

  “Let’s hear it for Princess Shiloh and her uncanny ability to see even though she can’t!” Sawyer ran around the arena urging the crowd to their feet. The applause lasted for a full minute.

  Violet bowed and made her way out of the arena. Up next was the funny menagerie of raccoons dressed as pirates. Jenny Lassiter pushed a baby carriage full of the ornery rascals. When one jumped out, she chased it down and put it back in. One raccoon held up her dress while another ran under it. Jenny let out a cry and went to whipping her skirt. She pulled the animal out by the tail and gave it a good scolding.

  “I think that must be Bandit.” Melanie squeezed Tait’s hand. “These kids are very good.”

  “I’ll say.” Tait had never been prouder of the whole bunch.

  While Jenny hurried her pirates out of the arena, two boys pushed out a little raised stage followed by Joe who carried a chicken and child’s piano.

  Melanie whispered. “I hope this turns out well. I bought him the piano.”

  “I think he’ll work the trick just fine.” Tait’s nerves were jumping around worse than one of those Mexican jumping beans. He could barely keep his thoughts on the circus and kept expecting gunshots any second.

  Sawyer raised his arms. “This next act will boggle the mind. Madam Henrietta will play a fine tune for your listening pleasure. She was trained by Mr. Joe Abraham.”

  Those seated in the front row leaned forward. One hollered, “Play Oh, Susanna!”

  Joe scowled. “She don’t know that one. Now hush!”

  He set the hen in front of the piano and sneaked some feed on the keys. Henrietta began to peck until a large rooster hopped onto the stage and pushed the hen aside. The music was drowned out by all the squawking and fighting that ensued. Finally Joe had enough and snatched the hen up.

  “Let’s hear it for the magnificent Henrietta!” Sawyer hollered.

  “Poor Joe,” Melanie murmured. “That rooster ruined his trick.”

  “He’ll be fine. His best trick is coming.”

  Ely the Magician came out next and, after several tries, managed to jerk a rabbit from his hat, then followed that with some simple card tricks.

  “And now, folks, hold onto your seats.” Sawyer turned to see if the next act was ready. “Don’t breathe, don’t make a sound. Most of all, don’t leave. The lions are coming! Trained by the great lion tamer Jesse Abraham!”

  Six goats trotted out, and everyone died laughing at the scruffy manes made of yarn tied below their mouths. Jesse carried a small whip that he tucked under one arm. He put two fingers in his mouth and released a shrill whistle that Melanie had taught him. The goats all raised on their back legs and began to turn in a circle. He whistled again, and they formed a singular line and put their hooves on the back of the goat in front until they were all standing on their hind legs.

  The crowd burst into applause. The trick was pretty spectacular for a kid who was in the middle of rebuilding his life from the ground up. Pride swelled inside Tait.

  Jesse put the make-believe lions through their paces and had the crowd on their feet. People nearby, many of whom had complained when the boys first came to town, nudged Tait to tell him how much they enjoyed the act.

  While Jesse was getting the goats out of the arena, the clowns ran out and did somersaults and flips.

  “Now for our world-famous trick riders all the way from Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show! Save your applause until the end,” Sawyer urged.

  Joe was the first one to charge into the arena on horseback. One lap around and he dropped to the side of the horse, clinging to the pommel. Then he pulled himself back into the saddle and, holding to the reins, stood straight up.

  Melanie’s nails dug into Tait’s arm. “I can’t look. I can’t breathe. I can’t stand this. Why did you let him do this, Tait?”

  “The boy’s fine, Mellie. I told you he was good.”

  “But it’s so dangerous!”

  Three other riders entered the arena, all making the difficult tricks look like child’s play. Then came a fourth one, and Tait jumped to his feet, the spit dying in his mouth. “Dammit!”

  Becky stood in the saddle, holding onto the reins. He raced down to stop the horse and only then did he see Jesse on the far side of the buckskin, holding onto his sister’s feet. Becky was laughing and having the time of her life.

  Just wait until he got his hands on Jesse! The horse jogged by a second time at a leisurely pace, and Tait could’ve stopped the animal, but he didn’t dare for fear that Becky would fall. If she did, then probably Jesse would too. So he just watched, ready to run out and catch them if they fell.

  An arm went around his waist, and Melanie stood with him. She too seemed to hold her breath. He pulled her close, murmuring, “It’ll be all right. It’s going to be fine.”

  But his words seemed more to calm himself than her.

  At last the horses left the arena, and he could finally release his grip on the nearby post.

  Melanie pulled away and glared at him. “Did you tell them they could use Becky?”

  “No. It was a surprise to me.”

  “What are you going to do about it? She could’ve been killed. She’s so little.” Her beautiful eyes flooded with unshed tears.

  He reached for her. “I’ll lay down the law to them—again. Everything you say is true. I won’t have them putting her in danger.”

  But his thoughts were on Kern as well. If he hadn’t struck now when everyone was preoccupied with the kids, when would he?

  He barely heard Sawyer winding up the program and Clay announcing the fall dance the following Saturday. Folks around them began to leave, but Tait held Melanie tight, her heart thudding against his chest, breathing in her fragrance. He wished that time would stand still.

  But change was coming. A knot clenched tight in his stomach.

  Nineteen

  The hour was late by the time they herded the kids first to the café where Joe and Jesse ate like a pair of young horses, then back to the hotel. Melanie praised all three many times over. Let Tait play the bad guy.

  Becky crawled onto the sofa. “Me ride horsey.”

  “Yes, you did.” Melanie removed her hat and smoothed the girl’s blond hair. She could hear Tait in the bedroom with the boys, and from the sound coming through the door, he was giving the twins a serious tongue-lashing. Seeing Becky on that horse had scared him into the middle of Christmas.

  She undressed Becky and got her into a gown. The child could hardly hold her eyes open. Melanie held her in her lap and lightly rubbed her arms as her own grandmother had once done for her. Soon Becky was sound asleep.

  Tait came out with the boys, and she saw no blood on any of the three. His bark was much worse than his bite, and the boys knew it. Despite the reprimand, they joked and laughed about all the circus mishaps.

  “Next time it’ll be bigger and better,” Jesse told Melanie. “We have experience now.”

  The boy grinned at Tait, who snorted and dropped into a chair. “You got lucky is all.”

  Melanie was glad there wasn’t any tension or hard feelings. “I thought you were all amazing. You did a grea
t job with the goats. How did you train them to dance on their hind legs?”

  “Well, I had a handful of oats and kept offering a little at a time.”

  “I didn’t see you handing them anything. You hid that very well.” Melanie kissed Jesse’s cheek. “I’m very proud of both you boys.”

  “Me too.” Tait pinned her with a gaze. “We have a date a week from today, Mrs. Trinity. It was noisy when Clay announced the fall dance, and I don’t know if you heard it.”

  “No, I didn’t. People were starting to leave, and like you said, it was noisy.” She had something else to plan for. If she stayed that long. Lately she’d started to consider leaving again. She could find her father, and maybe the two of them could think of some way to break Ava out of jail.

  But the thought of leaving brought a searing pain to her chest.

  It was a far better plan than hurting Tait and the kids. They’d never know what happened to her this way, never know what she’d originally tried to do. The trouble was she kept putting it off. There would never be a good time. That much she’d come to realize. She’d just have to get up one morning and do it fast before the hurt set in. Like ripping off a scab.

  Tait stretched and rose. “Bedtime, boys.”

  They opened their mouths to argue, looked at Tait’s expression, and quickly did as he’d said. Tait took Becky out of Melanie’s arms, and his touch sent tingles rushing along her body.

  His silver-gray eyes held wanting.

  Melanie sucked in a breath. “I’ll get ready for bed as well.”

  Anticipation danced through her veins. Leaving tonight was out of the question. Maybe a few more days.

  She wasted no time in donning a nightgown and was brushing her hair when Tait entered the bedroom.

  His unbuttoned shirt hung open. His lazy gaze slid over her body. “Leave it down. For me.” He sauntered the few feet separating them and took the brush from her. The gentle strokes of her hair did nothing to cool the heat flowing through her veins.

  “You have rich, vibrant hair. I think the color is what I first noticed when you stepped from the stage that day. It flared to life under the sun’s rays.”

  “I was scared, you know.”

  “Of me?”

  “You looked very stern and forbidding, with your long hair and piercing eyes. I could hardly breathe for fear of what you’d turn out to be like. I thought you might be mean.”

  But in the days since she discovered that although an outlaw, he had strength and scruples and a code he lived by.

  Tait chuckled softly. “Silly woman. Maybe I should’ve growled or something.”

  “Then I might’ve stayed on the stagecoach.” Her body tingled as he laid the brush down.

  He was silent as he knelt, painstakingly pulled off her stockings and kissed each of her toes. “I wouldn’t have let you. The moment I saw you I was sunk. You were like a piece of a puzzle that had been missing.”

  She closed her eyes to absorb every sensation so she could remember nights when she was wanted. No matter how old she got, she’d always remember them this way.

  Even if he’d growled that first day and acted like he was going to carve her up, he wouldn’t have scared her. Looking back, she’d seen what he’d tried desperately to hide standing there with three vagabonds—his heart. She’d seen the tender way he’d held Becky, heard the kindness in his voice.

  Tait shrugged out of his shirt, unbuckled his gun belt, and removed his boots. Conscious of his attention on her, Melanie undid the buttons of her nightgown and let it puddle to the floor. He sucked in a breath, his heated gaze raking her body.

  Every nerve ending alive, she turned back the covers and slid between the sheets as naked as a newborn.

  * * *

  They spent that night, and each one of the next week, pleasuring each other and whispering in the dark, making plans for their future. Tait worked on their house and kept watching for Berringer during the day. But the nights—those he reserved for Melanie.

  Now that the circus was over with, Joe and Jesse returned to their previous behavior, running wild and doing most everything they wanted. And what was worse was that they took Becky in tow this time, talking her into things she’d never have done on her own. Melanie was fit to be tied, and Tait wasn’t far behind.

  On one such particularly frustrating day, the boys disappeared with Becky and stayed gone until late afternoon. Her dress was torn when they finally returned, her face streaked with dirt, and she was so exhausted she could barely hold her eyes open.

  Tait got Joe and Jesse each by the nape of the neck. “You oughta be ashamed. What if she got hurt or you ran into the men who killed your mother and father?”

  Kern Berringer could easily have gotten them, and the realization made Tait’s knees buckle.

  Jesse’s eyes grew round. “We didn’t think of that.”

  “Well, you’d damn well better start. They’re out there waiting for a chance to grab you. It’s a miracle you’re back alive. Don’t you ever leave this town without me again.”

  “Okay,” they both mumbled.

  Tait shook his head and herded them toward the hotel for another come-to-Jesus talk.

  But nothing did much good. A few days later, he found them in the hotel basement jumping from one huge pile of dirty linens to the other. He put them to work pulling out nails from the used boards at the building site, whitewashing the fence around the church where school would commence in a few days, working in the café, and building a dance floor for the harvest dance coming up. He kept them so busy they didn’t have time to think about causing trouble. They collapsed at the end of each day and went fast asleep.

  The boys had no time to be bored. They missed their old life and their toys. Thankfully, their belongings that Hondo promised to send arrived, which proved to be a tremendous help. They’d dived into the wagon like it was Christmas. All three kids seemed happy to have their treasures back and complete again.

  Which made life pleasant for all concerned.

  Work progressed on the house, and by the end of the week, Tait gave their unfinished house an approving glance. The walls were up, and the dwelling was taking shape. He thanked the men for their long hours.

  Clay stood beside him. “I appreciate you letting us use some of your lumber to make the floor for Saturday. I’ll bring it back after the dance.”

  “The wood’s just lying there. You’re welcome to it.”

  Jack joined them, grinning. “Clay, we’re getting pretty fancy these days. Used to be we had to dance on the ground. Now we get a real floor.”

  “It’s called progress.” Clay scanned all the buildings. “I never thought all this would be possible. When Tally arrived to marry me, the only two buildings we’d managed to erect had just been burned to the ground by Montana Black. There was nothing here except a few pitiful dugouts and soddies. I’d almost given up. Lord, that seems like a million years ago.”

  Tait followed his friend’s gaze. “You created a fine town here. It’s thriving.”

  “But one match can turn it all back to rubble,” Clay answered. “I can’t forget that, and we can’t let down our guard.”

  Joe and Jesse fell to the ground and stretched out in dramatic fashion as only they knew how, completely done in.

  “I’ve seen a small fire destroy whole towns before. Some never rebuilt.” Tait remembered one that burned several times but the people there kept coming back. Losing heart was a terrible thing. “We’ll have to stay vigilant for sure.”

  The faint sound of riders and bawling cattle reached Tait. He swung around to stare at the town’s entrance. “What the hell is that?”

  “A cattle drive? Why are they coming here?” Clay strode toward the sound.

  Tait and Jack followed, joined by several other men. The twins jumped up, not a bit tired anymore, to go see what w
as happening. A bawling dust cloud came closer and closer. A rider broke away from the loud din and galloped toward them. As he neared, Tait could see a large man in the saddle, silver hair beneath his hat.

  A grin spread across Clay’s face. “Well, I’ll be a suck-egg mule!”

  Jack leaned forward to get a better look. “Stoker Legend?”

  “Yep, that’s exactly who it is,” Clay replied.

  Tait’s interest soared. He’d long heard of the big rancher who owned the Lone Star Ranch and the power he still wielded, but Tait’d never had opportunity to cross paths with him.

  Several minutes later, the rancher reined up in front of them on an appaloosa that stood every bit of sixteen hands high. Stoker leaned down and extended his hand to Clay. “Colby, it’s always good to see you.”

  “Glad you paid us a visit, sir.” Clay shook hands. “But what is all this? Are you moving your ranch to the Panhandle?”

  Stoker laughed in a big booming voice. “It does look like that, I suppose. My sons have been speaking of this town and your work here in such glowing terms that I had to quit waiting for an invitation and come see Hope’s Crossing for myself. And as long as I was coming, I thought I’d bring a few cows along for a gift.”

  Tait shot a glance at the herd. A quick estimate as the dust settled suggested they had to number at least two hundred. Nice gift. The town could sure use them, but where would they put them? The only place secure enough against rustlers would be a box canyon that lay within spitting distance.

  “Hell, Stoker, if I’d known you were waiting for an invitation, I’d have sent one a long time ago.” Clay seemed a little awestruck, and Tait could see why. Legend was a man who didn’t stand on ceremony and seemed to live life as large as his stature.

  But it was Stoker’s sharp eyes that struck Tait the hardest. They took in every detail. He had to be somewhere in his sixties, yet no one with half sense would call him old.

  Jack exchanged a few pleasantries, and Clay introduced Tait.

  “I’m happy to meet you, sir.” Tait offered his hand and found a firm grip.