A few minutes later, Sami returned to the dining room with a tray of sandwiches. Chase smiled up at her when she set the tray down in the center of the table.
“Grilled cheese sandwiches, my favorite.” Brent bounced his brows and reached out for a sandwich.
Sami smacked his hand. “Don’t be rude. You can at least wait until Aunt Edna gets the tomato soup on the table, too.” Careful not to make eye contact with Chase again, Sami sat down in her chair next to Brent.
Aunt Edna brought in a tray filled with bowls of soup and took her seat. While they ate, Aunt Edna and Chase talked about the service while Sami and Brent sat silently eating their lunch.
“You two should come to church with us next Sunday. It was such a wonderful service. Pastor Mitchell did an amazing job this morning, and he always asks about the two of you.”
Brent pointed at his leg and patted his cast. “I would, but as you can see, I can’t because of this.”
“You know that cast is coming off in a few weeks. So, you’re saying I can count on you to go to church with me when it does?” Aunt Edna stared at Brent over the rim of her glass and raised a questioning eyebrow.
“You know better than that, Aunt Edna. If he wasn’t in that cast, you know he’d be right along with Dad and Miles at Mr. Boman’s.” Sami cut her eyes over at her younger brother and grinned.
“Who’s Mr. Boman?” Chase lifted a questioning brow.
Aunt Edna looked at Chase and gave a heavy sigh filled with disappointment. “Ever since Marlin Boman’s wife died two years ago, every Sunday several of the men around these parts all gather at his ranch. He cooks up breakfast for all of them, and they just sit around talking about their horses and cattle. I know he’s lonely out there without his wife, but I just wish he had his gathering day on any other day than Sunday.” She turned to face Brent again. “So do I have your word you’ll go to church with me after that cast comes off?”
“What about Sami?” He pointed at her, trying to get Aunt Edna’s attention off him.
Sami wanted to kick Brent when her aunt turned her focus to Sami. “Well?”
Sami leaned over and whispered in Brent’s ear, “So you’re going to throw me under the bus, I see. Thanks a lot. Just remember what goes around comes around, Brent.”
Her aunt cleared her throat. “Well? Do you think you’ll want to come along with us next Sunday?”
“I don’t think so.”
“And just why not?”
Sighing, Sami lowered her sandwich. “You know how I feel about this, Aunt Edna. Let’s not get into this right now. Please.”
“Will you at least think about it?”
Sami fidgeted in her chair and narrowed her eyes at Aunt Edna. “I said no. Now, can we talk about something else?”
“You know it’s not God’s fault your mother left, Sami. It’s time to let God heal you of all that hurt and resentment you’ve carried for all these years. I know you blame God, but Maggie made the choice on her own to leave her family. You know she’s not coming back. You need to move on.”
“Aunt Edna!” Sami was horrified. How could her aunt be so blunt about something so personal in front of Chase? That pushed Sami right up and out of the chair abruptly, causing the table to shake.
“Sami, I…” Edna started to speak.
However, Sami threw up her hand in the air. “Don’t!” she snapped and stormed out of the room. “I don’t want to hear it.”
♥♥♥♥
Edna stood to her feet staring at the doorway. “What was I thinking? I don’t know what came over me. That’s such a tender subject for Sami. I need to go talk to her.”
Chase noticed her hands were trembling. He tenderly stood and placed his hand on Edna’s arm. “Let me go talk to her. Maybe I can calm her down.”
“Are you sure?” Edna stared at him for a full five seconds before she agreed, sat back down in her chair, and smoothed her hair back with a shaky hand. “Maybe it’d be better coming from someone else for a change.”
“Chase,” Brent said in concern. “You don’t know Sami very well, do you? She can be downright mean when she’s mad. And, I think she’s pretty mad right now. You’d better let her cool off a little bit before you go out there.”
Chase cocked a knowing smile at Brent. “I think I’ll be okay.”
Brent shrugged and bit into his sandwich as Chase left the room. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
On his way out the door, Chase whispered a prayer for guidance. He crossed the yard toward the barn, not seeing her anywhere else.
When he entered the barn, he found Sami saddling up her horse. “You going for a ride?”
He saw her shoulders tighten. “What do you think?” She jerked the cinch tighter. “What do you want, Chase?”
“I wanted to check on you, to make sure you were okay. I know your aunt might’ve overstepped her boundaries, but I don’t think she meant you any harm.” He walked up behind her and touched her shoulder. “I think she was just trying to help.”
Sami flinched, spun around, and locked her gaze on his. A rattlesnake bite couldn’t have been any more surprising. “This is none of your business, Chase, and I’d appreciate it if you’d leave it alone.” She turned back to her horse, grabbed the saddle horn, and in one quick movement she was up in the saddle, swaying above him.
He reached out and put his hand on her knee. “She’s right, you know? You don’t have to carry such a heavy load alone.”
Anger sliced through her face. “Don’t preach to me. I get enough of that from Aunt Edna.”
However, he knew that hurt, and he knew the only place to go with it as well. “God loves you, Sami. If you’ll let Him help you, He will. He said He would never leave you or forsake you.”
She released a sarcastic laugh, and her eyes went hard with hate. “He already left me, fourteen years ago. I didn’t need Him then, and I sure don’t need Him now. Tell them I went to check the cattle.” She jerked hard on the reins and rode out of the barn and into the sunshine.
Chase breathed out a slow and heavy sigh when she was gone. Closing his eyes, he whispered a prayer toward Heaven. “Father, Sami has so much pain in her heart, and I know You can heal her if she would just let the walls down she’s built around her heart and let You in. She needs You above all others. Only You can mend her broken spirit and heal her wounded heart. Amen.” He leaned against the barn door and was surprised by the odd tightness in his chest as he watched Sami gallop away.
Chapter Five
Monday morning Sami climbed out of bed, walked over to the window, and admired the horses her father and Miles had purchased Saturday morning. A soft tap sounded on her door. She pulled on her robe, walked over to the door, and opened it.
“Are you still upset with me?” Aunt Edna stood in her doorway with a plate of blueberry muffins. “I’ve come with a peace offering.”
Sami smiled at her aunt. “You know I can’t stay mad at you.” She picked up one of the warm muffins from the plate, broke a piece of it off, and popped it into her mouth. “Mmmm.”
“I’m sorry about yesterday. You know me, I speak before I think sometimes.”
“It’s okay.” Sami shrugged and took another small bite. “Let’s just forget about it.”
“I’ve got to get breakfast on the table for the boys. I’ll see you downstairs in a bit.” Aunt Edna kissed her fingers and touched them to Sami’s cheek. “You know I love you, girl.”
“I know. I love you, too.”
When Sami came down the stairs after hurriedly dressing, she heard voices coming from the dining room and realized the men were already having breakfast and getting ready for their day. However, she stopped at the dining room door and moaned. She knew she’d over-reacted the day before. Although she felt bad about that, she couldn’t do anything about it now. So, she took a deep breath, smoothed back her hair, squared her shoulders, and walked into the dining room as if nothing at a
ll had happened that was out of kilter.
An odd twinge of disappointment flashed through her when she saw that Chase wasn’t at the table. He had only been working on the ranch for a week, but she was already used to seeing his smiling face every morning.
“Sami, I need you to make a trip into town today and pick up the supplies I ordered from Barley’s Friday.” Her father sat down and poured himself a glass of orange juice. “He said they should be ready to pick up by eight.”
“Okay, Dad.”
“Sorry, I’m late. My truck didn’t want to start this morning,” Chase said as he breezed into the room and dropped onto his chair, giving Sami a quick smile.
“Hey, man, we’ve all been there before. Don’t worry about it. Besides, you’re not late. We just started breakfast,” Miles said.
“Hey, Chase,” her father said as he passed the plate of bacon to Chase, “Sami’s going into town this morning to pick up some supplies from Barley’s. Would you mind going with her and giving her a hand?”
Her eyes widened at the suggestion. “Dad, I can handle the order by myself. I’ve done it before. Besides Chase may be needed here more.” Sami felt the shakiness in her voice, and she hoped no one else heard it.
“No. I want him to see how we do business with Barley, just in case he ever has to pick up a delivery for us on his own.”
“But—” She was cut off when her dad’s cell phone rang.
He held up his hand, looked at the screen on his phone, and smiled. “I have to get this. If everyone will excuse me.”
Who would be calling her dad to make him smile like that?
She shrugged and brushed it off because she was more concerned about the fact she would be riding into town with Chase… alone. Why couldn’t life just be fair one time?
On the drive into town, their conversation was light. Sami made sure of that. On purpose, she didn’t even argue when he insisted on driving, and she was proud of herself for that. She was incredibly thankful he didn’t mention anything about the day before. Guilt for how rude she had been to Aunt Edna hurt enough, and she didn’t want to have to deal with what she had said to him in the barn either.
God had let her down, hadn’t He? He’d also turned His back on her at a time in her life when she needed Him the most. She didn’t have to explain herself to anyone why she didn’t trust God. It was her choice not to go to church, and she wasn’t going to be persuaded by any smooth talking, handsome, ranch hand. No. She was going to stick to her guns on this one.
Carefully she glanced over at him when she thought he wasn’t looking. He was humming along with a song on the radio, bobbing his head to the tune.
At that moment, he turned, looked straight into her eyes, and winked. She swiveled her head away quickly before he could see her pink cheeks.
Twenty minutes later, Chase pulled the truck into one of the empty spaces in front of Barley’s. “I’ll go inside and pay for the invoices. If you’ll go ahead and pull around back to the loading area, one of Barley’s workers will show you the load that belongs to us. I’ll be out in a few minutes to help.” Sami unfastened her seatbelt and climbed out of the pickup.
“You’re the boss,” Chase said as he reached again for the gearshift.
Pushing the door closed, she leaned forward, and poked her head through the rolled down window. “And don’t you forget it either.”
“Yes, Ma’am.” He tipped his hat to her and grinned.
Just the same, she noticed the look of surprise roll across Chase’s face. She’d even surprised herself; she’d actually made a joke. “I’ll be out in a few minutes.”
“Hello there, Miss Sami. I haven’t seen you in a while. Where have you been hiding?” Mr. Barley asked as she entered the store.
“We’ve been pretty busy out at the ranch. With Brent’s injuries and Gus taking off for a few weeks to help Mary with the new baby, we’re using all the hands we can find.”
“So I hear. How’s that new hand working out? Uh, Townsend, isn’t it?” Mr. Barley eased around the counter and picked up a pile of papers.
“Yes. He’s working out just fine. How much is our order?”
“Give me a second, and I’ll get you all fixed up. Now, where did I put my glasses?”
Sami sniggered and pointed to his glasses perched on top of his head.
Chuckling, he pulled the glasses off and slid them on. “I may forget the little things sometimes, but my old mind is still as sharp as a tack.”
He was such a sweet old man. He had to be at least eighty-years-old. But, he still opened and operated the feed store every day of the week, except on Sundays. Around these parts, everything was closed on Sundays, except for the diner, and it was only opened from one o’clock to five.
“Ah, here’s your invoice. Let’s see now.”
The door opened, and Sami glanced back at the two men entering the store. Ned Summers and Tom Hudson, two hands from the Salter’s ranch. She swung her gaze back to Mr. Barley, knowing there was going to be trouble, but hoping they would just let it go. When they spotted Sami, however, they slowed their steps and stopped. Ned elbowed Tom, lowered his voice, and said something she couldn’t quite hear. Both men laughed and looked back toward the door. She bit down on her bottom lip and looked back up at Mr. Barley.
She heard the door open again. The jingle of the bell over the door sounded like thunder in her ears.
“Well, well, look who we have here.” The sound of Billy’s voice made her skin crawl. Her fists knotted at her side, and the air became thick, making it hard to breathe.
“Now, boys, I won’t have y’all coming in here causing trouble,” Mr. Barley said, shaking a crooked finger at the men.
“What are you talking about, Mr. Barley? No one’s going to cause any trouble. I’m just saying hello to an old friend.” Billy’s voice rolled with hatefulness.
Sami heard his boots click on the wooden floor as he came closer to her, and she closed her eyes to gather her strength. His limp had a distinct sound as he walked, and she knew the exact moment Billy stopped behind her. The hair on the back of her neck stood on its ends.
He touched the side of her neck with the back of his hand. “Still as soft as ever.”
She spun around and slapped his hand away. “Don’t touch me.” Anger and humiliation spun through her as she faced the much-taller-than-her man.
Billy laughed right into her face. He held his hands up in the air and took a step backwards. “Don’t shoot me. I was just saying hello.”
The other two men started to laugh.
“Billy, don’t make me call the Sheriff,” Mr. Barley said as he picked up the phone.
“Ah, come on, you old coot. We’re only having a little fun.” Tom reached over the counter, ripped the phone out of Mr. Barley’s hand, and shoved him back away from it.
“Hey. What do you think you’re doing?” Sami whirled and yelled at Tom. “Leave him alone.”
Suddenly, Billy wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off her feet, trapping her arms at her side, rendering her helpless. He jerked her hat off her head and tossed it to the side, pressed his face into her hair, and inhaled deeply. “You sure do smell sweet today, Sami,” he whispered close to her ear.
Struggling, kicking, and squirming, Sami could hardly breathe. “Let go of me, Billy. I’m warning you!”
“Warning me? And just what do you think you’re going to do? I don’t think you have your Winchester with you today, do you?”
“Let go of me!” She thrashed against him trying to free herself from his grip, but the more she struggled the tighter his grip became.
“I’ve been looking forward to this day for a long time.” He kissed the side of her face and let out a bellowing laugh. The same laugh she’d heard in her nightmares for weeks after the incident in the barn.
“Billy, you’re crushing me. I can’t breathe.”
“Did you hear that, boys? I’m taking her breath away.”
The two ot
hers laughed right along with Billy.
Thankfully Billy loosened his grip just enough to let her cough as she sucked air deeply into her starving lungs. What was she going to do? She looked around wildly for an answer. Mr. Barley couldn’t help her. He had already tried to help her and look where it had gotten him, pushed down by a bully.
“Come on, why don’t you and I go for a ride?” Billy said, gripping her as he backed toward the front door.
“No! I’m not going anywhere with you.” Twisting her shoulders, she very nearly made him lose his balance, but he hefted her up, jerking her so the air jostled in her lungs. “I said let me go. I’m not going anywhere with you. Let me go! Let. Me. Go!”
“Hey! I think the lady said to let her go, and I think you’d be smart to do that right now!”
Relief flooded over her when she twisted enough to see Chase standing in the back entrance doorway.
“This ain’t none of your business, cowboy.” Billy halted in his steps and spat out the words like a snake spitting its venom. “I think you’d better go on back where you came from.”
That didn’t stop Chase. He strode right through the store. “Yeah? Well, I’m making it my business because she’s with me.”
With a hard look at Chase and one down at Sami, Billy released her, but before she could move, he grabbed hold of her ponytail and gave it a jerk, nearly pulling her right off her feet. “Just where do you think you’re going?”
“Salter, just so you know, you’re not leaving this store with her.” When Chase took a step forward, Billy twisted Sami’s ponytail around his hand, and jerked on it, causing her to cry out in pain.
Tears formed in her eyes without her bidding, and she reached back to grip his hands to get him to stop.
Billy looked right at Chase. “I believe I’d stop right there if I were you, unless you want to see her hurt.”
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