California Romance (13 page)

“Well, I swan! I shoulda known.” Evan slapped his leg. “You resemble him some. Say, does he know you’re coming?”

“No.” Not sure how much to tell, Sarah said, “I wasn’t sure when I’d arrive.”

Evan scratched his bald head and looked troubled. “Last I heard, the Diamond S were driving the cattle up to the high country. I’m not sure when they’ll be back. Do you want me to get someone to carry you out to the ranch?”

Bitter disappointment filled Sarah. What should she do? Except for a lone ten-cent piece, her coffers were empty. Pride warred with necessity—and won. “I can’t just show up and beg to be taken in until Seth returns,” she whispered.

“Any sister of young Anderson would be welcome on the Diamond S,” the postmaster reassured her. “That’s how we do things ’round here. By the way, call me Evan. Mr. Moore was my dad, God rest his soul. Anyway, if going to the ranch isn’t to your liking, you bein’ an Easterner and used to different ways and all, ’tain’t no problem.” He called to a freckle-faced boy kicking up dust with a worn boot, “You there, Johnny, get over here. This lady’s Seth Anderson’s sister. Ride out to the Diamond S, and tell them to send word to Matt and Seth that she’s here.”

Johnny grinned. “Sure, Evan. Whatever you say.”

Sarah took the last of her money from her reticule and held it out. “Thank you, Johnny.”

He drew back, and his face turned red. “Aw, you don’t have to pay me. It’s only ten miles.”

How unlike the Stoddard children
, Sarah thought.
This boy must be about Peter’s or Ian’s age but what a difference! Neither would walk across the street on my behalf, let alone take a hot, dusty, twenty-mile round trip without being well paid
. She pressed the dime in Johnny’s unwilling hand. “Please. I’ll feel better if you take it.”

“Well, all right. Thanks.” He pocketed the ten-cent piece and sped down the street toward the livery stable hollering, “Hey Pa, I gotta ride out to the Diamond S. Seth Anderson’s sister’s here, and he don’t know it. She’s real nice, Pa—and purty.”

Evan laughed outright, and Sarah felt warmed through and through. Never before had she been more aware of God’s loving care and His promise in Isaiah:
“No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.”
God had cared for her every step of the way. Surely He would provide for her in this strange land that oddly enough didn’t feel strange at all but as if she’d come home. She impulsively turned to Evan.

“Mr. Moore—Evan, I just gave my last dime to Johnny. I need a place to stay until Seth comes and a way to pay for it. It will take time for him to get back from the high country, won’t it?”

“You can bet your bottom dollar on that. Don’t fret, Miss Sarah.” Evan stood and offered her his arm. “We’ll just mosey on down to the Yosemite Hotel and see what the proprietor says. The captain took care of Seth when the boy was hurt. He thinks a powerful lot of him.” Evan coughed. “We all do. Especially Matt Sterling. Seth reminds him of Matt’s kid brother, who died a few years back.”

If Sarah had been able to choose someone to enlighten her about Madera, she couldn’t have found anyone better than Evan Moore. He proudly escorted Sarah to the Yosemite Hotel, talking while she observed. A wide main street, typical of other western towns she’d come through, stretched on either side of Evan’s store and post office. The friendly man’s face wreathed with smiles when he said, “We’ve got ourselves three hotels. Three general stores. A drugstore, a butcher shop, a blacksmith shop, and a livery.” He laughed. “And according to Matt Sterling,” he said impressively, “ ‘just about the prettiest and most wide-awake town in the entire San Joaquin Valley.’ ”

Sarah stifled a yawn. After the hustle and bustle of St. Louis, Madera seemed more sleepy than wide awake, but unwilling to offend she kept her opinion to herself.

After running out of information about the town Evan obviously loved, he said, “We’ve got some mighty fine folks here, Miss Sarah. Captain Perry Mace is one of them. He’s been ’most everywhere and done ’most everything. Funny. The Mexican War’s been over for ages, but he’s never been called anything but ‘the captain.’ Wears a top hat all the time. Well,” he added in a droll voice, “maybe not to bed.”

Sarah rewarded him with a smile, but her heartbeat quickened. God sometimes led His children by strange paths. Would He use this eccentric adventurer to help her as he had helped Seth? It could be days before her brother was able to reach her.

On hearing Sarah’s plight the captain promptly said, “Sho, you’ll stay right here in my hotel until Seth comes.” He waved an expansive hand. “You’re more than welcome.”

The kindness and western hospitality Sarah had encountered ever since she reached Madera brought a lump to her throat. She swallowed hard. “Thank you, sir. I appreciate it, but I will only accept on one condition. I’m no stranger to hard work and can earn my keep.”

An approving look brightened the captain’s keen eyes. “Spunky, just like that brother of yours. Good. If you want to work, it’s fine with me. I can always use another girl to help wait tables.” He glanced at her hot, dark traveling outfit. “You’ll need a lighter dress though.”

Would lack of proper clothing mean she wouldn’t get the job? Even so, she had to be honest. “My few calico work dresses are pretty worn.”

The captain waved aside her stumbling confession. “Your dress doesn’t much matter as long as it is clean. The girls wear aprons that cover them from their necks to the tops of their shoes. I’ll have Abby show you to a room and fix you up.”

Sarah still wasn’t satisfied. Even if she only worked for a few days, the captain must know the whole truth. “I’ve never waited tables, but I’ve cooked and scrubbed and taken care of a mean stepfather and his four ornery kids,” she burst out.

“If you’ve done that, then I reckon you’ll feel right at home waitressing.” He shook Sarah’s hand until her fingers tingled. “Thanks for bringing her over, Evan. Unless I’m a piker and not Captain Perry Mace, Miss Sarah’s going to be a mighty fine gal to have around.”

Several long, uncertain days passed with no sign of Seth. Although longing to see him, Sarah concentrated on her new job and quickly caught on. Her eagerness to always do more than her share endeared her to the other girls. It also won the captain’s approval.

“I just wish I could keep you on permanently instead of just until your brother comes,” he grumbled. “We’re going into the busiest season of the year.”

Sarah just smiled, but in the dark hours of the night, a daring thought took root in her mind and refused to be banished.
Why not keep working at the hotel after Seth comes?

Another thought set Sarah’s heart thundering. She wanted Matthew Sterling’s approval as much as she’d ever wanted anything. If she kept her job, Seth would rage—but surely the hardworking rancher would respect and admire her a lot more than if she landed flat broke on the Diamond S.

T
hat’s the last of them, boys.” Brett Owen’s stentorian yell brought a roar of approval from the Diamond S cowboys. Grimy and tired from long days of chasing ornery cattle that preferred hiding in draws over being driven up to the high country, the thought of real beds instead of bedrolls on the hard ground gave Matt and his outfit reason to rejoice.

“First thing I’m gonna do when we get back to the ranch is sleep for a week,” one of the hands announced. A murmur of assent rose, but Matt Sterling just laughed and turned to Seth Anderson.

“What’s the first thing you’re going to do?”

“Ride to Madera, and see if there’s a letter from Sarah.”

The poignant look in Seth’s blue gaze hit Matt straight between the eyes. Ever since the telegram came from Gus Stoddard with the shocking news that Sarah had disappeared and might be on her way to California, Matt and Seth had waited in vain for word from the missing girl. Seth had grown quieter with each passing day. Matt’s best efforts to cheer him up hadn’t stemmed his worry—or Matt’s.

“Gus and Tice won’t give up,” Seth said. “They’ll hound her until they find her. I just pray to God it won’t be before she gets here if she’s coming. Once she does—”

Matt set his jaw. “Once she does, she’s safe. Any trumped-up claim Gus Stoddard may have won’t be worth a snap of his fingers. You’re of age now and your sister’s natural protector.”

Some of the shadow left Seth’s eyes, but Matt had more on his mind than Sarah’s whereabouts. According to Gus’s telegram, Sarah was engaged. The thought of the innocent girl tied for life to the kind of man her stepfather would choose made Matt grind his teeth. Yet how did he know she hadn’t given her promise to marry? No. If she had, she wouldn’t have run away.

Heedless of Seth’s presence, Matt bowed his head. “Please help me, God,” he prayed. “I love Sarah, but she’s already committed to someone else. You’ve commanded that we should not covet our neighbor’s house, his wife, or anything that belongs to him.” Rebellion flared, and he burst out, “Surely that doesn’t mean a Christian girl in danger of having her life ruined by marriage with a rotten, no-good polecat, does it?”

“Amen to
that,”
Seth echoed.

Matt raised his head and clenched his hands. It took all his will to say, “Help me be honorable, Lord. May Your will be done in Sarah’s life and in mine.” But his traitorous heart silently added,
I hope Your will is for us to be together
.

The closer the outfit got to the Diamond S, the faster Matt’s pulse beat. If only Sarah would write! She should have reached Madera by now—if that was her destination. Matt’s spirits dropped to his trail-worn boots. Perhaps she had never left St. Louis. Perhaps friends had taken her in and hidden her. He shook his head. It didn’t seem likely. As determined as Seth said Gus and Tice Edwards were, they’d have scoured St. Louis raw to find Sarah.

Hours later the outfit reached the Diamond S. The hands unsaddled and headed for the bunkhouse. Matt and Seth turned Chase and Copper out to pasture. Any riding into Madera for the mail would require fresh horses.

A small, colorful tornado burst from the ranch house door. “Senor Mateo. Senor Mateo.” Solita ran to them, waving a wrinkled piece of paper. “Senorita Anderson is in Madera! The message came more than a week ago.” Tears glistened in her dark eyes. “The
muchacho
Johnny rode out the day the stagecoach bringing the senorita arrived.”

Seth sagged against the corral fence. “Thank God!”

Matt silently added
Amen
then furiously said, “More than a week ago? Solita, why didn’t you send word to the roundup?”

Wet streaks marred the housekeeper’s smooth brown cheeks. “I myself ordered the lazy peon you hired just before leaving to take it to you. He said
sí
and rode away. Only today did I find the paper by the barn. I pray to
Dios
that you will forgive me.”

“Don’t cry, Solita. It’s not your fault.”

She sniffled. “But where is Senorita Anderson? What must she think of us?”

A chill went down Matt’s spine in spite of the hot day. “That’s what we’re going to find out.” Matt wheeled and hollered to a stable boy. “Emilio, saddle two of our fastest horses. Pronto!”

Solita wiped her eyes with her voluminous apron. “Senor Mateo, shouldn’t you take a buggy for the senorita? She may not be used to riding horses.”

Seth laughed, the first real sign of mirth he’d shown since Gus Stoddard’s telegram had arrived. “Sarah can ride. She had a chestnut gelding named Pandora before our father died. He had to be sold.”

“Pandora for a
gelding?”

Seth nodded and rolled his eyes. “That’s what Sarah named him.”

Matt chuckled but silently determined to search for the most beautiful chestnut gelding he could find. Sarah might be unwilling to accept it from him but would have no qualms if it came from Seth.

“We can get a horse for Sarah from the livery stable,” Matt said. He ruefully looked down at his dust-encrusted garb. “What say we clean up before going?”

Seth looked ready to mutiny. “You can if you want to, Boss. I’m going to find my sister.”