by Sherry Kyle
“Thank you.”
Why must the dialogue between them be stiff? “I’m surprised to see you.”
Lars fingered the corner of his mustache. “I felt I needed to come and apologize to you and to your parents. The other night didn’t go as planned.”
Was Lars speaking of the store or the hasty proposal?
She wished she had a few moments to fix the flyaway hair that always seemed to slip out of her combs. “It wasn’t your fault someone threw a rock through the store’s window.”
“I should’ve given you a ride home myself.” Lars settled into the wooden chair, and folded his arms tight across his chest. “And now I want to make things right with your parents.”
“Nothing is amiss. But if it’d make you feel better, I’ll tell Mama and Papa you’re here.”
“Thank you. I also want to see if Samuel might be able to accompany me back to Cayucos. He’s a good worker, and I enjoy his company. He reminds me of my cousin Herbert.”
Lars had told her about his relative with a genetic condition known as Down syndrome who lived with Lars and his family when he was a boy. He died not long ago from a heart condition, and Lars missed him terribly.
He continued. “I’ll bring Samuel to church Sunday morning before the service. Do you think your pa will be fine without him for a couple of days?”
“Papa has taken Samuel along to scout for cattle rustlers, but I’ll let my pa decide. It’s sweet of you to ask.” Elena stood.
Lars got to his feet, as well, a mere foot of space between them. He was quite a few inches taller than she. Elena took a chance and glanced into Lars’s eyes as someone’s footsteps sounded behind her. She turned.
“Papa.”
“Mr. Seifert.” Lars extended his hand.
“Elena, go find your mama. She’ll be pleased to know Lars is here.” Her father shook Lars’s hand and then winked at Elena.
Elena slipped into her bedroom, eager to tuck the wispy strands of hair with pins and calm her racing heart. Could she ever fall in love with Lars or would her feelings remain at respect and admiration?
Quietly, Elena walked past the main room and outside in search of her mother. After looking in the chicken coop and only finding squawking hens, Elena walked around the barn to the vegetable garden. Patches of radishes, lettuce, and peas beckoned to be picked. Her mother bent over the plants filling her basket.
“Mama.”
Her mother flopped down, knocking over her heaping basket. She landed bottom first in the dirt. “Child, don’t sneak up on me like that.”
Now was not the time to remind her mother that she was not a child, but a grown woman. “I’m sorry. Let me help you.” Elena bent over and picked up the runaway radishes. “Mr. Rissler is here.”
“Land sakes, do Papa and Samuel know?”
“Papa is with Lars now.”
Mama brushed the dirt from her skirt. “Look at me. I’m a mess.”
“You look fine—like a busy dairy farmer’s wife.” Elena set the armful of radishes in the basket.
“You, on the other hand, are young and beautiful, and I’m positive Lars has taken notice.” Her mother straightened her bonnet. “Maybe he’s come to discuss the wedding.”
Should she tell her mother that she hadn’t said yes to Lars’s proposal? Not yet. Butterflies flitted in Elena’s belly. Her answer wasn’t clear, but her parents were counting on her to say yes. Samuel too. “Can we wait until Sunday?”
Mama hooked the basket on her arm. “If that’s what you want.”
Elena picked a head of lettuce and placed it in her mother’s basket. “Lars would like Samuel to go back with him to Cayucos.”
“Samuel would enjoy spending a couple of days with Lars, that’s if he fully understands the care Samuel requires.” Her mother’s voice rose as she made her way to the house.
“I’ll find Samuel.” Elena took off across the hill. If her father was taking a break, it only meant one thing—the chores were done for the afternoon. Samuel would be down by Harmony Creek. Years ago, on lazy summer afternoons, she and Samuel hunted there for frogs and crawdads. Their pa made a rope swing. She’d swing high above the creek before letting go and cooling off in the tepid waters below while Samuel clapped and cheered.
Life was simpler then.
Elena approached the creek. Samuel and Sabrina sat by the water’s edge on a sunken log. “Samuel, time to come home. Lars is here paying us a visit.”
Samuel jumped to his feet. “Sabrina, did you know my sister is getting married? That means Lars will be my brother—a real brother, did you hear?”
Elena cringed. Did Samuel have to announce her plans to marry Lars to everyone in the Bollinger family? “The date hasn’t been set.” She eyed Samuel to remain quiet.
“I’m going to get a new sister, too. I heard my pa telling Jonas that he should marry widow Burkhart, you know the pretty lady who helps run the boardinghouse in Cayucos.” Sabrina grinned. “Looks like there’ll be two weddings soon.”
The wind knocked out of her. Jonas to marry Yvette? Was that the reason he returned to Harmony Valley?
“Come on, Elena. Lars is waiting.” Samuel tugged on her arm. “See you tomorrow, Sabrina. Here at the creek.”
“Tomorrow I’ll be spending the day with Jonas.” Sabrina grabbed her straw hat from the log. “Bye, Samuel.”
Samuel pulled on Elena’s arm as they crested the hill. “Hurry. Don’t you want to spend time with Lars?”
“Of course, I do. I’m surprised to hear Jonas is going to marry Yvette is all. He didn’t say a word to me on the ride home from Cayucos. You’d think he’d mention it.”
Her thoughts drifted to Jonas’s kind actions in the wagon—when he placed the blanket across her lap and draped his coat around her shoulders. Did she read too much into the way his hands lingered at her waist when he helped her down from the wagon?
Samuel studied her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I’m fine.” She must get a hold of herself and remember what life had been like before Jonas returned. Lars had been nothing but caring and kind, courting her with proper intentions.
Elena and Samuel neared the house. What would Lars say if she marched right in and accepted his proposal? He would most likely be relieved and thrilled. Elena swallowed hard.
Better wait until Sunday. By then, she’d look like a suitable storekeeper’s wife in her pale yellow dress, her hair in a proper twist, tendrils cascading down each cheek. Then, and only then, would she accept Lars’s proposal. In the meantime, she’d find out if Sabrina’s words were true.
Elena marched up the porch steps. “Samuel, Lars has something special to ask you.”
“Me?” Samuel’s eyes lit up. He followed Elena as she entered the house through the front door.
Jonas slowed his horse to a trot down South Ocean Avenue toward the Burkhart Boardinghouse. His stomach clenched. Yvette was a dark-haired beauty with a full figure and a pleasant smile. But how could he consider marrying a woman because his father asked him to, when his heart belonged to someone else? Especially since his father’s coughing spasms stopped him from clarifying his odd request. Pa said he’d explain after he rested. Explanation or not, Jonas loved Elena. He’d need a solid reason before agreeing to pursue the boardinghouse owner’s granddaughter.
The tinkling of piano keys and the sound of loud voices drew his eye to the saloon. His days of drinking and card playing were over. Ever since he rededicated his life to the Lord, Jonas promised himself he’d never again set foot in a place where God wasn’t welcome. He continued down the street.
The stately white boardinghouse had a flared gambrel roof pierced with dormers and double-hung sash windows. Tall cypress trees flanked the bright red door, and a welcome sign prominently displayed on the front lawn beckoned the weary traveler to stay the night. Jonas dismounted his horse and tied the reins to the hitching rail.
Sounds of a crying baby wafted through the window. An older couple wi
th suitcases in hand marched through the doorway.
“They’ll lose more business if they allow that child to be raised in a boardinghouse.” The older gentleman set his luggage on the porch and wiped the back of his neck with his kerchief. “A man my age needs peace and quiet. Who can sleep with that racket?”
“Now, dear, our children were young once. Remember what it was like to have a baby who couldn’t sleep through the night.” The mature woman dropped her suitcase on the porch and sidled up to her husband. “Maybe we’ll find a boardinghouse in Cambria if you don’t mind a twenty-mile ride up the coast.”
“At this point, I’d ride all the way to San Francisco if I could get a decent night’s sleep.”
Was Yvette’s grandfather losing business because of disgruntled clients? How much noise could one baby make? Jonas tipped his hat toward the couple before walking into the boardinghouse. A shrill cry and an exasperated mother met him at the front desk.
“Look who’s back in town.” Yvette bounced the baby on her hip. Dark circles rimmed her eyes, and tendrils of hair hung loose from the otherwise neat bun.
Jonas sucked in a breath. Why hadn’t Pa thought to mention a child? Maybe that was the reason for the odd request. “You’ve got your hands full. Where’s your grandfather?”
“He’s in the kitchen cooking for our guests. Not sure for how much longer. It’s getting harder and harder for him to move around the kitchen.” Yvette transferred the baby to her other hip. “We both need an extra hand. Willie needs to be fed, but I don’t seem to have a minute’s peace.”
“You want me to mind the front desk while you feed him?” A sleeping child was worth a handful of gold for a new mother. Jonas, and in fact the whole family, learned from his own ma when Sabrina was a baby.
“You’d do that for me?” The worried lines surrounding her eyes softened. She ran her hand over the baby’s downy head.
“Sure. Think nothing of it.” Jonas whirled around the desk, took off his hat, and propped his elbows on the rough-hewn desk. “I like helping a damsel in distress.” He raised a brow and grinned.
“More like a life-saver.” Yvette clutched her baby to her chest. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“No need to worry,” Jonas said. “I’ve got everything under control.”
True to her word, she returned fifteen minutes later. Her hair was swept up into a neat bun and her arms were empty. “Willie’s asleep.”
The worry lines gone, she was prettier than he remembered. He was attracted to the fairer type, but Yvette carried herself with charm and grace, two qualities he appreciated in a woman.
“Be honest with me,” Jonas said. “Have Willie’s cries caused customers to leave?”
The pink tinge that brightened her smooth cheeks gave him the answer. “He’s only a baby. Can’t people understand?”
Jonas walked to the other side of the desk and searched her eyes. “And how are you doing? My pa told me about your husband. I’m sorry for your loss.”
“Adrian knew the risk of disease on the steamer ship.” Her gaze dropped. “He promised me he’d look for another line of work. It was to be his last shipment.” She swallowed hard. “Now Willie will grow up without his father. And I may be out of work soon, if my child won’t sleep through the night.”
“Your grandfather wouldn’t fire you.” Jonas reached for his hat and placed it on his head.
“No, he wouldn’t.” She fingered the white and yellow daisies that sat in a clear vase on the counter. “I’d find another place now if I could afford it.”
“And where would you go?” Thoughts whirled through his mind. “I haven’t seen your grandfather since I got back, but if I remember rightly he isn’t a young man.”
A troubled expression settled on her features. “At this point, I don’t have the answers. But a boardinghouse isn’t the place to raise a baby. I imagined my life different than what it’s turned out to be.” Yvette straightened, and the smile she put on looked forced, but determined. “But enough about me. Where have you been? I remember the night you were here last. Looked like you were itching to spread your wings.”
“I was. Thought I was meant for great things in a big city. But I was wrong. Dairy farming has been in my family a long time—it’s in the blood.”
A dimple creased one smooth cheek. “You don’t fool me one bit, Jonas Bollinger. You don’t like dairy farming. Never have.”
Jonas lowered his voice a notch. “My pa’s not doing well. Don’t have a choice. I can wrestle with my feelings or change my attitude. Harmony is my home. I’ve reconciled with that fact.” He straightened and gave her a searching look. “What about you? Will you ever marry again? After all, you took back your maiden name.”
The question popped out almost before he was aware he was going to ask it. Surprised, he had to force himself not to look away.
“Haven’t thought much about it. I might if the right man came along.” Her cheeks turned pink once again. “And I go by Burkhart so that I don’t confuse the customers.”
Now he did look away. Why did he put himself in such a situation? Two people of the opposite sex sharing such intimate conversation was meant for husbands and wives or courting couples, not a man and woman who barely knew each other. All of a sudden, the air felt thick. Jonas cleared his throat. “Yvette, it was nice to see you. I gotta go. I’m in town to fetch Doc. For my pa.”
“Thanks for watching the desk for me. It was right sweet of you.” Yvette’s tone held appreciation.
“No problem. Glad I could help.” He tipped his hat, turned on his heel, and headed straight out the door.
With quick strides, he made his way to Shadow and mounted. Yes, Yvette was one pretty woman, but she was a woman from town clear through. She didn’t have the gumption to handle a shotgun or milk cows. Not like Elena. And Jonas was destined to work his family’s farm. After all, he’d promised.
Pa obviously hadn’t thought the marriage thing through.
Jonas pressed his heels into the horse’s flanks. Time to put his mind elsewhere and visit Doc. Hopefully, he’d be able to come to Harmony. His father needed medical help whether he admitted it or not.
Doc’s clinic stood just up South Ocean Avenue, two doors down from the saloon. As he dismounted Shadow, two men flew through the saloon’s swinging doors and landed in a heap on the street.
“And don’t come back, you hear?” The saloon owner’s shout followed them from inside.
Blood ran freely from a cut above one man’s eyebrow. The other looked to be all right, beside the fact he’d had one too many drinks and couldn’t stand on his own.
Jonas strode toward the two. He grabbed the inebriated man around the waist and flung his arm across his shoulder. The other man could walk, but the blood dripped down over his right eye.
“Come on, you two. Let’s go visit Doc. This way.”
Once through the door of the clinic, Doc Christen helped Jonas bring the men to the back room. “This one needs to sleep it off.” Jonas deposited the drunk on one of the beds. “I’m guessing the other needs stitches.”
Doc Christen guided the wounded man onto the next bed. “You’re right. I’ll sew him up.” The doc walked to his side table and took out antiseptic, a needle, and silky thread. “Jonas, I heard you were back in town. Didn’t think you were the saloon type.” Doc glanced at him over the rim of his glasses.
“Only a bystander, Doc.” Jonas folded his arms across his chest. This conversation was headed in a direction he didn’t much care for. “Haven’t been in a saloon for at least a year now. I like keeping what little money I have in my pocket, and my wits about me.” Hopefully his point was clear. “I’m here to ask you to come back to Harmony. My pa’s not doing well. Spiked a fever again. Coughing something awful.”
“I need to check on Mrs. Dahlberg first. She’s due any day now. Hasn’t had many contractions, but this being her fifth child, she could deliver quickly.” Doc Christen pulled the thread one last time
, closing the poor sap’s wound.
“So you’ll come after checking on Mrs. Dahlberg?”
“As soon as I’m able.” The doc snipped the thread. “Before I go, I’ll need to figure out what to do with these two.”
“I’ll take them to the boardinghouse. Yvette won’t mind keeping an eye on them. She owes me a favor.”
Doc Christen once again shot Jonas a look over the top of his glasses.
“It ain’t like that.” Jonas furrowed his brows. “I helped her out at the front desk today while she went into another room to feed Willie. He was crying something fierce.”
Doc Christen chuckled. “Don’t that beat all? I never quite pictured you the compassionate type. You grew up these past two years.”
Jonas didn’t want to stand around and talk all day. He’d already taken up too much time since arriving in Cayucos. “I’ll help these men while you hurry over to Mrs. Dahlberg’s.”
“I see your concern. It’s written all over your face.” Doc Christen grabbed his black medical bag. “I’ll get over there as soon as I’m able.”
Jonas eyed the two men resting on the cots. “You might beat me there.” Doc waved a hand over his shoulder. “See you in Harmony.”
The man with the stitches groaned.
Why did Jonas have to be a Good Samaritan today of all days? The answer was obvious. He had been on the receiving end himself. He remembered waking up on an unfamiliar cot from a long night in a saloon—the night of the quake in San Francisco that killed his uncle. Jonas exhaled loudly. “Come on, boys. We’re off to the Burkhart Boardinghouse.”
He needed to get back home to his pa.
Chapter Seven
After an hour of tea and leftover biscuits with jam, Elena stood on the front porch and watched Lars and Samuel ride away in Lars’s carriage. She shaded her eyes from the sun as dust clouds billowed behind the carriage.
Tonight she would be content to ride Starlight across the hill and herd the cows back to the barn. Normally, all she had to do was holler, “Come boss,” and the cows would appear at the barn door. They were creatures of habit and easily trained. But if they trudged all the way to the edge of their property by the spring, she’d have to herd them in.
