by Annie Boone
Reaching out to grab his sister by the arm, he continued, “Let’s get you home.”
Momentarily, Elizabeth had to wonder where her future husband was. Surely, she wouldn’t be left standing in the middle of the street in an unfamiliar town. Almost as if someone had read her thoughts, a voice spoke up.
“Sorry, I’m late. The carriage got here sooner than usual. I was on time, but it was early.”
Turning on her heel, Elizabeth found herself staring into the sky blue eyes of a handsome man. She placed her hand on her chest and wondered how a man so handsome had remained unmarried all this while. She dreaded asking his name for fear that the moment would be destroyed and he’d tell her he wasn’t Mason.
“Mason, Mason Reeve,” he said to introduce himself as he held out a hand, speaking up before she had to ask.
“I’m …” Her voice caught in her throat and she couldn’t even speak.
“Elizabeth,” Mason finished for her as he took her hand in his own and lifted it to his lips, giving it a tender kiss while his eyes continued to stare into hers.
“I would have known you anywhere.”
Something about his gaze made Elizabeth feel like she’d melt under it. Her knees shook and Elizabeth locked them to prevent them from trembling. The world around them faded into the background and Elizabeth was lost, staring into his beautiful eyes.
“Are you ready to head home?” he asked, his words sounding soft to her ears.
Home.
Just the thought of having a home once again brought tears to her eyes.
Nodding her head slowly, Elizabeth smiled. This was surely everything she had dreamed of having.
Turning toward Clayton and Amy, Mason gave them a good natured gesture of acknowledgement. “Thank you for staying with my fiancée until I could come get her.”
But, despite Mason’s kind words, Elizabeth could sense a sort of unrest between himself and Clayton. While Mason had clear control over his thoughts and feelings, Clayton held a look of unrest and animosity Elizabeth couldn’t quite understand.
Still oblivious to the entire situation, Amy rushed forward to give Elizabeth a hug.
“Take care, Elizabeth. Best wishes to you both. Don’t forget me when you have the wedding ceremony. I’d love to come.”
Pressing Amy’s hands in her own, Elizabeth smiled and nodded her head.
“I’m sure you will.”
Feeling Mason’s hand gently press against her back, Elizabeth realized her future husband was anxious to leave. Turning from her friend, Elizabeth allowed her fiancé to lead her toward his awaiting buggy.
Elizabeth felt like she was taking the final plunge toward the new life that awaited her. She was so nervous she could hardly stand, so she looked to Mason to get some of the confidence she needed. Surely, life here in Plainsville would be the change she needed so desperately in her life. Now, she’d have a place where she truly belonged, along with a man who actually loved her. She hadn’t felt safe and secure since her father died. Yes, it was time to plunge forward into her new existence.
Chapter Two
Riding alongside Mason on the seat of his buggy, Elizabeth could hardly wait until they finally reached his cattle ranch. She was so tired of the bumpy ride on the uneven road. Her bones felt like they’d never stop aching from being thrown back and forth.
Studying her future husband out of the corner of her eye, Elizabeth tried to take in his good looks and charming personality. It felt almost too good to be true that she had been the girl to first answer his advertisement for a wife.
“As you know,” Mason explained he urged the horses forward. “I’m anxious to get married as soon as possible but I understood from your letters that you would feel better waiting until we knew each other a bit more.”
Although the words her fiancé spoke were true, Elizabeth felt her resolve falter as she sat so close to him. How could she have any uncertainties about her future when it seemed that this man was all she had ever wanted? It took all her strength not to urge him to turn the horse around and head back to the church for a ceremony immediately.
Gathering her good sense and courage, Elizabeth nodded her head.
“Yes. I’d at least like for us to know each other for a few weeks before we take such a huge step. I know it may seem ridiculous but it would be nice that we both know what to expect.”
Mason nodded and urged the horses forward.
Elizabeth found her thoughts traveling back to the uncomfortable tension she felt between Mason and their town’s sheriff. For a moment, she thought about asking her future husband what had happened between them, but then stopped herself. Mason was a well-respected man with a nice ranch. It would be no surprise to her if the sheriff was jealous of him, and she felt that it would be pointless to bring up something that Mason might not have noticed himself.
“Look,” Mason said, raising a hand to point at the layout ahead of them. “The ranch house is right ahead.”
Sitting up in her seat, Elizabeth craned her neck so she could see the large house ahead of them.
“I can’t wait to show you my home,” Mason said, smiling infectiously at her once again before quickly correcting himself. “I mean our home.”
Feeling content, Elizabeth considered how good it felt to finally have a home again. She looked forward to seeing Mason’s life and discovering how she could be a part of it.
When they reached the house, a ranch hand hurried out to take the horse to the barn where it would be unhitched, fed and groomed. Mason helped Elizabeth down from the wagon seat first and then led her toward the house with his arm draped protectively around hers.
Pushing the front door open, Mason directed Elizabeth into his plush home.
While Elizabeth was used to the beauty of a large southern mansion, there was something about the ranch house that seemed impressive in its own, rugged way.
“This is our house,” Mason said as he directed her through the rooms, pointing out different things.
“It’s beautiful,” Elizabeth whispered as she ran a hand against the polished wood table in the dining room. “This entire place, it’s simply stunning.”
Despite her happiness with the house, Elizabeth felt a sort of apprehension fill her as she tried to imagine how she might fit in on the ranch. Was it possible to hope that she could go from being a southern girl to a western woman? No matter how difficult the journey might be, she was convinced that she’d do whatever it took to make it happen.
“It is,” Mason agreed. “I have been blessed. This is where hard work gets a person.”
Stepping up closer to her, Mason put his hand on top of hers.
“All it needs now is a woman’s touch.”
Nodding her head slowly, Elizabeth reminded him of what she had said earlier.
“I know but I just need a little time to see how things work. I need to get used to you and to this home. You know that moving out west has been a big change for me. Everything with my parents and then the horrible way that my uncle treated me, I just feel I need to slow down.”
Elizabeth shuddered as memories of her uncle and the harsh treatment she had received at his hands replayed before her. He had never treated her like a family member. Instead, she had been nothing more than a slave to him. Swallowing hard, she wondered if she could even put the rest of her thoughts into words.
Mason gave her hand a sympathetic squeeze and spoke up before she did.
“Here you have no reason to apologize and no reason to think of the past. You have a new life here, a new life and a chance to forget about everything that has gone wrong before.”
His promises gave Elizabeth the encouragement she needed and, once again, melted her heart toward him a little more.
“Let me lead you to your room,” Mason suggested. “I’ll show you where it is and then I can have my maid, Martha, bring you some fresh water for a bath. You must be dirty and tired from your travels.”
Elizabeth had to nod once again. S
he appreciated her future husband’s attempts at making her feel at home. She truly was exhausted and could hardly wait to have on a clean pair of nightclothes so she could get some sleep.
The next morning, Elizabeth awoke to sunshine streaming through her windows. Sitting up in bed, she stretched her arms high above her head and took in a deep breath of fresh air. For the first time since her father had died, she had been able to get a full night’s rest without nightmares and fears interrupting her dreams.
A knock on the door made her jump and Elizabeth pulled the sheets up tighter against her bust before asking, “Who’s there?”
The door slowly creaked open and the familiar face of Mason’s housekeeper, Martha, peered in at her. The elderly woman had a pleasant smile on her round face, and she curtseyed before speaking.
“Mr. Reeve has requested your presence at breakfast this morning. He’d like for you to join him in fifteen minutes.”
Nodding her head, Elizabeth smiled at the thought of spending more time with her fiancé. Surely, the man would only grow dearer to her as they spent more time together on the ranch.
As soon as Martha excused herself from the room, Elizabeth hurried to her feet and rushed to put on a fresh blouse and bright blue skirt.
Once she was dressed, Elizabeth made her way down to the dining room where Mason was already seated, a newspaper spread out on the table before him. Reaching for his cup of coffee, he looked up to see Elizabeth and hurried to his feet, rushing to her side to direct her toward her chair.
“Good morning, dear,” he said before greeting her with a soft kiss on the hand.
“I hope you slept well.”
Elizabeth followed him to the seat he had assigned to her beside his own and allowed Mason to pull her chair out for her.
Sitting next to him, Elizabeth soaked in every moment of their time together. Martha had fixed a delicious meal that Elizabeth enjoyed, though not as much as she enjoyed just being beside Mason. She tried to imagine a life like this where she’d get up every morning and have the opportunity to sit so near to the man she loved with all her heart.
This was such a welcome change from life with her uncle. Elizabeth could still hear his harsh words floating through her mind as she remembered him requesting that she eat with the slaves rather than at the table with him. An image of him flashed across her mind, and Elizabeth shook her head at the thought that the vile monster was now in control of her family’s beloved plantation.
No matter what issues might arise between herself and Mason, she knew she had to make this relationship work. There was no way she could go back to her uncle now. Plainsville was Elizabeth’s new home and it was the last chance she had.
As soon as she was finished, Mason suggested that they head out for a tour of the ranch.
Even though Elizabeth felt apprehensive about her new life on the western ranch, she relished the opportunity to learn more about the place that her fiancé called home.
Trekking out across the fields of waving grass, Elizabeth let Mason talk about the number of cattle that his ranch provided a home to, along with details about his cattle drives and how them to market. Although the topic was less than thrilling, just listening to Mason talk was enough to make Elizabeth happy.
“Now,” Mason said when they reached one of his barns. “I want to talk to you a little about what I expect from you now that you are living here.”
Something about his words hit Elizabeth the wrong way, but she chose to hold her tongue and listen first before complaining.
“I don’t mean to be harsh but I want you to know that there are rules. Rules have to exist on a ranch or else everything would fall apart. This is a working ranch, and everyone has their own share of responsibilities. Of course, you won’t be exempt from that.”
Listening to him, Elizabeth nodded her head, and wondered why she was struggling so much with the words he said.
“Firstly, Martha is getting older and she can no longer take care of the house. As my wife, I’ll expect you to do all the cooking and cleaning. Of course, I understand that this will seem a bit overwhelming at the start, but I’ll keep Martha on the staff until you are used to the work load. Aside from keeping the house, I’ll need you to occasionally bring water to the animals that are kept in the barn. This is a very easy job and will only need to be done when I’m away on a cattle drive.”
Tenderly placing a hand on Elizabeth’s elbow, he asked, “Does that seem fair?”
Elizabeth nodded her head. She had never thought about the responsibilities that might come with life on the ranch, but she now realized that it only made sense that she carried her share of the load.
“As long as I have someone to help me until I get used to it, I’ll be fine.”
Mason smiled reassuringly.
“And, most important of all, you are not to leave this ranch unless I go with you.”
Raising an eyebrow, Elizabeth tried to understand how this declaration made any sense. As if he could read her thoughts, Mason patted her on the arm to reassure her before speaking further.
“While Plainsville is a nice town, there are rough characters that hang out there. They come from the nearby mining camps and cause endless trouble. When they get drunk at the saloon, they can quickly become a danger.”
Giving her a soft stare, he added, “I just don’t want to lose you.”
As headstrong as Elizabeth tended to be, Mason’s words made her feel somewhat uncomfortable. However, having never had a man in her life, she had no idea what was appropriate and what wasn’t. At this point, all she knew was that Mason’s rules certainly were better than putting up with her abusive uncle.
“What about visiting my friend, Amy?” Elizabeth asked.
Mason’s dark brows knit together, and he studied her with some confusion. “Amy?”
“Yes, Amy Currents, the sheriff’s sister that rode the mail carriage with me. She and her husband own a ranch somewhere nearby.”
Mason’s expression didn’t soften any as he continued to study her. “You and Amy are friends?”
Elizabeth nodded and wondered if this was also a problem.
“Well, we don’t know each other very well, but we became close very quickly during the ride yesterday.”
Mason shrugged and pushed her question away with a simple response. “I’ll need to think about that. For now, you just need to focus on living here on the ranch and getting used to your place here. There will be plenty of time for friends later.”
Although Mason’s words weren’t very assuring, he hurried to lead her on to see the water troughs in the barns. Elizabeth couldn’t decide if he was trying to distract her from her questions or if he truly just wanted to show her the rest of his farm. Opting not to worry about it too much, she pushed her concern out of her thoughts and chose to focus on what her future husband was trying to show her.
Chapter Three
Clayton Ward leaned his elbows against the wooden table top and felt a smile cross his lips as he listened to his sister talking about something funny that one of the bottle calves had done earlier that day. Shaking his head to himself, he took another bite of the peach cobbler.
“You and those animals,” he remarked.
Glancing up at Amy’s husband, Bart, he playfully warned him. “Better watch out or my sister will have one of those calves curled up in bed with you all tonight. I can just see her saying they’re too cold to stay out in the barn and offering them a place at the table.”
“Oh, stop it, you silly.” Amy replied with a laugh as she reached across the table to give her brother a teasing slap on the head.
“I thought you’d get over all this foolishness with animals once you got married,” Clayton added as he scooped some of his desert up on his fork and prepared to put it in his mouth. “I thought that a husband would be enough for you, but it’s starting to look like you might have just married him so you’d get to spend time with his calves.”
Bart was belly laughing now,
doubling over in his chair as he slapped his hand against the top of the table.
“Oh,” Bart moaned. “You know your sister too well. Yes, I’ve often wondered if she didn’t just marry me so she could have my animals. I always thought a man could consider himself safe if a woman didn’t marry him for his money but it turns out my wife is more interested in things that go ‘mooo’!”
Sitting back in his seat, Clayton laughed as he watched his adopted sister and her husband chuckle together over the jokes that they were sharing.
Married only a year, Amy and Bart were the perfect pair. They had so much fun together and had an easy-going camaraderie that not many couples were fortunate enough to share. While Clayton loved spending time with his sister, he had to admit that scenes like tonight made him almost regret coming over. There was something about seeing her so happy that brought a sort of deep loneliness to his heart. At one point, he had hoped to share a similar relationship with Sylvia Johnson, but that was a situation that had been far too short lived.
Almost as if Amy could read his thoughts, she sobered and asked, “And when is my handsome brother going to find himself a girl of his own?”
Forcing himself to smile, Clayton shook his head and gave a cheeky reply.
“I guess when I get some animals that will attract her.”
Amy snarled playfully at him before sitting up.
“You’re a good-looking man, Clayton, and more importantly than that, you’re a good man. Any young woman should be happy to have you in her life.”
Unable to listen to his sister any longer, Clayton lifted a hand to silence her.
“Thanks for the effort, Amy, but I really don’t think a woman is what I need right now.”
Amy bit down on her lip and looked at the napkin that was lying in her lap. While Clayton hated to shush her, the pain of his previous breakup was still to fresh in his mind. It might have been two years since he and Sylvia called things off, but the hurt was still raw. He had determined he was going to stay single to give himself time to heal and Clayton intended to do just that, even if it meant being alone for the rest of his life.
