Colorado Heart (9781101612026) (25 page)

“That could be a problem, Jake,” Cassie said.

“I reckon I'll have to buy you some new ones,” he said.

“I reckon you will.”

Jake scooped up Josie and put her on the bed. “I didn't think about it last night, because she usually sleeps with me.”

“Poor Josie,” Cassie cooed at the pup. “You've been replaced.” Josie wiggled up next to Cassie and gave her a quick lick on the face. “But I believe there's room for both of us, if you don't mind sharing.”

“She doesn't mind at all,” Jake answered for Josie. He handed Cassie the Bible. “This was your grandfather's.”

Cassie took the Bible and opened it to the first few pages where all the births and deaths were written down. “I should probably add his,” she said as she looked at the page.

“Just as long as it's not the final entry,” Jake said. He sat down beside her and pointed to her name. “We got plenty more to add. A wedding, and I hope some births of our own, and then a long, long life, together with grandchildren eventually.”

Cassie pulled him close for a kiss. “It sounds like a good plan.”

*   *   *

A few weeks later . . .

Jake couldn't recall a finer day in Angel's End. The sun shone brightly and the breeze was enough to keep the weather comfortable. The air smelled fresh and clear and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The church looked as if it had been scrubbed, and there was a wreath of gaily colored flowers on the door.

His buggy had been polished and washed until Dan and Randy dared anyone to find a speck of dirt on it, and Darby had flowers braided into her mane and tail, and someone had strung bunting and hung a sign on the back that said
Just Married.

Even Lady had a bow around her neck. Ward just grinned at him as he joined him on the porch of the diner. “You ready to do this?” he asked.

Jake looked at the church where the circuit preacher and most of the population of Angel's End was waiting. Shoot, if he wanted to, he could walk across the street to Cade and Leah's house and see Cassie there, but he was kind of looking forward to watching her walk down the aisle in her pretty blue dress. He wanted to see the flowers in her flyaway hair and the look of love that now glowed in her pale eyes.

“I'm ready,” Jake said.

“Laurie asked me to give you this,” Ward said. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and unwrapped a twist of flowers. “Don't ask me to pin it on,” Ward growled.

Jake laughed as he attached the flowers to his lapel and they stepped into the street.

Jake hoped Cassie was looking out the window. He hoped she was as excited as he was.

“Jake!” Jake turned to see Jared coming his way from the post office.

“I thought you were already inside,” Ward said.

“The women have me running errands,” Jared said. “So I hid out in the post office. I got this letter and I wanted you to have it.”

“Letter?” Jake asked when Jared handed it to him.

“Remember when I said I had a friend down in Texas and I'd write to him to see if there'd been any trouble before Cassie came here? Well he wrote me back. He didn't explain anything, he just said for me to give this news to Cassie. I thought you should be the one to deliver it, since I have no idea if this was a friend of hers or not.”

Jake's eyes scanned the page until a sentence jumped out at him.

Please tell Miss Parker that Paul Stacy was found dead in New Mexico. His body was staked out in the desert and it was apparent that he'd been tortured before he died. They are blaming it on the Apaches.
The letter continued.
I hope Miss Parker finds the peace that she so deserves in Colorado,
and then it was signed by Jared's friend.

“Does that mean anything to you?” Jared asked.

“It does,” Jake said. “But it means much more to Cassie.”

“Anything we should stop the wedding for?”

“There's no dang way you're going to stop this wedding,” Jake said.

“Well then, let's go.” Jared smiled and they walked into the church, and Jake wondered if there was a wildflower left on a stalk around Angel's End. They should have gotten married in a meadow and saved everyone the work. He knew everyone sitting in the pews, the Martins and their six kids all shiny and clean, along with Nonnie, who smiled broadly and nodded her head when he walked by. Gus and Bettina, who was fanning her face as if she were about to boil. She wore a huge hat with a bird sitting on top of it. Then there was Margy Ashburn the schoolmarm and Zeke Preston the assayer, and the young man from the bank, who looked mournfully in Margy's direction. Dusty was there, Bob and Pris, along with Dan and Randy and the rest of his men; the only one missing was Fu, who stayed home to make sure the honeymoon suite lived up to his expectations. Fu's, not Jake's. Fu had taken an instant liking to Cassie and couldn't wait for her to officially join the household. Rosa and Manuel sat in the front row in a place of honor as Cassie's family. They were his family now too.

Cade and Jared slipped into the pews, and there were a few titters of laughter at Lady, who followed after Ward, Jake's best man.

“I hope you didn't give her the ring,” Jake said to Ward.

“I did,” Ward said. “It's tied in her bow.”

Jake would have checked to make sure it was still there, because he was careful that way, but just then the door at the back of the church opened and the circuit preacher told everyone to stand. Little Hannah came in with a basket of flower petals and was very precise about dropping them on the floor. Then came Eden, and her beauty was breathtaking, so much so that Jake didn't even notice her limp. Easy enough because he looked past her to where Cassie stood in the doorway with Laurie on one side of her and Leah on the other.

He was right. There were flowers in her hair. And when she raised her face to look at him, a wide smile danced across her lips, and her love for him shone in her eyes.

For something he wasn't planning on, she sure did turn out to be a fine thing. A fine thing indeed.

*   *   *

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Berkley Sensation titles by Cindy Holby

ANGEL'S END

COLORADO HEART