[2015] Cowboy Saves a Widow

by Christian Michael

  “Pull!”

  Jessie screamed as she grasped onto Sadie even tighter. Then, all at once, they were out and on the grass. Harold and Ellie were both on top of them, crying and thanking Jessie for what she had done, and embracing Sadie and telling her that they loved her.

  Jessie pulled out of the mess and sat back, in shock over what had just happened.

  Chapter 8 – Home At Last

  Jessie sat next to the fire with a cup of warm coffee in her hand. The three children were asleep in the wagon, and Ellie had just returned to the fire from tucking the children in for the night.

  Harold and Jessie sat silently, watching the fire leap and crackle into the night air.

  Finally, Harold spoke.

  “I owe you a huge thank you, Miss Krane, as well as a huge apology. I have to say that I misjudged you, and I am very sorry for that. The fact of the matter is you saved my little girl today, and that is something no ordinary person could have done. I don’t care what I said before, you are going to make a fine mother.”

  Jessie listened to what Harold said, then she shook her head.

  “I am glad I was able to help, but I’m not going through with the wedding. I can’t do this. That was the most terrifying thing I have ever done, and I know I can’t raise a little girl.”

  Jessie took a drink of her coffee, then watched the warm liquid swirl about in her cup.

  Ellie finally spoke.

  “Now you wait just a minute. You are a hero, Miss Krane. A real life hero. There isn’t another person on this planet that could have been the right person to go into that mine today after Sadie, and I think God knew that. That is why He had us run into you when we did, and that is why He is sending you to this little girl now.”

  Jessie sat silently for a moment, thinking. Her own mother had often told her God had a plan for her life, and He always put her right where He wanted her. Somehow, deep down inside of her, she suddenly felt a spark.

  “Do you really believe that? Do you think God wants me of all people to be the one for that family?”

  She looked at Harold and Ellie both, slowly watching them to make sure they were serious in what they said. Both of them nodded, and Ellie smiled.

  “Without a doubt. God doesn’t make mistakes, Jessie. It was no mistake you were hear with us today, and it certainly isn’t a mistake that you are going to be in Wyoming tomorrow.”

  Jessie didn’t say anything, but slowly finished her coffee. Harold changed the subject to a lighter story, and they chatted on, well into the night. After the fire finally died down and Jessie retired, she spent a very long time looking up at the starts, thinking.

  Maybe they’re right. Maybe God really does want me to go through with this. What’s the harm in checking it out anyway? I can meet them tomorrow, and see how I feel about it then. If it seems like the right thing to do, I’ll do it.

  “This is it!”

  Harold pulled the wagon to a stop outside of a general store, and Jessie peeked out from behind the wagon curtain. She scanned the people on the walkway, and in an instant she spotted Thomas and Olivia.

  “There they are! Oh, thank you both so much!”

  Jessie offered to pay them, but Ellie and Harold refused.

  “My dear, you have done more for us than we ever can for you. Now you go over there and meet your new family.”

  Jessie thanked them and dropped to the ground, pulling her trunk behind her. She left it on the ground in front of the store, and made her way through the crowd to Thomas and Olivia. They didn’t see her at first, as they were expecting her to arrive on the stage, but suddenly she caught Thomas’s eye.

  A smile broke across his face, and Jessie’s heart melted. She didn’t know what came over her, but all of her doubts were suddenly erased. She could see that right here in front of her was the man she was meant to marry. The man she was always meant to marry. Everything about him seemed so right.

  Suddenly, he looked down, and pulled on the hand he was holding. Jessie suddenly remembered Olivia, and smiled as she kneeled down. Olivia was even cuter than she expected, with long brown curls framing her face. Jessie could see that she was timid, and her heart sank.

  She held her arms out to Olivia, hoping the child would come over to her. Olivia slowly made her way through the swirling skirts, keeping her hand in Thomas’s and the other hand behind her back. They stopped a couple feet from Jessie, and Thomas let go of Olivia’s hand.

  Olivia continued to slowly walk to Jessie, and stopped right in front of her. She touched Jessie’s brown hair, and held it against her own. Then she felt Jessie’s dress, and looked her full in the face. A smile slowly broke across the little girl’s face, and she pulled her hand out from behind her back.

  There, in her small fist, was a tiny little bundle of wild flowers. Jessie gasped when she saw them, and smiled at Olivia.

  “Are these for me?”

  She asked softly, and Olivia nodded. She threw her arms around Jessie, and Jessie rose to be embraced by Thomas.

  “At last! Now my family is complete!”

  Thomas held both of his girls in his arms, then Jessie pulled back.

  “Do you want me to be your mom?”

  Olivia looked serious for a moment, then she nodded.

  “I think we will make a wonderful family.”

  She put a hand in Jessie’s and her other hand in Thomas’s, and started to hum a tune. Jessie and Thomas chucked, and Thomas leaned over and gave Jessie a kiss.

  As the headed to the church, all the doubt was gone from Jessie’s mind. She knew that no matter what happened, she was now home. This was her family, and she belonged here.

  Nothing was ever going to change that.

  The End.

  Finding my Cowboy

  Mail Order Bride

  CHRISTIAN MICHAEL

  Chapter 1 – An Ad in the Paper

  The school bell rang loudly, releasing the children from their afternoon class. They came pouring out of the schoolhouse, pushing each other and laughing. There was a rush by the door as they all clamored past, each headed to their homes.

  Jessie looked out the window, then shook her head as she turned back to the dough she was kneading.

  It’s just habit. Soon enough you will stop checking for him.

  This was the time of day John always came home. At least, it was the time of day he always had come home… before the accident. Jessie tried not to think of the void she felt ever since her husband had passed. But no matter what she did, there didn’t seem to be anything that could cheer her up.

  Except for you, Little One.

  She placed her flour covered hand on her apron over her stomach. Jessie was pregnant with her first child, which was the only thing that kept her sane in her grief. All she could think about day and night was John, and how awful it was she lost him.

  There had been a fire. It had been silly, really. Some boys were playing with matches in the neighbor’s barn, and when the straw lit up, they panicked. Sure, John had gone in after them, but they were the ones that made it out, and he wasn’t.

  Jessie had wrestled with her grief, spending days at a time feeling like she had nothing in this world, until she discovered she was pregnant.

  John would have been so happy. So proud… but you will make me proud, won’t you?

  Although Jessie spent most of her days as busy as she could be, she couldn’t shake the feeling that it wasn’t enough. She wanted this child to be happy, and the thought of raising a baby all on her own in this world terrified her. She had a lot of friends in this little Missouri town, but there wasn’t anyone here that could be a father to her child.

  They had all known John. They had known how much she loved him, and how he had loved her. They were always together from the time he let the children out of school to when he had to return to teach class the next day.

  No man in town would dare to ask me out… let alone marry me. They wouldn’t feel right about it, and neither would I. But
what am I going to do? I can’t do this alone. You need a father, and I need to provide that for you.

  Jessie formed the loaves and put them in their pans, then covered them with a damp towel to rise. She sat down in her chair with a sigh, and daydreamed as she looked out the window. There had to be a way to find a man to marry. A good man that would love her and her child both.

  But the town she lived in was small, and the marriage potential was as slim as the chance of seeing a giraffe walking down the street.

  If only I met a man off the stage coach like Lizbeth had. Or suppose the son of one of the old shopkeepers moved back here like Betty Sue’s husband did. If only my life was as easy as Mary Jo’s!

  It was hard for Jessie to not feel jealous over her friends. She would often run into them as she was out in the town, usually with their husbands. They hadn’t done anything to acquire their husbands. Their husbands had all been practically gift wrapped for them.

  Jessie scoffed as she saw at that moment Mary Jo and her husband walk by her window, hand in hand and chatting away.

  A tear formed in her eye which she angrily brushed away. Then she suddenly sat up.

  Wait a minute! Mary Jo’s husband! She met him through an ad in the paper! Look at them, she looked out the window as the two of them disappeared around the corner, happy as can be. Those two are the happiest couple I know, and they met through one of those mail order bride ads.

  I could do that…

  Without waiting to give it any more thought, Jessie hurriedly tied her bonnet on and threw a shawl over her shoulders. She was getting tired of wearing black, but she didn’t feel right putting on any of her cheerful colors. Not yet anyway.

  She quickly closed the door behind her, and headed to the post office as quickly as she could.

  Chapter 2 – Letters

  Jessie Stokes bent eagerly over the piece of paper on the table. She held in her trembling hand a pen freshly dipped in ink, and next to the letter sat the ad she had clipped out of the paper.

  She tried not to think too hard as she sat there, staring at the piece of paper on the table. She sighed and sat back, then picked up the ad to read it again.

  It read:

  Looking for a mail order bride.

  My name is Toby Matthews, and I am looking for a bride to come live with me in my house. I live in California, and would be happy to pay for your trip out here if you don’t live close by.

  I want a lady that knows how to act like a lady. A wife that can cook and clean, and have dinner ready on the table when I come in from the fields.

  I will be good to you, and treat you with the respect a lady deserves. I look forward to hearing from you.

  Jessie didn’t know what to say in reply. He seemed like the perfect man for her. Quiet, wanting a woman that could do exactly what she knew how to do, and respectful. She imagined herself going out west, and being met by a man that could sweep her off her feet.

  A man that could understand her situation, and offer her the love and support she needed to make it through. A man that could raise her child as his own, and a man she and her child could be a family with.

  Finally, Jessie put her pen to the paper, and just wrote. She didn’t want to try to sound too fancy, but she didn’t want to sound incapable, either. She wanted to convey to this man exactly the situation she was in, and the hopes she had for a future with him.

  Jessie kept the note brief and nervously skimmed over the words she had formed:

  Dear Mr. Matthews,

  Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jessie Stokes and I am a widow. I am with child, but that fact won’t get in the way of what I want to do. I have only just found out, so I won’t have the baby for some months yet.

  I would love to come out west and meet you, and perhaps have the honor of becoming your bride.

  Thank you and I look forward to hearing from you.

  Cordially,

  Jessie Stokes

  Jessie rolled her eyes after she had finished reading her note, and stuffed it in an envelope. Feeling like a school girl with a crush, she found a small picture of herself she had kept in her bedroom, and placed that in the envelope as well.

  I suppose he will want to know what I look like, she thought as she licked the envelope and sealed it. She then headed back to the post office. There were butterflies in her stomach as she watched the postmaster stamp the envelope and drop it in the bag of mail that was to go out on the stagecoach the next day.

  “Can you tell me how long that will take to reach California territory?” She asked the man.

  “Oh… let’s see here. If Ol’ Bill takes it right, there it’ll be there inside of a week.” The postmaster raised his bushy eyebrows at her, looking at her inquisitively, “Is there something important out there?”

  Jessie blushed and shook her head.

  “I was just wonderin’ is all. Thank you.”

  She smiled at him and hurried out of the post office. Once out on the street, she was met by Lizbeth Cloone.

  “Hey you! I was looking for you,” she looped her arm through Jessie’s and fell into stride next to her. “I haven’t seen you in a while and I wanted to check up on you. You know Mark and I would love to have you over for dinner one of these days. Say… what are you doing out here anyway?”

  Lizbeth always talked so quickly it was hard to get a word in when Jessie was with her, and she was caught off guard by her friend’s question. Jessie hesitated for a moment, not sure if she wanted to tell Lizbeth what she was doing there or not, but the moment passed as Lizbeth continued talking.

  “Never mind that! Are you free Sunday? I was thinking I would make a basket lunch and we could go over to the pond and sit for a while. Doesn’t that sound delightful?”

  Jessie smiled and opened her mouth to reply, but Lizbeth continued without waiting for an answer.

  “It’s settled then. We will pick you up in the wagon Sunday after church. Like I’ve always said, there’s no better way to worship the Lord than in His creation!”

  She suddenly let go of Jessie’s arm and hurried down the street, turning to waive at her before disappearing around the corner of the bank.

  Jessie chuckled to herself. It felt good to smile. It had been so long since she felt anything at all besides her love for the baby, but today she felt good. That letter she put in the mail was going to lead to something good, she just knew it.

  In the days to come Jessie tried to move on with her life, and not worry about what was happening in the mail. She didn’t say anything to her friends about replying to the ad in the paper. She knew what they would say.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?”

  “Have you given yourself enough time?”

  “Is this a good idea?”

  “It could be dangerous!”

  Jessie didn’t want to hear these things. She knew what she was doing, and she was happy with her decision. There were a lot of women out there that were very happily married to men they met through a mail order ad. She wasn’t going to be any different.

  Every day she stopped by the post office to check for a reply, and with each passing day she tried to act like she didn’t care when there wasn’t one. Every night she told herself it was going to turn around. Every morning she told herself not to give up.

  It became her habit to make her stop by the office, and insist she was just checking in case there was a letter for her.

  After 3 weeks passed, she had nearly given up, but told herself she would stop by just one more time. She reluctantly stopped in to the post office and once again inquired about a letter.

  And that was the day there was.

  Chapter 3 – The Move Out West

  Jessie lifted her skirt and ran home as fast as she felt comfortable. With the passing weeks she was battling bouts of nausea off and on, and she found moving too quickly tended to make her dizzy.

  She had been shocked when the postmaster handed her the letter marked from California, and
could hardly contain her excitement as she hurried home. She didn’t even stop to chat with Lizbeth when she passed her on the street. Lizbeth called after her, but she yelled over her shoulder that she was busy and would see her later on in the week.

  Jessie yanked her door open and ran to her bed. She would have jumped onto her bed belly first, but these days she was a lot more conscious about how she treated herself so she just sat on the edge of the bed.

  She ripped open the top of the envelope, and pulled out the letter inside. When she unfolded the paper, a small photograph fell into her lap. She picked it up and her eyes fell upon a dashing cowboy. He had a thick mustache and dark eyebrows, but his eyes were kind.

  Jessie gasped at the sight of him. She hadn’t even looked at another man since her husband passed, but with this photograph in her hands and the idea she could be his bride in her head, she couldn’t help but notice how attractive he was.

  After a few moments she turned from the photo to read the letter he had sent. Her heart pounded in her chest as she skimmed the contents, and when she had finished, she fell back on the bed and stared at the ceiling.

  It read:

  My dear Jessie,

  I hope you don’t mind my using your first name, but I feel you are the one I want to make my bride. You are beautiful, and your story has compelled me to invite you out here to California.

  If you do, we shall be married within the day of your arrival, and I will take you to our home. I have purchased a ticket for you to ride the stagecoach if you accept, and I eagerly await to hear your answer.

  Yours always,

  Toby

  Jessie just laid in silence for a while, then a smile broke across her lips. This was exactly what she had asked God for. It was more than she could have hoped for. A man that was so handsome, and spoke like a true gentleman! It seemed like a fairytale that she was lucky to be a part of, and the feeling was exhilarating.

  After a few moments, Jessie sat up and looked around the room. If she was going to take the stage, she would have to pack lightly. It wasn’t as though there was a lot in the room for her to take with her anyway, but it was still hard to know what to take and what to leave.