Heart and Hand: Gold Sky Series

by Carter, Rebel

“Will, it’s just one meal. It’s not important,” Julie replied, pushing on his arm. When he didn’t so much as budge an inch, she looked at him and sighed when she saw the determined set of his jaw. There was no way this man was going to let her up.

  No way. No how.

  “I’ll take her. You take the horse,” he told Forrest, sipping at his coffee before he gestured at her with the mug. “You finish your breakfast. I’m not having you faint on your first day teaching.”

  “But W—”

  “What is it? Don’t want me takin’ you into town?”

  “No, it’s not that.” Julie tilted her head in confusion over his words.

  “Then eat.”

  With a sullen expression, she picked up her fork again, giving Forrest a longing look. He finished buttoning his shirt while giving her a shrug.

  “He’s right about breakfast,” he said, leaning down to kiss her cheek.

  Julie glared at him. “Traitor.”

  Forrest grabbed an apple off the table and laughed, walking backward toward the doorway. “Oh, I’ll take you by the lake another morning. Promise.” The door banged shut after him, and Julie pursed her lips one more time before she resumed eating the pancakes Will had made her that morning.

  “So that’s what this was all about?” Will asked her, setting down his cup.

  “I’ve wanted to see the lake since he—well, you both wrote me about it.”

  “Plenty of time to see the lake, Jules. You're not going anywhere anytime soon.”

  She took another quick bite of her breakfast. “So you’ve made apparent.” Though she pouted, there was a part of her that relished Will’s concern over what she ate that morning. It was nice to be thought of, for her health to be a concern for Will. She smiled at him then, touched by his effort to look after her.

  “What?” He gave her a look of confusion when he caught her staring at him with a silly grin on her face.

  “Nothing.” Julie looked away quickly with a blush at having been caught staring at him like a lovesick girl, but then again, she supposed she was.

  After a hasty breakfast, Julie grabbed her books and followed Will out to the buckboard. He settled her on the bench seat with as much ease as Forrest and before long they were off down the road, heading toward the school. Julie leaned back in the seat, content with her morning and happy for a ride to the school on her first day.

  A few minutes into the trip she sensed a change in Will and bit her lip, shooting him a glance. It was hard to pinpoint when the shift in energy had happened, but she knew it wasn’t her imagination that her husband was turning into someone else on the drive into town. He had already scooted an inch or two further away from where Julie had been pressed against him at the start of the ride.

  A definite change from how wrapped around her he had been the night before in their bed. Where was that man? Sighing at the thought, Julie looked down at her hands and tugged her coat tighter around her. They might have only been inches apart, but it may as well have been the expanse of the Montana Territory.

  Will looked over at her and cleared his throat. “Will you need a ride home?” he asked, voice calm and even.

  “I can make my own way back,” Julie said, meeting his gaze. “I’m not sure how long I’ll be today with needing to take inventory and sort things out for the remainder of the term. There's a lot to do but not many days left to do it.”

  “Ah.” He nodded but said nothing else. Julie could see that the gray eyes which had been so open and warm in their home were now shuttered. The feeling of distance only amplified the closer to town they got, and by the time they pulled up in front of the schoolhouse, Julie could practically see the walls Will had erected around himself to keep her out.

  It was a painful experience.

  Without a word, Will handed her out of the buckboard and then stood there awkwardly in front of her.

  “Have, ah...” Will shifted uncomfortably. “Have a good day, Jules.”

  “Thank you for the ride,” Julie said, forcing her tone to stay bright despite her disappointment at losing the closeness she had shared with him. She had to remain patient with him, to allow him time to come to her on his own. She had to trust Forrest that this wouldn’t be forever.

  “’Course,” Will said, and then he surprised her by leaning forward to kiss her cheek. She smiled up at him, a real genuine one that he returned, albeit briefly.

  Buoyed by the kiss, Julie’s smile stayed in place and she gave a cheery wave when Will drove off in the direction of town. Once her husband was out of sight, she turned and practically bounded up the steps of the schoolhouse. She unlocked the heavy oak doors with the key that had been given to Forrest for safekeeping and took a hasty look around the space.

  It was a single room, in which desks and chairs sat in rows of five. Julie rubbed her hands against her arms and made for the stove in the corner. Thought it was late spring, the mornings in Montana could still be downright chilly, and today looked like it promised rain. She would have to get to work immediately if she wanted her students to have a comfortable classroom.

  Windows lined the room, providing plenty of natural light. Cubbies sat underneath the windows to the left and a small, rudimentary library of books occupied the opposite wall. She pursed her lips, taking in the collection. She would have to supplement the books on her own if she wanted her students to have access to quality resources. A blackboard took up the wall behind the large oak desk at the back of the room, and she painstakingly wrote her name in her neatest handwriting across the chalkboard.

  Mrs. Wickes-Barnes.

  She smiled at that. It looked nice and official.

  No sooner had she put down the chalk than the school doors flew open with a bang. Julie jumped at the noise and turned to see a crowd of children bursting through the doors.

  They froze when they caught sight of her.

  “Hello.” She gave them a warm smile, hands clasped in front of her. “Good morning and please take your seats.” She gestured towards the row of desks.

  A blond boy of about ten stumbled forward with wide eyes. “They were right! She’s beautiful! Like a queen!”

  A tittering of laughter escaped the students, and Julie blushed at the boy’s comment.

  She gave him a smile. “Thank you.”

  He nodded at her, still wide-eyed, and then shuffled toward his seat with furtive looks toward her. Julie waited while the rest of the students hurried to their seats. Her smile grew a bit more when she caught sight of Rhodes’s daughters, girls of about ten and twelve with cascades of dark curls and dark eyes. They, she saw, regarded her as closely as she regarded them, and at her smile, they burst into happy expressions of their own.

  Her promise to Rhodes on her wedding night came back to her and Julie straightened up a tad more.

  “If you’ll open your arithmetic books. Page 57, please.”

  The sound of pages rustling filled the room as the students obeyed. She had a job to do, and she had no intention of breaking her promise to Rhodes. He trusted her with his girls, and she would do her best to honor his trust.

  Julie’s first day at the school passed much like the previous two days: in a blur. It was, however, the most enjoyable blur she could remember experiencing in all her life. The children were eager to learn and absorbed her instruction. She wasn’t sure exactly why the last teacher had fled the post, but Julie’s opinion of the children was that they were angels.

  Yes, the children were rough around the edges—she’d had to march out a pair of boys for sneaking in a toad, and then there had been the roughhousing during recess that had turned into an actual bout of fists—but it had all blown over with a few quiet apologies as soon as Julie had sent them a stern look.

  She was eager to see just how much progress her students would make by this time next year, and smiled at the thought. Life in Gold Sky had promise, and today was a shining example of how much she had already gained by settling in the town. There were other bright
spots, primarily in the form of her gentle blond husband and his mercurial brunette counterpart.

  Julie played with the cuff of her wool coat, a bright blue garment that hung to mid-thigh. It was a pretty coat, something she had picked up while shopping with her mother, and it complimented her darker complexion perfectly, but it didn’t do much for her in the way of protection against the Montana elements. She hadn’t been wrong in her guess at rain, and a rumble of thunder in the distance had her hurrying toward the ranch. Shoving the novel she had hoped to continue reading from that morning into her bag, she hurried down the road, mindful of the rapidly darkening sky.

  It was because she was staring so intently at the heavens above that she was surprised by the form of a woman rounding the corner just before the last stretch of road before the ranch.

  Rosemary.

  What was she doing this far out?

  A quick look around her told her there was no reprieve from the niceties she would have to make with the other woman. Julie had to repress a sigh when she saw that Rosemary had dressed perfectly for the weather and even had an umbrella tucked under one arm as an extra precaution. A wry smile escaped Julie when she saw the moment Rosemary recognized her. The blonde stood just a bit taller, holding herself more elegantly, and walking with more confidence that she had moments before.

  At least her presence had enough of an effect to push Rosemary to be at her best.

  Julie took it upon herself to be the first to offer a greeting, and when they were only a few feet apart, she smiled.

  “Rosemary. How nice to see you again.”

  Rosemary gestured a hello with occupied hands. Julie raised an eyebrow, taking in the bright and sunny yellow tea towel wrapped around what looked to be a small platter.

  Curious, that the woman was out here on a lane that only led to Julie’s home carrying such an item.

  Were there other homesteads further on Forrest and Will had forgotten to mention?

  “Same to you, Mrs. Wickes-Barnes.” The stiff tone of Rosemary’s greeting sang of propriety.

  Julie’s lips twitched. Hardly fitting for a woman who had been breakfasting with her husband the morning after her wedding. She raised her eyes from the yellow-swaddled dish Rosemary carried.

  “Call me, Julie. Please,” she said, taking another step closer. Why keep up with formal etiquette when Julie knew there was more to Rosemary’s interest in her husband than being a good neighbor?

  “Certainly, Julie.” Rosemary inclined her head. “On your way home from the schoolhouse?”

  “I am.”

  “I hope you found the children in good spirits. I was their substitute until recently. They can be a handful.”

  Julie nodded. “They can be, but I thoroughly enjoyed my first day.”

  “How wonderful! It takes a special kind to teach, you know. Some do and those that cannot, well, they teach.”

  Julie gave her a brittle smile. “Is that how the old adage goes?”

  Rosemary gave a delicate shrug. “So I’ve heard.”

  A fat drop of rain on her shoulder had Julie looking up with a frown. She’d wasted too much time speaking to Rosemary. “I should be going. Goodbye, Rosemary.”

  “Doesn’t seem like you’re dressed for the weather.” Rosemary tutted, unfurling her umbrella with a barely concealed smirk. “Don’t catch a cold, Julie!”

  Julie waved a quick goodbye to Rosemary on her way down the road. Though she was now stuck in the rain, she was glad that she had been provided with an excuse to make a quick exit. She would gladly walk through a monsoon if only to put distance between her and the other woman.

  There was something unkind in Rosemary’s eyes that made Julie uneasy, a feeling that had nothing to do with her dislike of Will’s relationship, or very near relationship, with the blonde. The trek home was blessedly uneventful, and before long the ranch came into sight. Julie ran the last few steps as the rain turned into a raging thunderstorm, and icy water fell with abandon from the sky.

  She dropped her keys twice from her shaking hands, fingers numb from the rain, before she got the door open. When she did, she was grateful for the warmth. Forrest and Will must have come home before her. She hadn’t seen the buckboard outside, but with the rain, she supposed they had taken it to the barn around the back of the house.

  Sagging against the door, Julie closed her eyes while she flexed her fingers, trying to work some feeling back into them.

  “Julie? Is that you?” Forrest’s voice floated to her from the parlor.

  “Yes. It’s me.” Julie called out, eyes still closed.

  “Was worried when you didn’t come home sooner.” Forrest’s voice grew louder as he spoke. Julie opened her eyes when he came into the foyer, but from the dark look on his face, she almost wished she had kept them closed.

  “What happened?” he asked, his voice sharp.

  “Got caught in the rain.” She gave him a sheepish smile, but Forrest didn’t look amused.

  “You could get sick standing there in your wet clothes! Julie, you’re soaked through. Why is this all you’re wearing? Where’s your umbrella?” He came to stand in front of her. He reached out to touch her cheek, his hand warm on her. “Your lips are practically blue.”

  Julie touched them. “They do feel a bit cold now that you mention it.”

  “A bit?!” Forrest exploded, already propelling her up the stairs to their bedroom.

  “I—I’m fine, really.” Julie stumbled along after Forrest, her feet clumsy from walking in the cold rain. It was hard to keep up with Forrest’s determined stride.

  He swung her up into his arms with a barely repressed sigh. “I’m going to have to go by the schoolhouse now when the weather looks bad, aren't I?”

  “It was just an accident!”

  “And how many other women were out and about in this weather? None. That's how many. And dressed like you are! You aren’t in the city anymore, Julie. Everyone knows to be indoors when a storm rolls in.”

  The boom of thunder in the background only served to drive his point home, and Julie said nothing. She was silent all the way to their room.

  “I ran into Rosemary. She was out on the road.”

  “What?”

  “You said no other women were out in the rain and that’s just not true. Rosemary was.”

  “Don’t care. She’s not my wife. You are, and I’ll not have you getting sick by being reckless.” He went over to the fireplace and set about lighting it. “Get undressed. We have to get you dry and warm you up.”

  Julie huffed but did as she was told, pulling her jacket off with a wince when it came away soaked through. Forrest turned and cursed when he saw the once pretty garment dripping in her hands.

  He stalked over to her and held out a hand. “Give it here.”

  She obliged and toed off her boots. Her fingers fumbled with the buttons on her dress, and she had just changed her angle, hoping to have better luck, when Forrest stepped forward.

  “Let me do it.” His hands pushed hers to the side. She looked away, feeling like a scolded child while Forrest worked the buttons on her dress loose. When he was done he wasted no time in slipping her dress from her.

  Forrest looked up at her with hard eyes. “You are going to promise me that you will not walk home in this weather again.”

  “How else was I supposed to get home?!” Julie exploded, unable to contain her temper any longer. Her run-in with Rosemary had her fit to be tied, and now Forrest’s anger at her was more than enough to push her over the edge. “Would you have me stay at the schoolhouse all night? You’re overreacting about this, Forrest.”

  “I assumed Will was with you,” Forrest shot back, running an angry hand through his hair. “Apparently, I was wrong about that. I was about to take off to the schoolhouse when you came home.”

  “Will's not home?” That explained why she hadn’t seen the buckboard, at least.

  “No. And if you think I’m overreacting about you walking home in
the rain, then you’re lucky Will wasn't home to see it.” Forrest gave her a dark look before he pointed at her wet corset. “Keep getting undressed.”

  Julie blushed at her husband's forceful tone. “I’ll do it on my own and in my own time.”

  “Julie, if you stay in those clothes you’ll get sick.”

  “And that’s my decision.”

  She took a step away from Forrest, intent on leaving the room. Where she planned on going she wasn’t sure, but she was set on making her way there with as much dignity as she could manage in a soaking wet corset and underthings. Trail of waterdrops and all, she would hold her head high.

  Julie had only managed a few of steps when Forrest caught her by the arm and rounded on her. His eyes blazed with anger, and his jaw was set.

  “I’m not playing around with you, little bird. Get undressed," he ordered in a low voice, and this time when he said her nickname, there was nothing playful about it.

  Julie wrenched her arm out of his grasp and put her hands on her hips. “Make me.”

  The words shocked even her as they slipped from her mouth, but like Lady Pim always said, ‘Loosed words cannot be collected once given away. A young lady should stand firm but take care with her words.’

  Well, Julie hadn't been careful, but she could at least stand firm. Getting half the equation right was better than not at all, wasn't it?

  She tossed her head and stared back at her husband, whose eyes had widened in surprise at her show of defiance, but then Forrest drew himself up to his full stature. It was then that Julie realized she hadn’t truly appreciated Forrest’s sheer size and muscle mass.

  She’d known he was athletic and toned, that he was a strong man, a big man. What she hadn’t realized was just how small he made himself around her.

  Forrest absolutely towered over her by half a foot. His blue eyes were electric.

  “I ought to put you over my knee with the way you’re behaving.”

  Julie quivered at his words because she believed what he said, but her bravado would not let her back down. Not when the turn of events hadn’t been her fault. She couldn’t anticipate how the weather would change, and why had she allowed herself to get distracted by that tart Rosemary for as long as she had?