Mr. Pritchard looked at William oddly. “But you and your family were Yankees.”
“We were Texans first and foremost. I still am. I never wanted to go to war for either side,” William answered honestly. “I think we could have better resolved things in a peaceful manner.”
Pritchard considered this for a moment. “But your pa—”
“My pa is dead. My brother, too. This war has taken everything from me that I intend to give. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to speak with the preacher.”
They walked from the store in silence, the children trailing behind them. Hannah couldn’t help but wonder what they were going to do about the ranch and the raiding Indians.
“You sure got quiet all of a sudden. You haven’t changed your mind, have you?” William asked, escorting her toward the hotel.
“Changed my mind?” Hannah asked, shaking her head. “About what?”
He laughed. “About marrying me.”
“Hardly. I’ve got plans for you, Mr. Barnett.”
This made William pause in his steps and eye her seriously. He leaned close and whispered, “And I have plans for you, Miss Dandridge.”
His low husky voice sent a delicious shiver through Hannah’s body. Words caught in her throat and left her unable to speak. It didn’t matter, however. She knew he understood.
28
Much to their frustration, Hannah and Will found their wedding delayed by three days. The preacher was sick and unable to perform the ceremony, and because of the threat of Indian attacks, no one wanted to travel back to Dallas. Marietta Terry thought it a very good thing, however. She immediately set to work with Juanita to create a wedding gown for Hannah.
“Every young woman deserves to get married in a lovely dress,” Marietta declared as she helped Hannah into the new creation.
Hannah marveled at the beautiful white silk gown. The style was quite simple with its very full unembellished skirt and separate bodice. Juanita had worked with deft ease to fashion a bodice worthy of a wedding gown. Taking special care to fit it exactly to Hannah’s slender frame, Juanita had given the bodice a V neckline and wide pagoda sleeves. Trimming both in delicate ruffles, she finished the piece off with lace up the back rather than buttons.
As Marietta pulled the lacings tight, Hannah could hardly believe the transformation in the mirror. She blinked back tears as she turned to face the two women who’d worked so diligently on her behalf.
“I’ve never seen a more beautiful dress.”
Juanita smiled and adjusted a ruffle. “You are the beauty.”
“She’s right, you know,” Marietta declared, taking a step back. “I’ve never seen a lovelier bride. But I think you could have married in broadcloth and been just as angelic.”
Hannah dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief. “I never thought to have a dress this beautiful. I don’t know how to thank you.” She looked to Marietta and then Juanita. “You don’t think it too scandalous of me to marry so soon after Father’s death?”
“Bah, who cares about that at a time like this?” Marietta countered. “There’s a war going on. Not only that, but this is the frontier. Life out here often makes it impossible to align with the rules of polite society.”
Marty came bounding in at that moment and froze in place. “Hannah! You look like a princess, ’cept you got no crown.”
Hannah smiled at her little sister. “I don’t need a crown to feel like a princess. This gown does that well enough by itself.”
“It sure is pretty.” Marty looked down at her own very simple calico dress. “I hope you let me wear it someday.”
“I will save it for you,” Hannah replied with a grin. “We will put it away, and when you grow up and find a beau, we will see if you are still of a mind to use it.”
“It’s time we made our way downstairs,” Marietta declared as the clock on the mantel struck ten. “I have a feeling that Will is mighty impatient to see this through.”
Hannah giggled like a schoolgirl. “He very nearly forced me to elope last night. If not for your and Juanita’s hard work on this gown, I doubt I could have convinced him of our need to remain in Cedar Springs.”
“I would have walloped that boy if he’d denied me the joy of a wedding,” Marietta said, adjusting a panel of the gown to fall in a smoother fashion. “There’s been enough sorrow around here. We needed a good old-fashioned reason to celebrate.”
“I hope you know how much it means to me that you are both here,” Hannah said, taking in as deep a breath as her tightly laced corset would allow. “Your friendship is so important to me.”
“What about me?” Marty asked.
Hannah reached out to touch the girl’s blond curls. Juanita had taken special care to ensure that Marty looked just as lovely. “You are my sister—which means you have a special place in my heart that no one else can ever have.” She kissed the child on the forehead. “Now, if you’re ready, I think we should go have a wedding.”
Marty nodded in great enthusiasm. “I was ready when I got here. Will said if we didn’t get downstairs, he was gonna come up here and get you. He said he’d carry you over his shoulder if he had to. I think he just wants to kiss you.”
“Oh dear,” Hannah said in mock horror. “Then we had better move quickly.”
Juanita and Marietta laughed and hurried to the door. Hannah reached out to take hold of Marty’s hand.
“Shall we?”
Marty nodded and started for the door. “I’m gonna close my eyes when you two kiss. I think kissin’ is silly.”
Hannah laughed, but it was Marietta who leaned in to speak. “You won’t always think so, Miss Marty. Mark my words. One day you’re going to find a boy who makes your stomach do flips, and then you’ll be delighted to receive your first kiss.”
Marty frowned as she appeared to consider the older woman’s words. “I think I’d rather have a pony,” she said rather thoughtfully. “Boys are just a lot of trouble. They get real dirty and eat all the time. I wouldn’t want to kiss one.”
The three women laughed heartily at this analysis, but offered no correction on the child’s insight.
“If she doesn’t get down here in the next two minutes,” William declared to Ted Terry, “then I’m going up after her.”
Ted chuckled. “I remember being just as eager to wed Marietta. You need to practice a little patience, however. You two will have the rest of your lives together. A few more minutes won’t hurt you.”
William paced and glanced at the stairs. Andy came up alongside him. “You want me to go fetch her?”
“I’ve already sent Marty up.” Will looked at the boy and shook his head. “Girls are a lot of trouble.”
Andy nodded in a most solemn manner. “They always want to look pretty and smell good. I don’t know why, but they even worry about cleaning their shoes all the time.”
Ted put his arm around Andy’s shoulders. “They worry about cleaning everything. You’ll see someday when you have a wife.”
“If she’s too silly about cleaning, I won’t help her with her corset.”
“Andrew Dandridge, we don’t speak of a lady’s unmentionables in public. Besides, where’d you learn about corsets?”
Andy got a worried look on his face. “Don’t you know about them? If you’re gonna marry Hannah, you got to know how to help her with her laces.” He looked to Ted Terry, who was barely able to keep a straight face. Andy seemed to consider the matter for another minute before turning to William. “I can show you sometime how to do it. Hannah taught me.”
“Well, maybe she can teach me, too,” William said with a sly smile.
Just then he heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs. Andy hurried to the railing.
“They’re coming.”
The small hotel wasn’t as grand as a church, but Juanita and Marietta had worked to dress it up a bit with a few candles and bows. The lobby seemed a good place to draw everyone together, and the pastor had already taken his place
behind the reception desk.
William felt Berto take his place beside him as the ladies finally came into view. Keeping his gaze fixed straight ahead, William felt his breath catch at the sight of Hannah in her wedding dress. Her hair had been curled and pinned into a stylish manner atop her head, and while she didn’t have a veil, someone had thoughtfully laced her curls with blue ribbon. She was a vision . . . and she was his.
She smiled at him and William felt the pain of his war wounds pass away. There was an entire future in that smile—a world of hope and the promise of unspeakable joy. She stepped up to stand directly in front of him.
“You are beautiful,” he whispered.
Her smile broadened. “And you are quite handsome.”
Their gazes locked and for the moment they only had eyes for each other. The rest of the world disappeared, and William felt as though they were the only two people remaining. He reached out to take her face in his hands. Leaning closer, he was about to press his lips to hers when an insistent tug came on his coat. Looking down, he found Marty Dandridge’s disapproving expression.
“You can’t kiss her until the preacher says so.”
Hannah laughed. “She’s absolutely right. That way if you don’t like it . . . well . . . you’re just stuck with me.”
William let go his hold. “Let’s get on with it, then. I kind of like the idea of being stuck with you for the rest of my life.”
By the middle of March the landscape had begun to green up nicely and Hannah and Juanita were well ahead of schedule with planting their garden. Married life suited Hannah quite nicely, and the valuables her father had carefully concealed kept the family fed and surviving the war’s limited supplies. Thankfully, once she and William had taken the time to analyze the map, they had easily found the places where her father had stashed his treasure.
“We will have much work if all of this grows,” Juanita declared.
Hannah looked at the planted rows and felt a great sense of accomplishment. There would be additional seed to plant in the weeks to come, but already she could see tiny shoots peeking through the ground from their earlier plantings.
“It feels good to have this done.” She dusted off her hands, then wiped them on her apron. “I suppose we’d best get back to work in the kitchen, though. Roundup for branding will come in another week, and I promised Marietta we would furnish enough tortillas to feed a small army of workers.”
Juanita nodded and picked up a hoe they’d been using. “We will be ready. Miss Marty promise to help and Pepita show her how to roll the dough into balls.”
Hannah’s attention was drawn by the shouts of some of the men. They sounded quite enthusiastic about something. She and Juanita picked up their pace and followed the ruckus. To Hannah’s horror, William was atop the ebony horse he’d hoped to break. Unfortunately, it looked like the horse was about to break him.
“You got him!” JD yelled as he climbed to the top of the pen’s gate.
“Don’t let him throw you,” Andy commanded.
Watching William bounce and twist from side to side, Hannah thought she might well be sick. After a few moments, however, the horse seemed to calm. With only occasional bucking, the gelding finally settled into a trot and yielded to William’s commands.
Hannah let out her breath, not having realized she was holding it the whole time. William looked over and gave her a wave. “Mrs. Barnett, it’s good of you to join us. What do you think of my new mount?”
She shook her head but offered him a smile. “I think he’s probably just as stubborn and unruly as you are.”
William laughed and let Berto take the reins. He threw his leg over and jumped to the ground, taking the full weight of his body on his left leg. Hannah marveled at his agility despite the injury.
“Hannah, William said he’d teach me how to break horses,” Andy declared.
“I’m gonna break horses, too,” Marty said, coming up from behind Hannah.
She threw her siblings a disapproving look. “I hope neither one of you will be breaking anything very soon. You have a great deal of schoolwork to finish up.”
Andy muttered under his breath and kicked the dirt. “You’re always spoilin’ my fun.”
“Why, Andrew Dandridge,” Hannah said, looking her brother in the eye. “I thought you liked book learning more than anything else.”
“That was before you married Will. Now I want to be a rancher and learn how to do everything Will does. He’s gonna grow me up to be a man like him.”
Hannah turned to her husband and gave him a look of adoration. “I certainly hope so,” she whispered just before William wrapped her in his arms. He pressed his lips to hers and kissed her long and passionately. Hannah could scarcely draw a breath when he pulled away.
“I think she’s startin’ to get used to kissin’ you, William,” Marty said seriously.
“I think you just might be right, Miss Marty.” He gave Hannah a mischievous smile and winked. “I think with a little more practice we’ll be just fine.”
Hannah felt her cheeks grow hot, but she kept her gaze fixed on William Barnett and smiled. God willing, they would have a long, long life in which to perfect their skills.
TRACIE PETERSON is the author of more than ninety novels, both historical and contemporary. Her avid research resonates in her stories, as seen in her bestselling Heirs of Montana and Alaskan Quest series. Tracie and her family make their home in Montana.
Visit Tracie’s Web site at www.traciepeterson.com.
Books by Tracie Peterson
* * *
www.traciepeterson.com
House of Secrets • A Slender Thread
Where My Heart Belongs
Land of the Lone Star
Chasing the Sun
Bridal Veil Island*
To Have and To Hold
To Love and Cherish
Song of Alaska
Dawn’s Prelude
Morning’s Refrain
Twilight’s Serenade
Striking a Match
Embers of Love
Hearts Aglow
Hope Rekindled
Alaskan Quest
Summer of the Midnight Sun
Under the Northern Lights
Whispers of Winter
Alaskan Quest (3 in 1)
Brides of Gallatin County
A Promise to Believe In
A Love to Last Forever
A Dream to Call My Own
The Broadmoor Legacy*
A Daughter’s Inheritance
An Unexpected Love
A Surrendered Heart
Bells of Lowell*
Daughter of the Loom
A Fragile Design
These Tangled Threads
Lights of Lowell*
A Tapestry of Hope
A Love Woven True
The Pattern of Her Heart
Desert Roses
Shadows of the Canyon
Across the Years
Beneath a Harvest Sky
Heirs of Montana
Land of My Heart
The Coming Storm
To Dream Anew
The Hope Within
Ladies of Liberty
A Lady of High Regard
A Lady of Hidden Intent
A Lady of Secret Devotion
Ribbons of Steel**
Distant Dreams
A Hope Beyond
A Promise for Tomorrow
Ribbons West**
Westward the Dream
Separate Roads
Westward Chronicles
A Shelter of Hope
Hidden in a Whisper
A Veiled Reflection
Yukon Quest
Treasures of the North
Ashes and Ice
Rivers of Gold
*with Judith Miller **with Judith Pella
Resources: bethanyhouse.com/AnOpenBook
Website: www.bethanyhouse.com
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> Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
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About the Author
Books by Tracie Peterson
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