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Authors: Janet Tronstad

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BOOK: Small-Town Brides
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“But—” Rene protested. “We aren't. I mean—”

Clay saw Rene's cheeks pink up and he felt a wistfulness he had no right to even acknowledge.

Sometimes, he told himself, a man lived his whole life without a drop of grace and then—just when he least expected it—the universe suddenly opened up and dropped a golden opportunity right into his hands. This was that moment.

“We don't want her to worry,” Clay whispered as he stepped closer and cupped Rene's face with his hands. He knew his fingers were rough and cold, but he traced the line of her jaw anyway. Her skin was soft. And she wasn't pulling away—although that might be because she was in shock.

He forced himself to be still for a moment so she could pull back if she wanted. Her eyes grew wide, but she stayed steady. The snow continued to swirl around them, but Clay didn't mind. She probably expected him to give her one of those quick kisses on the cheek, just to satisfy Mandy. But Clay knew the odds. He'd never have a chance like this again.

Clay knew he'd made a mistake the minute his lips touched Rene's. He'd kissed hundreds of women, but it was never like this. His feet were frozen, but that didn't stop his lips from heating up. He wasn't doing very well in the breathing department, either. He needed to stop kissing her, but not as much as he needed to continue.

“That's how I should have kissed Davy. I just—ahhh—” Mandy moaned again.

Clay couldn't move, but Rene pulled away from him at the sound of the other woman's distress. The cold air blew on Clay's face and he blinked. His time in the sun was over. He was almost surprised to find he was still standing on this deserted road in the middle of a Montana blizzard.

“I need to make that search.” Clay was relieved his voice still worked. But since it did, he checked to see that he had the flashlight in his hand. What had he done?

Rene was already turned away from him, talking softly to Mandy. He wished he could tell by the curve of her back how she felt about that kiss. Obviously, she wasn't as shaken by it as he was, since she had already turned her attention to someone else.

“I'll be back in a few minutes,” Clay said, and he fled to the safety of the darkness. He needed some time to collect himself. He wondered if all of those hours spent with Rene in the truck were taking their toll on him. He prided himself on being level-headed. He only got emotional at rodeos and football games. He never thought a kiss would take hold of his insides and not let go.

A few minutes in the cold air was what he needed, Clay told himself as he walked across the shallow ditch and lifted up the middle strand of the barbed-wire fence. He bent down and stepped through the fence. It wasn't his feelings that he was worried most about. It was the rest of it that was troublesome. He'd seen enough of life to know there were no fairy-tale endings. Not in his life.

His feelings would eventually burn themselves out. But the disappointment could haunt him for life.

Chapter Five

R
ene tried not to look at the bright light off to the side of the truck. Clay was slowly moving the flashlight in an arc, searching the area where Mandy said her boyfriend had gone. While Clay was doing that, Rene was trying to distract Mandy. They'd already exhausted the topic of what they'd eat when they got to Dry Creek.

They were quiet for a few seconds and then Mandy shifted around on the seat.

“Never let your man go off by himself in a snowstorm,” she finally said. The inside of the cab was dark except for a small light on the ceiling. The heater was on and it was warming up nicely. “I should have stopped my Davy.”

“I doubt you could have,” Rene said as she opened her left arm to hug the young woman. “Not if he thought you needed help. Here. Put your head on me. You may as well stretch out as much as you can until Clay gets back.”

Mandy put her head on Rene's shoulder. “He's going to marry you someday, you know.”

“Who?” Rene adjusted the blankets as Mandy stretched out her legs.

“A rodeo man would make a good husband,” Mandy muttered as she turned slightly and arched her back.

“Clay? He doesn't even believe in love.”

Well, that got Mandy's attention, Rene thought as the younger woman looked up at her and frowned. “Really?”

Rene nodded.

“Well, you have to have love,” Mandy said firmly. “Even my Davy says he loves me. It's important.”

“I know.” Rene wondered how her life had ever gotten so turned around. A few days ago she thought Trace was her destiny, and now she was kissing a man who would rather order up a wife from some catalog than actually fall in love. She'd felt the kiss he'd given her more deeply than she should, too. Which meant she needed to get back on track.

“I'm going to make a list,” Rene said, “of all the things I need in a husband. That's how I'll know when I find the right one.”

Mandy drew in her breath. “I can help. For you, not for me. I want my Davy.”

Rene looked out the side window and saw that the light was coming back to the truck. She motioned for Mandy to sit up again. She doubted Clay had found Mandy's boyfriend. She'd have to keep the young woman distracted for a little bit more.

Clay took his hat off before he opened the door to his truck. Then he brushed his coat before climbing inside. He didn't want to scatter snow all over the women.

“Did you see him?” Mandy asked quietly from the middle of the seat.

Clay shook his head. “I'll need to come back.”

“But—” Mandy protested until another pain caught her and she drew in her breath.

“It won't take long to get you to Dry Creek,” Clay said as he started his truck. “Then I can come back and look some more.”

Clay didn't like leaving the man out there any more than Mandy did, but it could take hours to find him, and the sooner they got Mandy comfortable and relaxed the sooner those pains of hers would go away.

“I feel a lot better,” Mandy said. “If you'd just go back and look some more, I'll be fine.”

Clay looked at the young woman as she bit her bottom lip. Mandy was in obvious pain regardless of what she said. “You're not fine, and there's no use pretending.”

Mandy gasped, half in indignation this time.

Those pains worried Clay, but he assumed she must know the difference between the ones she was having and ones that signaled the baby was coming. Women went to class for that kind of thing these days. She probably just needed to lie down somewhere and put her feet up.

“He's right,” Rene said as she put her hand on Mandy's stomach. “Davy wouldn't want you out here. He'll tell you that when we find him. And think of the baby.”

Mandy turned to look at Rene and then back at Clay.

“You promise you'll come back?” Mandy asked. “Right away?”

“You have my word,” Clay said. He'd need to turn around using that country road.

“That should be on your list,” Mandy said as she looked up at Rene. “Number one—he needs to keep his word.”

Clay wondered if the two women were still talking about the baby Mandy was having. It seemed a bit premature to worry about the little guy's character, but he was glad to see that the young woman had something to occupy
her mind. Maybe she had plans for her baby to grow up to be president or something.

“I don't know,” Rene muttered. “We can talk about it later.”

“We've got some time,” Clay said. “It'll take us fifteen minutes at least to get to Dry Creek. You may as well make your list.”

Mandy shifted on the seat again. “So, you think trust is important in a husband?”

“A
husband?
” Clay almost missed the turn. “You're making a list for a husband?”

“Well, not for me,” Mandy said patiently. She looked at him like he was slow. “It's Rene's list, of course.”

Clay grunted. Of course.

“He should be handsome, too,” Mandy added as she stretched. “But maybe not smooth, if you know what I mean. Rugged, like a man, but nice.”

Clay could feel Mandy's eyes on him.

“I don't really think I need a list,” Rene said so low Clay could barely hear her. She was huddled against the far door again.

Clay didn't know why he was so annoyed that Rene was making a list. “Just don't put Trace's name on that thing.”

“I'm not going to put anyone's name on it,” Rene said as she sat up straighter. “And you are the one who doesn't think people should just fall in love. I'd think you would
like
a list.”

Clay had to admit she had a point. He should be in favor of a list like that; it eliminated the feelings. It must be all this stress that was making him short-tempered. “If you're going to have a list, you might as well make the guy rich.”

That should show he was able to join into the spirit of the thing.

“There's no need to ridicule—” Rene began.

“A good job does help,” Mandy interrupted solemnly. “Especially when you start having babies. I'm hoping the job in Idaho pays well. We need a lot of things to set up our home.”

“You should make a list of what you need for your house,” Clay said encouragingly. Maybe the women would talk about clocks and chairs instead of husbands.

“I have a set of dishes in the trunk of the car,” Mandy said. “I've been saving them for our first house together. I hope they haven't gotten broken.”

Rene was getting a headache. She wondered if it was because of the cold or because Clay was being so irritating. He knew very well that she wasn't looking for a rich husband. He probably just said that because she couldn't pay her bills.

“You'll get your money,” Rene said.

“Huh?” Mandy looked up at her.

“Clay. He'll get his money,” Rene repeated. “For towing my car.”

“I'm not worried,” Clay said.

“You're really
charging
her?” Mandy stared at Clay like he'd admitted to kicking puppies. “I thought you were kidding earlier.”

“Of course, he's charging me,” Rene snapped. “I already said this was a business deal.”

“Yes, but I thought—” Mandy stopped right there.

Rene decided the young woman had realized she should stop while she was ahead, and then Rene heard the gasp that followed.

She looked over Mandy's head and caught Clay's eye.

“I'm going as fast as I can,” he assured her quickly before turning back to the road. “We can't be more than five minutes away.”

Clay had his hat pulled low over his face and he was leaning forward like he could urge his truck through the snow faster. The headlights cut through the night and showed the tracks they had made on the way here.

“When we get there, pull right up to the church door,” Rene said to him. “They'll still be there praying, and we can find out where to take her.”

Rene wondered where pregnant women went in Dry Creek. She didn't know if they had a doctor around. Her aunt might know something about childbirth, but Rene had never asked her. It wasn't the sort of thing that came up in their phone conversations.

Everyone was quiet until they saw the first house that marked the entrance into Dry Creek.

“We're here.” Rene felt a relief she hadn't since the first time they pulled into the town. Now, a dozen or so houses looked like lots of civilization. It was certainly better than being stuck out in the middle of nowhere with a pregnant woman and a man who sounded as bewildered about the whole process of giving birth as she was.

“There are still lights in the church,” Clay added, his voice sounding as relieved as her own.

The church door opened almost as soon as they pulled the truck to a stop next to the front steps. Rene walked behind Clay as he and her uncle helped Mandy into the church. The temperature was still cold outside, but the wind had died down some so the snow wasn't blowing around. Aunt Glory stood at the open door, the light behind her streaming out into the darkness.

Rene closed the door behind them. Mandy's face was pinched from the strain of walking, even with the two men helping her. Rene unwound the scarf around Mandy's head.

“Is there someplace she can lie down?” Clay asked. He was still holding Mandy up on one side.

It didn't take them more than a couple of minutes to get Mandy stretched out on the sofa in the pastor's study with her shoes on the floor and a cup of warm cocoa on a stand next to her.

Clay could feel the young woman's eyes on him as she lay on the sofa.

“I haven't forgotten,” he said quietly as he stood up from where he'd knelt to take her shoes off. “I'm going to get some dry gloves and some rope. Then I'll go back.”

“We'll want a thermos of coffee this time,” Rene said as she headed to the door. “Or maybe tea. I'll fix something up.”

Clay followed her out of the room. They were in the back hallway of the church and the light was dim.

“No,” Clay said as he reached out to touch Rene on the shoulder. “I've got this one.”

She turned around to face him. “We've already been through that. You can't go alone. It's not safe.”

She was one stubborn woman, but Clay decided now was not the time to point that out to her. “I've got it covered.”

The minister walked out of the door behind them and then closed it. “Conrad Nelson is coming over. He should be here any minute. You need someone who knows the area.”

“If he can pinpoint the houses, that would help,” Clay admitted. He had wondered if there was a way to get a more complete map. Davy wouldn't have had a chance to walk far, but he obviously couldn't see the flashlight Clay had swung around earlier.

“There are no houses out where you picked her up,” the minister said. “I meant the land. There are some gullies that might provide shelter for a man. And a few clusters of
trees. That's where he'd head if he was in trouble or just lost his way.”

“I could still go with you.” Rene sounded tired and not as insistent as she had a minute earlier.

“I know Mandy could use a friend with her,” Clay said softly. “I'll be fine with this Conrad fellow.”

“And Conrad does know the area.” Rene gave a small frown.

“One of the men who prayed for you earlier, Elmer, is getting ready to go, too,” the minister said. “That's if there's room in the truck. He wouldn't be able to do much walking in the snow because he has bad knees, but he could be your base person. You'll want someone in the truck to tend the ropes. The other man, Charlie, wanted to go, too, but we decided he should stay here since he's our vet.”

“Why would—” Clay started and then he understood.

“He's the closest thing we have to a doctor,” the minister finished. “In case the woman goes into labor.”

“Then it's good he's staying back.” Clay nodded. He wondered if those men were going to insist on praying over him again. If they were, he hoped they waited for him to drink some coffee first. Rene had just turned into the kitchen and he suspected she was going to fix him a cup.

Rene stood at the counter by the sink and frowned at the coffeemaker. The thing wasn't going as fast as it should. Not if she expected to have the thermos filled with hot beverage by the time Clay was ready to leave again. She checked all of the plugs and it should have been working. Maybe if she looked away for a minute, the thing would start to drip.

She was trying to be reasonable. She didn't like being left behind on the final search trip. She had to admit that
it made sense to take people who were more familiar with the area, but she worried that something would go wrong. All of the talk about ropes reminded her that Clay would be out in the night in a blizzard with nothing to show him the way back to the truck except for a twisted line of hemp.

BOOK: Small-Town Brides
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