Love Inspired Historical October 2013 Bundle: A Family for Christmas\The Secret Princess\Taming the Texas Rancher\An Unlikely Union (18 page)

“For goodness’ sake, Chance, I can use your arm or the banister and make it up without being carried.”

“And have you take another, even worse tumble? I think not.”

“There now, you two.” Dotty looked from one to the other with an expression that reminded Eve the woman had been a schoolmarm at one time. “Why don’t I serve you some refreshment out here? Once you have a little food in you I’m sure you’ll be able to work this out without raising your voices. Whatever
this
is.”

Eve felt her cheeks warm. Had they been raising their voices?

Chance finished helping her to her seat, then stepped back. “I’m going to go unload our findings from Tizzie.” He met her gaze. “And you stay put. No heading to the kitchen to help Dotty.” His tone was polite but firm.

“Perfectly right,” Dotty said. “Let me hang up the closed sign so we can have a bit of privacy and I’ll have the table set in just a few moments.”

Eve watched Chance and Dotty head off in opposite directions. She was finally alone, though not for long she was sure. Every bit of control in her released and she slumped forward, propping her elbows on the table and her head in her hands. She admitted to herself that she’d been rude to Chance just now when he offered to carry her up the stairs. It certainly wasn’t that she didn’t want him to hold her again. Quite the opposite—she longed to experience that feeling of being protected and cherished again, to test whether it would be as achingly sweet as before or if that had just been a fluke.

And that very longing scared her.

Just as in the past, her impulsiveness had done her in. But this time the price had been steep—Chance’s respect.

Would she ever be able to regain it?

* * *

The meal was light and blessedly brief. Dotty kept the conversation going by asking about the materials they’d found for use in crafting decorations and speculating on how much Leo would enjoy using them.

As soon as the meal was over, Chance excused himself, saying he had errands to run. “I’ll stop by the apothecary while I’m out and pick up that ointment for you.”

“Thank you.” She finally found the courage to meet his gaze directly and searched for some sign that she hadn’t completely burned her bridges with him.

To her surprise, the look he gave her was softer, less confrontational than earlier. “Will you give me your word that you won’t attempt the stairs until I get back?”

When he looked at her like that, with that mix of concern and protectiveness, she couldn’t remain aloof. “I promise.”

With a satisfied nod, he turned and crossed the room. But instead of heading out immediately, he disappeared into the storeroom. A moment later he popped back out with a short stool. He placed it in front of her chair. “If you want to prop your leg up use this.” He raked his hand through his hair. “And I’d like you to keep the candy shop closed until I get back.” His gaze held hers, demanding an answer.

She found herself nodding agreement almost without conscious thought.

With that, he left.

Dotty rose and picked up a platter. “He’s just worried about you.”

“I know.”

“And that makes you unhappy?”

“No. It’s just—” Eve closed her mouth before she said something she shouldn’t. She raised her chin and changed topics. “Chance is a kind, generous man—I, more than anyone, know that.”

“Ah, so you think it’s just his generous nature at work here.”

“Of course. I mean, what else could it be?”

Dotty gave her a knowing smile. “What else indeed.”

Eve traced a circle on the table with her finger. “He’s got a kind word and ready smile for all the ladies, so it doesn’t mean anything special if he should show me kindness, as well.” She straightened, deciding it was time to change the subject. “I feel like a sluggard just sitting here while you’re working. Surely there’s something I can do to help.”

Dotty laughed. “Chance would have my head if I put you to work. But there is something you can do to make the time pass more pleasantly.”

“What’s that?”

“I’d enjoy having a bit of music. And you don’t need your legs to play the piano.”

Eve smiled. “Of course. But that hardly seems like help.”

“ʻA joyful heart lightens the load’ is what my grandmother used to say. And music always gladdens my heart.”

* * *

Eve was still at the piano an hour later when Chance finally returned. When he came inside he had an odd assortment of pieces of wood. From what she could see from where she sat, there was a tall piece as big around as her wrist, several irregularly shaped discs that still had bark on them and were roughly ten inches in diameter and a handful of other miscellaneous pieces. Did he have a new project in the works? Or were these for their Christmas decorating project?

He set all the pieces on his workbench and then crossed over to her, reaching inside his jacket.

“Here you go,” he said, handing her the jar of what she supposed was the ointment Dr. Pratt had prescribed. “Obed said to spread it on your knee twice a day.”

She accepted the jar from him, then wondered how in the world she was supposed to apply it if she couldn’t go up to her room.

As if reading her mind, Chance began closing all the window shades, then locked the front door.

He came back to stand in front of her. “I’ll be working in the shed out back for about thirty minutes, so you’ll have the privacy you need to do what you must. Would you like me to call Dotty for you before I leave?”

His continued kindness toward her after the earlier incident made her want to cry even more. Not trusting herself to speak, she shook her head.

With a nod, he left.

She applied the ointment to her knee, feeling her wilted resolve strengthen with every moment. He hadn’t completely rejected her—his actions of a few moments ago proved that. She was certain she’d seen real concern in his gaze, not just polite attention. The two of them could be friends, even if the door had likely closed on anything more.

Don’t think about that,
she told herself.
That possibility had been remote at best so you haven’t really lost it.

So why did that thought hurt so very much?

* * *

Chance returned almost exactly thirty minutes later. And he even called out before coming all the way inside to make certain it was okay. When he stepped in, Eve noticed he was carrying something he’d apparently made with that long slender piece of wood she’d spotted earlier.

She recognized it for what it was before he made it halfway across the room—a crutch.

“Since I know it’s probably pointless to tell you to stay off your feet the next couple of days,” he said, “I made you this.”

She studied the crutch. It was simply made—an upright topped by a braced crosspiece in a
T
formation—but it looked quite sturdy. And he’d found some cloths that he’d rolled up and tied securely to the top of the crosspiece to form a cushion.

“You made this?” Dotty asked. “Well now, isn’t that just something?” She caught Eve’s eye. “But then again, I imagine this is a kindness he’d show most anyone.”

Eve gave her a warning look, but Dotty merely sat back with a satisfied smile.

Eve cut a quick glance Chance’s way to see what he thought of Dotty’s not so subtle point, but he merely looked puzzled as he glanced from one to the other.

Time to change the subject.
“Thank you so much for this gift. It will definitely make life easier until my knee gets better.”

“Try it out,” he said. “I’d like to make certain it’s the correct height.”

By the time Chance had the crutch adjusted to his very finicky satisfaction, Leo walked in with some of his friends. As soon as he saw Eve using a crutch he halted in his tracks. “What happened?”

“Nothing to be worried about,” she reassured her friend. “I tripped this morning and hurt my knee, but it’ll be fine in a few days.” She smiled. “I’m afraid I didn’t get much candy making done today, but I think there are a few pieces of taffy left from yesterday.”

Dotty took care of the children and tactfully ushered them out quickly.

As soon as they’d gone, Chance turned to Leo. “I think it’s about time I empty the storeroom,” he said casually. “You want to help me?”

“Sure.”

For the next hour, Eve watched as Chance and Leo pulled every bit of furniture and miscellany out of the room. Chance carefully examined each piece and decided whether it should go into his shed out back or into the trash pile. He was certainly serious about cleaning it out!

When he was finally done, he grabbed the broom and swept it out.

Then he returned to stand in front of Eve. “I have a compromise solution for you on the issue of the stairs. I know it’s not ideal, but I want you to use the storeroom as your bedchamber for the next couple of days.”

Again, he’d gone to considerable trouble for her.

“I’ve made arrangements with Edgar down at the hotel to borrow one of his spare cots, and we can fetch whatever personal items you need from upstairs. What do you think?”

She thought he was the noblest, most giving man she’d ever met. “I think it is an excellent compromise. And I’m sure I’ll be quite comfortable in there.”

He seemed relieved at her response. Was he expecting her to argue with him?

She caught a knowing look from Dotty and shook her head in response. She would not overstep again.

He deserved so much more.

Chapter Twenty

A
fter supper, while Dotty and Leo cleaned the dishes, Chance gathered up all of the items he and Eve had collected before her accident. The evergreen branches he set aside—everything else he spread out on the far end of the counter, away from Eve’s candy trays. He also collected the paint and brushes he had on hand and some twine.

When Dotty and Leo joined them from the kitchen, Dotty hurried upstairs to get her contributions of ribbon, paper and yarn along with Eve’s sewing box that contained ribbon, needles, thread and scissors.

Leo looked at the abundance of materials, his eyes gleaming with excitement. “Oh, boy. Not even Ma used all of this.”

Eve laughed. “We may not use all of it, either. But Chance and I figured it was better to have more than we needed.” She looked at the mounds of items spread before them. “So, where shall we start?”

Leo picked up one of the round discs Chance had collected from the sawmill.

“When I was down at the mill picking up the wood for Eve’s crutch, I saw a large twisted branch on the discard pile.” He always checked the scrap pile when he was at the mill. Pieces that were no good for Hank’s purposes sometimes were just right for his. “It gave me an idea and I had Hank cut these for me.”

“What will you use them for?” Leo asked.

“I figured we could paint Christmas scenes on them. I’ve already bored a hole at the top. When we’re done, we can insert some string and hang them up with the decorations.”

“What a splendid idea,” Dotty said.

“There’s eight of them, so we can each do two. Here are the paints—do whatever comes to mind. I figure the more variety we have the better.”

Eve painted a simple manger and babe with a star shining above on the first. On the other she did a candle with a sprig of holly beside it.

Leo painted a decorated tree and a candy cane.

Dotty did a pair of praying hands and a large star.

Chance did a snowman and a sled.

Eve glanced at them and then gave him a smile. “I take it you have fond memories of snow.”

He grinned in return. “It’s one of the few things I miss about Philadelphia. But I understand you do get the occasional snow flurry here.”

Dotty nodded. “I even remember getting nearly a foot one year. It was quite a sight to behold.”

They set the discs aside to dry and then began work on other items. By the time they were done, they had quite an assortment.

When it was time to send Leo up to bed, Eve realized with a pang that she wouldn’t be able to tuck him in tonight. Chance must have realized what she was thinking because he gave her a sympathetic nod. Then he clapped the boy on the shoulder. “Go on up and get ready for bed. I’ll come by and check on you in a few minutes.”

Strange how that nightly ritual had become such a part of her in so short a time. It brought home to her how very hard it was going to be to let Leo go when a new family was found for him.

Strange, too, how her impressions of Chance had changed. She no longer saw him as a happy-go-lucky charmer, but as a man with deep feelings and a strong sense of responsibility.

Later, when she slipped into her own bed, she didn’t mind so much that both the room and bed were smaller and that she had no window. Instead she was warmed by the thought that Chance had spent nearly the entire afternoon preparing this place especially for her. That thought kept her content and comfortable all through the night.

* * *

When Eve stepped out of her room—or rather hobbled out—the next morning, Chance was just heading down the stairs.

“Good morning,” he said with a raised brow. “You’re up earlier than normal. Did the new room not agree with you?”

“Not at all. I was quite cozy. But without a window, I had no idea what time it was when I awoke. So I just went ahead and got up.”

He frowned. “Sorry, I hadn’t thought about the window.”

Eve laughed. “Chance, you’re very talented and can fix a lot of things, but you can’t put a window in a room that’s bordered on all sides by other rooms.” She gave him a reassuring smile. “I promise you, I’m quite happy there.”

“How’s your knee?”

“Much better, thank you.” She raised a hand, palm out. “But don’t worry, I intend to use this crutch when I’m moving about and not attempt the stairs today.”

He nodded approval.

“But I won’t promise about tomorrow.”

His brows drew down. “Eve—”

She didn’t let him finish. “I apologize if I appeared ungrateful yesterday. You were very kind to be so concerned about me, and to do all of this.” She swept her arm, indicating the crutch and the makeshift bedchamber. “This really was going above and beyond. And in return I was undeniably snappish.”

He smiled. “You were hurt—that no doubt affected your temper.”

Happy to let him believe that was the reason, Eve nodded. “At any rate, thank you so much for going to all that trouble to set up the temporary bedchamber.”

He shrugged. “I’ve been meaning to clean out that storeroom for months. This just gave me the excuse to get it done.”

The man really wasn’t comfortable with accepting compliments. “If you give me a few minutes I’ll get the coffee brewing.”

“I’ll help.”

They walked toward the kitchen in comfortable silence, as he adjusted his steps to match hers.

“I tell you what,” Chance said as they stepped into the kitchen. “I never got around to looking at yesterday’s paper. Why don’t you read it to me while I stoke the stove and get the coffee on.”

“Oh, but—”

“I may not be much of a cook, but I do know how to make coffee.” He gave her a boyish grin. “And I do like to listen to you read.”

Pleased to see that he was comfortable teasing her again, she smiled. “Very well. But don’t think I’m going to let you get away with keeping me in a chair all day.”

He placed a hand over his heart. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”

Dotty walked in about the time Chance had the coffee ready and Eve refused to meet her gaze. The widow had far too much fun pointing out the undercurrents in her and Chance’s interactions for Eve’s comfort. Dotty offered to cook breakfast if Eve would continue to read out loud. Eve knew it must be a ploy to keep her in her seat, but decided to play along.

* * *

Right after breakfast they began decorating the shop. Some of the evergreen was formed into a garland and generously garnished with the pinecones, seeds, pods and other interesting bits that they’d selected from the pile last night, some of which had been painted a bright red. This they draped on the dividers.

Eve sat on a stool near the counter and gave directions as well as handled the occasional customer who came by. She also took pieces of the greenery and formed a wreath adorned with a large red bow and some sprigs of holly.

To her delight, Chance pulled out some small wooden toys he’d carved in times past and offered them up as added decoration. He’d also fashioned several shiny stars out of tin. Eve took some twine and tied these ornaments onto the wreath, too, and then Chance hung it on the wall behind the counter.

After much discussion on the best place to hang the wooden discs they’d painted last night—some of it downright silly—it was decided to put them across the front of the counter.

When they were done hanging the greenery and the painted discs, Eve looked around with a critical eye. “Hmm, I think it needs something else. What do you think, Leo?”

He nodded. “We definitely need more.”

“We have more evergreen sprigs,” Chance offered.

“Why don’t we make some paper chains?” Leo asked.

Dotty snapped her fingers. “I have an even better idea—paper doll chains.”

Dotty taught them how to fold the paper, draw the half outline of a girl or boy, then carefully cut the figures so that when you unfolded it you ended up with the desired chain. They draped these across the front of the counter between the discs connecting them with strings of red and green yarn. Eve figured out how to alter the design to create chains of angels.

“It appears Eve and I got a bit carried away while we were out yesterday,” Chance said innocently. “There’s quite a bit of greenery left over.”

She felt a childish urge to stick her tongue out at him. He knew good and well he was the one who had insisted they collect so much. Then she saw the gleam in his eyes as he watched her and knew he’d deliberately been teasing her.

“We could hang some over on your side of the room,” Dotty said, apparently missing that bit of by-play.

Chance shook his head. “There’s almost too much in here as it is.”

“I know,” Eve said, “why don’t we put some out front around the doorway and windows?”

“I like that,” Leo said enthusiastically.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Chance found himself outside on a ladder waiting for Leo to hand him a wreath Eve and Dotty had just fashioned. Today had been a good day. Not only had the decorating been surprisingly fun, but he’d seen Leo happier than he’d been since he arrived in Turnabout. And some of the warmth and teasing seemed to be finding their way back into his relationship with Eve.

It seemed there might be hope for them yet.

The subject of his thoughts appeared and he frowned down at her from the ladder. “Where’s your crutch?”

She waved a hand dismissively. “Just inside the doorway. Honestly, my knee is much better and I don’t aim to do much walking, just directing.”

He shook his head. The woman was too stubborn for her own good. “Pride goeth before a fall,” he warned.

Eve grimaced. “Please don’t talk about falls while you’re up there on that ladder.”

The thought that she worried about him made him feel more magnanimous. “Don’t think I’m not aware that you just changed the subject,” he said sternly. Then he smiled. “But I will give in with my usual good grace.”

He saw her choke back a laugh at that, and with a satisfied smile, turned to Leo. “Now, hand me up that wreath so Eve can tell me where to place it.”