No Place for a Lady (30 page)

"Good. I always wanted to be a bit taller:" Crystal giggled. "Pour
us a cup of coffee and tell me what's been happening in my absence.
When did you come back?" Crystal pulled up a chair while Carmen retrieved the cups from the cupboard and filled them.

"I came back two days ago. My sister had a healthy baby, and
my mother is feeling better:'

Crystal loved the way Carmen rolled her r's. "I'm happy to hear
that. I've missed you. I feel like I've been gone for months:"

"Tell me ... what was it like on the trail?"

Crystal blew on the steaming coffee and noticed her broken
nails curled around her cup. "It was the hardest thing I have ever
done in my life. But at the same time, it was an experience I will
never forget. I learned a lot, Carmen, about the cowboys and
about myself." Crystal sighed.

"I heard about Curly. So sad ... he was so special:' A tear slid
down Carmen's face, and she looked down at her hands in her
lap with a deep sigh.

"Carmen, did you have feelings for Curly?" Crystal wondered
how in the world she had missed that. She chided herself for
being too busy trying to run a ranch to notice their budding
romance.

"Si, senorita. I think he may have felt the same toward me. He
was very kind to me, and I thought he was such a good man. We
were going to go to the church bazaar together:"

Crystal leaned toward Carmen, covered her hand with her
own, and looked into Carmen's luminous brown eyes. "I'm sorry,
Carmen. When I first came to Aspengold, I thought it was Luke
you had your heart set on. I guess that's what I get for assuming
without asking. I truly am sorry. Curly will be so missed by all
the other hands. I considered him my friend:"

Carmen's eyes flooded with tears. Biting her lower lip, she took
a deep breath. "Thank you. I liked Luke, but there never was any
romance between us. Curly stole my heart. I have had some time
to think about it. My mother told me that God must have someone
else in mind for me someday." Her lip quivered.

"Your mother is a wise woman, Carmen. God does care about
your future, and one thing I know for sure, Curly believed in
God too" Crystal patted Carmen's hand. "You will be all right,
I know."

"You are so kind, Miss Crystal. You seem changed ... more
settled. Tell me, what is different?"

"I do? Well ... I've decided to stay here in Colorado. I have a
purpose now. Saving the ranch. I feel comfortable here:'

"Yes, I understand what you mean. When my family left Mexico
to live here, I immediately loved this beautiful country and its
mountains. It's as though God has touched the very landscape
with his hand:"

"That's so true. Now then, tell me about the bazaar. Did they
set a date? I've promised to bake a pie for the auction to help raise
money for an organ." Crystal was already thinking about what
kind of pie she would make.

"It is this Saturday. It always brings all the ranchers together.
And with your pie, you will bring the highest bidder" Carmen
chuckled.

"Don't sell yourself short. Your pies are delicious too. We have
lots to do, but first I must pay a visit to the Rocking M"

"Can you still afford to have me stay on? I know Kate was having a hard time making ends meet. I will understand if you need
to let me go:" Carmen looked crestfallen.

"Of course you will stay. Besides, I need the help around here.
I can't do this alone. Trying to take care of everything was very
hard for me when you were gone. I quickly found out that it
takes a lot of energy to run this place. I don't know what I would
do without Rusty ... or Luke, for that matter:" The way she said Luke's name spoke volumes. Crystal rose and placed her cup and
saucer in the sink.

"Miss Crystal ... are you falling for Luke?"

"Please, we are friends. Call me Crystal" She tried to avoid
answering but felt her face flush. "It doesn't matter what I think
or feel. He is engaged to April:"

"You are not answering the question;' Carmen pressed.

Crystal turned around to lean against the sink. "I'll admit I am
attracted to him, but I would never come between him and April.
That just wouldn't be right, so don't go getting any ideas:"

She knew Carmen wasn't fooled, but Carmen simply commented, "As you wish, Crystal:"

True to her word, a few days later, Crystal harnessed the buckboard to ride over to the Rocking M ranch with the money she
owed McBride safely tucked into her handbag. She also planned
to make a stop to see Reverend Alden. It was colder today, and she
pulled her coat tighter. Crystal's breath hung in the cold morning
air that indicated winter was on its way. She had never seen snow
and was excited at the prospect.

Crystal rapped on the massive door with an ornate door
knocker until a stout maid dressed in a crisp uniform answered.
"I'm here to see Mr. McBride:" The maid nodded and suggested
Crystal follow her into the parlor.

Sitting on either side of the fireplace were April and Alice. Alice
rose as soon as she saw Crystal enter the room.

"My dear Crystal. What brings you out so soon this morning?
Here, warm your hands" Alice pushed her to the fireplace.

Crystal removed her gloves and hat, and the maid took them.
"I came to see your husband, Alice. I've sold my herd and want
to pay off what Aunt Kate owed him"

April snorted. "It's about time."

"April. That is not necessary" Alice looked embarrassed by her
daughter's outburst. "Tilly, please ask Mr. McBride to come to the
parlor. I believe he is in his study."

"Yes, ma'am." The maid turned with haste and left the room.

"How are the wedding plans coming along?" Crystal asked.

"They are coming along just fine:" Alice nodded to her daughter.
"We have compiled the wedding list"

`April, don't forget that I will be having your shower at my
place, although Sara Johnson is in charge. I've never given one
before:' Crystal plastered on the sweetest smile she could muster.
Her heart thudded under her shirtwaist.

"I am not about to forget something like that, Crystal. It
must be hard for you to give a shower instead of having your
own. Kate let it slip that you were engaged to a certain gentleman back in Georgia for a time." Her words were hard and
calculated.

"April, really. It's not nice to gossip," Alice reprimanded her
daughter.

Crystal got the distinct feeling that April wanted to humiliate
her. Well, I won't sink to her level. How in the world could a nice
woman like Alice have such a despicable daughter?

Crystal measured her words carefully. "Oh, you mean Drew?
It was mutual, and we decided to break it off when I left Georgia.
He offered me a life of ease, to be sure, but I was seeking more
adventure than the wife of a politician had to offer. Now that I have experienced the West and the trail drive, I can't imagine
anywhere else I'd rather be, except running Aspengold"

"Good for you, Crystal." Alice smiled, then glared at April.

"Humph!" April fidgeted in her chair.

"Please have a seat, Crystal" Alice gestured toward the settee.
"I don't know where my manners are."

Crystal moved toward the settee as the door flung open and
Jim McBride's large body filled the room. "To what do we owe
this morning pleasure?" he boomed.

"I am here to settle the debts my aunt had with you" Crystal
continued to stand.

"Miss Clark, come with me so we can talk privately." McBride
started toward the door, then turned to Alice and April. "Excuse us.

"Mr. McBride;" Crystal interrupted, "there's nothing to discuss.
I have the promissory note and the money with me. That will pay
you everything that Aunt Kate owed you."

"Now, my dear, don't be too hasty. You may be in need this
winter if you pay the entire note" He seemed to be stalling for
time. "However, I would still like to extend an offer to you to buy
Aspengold. Then you could return to your homeland and pick up
right where you left off before your unfortunate problems, and
still have money to spare." McBride slowly poured himself a cup
of coffee without looking at Crystal.

McBride thinks he has it all figured out, she thought. The smug
look on his face made Crystal angry. "I'm not leaving, Mr. McBride,
and I will not sell the ranch. I intend to stay. At any rate, it's no concern of yours now." Crystal reached into her bag for the note and the
money. "Please count it. You will find the entire amount is there."

Quickly McBride counted the money. "My, my ... I guess you
made out fine on the price per head." He seemed surprised, and
he studied Crystal's face. But if he was waiting for information,
she was not inclined to talk about it, especially to him.

Crystal took the promissory note, unfolded it, and handed it
to him. "Now if you will just sign the note that I have paid you,
I'll be on my way."

McBride gave the note a quick glance, scrawled his name with
"paid in full" across the note, and handed it back to Crystal. "I admire
how you handled yourself in a financial situation. If I can ever be of
assistance again, or you find yourself longing to go back to Georgia,
just let me know. I'll be more than happy to work with you"

"I appreciate the help you gave my aunt, and I pray that I won't
need assistance in the future," she said as she retrieved the note
from his hand and stuffed it into her bag.

"Good day to you, Mrs. McBride-and April." Crystal turned
to leave.

"Why don't you stay and have lunch, dear?" Alice asked.

"I appreciate the invitation, but I must go. I have been gone a
few weeks and have much to attend to. April, when you're ready,
we'll set a date for the shower."

April rose from her chair. "I'll show you out."

As Crystal walked to the foyer, she couldn't help but compare
herself to the beautiful April. She moved as lithely as a doe in the
woods with a light step. Crystal was aware of how much shorter
she was. She followed April to the door, conscious of her own
deeply tanned face and callused hands. She felt dowdy today, and
a quick stab pierced her heart. Luke and April would make a very
handsome couple at their wedding ceremony.

As they reached the foyer, April tossed her long silky hair and
reached for the door. "Crystal, I wanted to ask you why you really
went on that trail drive:"

I went because I wanted to see if I could make a difference
and hold this ranch together. The best way I could do that is not
to ask more of the cowboys than I was willing to give" Crystal
could tell by April's face that she was doubtful.

"Is that so? I thought maybe you were looking for a husband,
you being the only female surrounded by all those men" April's
thin lips pursed together in a smirk.

Crystal continued walking out into the fresh morning air with
April following close behind. "Believe it or not, April, marriage
is not on my mind. I have a ranch to run, and I want to learn it
firsthand. What better way than to go on the trail drive? Now I
have a better respect for all the hard work and long hours the
cowboys put in every day."

"Have it your way. I thought that was what a foreman was for.
Luke won't be your foreman much longer once we are married."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, we'll live here. There's room for all of us until we build
our own place:"

"Well, in that case ... I guess I need to find a replacement for
him ... that is, if he has agreed to this" Crystal's brain was whirling. She knew what April was trying to do, and she was not going
to be pushed into an argument.

"Don't tell me you thought Luke and I would live in the bunkhouse at Aspengold" April laughed. "That's too funny."

Crystal's face flamed red. "I hadn't thought about where you
would be living." She climbed onto the buckboard.

April chuckled again. "Luke and I will build a home on the
Blue River. My father owns the land, and we will start on it as
soon as we are married."

Crystal picked up the reins and tried her best to smile down
at April. "If you and Luke have selected a wedding date, we need
to go ahead with your shower, don't you think?"

"I'll bring my list to church on Sunday." April turned and went
back inside.

Crystal made a clicking sound to the horses and flicked the reins
across their rumps. She wished now that she had never volunteered
her place for the shower. What was she thinking? April set her
teeth on edge every time they talked. Maybe that was because the
topic always revolved around Luke. She exhaled deeply. Might as
well get used to it. Soon April and Luke would be married.