Then she met the dark eyes of her twin brother.
“Rosie.” He hurried forward and grabbed her upper arms. “You’re safe and well?” The emotion in his face broke her heart and she fell gratefully against his chest. “Oh, Rosie, you had us all so worried.”
When she had caught her breath, Rosie gazed at him again. “Kenan, I feel like I’ve been away for years. It’s so good to see you. I’ve never been so relieved to see anyone in all my days.”
“Not even me?” The voice that came from behind Kenan startled Rosie and she gasped. She peered around her brother’s broad shoulders to meet Joshua’s intense blue eyes.
“Joshua. I…what…I mean…”
“We’ve come to take you home, Rosie.” Joshua appeared ten years older than when she’d last seen him.
Rosie moved out of Kenan’s embrace and took Joshua’s proffered hand. How would he feel about the decision she had made earlier that day? A decision that affected him as much as it did her. Could she tell him? Her heart sank. Not yet. There was no need to blight the moment with that information. It would wait.
“Will you come home with us, Rosie?”
“Yes. Take me home. Please.”
* * * *
They traveled home with Rosie riding behind Joshua. Kenan had said that she should ride with him on his mare because she was an unmarried woman and it would not be proper for her to ride with Joshua.
Rosie sensed that there was something they weren’t telling her. The two men had had several whispered conversations when they stopped to rest the horses, and she ached to know what they discussed.
She was acutely aware of Joshua watching her constantly, as if he was afraid that she would disappear again. It was as if he needed to keep looking at her to believe that she was safe. It made her warm with delight. He really cared for her.
They set up a temporary camp at the riverside and Kenan wandered off to find firewood, leaving her and Joshua briefly alone.
“Rosie…I was so worried about you.” Joshua took her hands and kissed them. Rosie jumped at his touch, her eager flesh shocked into life at his proximity. She had been away just days yet missed him as she would a part of herself. It was different to the way that she missed him when he was out on the cattle trail. She knew then that he would return to her and she counted the days until she could hold him again. But this time she had been the one away from home, and she had felt his absence from her embrace all the more intensely. The pain had actually been physical and she had been stunned by its palpable essence. Was this what real love was like then?
“I am sorry for that, Joshua. I just didn’t know what else to do.”
Joshua stared into her eyes. “Rosie, I love you with everything that I am. You have to know this. When we get back, I have matters to deal with, but I promise you that I will not be long away from you. I will join you at your home as soon as I can. But please promise me that you will wait for me. Do not disappear again, because I could not bear it.”
Rosie’s heart cracked at the anxiety in his expression and she wished that she could take back the past few days and make him feel safe and secure once more.
“I promise,” she said, wishing that she was free from the burden she now carried in her heart, the secret knowledge of her difficult decision. If only they could move forward together. But it would not be possible until Joshua knew the truth.
Kenan carried a pile of wood over to them and began to build a fire, and Rosie knew that her confession would have to wait until they were home.
* * * *
Rosie lifted herself on the saddle and peered over Kenan’s shoulder at a sight that made her throat ache and her heart thunder.
Home.
She had thanked Mrs. Appleby for her kindness before leaving Nevada City and Kenan had insisted on paying her extra for the time of Rosie’s stay. However, as helpful as Mrs. Appleby had been, Rosie had been desperate to return to the Duggan homestead.
She was back where she belonged. Though she had been gone just days, it felt like far longer, and she couldn’t wait to settle back in.
Joshua had left them at the outskirts of Virginia City, repeating his promises from the night before.
He won’t be long. He’ll join us soon. She played the words over and over in her head to reassure her fluttering heart.
But, of course, when he did arrive and they had the opportunity to talk properly…then she would have to tell him. Everything. And that thought sent ice through her veins.
“What is it Rosie? You just shuddered like someone walked over your grave.” Kenan turned in the saddle. “I thought you’d be glad to be home.”
“Oh I am, Kenan. I am so happy to be back. I just felt a little cold.”
“Well, we’ll get you inside and Catherine will no doubt have coffee on. Then we’ll get the tub filled so as you can bathe.”
“Why, brother, do I smell?”
“I didn’t wanna say anything…” She felt Kenan’s broad shoulders shake with laughter. “But you do smell a bit strange.”
She poked him in the ribs and laughed with him in spite of her anxiety. Being in a different house, sleeping in a different bed then riding for hours on horseback could well affect how she smelled. She realized that she probably was stale and dusty.
Besides, a bath would be welcome to ease her aching limbs, and hopefully it would release some of the tension she carried in her shoulders, even if it would not wash away the fear she carried in her heart.
* * * *
Joshua turned to the man at his side.
“Come on, sir, we have a place to be!”
The preacher smiled as he dug his heels into his fat mare. “I know, Mr. Hampton. You’re keen to get wed.”
“Indeed, sir. I have waited long enough…too long, in fact, to do this.”
As his horse covered the grassy plains, his stomach churned with a mixture of excitement and nerves. He had one more thing to do before he could make his way to the Duggan homestead, and he was not looking forward to it at all. He could have gone to the Hampton ranch first then headed into town but he’d feared being unable to locate a preacher, so he’d wanted to secure one before he made his announcement to his family.
“Right, I’m gonna have a quick word with my father then we’ll be on our way. You happy to wait here?”
The preacher nodded his gray head at Joshua. “I’ll wait here, sir. The good Lord gifted me with patience, indeed.”
Joshua stared at him for a moment. He had near enough kidnapped the religious man, pulled him away from his breakfast and forced him to saddle his horse. But he had explained his urgency and reassured the preacher that he would be handsomely recompensed for his time. Money was a powerful tool in the art of persuasion.
“I’m not going anywhere, Mr. Hampton.” The preacher smiled. “You have my word as a man of God.”
That would have to be enough then.
Joshua climbed the porch steps and took a steadying breath before opening the door. Time to do it. Time to be a man.
The living room was empty so he strode through into the large kitchen. His mother stood at the table kneading dough and his father sat at the far end, away from the flour, making notes in his ledger. They looked at Joshua as he approached.
“So you’ve returned.” Dylan Hampton stated the obvious. “Alone, I’m pleased to see. Would you like to explain exactly why you rushed off three days ago with Kenan Duggan…without a word to me or your mother? We had to hear it from your brothers, Joshua. That’s not exactly showing your folks respect we deserve, is it?”
“Never mind that. I didn’t have time to speak to you before I left. I’ve come to tell you something.” Joshua was surprised at his own firm tone.
Dylan Hampton glanced at his wife then closed his ledger. “Take a seat, Joshua.”
“I’ve no time for that.” Joshua gritted his teeth. He scanned his father’s pale face, willing the older man to be strong but understanding. If there was ever a time when J
oshua needed his pa to listen, to really listen and to accept what he heard, then this was it.
“What’s the hurry, Joshua?” His mother smiled but her eyes were wary. She eyed his face then stared at her husband as if assessing who was most likely to be the victor in this clashing of horns.
“I have something to tell you, Pa. You won’t like it but…my mind’s made up.”
“Joshua, son.” His father frowned as he stood and placed a trembling hand on Joshua’s shoulder. “You don’t have to do this. Really…”
“Really I do, Pa.”
“Joshua—” Mrs. Hampton’s face was flushed and she dusted her hands on her apron. “Don’t throw everything away.”
“I’m not, Ma. I’m grabbing my life by the reins and taking control now. As Pa said I should do. I’m heading over to the Duggan homestead and there…this afternoon…I’m gonna make Rosie Duggan my wife.” There. It was out. There was no retreat.
“You will not.” His mother gasped, her mouth opening and closing.
Joshua inclined his head. “Indeed I will. I didn’t have to let you know. But I wanted to. I owe you that as my parents. I respect you and love you. I always have. But this is something I have to do. You can come with me and help me and my bride to celebrate, or…” He shrugged. He held his breath. He swallowed hard.
Mrs. Hampton sank onto a bench and shook her head. Joshua’s father watched her before turning back to him. “This is a mistake, Joshua. An enormous mistake. If you do this then you’re cutting yourself out of everything I’ve worked for. The possibilities here. Look at what you’ve done to your mother. How can you do this to her, to me… How can you throw all this away?” He gestured at the room and at the landscape beyond the windows.
“I love Rosie, Pa. Love her like I’ve never loved anyone or anything. Whatever chances we take by being together are worth taking. Being without her, for the rest of my life, and knowing that I abandoned her when we had the chance to be together—that’s not the road I want to follow. So you can keep your ranch. I know you built it from scratch and I congratulate you on that. I have never said anything different. You’ve done well for yourself and I respect you for it. Ma?”
His mother glanced at him.
“I love you, too, and respect how you brought all of us Hampton kids up. But there comes a time in a man’s life when he has to move on, to carve out his own way. You did it, Pa. Now it’s my time. I’ve chosen my wife. You can accept my choice or not. But just as you’ve told me that I have no place here if I wed her, then I’m telling you, if you refuse to accept Rosie, then you’ve no place in our lives either.” Emotion welled in his chest, threatening to burst forth in a torrent of angry words, but he swallowed it. He would not create a scene. He would not upset his folks more than he had to. He did love and respect them, but that love and respect had to be a two-way thing.
He patted his father’s shoulder then squeezed his mother’s as he passed. She tensed beneath his fingers. He had displeased her mightily. His pa, too. But he had done the right thing.
“We’ll marry this afternoon at two. You are welcome if you change your minds.”
He picked up his hat then walked out of the room without looking back.
“Come on then, preacher.” Joshua nodded at the man who still sat in his saddle, sweating as the day warmed up.
“Yes, sir”—the man saluted—“let’s go meet your bride.”
Joshua mounted his horse then turned her and spurred her onward, toward the home Kenan had told him to call his own and toward the woman he wanted at his side for the rest of his life.
Chapter Eleven
Rosie sat on the edge of her bed and stared blankly into the corner of the room. A cobweb fluttered in the draft that stole through the wooden boards but she barely registered its presence. Catherine combed through Rosie’s damp hair and her gentle touch made Rosie sleepy.
“Nearly done,” Catherine said.
“Do you know what’s going on, Catherine?”
“Whatever do you mean, dear?”
Rosie heard the smile in Catherine’s voice.
“You do,” Rosie accused. “Making me bathe and wash my hair then suggesting I put on my best gown.”
“Oh, come on, Rosie,” Catherine walked around and sat on the bed next to her. She dried the comb on her apron. “You must have your suspicions.”
“I do.” Rosie nodded. “But I’m afraid to hope in case I’m wrong. Am I…getting married?”
“Yes! This afternoon. And it’s about time.”
Rosie stared at the dress that hung from the peg on the back of the door. So Joshua wanted to marry her.
They would marry.
Today.
Her heart leaped.
Then it sank.
“What is it, Rosie? Aren’t you happy?” Catherine scanned her face and Rosie flushed.
“It’s not that.”
“Then what?”
“I…” How could she explain what had happened in Nevada City? Her visit to the midwife. Would Catherine understand?
“Rosie, you are my sister and I love you. You can tell me.”
Just then, there was a murmur from the cradle at the foot of the bed. Catherine, a devoted mother, took the baby everywhere. She got to her feet and went to her child. “Shhh, little one.”
Little one.
Rosie felt the walls closing in on her, their wooden panels crushing her and squeezing her tightly, and she gasped for breath.
“What is it? Did I fasten your corset too tightly?” Catherine hurried to Rosie’s side and began to loosen her stays.
Rosie shook her head. “No…it’s not that. I have something, something awful that I need to tell Joshua. I must tell him but I fear it will turn him against me. That it will alter how he…how he sees me.”
She tasted the salt of her tears as they ran down her face.
“Oh, Rosie, it cannot be that bad.”
“It is.” Rosie rubbed at her eyes. “It is.”
“Then you must be honest with him, Rosie.” Catherine cupped Rosie’s cheeks in her cool hands. “You should not have secrets between you before you marry. I had to be honest with Kenan before we wed. It was an incredibly difficult thing to do and I did not know if it would make him turn from me in disgust but I could not live a lie.”
“And he understood?” Rosie watched as Catherine ran a finger over the scars on the inside of her right arm.
“Yes. He was wonderful…because he loved me. And I’m sure that Joshua will be, too.”
“Yes. I’m sure he will be.” Rosie clenched her hands together in her lap. At least I hope he will be. But even if he understands, will he ever be able to forgive me?
“Now, let us finish getting you ready.” Catherine removed the gown from its peg and brought it to Rosie. She stood dutifully and allowed her sister-in-law to dress her, making her ready for the wedding that might well not happen once Joshua heard what she had to say.
* * * *
Joshua paced the porch. His stomach grumbled and he placed a hand over it as if to silence it. He hadn’t eaten since early that morning and he didn’t think he’d be able to force anything down for a while. He was taut with nerves but also excitement. If Rosie was happy to become his wife, then he would soon be a married man.
He glanced across the yard and the surrounding fields then beyond that toward the golden haze of the horizon. Would his folks come? He doubted it very much. They’d seemed set on their decision. And he was set on his. He would marry the woman he loved above all else, and do all he could to make her happy. To give her a good life as she deserved.
The door to the homestead swung open and he held his breath, expecting Rosie, but it was Catherine.
“Hi, Joshua. You clean up well.” A smile played across Catherine’s lips but Joshua was too agitated to return it.
“Is she coming?”
“Yes, Joshua. She’ll be out in a moment. But…”
Joshua felt cold hands tighten around hi
s neck. But…
“She said she’d like to speak with you first. Alone.”
“Sure. I’ll wait here.” He pointed at the porch then flushed at how ridiculous his statement was. Of course he’d wait there. Where else would he be?
Kenan and his brothers walked past from the barn, carrying planks of wood and a small trestle table. They began to place them in a line at the side of the house with the table at the far end. They were creating an aisle, Joshua realized, for Rosie to walk along. The cold hands squeezed, making it hard to swallow. What did she want to speak to him about? Would she refuse to go through with this?
“Joshua.” He turned to see a vision of beauty that stole his breath away.
He gasped then sucked in air. “Rosie.”
She wore her long, dark hair down and it shone like black satin as it fell over her shoulders. Her dress was the same color as her warm amber eyes and it seemed to reflect on her pale skin, giving it a golden glow, a luminescence which made her appear almost ethereal. Joshua shivered. In that moment he knew in his bones that if he couldn’t have this woman as his wife, he would never love another. Ever. Rosie was the only woman for him.
“We need to talk, my love.” Rosie reached for his hand.
“We do?”
“Please. Can we walk?”
He took her hand in the crook of his arm and they walked off the stoop and across the yard. He placed his free hand over Rosie’s and stroked gently, savoring the warmth of her skin, the strength of the sinews beneath. Rosie was no upper-class woman, she worked at the homestead, keeping it running alongside her brothers. But he loved her even more for the signs that would tell any stranger this. She had no airs and graces and there was no pretense about her. She would be a good wife and a wonderful mother, if they were lucky enough to make a child together.
A Rancher for Rosie Page 9
