Joshua's Montana Bride (Sweet, Clean Western Historical Romance)(Montana Ranchers and Brides Series) (5 page)

"What?"

"How much did my mother say she would loan you?"

Joshua told Eli the terms. The man's eyes narrowed and he nodded slowly, figuring something out. After some deliberation.

"What happens if you don't get it?"

Joshua cleared his throat. He wasn't sure just how honest he should be with Eli. Should he tell Eli just how bad the situation was?

"I might have to consider handing back the ranch to the bank," he said, hardly believing that he was saying the words.

Eli's eyes widened. "That bad?"

Joshua nodded. "Within the month."

"That's not long," Eli observed. "What about your brothers? Can't they help?"

"Things are tight everywhere these days. You know that," Joshua said with a frown. "In any case, I'd never grovel to my brothers for anything. We stand on our own two feet. Always have. Always will."

Eli nodded. "I can understand that. It's a mighty fine spread you've built up. It'd be a shame to see it go to waste," he said.

Joshua wondered just how genuine Eli was being. It seemed as if he was truly concerned. But when it came to Eli, nothing was ever certain. Joshua had learned that lesson the hard way.

Eli cleared his throat. "Look. Obviously my mother isn't in any fit state to deal with this. But I am willing to honor her offer to you," he said.

Joshua felt a rush of gratitude which he immediately tempered with caution as he looked at the expression on Eli's face.

"But I have one important condition," he said. Joshua tried to figure out what was coming.

"What condition is that?" he asked.

Eli rolled his eyes and turned, looking back at the ranch house. What was the man thinking of? A grin had appeared on Eli's face.

"Look. I don't know how to say this. So I'd be as well coming straight out with it," Eli said.

Joshua frowned. There was an expression of sly enjoyment on Eli's face and then he spoke.

"I'll put up the money. For a month. You can pay me back."

Joshua grinned. "That's mighty generous of you..." he started to say, but Eli raised a hand.

"I'm not finished. There's one condition," he said slowly.

"What's that?"

When Eli fixed his eyes on Joshua there seemed to be a look of the deepest satisfaction in them. Eli paused, as if savoring the moment. Then he spoke and the words hit Joshua like a physical blow.

"I want you to marry my sister, Laura."

There was a gentle knock on the door to her mother's bedroom. Laura turned and looked from her place seated by the bedside. She saw Joshua's head looking round the door. He looked pale faced and drawn. His gaze briefly met Laura's eyes and just as quickly flashed toward the figure of Belinda.

"Can I come in?" he asked in a quiet voice.

Laura nodded. "Sure."

"Never mind me," Belinda said lifting her head up. "In you come, Joshua. We were just talking about you."

Laura felt her face flush, and she was glad the semi darkness hid her reaction from Joshua.

Joshua raised a querying brow. "Really?"

Laura pulled up a chair and motioned Joshua to take a seat. As he sat down she noticed he was too big for the seat, which creaked under his muscular bulk.

"How are you feeling, Belinda?" Joshua asked.

Belinda smiled weakly. Her mother was making such an effort to put a brave face on things. Laura was so proud of her.

"I'm better now that I've got my baby back," Belinda said looking at Laura.

"Mama! I'm not a baby anymore," Laura complained.

"You'll always be my baby. No matter how old you are, or who you're sharing your life with," she said with a glance toward Joshua.

The last part made Laura face color yet again. Laura hoped that Joshua had missed that glance. Right now was not the time or place to discuss the request her mother had made. Laura was still trying to understand what it meant. Surely her mother didn't just want to marry Laura off to the first man who was available. Granted, running off had been a foolish thing to do. The regret was burning inside her every moment she sat looking down at her ailing mother. To think that Laura had caused this! The ache in her soul would never go away if her mother didn't pull through.

Belinda looked at them both and smiled. "You two look so sweet together. Then again, you've always looked good as a couple," she said.

"Mama! You're making feel embarrassed," Laura said with a smile and a dismissive wave of the hand.

Laura looked at Joshua. She saw a thin smile there, and his eyes glanced back and forth from mother to daughter as if gauging what was going on.

Belinda sighed softly and rested her head back on the pillow. "I'm going to say something that will really embarrass you both. But this is the right time. If I don't say it now, I might never say it at all."

Laura reached over and stroked her mother's cheek. "Don't fret yourself, mama. You have to preserve your strength," she told her.

Belinda shook her head. "I need to say this. And you're both going to listen," she said firmly.

Laura looked at Joshua. His brows had furrowed but there was a calmness and focus in his eyes that brought a similar serenity to Laura. He looked down at Belinda with what Laura could only describe as a deep respect.

"You two are very dear to me. And I think you both are perfectly suited to one another."

Laura interrupted Belinda. "Mama. You need to rest. We can talk about this later," she said glancing at Joshua. He had hardly moved. He was still looking patiently at Belinda. Couldn't he see where this was leading? How could he be so calm?

"Hear me out, Laura," her mother insisted. Belinda reached out a hand. "Take my hand. Both of you," she instructed.

Joshua laid his hand on Belinda's. After a brief moment's hesitation Laura did the same. Belinda sighed. "Nothing would give me more pleasure than to see you two together."

Laura glanced at Joshua, but still there was no reaction. He wasn't even giving Laura the slightest look. His eyes were locked firmly on Belinda.

"After what happened today, I want you both to promise me that you'll consider something," Belinda drew in a deep breath, summoning up whatever strength she had left inside. "For a long time I've watched you both and wondered if it would be possible that my dearest wish could come true. Nothing would make me happier than to see you both united. In marriage."

Laura felt her mouth drop open at the bluntness of her mother's statement. Belinda had said it. Her mother had gone and said it. Laura looked at Joshua. His features were still set firm, no reaction, no surprise.

Belinda continued: "I want to ask you both to consider making my dream come true," she said finally. With a loud, long exhalation she settled her head back on the pillow. Her eyes closed and her breathing became quiet and soft. She was clearly exhausted.

Laura looked at Joshua. His eyes moved slowly to meet Laura's. There was a probing, questioning look in them, a demand for any kind of answer from Laura. But she couldn't say a word. Her throat had tightened and she couldn't swallow, let alone speak.

Joshua took his hand away from Belinda's. "I think your mama needs some rest. I'll call Mrs. Cole. Maybe you and I can get some fresh air," he suggested.

Laura looked down at her mother. There was a tranquil look on Belinda's face, as if she had managed to do the one thing that was most important to her. Having done it, she could now try and recover. Would the outcome of the request she had made to Laura and Joshua be the difference between full recovery and something that Laura couldn't even bring herself to think about?

Mrs. Cole arrived a few moments later, taking Laura's place by the side of the bed. Laura followed Joshua downstairs and out into the cool night air. The sun had almost gone down and the stars were coming out above the shimmering Montana landscape.

"You want to sit on the porch?" Joshua asked.

Laura nodded and agreed without saying a word. Her mind was a whirl of confusing thoughts. Tumbling sensations twisted in her stomach. She placed a hand over her middle, trying desperately to control how she felt.

They both sat down on the wide wooden porch seat. Laura did her best to keep her distance without making it too obvious.

Joshua glanced at the gap between them and smiled. "You don't need to be frightened of me. I'm not going to bite," he said.

Laura frowned. "I'm not scared of you."

"Not even after what your mother just said?"

"My mother's obviously not feeling well."

"So you think she doesn't mean what she said?"

"I didn't say that. She's probably just tired. Not thinking straight."

Joshua shook his head. "I've known your mother a long time and she always thinks straight about everything. She sees things other people can't," he said.

"What are saying, Joshua?"

"Just that what she said up there maybe needs some considering," he said quietly, his voice slow and deep.

Laura turned and faced him. "Are you suggesting that you're taking what she said seriously?"

Joshua looked up at the sky and took in a slow, calming breath. He breathed out gently and looked at Laura. His green eyes pierced into her, unyielding, holding her attention. When he spoke it was with a quiet authority and conviction that she had never heard from him before. "I'm saying that I'm of a mind to grant your mother her wishes," he said.

The words clutched at her heart, so tight that she felt the breath ease out of her body and time seemed to stand still. Laura became aware of the sounds of the approaching night. The distant insects seemed to be calling to her to run to the fields, to be anywhere except here, next to Joshua. His eyes didn't waver for a second as he searched for a reaction, any response or clue. Laura felt her body begin to shake.

"What exactly are saying, Joshua?" she managed to say after what seemed like an eternity.

Joshua slid over and took Laura's hand in his own. She felt the hardness of the skin, but it contrasted oddly with the gentleness of his grasp. The proximity of him made her feel something that was entirely new, completely unexpected. She gazed into his eyes.

"I'm asking you to become my wife, Laura Thorne," he said. His voice was even and emphatic. Once he'd said the words his lips tightened into a thin line. His face became impassive, expectant.

There was a ringing in Laura's ears. She felt herself sway and she withdrew her hand from his grip, steadying herself by holding on to the seat.

"What did you say?" she finally managed to utter. Her own voice seemed to come from a very long way off.

"I'm proposing a marriage, Laura. That's what I'm doing," he said.

Laura stood up quickly. Joshua reached out and took her hand, holding on to her. "Don't go Laura."

Joshua rose from the seat and stood facing her, still holding her hand. Laura let her fingers rest in his grasp and looked into his eyes.

Joshua smiled at her. "I'm sorry if I'm being discourteous, or too forward. But I don't rightly know any other way to say what I'm saying. What your mother said up there touched me deeply," he said.

"But why? We don't love each other. How can we become man and wife?"

Joshua took in a deep breath. His jaw tightened. "That wasn't going to stop you today, was it?"

Laura closed her eyes and twisted her head away from him. "That was different," she said.

"How? The man was a total stranger."

Laura opened her eyes and locked her gaze on Joshua. "Friends can't get married. That's why," she stated.

Joshua frowned. "What do you mean? Just because we've known each other all these years we can't become man and wife? That's nonsense. Especially when you think of what's going on up there," he said gesturing to the upper floor of the ranch house.

Laura glanced up in the direction of her mother's bedroom. "That's not what she really thinks..." she tried to say but Joshua interrupted her.

"She means every word. And what happens if we don't marry and she doesn't pull through?" Joshua said emphatically.

Laura closed her eyes again trying to shut out the images, the feelings that suddenly came crowding in upon her. But she couldn't hold them back. They were too insistent. Her mother had said what she wanted. It was up to Laura to grant her mother her wishes. If she were to deny those wishes and something happened to her mother...

Well.

She didn't even want to think about that.

"Have you thought that if we marry, it might be the difference between your mother pulling through and not making it?"

"How can you say that? Don't be cruel."

"I'm not being cruel. I'm saying it because it's true. You saw how happy she was just talking about you and I together. Think how it will make her feel if we are actually together."

Joshua came closer to Laura and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Laura. I know we don't love each other."

Joshua's words stung her and he seemed to see the reaction in her. He paused, peering deep into her eyes and then continued.

"But, if a marriage between us can ensure that your mother can enjoy the rest of her life, I think that makes it worth going through with. Don't you?"

Laura frowned. She closed her eyes feeling her racing heart, sensing the twisting in her stomach, watching the images in her mind flash like a frenetic kaleidoscope. She felt Joshua move even closer. In that moment she felt incapable of resisting anything. The forces of her life had overcome her. And she had set them in motion herself by her own foolish actions.

"Are you saying that this will be a marriage of convenience?" she asked in a quiet, calm voice. She knew the answer he would give her, but she wanted to be sure that she understood exactly what he was proposing. It seemed hardly different from what she had been considering with Mr. Bewly earlier in the day.

Joshua cupped her chin in his hand and lifted her face so that he could look deeply into her eyes. "If that's what you want. Yes. We can have a marriage in name only. With everything that that means," he said softly.

Laura sighed. "Everything?" she asked.

Joshua paused and then nodded.