The Filly & the Gambler (Book Fifteen of Brides of the West Series)
Page 3
He glanced at her once more. "Too?"
"I saw how disgusted you were when you saw me, and when you brought him in."
"Well I…. was just shocked! That's all!"
"That's not all. You thought me dirty and disgusting. You have a very easy to read face, mister. It was disgust. Not that I blame you entirely. In yours shoes I might have thought the same." She looked down at herself now and wrinkled her nose. "I am very dirty right now. But there's a good reason. You see I work this ranch, every day. And unlike a lot of ladies, I don't have the time to wash and wear pretty clothes. There's too much to do and only me to do it."
"Maybe, at first I thought that." Studying on it, knowing she wasn't for this anymore than he, made him feel a bit relieved. "Look, I don't want this anymore than you do, but, under the circumstances, we could have a ceremony performed in front of him. To make him feel better. Doesn't mean we'd have to carry through with it."
She turned to look at him. "You mean…kind of go through the motions and not live together or anything."
"Yeah. It would make him die happy. He's really worried about leaving you to fend for yourself. I can understand why, he never let on he even had a daughter."
Her expression changed to one of thoughtfulness as her eyes drifted back to the cabin. "I'll think on it." She told him. "But…wouldn't you rather find someone you could live with? I mean, once we are married, what if you found someone else?"
"Look, you might as well know now, I'm not the marrying kind. But I'd do it for him…" He motioned to the bed where Harmon lay. "I guess until tonight I didn't realize how much that old man means to me. So, let me know what you decide and if he gets any worse." Cole sighed and walked to the edge of the porch.
She followed.
"Alright, I guess— I guess I should thank you for wanting to make his last moments happy." She told him. "He must think a lot of you. He's never brought anyone home with him."
"We've been friends a while…" He smiled.
She nodded, "Well, for the gesture, thanks. Goodnight…"
"Goodnight," He stared for a minute wondering what she'd look like cleaned up. Then he left, feeling as though he had made a huge mistake but not knowing how to deal with it any other way. The old man did mean a lot to Cole and he wasn't sure why. But he knew if he died, he'd miss him in his life.
Funny how people came to mean something to you! But there was more to worry about here than the pretty girl. Those men meant business and were sneaky enough to cause real problems. Harmon had a real concern there. And he would be left to deal with them. Because he made a promise to ole Harmon, he'd see to the girl, somehow!
Chapter Three
Back at his ranch, Cole began to let the tension rip from his body. That was one hellova poker game Harmon gave him. He wouldn't be forgetting that one. And the surprise pot he won, shook him a bit. He hadn't expected Harmon's play. He understood why he did it. He even appreciated the fact that Harmon was only looking after his daughter, the way he should. But Cole was flabbergasted to say the least.
Cole sat out on his porch in the pale moonlight, staring out over his vast property left him by his folks and thought about how lucky he'd been all these years. Sometimes a person tended to forget just how lucky they were, until they saw someone who was struggling just to survive. He felt downright guilty he'd never taken more of a personal interest in Harmon. Neighbors should help, if they could. Then he shook his head at himself. Harmon never once asked for help. Not until tonight.
Harmon was doing the right thing, the decent thing, but why had he picked him out of all the men he knew for his daughter? Harmon knew about him and Polly. He knew he'd never even mentioned marriage. So why did he pick him to trust with his only daughter? He'd never figure that one out.
The wind whistled softly, as the moon bathed the land in a bluish tint. Cole had a sizable spread, six hundred and forty acres of prime Texas land. Good grazing land, he thought to himself. He'd put his share of beef on the land too. He'd worked hard to keep it up. He had about six reliable hands working for him and they all knew their jobs. He trusted every one of them and they had been with him over five years. He was lucky.
Harmon had a hundred and sixty acres, good land with a small tank on it to feed and water his livestock. It was in good shape. Hard to believe a woman had kept it up for two years though. He didn't know another woman in this area that could work that hard. No wonder she was dirty. He certainly couldn't judge her by the dirt, it only added to her strange charm now that he saw her undertaking.
Cole tried to put it all to the back of his mind, but it was hard. His ole friend Harmon was dying. He had a daughter of which he wanted Cole to marry. The idea behind it was sound from Harmons' point of view, but Cole couldn't begin to imagine himself married to anyone. He'd never even contemplated marriage. Not even with Polly, the dancehall girl that warmed his bed on occasions. He had a good time with the girls in town at the saloon. He didn't need a wife. Still, the woman had said they wouldn't live together, so nothing would really change, and Harmon would get his wish. Could it all be that simple? He could see after her, if need be, but he wouldn't be living with her, and no one else had to know. Thinking on it this way made him consider it.
Maybe he'd lost his mind. Because marriage wasn't in the cards for him. And yet, this wouldn't exactly be a regular marriage, so who knew?
Getting back to his own problems, he spent the next two weeks rounding up a group of wild horses. Him and the few hands he had. As time went by, he'd nearly forgotten about the promise he made to ole Harmon. He hadn't heard a word from him or his daughter. He probably should check and make sure the ole man was doing okay.
The next Saturday rolled around and Harmon wasn't there at the poker game. A few remarked they hadn't seen him in a week. Strangely, the game didn't hold as much lure today. Cole knew he should be checking on the ole man. He got up and walked out before noon and went back to the ranch, mulling over what he should do. He had a lot of work to do. He didn't have the time to go running around the countryside. Surely, if anything happened, she would contact him.
Looking at the full corral now he knew what he had to do.
Breaking broncs was next.
Since he was the best bronc rider around, he spent his next few days taming the lot of them, so they could be sold. He'd keep the stallion for breeding purposes.
He was in the middle of breaking one of the really onry horses, a few days later, when a wagon pulled up and a very pretty lady got down and came to stand at the corral fence. He got a flash of red-hair and a homespun gingham dress.
He groaned, not her! Surely? In a dress, naw…it had to be someone else. He'd already labeled her as a tom-boy kind of girl. Probably never wore a dress.
Too busy trying to break the animal he didn't get a good look at her, but she was attracting all his hands attention. It just couldn't be her.
When the mare finally settled down, he rode her over to the fence to join the crowd.
As he burst through it to see who it was, he was quickly taken aback. "Gabby?" he looked from the top of her light red hair to her pretty blue gingham dress. He didn't know if it was the pretty blue dress, or the beautiful hair that flowed down her back. It didn't look like the same woman. She was clean and sweet smelling and had on a dress that complimented the fine figure of a woman she was, and that head of marvelous red hair would bring any man around to look.
His men were certainly interested in her.
"Nice riding." She complimented him as he came closer.
"Thanks…I guess. What are you doing here?" He didn't mean to sound so harsh, but he'd been working hard this morning and she sure interrupted all his thoughts when he seen her dressed like that. All the dirt was gone, and nothing left but pure woman. The fact that she was beautiful, had him denying it in his mind. He couldn't dare be attracted to her.
The fact that she'd cleaned up was an understatement, she was as lovely as a sunrise, and with that flaming head of h
air she couldn't be missed. And today, he wasn't the only one looking.
The boys were introducing themselves and wanting to know who she was. Just what he needed.
She blushed but managed to tell them she was Harmon's daughter.
"Ole man Harmon?" One of them blurted.
She smiled, "That's right, ole man Harmon." Her voice was low, and Cole detected a sadness, in the way she repeated that.
When he told Slim to take over for him, the boys went back to work. He didn't have to say a word.
"My dad's not doing well" She glimpsed at him curiously. "The doc doesn't think he's got much longer than a day or so. His breathing is really bad." She told him. "He's been asking for you."
"I see," he stared a little longer than he should have. It was hard to take his eyes off all that lovely hair. He glanced around at his men, and they'd all gone back to work.
When he didn't say any more, she shrugged and started to walk back to her wagon. About to whip the horses around, he came up to her wagon.
"Wait, where are you going?" he inquired.
"Home," she announced dully not giving him the benefit of a glance. "I just came to tell you he is bad off, that's all. He probably won't live the night through."
"Well, you just got here, I mean…" He was flustered, when was the last time a girl flustered him. Well, he had every right, the last time he saw her she looked terrible, now here she was looking like a real lady in a dress. And despite the first impression, she was a beautiful lady, he had to admit.
Her smile had faded a bit and the sadness that he heard in her voice, was now in her eyes.
"Dad hasn't got much time." She explained. "And I need to get back to him. I wouldn't have come otherwise."
"Then, I guess…we gotta do it." He muttered awkwardly. He hadn't said that right from the expression on her face.
Weariness lined her fac, as she exhaled. "We don't have to do anything." Her glance spoke more than her words. "I shouldn't have come…your obviously quite busy." she muttered miserably and started to whip the buggy out of the yard.
"Wait, Gabby. I told you we would. I meant it." He explained.
"You've got a right to change your mind," she firmed her lips.
He caught the reins and steadied them. "Wait a minute, I'll come with you." He jumped up to the seat and took the reins from her. "But you gotta know something right off the bat. I'm not good marriage material. I drink, play poker, and I've had my fair share of women."
"Look cowboy," Her eyes pinned him now. "I'm not asking…. I don't expect anything from you. This isn't what you are thinking. I don't plan on moving in with you or interrupting your life in any way. I just somehow wanted to make his last days happy, that's all. He hasn't had much in his life. I wanted to make his last days good for him."
"Do tell, you are very honest, aren't you? Don't worry, I sensed that from the beginning and like I said this isn't going to be a marriage made in heaven. You go your way, I'll go mine."
He turned to see his men taking over the bronc busting. "Joe, do what you can with the broncs, I won't be back for a while."
"Where are you going boss?" Joe hollered with a smile.
"Harmon's place, be back later! I'm getting married today."
"Married?" He called after him.
In one lithe movement, Cole gathered the reins and turned the wagon around. "That's what I said!" he called over his shoulder.
"You didn't have to tell everyone. I wasn't going to." She said sharply.
"Ashamed of your man already, are you?" He looked down at her.
Her hair was loose, and he couldn't quite take his eyes off it. He'd never seen hair like hers. Blonde, black, brown, but not such a heavenly color of red. Most red heads had a mountain of freckles and were kind of homely, but not this girl. She had light complexion, and the darkest blue eyes he'd ever seen. Her father had been right, she cleaned up well.
"Look, once this is over with, you go your way, and I'll go mine. Just like you said. I have no expectations." She told him. "We are just gonna go through the motions, so to speak."
"Fine with me," He told her, firming his mouth. Still, it didn't sit well when she said it. He'd never let a woman set rules for him, before.
"Good. Just wanted to get that straight." She said not daring to look at him.
"You plan on leavin' or something?"
"No, I’m gonna work the place." She told him matter-of-factly. "Like I have for the past two years."
"Alone?" He asked startled.
"Who do you think has been working it?" she asked staring at him now. "Dad hasn't the strength. I've been doing it every day now for the past two years. And that is why I was so disgusting looking when we met. I just barely had time to finish my chores and fix supper. Besides, dad never brings company for supper. I certainly wasn't prepared for company."
"I guess it never dawned on me." He managed to glance at her. "Of course, I never even knew you existed until I came out to the ranch. You gotta admit, it was shocking."
She glanced at him now, her expression condescending. "Funny, dad had lots of friends, but none who had time to visit him and see how he was doing."
"You're right. I won't deny that. I realized that the other night."
Strange how pretty she had gotten when her cheeks flushed. He wondered if she dressed up for him and the wedding. Of course, she had. And here he was wearing his work clothes, that didn't look very good, but hopefully Harmon would be too sick to notice.
"Your dad's really bad?"
She looked down now, and he thought he saw a tear in the corner of her eye. "Do you honestly think I'd come over here, if he wasn't? I don't know you. I'm not out to steal your ranch and money. I'm not out to take you to my bed. What I'm here about is my father. Yeah, doc said the way he's breathing he won't last the night. Takes all his energy just to talk."
A knot in his throat seemed to grow. "What are we going to do about a preacher?" He asked clearing his throat.
"The doc sent for him." She told him. "Dad requested a preacher. But I don't think he wanted everyone to know about me and you or him dying. The preacher is from Evansville. He's known him a long time."
"Didn't know Harmon was a God-fearing man. Good that will take care of that problem then, won't it?" He asked.
"Yeah," she looked away.
He adjusted his hat again, "I'm sorry, this has to be hard on you. Do you have some kinfolk back east or someone that you could go to?"
"Go to? I'm not going anywhere. I don't think you understand me. This is my home" She stopped the wagon "I'm not going anywhere. But don't worry, I'm not planning on announcing this so-called marriage either. No, dad was an only child and his folks died long ago. My mother…my mother died a long time ago too." She said her voice going softer. "But that's no never-mind to you. I've taken care of myself for a long time now. Once we do this, your obligation is over."
He frowned and grabbed the reins from her.
"I want you to understand. Dad has some foolish idea that I suddenly need taking care of. Strange, because it never dawned on him when I was a kid. Or when I took over taking care of the place." She glanced at him and saw he wanted to argue the fact, so she went on. "Look, I want you to get this straight right now." She put her hand on his to stop the horses again. Then she turned those oh so blue eyes on him. " And I hate to say it but I'm beholdin' to you for going through with this. I don't expect you to live with me or anything else from you. This is for Dad, and that's all it is for."
Was she laying down rules? He stared at her. He should feel better now that she said she could take care of herself, but something niggled in the back of his mind. Mainly those two men that wanted her place. He wondered if she even knew about them. He doubted it. Harmon was obviously very good at keeping things secret. She had to be tough to take care of the place for two whole years alone, but she was a woman, he couldn't dismiss that thought either.
"What about your mother's folks?" He asked curiously.
"I see."
They rode in silence for a while.
"Oh God…you remind me of him."
"Who?" he asked jerking his head around and staring at her.
"Dad, that's who. Look," She stopped him with a hand on top of his. "I'm only doing this for dad's peace of mind. I don't expect or want anything from you, cowboy. Understand? I want to make that very clear, right now."
He stared, "That the way you want it?"
"That's the way I want it." She said quite finally.
He nodded, "Alright."
He should have felt relieved that she told him that, but he didn't. In fact, the longer he thought about it, the more he discerned it wasn't all her decision. Those men would have to be dealt with, and despite her ability to run the ranch, he doubted she'd know what to do about those men.
"If you want to quietly divorce me afterwards, I'll certainly understand. You have no further obligation. I appreciate the fact that you are doing this for my father. I'm indebted to you for that, but that's as far as it goes. However, there is one thing we'll have to discuss."
Cole studied on that.
"Alright, what is it?"
"Dad told me if we married, the land would be yours too. So, half of any profits I turn, I'll send your way every year."
"You're pulling my leg." He grinned at the notion.
She looked at him. "No," Her words shocked him. "I mean it. It's the least I can do for a man who only wants to help my father out."
"But I don't need your money or your land."
"No matter. It's decided. You'll get half, if I turn a profit. But don't hold your breath, I've only managed to keep the ink in the black for a while now. Consider it repayment for what you are doing now."