“Delia said Miss Reeves was upset about falling in the creek today and likely won’t want to stay anymore.”
Colt took a deep breath and shut his eyes. He reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose as he had a sudden pounding in his head. “Miss Reeves isn’t going anywhere. She’s not just upset about falling in the creek. And I will go and talk to her.”
He was sure there had never been a time in his life when he was more confused about what had happened than this very moment. Honestly, a woman falls into a little bit of water and the whole world goes crazy.
And now, he was going to have to go apologize to her for doing nothing more than walking up behind her.
He’d never been a drinking man, but days like this, he wished he was.
Chapter 12
“Oh, Miss Reeves, I just can’t tell you how much it means to me watching my Hazel learning her letters already. She just thinks the world of you. I’m glad she’s going to have better opportunities than I had. I’ve always wanted to learn to read.”
Kathryn smiled warmly at the kind woman in front of her who wouldn’t be much older than herself. She had a bit of an accent, but Kathryn wasn’t sure where it was from. Her aunt had told her there were a lot of immigrants living on farms around Promise, so it wasn’t unusual.
“If you ever want to learn, let me know. I’d be more than willing to teach you.” Even though an education was something Kathryn had always taken for granted, she knew it was a privilege many women in some of the rural communities might not have. And she was determined not to ever make anyone feel embarrassed or ashamed of it, so she hoped they would feel comfortable letting her help if they were willing.
“Oh, it’s too late for me to learn. But, just knowing my little girl will have better chances fills me with joy.”
“Well, if you ever want to learn, please don’t hesitate to ask. It wouldn’t be any trouble, and I don’t believe that it’s ever too late for anyone to learn.”
Kathryn turned as another woman came over to thank her for coming to teach in Promise. They’d arrived back at the Hammond’s farm, where many of the folks from town were joining together for a picnic after the Sunday service. And ever since, the townspeople had been coming over to tell her how much of a difference she’d already made in just a week.
For the first time in her life, she truly felt like she had a purpose. Growing up with money was nice, but she’d always felt like she didn’t have anything to offer that was something only she could give. These people in Promise didn’t care about money. They cared more about family and friends, and just having the chance for something better for their children.
And this was the one thing she could give them.
After the week she’d had, she needed something to give her a boost. Teaching in the small one room school was everything she’d dreamed it would be, and the hours she spent inside those walls, teaching the children, filled her with happiness. But those hours seemed to go by so fast, and while the Hammond family had been generous by letting her come up there to take her meals all week, she knew she couldn’t impose on their hospitality forever.
That meant she was going to have to learn to cook on the wood stove in her cabin, and she’d have to spend time on her own during the evening hours.
Last night had been dreadful. After she’d hastily told the Hammonds she was just going to take her meal by herself, she’d realized she didn’t even have any food other than some bread that Mrs. Hammond had sent down two days prior.
Even if she’d had something to cook, she wouldn’t have known where to start. Everything was so different from back home.
Her stomach had rumbled all through the morning’s service, and she prayed that the Hammonds would invite her to join them to eat after. On the way into church this morning, everyone had seemed so quiet, but Delia had mentioned something about a few of the families coming out to their place after the service for a picnic.
Her pride might have got in the way last night, but today, Kathryn was willing to beg for the chance to have a proper meal if she had to.
Her gaze moved toward Mr. Hammond who was standing near the wagons talking with some of the men. As though he knew she was looking, his eyes turned and met hers. Quickly, she focused back on the woman who was now talking to her.
Why did her face suddenly feel so warm?
She knew why. She was embarrassed at how upset she’d gotten over falling in the water. And the worst part was, she didn’t even know why she had been so angry.
He hadn’t done it on purpose, and even though she hadn’t come right out and yelled or gotten angry with him, it had been pretty obvious to everyone that she was upset about what happened.
And then she hadn’t joined them for supper, so she cringed as she imagined what they might have had to say about it all.
If only she’d just dusted off her pride and gone back to the creek like nothing had happened. Instead, when she’d gone back, poor Mrs. Hammond had felt terrible and tried to make her feel better, while Kathryn would have preferred to not even talk about it.
Mr. Hammond had barely spoken more than a few words to her today, but he hadn’t brought up anything about yesterday.
And she was hoping he would keep it that way.
Finally, the woman moved on, leaving Kathryn standing alone. Her stomach made a loud noise again, and she was so grateful no one was around to hear it.
“Either you’ve swallowed a live duck, or I’d say maybe your stomach might be trying to tell you it needs something to eat.”
She whipped around at the sound of Mr. Hammond’s voice. He stood smiling innocently at her, while she was left wishing she could run back to the safety of her cabin and never face this man again.
“Do you ever do anything except sneak up behind people to insult them or scare them?”
“I was simply waiting until Mrs. Groves was finished talking to you so I wouldn’t interrupt. I assumed you’d heard me coming. I’m starting to wonder if you should perhaps see old Doc Jacobs about your hearing.”
She stared at him, biting her lip to keep from saying exactly what was on her mind.
Finally, he lifted his hands in surrender and laughed. “All right, I apologize. I can see you don’t appreciate my attempts at humor.”
Her mouth opened slightly but she still couldn’t speak. He looked around uncomfortably as a few more wagons pulled into the yard, then pushed his hat back slightly and ran his fingers into his hair.
“I came over to tell you I’m sorry for startling you yesterday and causing you to fall into the creek. Instead, I end up making things worse.” He finally looked back at her. “I’m likely a bit uncivilized compared to the men you grew up around, and I admit I’m not very good at being proper, or whatever you’d call it.”
Something inside her let go, and she was able to take a good look at the man in front of her without feeling defensive.
His hair hung a bit long below the edge of the large brimmed hat he wore only for church. It was the exact same kind as the one he wore every other day but was much cleaner and not as worn.
His eyes were a dark color, and in the corners, the start of tiny crow’s feet gave him the look of a man who had worked hard over the years but had also shared a lot of laughter.
She chuckled softly and shook her head as her hands came up to hug her stomach. “I accept your apology. And, in all fairness, I have likely made it quite hard to act very proper around. I mean, there aren’t many women who literally fall out of a wagon, then a few days later end up in a creek in front of a man.”
He grinned at her and nodded. “You forgot about the stomach noises loud enough to wake the dead.”
She briefly clenched her eyes shut in embarrassment but couldn’t hold in the laughter. “Right, I completely forgot about that. But, for future reference, a proper gentleman would never, ever point out anything as indelicate as a lady’s body noises in public.”
“Miss Reeves! Come sit over here with us. I’
ve put our blanket under the big tree with my swing.” Delia ran over to them and reached up to tug at her hand.
“Oh, I should really go help your grandmother get some of the food set out that she’s prepared.” Kathryn looked toward the house where a table had been set up for everyone to place their food on. Women were bustling around while children ran past toward the creek.
The day was warm and as she stood there watching these people who took each day a little bit slower, she knew she would never fit in back in the city again. This was the life she wanted to be a part of.
“Come on. Mother will already have everything ready. I think you better get some food in your stomach before you faint from hunger.” He put his hand on her elbow to lead her behind the little girl who was skipping toward the tree with their blanket already placed neatly below it.
A sudden jolt of heat found its way through the thin fabric of her blouse and coursed through her entire body. She resisted the urge to pull her arm from his grasp, not wanting to let him see how much his touch could affect her.
Because, no matter what else happened, she needed to remember Colt Hammond was still a married man.
Chapter 13
Colt read over the words on the paper one more time, but with every letter his eyes took in, his vision started to blur with anger. His hands shook and he cursed low under his breath before taking the paper and folding it back up. He slammed it into his back pocket as he walked toward the mercantile where he’d left his wagon for Caleb to set the supplies into.
“Whoa there, Colt. You almost knocked me over.”
The large, burly man he’d bumped into as he came around the front of the wagon reached out and took hold of his shoulder to steady him.
Colt wasn’t in the mood for small talk, but he recognized him immediately as Mr. Charles Ingalls, a man who lived over in De Smet. He sometimes came into Promise to pick up supplies that weren’t available there. Many times, he would get items other people from De Smet needed and deliver to them.
“Sorry. Didn’t see you there.”
“No, I reckon you didn’t.” Mr. Ingalls walked past him and set something down on the back of his own wagon parked in front of Colt’s. Colt couldn’t believe he hadn’t noticed it, but he guessed with the rage fueling his steps, he’d been preoccupied.
Mr. Ingalls turned back and looked at him intently. “Everything all right? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
Caleb walked out of the mercantile with the large sack of flour to throw into his wagon, just in time to overhear the conversation. “I have to agree with Mr. Ingalls, here. Your face has a slight green tinge to it.”
“I’m fine. Just wasn’t paying attention.”
The last thing he wanted to do was stand here and gossip about the mail he’d received. Soon enough, everyone in town would know anyway.
Mr. Ingalls kept his eyes on him, but he must have decided not to question it more. Nodding, he turned, hopping up onto the seat of his wagon and turned back to face them. “I forgot to congratulate you for getting the old school back up and running here in town. It will fill a great need for the community. I’ve heard the new teacher you’ve brought out is fitting in nicely.”
Colt leaned against his wagon and shrugged. “She has a lot to learn about living out here, but I guess she’s not doing too bad.”
The man laughed. “Well, I’d reckon we all still have a lot to learn about living out here. The fact that she’s here and willing to try is more than could be said for many.” He flicked the reins and started the wagon moving. “It was nice to see you. You both take good care.”
Colt stood still, watching until Mr. Ingalls was nothing more than a cloud of dust going down the road from town back toward De Smet. He was lost in his own thoughts and didn’t even realize Caleb had come over to stand in front of him with his arms crossed.
“Are you going to tell me what has you looking like you’re ready to kill the next person who so much as looks in your direction?”
“It’s nothing that concerns you.”
He knew he was being grumpy and rude, but right now, he was having a hard enough time figuring everything out in his own head.
“I’ve known you most of my life, Colt. I know not much gets you ruffled, so obviously something’s going on. You may as well tell me, because if you go home in the mood you’re in, you’re going to have to answer to your mother. And I think we both know how well that would end for you.”
Sighing, Colt pushed himself away from the wagon and turned, leaning his arms over the back of it so he wouldn’t have to face his friend as he spoke.
“Arlene has sent a letter asking me to file for a divorce.”
The sounds of the town, with people going about their day, filled the air between them as Colt waited for Caleb’s reaction. Getting a divorce was still considered to be a huge scandal around this town, even if the Dakota Territory was known as one of the divorce colony states where couples could come and live for a few months to obtain a divorce if desired. Most people who came to live for the mandatory three months were moving into the larger towns to spend their required time, so the small, rural areas like Promise were still not as accepting of the practice.
Finally, Caleb let out a low whistle. “The woman sure has nerve. But you had to have known something like this was going to happen. Why doesn’t she just file the papers herself? The laws do allow for women to file, don’t they?”
Colt swallowed the anger that was threatening to boil over. “She doesn’t want to file. The scandal would be too much for her, so if I’m the one who does it, she can live the charade as the wounded woman who was abandoned by her husband.”
“So, what if you don’t file?”
His jaw hurt from clenching his teeth so hard as he growled out his reply, “If I don’t, she says she’ll come back and take the kids from me.”
Caleb laughed bitterly. “She’s never wanted those children. Why would she do that?”
“To force my hand.” He turned back around to face his friend. “She’s found another man she wants to marry. He’s in the theater and travels with the shows she’s a part of. She’s in love, and if I don’t give her the divorce, she’s going to say I committed adultery and that’s why she left. She says she’ll smear my name all over to anyone who will listen and make sure the children end up going with her.”
Caleb shook his head angrily. “She would never make anyone believe that around here. Everyone knows what happened.”
“Maybe. But the doubt will always be there for some. And I can’t risk losing the children. If she wants a divorce, I’m more than happy to give it to her, if it means she’ll be out of my life for good.” He looked toward the bridge coming into town where Mr. Ingalls had left just a few moments ago. Another wagon was coming up the road.
“I just wish the children didn’t have to grow up without a mother to love them. Every child deserves that much.”
“Well, now that you’ll have your freedom from Arlene, maybe it’s time to consider finding someone who can help you raise them.”
Colt rolled his eyes dramatically. “There’s not a woman in the world worth the risk of getting married again.”
Caleb was about to say more, but the wagon Colt had noticed earlier pulled up beside them, and he immediately cringed. He offered a sincere smile to Mrs. Mercy Brown as he reached his hand up to help her down, while her husband hopped down from the other side.
“Thank you, Mr. Hammond.” Mercy smiled warmly at him, but he noticed the smile didn’t reach her eyes. Dark shadows gave evidence to the sadness he was sure he could see in her face.
“Hurry up, woman. I haven’t got all day to be hanging around in town while you gossip with Fae inside. Get your money for your eggs and get back out.”
“But I told you I need some sugar today. Can I use the money to pick up a small bag, please?”
“No, we don’t need anything like that. It’s not like any amount of sugar can help make your food taste
any better anyway.” Constantine Brown looked to the other two men and laughed loudly. “Trust me to end up saddled with a woman who can’t cook to save her life. Not like my ma used to do, anyway. And now that she’s with child, she’s thinking she can make excuses for getting outta some of her work.”
Colt’s mood quickly went from bad to worse as he saw the shades of red flood Mrs. Brown’s cheeks. Her eyeballs were awash, but she held her head high and pushed her shoulders back before turning to go into the mercantile.
“What kind of man says words to humiliate his wife in front of others?” Colt could barely get the words out past the rage in his chest.
Caleb stepped over beside Colt and together they faced Brown with their arms crossed in front of them.
“Oh, and you’re any kind of man to be giving advice to me. At least I’m man enough to be sure my wife stays where she’s meant to be.”
No longer able to control his fury, Colt lunged at the other man, knocking him to the ground. Dust flew up all around them, and from what seemed like miles away, he could hear people hollering as his fist made contact with Brown’s jaw.
But before he could take another swing, Caleb grabbed hold of his arm and stopped him. “He’s not worth dirtying your boots or getting blood on your hands over.”
Colt stayed sitting on top of the man who was bringing his hands up to cover his face. “So, it seems like you’re sure quick to hand out insults and vile talk when it comes to a woman, but you’re not up to facing off with another man.”
“You jumped me! I didn’t even have time to defend myself.”
A crowd had gathered, and Colt lifted his eyes in time to see Mrs. Brown come rushing out of the store. Her horrified expression cut through his anger enough to allow him to stand, letting the other man get to his feet. Brown pulled his arm out of Caleb’s grip and bent down to pick up his hat that had fallen off in the scuffle.
“No wonder your wife couldn’t stand to be around you. You’re a heathen. From now on, mind your own business and don’t be stickin’ your nose in where it don’t belong.” He hastily brushed the dust from his pants, then grabbed his wife’s arm and dragged her to their wagon, forcibly pushing her up onto the seat. He hopped up beside her and grabbed the reins. “You’re lucky you had your friend here to back you up. Might not be so lucky the next time we meet up.”
Love is Patient Page 6
