Faye Favors a Foreman: A Historical Western Romance (Brides with Grit Book 11)
Page 7
He stared up at the partly cloudy sky, watching a hawk glide through the air, watching for prey the bird could swoop down on unexpectedly for its next meal.
If Isaac could pull off his plan to surprise Cate, he was as intelligent as the hawk.
“What can we do to help?” Rusty asked, not sure he wanted to get sucked into planning the event, but he’d do whatever needed to be done for his boss.
“The main thing is to get everyone in town on Saturday night without Cate suspecting anything. I’ll take her for a buggy ride before we drive into town. After we leave, you two need to get the family to town while we’re gone. We’ll follow a bit later and meet you there.”
“Who’s seeing to the arrangements in town if Sarah and Faye aren’t part of the planning?” Marcus asked.
“They’re busy with the children, so I can’t rely on their help. I’ll ride into town this afternoon and tell Pastor and Kaitlyn to proceed. We already talked about arrangements while Cate was gone. They’ll spread the word around town and country for people to be in the church before seven o’clock. A reception will be at the Paulson Hotel. Kaitlyn’s church women group will take care of everything,” Isaac assured them.
“If the Peashooter Society is in charge, it will be done,” Rusty said with a laugh. Even though Kaitlyn Reagan was the pastor’s wife and a pillar of the community, she and her friends had been known for some unconventional, and sometimes slightly incredible stunts in the community.
Many women carried small firearms, otherwise known as peashooters, in their reticules for protection. Rusty knew the women pulled their guns on Darcy Shepard’s ex-husband when he came to town to snatch their son, Tate. It was even during a Sunday church service.
“Do Sarah and Faye carry peashooters in their reticules too?” Rusty asked out loud.
Isaac and Marcus turned to look at Rusty, as if he’d lost his mind—or at least was not paying attention.
“What are you talking about, Rusty?” Isaac asked as he turned in his saddle to stare at Rusty.
“I was thinking of the times Kaitlyn Reagan has used her firearm as a deterrent to danger. Just wondering if the younger women were armed too,” Rusty shrugged.
“With eight kids? Sarah better not have a pistol that a child could get ahold of,” Isaac noted.
Faye didn’t have a gun let alone a reticule when she arrived at the ranch. Isaac had bought her clothing and such after her arrival, but Rusty didn’t think a gun was part of the supplies.
“I wonder if Faye knows how to shoot a firearm,” Rusty asked.
Isaac turned to Rusty. “Why are you thinking of that when I’m talking about my wedding?”
“Talking about the women’s group made me think of dangers in town they’ve taken care of…and then I thought of what Cate went through with Felix. I’m sure Sarah is equipped to defend the family, but I doubt Faye is,” Rusty ended with a rush of words.
“You have a good point. Please take the time to teach Faye how to care for and shoot a gun, Rusty,” Isaac told him as they stopped above the herd grazing in the valley below.
Rusty nodded, pleased he’d be spending time with Faye while she learned to shoot.
“That’s a sight I never get tired of seeing. A large herd of healthy cattle,” Isaac sighed as he shifted in his saddle.
“Remember the first months when the Longhorns arrived, Rusty? A bunch of skinny, wild animals. It took a string of hard-working horses and men to get them to settle down after their trip up from Texas.”
“Yep. I remember a few disasters of pissed off momma cows and greenhorn cowboys thinking they could get between the cow and her baby.” Luckily no one was ever killed, but there were plenty of stories to tell around the campfire those early days.
Rusty was young and ready for the excitement that first year on the ranch. After surviving the War Between the States, he was free to do as he pleased. Following Isaac to the plains of Kansas was better than settling down by his family at the time.
But now, many friends, soon to include Isaac, were enjoying the company of a wife and family. Rusty rubbed his chest, suddenly feeling an ache of loneliness.
“Because Cate has mentioned she’d love to see her sister again, we’ll travel to her sister’s home in California for our honeymoon. We’ll leave right after the wedding. I’m sure the two of you can handle the herd and hands while we’re gone.”
Marcus glanced at him as Rusty had been here from the beginning of the ranch, and Marcus had only been here since spring. It felt good to have Isaac’s nephew defer to him.
“Between the two of us, we’ll oversee the ranch for you. I think I’m more worried about keeping all the children corralled with Cate being gone than the cattle,” Rusty answered truthfully.
Isaac let out a surprised laugh, but Marcus nodded in agreement with Rusty.
“I don’t know what we would have done without Cate that first month. Three newborns and five grieving children caused more sleepless nights than any I ever experienced in the army. But, it’s been worth it. I love every one of those kids as if they were actually born to Sarah and me,” Marcus shook his head in wonder.
Rusty realized Isaac was staring at him.
“What’s on your mind, Isaac?”
“I thought it might be time for you to settle down with a wife too. You get along well with Faye and Violet. Any interest there?”
Rusty lowered his head, so his hat rim covered his blushed face. “Maybe. What would you say about that?”
“Faye’s had a hard start in life, but she’s a good person underneath. She’s rough around the edges, but Faye’s learning to love and protect her baby, and Sarah’s family too.”
“Do I have your permission to court her, if I decide to?” Rusty asked, then held his breath for Isaac’s answer. Was he really thinking of Faye as possibly his future wife?
“I don’t know, Rusty. I’d think long and hard about courting Faye after you teach her how to shoot,” Marcus interjected. “How Faye and Sarah can clash is scary, and I’d hate for Faye to use you as target practice if she got riled.”
Isaac’s laughter rolled over the prairie again, but Rusty and Marcus didn’t join in. The two women could catfight like, well, like two mad cats. At least they made up just as quick when a child needed their attention.
“If you think you can handle Faye, for a lifetime remember, you have more than my permission and blessing to court her. You have my thanks, and sympathy too.”
“That’s not very encouraging, Isaac,” Rusty called out as Isaac spun his horse around to travel back to the ranch.
“Just promise you won’t marry Faye until Cate and I are back from our honeymoon. I want to walk Faye down the aisle, and pass her off to you,” Isaac called to Rusty.
It was good to see his boss in such a good mood, but their conversations had stuffed Rusty’s brain full of ideas, worries…and wants.
Was Faye the right person for his future wife? She’d sparked his interest when she showed up at the Cross C, all vim, vinegar, and scared to death. Faye swallowed her pride and exposed her shameful past to find shelter for her baby.
And if Rusty hadn’t fallen in love with Faye yet, he sure had with sweet baby Violet. But was that reason enough to ask Faye to be his wife?
Chapter 11
“I’m sorry, Sarah, but you’ll eventually come to terms with it, just as I have.”
Faye hesitated before she walked into the kitchen because Cate was talking to Sarah about their father’s sins again. Sarah didn’t share with Faye what their father had written in his letter to her, but Sarah’s demeanor had been sad and somber since she read the letter yesterday.
Although Faye has nothing to do with his actions, years before Faye was even born, she still felt responsible because her arrival at the ranch had caused all this pain to erupt for her sister and family.
“Would you love your babies any less if they had been a product of a violation against you, their mother?” Cate asked.
“Then you understand why I, and Moses, loved you no matter how you were conceived. That’s how I came to terms with it, Sarah. A child is a blessing, no matter how it joined your family.”
Faye leaned against the wall, thinking of Cate’s words. Faye had been ashamed of Violet because of how she’d been conceived. And Faye had ignored her baby, knowing Violet could be put in the town’s orphanage at any moment. That’s why she, and other mothers in the brothel, never named their babies. It was the preservation of their sanity.
Faye kissed the top of Violet’s downy head, so glad they were together, even if it caused Sarah unwanted pain. Hopefully, over time, Sarah would forgive Faye for her actions. It was to keep Violet, and Sarah could understand that simple fact.
Faye had no choice but to enter the kitchen because Cate and Sarah could hear Violet whining in the hallway. Violet had grown accustomed to drinking her milk bottle at noon and was about to demand it with her full lung power.
Of course, the triplets answered back with their own fussing. The babies in their baskets were already lined up on the kitchen table ready to be fed when Faye walked into the kitchen.
“Sounds like it’s dinner time,” Faye said as she walked over to the pan on the stove and pulled a glass baby bottle from it.
“Test it first—” Sarah warned her before Faye cut her off.
“I know to test a drop of milk on my wrist first, Sarah,” Faye answered back while sitting down and testing the heat of the milk. Violet swung her little fists in the air, impatiently waiting for the bottle’s liquid.
Faye smiled as Violet sighed with contentment when she took her first swallow of milk. The extra nourishment had done wonders for Violet’s size and temperament. She was starting to look and act like a plump, happy baby now, instead of the skinny, sickly baby who barely survived in the brothel.
“I’m going to have to make Violet’s clothes bigger than I’d planned with her growing so much,” Faye said to get the conversation going in the kitchen again. “Thanks again for the material you brought from Topeka, Cate. I appreciate it.”
“You’re welcome, Faye. Violet will need dresses for now, but I bet she’ll grow into Maisie’s outgrown clothes before you know it,” Cate answered.
All of Sarah’s daughters had pretty clothes. Would Violet get to wear them when Maisie, Molly, and Maggie outgrew them? Her child would be set for clothing for years to come.
“You dress the girls in pretty dresses, Sarah. Could Violet wear the clothes next when they don’t fit the girls anymore?” Faye held her breath after asking as she wasn’t sure what Sarah would say.
“Of course. Marcus and I don’t plan for more children, so all their clothes will be used by the next in line or given away,” Sarah replied as she moved Mark to her shoulder to burp.
“I’ll help you with sewing, Faye…while I’m here,” Cate said with a slight tilt to her voice.
Faye met Sarah’s widened eyes for a second. They knew about Isaac’s pending proposal. Did Cate have an inkling of his plan?
“Oh, I’m sure you’re both sworn to secrecy, but I know Isaac will propose to me again soon. And I will accept this time. I’ve hinted I want to take a honeymoon trip too,” Cate said, looking at her and Sarah for a confirmation of her suspensions.
Faye bent over Violet, studying the baby sucking on her bottle instead of answering Cate.
“Well, I hope it happens soon, Momma. You two deserve happiness together,” Sarah said while feeding Mark and not looking at her mother either.
“Thank you, Sarah. It means a lot to me that you approve of our marriage.”
“Why? Papa, uh, Moses, is gone and you’re still young enough to marry again.”
“Yes, I am. I’m at a different stage in my life, and this marriage will be about spoiling grandchildren, and traveling when we want to leave the ranch.”
“Did you ever wish you’d married Isaac instead of Moses, to begin with?” Faye asked what was on her mind before she had time to think about it.
“No. Moses was a good man, father, and husband. I’ll always treasure my memories of those years, but life goes on.”
“What about you, Sarah? Are you happy you married Marcus when you could have married Ethan?” Faye asked.
Sarah raised an eyebrow of question at Faye, but she answered anyway. “I could have married Ethan, and we would have had a good life together,” Sarah said after she thought of it a minute, “even though his mother would have tested my sanity.”
“Amen to that,” Cate muttered.
“But when I met Marcus, I realized I didn’t love Ethan like I should. It took me up to the last moment at the altar to acknowledge it though,” Sarah confessed as she laid Mark back in his basket.
“What about you, Faye? Now that you’re free to live your own life, would you like to marry?” Sarah asked, probably hoping Faye would move out of her home eventually.
"I'm just coming to grips with that thought, Sarah. Everything was decided for me without my consent before escaping to the ranch. Some nights I still wake up thinking I'm back in my brothel room with a man groping me. It's always turned out to be a child or a puppy poking me though."
"Sorry for my children's interruptions, Faye," Sarah muttered.
"No, it's all right. I'd rather have the little ones wake me up to say they need to pee than wet their beds and we have to wash the bedding later," Faye waved her sister's apologies away.
Cate's laugh turned into a snort. "Now you know why I'm ready to marry again and travel. Enjoy these messy, but endearing years, girls, because the children will be grown and gone from home before you know it."
Faye looked at Violet, realizing how fast she would grow and change over the next years. Before Faye was ready, Violet would be a grown woman, age eighteen like Faye was now.
What would be best for Violet's future? A father figure to protect her, and teach her right from wrong, popped in Faye's mind.
If Faye's father had been a part of her daily life, it would have turned out so differently. Faye wouldn't have gone through the pain and suffering she endured, first with her grandmother, and then at the brothel. Both situations were entirely different, but both lacked love and protection.
"At this point, I'd only marry a man for the protection and support he could give Violet," Faye answered Sarah. "I've had my fill of men to last me a while, thank you very much."
"You'll change your mind when the right man comes along," Cate assured her. "I've been lucky enough to have two wonderful husbands, Moses, and I assume Isaac when he gets around to proposing."
Faye caught Sarah's eyes again, who was trying not to hint about Saturday evening's plans. If the family could pull off Isaac's surprise for Cate, it would be a miracle.
“If I decide to marry, who would you suggest I choose? I met several men at church, but I don’t know if they were serious prospects for marriage, or just wanting to crawl in my drawers,” Faye asked.
“Why would a man want to crawl in your drawers, Aunt Faye?” Maggie asked innocently.
The women looked at Maggie in surprise. Cate raised her eyebrow at Faye to answer the little girl’s question.
Faye could feel her face burn red with embarrassment. She had to learn to watch what she said around the children. She wasn’t living with a group of soiled doves anymore.
“Uh, crawl in my dresser drawers, if we were playing hide and seek in my room,” Faye rushed to say the first thing that came to her mind.
“But a man wouldn’t fit in a dresser drawer, Aunt Faye. That’s silly,” Maggie answered back.
“Yes, it was silly to say, because a man could only get his arms in a drawer, not…the rest of him to hide from view,” Faye explained, thinking of the men who had gotten their hands in her drawers.
“I think your best prospect is living nearby, Faye,” Cate said
with a slight nod to the east.
What? Who? Why was Cate pointing her head toward…Rusty’s cabin?
Because the older children were listening to every word, they said.
“Rusty doesn’t have a wife,” Maggie piped up. “You could marry him.”
“That’s true, Maggie, but you do not say anything about marriage to Rusty,” Sarah warned her daughter. “The adults decide to court and marry who they want.”
But Faye saw the gleam in Maggie’s eyes. The children were close to Rusty and Faye wouldn’t put Maggie past spilling hints to the foreman.
“I don’t think Rusty would be interested in me, Maggie. I have Violet, and he might not want to be responsible for a wife and child,” Faye tried to stop Maggie from getting any ideas.
“Rusty would be the person to talk to about possible husbands though,” Cate continued. “He knows the single men in the area and would know their backgrounds. You’ve already met a few men after church that I’d approve of.”
“Give yourself time to settle into the community, Faye. You’re welcome to stay at the Cross C for as long as you want,” Sarah assured Faye.
Sarah’s words eased Faye’s worry about the future. The house was big enough to allow her and Violet to live here, and her sister did need help with her children, especially while the triplets were so young.
But after being part of Sarah and Marcus’ family life, Faye yearned for a loving husband and a stable home. Could the Cross C foreman be a possible candidate?
Chapter 12
"She said yes!" Isaac yelled as he and Cate walked up the church aisle. The congregation, already seated inside the church, laughed and clapped with Isaac's announcement.
Unbeknown to Cate, Isaac, along with his friends in town, had planned the evening's activities—their wedding and reception—knowing that Cate would say yes to Isaac's wedding proposal, even though it was just a few minutes ago outside the church.