Caroline Lee's Christmas Collection: Six sweet historical western romances

by Caroline Lee

  But other than his obligation to Ash—which Ash considered long since paid—there wasn’t really much keeping Nate here. Ash had made it clear at the beginning that the ranch was his, and that the kid could work for his keep. But pretty soon after he arrived, Nate stopped being a hired hand and became family. He treated the ranch and the horses like his own, even though Ash insisted that his say was final.

  Hell, Nate had just as much right to this ranch as Ash himself did. He’d busted his rear for the last eight years to make it a success, and they wouldn’t have near as much success as they did without his labor. But the land was all in Ash’s name, and the money all in Ash’s accounts. And that didn’t seem right.

  He was still thinking along those lines after they’d hitched up one of the older horses to the sleigh and headed for the distant patch of stub pines along the stream east of the house. He was thinking about Nate’s contributions to the ranch, and how he could go about making sure his kid brother got what he deserved.

  They hadn’t said much to each other, each lost in their own thoughts. It didn’t occur to Ash to wonder what Nate was thinking, until his brother asked him, first.

  “What’ve you been so quiet about, all this time?”

  “Just thinking about the ranch. And you.” He took a deep breath. “I never told you this, but when I was a kid, in the orphanage, I… well,” He shrugged one-sidedly, “I always wanted a brother.” He glanced sidelong at Nate. “I finally got one, and he doesn’t know how much he means to me.”

  Nate was hunched over the reins, but when he heard that, he straightened slowly. A flush crept up the dark skin of his cheeks, and he very clearly did not look at Ash. The older man hadn’t been raised with much affection, and then had been on his own for years. When Nate first came into his life, he’d been a burden, then a help, and then family. Ash couldn’t imagine life without his kid brother around, but he’d never once said that to him.

  From what Nate had told him of his life before his mother had died, the boy hadn’t had much affection either. Life was hard out west, and harder still for those deemed inferior by their neighbors. Nate was a bastard of mixed blood, and despite the fact that he was a good kid, that’s all anyone thought of him. Ash knew that the beating he’d saved Nate from hadn’t been the first, and the seven-year-old boy showed up at his home knowing more about the seedier side of human nature than he should have.

  And now they were each the other’s only family, and Ash had never told him what that meant to him. He cleared his throat, trying to find a way to express what he felt, a new struggle for him. “Nate—”

  His brother had turned his head away, and now he mumbled something that Ash didn’t understand.

  “What?”

  Nate turned forward again, apparently intent on the horse’s backside. He cleared his throat, and tried again. “Yeah. I love you too, big brother.”

  Ash nodded, satisfied that nothing more needed to be said on the subject. More miles passed beneath their runners, as he wrestled with the other concerns, though. Nate deserved to know what he meant to the ranch, too, not just to Ash. But how to show him?

  They were turning into the gully that led down to the stream, when he cleared his throat again. “You know, I’ve been thinking about starting a breeding program next year, like you suggested. Maybe we can grab some two-year breeders in the spring, rather than just racers. What do you think?”

  Nate turned incredulous eyes to the older man. “What do I think…?”And Ash felt shame that the kid was so surprised to be asked his opinion. Have I really been that bossy? But Nate cleared his throat and started again. “Yeah, you know I think it’s a good idea. I think a few of the stallions we’ve got left are viable options for breeders, too, but before you do anything you’ll have to build at least one more corral, and some stronger partitions, if not a new barn.”

  “We’ll have to build a new corral in the spring, then. We can make plans this winter. And if it takes us an extra year, that’s fine too. I like the idea of working towards a goal, rather than just doing the same thing every year.”

  The kid was still dazed when they reached the group of pines, and while Ash enjoyed his reaction, he wished he’d said something earlier to show Nate his value. They picked a tree for boughs at random and each worked one side of the handsaw. Then they debated on which tree to choose for Molly’s Christmas tree. Ash honestly had no idea what made “the perfect tree”, as Nate said, but the kid had plenty of opinions. So Ash sighed, sat on the edge of the sleigh next to the first tree, and watched his brother pick his way among the snow drifts, looking at each tree from several angles.

  “Here it is!” It was bigger than the rest, a good foot taller than even Ash, and nice and bushy. Ash supposed it was a good first Christmas tree for Nate.

  He clambered down from the sleigh with the saw, and stomped to the base of the tree, where Nate was busy brushing the snow away, so that they could cut the trunk as close to the ground as possible. It was a little galling to Ash to know that he still needed his brother’s help with something as simple as cutting down a tree, and he looked forward to next month, when Doc Sanderson would take the cast off his arm.

  As with almost everything they did, the brothers worked well together, communicating without words, and the tree was soon cushioned on the snow beside the frozen stream. Leaving the saw to Nate, Ash lifted one end of the pine with a grunt, and lugged it towards the sleigh. “So, what had you so quiet on the trip here?”

  Nate looked away and tried to shrug nonchalantly. “Just thinking.”

  Lifting the tree into the sleigh didn’t take much effort, but Ash was distracted. “About what?”

  It wasn’t until they’d turned the sleigh around and were heading back home that Ash realized the kid hadn’t answered. “What were you thinking about?”

  Nate sighed, and Ash could tell he wanted the older man to drop the subject. But then Nate surprised him by blurting “Molly.”

  The flash of jealousy surprised Ash. “What about Molly?”

  Nate shrugged again. “I like her. I like her cooking. It’s nice to have someone else in the house.”

  Ash felt his hackles lower, and reached up to scratch his beard to cover his momentary anger. “Yeah. I like her too.”

  “Oh, really? I couldn’t tell.” Ash heard the sarcasm, but was still surprised when Nate lowered his voice comically and grunted out “‘And if you fall in love, Molly? What then?’” Turning slightly in his seat, Nate fluttered his lashes at his brother and pursed his lips like he was waiting to be kissed. His falsetto was laughable when he squeaked out, “‘Oh, Mr. Barker! Oh, let me fetch you some more flapjacks! Oh, your shirt’s unbuttoned, I’ll finish dressing you, teehee!’”

  Ash was trying to look angry at the kid’s teasing, but couldn’t keep the smile from tugging at his lips over the ridiculous performance. Soon he was all-out guffawing, and Nate lapsed into chuckles too.

  Wiping tears from his eyes, Ash settled back down, speculating on Nate’s impression. “Yeah, she is pretty nice to have around, huh?”

  “I wish there was a way to keep her around past the spring. I’m pretty sure she likes us. Well, you at least.” Nate nudged him with his shoulder, which jarred his injury. The plaster-of-paris cast and the sling helped hold it immobile, and the constant ache was gone now. But Nate didn’t know that, and was immediately contrite. “Hell, I’m sorry! Is your arm okay?”

  It reminded Ash of how helpful his brother had been, over the last month. He’d been the one to help him onto a horse—a tame one, not the mustang he’d been working with—and drag him into town to see the Doc. Nate had cooked and managed the horses, and been Ash’s spare hand, and done it with a gentleness the bigger man couldn’t have mimicked. He’d been lucky to have Nate around, and so he just sighed, not wanting to make the kid feel guilty.

  “Nah, it’s feeling much better these days. But you’re right,” he quickly returned to the subject they’d been discussing, not want
ing to lose the opportunity, “it would be nice if she’d stick around.”

  “I do the books, though, Ash. I think you did a good thing by hiring her, and it helps that we don’t have to pay her much. But even then, we really can’t keep paying her past the thaw.”

  “Yeah… uh, about that…” Ash took a deep breath. He’d been mulling this over in private for a day or two, but wanted to see what his brother—his partner—thought. “I was thinking about asking her to stay, only not really paying her, as such.”

  Nate’s brows drew in, confused, so Ash hurried on. “You said yourself that she likes us, and yeah, I know she comes with two little sisters, but I figure we can manage fine. I mean, we may have to add on a room or something next year, but still…” Nate still hadn’t said anything, and Ash felt like a fool, blathering on like that. “Um…so? What do you think?”

  The younger man was still confused, judging by the way he was hunched over the reins, and sending Ash baffled looks from beneath lowered brows. “What do I think about what? Keeping Molly?”

  Ash took another deep breath, realizing he’d made a mess of the explanation. “I’m going to ask her to marry me.”

  The younger man didn’t respond for a long time, and Ash wished he could see more of his brother’s expression. Finally, Nate nodded slowly. “I think that’s a good idea. Her reputation’s probably ruined by now, being stuck out here with us. Marrying her would fix that. And for you, it’d be good to have her around, to help with the ranch, even after that cast comes off. It’d mean she’d have to give up on opening a bakery, and you’d have to convince her she’s not settling for you.” Ash had seen the look in her eyes when he’d stood so close; Molly Murray was thinking about kissing him as much as he’d been thinking about it. He was pretty sure he could convince her to marry him.

  Nate continued listing reasons it was a good plan, and ended with, “And of course she’s a great cook. It’s about time you settled down.” His grin was a little shaky. “A man needs sons to take over his spread when he’s old.”

  Slowly, Ash sat back, unsure what to say. Sons? He’d never considered that marrying Molly would lead to children—he sure wasn’t going to leave a woman as delicious as her untouched!—but now that he thought about it, the idea of a baby or two around was kind of nice, if Molly was the mother.

  But suddenly Nate’s hesitant response to the news made sense. If Ash married and had kids, what would happen to Nate? What would happen to the ranch? Nate had busted his rear right alongside Ash to make this place a success. Was he afraid the older man would kick him out if heirs came into the picture? Ash needed a way to tell Nate that he’d always have a home here, as long as he wanted. His kid brother needed to feel like he was wanted, too.

  And just like that, Ash solved the problem that’d been bugging him.

  He would deed half the ranch to Nate. He could do it; it was still all in his name, since he’d applied for the acreage and the increases. Half the land, and half the assets. That would make Nate feel secure enough, and show him that Ash had valued his contributions all these years. Babies or not, Nate would have a future on the ranch.

  Satisfied, Ash cleared his throat. “Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I have to ask her still.” Nate didn’t respond. “We have to go back into town on the seventeenth, to pick up her sisters. I figured we could do it then, if she says yes.” The younger man nodded. “But before I asked her, and changed the way things were working around here, I wanted to make sure you were okay with it.”

  Nate’s dark brows lowered again, but he didn’t look at Ash. “Why?”

  The older brother half-shrugged. “Because we’ve been managing alright on our own, and if she says yes, things’ll change a lot. I didn’t ask you before I hired her, and that was a pretty major change, so I should’ve. I’m sorry.” Nate looked surprised at that admission, gratified too. “So I wanted to run this by you, first.”

  Another long moment passed, and Ash hoped he hadn’t hurt Nate more than the kid was willing to admit. But then his younger brother half turned to him, his eyes bright with unshed tears and his smile gentle, and stuck out one gloved hand. Reaching across his body, Ash gripped it, feeling his brother’s strength even through two layers of leather. He shook it, proud of the kid he’d raised into a young man.

  “I hope you’ll let me stand beside you when you marry her.”

  Ash had to clear his throat, and look away, not entirely surprised by the welling of emotion. His voice was still rough, however, when he said, “Nate, there’s no one else in this whole world I’d be prouder to have next to me.”

  Neither said anything the rest of the ride back to the house. They didn’t have to.

  Chapter 8

  Molly had finished Annie’s blue coat. It wasn’t lined, but it would be serviceable enough to bring the girl home in. She’d made it larger than necessary, for her sister to grow into, and so that it could be worn over her current winter coat, for extra warmth. If she was able, in the next few days, she’d add pockets and a collar, and then later go back and line it. But for now, it’d keep Annie from freezing, and that was what mattered.

  Her stew was bubbling perfectly, the dumplings having just been dropped in, and the pie ready to go into the oven, when she heard voices from outside. She breathed a little sigh of relief, thinking of the late hour, and hurried to tuck a few stray curls behind her ears. She smiled at her foolishness, but didn’t stop herself from brushing the flour from her apron and making sure that her cheeks had some color. She was still smiling when she rushed to the front door and slipped out onto the front porch.

  Ash’s return smile seemed bigger, somehow, and she blushed when she noticed. Ninny, stop trying to make more of things! He was probably just happy to be home.

  She hardly noticed the chill in the late afternoon air, watching Nate grab the other end of the tree Ash was trying to hoist over the railing by himself. She hurried to help stand it up and soon both trees were leaning against the logs of the house; she dutifully exclaimed over Nate’s choice of Christmas tree, noting his pleased grin. She brushed as much snow off the branches as possible, intending to leave them out on the porch for the rest of the moisture to drip off, and hurried back to her dinner preparations.

  When the men stomped into the house, she made sure that the stew was just coming off the stove, and ready to be ladled into heavy bowls she’d found in one cabinet. Both were very appreciative, and seemed in good spirits. Again, she praised their choice of trees, explaining that the larger, rounder one would be perfect along the back wall, and that she’d use the boughs from the scrawnier one to decorate the house.

  After dinner, she cleaned up while they rested. She popped the pie in the oven, and then, shyly, brought out the bag of popping corn. When she offered to make some, Nate’s eyes lit up.

  “Can Ash make it? He makes the best popped corn!”

  Molly smiled at his boy-like enthusiasm, but Ash was shaking his head. “Sorry, kid, I don’t think I can handle it with only one arm.” He shifted in his seat, and was suddenly piercing her with that gray gaze. “But I’m thinking Molly’s probably a deft hand at it. Why don’t we try her corn?”

  Again, Molly blushed happily, and he met her smile with an answering one. She hurried through the process of popping corn, but with Nate standing over her shoulder, she made sure that it was perfect. She dumped the fluffy kernels into a bowl, and when she saw how many handfuls Nate ate between the stove and the table, she laughed and poured more into the pan.

  She felt Ash’s eyes on her as she tried to concentrate on the kernels. He was sitting at the table, long legs stretched in front of him, occasionally stealing a handful of popped corn from Nate’s bowl. Whenever he caught her eye, he smiled, and it caused a funny fluttering sensation in her stomach. She didn’t know why he was being more open than usual, but she found that she liked it.

  They spent another hour at the table, enjoying the corn, and then the pie. Ash and Nate each exclaimed
over the crisp apples and the delicate crust, and she relished the praise. Baking was her pride, after all. While they each had a third slice, she worked on stitching the popped corn kernels in a neat row. She soon had a long strand of the kernels, and Nate was eyeing them, unsure.

  “Why’d you waste perfectly good corn that way?”

  She had to chuckle, but he didn’t seem to mind. “I’m going to use them for decorating, along with the cranberries. One time, when I was a little girl, we had a Christmas tree decorated entirely with edible things; cranberries, corn, gingerbread cookies, sweet little sugar angels. It didn’t last long, but…” she sighed, “It smelled delicious!”

  They had to both smile over that. Then Nate spoke up again. “We’ve never had a Christmas tree. I don’t think I’ve ever had one, other than ones we’ve seen in the stores. You seem like you know an awful lot about them, though.”

  Molly smiled sadly, thinking of past years and a little boy who’d never experienced the joy of the season. “Christmas has always been the most wonderful time of the year. The time when it didn’t matter if you didn’t have enough during the rest of the year, or if you were feuding with your neighbor. You scrimped and saved and everyone got a little something in their stocking, and the food was delicious and plentiful, and you felt good about everyone, everywhere.” She closed her eyes, picturing her family’s house. “And best of all, there was always snow, to cover the buildings and the chimneys, and the terrible smoky factories. Snow seemed to make the season special, and pure.” She glanced at Ash. “Does that make sense?”

  And oddly, from his expression, she could see that it did. “So you like snow, huh? We get plenty of it, in these parts.”