MINDY'S MAIL ORDER HUSBAND (2 page)

          
“I’m
not going anywhere but home with you.
 
You go over there and buy you some women things you need and get you
some fun things like knitting supplies and embroidery.
 
Material for dresses and curtains and
whatever else you take a fancy to.”

          
She
gasped.
 
“I can’t do that!
 
It costs too much money!”

          
Brett
shook his head.
 
“You let me worry about
that.
 
I’m going to get the supplies we
need, food, and whatever else I can think of.
 
Now go shop and I want to see you get some nice things.”

          
Mindy
swiped the tears away with her fingertips and walked over to the where the
clothes were.
 
She glanced to where
Brett stood giving Mr. McGreedy a list.
 
From the way the man was writing, it was going to be a long one.
 
She inhaled a deep breath and chose three
dresses.
 
The good Lord above knew she
only had two threadbare dresses. She’d made her wedding dress herself with
money she saved and kept in her hope chest.

          
When
she took the dresses to the counter and laid them on top, Brett looked at them,
grabbed her hand and led her over to the clothes again.
 
“Get two more and a good one for
church.
 
Get a couple bonnets and a hat,
shoes, stockings, and undergarments.
 
I
want you to pick out a nightgown for our wedding night too.
 
Get a pretty one.
 
Then you can shop for fun things.
 
Get material and thread and whatever else you need or want.”

          
She
stared into his silver eyes.
 
“How can
you pay for all this?”

          
“I
can, so don’t worry about it.
 
It’s my
wedding gift to you.”

          
“But
I don’t have anything for you.”
 
She
felt terrible at spending his money.
 
It
didn’t matter that he married her for richer or poorer, she felt sad that she
had nothing to give him.

          
“A
kiss from those pretty lips will do for a start.”

          
She
gasped as he leaned down and pulled her to him and kissed her soundly.
 
She felt her face heat with a blush when he
let her go.
 
She heard his chuckle as he
walked back to the counter that was piled up with wrapped purchases.
 

          
Mindy
shook her head and chose the things he told her to and carried them to the end
of the long counter that was the only place left to put things.
  
She watched Mr. McGreedy help Brett carry
the packages out to the buckboard.
 
It
took five trips before they had the counter clear.
 
She pushed her things up further for Mr. McGreedy to wrap them,
when Brett came back in and put his arm around her.
 

          
“I’ve
got enough food to last us a month and I also got enough food for the ranch
hands, tobacco, and bullets.
 
Hopefully
they appreciate it, or they are going to be rationed or fired, one or the
other.”

          
“I
know the bunkhouse cook will appreciate it.
 
Scuffy is like a second father to me.
 
He’s tried to get the men to work and one or two of them do, but the
others don’t.”

          
“Well,
I’ll make it understood that I won’t put up with any slacking on the job.
 
You ready to go home?”

          
“Yes.
 
I don’t want my chicken to burn, although I
know Scuffy will look after it for me.”
 
She watched him gather up her parcels and followed him out of the
store.
 
When he lifted her onto the
seat, she saw the Wilson sisters standing by Sally’s restaurant staring at
her.
 
She raised her chin high as Brett
hopped up beside her, slapped the reins against the horse’s rumps, and they
rode out of town.
 
She knew that by
nightfall, everyone in town would know her husband took her shopping.
 
Something she hadn’t been able to do for a
long time.

Chapter Two

          
Brett
drove the buckboard up before Mindy’s house and gritted his teeth.
 
It wasn’t that the ranch was terrible or
anything, but it was in disrepair.
 
There was corn in the field that was withered and the cattle he saw
needed hay and feed.
 
The house was two
stories high and the whitewash was faded.
 
The wrap around porch had two rocking chairs out front, and to his
surprise, roses and some flowers bloomed on each side of the steps.
 
He would have to remember to get Mindy more
flower seeds to plant.

          
He
hopped down from the buckboard and walked around the horses and helped Mindy
down when an old man came hurrying out of the bunkhouse.
 
He watched the way the man limped and knew
he had a bad hip, but the smile on the old man’s face when he looked at Mindy
told him this had to be Scuffy.
 
He met
him half way and held out his hand.
 
“I’m Brett Conners, Mindy’s husband.
 
It’s nice to meet you.”

          
Scuffy
smiled a toothless grin.
 
“Well I’ll
be.
 
You did come and marry her.
 
I was worrying you might not show up, but
happy you did.”

          
“Me
too.
 
I think Mindy and I will get along
well.
 
Where are the men at?”

          
“Those
lazy good for nothings are in their bunks takin’ a nap.
 
I told them they should be out here to greet
the new boss, but they just laughed at me.”

          
“They
did, huh?”

          
“Yep.
  
I’ve done everything I can to get them lazy
buzzards off their butts and to work, but they just shove me aside or curse me
out.”

          
“I’ll
take care of that.
 
Do you think you can
help Mindy carry in some of the lighter stuff while I go raise heck in the
bunkhouse?”

          
“Sure
will and I made you and Mindy some dumplings with the chicken broth and I made
you both a weddin’ cake.
 
I bought the
ingredients the other day from money I saved up so you’d have a weddin’ dinner
when you got home.”

          
Brett
grinned.
 
“Thank you, Scuffy.
 
I appreciate that.”

          
“You’re
welcome, boss.”

          
“You
can call me Brett.
 
Looks like I made my
first friend here.”
 
He saw the happy
grin on Scuffy’s face as he limped over to Mindy.
 
Brett strode over to the bunkhouse and went inside.
 
He looked at the five men sleeping on their
bunks.
 
The place was clean and he knew
that was because of Scuffy.
 
Even though
the man was old and crippled up, he took pride in his job.
 

          
Brett
squared his shoulders and walked over and kicked the boot of the first man
lying abed.

          
“Hey!
 
Who the heck do you think you are, Mister?”

          
“Your
new boss.
 
Get your lazy carcass and the
others out of bed and get outside to unload the buckboard straight away.
 
I don’t want any arguments either or you are
all fired without pay.
 
As a matter of
fact, until you all get this ranch back in shape, the only pay you will be
getting is your food, board, and tobacco.
 
They’ll be no dinking rotgut on the ranch either.
 
You’ve all taken advantage of my wife long
enough and I won’t stand for it.
 
Get
busy.”
 
He turned to leave when someone
yelled at him.
 
He spun around and saw a
man shoving to his feet in the next bunk.
 
The man swayed.
 
He was drunk,
and if there was one thing he hated, it was a loud-mouthed drunk.

          
“I’ll
show you whose boss around here.
 
We
ain’t doin’ nothin’ you tell us to do.”

          
Brett
strode over to the man and grabbed him by the shirt and dragged him to the
door, pulled him outside, and shoved him into the horse trough.
 
“Maybe that will sober you up and cool you
down.
 
Get your clothes changed and get
busy mucking out the barn stalls.
 
You
talk back to me again and I’ll beat you senseless.
 
You got that?”
 
He walked
over to the buckboard where Scuffy was picking up some more packages to take
inside.
 
“The ones in the back of the
buckboard are for the bunkhouse, Scuffy.
 
There’s tobacco in one of those packages for the men, but you make sure
they don’t get any until they get to work.
 
You can have yours though if you like it.”

          
“It
will be a treat to smoke my pipe again.
 
Thanks boss, and thank you for bringing food and supplies for the
ranch.
 
Mindy’s had a tough time of it
since her pa passed.
 
He was a good man
and provided everything she needed.
 
I
can see you will too.”

          
“I
will, and if you need anything, you just let me know.
 
Maybe you can show me around after Mindy and I have supper.
 
I want to spend some time with my new wife,
but want to assess the ranch and see what’s needed.”

          
“If
Mack could see this ranch now, he’d turn over in his grave.
 
This is a good, prosperous ranch when run
right, but those lazy good for nothing ranch hands have just been giving Mindy
a hard time and not working.”

          
“She
told me.
 
Evidently they didn’t have any
respect for her pa or they would have kept working after he died.”

          
“The
only thing those men respect is the money they make Mindy pay them even though
they aren’t doing anything to earn it.
 
They go off once a month into town and gamble and whore away the money
and bring whiskey back.
 
Drunker than
skunks most of the time.”

          
“And
Mindy is broke now.
 
It’s a good thing I
came along when I did.”

          
“Sure
is.
 
They expect her to pay them
tomorrow and I can’t wait to see their faces when they don’t get it.
 
Course, Mindy doesn’t have it to give to
them anyhow.
 
I was worried what they’d
do to her when she told them she didn’t have anymore money.”

          
“They
will have to put in a full month’s work before I’ll pay them.
 
I’m not a defenseless woman.”

          
“No,
I can tell that by the way you wear them six shooters low on your hip.
 
The man you threw into the trough you gotta
watch.
 
He’ll be out for revenge.”

          
“What’s
his name?”

          
“Web
Carter.
 
He’s meaner than dirt.
 
He’s the one the men let browbeat
Mindy.
 
If I was younger, I wouldn’t let
that happen, but they’d just shove me down on the ground.”

          
Brett
gritted his teeth.
 
The more he heard
about the men working for Mindy, the more he just wanted to fire them.
 
First, he had to see if there were any men
in town he could hire.
 
He’d do that as
soon as possible.
 
“They give you a hard
time, Scuffy, and I’ll make sure they leave you alone.
 
If you have any problems, you come to the
house and tell me.”

          
“Thanks
boss.”
 

          
“I
guess I’m going to have to go in there and kick their behinds out the door to
make them carry this stuff inside for you.”
 
He strode over to the bunkhouse and stopped at the door and
listened.
 
He heard Web Carter telling
the others not to do anything Brett said.
 
He was just about to step through the door when another man spoke
up.
 
It seemed he had one man in the
bunch that wanted a job.
 
He went inside
and saw who was talking.
 
“You,” he
said, pointing at the man, “are the new foreman.
 
We’ll discuss pay tomorrow.”

          
“Yes
Sir!”

          
“There’s
a buckboard of supplies for the bunkhouse that needs carried in.
 
Web, you are supposed to be mucking out
stalls unless you just want to get your horse and hightail it out of here.
 
I don’t care which choice you make, but
understand that I’m the boss and you’ll take orders from me, or the
foreman.
 
What’s your name, young
man?”
 

          
“Corky.
 
That’s all anyone’s ever called me.”

          
Brett
shook the man’s hand as he stepped up to him.
 
“You and the other men carry in the things for Scuffy so he can get
things put away and start supper.
 
Web,
get out there and get to work.”

          
“Who’s
going to make me?”

          
Brett
shook his head and walked slowly over to the man.
 
“I gave you an order.
 
Get
to work or get out.”

          
“Just
because you married that piece of fluff in the house…”

          
Brett’s
fist landed on the man’s jaw and he went down.
 
He placed his boot over his throat.
 
“Mindy is my wife and no man dishonors her.
 
I won’t put up with your mouth or the crap you been dishing out
to my wife and Scuffy.
 
Get your horse
and get out of here right now.”
 
He
shoved his boot heel a little harder into the man’s throat and heard him
choke.
 
“Do I make myself clear?”

          
Corky
walked up to Brett.
 
“He doesn’t own his
own horse, boss.”

          
“Then
get his things together and he can walk to town.
 
He looked down at Web.
 
I
want you gone in fifteen minutes.”

          
“You
other men want a job or to leave?”
 
When
no one replied, he took his foot off Web’s throat and heard the man gasping for
breath.
 
“Guess that means you want to
work.
 
I’m going to the house.
 
Corky, if there are any problems, come and
get me.”
 
He strode out of the
bunkhouse, grabbed an armload of supplies and carried them to the house,
glancing back to see Corky and the others getting the supplies out of the
buckboard.

          
He
went into the house through the kitchen door and saw Mindy sitting at the
table.
 
“I had a few things to take care
of in the bunkhouse.
 
I hope supper is
still hot.”

          
“It
is.
 
I’ll put it on the table.
 
Just set the packages over there on the
counter and I’ll put the things away after we eat.”

          
“Sounds
good to me.”
 
He walked over to the sink
and pumped water on his hands and washed his face.
 
He groped for a towel when Mindy handed him one.
 
“Thank you.”

          
“You’re
welcome.
 
Did the men give you any
trouble?”
 
She set the platter of fried
chicken and bowl of dumplings on the table.
 

          
“Web
did and I fired him.”
 
He pulled her
chair out for her to sit down, then sat at the head of the table.

          
“You
fired him?”
 

          
Brett
grinned.
 
“Shut your mouth, honey.
 
That man won’t bother you again, and if he
does, he will answer to me.”

          
“I’m
so happy he’s gone.
 
He’s the meanest
man I ever met, but pa could handle him.
 
I couldn’t.”

          
“I
know, so don’t worry about him anymore.
 
I made Corky the new foreman too.”

          
“Corky
was always nice to me, but he’s still young and was afraid to stand up to Web.”

          
“That’s
understandable, but I like Corky.
 
Do
you want to say the blessing or for me to?”

          
“I
will.”

          
Brett
watched her bow her head and close her eyes.
 
She thanked God for the food and all her blessings and for bringing her
a good husband.
 
“Amen,” he said, and reached
across the table and took her small hand in his.
 
He noticed how work roughened her hands were.
 
“I thank God for such a beautiful wife.”