Grooms with Honor Series, Books 10-12

by Linda K. Hubalek

  “But I can’t walk!” Mary wailed.

  “Not yet, and maybe not ever as well as you did before your fall. But life goes on, Mary,” Doctor Pansy quietly told her as she stood to leave.

  “You’ve got to face your situation. Other than the exercises—which I hope you’re doing every day—you have to be patient as your body heals as best as it can. You can always travel to see the specialist, but I’d give your body a few more weeks before tackling a bone-jarring train ride.

  “I hope to see both of you tomorrow at the school picnic,” the doctor said as she left the room, Kiowa following behind to let her out.

  Mary heard their low voices before the door closed and Kiowa came back to the bedroom. He stood by the bed, looking down at her.

  “Exercises? Why hadn’t I heard about that?”

  Mary ducked her chin, embarrassed that she hadn’t told him.

  Then she looked up to challenge him. “Why would I say anything about it? What good will it do if I can’t move my leg to begin with?”

  “Maybe one limb won’t cooperate—yet—but you still have three others that need to keep moving so they don’t atrophy. Sitting in the rolling chair and moving yourself around will strengthen your body.”

  Mary gave him a rude stare, but Kiowa crossed his arms across his chest, ready to argue with her.

  “Do you want your daughter to walk again, without using crutches?”

  “What kind of question is that? Of course, I do!”

  “I imagine your daughter would like for you to do your best to walk again too. And until then, exercise and the rolling chair will help you.”

  Mary bit her lip, knowing Kiowa was right. He’d been so patient with her the past two weeks, even though living twenty-four hours together was a new experience, and sometimes trying for them. Until her fall, they only spent time together after nightfall covered their quick trips to each other’s homes.

  “If we go to the picnic together, we’re announcing our marriage. Are you sure you want to do that? We can’t turn back after people know our secret,” Mary frowned as she questioned Kiowa.

  “I’m ready to take Pastor Reagan’s advice, which we should have done from the first day of our marriage. Pastor said, ‘ignore the remarks ignorant people make and enjoy the family life you should be embracing.’”

  Kiowa pushed the blanket off of Mary’s legs, sat down on the side of the bed and pulled Mary across his lap. He slowly and tenderly kissed her temple, and then her lips before pulling back to stare in her eyes.

  Kiowa’s chocolate brown eyes followed his fingers as he traced her jaw. He was such a kind, gentle soul. It was wrong not to acknowledge him as her partner for life.

  Mary took a deep breath, trying to calm the nervous flutter in her stomach. This first time of her being seen in public after her accident was going to be hard, but nothing like the pressure Kiowa would take for being her husband. Mixed marriages were frowned upon by so many people.

  “If we’re strong in our marriage and faith, it helps Burdie and Nolie, now and for the rest of their lives,” Kiowa reminded her.

  “That means you’ll have to give me a bath and wash my hair if I’m going outside tomorrow. I’ve been neglecting myself.”

  “True, but I’ll enjoy it immensely. Although I’ll have to take another bath afterwards, so I don’t smell like a feminine rose.”

  “I do like the bay rum soap you use,” Mary coyly hinted.

  Mary knew Kiowa was trying to uplift her spirits and boost her confidence, so she’d go along with his banter. Otherwise she’d sink into her miserable worry again.

  “Mr. Jones, which dress should I wear tomorrow for my return to public debut?”

  “Your choice, Mrs. Jones, but I’m partial to the lavender lace one. I suppose that means I’ll have to lace you up in your corset again?” Kiowa scrunched his face at his disdain of the undergarment.

  Mary waffled on that thought. She still had a tender spot on her back and was afraid the whale bones in the corset might bother it.

  “I don’t think my back is ready for confinement yet,” Mary confessed, and snorted a laugh at Kiowa’s comical reaction.

  Her husband’s animated demeanor when he was around her was so different than the stoic face he had in public. Besides her children needing her to rejoin life in the community, so did her husband.

  “What questions will people ask us?” Mary asked as she rubbed the black braid down Kiowa’s back. She loved the fact his hair was as long as hers, and that she’d get to braid it after he bathed.

  “Why will be foremost on people’s minds. Then when and where did we marry,” Kiowa guessed.

  “Someone is bound to ask why we aren’t living together, which I can’t believe we’ve kept it a secret this long.”

  “Sheriff Wilerson knows, as he caught me sneaking down your stairs one night on his rounds.”

  “And you didn’t tell me? Now I’ll be embarrassed the next time I see him.”

  “Just thank him for keeping our secret,” Kiowa said as he nuzzled her neck.

  Mary leaned against her husband’s strong chest. At least the accident pushed them together.

  But “what ifs” pushed their way back into her mind.

  “What if I can’t walk up the stairs to the apartment again? I don’t want to rely on your carrying me upstairs all the time. And your place is too small for the four of us.”

  “I’ve been thinking about that. We could build a house in town and rent out your apartment.”

  “Would you keep your silversmith business in the blacksmith shop, or move it to the house then?”

  “I don’t know. To tell the truth, I haven’t missed the blacksmith work since I’ve been caring for you, but I think the community has. The blacksmith shop did have loyal customers.”

  “And Jasper Kerns needs horseshoes for his farriering. Would he be interested in buying the business?”

  “He wouldn’t have time to blacksmith because he travels around to area ranches for his horseshoeing business.”

  “Maybe sell the business then?” If her back and legs didn’t heal, she’d need his help more often.

  “Maybe I should sell the dress shop too. I bought it from Mrs. Ressig when I moved back to town,” Mary suggested.

  She bought the business from the older woman when Mary and her children moved back from Chicago. After she was widowed, Mary realized she wanted to be with her family in Kansas instead of remaining in Illinois.

  “But what would you do all day if you didn’t have your shop?”

  It depended on if she could walk again but she answered Kiowa’s question in a vague way. “A woman never runs out of things to do, you know. I’m sure I could fill my days with something.”

  Hopefully it wasn’t sitting in bed reading a book every day. The rolling chair in the corner of the room was starting to look tempting after all.

  “All right. Please put me in the rolling chair, Kiowa,” Mary announced while pointing at the offending piece of furniture. “I need to know how to maneuver the thing before I’m seen in public in it.”

  Chapter 9

  “Kiowa, I don’t know if this a good idea. Maybe we should go back—"

  “Ma! You’re here!” Nolie yelled as he barreled toward them on the boardwalk.

  Kiowa had listened to Mary’s excuses to not go to the school picnic all morning, but he still lifted Mary off the bed and set her in the rolling chair as planned when it was time to leave.

  Mary fussed he didn’t set her hat on right, redoing it twice herself before deciding the angle of the hat and the pins anchoring it were finally acceptable.

  “Let me push her chair!” Nolie insisted as he met them on the boardwalk, then moved behind the chair to take Kiowa’s place.

  “Push her slowly because the boards are uneven. Careful not to dump her out,” Kiowa advised as he stood aside for Nolie to take over.

  “Ugh,” Nolie grunted as he started pushing the chair and hit an uneven
board. Nolie got the chair rolling and kept it steady, but Kiowa walked beside Nolie in case he needed help.

  Did Burdie walk over here okay on her crutches?” Mary asked Nolie.

  “Sure, she gets around everywhere on them. When are you going to switch to crutches, Ma?” Nolie asked as he looked over his mother’s shoulder to be sure he was steering the chair straight.

  “I don’t know, Nolie,” Mary bit her lip after he asked her.

  Kiowa was working with Mary to do the exercises Doctor Pansy recommended. Kiowa could see an improvement in her posture, but the pain in her back magnified when she stood upright and put the crutches under her arm pits. At least she was slowly improving.

  “Doctor Pansy says your ma’s back is still healing. Patience and exercise are the keys to improving,” Kiowa said, but he wondered if Mary would ever walk with the speed Burdette had mastered with her crutches. The girl was thumping toward them at a rapid rate.

  “Mama! You made it!” Burdette called out, almost tumbling into her mother’s lap when Nolie didn’t stop the rolling chair.

  “Oh, I couldn’t miss your last day of school picnic,” Mary smiled up at her daughter.

  Good, Kiowa thought. Mary was thinking about someone other than her own worries for a while. He knew this outing would help Mary. Not that he didn’t enjoy being with her, but Mary needed her social life back too.

  “Mary! Oh, it’s so good to see you out and about!” Helen Paulson called out as she came forward to lean over and give Mary a hug.

  A murmur waved across the crowd as others realized Mary was at this outside event.

  “Uh, I’ll let you take over now, Ki, before I get run over by mother’s friends,” Nolie said as he stepped back.

  “You both can leave. We’re spending the day with Mary,” Poppy Bjorklund, the butcher’s wife, shooed them away with her hands.

  “The day?” Mary asked with a hint of alarm on her face, as she looked at Kiowa in panic.

  “As long as you feel up to it,” Kiowa assured her. “I’ll be close by. Whenever you get tired of visiting with your friends, someone can let me know and we’ll go home.”

  Kiowa squeezed Mary’s shoulder, noting everyone around them saw the gesture. It would take Mary an hour, or two, to explain their marriage to her friends, let alone talk about her injury. But time with her friends would make the day go by so much faster for Mary. He wouldn’t mind the break too, Kiowa realized.

  Mack Reagan nodded his head for Kiowa to join him, so with one look back to Mary, he walked away. The animation on Mary’s face showed she’d be fine without him.

  “How’s Mary doing?” Mack asked as Kiowa walked to stand with the Reagan brothers and their friends in the shade of the schoolhouse.

  “Getting stir crazy as she adjusts to her disability,” Kiowa replied with a shrug of his shoulders. “She can sit up by herself, but her right leg still isn’t working.”

  “Starting to think about a long term solution yet?” Mack asked as they watched his wife, Doctor Pansy, lean over to hug Mary next in the long line of well-wishers around Mary.

  “Tried crutches a few times, hoping she could hop around on her left leg, but the pain in her lower back nixes that maneuver in a few steps,” Kiowa sighed.

  “I’m thinking more about your living situation. You going to try to move back to her upstairs apartment? Add on to the blacksmith quarters?”

  Mack’s questions were the same ones he’d been pondering this past week because Mary wasn’t making a speedy recovery.

  “Or build a new house where Mary can have room to move around in a rolling chair if necessary,” Mack continued. His head was cocked to the side as if he was thinking about how he’d build it.

  “I’ve thought about that too. Burdette and Nolie need their own bedrooms. and an extra room if we eventually need live-in help,” Kiowa added.

  “That’s going to take time and money. And I’ll tell you now, I want the best for my sister, niece, and nephew,” Gabe added to the conversation.

  “Still upset you didn’t know Mary and Kiowa were married, Gabe?” Mack asked, teasing their friend.

  “Darn right. I’ve always looked out for my sister, both in New York, and when we moved to Clear Creek. She should have told me,” Gabe crossed his arms showing his frustration about it.

  Cullen Reagan snorted. “Your sister’s a grownup, Gabe. Years ago, Mary married, moved to Chicago, had two children, and widowed before she moved back to Clear Creek. I think she can handle being married again without your permission or help.”

  “But she’ll always be my little sister.”

  “Sorry you’re still upset, Gabe, but Mary wanted to keep our marriage a secret for a while, and—”

  “You enjoyed sneaking around. I get it,” Gabe shrugged a shoulder. “I’m just doing my brotherly duty to be sure you do what’s best for them.”

  “Back to a house. Want to build from scratch, or add on to an existing house like I did for the Clancy’s home?”

  When Nolan and Holly Clancy married, Mack added an addition to the back of the house for his grandparents, Dan and Edna.

  “Depends on what’s available. I don’t want to add on the blacksmith compound. I’ve been thinking about selling the blacksmith and concentrating on my—”

  Kiowa stopped mid-sentence. There were men standing around them who didn’t know about his jewelry business, and they were looking at him to finish his sentence.

  “Concentrating on my family and building a house for them,” Kiowa lamely finished.

  “Our parents really liked their anniversary rings. Maybe you should try your hand at making and selling jewelry, Ki. You’d probably have to send your work to where there’s a steady market to make a living though,” Cullen suggested while trying not to grin.

  The postmaster knew Kiowa’s secret because of all the packages Kiowa sent and received through the post office.

  “If you get good at it, maybe I’ll get a ring for Luella, when I’m ready to ask for her hand in marriage,” Tate, Gabe’s younger brother suggested.

  Cullen snorted, then covered it with a cough. “Maybe you won’t be able to afford a ring made by Kiowa, if he gets good at it.”

  Kiowa slid a look at Cullen before turning to Tate. “When you’re ready to take that important step in life, say in a year or three, I’ll give you a discount since you’re now my brother-in-law.” Tate was only nineteen but had been courting Luella Paulson for a few years. No doubt there would be a wedding in their future.

  A shrill whistle made everyone cringe and turn towards the school teacher.

  “Welcome everyone to our end-of-school picnic. I’m so glad the community, besides the student’s families, joined us for this event.

  “Pastor Reagan will lead us in singing the table grace, then please form a line on either side of the serving tables and enjoy the meal.”

  Kiowa cleared his throat, knowing he needed to sing along with the people around him. “Be present at our table, Lord, be here and everywhere adorned, thy creatures bless, and grant that we may feast in paradise with thee. Amen.”

  “Huh. Never heard you sing before, Ki,” Mack tapped his fist on Kiowa’s shoulder when the group finished singing the prayer. “At least you learned the words listening outside the church on Sundays.”

  “Figured I better learn since I knew I’d have to start sitting with Mary in church eventually,” Kiowa confessed.

  “Is Pa going to faint when he sees you in church this Sunday?” Cullen asked. “I assume if Mary came out for the picnic, she’ll want to go to Sunday church services again too.”

  “Your father already told me he expected to see me sitting by Mary now, but some people aren’t going to like it,” Kiowa commented, looking over at the Tolberts, standing first in line to eat. The barber’s family moved here from Louisville, Kentucky, about six years ago, and still didn’t even try to fit into the community. They were blatant with their prejudge against anyone without light skin then an
d were still that way to this day.

  Six years ago, their son, Herbert, threw a fire bomb into his father’s shop, hoping it would burn down and the family would move back to Kentucky. Luckily, Fergus heard the boy throw the flaming rag-covered brick through the front window and saved the whole block of wooden buildings from being burned to the ground.

  Herbert was only ten when he’d done his stupid act, but now at age sixteen, he was still a troublemaker as far as Kiowa was concerned. His sister, Prudence, was as haughty and rude as her mother too.

  “Don’t let them bother you, Ki. You have as much right to sit in church with your wife and family as they do,” Mack reminded him. “Retrieve your wife from her friends and get your family in line to eat now. You know after I go through the line there won’t be anything left to eat.”

  The men wandered off to meet up with their families. Kiowa had a sense of pride that he had a family to join this year too.

  “Ki, we forgot our table service,” Mary said as he approached her. Leave it to a woman, even though she was in a rolling chair, to worry about not having plates and silverware as they got in line.

  “Your mother said she’d bring some for us. Nolie, want to find your grandparents and get our utensils?”

  “Will do,” Nolie called over his shoulder as he dodged through people, only to turn around and lead Darcie and Reuben to their place in line.

  “Do you mind if we step in line to help Mary and Burdette?” Darcie asked the Wilerson family behind Kiowa’s.

  “Not at all,” Millie, the sheriff’s wife answered. “We planned to help them, but now you can.”

  “What kind of pie did you bring, Mrs. Wilerson, so I can be sure to get a slice?” Nolie asked the woman known for her excellent pastries.

  “Apple. And you’ll know my pie because I cut a star shape for venting the steam instead of an ‘A’ like others might do.”

  “Like your husband’s marshal badge?” Burdette queried as she leaned against her mother’s chair.

  “I guess so,” Millie laughed.

  “Glad to see you all together now,” Marshal Adam said with a wink. Kiowa had to explain about his and Mary’s marriage one night when the marshal caught him pulling up his suspenders as he walked out of Mary’s stairwell. Man, that was embarrassing, but better the marshal caught him than someone else. He could have gotten a beating or been tarred, feathered and kicked out of town knowing some townspeople.