by Stella Clark
Kate blinked, surprised to find another bride beside her. Reading between the lines, she asked, “Are you a mail order bride as well?” Rita nodded. “So am I.”
The boy glanced between them curiously. “What’s that? Is there a bride catalogue?”
Both of the women hesitantly explained. Kate shared her story and Rita shared hers. But the other girl was younger, and she only grew more nervous along the way.
“My parents said I shouldn’t do this, only I didn’t have any prospects back home,” Rita explained as they arrived in the Dakota territory. Her eyes skirted the town they arrived in, ready to pick up one passenger and change out horses.
Everyone stepped out to stretch their legs.
Kate stood beside Rita, glancing around. There were a few established shops and the like. With the sun setting, everything had a pink and purple hue. It was beautiful. Or perhaps she was just tired of seeing the brown prairie everywhere.
The young woman beside her inhaled sharply. Then she shook her head. “I can’t do this,” she announced. Taking small, sharp steps she headed around to the driver. “Can you pull that bag down? I-I’ll be staying here. I’m getting off.”
“You are?” the man asked in surprise. “I thought we have a few more stops before—”
Rita pointed to her bag. “That one, sir. I can’t—I won’t—Can you please just get it for me? I told you, I’m staying here. That is, I’m going back. But I can’t …” Her eyes went over to Kate’s. They were wide and anxious. “I can’t do this.”
Kate went over to her. “Are you sure?” she asked hesitantly. “You’re already so close.”
But Rita wouldn’t listen to her or anyone else. She took her bag and started to the café as she called over her shoulder, “This is all nonsense. I’d do the same if I were you.”
Shocked, Kate numbly returned to her seat as the driver called for everyone to board. An older woman took Rita’s place on the other side of the bench.
Her heart pounded in her chest as they started off again. Committing to a strange life with a strange man was worthy of getting cold feet. She wasn’t that foolish. Or was she?
Kate’s breath caught as they bumped over another rock. Was she foolish for staying or would she be foolish for leaving? Too scared to make a decision, she stayed in the stagecoach.
There weren’t any other options. Her family couldn’t keep taking care of her and she couldn’t find work or a husband back east. She had run out of chances and hope. Though there had been a tearful goodbye, she had seen the relief in her parents’ eyes. One less person to worry about.
There weren’t other options. Kate forced herself to sit up straight. Even if he did end up refusing her, she had to try. She pushed her misgivings to the side and looked back out the window. They would reach Oregon City before she knew it.
Chapter 4
Cooper wiped his damp hands on his jeans as he looked around the station. The stagecoach had just arrived. It would be the stagecoach with his bride, if she had made it all this way.
There was a herd of horses galloping on his insides. He wasn’t sure how he felt, but he sensed that much. And he wasn’t thrilled. His eyes darted around in concern he had missed something. They weren’t getting out of the cart. Why weren’t they getting out?
His uncertainty was premature. The driver came around and opened the door. Cooper’s stomach churned again.
An old woman with gray hair stepped out. He paused in confusion. Thinking back to the letters, he tried to remember how young his bride was supposed to be. Nearly thirty himself, he thought she had mentioned being fairly young but of marriageable age.
Then a similarly aged man stepped out, following the older woman. And a boy that hung close by them.
Cooper realized his mistaken assumption and relaxed his shoulders. Spending all morning in the sun could do things to a man. Again he rubbed his hands against his thighs.
When he glanced up, there was a young lady stepping out of the stagecoach. Soft brown hair curled around a bonnet. She had mentioned having brown hair. Cooper hesitated as he watched her look around and then help another woman out of the stagecoach, an older woman who was welcomed by the Oregon City blacksmith.
Then the brunette belonged to him.
That sounded wrong. A lump formed in his throat. He tried to think about how he was supposed to talk to her. Before this, it had been easy enough to write to a woman he had decided to make his wife. Talking to cooks and housekeepers had been easy.
But the idea of going over and introducing himself to her now made those horses in his stomach go crazy like a dust storm.
Only after he looked again to find her clutching a bag did he gather his resolve. Taking a deep breath, Cooper collected himself. He pushed his shoulders back and then started across the lane.
“Miss Grady?” He nodded when she glanced his way. It was her.
When she turned, he almost paused in his step when he got a closer look at her. Miss Kate Grady had a soft oval face that brightened upon finding him.
There was a scar. It was clear to see in the daylight, though it looked like she had attempted to hide it with her hair and bonnet. It covered a good half of her cheek, thinning as it climbed up to her eye.
He remembered her writing that she had blue eyes. But Cooper knew he would have remembered if she had mentioned a large scar. Memorizing her face, he noticed how she smiled hopefully at him. His eyes caught how her scar tugged at her cheek.
Other than that, she looked nice enough. Besides, outward beauty wasn’t necessary for what he was looking for in a wife. He needed someone to handle his house and the work that needed to get done. While he was glad that she wasn’t old, her looks didn’t matter as much as her cooking skills.
“Mr. Potter?” she asked. Her big blue eyes studied him.
Fixing his jacket, Cooper nodded. “It’s just Cooper. Welcome to Oregon City,” he added after a moment of silence. “I … Well, I suppose we should go.”
Hefting up her bag, she nodded. “Certainly. Yes. To—to your ranch?”
Cooper wondered how he was supposed to interact with her. Even though they were about to be wed, it was still a marriage of convenience. As he studied her face, he tried to think about how they were going to work this out.
Maybe they should talk before driving to the ranch. He glanced around and then nudged his head towards a nearby restaurant. “Let’s get some food. They cook their potatoes well. I’m sure you’re tired?”
She shrugged. “I don’t mind.”
The two of them made their way to the other side of the street. Inside the restaurant, they found an empty table and ordered brisket and potatoes. She drained her water glass in seconds before offering a flushed smile his way.
Drumming his fingers on the table, Cooper gave her a nod. He wasn’t sure how to address her. “How was the journey?”
Kate gave him her second smile. Her eyes crinkled and he saw the lines scrunch up around her eyes. That only made the blue in her eyes shine brighter, so blue a man could almost drown in them. “It was long. That was my first time in a stagecoach. Though the view was beautiful, I’m not used to sitting for so long.”
He chuckled, surprising both of them. He hadn’t expected something like that to escape her mouth. But those words made for a good transition. Cooper straightened up and took a deep breath.
“You don’t have to worry about that out here,” he informed her. “There’s always a lot of work to be done. I’ve had a few housekeepers, but it hasn’t worked out. Like I explained in my letters, I need someone to help keep my house so I can keep my ranch. There’s a lot of work, and I need a strong helping hand.”
She nodded seriously. “Yes, Mr. Potter.”
“Cooper,” he corrected her. “While we’ll keep our—our relationship one of convenience, we can do away with a few of the formalities. I’ll join you for meals when I can, and you can consider my ranch yours as well. But love is a foolish notion and I have more impo
rtant work to do. I’m not looking to build a family. We should both be comfortable to—to address our concerns. When I have the time, we’ll attend church together. But that’s it.”
Kate Grady took a deep breath before offering him another nod. “Of course. That’s what we agreed upon.”
Chapter 5
Her heart pounded so loud in her chest that it gave her a headache. Kate clenched her hands tightly together in an attempt to stay calm and collected. She didn’t want to give her future husband any reason for concern.
The tone he used to explain his expectations for their future together reminded her of the teachers she had back when she went to school. He was factual, polite, and reiterated a few points to remind the two of them why they were there.
Kate thought back to her youth, back when she used to talk about the boys in town with the few friends she had. Stories could be found about sweet romances and how beautiful a marriage could be for two people.
But that wasn’t for her.
She sat up straight like the student she was, nodding as she tried to remember everything he was telling her. But Kate understood the gist. They were partners. He handled the ranch and she handled the house and food. If they could complete their duties, then they would have a happy marriage.
He was very frank. She appreciated his honesty, but it hurt. All her life, she had dreamed of something more than this. Of finding someone to love and adore her for who she was.
Yet every time she glanced in the mirror, she knew that would never happen. Not really. Every dream she once had was just that, a dream. A dream and nothing more. Deep down, she knew she had never really believed that anything was possible for her.
“I would appreciate that,” she agreed when he said that he’d show her around the ranch in the next couple of days.
Her eyes trailed over his face as he dug into their food. After the constant bumping from the stagecoach, her stomach still wasn’t quite settled. Though she picked up her own fork, she wasn’t quite ready to eat.
Besides, she wanted to get a good look at him. Cooper had hair a few shades lighter than her own, cropped close to stay out of his face. There were a few dark lines from his work in the sun. He had a sloping nose and dark brown eyes.
They were nice eyes. Honest eyes that hadn’t jerked away or widened in surprise when he saw her. It was the strangest, nicest thing. She had nearly made herself sick when they rolled into town. Surely the man was angry with her for deceiving him about her looks.
But he had yet to say anything. Though she caught him studying her curiously a few times, he didn’t say anything about her face, and he hadn’t turned away from her.
That had to count for something, she told herself.
Hoping they could live peaceably together, Kate forced herself to take a few bites of food. They ate quietly until he was finished. She set her fork down and pushed her plate away.
“Are you finished eating?”
She nodded. “Yes. It was a bumpy stagecoach,” Kate added when he didn’t say anything else. “Everything is well.”
Cooper stood up. “Good. Then if nothing else is keeping us, we had best get married.” He paused as she considered once again the situation she had gotten herself into. The young lady she had met days ago, Rita, hadn’t been able to make it to the man she had agreed to marry. But Kate had.
She still wasn’t sure if either of them had made the right decision. Not knowing what else to do, Kate stood as well. “Where to, Cooper?”
Though she couldn’t be certain, it looked like his mouth twitched when she said his name. She hoped that was supposed to be a good thing. Swallowing hard, she allowed him to lead her out of the restaurant and down the street.
In a few minutes, she was in the back office of the church with the pastor, the justice of the peace, and their wives. Her traveling bag sat on a spare chair and the pastor shared a Bible verse about clinging to one another in hardships.
Once she signed her name, she was married. Mrs. Kate Potter.
“Thank you for your time.” Kate forced herself to smile as the women congratulated her. She wondered if Cooper had explained anything to them before her arrival. From the sound of it, they didn’t understand it was a marriage of convenience.
That was fair. Kate hadn’t explained that part of the agreement when she told her parents. It had felt like the safe choice to make as she agreed to marry a stranger far off in the West. A marriage of convenience allowed them to still be themselves, to both have a roof over their heads and the occasional company. But that was all.
Cooper picked up her bag before leading her out into the street. “Here we are. This cart just to the side is ours,” he pointed out their wagon. Walking up to it, he put her bag in the back alongside some boxes and barrels. “I’m afraid I need to pick something up in the general store. I’ll only be a minute. Are you all right to stay here for a minute?”
She nodded, not certain of what else to do. Though he didn’t cringe when he looked at her, and he was still polite towards her, Kate felt a tense wall being built between them.
Her eyes followed him into the store beside them. Slowly she pulled herself up onto the wagon to sit and wait. It took all her strength to ignore the stares she received. Keeping her head down, Kate prayed for freedom from the fear clutching her heart.
It was going to be difficult, she understood that. But she couldn’t stop shaking and she didn’t know what to think. Her stomach was all in turmoil and all she wanted was a friend. Someone to talk to.
Cooper Potter was her husband, but she knew that meant little for them. She took another deep breath and tried to pull herself together before he returned.
Knowing better than to hope for more than kindness from him, Kate tried to tell herself to be content with whatever she had. It was probably all that she would receive.
Chapter 6
He didn’t need anything. Cooper just wanted a moment to himself. Glancing around the general store, he nodded at those who looked his way. He would have to take something out with him, so he forced himself to move around.
Though he had just been married, he didn’t feel any different. Just a little more tense and uncomfortable around her. While he was glad that Kate understood his expectations, Cooper didn’t know how things would work out for them. He knew he should treat her in a more polite manner than his housekeepers, but not to the point of suggesting romance or anything so nonsensical.
But he just didn’t know how to do something like that.
A married man. There had been time in the last couple of months to get used to the idea, but he wasn’t certain when he would ever be comfortable with the concept. It was strange and unfamiliar.
Marriage was a concept he didn’t understand, and he wasn’t certain he wanted to. After his rough youth, he knew how dangerous it could be. Though he was trying to make it work in his own way, in a manner he prayed was safe and not problematic, he knew that life could spin around and trip folks up.
Picking up a bag of sugar, he took it to the front and paid. He couldn’t leave Kate out there forever.
“Sorry about that,” he volunteered when he returned to the cart.
She was already seated with her shoulders back and her hands in her lap. “It’s all right.”
After fixing up the horses, he joined her on the bench. They were awfully close then, almost touching. He wondered if he would need to make a bigger wagon. Or perhaps he could teach her to drive the wagon and he could stick to riding. Considering his choices, he called to the horses and they headed out of town.
They rode silently together. Moving his focus to the animals, Cooper hardly glanced her way until they had slowed down upon arriving at the barn. When he jumped down onto solid ground, he saw Kate’s tight expression.
Her face was pale and he noticed the shaky hands as he went around to help her down. There were a few things he recalled about being a gentleman.
“Are you all right?” he asked cautiously. The idea o
f marrying a woman only for her to die on him wasn’t something he wanted to deal with. While he knew they handled more ailments than men typically did, Cooper wasn’t certain how to broach the topic or what to say.
She nodded hurriedly as she took his hand. “It was just a rough ride, I think. Thank you. I’ll be fine. This is your ranch?”
Cooper hesitated. “Well, it’s yours now too, I suppose. But yes.” He fixed his hat and then glanced at the wagon. “Let’s get your bag inside and then I’ll show you around.”
Once she’d seen the back door to the kitchen, Kate began to carry the items from the wagon inside. That allowed Cooper the time to unharness the horses and brush them down before putting his wagon away.
They met on the steps and he directed her down the lane. “You won’t need to travel too far. Just from the house to the hall here. We have a cart to carry heavy things back and forth. I can’t think of any reason you’d need to mess with the horses, so you don’t need to worry about them. But we’ve got a few cows that need tending to, as well as a chicken coop. Those will be your responsibility, along with the house.
“Down here is the mess hall. There are about twelve hired hands at a time, sometimes twenty. They sleep in that half of the building, but you won’t have any reason to go back there.”
He paused to look her way. Kate looked very serious, her lips pressed together and her eyes wide as she appeared to be trying to memorize the area around them. For a minute he found himself hesitating, wondering if this had been a mistake. Though she had agreed to a marriage of convenience, she would be surrounded by plenty of men who might want otherwise. What if she changed her mind?
“The other half,” she spoke up when he said nothing. “That’s where I’ll feed them?”
Cooper swallowed, appreciating her focus and distraction. “Twice a day. Bright and early—before 7:00 at least—then around sunset. If you can keep a few things on hand as well, that would be best. I’ve been trying to keep bread and fruit, some vegetables, whatever I can. It’s a lot of hard labor the men do, after all. Everyone’s always hungry.”
