Mail Order Bride - Westward Sunrise: Historical Cowboy Romance (Montana Mail Order Brides Book 9) (11 page)

              Abby smiled at him and squeezed his hand.  Elliot caressed her cheek and she leaned into his hand. 

              “You make me so happy, Abby,” Elliot said.  “Ever since I got your first letter, my life changed.  I would wait on pins and needles for the next letter to come.  And then when you got here, I knew that we were meant to be together.  I’ve never been confident around women.  Growing up I was awkward and shy and not very popular with the ladies.  I was nervous about meeting you, but as soon as we started talking, all of my anxiety faded and it was as if we’d known each other forever.  I felt confident with you and about you.”

              “I felt the same way,” Abby said.  “You’re the only one who really understands me.  You’re patient with me when I get carried away and I don’t seem to annoy you.  You’re kind and funny.  I don’t think people really know how funny you are.  You’re the most wonderful man I’ve ever met.”

              “I’m glad you feel that way.  I can’t imagine my life without you and I don’t want to.  I love you so much and I want to make a life with you and have a family.  I would be incredibly honored to be your husband.  Abby, will you marry me?” Elliot asked as he withdrew a black ring box from his pocket. He held his breath as he awaited her answer.

              Abby’s eyes grew big and her mouth formed an “O”.  When they had come up to the ridge that morning, she’d had no idea he was going to propose.  He’d caught her off guard, but as it sunk in that he’d really asked her to marry him, elation surged through her.  She let out a squeal and hugged him.

              “Yes!” she shouted.  “Yes, I’ll marry you!  Oh, Elliot, I love you and I would be so proud to be your wife.  We’re going to be so happy and have babies and, oh, just everything!”

              Elliot laughed and hugged her back.  Relief and happiness filled him as he held her.  Then he remembered the ring that he still held. 

              “In that case, I have something to give you,” Elliot said.

              Abby quickly drew back and couldn’t hold still as he opened the box to reveal an exquisite engagement ring.  She gasped at its beauty.  “Oh, Elliot!  It’s marvelous!”

              He took it out of the box and held her hand in place so he could put it on.  Something changed between them as the ring slid into place.  They looked into each other’s eyes and felt a belonging that they hadn’t ever experienced before.  They kissed tenderly and held each other close as the sun fully rose and shined its golden light down on them, as though giving its blessing of their new commitment to each other.

              Elliot decided to leave the store an hour early that day so that he could take Abby out to meet Tessa and tell her their good news before Abby had to go to work.  Abby was excited as they rode their rented horses towards the Samuels ranch.  As they rode up the lane, Roscoe ran from the paddock to greet them.

              “Hey, buddy,” Elliot said.  “Where’ve you been?  I haven’t seen you lately.”

              “It’s beautiful out here,” Abby said as she dismounted. 

              After greeting Elliot, Roscoe bounded over to Abby and offered her a large paw.  She shook it and ruffled his ears.  As they walked onto the porch, Tessa came out of the kitchen.

              “Elliot, what a nice surprise,” Tessa greeted him.

              Elliot smiled and introduced Abby and Tessa.

              Abby said, “I’ve heard so many wonderful things about you.  Congratulations on your book.  I think it’s wonderful that you’re going to New York and having a honeymoon while you’re there.  You should go see a play while you’re there.  I’m sorry.  I’m not telling you what to do.  I mean, you know what you’re doing and all.”

              Elliot chuckled.  “Abby, take a breath.”

              “I’m sorry.  I do that,” Abby said to Tessa, who was laughing.  “I get a little carried away.”

              Tessa said, “I see what you mean about her, Elliot.  You are a very sweet person and I have to say I do like your hair.  I wonder what I would look like with mine like that.  I think Dean would be very upset with me if I were to cut it, however.”

              “I think you would look wonderful.  You have the right shaped face for it.  Plus, it’s much cooler in this kind of weather and so easy to take care of,” Abby responded.

              “I definitely like it and I really couldn’t imagine you with long hair,” Elliot said.

              Abby smiled.  “Thank you.”

              Elliot said, “Tessa, Abby has done me the great honor of accepting my marriage proposal.”

              Tessa clapped her hands together and said, “How wonderful!  I’m so happy for you both!  May I see the ring?”

              “Of course,” Abby said as she held out her hand.

              Tessa examined the ring with approval.  “I knew that you had excellent taste, Elliot.  It appears that it is not only in choosing an engagement ring, but also in choosing a woman to marry.”

              She hugged both Elliot and Abby in turn and then invited them to stay for supper.  They accepted and Tessa led them to the cookhouse.  When everyone saw the couple follow Tessa into the cookhouse, they greeted them warmly.  Elliot introduced Abby around and then told them about their engagement.

              After hearty congratulations, they were made to sit down so they could be served.  Jamie and Marcus had actually cooked.  It had been a light day at the clinic, which was rare, and Marcus had decided to meet Claire and the kids out at the ranch for supper.  Jamie had asked his assistance in cooking and he’d readily agreed.  He missed cooking sometimes and it felt good to do it.

              “So have you set a date?” Seth asked, and shoveled a big bite of mashed potatoes into his mouth.

              Maddie watched him and smiled.  It always tickled her to see how much food he could pack away. 

              “No.  We just got engaged this morning,” Elliot said.

              “Yes, and it was so romantic.  We like to run in the morning and we go up to the apple orchard and watch the sunrise.  Elliot proposed to me just as the sun was coming up over the ridge across the valley,” she said as she looked at her fiancé with love shining in her eyes.

              Elliot grinned and blushed as a chorus of “Aww” and “Way to go, Elliot” went up. 

              The meal had a celebratory air to it and Abby enjoyed herself very much.  The children were all adorable.  Seth and Maddie’s six-year-old son J.R. was fascinated with Abby’s hair and kept touching it.  Maddie admonished him, but Abby didn’t mind. 

Abby watched as Marcus sat back while Claire cut his food.  No one seemed to think this was strange.  Marcus caught her watching and laughed.

“Abby, this is something Claire has done since I first met her.  Tell her why, honey,” Marcus said.

Claire sighed.  “I can’t help myself.  I can’t eat before I cut up his and the children’s food.  My parents started it when I was a child.  I was a finicky eater and the only way they could get me to eat was if I cut their food.  Then they would eat a bite and then make me eat one.  Ever since then, I’ve had to cut up at least one person’s food before I can eat.  I’ve tried to break the habit, but with no success.”

Marcus rubbed her back.  “It’s okay, Claire.  It’s one of the things I love about you.”

She smiled at him as she finished with his plate.  She’d already cut up Aiyana and Anthony’s food and the children were busy eating.

Abby said, “I think it’s cute.  You can cut up mine if you’d like.”

Everyone laughed over that while Claire blushed.

Maddie said, “Abby, if you’d like help planning your wedding, don’t hesitate to ask.  I’d be happy to help.”

“Yeah, good-lookin’ here is an expert at that sorta thing,” Seth said.

“Thank you, handsome,” Maddie said.  “I enjoy it.”

Tessa said, “Yes, Abby, you’ll have no shortage of assistance.”

“Thank you all very much,” Abby said.  “I think it’s wonderful how everyone helps each other here.”

Dean said, “Well, Dawson started out as a really small community.  When Pa and Ma moved here, it was little more than a few houses clustered together and a bunch of outlying ranches, this one included.  Over the years, more people settled here and businesses started up.  Elliot’s store and the Watering Hole were the two main ones here.  The Watering Hole is the biggest gathering place, with the Grady House a close second.  For the most part, everyone knows each other.  Although, I’ve noticed that there’s a bunch of new people settling here now.”

Seth nodded his agreement.  “Life here can be hard.  Take us, for instance; if our ranch doesn’t do well, we can’t pay the bills and take care of our families.  There are a lot of ranches around here and it’s the same for them.  Not to mention businesses like Elliot’s and so forth.  If we don’t all work together, none of us are going to succeed.”

Claire said, “Yes.  It’s the same for our school.  Without funding, we can’t buy books and supplies for the children and their education will lack.  With the proper education, our children will gain the knowledge needed to improve their family businesses or go on to pursue their own dreams in whatever profession they choose.”

“I completely agree with everything that you’re all saying,” Abby said.  “It’s too bad that in Wabasha, there is starting to be a divide in the thinking of how things are to be run and the city council members were starting to war with each other about all sorts of things.  It’s a shame.”

Dean said, “Humph.  Sounds like Joe and I.  When I agreed to be on council, I had no idea how annoying it was going to be dealing with him on political matters.  We butt heads on a lot of stuff, but we’re eventually able to come to a compromise.  His problem is that he wants to just throw money at everything and while he’s got it, it’s not all up to him.  The people of Dawson need to shoulder their share of the responsibility to keep improving the town.  I think he just thinks it’s easier and quicker to pay for stuff by himself.”

Elliot said, “His heart’s in the right place, Dean.”

“Yeah, but sometimes his brain is where the sun doesn’t shine,” Dean said.  “I do have to say that he is a good mayor and has the town’s best interest at heart.  He’s also smart to include the Lakota tribe in things.  It’s better to be on good terms with them rather than having to worry about tensions rising again.”

Marcus just stared at Dean for a moment.  “Did I just hear you right?  Did those statements really come out of your mouth, or am I dreaming?”

Dean returned his stare and said, “Yeah, you heard right.  Listen, Marcus, just because I have some personal issues with them sometimes, doesn’t mean that I haven’t gotten to like them and recognize that being friendly with them is a good idea.”

Marcus said, “Wow.  I didn’t expect that.”

“Dean’s right,” Abby said.  “I had many Lakota friends in Wabasha.  They are intermingled in the community and it works out very well.  Much like here.  It’s nice having them close.”

Marcus smiled.  “Your grasp of the language really surprised me.  He Who Runs said that you have excellent manners, too.”

Abby said, “Thank you.  I like him.  He’s very nice and Eagle Woman is a great hostess.  I just love Reckless.  He’s very funny and I always feel safe with him walking me home at night.”

Marcus said, “Yes, he’s good at that kind of thing, but he certainly lives up to his name.”

“How’s that?” Seth asked.  “He’s a nice kid.  What does he do that’s so reckless?”

Marcus laughed.  “Well, he’s eligible for marriage already because he has one coup and also conducted a successful horse raid on the Cheyenne a year ago.  He organized it and against all odds for someone so young, he pulled it off.  Not only that, but you know my rock ledge that overlooks the river?”

Seth nodded.  “Yeah.”

“He gets a running start and dives off it.”

“He does what?” Seth practically yelled.

“You heard me,” Marcus said.  “He does it almost every day.”

“But that’s how far of a drop?” Seth asked.  He was alarmed for his nephew.  He had no idea that the boy did those kinds of things.

“A huge one.  He actually knows what he’s doing.  He knows how far out to jump to miss any rocks in the water and also to stay clear of the cliff,” Marcus said.

Dean said, “I guess they did give him the right name.  That’s just crazy.”  He looked at Mikey.  “You better not ever start doing stuff like that.  You hear?”

“Yes, sir,” Mikey said.  “May I be excused?  I have homework.”  He looked at Claire.  “I hate this book we’re reading.”

She smiled.  “I’m sorry, but it’s a good book and you’ll learn a lot from it.”

“The only thing I’ve learned from it is that it puts me to sleep.  I get two pages read and I start nodding off,” Mikey said.

Claire chuckled.  “Keep at it.”

“Can’t I read something different?  Something I like.  Maybe something about the railroad?”  Mikey was fascinated with trains.

“I’m afraid not,” Claire said.

“Fine,” Mikey said.

Dean said, “Don’t talk to your aunt like that.”

“Sorry,” Mikey said sullenly.  He rose and put his plate in the sink and stomped from the cookhouse.

Dean sighed.  “He’s been getting more and more uncooperative.  I don’t know what his problem is.”

Seth said, “Jack was the same way at that age. Remember?  He is twelve, Dean.”

Dean put his fork down and groaned.  “Oh boy.  It’s that time, huh?”

Tessa said, “Little ears in the cornfield.”

Seth said, “I realize.”

“We’ll talk about this later,” Dean said.  His face registered his dismay.  “Where the heck did all the time go?  It was just yesterday that he was born.”

Tessa nodded.  “I know.  I can’t believe it myself.”  She sighed.  “If only they would stay little,” she said as she stroked little Katie’s silky blonde hair.

“I’ll stay little, Mama,” she said with a smile.

Dean laughed.  “I wish you could, Peanut.”

D.J. said, “I don’t want to stay little.  I want to get big so I can have a horse.”

“Don’t be in such a rush,” Tessa said.

Abby enjoyed watching the interaction of the family with each other.  She saw why Elliot spoke so highly of them all.  She hated to leave, but she needed to get to work.  She didn’t want to be late.

Soon she and Elliot took their leave of the cookhouse after thanking them all for the good food and good time.

The closer the time for Tessa and Dean to leave became, the more nervous and excited she became.  She worried that the publishers wouldn’t like her and that they would change their minds about publishing her book.  Dean reassured her about it all.  He was excited, too.  It had been a long time since he’d been out of Dawson and had actually gone somewhere fun.  New York was about as fun as it got, he thought.

Maddie and Claire helped Tessa pack.  She also bought a few outfits from Jacobs’ Finery.  Dean bought two new suits.  He wanted to look sharp when they went to see the publishers so he didn’t embarrass Tessa.  She was at home in that type of atmosphere, but he was going to be sorely out of his element.

Dean sought some advice from Seth since he had spent several months in the higher society of Pittsburgh. 

“Follow whatever Tessa tells you.  That’s what I did with Maddie.  Don’t slouch when you sit, remember when you go to dinner that you start with the outside utensils as each course is served.  Tip the cabbies and the bell hops at the hotel.  That’s about it, I guess.  Tessa will guide you,” Seth said.

Joe stopped Dean in town on Thursday.