Love Inspired Historical October 2013 Bundle: A Family for ChristmasThe Secret PrincessTaming the Texas RancherAn Unlikely Union

by Winnie Griggs

  “Good.” Silence filled the space between them. “I’ll go get that last box.”

  Hannah grinned. “Thank you.”

  He returned within seconds carrying the last box, which he set beside the door with a frown. “Looks like you could use a table.”

  “I’ll manage,” Hannah answered, not wanting to be a bother.

  “If you are all set here...” He paused, waiting for her nod. “Then I’ll see you tomorrow.” Daniel walked out the door and mounted the wagon.

  Hannah sighed as he drove away. Would he ever love her the way she wanted him to? Would he ever love her at all?

  She pushed the thoughts from her mind and began unloading the boxes. When she’d finished, she looked about the silent room. On a whim, she scooped up a book from the pile on the table and grabbed a blanket off the shelf.

  A cool afternoon breeze greeted her as she headed down to the stream behind the school. Hannah spread the blanket out under a tree, and then sat down to enjoy her book. She’d just started it when the sound of a horse whinnying pulled her from the story.

  Levi sat on his stallion a few feet from her. “I thought I’d drop by and see if you needed anything.” He leaned against the saddle horn and grinned down at her.

  Hannah stood hurriedly and moved away from the large animal. For a brief moment she allowed fear to grip her. Not fear of the horse, but of his hooves, which looked very large.

  “I—I don’t think so.”

  Her visitor’s eyes narrowed. “Are you feeling all right?”

  She smoothed her skirt before answering. “Yes, you just startled me.”

  “Beg your pardon. I guess I did sort of sneak up on you. But you really can’t blame me—your nose was buried in that book.” Levi swung his leg over the saddle and slid to the ground.

  Hannah looked at the book lying on her blanket. “I suppose you are right.”

  He picked up the volume, glanced at the front and read aloud, “The Vanished Diamond, by Jules Verne.” He handed it to her. “Is it any good?”

  “I think so. I’d just started reading it when you rode up.” She ran her hand over the cover. “Mr. Richards loaned it to me.” Her gaze moved to Levi’s, which seemed focused on the book. “Do you enjoy reading, Mr. Westland?”

  He laughed. “Yes, I do, but if you are going to be my sister-in-law, I think we should put aside the formalities and you call me Levi.” Once more his eyes strayed to the book in her hand.

  Hannah could see the reasoning in his suggestion. If she was going to be a part of his family, they would use each other’s first names. She smiled. “All right. Levi it is.”

  He nodded. “Well, if you don’t need anything, I’ll be going. Enjoy your reading.”

  “Levi, I was wondering if you’d like to borrow a book from me. I brought several with me. I’ll be happy to loan one to you.” She didn’t know why she’d offered, other than he seemed interested in the book she held in her hands.

  Hannah knew what it was like to want something new to read. After all, part of the reason she’d gone to visit the schoolteacher had been to see his collection of books. She hadn’t been disappointed. Mr. Richards had a nice library of the latest fiction and nonfiction books and was generous in loaning them out.

  “That’s very kind of you, Hannah. I’ve been meaning to pick up a new book in town, I just haven’t made the time to do so.” Levi followed her back toward the school.

  She laughed. “I’m not sure my collection will have something new, but you are welcome to browse through it.”

  He tied the horse’s reins to the porch railing. “I haven’t had much time for reading lately. The ranch has kept both Daniel and me pretty busy.” Levi followed her inside.

  “I am hoping to help Daniel with some of the ranch work once we are married, so that should take a bit of the burden off the two of you.” She walked to the bookshelf and indicated the books he could choose from.

  Levi snorted. “I doubt Daniel will let you do ranch work. He’s a firm believer that women should stay in the house.” Unaware of her frown, he continued. “He doesn’t even like Ma helping out, and she owns the place.”

  Hannah leaned against the wall. She’d chosen to answer Daniel’s letter because she’d thought she’d be able to work on a farm again and had decided ranch life wouldn’t be that different, just a bigger operation. Now Levi was telling her Daniel was against women working the land?

  She studied his back as he pulled out each book and looked at the cover. “Your mother doesn’t listen to him?”

  Preoccupied, Levi answered in a low voice, “Naw, Ma does what Ma wants to. No questions asked.”

  If Daniel’s mother could do ranch work, then Hannah decided she could, too. He would get used to the idea and that would be that. She straightened her spine.

  Levi turned with a book in hand. “This one is by Jules Verne. Isn’t that the author of the book you are reading?” he asked, never taking his gaze from the opened pages.

  “Yes, he is one of my favorite authors. I have three of his books,” Hannah answered. “Which title did you chose?”

  Levi closed the volume and read the title aloud. “‘A Journey to the Center of the Earth.’” He looked back up at her. “Are you sure you don’t mind my borrowing it?”

  “Of course not. I think you will enjoy it. Anytime you want to read one of my books, you are welcome to do so,” she offered with a smile.

  “That’s very nice. Thank you.” Levi tucked the book under his arm and looked about her room. “You could use a table and maybe a rocking chair.”

  Hannah laughed. Levi seemed to change subjects almost as fast as her friend Eliza Kelly. For a brief moment she wondered if Eliza had stayed to meet her future groom in Durango.

  His footsteps moving toward the door drew her attention. “You have space for them here.” He stopped and studied the area.

  “Yes, I do, but circumstances being what they are, I’ll make do with what I have.” Hannah didn’t want to be any more of a bother to Daniel or his family.

  Levi didn’t comment any further. He opened the door and moved to untie his horse. “Thanks for the book. I’ll get it back to you in a few days.” In one easy motion, he remounted the stallion.

  Hannah admired the animal. Its coat shone in the sun and its big expressive eyes studied her in return. “He really is a beautiful animal.” She sighed.

  “Would you like a horse to ride? I’m sure we can find one for you in the stables.”

  “No, I haven’t been on a horse in years.” She didn’t elaborate and say it had been close to twenty years.

  He nodded. “Well, if you change your mind, let Daniel or me know. We’ve got some pretty gentle mares. You can have your pick.”

  “Thank you. I’ll keep that in mind.”

  Hannah dreamed of riding a horse again as Levi rode away. She knew she’d have to overcome her fear of having one step on her if she was ever going to become a true helpmate to Daniel.

  Chapter Ten

  The next morning, Daniel sagged in the saddle. He’d given all the men jobs to do and was now headed to the schoolhouse to collect Hannah. Yesterday the thought of showing her his house—hers, too, if they got married—had seemed like a good idea. But now that the time had come, he wished he hadn’t offered.

  Both he and Levi had built houses on the ranch shortly after their mother had announced her desire to see them married and herself with grandchildren. Thankfully, the winter months had been mild and the men hadn’t minded the extra work.

  He stopped in front of the school. The front door was open and Hannah was sweeping. She shoved the dirt off the side of the porch and smiled at him.

  “Good morning, Daniel.” Her voice washed over him like heavy dew over a honeysuckle blossom.

  Daniel nodded. “Morning. You look mighty busy this morning.” He climbed down from his horse and walked toward her.

  “Just doing a little housekeeping. I’m hoping to have the school running by Mo
nday morning.” She set the broom beside the door. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

  He didn’t have time for coffee. Daniel wanted to tell her he had a ranch to run, but instead said, “No, thanks. I thought we could head on out.”

  Hannah cocked her head sideways and looked up at him. “Are we going to walk?”

  “No, I thought we’d double up on Tornado.” He indicated the horse.

  Her face paled. “Um, I need to get my shawl.” Hannah hurried back inside the school.

  Daniel turned to the stallion and rubbed his nose. “You be a good boy. For the first time ever, you will have a lady riding on you. I expect only good behavior. You got that?” He looked deeply into the animal’s eyes. Tornado might not understand the words, but Daniel knew he understood the tone.

  The stallion’s head bobbed in answer.

  “Good boy.” He rubbed the horse’s neck. Daniel looked toward the schoolhouse door, but there was still no sign of Hannah. What could be keeping that woman?

  Ten minutes later, just when he’d decided to go in after her, Hannah appeared on the porch. Her blue eyes searched his. “He’s really tall. Do you think you could lead him over here and maybe I could just sit on his back?”

  Daniel looked from the woman to the horse. Tornado was tall, but not that tall. “I don’t know, Hannah.”

  “Please,” she said. “You don’t have to do anything but hold him steady. I can do it.”

  Hannah studied the boards under her feet. She wore a big straw hat that covered most of her face from his view. He didn’t understand why she wanted to mount Tornado from the porch, but if it would get her on the horse faster, he’d give it a try.

  He pulled Tornado toward the porch and positioned him so that Hannah could lean over and climb aboard, which she did without too much trouble. Since his mother straddled a horse all the time, he wasn’t surprised to see her get on like that. What did surprise him was the pretty blush that colored her cheeks.

  “Daniel, would you look away, please?” Her gaze refused to meet his.

  He averted his eyes and listened to the rustle of her skirt against the leather of the saddle. Tornado snorted and tried to pull his head around to the side, but Daniel held firm. “Is everything all right?”

  “Fine. You can turn around now.” She sounded breathless.

  He turned to find her sitting sidesaddle, on the rump of Tornado, hanging on to the back of the saddle with both hands. A smile brightened her face and pride shone in her eyes. “I’m on,” she announced, as if he couldn’t see her.

  Daniel laughed in spite of himself. “So you are. Wouldn’t you be more comfortable in the saddle?”

  She shook her head. “Oh, no, I’m perfectly fine where I am.”

  Careful not to kick her, Daniel mounted his horse. He reached behind him and pulled Hannah closer. “Wrap your arms around my waist so you don’t fall off.”

  He didn’t have to ask twice. Her arms came around him and she hung on tight, almost slamming into his back. Daniel laughed and scooted up farther.

  “I’ve never ridden sidesaddle before,” Hannah confessed, clinging to him tighter with each step the horse took.

  When it became apparent that soon he wouldn’t be able to breathe any longer if he didn’t do something, Daniel pulled Tornado to a stop. “Let go of me and grab the saddle again. I need to get down.”

  She released him and clung to the leather, looking about. “Is this where you wanted to take me?”

  He looped the reins around the saddle horn and slid off. Hannah clung to the saddle as if her life depended on it and offered him a weak smile.

  “No, but we need to change places.”

  Fear laced her face and her voice shook. “Why?”

  “If I can breathe, I won’t pass out and fall off the horse.” He grinned up at her.

  “Oh.” She looked at the saddle and the stallion’s flowing mane. “I’m not sure how to move up.”

  Daniel shook his head. “Well, you could get down and then climb back on.”

  Hannah’s head swung from side to side. “No, I don’t think I can do that.” Her knuckles turned white on the leather.

  What was she so afraid of? The horse? Falling off? The only way to find out was to ask. “Hannah, what are you afraid of?”

  “Snakes, spiders, just about anything that bites.” She sent him another wobbly smile.

  He wished he could tell her that Tornado didn’t bite, but that wasn’t exactly true. Everyone knew you had to watch stallions or they would take a hunk out of you, and a horse’s bite hurt. “I promise to hold Tornado’s head so he won’t get you.”

  “No, I’m good. I’ll just sit like this.”

  Frustration laced his voice. “Hannah, we have to switch places. You were squeezing the air out of me.”

  Again she shook her head. “I’m sorry. I won’t squeeze so hard.”

  Daniel felt his teeth grind and his jaw work. The lady was proving to be one stubborn, irritating, mule-headed woman. Could he pull her down and then set her in the saddle?

  * * *

  Hannah knew she was being unreasonable, but the thought that this huge animal could step on her sent reason right out of her mind. Was there a way she could pull herself into the saddle without getting down?

  She wiggled her bottom and felt the material of her dress slip. Hannah twitched forward to keep from falling off. The action caused the horse to jerk sideways. Her palms had begun to sweat and slide off the leather. Tornado must have felt her descending, and bunched his hindquarters.

  “Easy, boy,” Daniel soothed.

  But it was no good.

  One moment she was clinging to the saddle, and the next Hannah felt herself go airborne. All she could do was pray nothing would break when she hit the ground, and that she’d land far enough away from the horse not to frighten it further. She saw Daniel move to catch her but knew he’d never make it in time to keep her from hitting the ground.

  Air whooshed from her lungs when she hit the packed earth. Hannah sat up as fast as she could. Concern laced Daniel’s face, so she tried to smile. “I’m all right.”

  He released the reins and Tornado lowered his head to munch on the grass. “Are you sure?” Daniel extended a hand to help her up.

  Hannah felt the warmth of his palm scratch against her soft skin as he pulled her to her feet. “I’m sure.” She released his hand and dusted off her skirt.

  “Well, if you’re certain. We need to get going.” He walked to Tornado and picked up the reins. “I’ll hold him steady and you climb up.”

  She could see the schoolhouse in the near distance and realized they hadn’t gotten very far. “Can’t we just walk to wherever we’re going?”

  “No. It’s not far by horse but walking would take too much time.” His brow furrowed.

  “I’m sorry, Daniel. I can’t get on the horse again. I can’t.” She heard her own ragged words and saw the disappointment on his face.

  “Then we’ll have to go another day. I don’t have time to go hitch up the buckboard.” His own words came out sounding harsh and irritated.

  “I really am sorry,” she offered.

  He studied her face and his own features softened. “If you are afraid you’ll fall off again, I promise to hold Tornado steady, and once you’re on, I’ll hang on to you, too.”

  He obviously meant it, but Hannah knew there was no way she’d get close enough to the big black stallion to mount him. She shook her head. “No, you ride him and I’ll walk along beside you.”

  “Well, it’s too far to go without riding a horse, so we’ll have to plan our outing for another day. Besides, I have work to do and I need to get some of it done before lunch. I’ll walk you back.” He headed toward the school.

  Hannah ran to catch up with him. “That’s not necessary. If you need to go back to work, go. I’ll walk myself home.” She hurried past him so that he couldn’t see the tears building behind her eyes.

  She heard leather creaking
behind her and knew Daniel had mounted the big stallion.

  Disappointment filled her ears as he sighed and then said, “I’ll see you at dinner.”

  It took all her willpower not to look back to see how close he and the horse were to her. She nodded to let him know she’d heard him. The resonance of thundering hooves let her know he’d spun around and ridden away.

  With misty vision, she turned and watched him ride off. She’d made a mess of their outing. Hannah took her time walking back to the school. Tears streamed down her face as disappointment filled her heart. How was she going to help run a ranch when she couldn’t even mount a horse?

  A cool breeze picked up. Hannah sat down on the schoolhouse steps. She couldn’t get the tears to stop. The past couple days were taking their toll on her. She didn’t normally cry like this. Since no one was around, she buried her face in her hands and let the tears flow.

  After several minutes someone cleared a throat, snagging her attention. She didn’t want to look up. Had a parent came to welcome the new schoolteacher? Or worse, had Daniel returned?

  What would her visitor think of her appearance? Hannah knew her eyes were red, swollen and bloodshot. Her face was probably a splotchy mess. Why had she given in to her impulse to just let it all out? She inhaled deeply, knowing she couldn’t ignore her visitor forever.

  Hannah felt some relief at seeing Levi sitting on a buckboard instead of Daniel on his stallion. She wiped at the moisture on her face. So deep was she in her emotions she hadn’t heard him pull up.

  Sorrow and regret laced her voice, and it cracked as she said, “Hello, Levi.”

  He was off the wagon and by her side in an instant. “Are you all right, Hannah? Are you hurt? Should I go get Ma? Or Daniel?” His big hand patted her shoulder.

  It was nice to hear the concern in his tone. “I’m fine, Levi. I just needed a good cry.”

  She felt him ease down beside her. “Here. You might need this.” A large white handkerchief was stuffed into her hands.

  “Thank you.” Hannah tried to be ladylike as she blew her nose. She didn’t know what to say, so they sat in silence for several moments.