Prairie Song
Page 36
Cole instantly pulled her into his embrace and kissed her forehead. “Honey, you’re right. Don’t think about that.” Then, by her arms, he held her out away from him and met her waiting gaze. “It’s all settled, then. If that’s what you want, then that’s what we’ll do.”
Kate had never loved him more than she did at this moment. She closed the gap between them and laid her cheek against his shoulder. “You’re not angry with me?”
She felt Cole’s negative shake of his head against her forehead. “No, sweetheart. I’m not. What you’ve decided only makes good sense. I suppose his aim is to make up for what his brother did. I can respect the man for that. Besides, if he hadn’t stepped in when he did in the investigation of his brother’s and his sister-in-law’s deaths, you and I might not be standing here having this little talk.”
Knowing the truth of that, Kate hugged Cole tighter. “I was so scared, Cole. I sometimes … well, I still have bad dreams, like Lydia.”
“I know, baby. But I’m right here, and I’m never going to leave you. Ever.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “Even after I die, I’m going to come back and haunt you.”
Kate pulled back in mock horror. “Oh, please don’t. I just said I have nightmares.”
Cole chuckled at her. “Speaking of nightmares, I’ve got the wagon all packed. The food, the blanket for the picnic. It’s all in the buckboard. All I need is my family. But first—” He held Kate out at arm’s length, whistling his pleasure. “Look at you, Kate Youngblood, in your new Sunday-go-to-meeting dress.”
Suddenly shy and embarrassed by her own husband’s attention, Kate looked down at herself and fussed with the flower-sprigged cotton skirt. It was the prettiest dress she’d ever owned, and she was so proud of it. But she’d never learned to preen, so she simply asked, “Do you like me in it?”
“Only slightly less than I like you out of it.”
Pretending shock at such a decadent turn of phrase, Kate playfully smacked at his chest, hitting the shiny sheriff’s badge affixed to his black vest. She worried about him; his job was such a dangerous one. But still, every day she thanked God for this opportunity for Cole to do good with the one thing he knew—a gun. Instead of taking lives now, he was keeping the peace. And speaking of that: “Cole, I’m afraid I have a bit of tattling to do.”
He adopted a mock ferocious expression and tugged at his gunbelt. “Which one? And what did he do?”
Kate pursed her lips and planted her hands at her waist. “Well, it’s Joey. I don’t know what to do. I caught him getting ready to shave just now.”
Cole glanced up the empty stairwell and laughed. “That boy, I swear.” Then he focused on Kate and, putting his arm around her shoulders, walked them toward the back door and the waiting wagon. Over his shoulder, he shouted up the stairs to Joey. “Let’s go, boy. You can’t keep the ladies waiting all day.”
Kate tugged on Cole’s vest. “What are we going to do about him?”
Cole shrugged. “I’ll talk to him. I still need to talk to him about chewing tobacco, anyway.”
Kate stopped, forcing Cole to do the same. “He chews tobacco, too? Cole, he’s eight years old. And he cusses. I’m worried about him.”
“I can tell.” Cole started them again toward the wide-open back door. “But luckily he’s sweet on Meredith Jacobs, from what Willy says. So she’s our best hope with him.”
“She is? How?”
“Well, it’s been my experience that the love of a good woman can completely turn around the life of even the hardest of men.” Cole grinned down at Kate. “So maybe Meredith can do for Joey what you did for me.”
Basking in Cole’s love and praise, and feeling suddenly playful herself, Kate turned her face up to the only man she would ever love and quipped, “You mean make him the sheriff in a new territory?”
Cole laughed with her as they stepped outside, out into the warm sunshine of a beautiful day in Oklahoma. Only to have Joey slam the door behind them and, with Kate’s fresh-cut flowers from the parlor fisted in his hand, breeze by them and head for the loaded wagon. Only to see Willy sitting quietly in the wagon’s bed, the crude fishing pole he’d made himself in his hand. Only to see Lydia standing defiantly in the back of the wagon—between Willy and, of course, the ribbon-bedecked, tongue-lolling Kitty.
Kate sighed and Cole shook his head as they made their way to the buckboard. Cole handed Kate in and then stepped around the mule team to climb on board himself. Sorting out all the reins, he set the team on the road for Guthrie. As they passed through the opened gate that signaled the boundary of their property, Kate’s heart constricted … as it always did. A tear came to her eye … as it always did. But through it all, she smiled and blew a kiss at the hand-lettered sign she’d made a couple of months ago and Cole had nailed up for her on a gate post.
Melissa’s Acres, it read … named after the little girl Kate never got to hold. But would always love.
St. Martin’s Paperbacks titles by Cheryl Anne Porter
Hannah’s Promise
Jacey’s Reckless Heart
Seasons of Glory
Captive Angel
Prairie Song
PASSIONATE PRAISE FOR CHERYL ANNE PORTER
PRAIRIE SONG
“Cheryl Anne Porter writes with the same spirited individuality that tamed this land. Her star is on the rise!”
—Debra Cowan, an author of the anthology Every Breath You Take
“Heartwarming and tender. Cheryl’s best book yet!”
—Georgina Gentry, author of Apache Tears
“In the grand style of Edna Ferber and LaVyrle Spencer, Cheryl Porter has crafted a sweeping tale of passion and betrayal during the Oklahoma land run. A must read for history buffs and true romantics at heart!”
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CAPTIVE ANGEL
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—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“CAPTIVE ANGEL grips you from the get-go and never lets up. A top-notch romance from a top-notch writer!”
—Romantic Times (4 1/2 Stars, Top Pick)
“CAPTIVE ANGEL will captivate the hearts of western romance fans … The story line is exciting, romantic, and loaded with who-done-it that enhances a warm novel.”
—Harriet Klausner, Painted Rock Reviews
CHERYL ANNE PORTER
Critically acclaimed, best-selling author Cheryl Anne Porter is the 1997 winner of the National Readers’ Choice Award for Hannah’s Promise, a title also nominated by booksellers as the Best Love and Laughter Romance of 1997, along with Jacey’s Reckless Heart, nominated by reviewers as Best Historical Adventure of 1997. Before that, in 1994, Cheryl’s title Kansas Wildfire was a National Readers’ Choice Award finalist.
In 1992, Cheryl sold the first novel she ever wrote. Since then, she’s penned a total of 13 books with stories ranging from her big, gritty Westerns to her light-hearted contemporary romantic comedies. She also teaches fiction writing and is a much sought-after conference speaker, in addition to her personal and television appearances on behalf of romance fiction.
A recent transplant from Oklahoma, by way of Savannah, Georgia, Cheryl now makes her home in Tampa, Florida.
PRAIRIE SONG
Copyright
© 2000 by Cheryl Anne Porter.
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ISBN: 0-312-97291-1
St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / May 2000
St. Martin’s Paperbacks are published by St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
eISBN 9781466875838
First eBook edition: June 2014