Finding Promise (23 page)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Over the next few days Jake had a lot of free time to reflect on Colt's words, since he was alone in the bunkhouse during the day. Even Shorty abandoned him to work on the range with the other men. By the third day of his self-inflicted solitary confinement, he thought he might actually go mad, but Cade and Cody paid him a visit.

“Uncle Jake, Ma said we should come out here and see how you are doing,” Cody said.

“I'm doing good,” Jake replied. He was happy to see his nephews. It looked like they'd grown a foot since he'd left for Texas months ago. They were so cute, and Jake wished they would stay seven forever. “How are you boys doing?”

“Good,” they both chimed in.

“Ma said you should come in the house for lunch,” Cade told him.

He wondered if his sister-in-law was trying to push him on Promise. “Hell's bells,” he said without thinking.

“Uncle Jake!” the boys exclaimed before they started giggling. “Ma told us to 'mind you what was gonna happen if you said bad words,” Cade said.

“And
hell's bells
is a bad word,” Cody added.

Cade elbowed his brother in his side. “Ma said she would do the same thing to us if we repeated the bad words.”

Jake looked at the two pairs of silver-blue eyes staring up at him and winked at them. “I won't tell if you don't.”

“Deal!” the boys said.

“You can say
church bells
instead of hel—” Cody stopped before he got another elbow in the ribs. “Instead of that bad word, and we'll know what you mean.”

“That sounds good,” Jake told them. He just had to remember to break that habit. “Why did your ma want me to come to lunch?”

“I dunno, she just said you should, and we wasn't to take no for an answer,” Cade said, imitating Victoria's voice.

“She says if you needed help, we should go get Pa. Do you need me to go get Pa?” Cody asked.

“I reckon I can make it.” He sure didn't want to have his big brother carrying him like he'd already threatened.

“Ma says when you're better you can go riding with us and Miss Promise,” Cade told him. “Did you know she can ride real good?”

“Yeah, she rode with Cole and T. J. this morning, and she rides as good as they do. T. J. says she's a good cowboy,” Cody added.

This was news to Jake. Ranch work must be slowing down if Cole and Colt's foreman could take the morning to go pleasure riding. Maybe he should have brought back five thousand head of cattle. He guessed T. J. was going to be following her around, too. “I thought she had a lot of work to do in the house.”

“Ma told her to take a break 'cause she works so hard, and her horse was sure to be lonesome. Anyways, Mrs. Wagner was there to see to Ma.”

These youngsters knew more about what was going on than he did. Leaving his bunk, Jake thought he should at least wash his face and put on a clean shirt if he was going to the house.

“Ma says she's going to have Promise teach her more about riding. Pa didn't get to teach her much since she got in the family way.” Cody looked puzzled and asked, “Does
family way
mean we're having a brother or sister?”

Jake chuckled. “Something like that.” It was easy to see the love these boys had for Victoria and Colt. Every other word out of their mouths was
ma says,
or
pa says
.

“I'm thinking maybe we need a boy 'cause there's so many women in the house now,” Cade said. “Only Promise talks about horses and stuff boys like.”

“Yeah, we showed her a frog today and she touched it and didn't think it was icky,” Cody added. “She said her brother would bring her frogs all the time.”

Jake thought Promise was probably missing her brother.

“Frogs and bugs make Mrs. Wellington scream,” Cody went on.

“Pa says Promise is real special, and Ma will find her a husband so she'll always stay here,” Cade said.

Jake listened to their conversation while he brushed his hair. So Victoria was going to try to find Promise a husband. He couldn't say he was surprised. Women were always trying to find husbands for single women. But it sure as shooting was not going to be him. If that was her plan, she could get that notion right out of her pretty little head.

“You got a wife, Uncle Jake?”

Jake didn't know which boy had asked. “No.”

“Do you want one?” Cade asked.

“No.”

“Don't you got to have a wife to have boys?” Cody questioned.

“If you want to have children, it comes in handy to have a wife.”

“Don't you want some boys?” Cade asked.

“They could play with us,” Cody told him.

“You boys will be grown before I get married,” Jake said, hoping to put an end to this conversation. He couldn't believe Victoria would use the boys to try and soften him up. He finished buttoning his fresh shirt. “Okay, let's get to the house.”

Each boy grabbed a hand, and Jake noticed they were careful not to pull on him as they led him from the bunkhouse. Victoria must have told them he wasn't well enough to have them jumping on him.

Jake expected he was lunching with all women, but to his surprise the boys led him to the parlor, where he found Colt sitting in a chair with Victoria in his lap. Promise was sitting on a settee between T. J. and Cole. Jake thought there wasn't an inch of space between them.

“What's going on? Are we out of work on the ranch?” he asked, his eyes slicing to T. J. and Cole.

The boys dropped Jake's hands and ran to Colt. “There's plenty of work, no need to worry about that,” Colt replied, putting an arm around the boys. “We just thought we would surprise the ladies today, didn't we, boys?”

“Yep,” the twins replied in unison.

Colt didn't divulge that it was his wife's idea to get Jake out of the bunkhouse. He'd told Victoria about his brother's infatuation with her, but they both agreed that he was just envious of their happiness. They both thought Jake had deeper feelings for Promise than he wanted to admit. Colt recognized jealousy when he saw it, and he'd seen plenty of that from Jake anytime another man so much as spoke to Promise. He remembered how he'd felt when another man was courting Victoria: He was so jealous he couldn't think straight. He wasn't surprised when Victoria said she had a plan to see if Jake really did care for Promise. What better way to have Jake admit his feelings than to see other men vying for Promise's attention.

“What's the occasion? It's not like you to take time from ranch work,” Jake asked.

“I just missed my family, so I'm making up for lost time,” Colt replied, hugging the boys to him.

“We missed you too, Pa,” Cade told him.

“Yeah, but Ma was really missing you. She was always crying,” Cody said.

Colt tightened his arm around his wife. “She was?”

“Well, not always,” Victoria said.

“Were too,” Cody countered.

“Lunchtime,” Victoria said to end the conversation.

“Mrs. Wellington worked hard on a very nice lunch, so you boys be sure to compliment her.”

“I thought Promise was here to do the cooking,” Jake commented.

Victoria glared at her brother-in-law, and Colt said only one word, but it was delivered in a tone that made everyone go silent. “Jake.”

Jake looked at everyone's stunned expression and he couldn't figure out what he had done this time. Realizing they thought he was being rude, he quickly added, “I just meant I like her cooking. She makes really good apple pies.”

Promise did her best to ignore him. She reminded herself that once spring came, her obligation to the McBride family would be fulfilled. Cole had promised to take her back to Denver, where she planned to stay with her family for a few weeks before returning to Sinclair Hall. Now that Matthew was gone, her plans had changed. Managing the family holdings was now in her hands, so her dream of staying in the West would come to an end before another year passed. Now, she just needed to concern herself with avoiding Jake McBride until spring.

Colt stood with Victoria in his arms, determined to abide by doctor's orders that she stay off her feet. “Now you can tell me about this picnic over lunch,” he said to her.

“Picnic?” Jake asked.

“Victoria wants to have a picnic for all the hands in a couple of weeks, before cold weather sets in. We might invite some of the other ranchers too,” Colt responded.

“It's already September, and before you know it we will have snow to our knees. I'd like to introduce Promise to some of the single ranchers,” Victoria informed him.

Jake rolled his eyes. Like Promise didn't have enough men drooling over her. He was looking at two of them escorting her to the dining room, looking like a pair of bookends.

 

 

Lying in his bunk that night, Jake's mind was on Colt and his new family. It surprised him that his brother would take off in the middle of the workday to have lunch with his wife. He couldn't begrudge his brother for wanting to enjoy his new family; he was due some fun in his life. Other than the time Colt was shot, he'd probably never taken a day off. He figured Colt was right when he'd told him he was envious of the happiness he'd found. It wasn't much of a stretch to see himself in that scenario, with a wife and boys plying him with love and attention.

During lunch he hadn't been able to get a word in edgewise with Cole and T. J. jabbering to Promise the whole time. Come to think of it, everyone but the boys and Mrs. Wellington pretty much ignored him. He knew he'd been surly since he left Denver, but he had tried to apologize. Once they arrived in Wyoming, Promise hadn't said more than a few words to him. Why should he care? He could ignore her, too. He'd be dam . . . darned if he'd say another word about her cooking, good or bad. In a few days he'd be out on the range, and that suited him just fine.

What he couldn't figure out was why Victoria wanted to introduce Promise to more men. He thought the plan was to take Promise back to Denver in the spring, so Victoria was wasting her time. As far as he was concerned, spring couldn't get here fast enough.

 

 

“How's it feel to be in the saddle?” Colt asked his brother. They'd been home ten days, and Colt had the doc examine Jake to make sure he was ready to ride.

“Real good. Like that wagon, I couldn't take another day of that blasted bunkhouse,” Jake said.

“Why don't you show me where you want to build your home?” Colt wanted to remind Jake of the life he would have on the ranch, and help him imagine what could be if he stopped fighting his feelings.

“Sounds good. Let's go.” Jake knew what was on his brother's mind. He wondered if he should tell him he had gained a whole new perspective about his feelings for Victoria. Colt was right, he'd been infatuated, like every man that met her.

They reined in at the spot Jake had picked out for his home before he'd left for Texas.

“I think you picked the perfect spot, Jake.” Colt wasn't surprised at the location Jake chose to build; it was the exact place he would have selected if he hadn't built his home where the original home had been located. It wasn't far from the main house, and the mountains as a background made for a stunning setting. “I call this place God's acre.”

“Why's that?”

“Sometimes when I'm riding this way back to the house, if the sun is setting just right, the light creates a cross formation on those mountains. It's a sight to see.”

A lump formed in Jake's throat as he sat beside his brother, looking at the place his home would be. He was only sorry that it had taken him so long to come home. When he could speak, he said, “I think this is a good place to raise a family.”

“Yep, there's not a better place on earth.” It was a special moment between two brothers who had been apart too long.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Two weeks later, the ranch was preparing for the big picnic. Before Jake rode out at dawn, he saw Mrs. Wellington outside, directing men where to set the tables for the picnic. She scurried around behind them, placing the tablecloths. He noticed she'd picked out the shadiest area on the north side of the house, where a nice clump of trees would provide some shade in the afternoon. The aroma of chicken frying in the kitchen was already filling the air, making his stomach growl.

By noon, Jake had bathed and arrived at the picnic after most of the guests were already milling about in the yard. It took him less than a minute to spot several men talking with Promise. At least, he thought it was Promise under that large wide-brimmed Southern-belle hat. He figured she needed the hat because her pale skin would easily burn in the hot afternoon sun. It looked like every man on the ranch, plus some men he didn't know, were maneuvering for attention. When he got a better view, he recognized the blue dress she wore as one of the many he'd found that fateful day. It occurred to him that she'd put on a few pounds since she'd been at the ranch, and they went to all the right places. She looked so beautiful he could hardly take his eyes off her.

Promise hadn't seen Jake when he arrived at the picnic, and she'd only seen him a couple of times over the few weeks before the picnic. Most nights she ate with Victoria in her room so the men could discuss business at dinner. When Colt and the boys joined Victoria, Promise would go downstairs and clean the kitchen, and Jake would already be gone. Her time at the ranch had kept her busy, but she was happy here. She didn't regret her decision to come to Wyoming, particularly if it kept her family safe. It'd taken her some time to stop crying each time she thought of her brother, but she now made an effort to remember the many happy years they had together. She'd even written a letter to Matthew's sweetheart to tell her that Matthew had planned on returning to South Carolina. It wasn't clear if that was Matthew's plan, but Promise wanted to think it was the truth if he'd loved the girl.

Seeing there was no chance he could even get near Promise, Jake glanced up to see Colt at the food table filling two plates. He strolled over, piled a plate high with fried chicken, and followed Colt to where his wife was sitting under a shady tree. When Colt handed a plate with very little food on it to Victoria, Jake almost commented that he was going to starve his wife, but one glance at Victoria's pale face made him hold his tongue. For the first time, he noticed the toll the pregnancy was having on her. It alarmed him how fragile she appeared.

“Did you leave some for the guests?” Colt asked, interrupting his thoughts.

“You're one to talk,” he replied, pointing at Colt's plate. After he took a bite of the chicken, he added, “They'd better hurry if they want some. It's so good I plan to go back for more.”

“It is delicious. Promise cooked the chicken,” Victoria told them.

Jake glanced Promise's way and saw her laughing with Cole. Normally it might have troubled him, but right now he was worried about Victoria. “When's this baby due?”

“We may have a nice Christmas gift,” Colt said.

Jake caught the look Colt gave Victoria. His eyes so full of love that he looked like he might explode. “That would be perfect timing,” Jake told them. “The boys said they thought they might want a boy.”

“We'll be happy with a boy or girl,” Colt said.

“I've never been around a baby before,” Jake admitted.

“You were around me,” Lucas chimed in, hearing the last part of the conversation as he joined them with what looked to be the rest of the chicken on his plate.

“That's true,” Jake replied. “Problem is, you never grew up.”

“And why would I want to spoil all my fun?” Lucas retorted. He pointed to Victoria's stomach. “What are we going to call this little tyke?”

“Tate if we have a boy, Samantha if it is a girl,” Colt said.

Jake heard the sadness in Colt's voice at the mention of Tate. Tate was the young man who'd worked for Colt. He'd been killed and Colt had taken his death hard. “Tate's a fine name.”

After they finished eating, Colt stood. “If I can get those ranchers away from Promise long enough, I want to introduce them to Jake and Luke.” He leaned over and looked into his wife's eyes. “Do you feel better?”

“Yes, go introduce your brothers. I'll be fine.”

“I think I've already met every woman here, but I've decided I'm gonna ask Promise to marry me if everything she cooks is as good as her chicken,” Luke said.

“That'll be the day,” Jake said. “I don't think you have it in you to settle down.”

Luke put his arm around Jake's shoulders. “You're not right about much, brother, but you're right about that!”

As Colt introduced his brothers to some of the men talking with Promise, she saw her opportunity to escape. She'd been forced to listen to ranch business for what seemed like hours, and hadn't found a way to politely extricate herself. Seeing Victoria was sitting alone, she made her way toward her.

“Have the men worn you out?” Victoria asked when Promise took the seat beside her.

“My word, yes. I declare, I didn't know how difficult cattle ranching could be. How do you listen to all this ranch business?”

Victoria laughed. She liked Promise, particularly her honesty. “I don't get a chance to hear much because I'm always busy.” She placed a hand on her stomach. “Well, I was busy until the doctor confined me to bed.”

“If you don't mind my saying so, you look a little pale today,” Promise said.

“I am a little tired today,” Victoria admitted. “But, heavens, don't say anything to Colt. He'd have the doc staying all night!”

“Then it's our secret,” she whispered.

Victoria saw Promise's gaze move across the lawn. Jake was standing there talking to a very pretty brunette that Victoria recognized instantly. She was one of the women who had been interested in Colt at one time. “Jake seems to be on the mend.”

“Hmm.” Promise was trying to recall if she'd met the woman speaking with Jake. She assumed the woman knew him well because she was touching his arm every few minutes in an intimate gesture.

“That's Mavis Connelly. She's a widow with three children,” Victoria informed her.

Promise turned to look at her. “Who?” she asked innocently.

“The woman talking with Jake.”

“Oh.” Promise couldn't say she wasn't staring at Jake—she was—but she didn't know Victoria was watching her.

“She's looking for a husband,” Victoria said.

Promise averted her eyes from the couple, telling herself she wouldn't look that way again. “Well, she should keep looking, since Jake is in love with someone else.”

“Yes, I daresay he is, but not the person you think.”

Promise opened her mouth to say something, but she couldn't reveal her suspicions.

“You never told me how you and Jake got along on the trail,” Victoria said.

“He was wonderful.” Promise noticed Victoria's surprised expression, and amended her response. “He was very kind to me. All of the men were kind to me. He's changed since he was shot. I think he might hold me responsible, as well he should. If not for me, none of the trouble would have visited his cattle drive.”

“I don't know Jake very well, but I don't think he would feel that way,” Victoria assured her.

“Then I must have done something to offend him, because he has definitely changed.”

Victoria thought she had some insight on Jake's behavior. “I think Jake is much like Colt. When Colt was shot and confined to bed, he was like a wounded bear. They are both men who don't like to be idle or feel they can't protect what's important to them.”

“I can appreciate not wanting to be confined to a bed or a wagon.”

“After being in bed for a few weeks, I can sympathize as well,” Victoria agreed.

The women sat in the shade and talked for a long time, sharing stories of their past, and their dreams for the future. They both knew they were forming a bond that would last a long time. Before the day ended, Victoria was positive of one thing: Promise was definitely in love with Jake.

 

 

The next weekend, the men planned a trip to town on Saturday night. Like the rest of the men, Jake was looking forward to a night of whiskey and poker at L. B. Ditty's Saloon. “Colt, are you going to town with us tonight?” he asked, when they were brushing their horses down in the stable. “Cole's going with us.”

“No, I'm spending time with my wife and boys.”

Luke laughed and punched Jake in the arm. “See, I told you he was whipped.”

“That's right, and I love it,” Colt replied. “When you two wise up, then you will find out what I'm talking about.”

“I'm too young to get hitched,” Luke retorted.

“Not to mention too stupid,” Jake teased.

“Stupid, huh? I'm the only one the women are chasing. I've been invited to Sunday dinner,” Luke countered.

“I don't know about that. I just accepted an invitation from Mavis Connelly for dinner tomorrow,” Jake bragged.

“I wouldn't take that as much of a compliment, Jake. She's invited every single man—from eighteen to eighty, within a hundred-mile radius—to dinner. She's looking for a father for those kids,” Colt said. “And believe me, they are a bunch of hellcats.”

Luke couldn't stop laughing. “Have a good dinner. Should I start calling you pa?”

“Very funny,” Jake said. He didn't know anything about the kids when he'd accepted the dinner invitation from a pretty woman. “Why didn't you tell me, Colt?”

“I didn't know you were interested in Mavis.”

“I'm not interested, I just accepted a dinner invitation,” Jake stated resolutely.

“Brother, why would you want to go somewhere else for dinner when you can eat Promise's cooking?” Luke asked.

Jake didn't have an answer to that question. Maybe he was just tired of being ignored. He hadn't seen Promise since the picnic, and they didn't even speak that day.

“Little brother, you might not laugh so hard when I tell you that Detrick has been looking for a husband for his daughter for a few years now. So while your feet are under his table, you might want to keep that in mind. He's not what I'd call an affable man, particularly if he thinks some cowboy is just playing sport with his girl,” Colt said. He needed to fill his brothers in on the lay of the land since he'd walked this particular minefield before he met Victoria. Every rancher with a single daughter had tried to wrangle him into the fold. On the other hand, it might prove amusing to see how his brothers got themselves out of such sticky situations.

“She's a pretty gal, so what's the problem?” Luke asked.

“Not pretty enough to put up with her daddy,” Colt commented.

“Colt, do you think it's safe for all three of us to be gone tonight?” Cole asked.

There had been no sign of the killers, but that didn't mean they had given up. “I think it might be good to see if there have been any strangers in town. Hollister's last telegram said no one had showed up in Denver,” Colt replied. “I'll tell the men to stay sharp while you're gone tonight.”

“How are you boys doing?” L. B. Ditty, the proprietress of the saloon, asked when Jake, Luke, and Cole took a seat at her poker table.

“We're feeling lucky tonight,” Luke said, smiling at the buxom woman with a head full of red curls.

“You will have to be lucky to beat me this week. I've already cleaned out my share of cowboys the last few days,” L. B. said.

“I think your luck is going to end. I'm due for some good luck.” One of the saloon girls passed, and Luke snaked out an arm and pulled her to his lap. “How are you doing, beautiful?”

L. B. asked the gal to bring her a bottle. “First round is on the house, boys.”

The woman wiggled out of Luke's lap and hurried to the bar. When she returned to the table, she poured the drinks.

L. B.'s fingers might be pudgy, but that didn't hinder how deftly she shuffled the cards and whipped them around the table, landing directly in front of each man. “How's that brother of yours and his pretty wife?” “Doing well. It looks like we might be having a niece or nephew by Christmas,” Jake answered, picking up his cards.

“I heard she is feeling poorly.”

“She's confined to bed, and Colt is making sure she follows the doctor's orders,” Luke replied.