Winning the Mail-Order Bride

by Lauri Robinson

  “I’m going to take these two back to my shop for a few hours,” he said. “I have some work I need done, and they are mighty fine workers. We’ll be back to see you after a bit.”

  Afraid if she opened her eyes she’d start crying all over again, Fiona nodded. “Thank you,” she whispered. Then, knowing she had to for their sakes, she opened her eyes and mustered up a smile for her sons. “You two be good.”

  “They always are,” Brett said.

  She nodded again, and then, wanting them to know how she felt, she said, “I love you, boys.”

  “We love you too, Momma,” Rhett said as Brett picked him up again.

  “Yeah, we do, Ma,” Wyatt said as he patted her arm. “We love you.”

  A strangling sigh escaped as she watched them walk back through the curtain.

  “They’ll be fine,” Maggie said, stepping up beside the table. “Brett’s a good man. One of the best.”

  “I know,” Fiona answered. That was also what made her so sad. Knowing how good of a man he was. And knowing she’d made the biggest mistake of her life when she’d agreed to marry Josiah.

  * * *

  Brett was glad to see the crowd had dispersed as he left the doctor’s office, carrying Rhett and holding on to Wyatt’s hand. The boys were worried. So was he. But Doc had said getting bit in the leg was the best place to get bit if you had to get bit. That it was the farthest away from the heart. Brett hoped that was true. He’d known plenty of folks who’d lived through a snake bite. Adults almost always did. However, most adults didn’t have hearts as big as Fiona’s.

  “What do you need us to do for you, Brett?” Wyatt asked as they walked toward his shop.

  “Well,” he said, giving himself time to come up with something, “you two have seen my horses, Hickory and Birch?”

  “Yes,” Rhett answered. “Which is which?”

  “Birch has the white blaze down his face, and he loves carrots. He’ll do most anything for one. I just got a batch delivered to my place this morning and haven’t had a chance to give either Birch or Hickory one.” John Benet had brought a bag of them to the shop this morning, his excuse for coming to town when he’d heard about Josiah ordering himself a bride. “I’m hoping you two can do that for me.”

  “We sure can,” Wyatt answered. “I’ll make sure Rhett doesn’t get too close to them.”

  “You don’t have to worry about that,” Brett answered. “Those two horses are as tame as baby bunnies.”

  “Could we ride them?” Rhett asked. “I’ve never ridden a horse afore.”

  “Sure,” Brett said, knowing the boys would be perfectly safe with Hickory and Birch. “Just lead them to the fence with a carrot and climb on. They’ll walk you around the corral until your rump is sore.”

  “My rump won’t get sore,” Wyatt said. “I’ve been on a horse before.”

  Brett smiled at the boy and nodded, but his attention had been snagged by something else. The crowd gathered around his shop. There had to be twice as many folks as this morning. Including women.

  He set Rhett down. The boys had already seen enough people squabbling today. “You two run around the backside of the building. You’ll find the bag of carrots in the lean-to.”

  Wyatt took a hold of his little brother’s hand. “I’ll keep an eye on him.”

  “I know you will,” Brett answered. “You’re the best boys I’ve ever known.”

  The boys were both grinning as they took off running. Brett wasn’t. From the looks of things, this crowd was more worked up than the one this morning.

  “It’s deplorable, I tell you. Simply deplorable!”

  That was Otis’s wife, Martha, talking. She had the dressmaking shop in town but obviously wasn’t sewing today.

  Spying him, she rushed forward. “Oh, Brett, how is Mrs. Goldberg? And where are those adorable sons of hers?”

  “Doc says she’ll be fine,” Brett answered. “And her boys are ’round back with my horses.”

  “Oh, thank heavens,” Martha said, pressing her hands to her chest. “The poor thing. How frightening.” Whipping her head around so fast her red curls bounced, Martha pointed toward several other women. “I’ve gathered quilting club members to nurse her around the clock. We’ll take turns, but we can’t do it in that house. It’s deplorable. There’s nothing more in that house than a few belongings and a single bed. One bed for all three of them.”

  “Josiah should be horsewhipped,” another woman said. “Expecting a woman and two children to live there with nothing. There’s not even a stove to heat water.”

  “Our town is better than that,” Joyce Chadwick said. “If he’d have told us, we’d have gathered the things she needs.”

  “Josiah didn’t want anyone to know,” Don Carlson said. “He was trying to keep her a secret.”

  “Some fine mayor, that is,” Jules said.

  Brett had to agree with both of them and turned to Wally. “Where is Josiah?”

  “Over at the sheriff’s office,” Wally answered. “I think Baniff is trying to keep him from getting tarred and feathered.”

  “He can’t keep him there all day,” Angus said, stepping up beside Wally. “Unless he arrests him.”

  “He didn’t do anything worthy of getting arrested,” Brett said.

  “Are you sticking up for him, Blackwell?” Jules asked.

  “No,” Brett answered. “I don’t agree with what he’s done, but he hasn’t broken any laws.” Figuring someone needed to be the voice of reason, he stepped into the center of the crowd. “Now listen here, folks. It’s F—Mrs. Goldberg and her sons we need to think about now, not Josiah. It’s mighty kind of you women to step up to help. She’s going to need looking after. I have a couple spare beds in my place, so we can—”

  “That’ll be perfect, Brett. We can move her to your place,” Martha said. “There’ll be room there for the children and Mrs. Goldberg.”

  The women all started nodding and agreeing.

  Brett shook his head. “I meant we can move the beds—”

  “We’ll need more than beds, and there isn’t time to start moving everything she’s going to need. She can’t stay at the doctor’s place all day,” Martha said. “He might need the space for another emergency.”

  Shaking his head again, Brett said, “There aren’t that many emergencies—”

  “There might be,” Martha insisted. “We’ll go get things ready at your place. When Doc says she can be moved, Otis will help you bring her home. You should use your freight wagon so she can lie down. When Russ Perkins got bit last month, he couldn’t walk for more than a week. I imagine it will be that long for her too.”

  The women started talking among themselves, and Brett figured interrupting wouldn’t get him anywhere. He turned to Wally.

  “You do have four bedrooms,” Wally said.

  “And a fine stove,” Angus offered.

  Brett sighed. “Josiah won’t like it.” He sure wouldn’t if the tables were turned.

  “We’ll have a chance to hear what he thinks,” Angus said. “He and the sheriff are walking this way.”

  As impossible as it seemed, Brett felt a bit sorry for Josiah as the group of women started heckling him even before he and the sheriff arrived.

  “Ladies! Ladies!” the sheriff shouted. “Calm down! Just calm down.”

  “Have you seen the house he put that woman and her children in?” Martha asked. “It’s deplorable. Simply deplorable! It’s empty except for one bed.”

  “It was only for a few days,” Josiah said. “Until they move in with me.”

  “And where will they all sleep at your place?” Jules asked. “You ain’t got but one bed yourself.”

  “I do declare, Mayor,” Angus said in his gentlemanly way, “that you should have
made arrangements for Mrs. Goldberg and her children to stay at the hotel, like you did the other brides.”

  “Yeah,” others agreed.

  “Why didn’t you?” someone asked.

  “Because the hotel was full. The brides were still staying there,” Josiah said.

  “How long has this woman been here?” Jules demanded as he stomped forward to stand directly in front of Josiah.

  Brett stepped between the two of them. “Mrs. Goldberg arrived the day of the weddings.”

  “So the hotel wasn’t full,” Jules said.

  “I wasn’t exactly sure of when she’d arrive.”

  “And I’m thirty-four,” Angus said drily.

  Brett had to agree with Angus’s sarcasm. Josiah was lying. He’d known exactly when Fiona would arrive. “Well, what’s done is done,” Brett said. “Mrs. Goldberg and her children need a place to stay now. One that will fit their needs as she heals.”

  “They can stay at my place,” Josiah said.

  “No, they can’t,” Martha insisted, pushing both Brett and Jules aside. “The quilting club members will be taking care of her, and we aren’t going to be trekking up and down the steps at your place. Furthermore, as Mr. Carmichael just said, you only have one bed at your place. That’s not enough room. Now, it’s already been settled. She’ll be brought to Mr. Blackwell’s place. By the time she’s fully recovered, I...we...everyone in town...expect you to have appropriate accommodations fully prepared for Mrs. Goldberg and her children.”

  As if her word finalized everything, Martha waved a hand. “Follow me, ladies, we need to get Mr. Blackwell’s house ready.”

  As the women started to follow his wife, Otis stepped forward. “I believe a council meeting is in order, Josiah, don’t you?”

  “I already told—”

  “Things have changed, Josiah,” Otis interrupted. “Unless you’re prepared to take on several angry men on your own, I suggest we call a meeting posthaste.”

  “I agree with Otis, Josiah,” the sheriff said. “You need to get this issue under control before I have to take action.”

  After much mumbling and many snide remarks, Josiah agreed, and when Otis stated the meeting was open to any community members, the men followed him up the street. Wally and Angus lagged behind.

  “Aren’t you going?” Wally asked Brett.

  “No,” Brett answered. “Wyatt and Rhett need looking after.”

  Wally nodded and glanced up the road. “Care if I go?”

  “Go ahead,” Brett answered.

  “Thanks, boss. I’ll fill you on everything that’s said.”

  Brett figured as much but wasn’t sure he wanted to know what was or wasn’t said.

  Angus walked over to a bench by the door. “I retrieved these things from the river. I’ll walk over and give them to the ladies.”

  Glad someone had thought of Fiona’s boots and laundry, Brett said, “Thanks, Angus.”

  “Then I’ll mosey over to the hotel for that ham I was going to get earlier. Would you like me to bring some back for you and the lads?”

  Lunch had been the last thing on Brett’s mind, but figuring the boys were hungry, he replied, “I’d appreciate that, Angus. I’m sure Rhett and Wyatt are hungry.”

  “Young lads always are,” Angus answered, already on his way toward Brett’s house.

  There was a steady line of women carrying things from Fiona’s house to his. Brett let out a long slow sigh as he watched the stream. Fiona would need a place to recuperate, but having her in the house would be tough. He already cared more about her than he should. Soon she and her sons would be Josiah’s family, not his.

  She deserved better than Josiah. Practically every single man in town would marry her given the chance. And they’d have made sure she’d had what she needed right from the start. Like a washtub so she wouldn’t have been down at the river.

  He could have prevented that himself. Forced her to use his washtub rather than go to the river. He should have insisted more firmly when she refused this morning. Hadn’t because he respected her answer and her reason for not wanting to use his things. That he could understand.

  What he couldn’t understand was this whole new level of frustration inside him. Why he’d taken to someone so quickly. Or wished so hard things were different.

  Chapter Eleven

  It might have been the snake bite, or the bitter medicine, causing the odd sensation of being separated from her body. Fiona heard people talking, asking her questions, and she even answered them. It was almost as if she was in some sort of dream. That was what she wanted. To dream. Actually, to sleep. She was so tired. And dizzy. Everything spun, even when she didn’t open her eyes. Spun until she couldn’t tell where things began or ended.

  It was nice to no longer be lying on the hard table at the doctor’s office. The mattress beneath her now was soft and so comfortable she didn’t want to move. Her leg hurt and throbbed, but not as strongly as before. Or maybe her sleepiness dulled the pain.

  How Brett kept appearing before her, telling her the boys were fine was a great relief. He’d make sure they were taken care of, fed and watched over. For the first time ever, she wasn’t the only one caring about them. Brett was so kind and thoughtful. And handsome. So very handsome.

  Maggie was near too. As were other women. Fiona couldn’t remember all their names. Didn’t even try.

  When Brett appeared again and told her to go to sleep, she trusted him so much she gave in and, even with the room spinning around her, let the sleepiness overcome her, knowing he would be in her dreams.

  He was. The four of them were fishing. He and the boys were laughing. When something attempted to draw her out of a slumber she didn’t want to leave, she tried to ignore it until she realized the laughter wasn’t only in her dream.

  She pulled her eyes open and then shut them again when nothing was familiar. Other than the laughing. She pulled her eyes open again and scanned the surroundings more thoroughly.

  Nothing was recognizable, other than the gray-and-black plaid shirt hanging on a hook. It was Brett’s. The one he’d worn during their picnic. Examining the room more closely, she questioned why she appeared to be in his bedroom. How? The throbbing in her leg registered then.

  The snake bite. Brett had carried her, but it was to the doctor’s house. Josiah had been there. Yelling. Then a wagon, and women. Several women. And Brett telling her to sleep.

  The fading sunlight filtering in through the window said it had to be evening. Surely she hadn’t slept the entire day away. Yet she couldn’t remember more than bits and pieces, and pain.

  She tried harder, and harder, until the snippets formed a full memory, that of the doctor digging a fang out of her leg and then applying a poultice.

  Now fully awake, she pulled aside the blanket. From the knee down, her leg was twice the size it normally was. The poultice was held in place by loose gauze. That was when she noticed the nightgown. Her nightgown. She’d been wearing a dress this morning. Her heart started to race. How? When? Who?

  The door opened slightly, and a vaguely familiar face peered around the edge.

  “Oh, you are awake,” the redheaded woman said. “I was afraid all that laughter might wake you. Those boys of yours are so delightful. They’ve had us in stitches.”

  Fiona waited until the woman walked closer before she whispered, “How did I get here? What am I doing here?”

  “Oh, sweetie, the men brought you here. Brett and my husband, Otis.” Patting her hand, the woman continued, “You don’t remember?”

  Fiona shook her head.

  “That’s because you were sleeping off and on. It’s the medicine. I’m Martha Taylor. I own the dress shop here in Oak Grove, and my husband, Otis, owns the barbershop. Here, let me help you sit up a bit.”r />
  With the other woman’s assistance, Fiona soon had two pillows propping her into a sitting position. She was still groggy and sore, but more aware.

  “I’m sorry,” Fiona said, still trying to make sense of things. “But why am I here? At Brett’s house?”

  “Because we couldn’t take care of you at that house you were staying in. There was only one bed.”

  “I know, but—”

  “I belong to the quilting club, and all of the members, well, those who live nearby, will be taking care of you until you are up and about again. We couldn’t do that in the other house. Brett has plenty of room for you and the boys, so here we are.”

  “Are you feeling better, Ma?”

  Fiona smiled as Rhett sheepishly slipped into the room. “Yes, I am.”

  “Good!” He bolted across the room. “We played with Kade and Wiley today, and I rode a horse and fed it carrots. Birch really likes them. Hickory likes apples better. And we ate the fish we caught. It was good. And we’re gonna spend the night here with Brett. We’ll each have our own bed. Kade and Wiley each have their own bed. They live at the hotel. They ate fish too. We showed them where Brett buried the fish guts, but we didn’t dig them up. Brett said he didn’t think we should do that, on account that they might stink or something.”

  “I’m sure they might, and I’m glad that you didn’t dig them up,” Fiona said as he stopped to take a breath. “It sounds like you had a fun day.” Her gaze went then to the doorway, where Wyatt was pushing the door open a bit wider.

  “We kept checking in on you,” Wyatt said. “Mrs. Taylor kept watch over you all day.”

  Fiona smiled at him and at Mrs. Taylor, who’d waved him to walk closer. “There was nothing for you to worry about.”

  “That’s what Brett kept telling us,” Rhett said. “Didn’t you, Brett?”

  Air snagged in her throat as she glanced to the open door. Brett filled the entire doorway. Fiona pressed a hand against her chest, at how hard her heart beat. The sight of a man had never affected her the way he did.

  “These two are a couple of hard workers,” Brett said, gesturing at her sons. “With their help, I got twice as much done as I usually do.”