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The Cowboy's Surprise Bride
Linda Ford


A NEW LIFE…IN A NEW WORLDTraveling to Canada’s Northwest Territories is a thrilling opportunity for Linette Edwards—and her chance to escape a dreaded marriage in England. She’s more than eager to accept Eddie Gardiner’s written invitation. How could she know that Eddie thinks he’s marrying not Linette, but her friend, Margaret?Eddie planned for a well-bred bride who’d help prove his worth to his father. Instead he’s saddled with a ragamuffin stranger and the little boy in her care. He’ll shelter them until springtime and no longer. But before the snow clears, his heart is thawing too…and hoping this makeshift family can find a permanent home together.Cowboys of Eden Valley: Forging a future in Canada’s west country










A New Life...In a New World

Traveling to Canada’s Northwest Territories is a thrilling opportunity for Linette Edwards—and her chance to escape a dreaded marriage in England. She’s more than eager to accept Eddie Gardiner’s written invitation. How could she know that Eddie thinks he’s marrying not Linette, but her friend, Margaret?

Eddie planned for a well-bred bride who’d help prove his worth to his father. Instead he’s saddled with a ragamuffin stranger and the little boy in her care. He’ll shelter them until springtime and no longer. But before the snow clears, his heart is thawing too…and hoping this makeshift family can find a permanent home together.


“While you are here, I expect you to conduct yourself wisely and in a ladylike fashion,” Eddie said.

Linette’s nostrils flared. “You mean play the lady of the manor.”

He had his doubts as to whether she even knew how a lady conducted herself. Like his father said, the Edwards family didn’t fit in. Softly he asked, “How do you see your role here?”

She ducked her head so he was unable to see her expression. “I suppose I thought you meant to marry me.” She lifted her head and faced him with her eyes flashing courage and challenge. “I will make a good pioneer wife.”

“I never got your letter, or I could have warned you I’m not desperate for a wife. Besides, you can’t simply substitute one woman for another as if they are nothing more than horses.”

“Why not? Are you madly in love with Margaret?”

Love? There was no such thing as love in an arrangement like theirs. “We suited each other.”

“She doesn’t seem to share your view of suitability.”


LINDA FORD

lives on a ranch in Alberta, Canada. Growing up on the prairie and learning to notice the small details it hides gave her an appreciation for watching God at work in His creation. Her upbringing also included being taught to trust God in everything and through everything—a theme that resonates in her stories. Threads of another part of her life are found in her stories—her concern for children and their future. She and her husband raised fourteen children—four homemade, ten adopted. She currently shares her home and life with her husband, a grown son, a live-in paraplegic client and a continual (and welcome) stream of kids, kids-in-law, grandkids and assorted friends and relatives.


The Cowboy’s Surprise Bride

Linda Ford




www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)


I have set before thee an open door,

and no man can shut it.

—Revelation 3:8


Without cowboys our part of the world would be a much different place. This story is dedicated to the cowboys of the West and those who love them.

To both past and present cowboys and to those who entertain at the greatest outdoor show in the world:

the Calgary Stampede, which celebrated its

100th anniversary in 2012. Thank you.


Contents

Chapter One (#u37562222-3b5b-5b07-afcb-9c46aeed8bb0)

Chapter Two (#ua03be7c8-1e3d-5235-9417-d86f6c8743fd)

Chapter Three (#uc577e74c-c20f-536d-afdb-caf4229ac87c)

Chapter Four (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Five (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Six (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)

Dear Reader (#litres_trial_promo)

Questions for Discussion (#litres_trial_promo)

Excerpt (#litres_trial_promo)


Chapter One

Northwest Territories, Canada

October 1881

For the first time she was about to meet Eddie Gardiner. The man she intended to marry. The answer to her prayers.

Linette Edwards parted the curtains on the stagecoach—meant to keep out the dust and cold. The first few days of their trip, dust had filtered through them, and now cold with the bite of a wild beast filled every inch of the tiny coach. Four adults and a child huddled against the elements.

“You’re letting in the cold,” her traveling companion complained.

“I fear we are in for an early snowstorm,” one of the male passengers said.

Linette murmured an apology but she managed to see the rolling hills and the majestic mountains before she dropped the curtain back in place. Since they’d left Fort Benton, headed for the ranch lands of the Northwest Territories of Canada, she’d peered out as much as she could. The mountains, jagged and bold, grew larger and larger. A song filled her heart and soul each time she saw them. This was a new country. She could start over. Be a different person than she’d been forced to be in England. Here she would be allowed to prove she had value as a person. She ignored the ache at how her parents viewed her—as a commodity to be traded for business favors.

She shifted her thoughts to the letter of invitation hidden safely in the cavernous pocket of the coat she’d acquired in Fort Benton. She longed to pull it out and read it again though she had memorized every word. Come before winter.

“I expect more than a shack,” her friend Margaret had fumed when she’d read an earlier letter from the same writer. “After all, he comes from a very respectable family.” With bitterness edging each word, Margaret read the letters describing the cabin Eddie assured her was only temporary quarters. “Temporary? I’m sure he doesn’t know the meaning of the word. A year and a half he’s been there and he still lives in this hovel.”

“It sounds like an adventure.” Linette could imagine a woman working side by side with her man, being a necessary asset to establishing a home in the new world. It sounded a lot more appealing to her than sitting and smiling vacantly as a female spectator. She’d been raised to be the lady of the manor but she wanted more. So much more.

Margaret had sniffed with such disdain that Linette giggled.

“I have made up my mind,” Margaret said. “I cannot marry him and join him in the wilds of the Canadian West. I expected far more when he asked for my hand before he left to start a Gardiner ranch out in that—” she fluttered her hand weakly “—in that savage land.” Her shudder was delicate and likely deliberate.

“Oh, Margaret, surely you don’t mean it.”

“Indeed I do. I’ve written this letter.”

Seated in the overstuffed parlor of Margaret’s family home in London, Linette had read each word kindly but firmly informing Eddie that Margaret had changed her mind and would not be joining him now or anytime in the future. I expect it makes me sound small and selfish, but I can’t imagine living in a tiny house, nor being a woman of the West.

“But what about your feelings for him? His for you?”

Margaret had given her a smile smacking of pity. “I enjoyed his company. He was a suitable candidate for marriage. There are plenty other suitable men.”

How often she’d envied Margaret the opportunity to head to a new world with so much possibility simply for the eager taking of it. “But he’s counting on you. Why would you want to stay here when the whole world beckons?” Wouldn’t he be dreadfully hurt by Margaret’s rejection?

“You should marry him. You’re the one who thinks it would be a lark.” Margaret was clearly annoyed with Linette’s enthusiasm. “In fact, write him and I’ll enclose your letter with mine.”

“Write him? And say what?”

“That you’re willing to be his wife.”

“I don’t know him.” A trickle of something that felt suspiciously like excitement hurried up her limbs to her heart. But it couldn’t be. It wasn’t possible. “My father would never allow it.”

Margaret laughed. “I think the Gardiner name would make even your father consider it a good idea. And would it not provide an escape from the marriage your father has planned?”

Linette shuddered. “I will not marry that old—” Her father had chosen a man in his fifties with a jangling purse of money and a drooling leer. His look made Linette feel soiled. She would do anything to avoid such a fate. She’d been praying for a reprieve. Perhaps this was an answer to her heartfelt petition.

Yes, the Gardiners were an old family, well respected, with a great estate and vaults of money, as her father so often said with utmost reverence in his voice.

“Of course,” Margaret started, considering her with a mocking smile, “if you’re dreaming of love and romance—”

Linette jerked back. “All I’m thinking of is escape.” Love did not enter into a suitable marriage, which was fine with her. She fully intended to keep her feelings out of the picture. A trembling in the depths of her heart warned her that love would make her weak, vulnerable, ready to give up her personal goals. Not something she intended to let happen. She grabbed a piece of paper. “I’m going to do it. Anything is better than what my parents have in mind.” Being a rancher’s wife in the new world suited her fine. She was weary of the social restrictions her parents insisted on and not at all loath to living the kind of life she’d heard existed in the new world. There, women marched side by side with their men. They were even allowed to own land! Doubtlessly they’d be allowed to get their hands dirty and be involved.

Before she could change her mind, she’d penned a short letter. A marriage of convenience if it suits you. Please reply to Margaret’s address. She knew her father would read any letter that came to the house. Much better to know she had a positive answer from Mr. Gardiner before confronting her father. If she had to be part of a business deal, it would be on her terms. She’d say who and where.

She clasped her fingers on the answering letter that had carried two tickets—one for herself and one for a traveling companion. The missive was brief. Not much more than an invitation to come. Her heart had danced for joy. Margaret was right; her father had glowed at an invitation from a Gardiner.

The stagecoach swayed to a stop. “Hello, the house.” The driver’s call shivered up and down Linette’s spine. They’d arrived at Eden Valley Ranch.

It wasn’t as if Eddie were a total stranger. She’d read his letters to Margaret. He sounded like a strong man, an independent thinker. She had no trouble imagining herself sharing his life. Yet her insides clenched in trepidation.

She squeezed right back in protest. She would not let nerves weaken her resolve. She’d prayed for such an escape and God had generously provided. Hitherto hath the Lord helped me. Renewed faith filled her, driving away any doubts and fears.

One of the two men who also rode in the coach flicked aside a curtain. “Looks like a fine establishment.”

Linette parted the curtains again and peeked outside. The coach had drawn up before a log cabin with only a narrow door and small window in the wall facing them. This must be where the man lived. She pressed her tongue to the roof of her mouth and refused to think how small it looked. Hardly big enough for all of them. Never mind. Nothing could deter her now. She’d prayed her way from London, over the Atlantic Ocean, and across most of the North American continent. The rooms she’d had on the trip had left barely enough space for stretching. Although vastly different from the spacious home she’d grown up in, she’d gotten used to it readily enough. This cabin would be no different.

The door of the cabin opened and Linette took a deep breath. A man stepped forth, ducking as he crossed the threshold. This had to be Eddie Gardiner. She’d seen his likeness in pictures, but they failed to do the man justice. Despite the chill in the air, he hadn’t bothered to grab a coat or hat and in the bright sunshine his brown hair shone. He dressed like a range hand—dark denim trousers, a blue shirt that had faded almost colorless on the sleeves with dark remnants of the color in the seams, and a leather vest that looked worn and friendly.

Her heart jumped to her throat. She hadn’t expected to feel anything for him. Surely it was only excitement, combined with a touch of nerves. After all, despite the letters, he was a stranger. She wanted nothing more or less from him than a marriage of convenience.

His gaze sought the parted curtains and his dark eyes narrowed as he tried to make out the face in the dim interior.

She flicked the curtain closed and turned to her traveling companion. “You keep the child while I meet him.” The boy would remain a secret for now. Seeing her intention, one of the gentlemen stepped down and held out a hand to assist her. She murmured her thanks as Eddie strode forward.

He slid his gaze over her as if she were invisible and looked toward the stagecoach. “Is Margaret inside?”

Linette shook her head trying to make sense of his question. Surely he’d mistakenly spoken her name out of habit.

“Is she at Fort Benton? If so I’ll go for her immediately.” He glanced at the sky as if already trying to outrace the weather.

Her mouth felt like yesterday’s dust as she realized what he meant. “You’re expecting Margaret?” It took every ounce of her stubborn nature not to stammer.

“Any day. I sent tickets for her and a chaperone to come before winter.”

Come before winter. She remembered the words well. They’d bubbled through her heart. But she thought they were meant for her. “Did you not get the letter?”

At that the driver jumped down. “’Spect any letters you’d be wanting are in here.” He waved a small bundle. “Seems you haven’t picked up your mail for some time, so I brought it.”

Cold trickled across Linette’s neck, dug bony fingers into her spine and sent a faint sense of nausea up her throat. She swallowed it back with determination. If he hadn’t received her letter, then the tickets he’d sent hadn’t been meant for her. He didn’t know she was coming. He wasn’t prepared to welcome her and accept her as a suitable helpmate on the frontier. Now what?

She stiffened her shoulders. She had not crossed an ocean and a vast continent to be turned back now. Her prayers for escape had been fervent. God held her in the palm of His hand now as He had on the journey. This was her answer. She nailed her fears to the thought. Besides, nothing had changed. Not really. Margaret still wasn’t coming and he still needed a wife. Didn’t he? She sought her memories but could not remember that he’d ever said so in clear, unmistakable terms. Had she read more into his missives than was meant?

Eddie took the bundle of mail and untied the strings. He flicked through the correspondence.

Recognizing Margaret’s handwriting, she touched the envelope. “That one.” Her own message lay inside, unseen by the man she thought had invited her to join him. She sucked moisture from the corners of her mouth and swallowed hard.

He slit the envelope and pulled out the pages in which she’d offered to take Margaret Sear’s place. I look forward to being part of the new West. He read her letter then Margaret’s, his fingers tightening on the paper as he understood the message. A flash of pain crossed his face before he covered it with a harsh expression.

Her heart twisted. He expected Margaret and instead got his hopes and dreams shattered. If only she’d known. But what could she do about it now? Except prove she was better suited to be a woman of the West.

Thankfully he did not read the letter aloud, which would have added to her growing embarrassment as the three men listened intently—one peering from the inside of the coach, one standing at its side where he remained after helping her alight, the other pretending to check on the horses though he made certain he could hear what was said. Even so, her face burned at their curiosity about an obvious misunderstanding of mammoth proportions.

Eddie jammed the pages back in the envelope. “This is unacceptable.”

Her muscles turned to warm butter. It took concentrated effort to hold herself upright, to keep her face rigid. She would not let him guess that the ground threatened to rise up and clout her in the face.

One hand clasping the mail bundle, he jammed his fists to his hips and turned to the driver. “You can return her to the fort.”

The man tipped his hat back on his head and shook his head. “Ain’t goin’ a mile more’n I have to. It’s about to snow.”

The wind bit at Linette’s cheeks but the cold encasing her heart was not from the wintery weather. She could not, would not, go back to London and her father’s plans.

The coach driver went on in his leisurely way of speaking. “I’m taking these two gentlemen to the OK Ranch then I’d hoped to make it back to Fort Benton where I intend to hole up for the winter. I don’t fancy being stuck in Edendale.” He made a rattling noise in the back of his throat. “But it looks like I’ll be stuck at the OK for the time being.”

Linette cared not whether the man was returning to the tiny cluster of huts bravely named Edendale or back to Fort Benton. She wasn’t going anywhere.

The gentleman who’d helped her down still stood at the steps, waiting and watching. “The girl is strong. Tough. Takes a special kind of lady to take care of travel arrangements and her traveling companions. Not a lot of young women are prepared and able to do that. You could do worse than have her at your side in this brave new frontier.”

Linette gave the man a fleeting smile of appreciation then turned back to Eddie.

Eddie met her gaze. He must have read her determination though she hoped he hadn’t seen her desperation. “We need to talk.” He grabbed her arm and marched her around the side of the house, out of sight and hopefully out of earshot of the others, where he released her to glare hotly at her.

She tipped her chin and met his gaze without flinching even though her insides had begun to tremble. Where would she go if he sent her away? Not back to the marriage her father had arranged. Perhaps money would convince him. “I have a dowry.”

“Keep your money. I have no need of it.”

“I came in good faith. I thought you’d received my letter.” Come before winter. The words had seemed so welcoming. She’d made preparations as quickly as she could. How was she to know he didn’t respond to her letter? Hadn’t even received it. She stood motionless. She wouldn’t let so much as one muscle quiver.

“Obviously I hadn’t.” He stared at the bundle in his hand, sounding every bit as confused as she felt. A contrast to the anger her parents had expressed when she’d informed them she would not marry the man of their choosing and meant to go West. Only after she showed her father the letter from Eddie and only because the Gardiners were a well-respected family had he agreed. With many constraints. Her father knew her too well. Knew she would avoid this marriage, too, if she had the means to strike out on her own. Knew she would not flinch before the dangers nor shirk from the challenges. That’s why he’d allowed her barely enough money to keep from starving to death on the journey and made sure her dowry would be held until he had proof she was married. He’d made her understand he would allow her only enough time for the necessary documents to cross the ocean. Should they not arrive in a reasonable time he would send one of his henchmen to bring her back. She’d used the limited funds he’d provided caring for the sick and destitute she’d crossed paths with. She had not so much as a penny to her name.

She shuddered as she imagined one of her father’s cruel servants poised and ready to pursue her.

There was no escape from her father’s plans apart from this marriage.

She understood Eddie’s shock. It couldn’t feel good to realize Margaret had refused to come, refused his offer of marriage. She swallowed back a swell of sympathy, and resisted an urge to pat his arm. She brought her thoughts back to her own predicament. “I’m prepared to care for your home.” As soon as she and Margaret agreed Linette should take her place, Margaret had reluctantly arranged for their cook to teach Linette to prepare food and run a house. She hadn’t dared to ask for such instructions at home. Her father had often enough said they were rich and had servants to do menial work. Only the death of some distant relative of her mother’s who’d made a fortune in India had changed the family circumstances from penniless to well off before Linette’s birth. Father wanted everyone to believe they were landed gentry, but she often wondered how much of the inheritance still existed and suspected her father’s plans for her were meant to add to the coffers. But how much was enough to satisfy her father? She wondered if enough existed.

“He should have servants to do those things,” Margaret had fumed when Linette badgered her to arrange instruction.

“It will be an adventure to do something useful.”

Unless Eddie changed his mind, her lessons seemed destined to be useless. She stiffened her spine. Failure was not an option.

Eddie turned his gaze back to her then with a great sigh eased toward the stagecoach.

She followed at his heels. “I’m a hard worker.” She would press her point but she wouldn’t beg.

The driver stood at his horses, staring at the horizon and shifting from one foot to the other. “Eddie boy, the wind has a bite to it. Winter is likely to clutch us by the throat any moment.”

She’d wondered at the earliness of the snow, but the man in the coach had explained it was due to being in high country. “Snow can come early and stay or leave again. There’s no predicting it.”

Eddie turned to speak over his shoulder. “I’m to be stuck with you then. But only until the weather moderates then I’ll send you back.”

“Stuck? Seems you’re getting the better part of this bargain.” She had no intention of staying one day more than she must, but she silently prayed the winter would set in early and be long and cold, preventing travel. That would give her sufficient time to persuade Eddie to change his mind.

She would not—under any circumstances—return to her father and his despicable plan for her.

Despite her lack of funds, she considered setting off on her own but she must acknowledge the facts—her father would not let her escape his clutches. He had ways and means of tracking her wherever she went. And he wouldn’t hesitate to use them. She knew she couldn’t hide from him even if she found a means of surviving on her own.

Eddie still provided the only answer to avoiding her father’s plans. Winter provided a reprieve. She would use the time to prove to him she was the ideal pioneer wife. She would make him want to keep her. He’d beg her to stay.

Eddie ground to a halt and turned to face her.

She blinked back her silent arguments lest he guess at her thoughts.

He edged forward, forcing her to retreat until they were again out of sight and hearing of the interested party waiting at the stagecoach. “You might want to reconsider this rash decision of yours. It’s wild out here. There are no luxuries. No chaperones.”

“I brought my own chaperone.” If he found her arrival a burden, he was not going to like her next announcement. She tipped her chin and faced him squarely. Not for all the roses in her mother’s garden would she reveal so much as a hint of trepidation. “And a child.”

“A child?”

“Yes, I brought a child.”

He swallowed hard enough to lose his Adam’s apple. “You have a child?”

He thought the child was hers? Embarrassment, laced with a heavy dose of amusement, raced through her at the shock on his face. Her amusement could not be contained and she laughed delicately, feeling her eyes dance with merriment. “He’s not mine.”

“Then why do you have him?”

“I met his mother on the boat. She died in the crossing and asked me to take the child to his father.”

“I’m not his father.” The poor man almost choked at the thought.

She laughed again, thoroughly enjoying his discomfort. “I didn’t mean to imply you were. His father met us in Montreal and when he heard his wife had expired, refused to take his son.” A dreadful scene had ensued as Linette tried to convince the man of his duty. “I had little choice but to bring him along.”

Eddie choked again.

Maybe she would have to thump him between the shoulders, and found the idea rather satisfying. With every passing moment, he proved more and more annoying. She’d expected a welcome of some sort, guarded perhaps, or even perfunctory. She assumed he would have made arrangements to have someone present to perform their emotionless union. But never in her many far-flung imaginings had she considered this possibility.

He cleared his throat. “I think a place the size of Montreal would have a foundling home. I think the nuns have—”

“Are you suggesting I should have abandoned him to strangers?”

“It’s not called abandon—” He must have read the challenge in her eyes for he stopped short. “Seems to me that’s what a sensible woman would have done. Besides, wouldn’t he be better off there with schools and playmates?”

She pulled herself as tall as she could, annoyed she still had to tip her head to glare at him. “We better get something straight right here and now. I have no tolerance for the pharisaical affectations of our society. I refuse to stand by and not offer help to someone when it is within my power to give more than an empty blessing. I could not, nor would I, turn my back on a small child.” Helping others was one of the many things she and her father had warred about. She expected things to be different in the British Territories of Canada.

She planned to make sure they were.

Eddie stared at her then scrubbed at the back of his neck. “All I have is a small cabin. Only one bed.”

She had gained a small victory. No need to push for more at this point. “We’ll take the bed.”

“And I’m to what?”

“I understand from your letters to Margaret that there is a bunkhouse for men who work for you.”

“I will not sleep with them.”

His words had a familiar, unwelcome ring to them. “Does it offend your sensibilities to share quarters with the men who work for you?”

“Not at all, but it would be awkward for them. I’m the boss. They deserve a chance to relax without thinking I’m watching them.”

His reply both surprised and pleased her. She admired a man who thought of others. But her admiration did not solve what he perceived to be a quandary. She didn’t see a problem. “I believe the cabin has two rooms. You can sleep on the floor in the other room.”

“You are too generous.” The look on his face made her want to laugh, but she sensed he did not share her amusement.

“Eddie boy,” the driver called. “I’d like to get on my way before nightfall.”

Eddie and Linette did silent duel with their eyes. Although their weapons were invisible she understood her life and her future hung on the outcome of this battle. Finally he sighed. “Come along. Let’s get your things.”

“There’s something I better tell you first.”

“You mean there are more surprises? Let me guess. Another child? A brother or sister? A—”

“My chaperone is a woman I met in Montreal. Her husband died and she has no family.”

“You traveled from England without a chaperone?”

She flicked him an impatient glance. It was easy to see that rules meant a lot to him. She’d prayed he wasn’t like her father. Now he seemed frighteningly so. “Of course not, but Miss Snodgrass was eager to return, and when she saw I intended for Cassie to accompany me, she got on the next boat home.”

He waited, aware there was more.

“Cassie is a little...well, I suppose you could say she’s having trouble dealing with her grief.”

“Trouble? In what way?”

Words came quickly to her mind, but none of them seemed the sort to make him kindly disposed toward Cassie. Perhaps the less she said the better. “Let’s just say she’s a bit sharp.” She hastened to add, “I’m sure she’ll settle down once the edge of her grief has passed.”

He scrubbed at his neck again. “Let’s see what you have.”

She hurried past him, fearing if he thrust his head in the door and ordered the pair out, the ensuing reaction would give them all cause for regret. The kind gentleman who had assisted her from the coach watched for her return, doubtless listening with ears cocked. She wondered how much he’d heard. Not that it mattered. He’d already managed to get most of the story from her as they bounced along for several days with nothing to do but stare at each other. He held the door for her and with a quirk of his eyebrows silently asked if things had gone well.

She gave a quick nod, grateful for his kindly interest, then turned to the other occupants. “Cassie, we’re here. Come out. Grady, come here.” She reached to take the four-year-old from Cassie’s lap.

Grady seemed to shrivel into himself. Only at Cassie’s gentle insistence did he let Linette take his hand and lift him to the ground. He took one look at Eddie and buried his face in her skirts. She knew he would stay there until she pried him free.

Cassie grabbed her small travel valise and paused in the open doorway. The look she gave Eddie blazed with anger.

Please, God. Keep her from saying something that will give him a reason to put us on the stage again without any regard for where we’ll end.

“He’s passable, I suppose.”

Linette’s breath stuck halfway to her lungs. She stole a glance at Eddie. Surprise flashed in his eyes and then he grinned. He had a nice face when he smiled, but more than that, his smile made her feel he would be patient with Cassie, who often expressed her pain in meanness. Relief poured through Linette like a warming drink.

“Thanks,” Eddie said.

“Wasn’t meant as a compliment,” Cassie murmured.

“I’ve been told worse.” He held his hand out to assist Cassie, but she pointedly ignored him and accepted help from their traveling companion.

Linette’s attention was diverted as the driver handed down the two trunks she’d brought. Grady had only a grip bag.

Eddie whistled sharply, causing Grady to sob. Two men stepped from the building across the way.

“Yeah, boss?” one called.

“Boys, take these trunks to my house.”

Linette watched the two cross the roadway in long, rolling strides. Their gait reminded her of the sailors on the ship. They had on Stetson hats, worn and rolled, unlike the new, uniformly shaped ones she’d studied back at the trading post in Fort Benton where she’d exchanged her fine English silks and bustles for frocks she considered more appropriate for living in the wilds—simple-cut dresses of calico or wool. She’d procured a dress for Cassie too but the woman refused to wear it. “I am who I am and I’m not about to pretend otherwise,” she’d said. Linette hadn’t pressed the point. Sooner or later the old garment Cassie wore would fall apart and then she’d be glad for what Linette offered.

She glanced at her own dress. A little the worse for wear after crossing the prairie. She’d clean up once they got settled in case Eddie took note of her rumpled state.

As they walked, the men jingled from the spurs on their boots. They yanked their hats off and squirmed inside their buffalo coats. “Ma’am.” They nodded to Linette and Cassie.

“Miss Edwards, may I present two of my men, Slim—” he indicated the taller, thinner man. “And Roper.” The other man was heavier built. Solid. Younger. And he watched Cassie with guarded interest.

Linette realized she hadn’t introduced her companion and did so. “Cassie Godfrey.” Then she indicated the boy half-buried in her skirts. “This is Grady Farris. He’s four years old.” He shivered enough to make her leg vibrate.

The men nodded then jammed their hats back on and took the trunks into the house.

Eddie spoke privately to the driver who then swung up to his seat and drove from the yard. Linette stared after the coach, knowing she now had no escape. She was at Eddie’s mercy. Her resolve hardened. Only so far as she chose to be. She’d be no man’s slave. Nor his chattel. Any arrangement between them would be based on mutual benefit. No emotions involved to turn her weak.

The stagecoach no longer blocked her view and she saw, on the hill overlooking the ranch, a big two-story house, gleaming in its newness. It had the unfinished look of raw lumber and naked windows. They must be expecting neighbors. People who put more value in their abode than Eddie. When would these people finish the house and move in?

“I suppose you would like to see your quarters.” Eddie indicated they should step toward the low dwelling.

She turned from studying the house on the hill to closer inspection of the cabin. It looked even smaller than she expected. But she didn’t care. She’d escaped her father’s plans and the future beckoned.

* * *

Eddie resisted the urge to squeeze his neck. It was tight enough to withstand a hanging. He’d expected the mail would contain a message to meet Margaret. He’d planned to marry her at the fort before bringing her to his home. He’d thought of her every day as he worked on the new house. He’d counted the days until she joined him.

Margaret was the ideal young lady for him. He remembered many a pleasant afternoon sharing her company in her family home in London before he’d left for the British Territories. He’d grown quite fond of her and she of him. Or so he thought. In time their affection would grow. He anticipated the day she would arrive and marry him. Margaret would grace the big house he would have completed by now except for the necessity of making sure the breeding stock he’d had shipped from Chicago was herded safely from Fort Benton to the nearby pens.

Instead, a ragamuffin of a woman stood before him in a black woolen coat that practically swallowed her. As it flapped open he saw a crude dress much like those he’d seen worn by wives on hopeful dirt farms and the half-breed women in the forts. She looked ready to live in a tepee or log hut, which was likely a good thing because the latter was all he had to offer her.

The cold wind reminded him he’d hurried outside without a coat. “We might as well go indoors.”

How Linette managed to make her way to the house with the boy clinging to her side like a giant burr amazed him.

She was an Edwards daughter if he believed what she said. He wasn’t prepared to believe anything about her at the moment. How had he ended up in such an awkward position? And with an Edwards woman! His father had had some business dealings with Mr. Edwards years ago and had expressed distaste for the other man. “A churlish man,” he’d said. “Thinks because he inherited money through his wife it makes him an aristocrat, but he lacks any sense of decorum or decency. I vow I will never have business dealings with him again and I intend to avoid any social contact.” Eddie couldn’t think the Edwards daughter would warrant any better opinion from his father.

Slim and Roper hurried out and jogged back to work. Not, he noted, without a backward glance at the women. They’d be filled with curiosity for sure and spend the rest of the day speculating about this turn of events.

Eddie had always done his best to live up to his father’s expectations. After all, he owed the man so much. Coming West and starting a ranch to add to the Gardiner holdings, establishing a home that would make his father proud provided him an opportunity to repay his father for giving him the Gardiner name. Randolph Gardiner had married Eddie’s mother when Eddie was an infant. If not for that, Eddie would have been an outcast bastard child and his mother would have lived in shame and disgrace.

He held the door for the ladies and Linette stepped inside first. The sigh that whistled from her lips drove back the gall in his throat and made him grin. Had she been expecting something fancy? No doubt this crude cabin shocked her. It was only temporary and then would serve as quarters for a foreman. If the man was married and had a family, Eddie would add on to it but had not seen any need for that now. It had solid walls. It was warm and dry. It served as a place to put his feet up and have a cup of coffee and somewhere to catch a comfortable night’s sleep. Not much else.

The letter clutched in his fist crackled. Margaret had changed her mind. As if he didn’t measure up. His insides twisted in a familiar, unwelcome way.

He studied the woman he was stuck with. Linette was almost plain. Her eyes too direct. Her lips too narrow and stubborn, almost challenging. Her hair was light in color. Neither brown nor blond and coiled in a braid about her face. Her eyes were so pale they didn’t deserve to be called brown. She was too small. Built like a struggling sapling out on the prairie. In fact, everything about her was wrong. Quite the opposite of Margaret. No way would she fit into his plans. His father’s instructions were clear. “Find suitable land and build a house. A replica of our home and life back here in England.” Eddie had been surprised his father had entrusted him with the task and vowed he would make his father proud.

Linette Edwards could not be allowed to ruin his plans.

But he couldn’t send her away with the weather threatening to turn nasty. He’d shelter her until it moderated...which likely meant for the winter. Then, under armed escort if necessary, he would see her returned to England or wherever she might have a mind to go...just so long as it wasn’t here.

Trouble was, she wasn’t alone. Not that she should be. But the woman she’d brought along looked as if she’d been rescued from the gutter. Her clothes barely missed being called rags. Her untidy black hair and scowling face indicated she was not happy to be here. He snorted silently. At least they shared that. He wasn’t happy to have any of them here.

Then there was the boy with a flash of blue eyes and a mat of blond hair sticking out from under his cap. He often thought of children to fill the rooms in the big house, but children bred with a woman like Margaret. Not waifs.

Cassie hesitated at the doorway. The noise that escaped her mouth was full of anger and discontent. “I had more room back in Montreal.”

Linette laughed softly—a merry sound full of pleasure. She didn’t seem the least bit distressed about the conditions.

“You slept in the train station after your husband died and left you stranded in a strange city,” she said to Cassie. “Of course it was bigger. But it wasn’t home. This will be home.” The word was full of promise and warmth.

He figured he better make sure she remembered it was temporary. “Until better weather.” Silently, he again acknowledged that might not be before spring and the thought made his neck muscles spasm. “Then you’re headed back to your father.”

“There’s many a slip between the cup and the lip.”

Her disregard of his warning made him chomp on his back teeth. It took an effort to release the tension so he could speak. “There’ll be no slips here.”

Cassie edged forward into the room and stood with her arms crossed. He figured her eyes would be crossed, too, and full of displeasure. Good. If both women found the situation intolerable... But it was a long time until spring. A crowded house with two women dripping discontent would be miserable for everyone.

What had he done to deserve this?

Margaret’s letter said she didn’t think she could face the challenges of frontier life nor live in small quarters. He’d meant the big house to be a surprise. Now he saw keeping it a secret had been cause for her to think she’d be confined to some sort of settler’s shack. His mind kicked into salvage thoughts. Miss Edwards would see the house. She’d realize it was almost finished. She could report its fineness to Margaret. Margaret would change her mind. She’d be pleased to join him. Tension drained from him so quickly his limbs twitched.

He realized the interior of the little house lacked warmth and closed the door behind him. He’d been about to leave the cabin and had let the fire die to embers. “I’ll get some heat in here.” Deftly, he added wood, and in minutes welcoming flames sprang to life. Now he’d have to plan on heating the house all day. He’d have to get more firewood chopped. These women and the boy were going to be a nuisance as well as a threat.

“I didn’t realize how cold I’d grown,” Linette said, holding her hands toward the stove. “Is it usually this cold in October?”

“Snow comes early this close to the mountains, though I hope it holds off for a time yet. The cows are still up in the higher pastures.”

“And you would prefer to have them where? Down here?”

“Yes. Down in the lower meadows where they’ll be able to get to the grass.”

“You don’t feed them?”

She sure was full of questions. “Do you know anything about ranching?”

“A cousin raised cattle. He always kept them in barns and pens in the winter and fed them hay.”

He chuckled. “Hard to build a barn big enough for a thousand head or more.” The way she widened her eyes in surprise gave him a moment’s victory then he wished he’d kept the fact to himself. If she was a gold digger he’d provided her with more to dig for. “I have some hay. Most ranchers don’t think it’s necessary, but one of the first men I talked to when I came out here was Kootenai Brown. He’s lived in the mountains for years and says only a buffalo can survive without hay. They dig through the grass like a horse. He told me if I want to succeed in this venture I should plan to have hay available.” Why was he telling her all this? Surely she didn’t care. But her pale brown eyes flashed with intelligent interest. Not the fake batting of eyelashes he’d seen from women who seemed to think any sign of intelligence would frighten off a man.

“Kootenai Brown? Isn’t Kootenai the name of an Indian tribe?”

He couldn’t hide his surprise. Didn’t even try. “How do you know that?”

“I’ve read everything I could find about the Northwest.”

He turned his attention to stoking the fire to conceal his reluctant admiration.

Cassie groaned. “And she likes to talk about it all day long.” She moved marginally closer to the stove as if reluctant to allow herself any comfort her circumstances might provide.

Linette laughed softly. “I didn’t realize I was boring you.”

“You and that gentleman from the coach. Did he say he was going to another ranch?”

“Yes. I believe he said he was an investor with the OK Ranch and intended to check on its operation.” She turned back to Eddie. “Would that be correct?”

“Could be. Good thing if it’s true. The OK bunch has run into some trouble.”

“What sort? Wild animals? Rustlers?” She practically quivered with excitement.

He studied her more closely. Was she the sort to be bounding into trouble just because it sounded adventuresome? He did not need that sort of aggravation. He answered her question first. “They lost cows by driving them north too hard. The rest of the herd is weakened. If they don’t see them properly fed I fear they will lose the works.” He intended to make sure she wasn’t about to turn his life inside out and upside down and put his peace and security at risk—any more than she had already. “You don’t find trouble to be exciting, do you?”

“If you think I’d be happy to hear of a herd of cows suffering—” Her eyes snapped with anger.

“I was thinking you seem overly anxious to think there might be wild animals or rustlers. I warn you I won’t tolerate anyone deliberately putting themselves or others at risk simply for an exciting experience.”

“What will you tolerate?” Linette demanded.

They studied each other with wariness. And a startling sense of shared determination that shifted his opinion of this woman. Of course, they shared that. Only in different directions. He was determined to carry out his original plan to marry Margaret and establish a home he could be proud of. She meant to upset his plans. “While you are here, I expect you to conduct yourself wisely and in a ladylike fashion.”

Her nostrils flared. “You mean play the lady of the manor.”

Behind her, Cassie snorted.

She’d no doubt been raised as such. Why didn’t she offer to be so here? Not that it made any difference. He wasn’t about to toss Margaret aside over a misunderstanding. Softly, he asked, “What do you see your role as here?”

She ducked her head so he was unable to see her expression. “I suppose I thought you meant to marry me.” She lifted her head and faced him with her eyes flashing courage and challenge. “I will make a good pioneer wife.”

“I never got your letter or I could have warned you I’m not desperate for a wife. Besides, you can’t simply substitute one woman for another as if they are nothing more than horses.”

“Why not? Are you madly in love with Margaret?”

Love? There was no such thing as love in an arrangement like theirs. “We suited each other.”

“She doesn’t seem to share your view of suitability.”

He guessed she meant if she had, Margaret would be here instead of her. He pointed toward the window. “I mean to correct that. Did you see that house out there?”

She nodded.

“I built it for Margaret.”

Linette’s eyes widened. “But she said...” She looked about at the tiny quarters and shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

“I wanted it to be a surprise. I see now I should have informed her about the house. But you can write and tell her how special it is. Once she knows, she’ll reconsider and come.”

She fixed him with a direct stare. “You really believe that’s all there is to her refusal to come?” Her gaze demanded honesty.

His neck knotted and he squeezed the back of it. He thought Margaret wanted to share his life. He still believed it. Surely what he had to offer was acceptable to Margaret. She only objected to meager quarters and that would soon be a thing of the past. He looked about the small room. “I obviously don’t need help running this place. And I don’t need or want a pioneer wife. My wife will have a cook and housekeeper to help her run the big house.” He returned to confront her demanding look. “But with winter coming on—”

“You’ll tolerate our presence until spring?” Her voice carried a low note of something he couldn’t quite put his thumb on. Warning? Challenge?

He scrubbed the back of his neck again, wondering how much more tension it could take before something snapped. Most of his time was spent with animals who had little to say but moo and with cowboys known to be laconic. It didn’t much prepare him to pick up on subtle nuances of social communication, but even a dolt would understand her question was more than mere conversation. “I expect we’ll have to tolerate each other, crowded as we’ll be in these quarters.”

Cassie spun away to stare at the door. “I should have stayed in Montreal.”

Linette gave her a tight smile. “You weren’t exactly happy there, if I recall.”

“Seems happiness is too much to hope for.”

Linette hurried to her side and wrapped an arm around the woman’s waist. “Of course it’s not. We’ll be happy here. About as happy as we make up our minds to be. All of us.” The look she sent Eddie warned him to disagree or make it impossible. “Isn’t that right, Mr. Gardiner?”

“I’m sure we can be civilized. After all, we’re adults.” Except for young Grady, and all eyes turned toward him. “I expect he’s the only one we need to be concerned about.” The child had been abandoned then put into the care of strangers. Which made Eddie that much more grateful to his father for the life he’d been given.

Seeing everyone watching him, Grady started to whimper. The boy’s fears vibrated through the room.

Eddie thought of stroking the child’s head to calm him but knew it would only upset him further. He was at a loss to know how to comfort the boy.

Linette knelt to face Grady squarely. “You’re safe here. We’ll take care of you.”

“I want my mama,” he wailed loudly.

Linette dropped to the floor, pulled the boy to her lap and crooned as she rocked him. “Mr. Gardiner, I believe Grady is hungry. Can you direct me to the food supplies and I’ll gladly make us tea.”

Food? He had no food to speak of in the cabin. “I’ve been taking my meals over at the cookhouse.” Would they like to go to the cookhouse, too?

Grady wailed louder, as if Eddie had announced they were all about to starve. Seems Grady had answered the question. He would not be comfortable among so many strangers. Best to let them eat here. “I’ll rustle up some supplies right away.” Grateful for an excuse to escape the cabin, crowded as it was with bodies and feelings, he grabbed his coat and hat and headed across the yard.

Dare he hope the weather would moderate long enough for the stagecoach driver to decide to venture back to Edendale or Fort Benton? If so, he would have that trio on their way.

But he knew that scenario was about as likely as finding a satchel full of money on the ground before him.

Another thought sprang to life. After less than an hour his nerves were strung tight as a drum. How would he endure months of this?


Chapter Two

Eddie told Cookie the whole story as he waited for her to put together supplies for the unwelcome guests. “I intend to rectify the situation just as soon as the snow goes.” With any favor from the Lord above, that would be sooner rather than later. Until then, he would simply make the best of it.

“She ugly?” Cookie demanded.

“She’s passable.”

“Cross-eyed?”

“No. Can you get things together a little faster?”

“I’m goin’ as fast as these old legs will go.”

Eddie let out a long, exasperated sigh. Cookie wasn’t old except when it pleased her to be so. The rest of the time she kept up a pace that would wear out a horse.

“Then she’s got those horrible teeth so many women have.” Cookie did a marvelous imitation of a beaver with protruding upper front teeth.

“Didn’t notice any such teeth when she smiled.” Though he did note how she carried herself with such grace. She hadn’t been raised to be a pioneer woman. Why would she choose it? “Now, how about some tea? You got lots or do I need to run to the supply shed?” Provisions for the winter months were stored in a tight outbuilding lined with tin to keep rodents out.

“I got tea enough to spare. Smile, did you say? So she has a pleasant nature?”

“Look, Cookie. I’ve spent only a few minutes in her company. It’s not enough time for me to form an evaluation of her personality.” Except to note she had a cheerful laugh and—it seemed at first meeting—an equally cheerful nature. Matched by a dreadfully stubborn attitude.

Cookie laughed boisterously and clapped him on the shoulder hard enough to set him forward a step. “Guess you won’t be able to say that after a winter together in that tiny shack.”

Her husband, Bertie, came in with a load of wood for the big stove. “Bertie,” Cookie roared. “There’s two women and a little boy in Eddie’s shack.”

Eddie groaned at the blatant pleasure wreathing Bertie’s face.

“Well, I’ll be hornswoggled and hog-tied. This is turning into a real homey sit’ation. Eddie, lad, you’ve surprised us real good.”

Cookie and Bertie grinned at each other like a pair of silly children.

“It’s all a mistake, as I told Cookie. They’ll go home come spring. I’d send them now only the stagecoach isn’t running, and with winter—”

“Eddie, lad, I’m thinking this opportunity is a rare one. Don’t be letting it slip through your fingers.” Bertie nodded and grinned.

“I’m of like mind, my love. I’m of like mind.” Cookie clapped her husband hard on the back.

Eddie wasn’t a bit sorry for the other man when he shifted under his wife’s hearty affections. “It’s temporary. Why can’t you accept that?” He grabbed the sack and stomped across the yard, their laughter echoing at his heels.

* * *

“He’s not happy to have us here.” Cassie’s observation was almost laughable.

Linette simply smiled. “Then it’s up to us to convince him otherwise.” She had not come this far and prayed this hard to give up at the first sign of resistance. Though she hadn’t expected to be resisted. No doubt his initial reaction was fueled by pain. It couldn’t be pleasant to know he’d been rejected.

Cassie snorted. “Don’t expect me to try to sweeten him up. If you ask me, I’d say the man is as stubborn as he is high.”

Yes, he was a tall man. And well built. And he had a smile that drove the clouds from her mind. None of which mattered as much as a single gray hair. All that mattered was she had the winter—God willing and the cold weather continued—to convince him a marriage of convenience suited him. She saw no other way out of her predicament. “I’d say he has high ideals. That could serve us well.”

Cassie stared as if Linette had suggested something underhand.

Linette sighed. Cassie seemed bent on seeing everything in some dreadful fashion. “I only mean that a man with honor can be trusted.”

“No man is completely honest and honorable. Take it from me. They’ll take your heart and treat it with total disregard.”

Linette had no desire to know the details behind such a statement, so she ignored it. She had no intention of giving her heart to a man. Her only interest in a marriage to Eddie was escaping from her father’s plans and gaining the right to act according to her conscience.

She turned her attention to the room. It was small. The stove was the tiniest she’d ever seen. It was nothing like the one Tilly, Margaret’s cook, had taught her on. For a moment, she doubted her ability to prepare food despite all her reading. Everything was so different from what she’d practiced on or imagined. She stiffened her spine. She would do whatever needed doing, do it well and without complaint. A tiny table, one wooden chair and a small bookcase crowded with papers and books completed the furnishings. She longed to explore the book titles, but first things first.

“Help me get organized,” she told Cassie. She hung her coat by the door and rubbed her hands together. “At least the table has wings.” Flipped up, they would all be able to crowd around for their meals, assuming they had more chairs.

“We’ll have to take turns lifting a fork to our mouths,” Cassie predicted.

“It’s perfectly adequate. Now let’s organize the bedroom. I want to put Grady’s things where I can get at them.” She took the boy’s hand and stepped into the tiny bedroom. With the two trunks beside the bed there was barely enough room to stand. The bed was narrow. Two would be cozy. Three crowded.

Cassie pointed out the fact. “We’ll have to take turns sleeping.”

Linette reached down and touched the fur covering. “It’s as soft as down. We’ll be just fine so long as we’re prepared to manage.” She faced Cassie squarely. “I seem to recall you complaining about not being able to sleep for fear someone would steal your bag. Or worse.”

Cassie shuddered. “But at least it was warm and roomy.”

“But here it’s safe.” She shoved the narrow dresser hard against the corner. There were nails driven into the logs across the end wall. She bundled Eddie’s belongings onto one hook, freeing up the others. The scent of leather, horseflesh and something subtle, bringing to mind grassy slopes and warm sunshine, assailed her senses. A tremor of anticipation scooted up her throat. She dismissed the sensation and hung some of Grady’s things. She placed her smaller items on top of her trunk.

Cassie stood in the doorway. “I don’t see how we’re all going to fit in here. A person will have to step outside just to change their mind.”

Linette chuckled. “We’ll simply have to make sure we don’t all try to change our minds at the same time.” She’d hoped for a small smile from Cassie but got nothing but a sigh of displeasure. “Come on, Cassie. Look on the bright side.”

“I don’t see that there is one. I’m a widow in a big country. A man’s country, I might add. Need I point out that we are at the mercy of Mr. Gardiner? And if it wasn’t him, it would be another man.”

Linette hated the thought of being at his mercy, but it was true. But only to the degree she allowed it to be. “Then let’s be grateful he appears to be honorable.” At least he hadn’t left them out in the cold.

They stepped back into the other room. It took only two dozen steps to circle the whole house, but as Linette pointed out, it was safe and Eddie was an honorable man so far as she knew. Lord, keep us secure and help Cassie find peace. And help Eddie to change his mind before spring. She had no doubt it could happen. Didn’t the Word say “with God all things are possible”?

Grady shuffled toward the stove and stared at the black surface.

Cassie studied Linette with narrowed eyes. “Were you really prepared to marry Mr. Gardiner, a complete stranger?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

Before she could reply, a cold draft shivered across the floor and up Linette’s shins. She turned to see Eddie standing in the doorway, three chairs dangling from one arm and a bulging gunnysack from the other. He kicked the door closed with his foot and stared at Linette.

“I’d like to hear the answer to that.” His gaze burned a trail across her skin, making her cheeks burn.

She ignored the question and her reaction to his look, grabbed a chair and planted it beside the stove for Grady. Simply by turning it about, she could pull him up to the table.

Eddie dropped the other chairs and indicated the women should sit then turned the last chair to the heat.

At his approach, Grady pressed to Linette’s side and whimpered. She wrapped her arm around his tiny shoulders. “Hush, child. You’re safe here. Nice and warm.”

Eddie dug in his pocket and withdrew six perfectly round stones and an assortment of interestingly shaped pieces of wood. Two were round knots. Four resembled crude animals and the other two were smooth lengths. “Grady, here’s some things you can play with.”

Grady buried his face against Linette’s shoulder and wailed.

“It’s not personal. He’s feeling lost. He’ll soon enough realize he’s safe.” It was her daily prayer. The boy had been inconsolable since his mother’s death. She reached for the objects. Eddie dumped them into her palms. They were warm from his touch and her throat pinched tight. She told herself it meant nothing and she dropped them to her lap. “Look, Grady. This one looks like a cow.”

The boy wasn’t interested.

“Perhaps later.” She turned away knowing natural curiosity and abject boredom would overcome fear in short order. “Thanks for bringing the chairs.”

“There’s food and other things I figured you might need in order to survive.” He indicated the sack he’d dropped on the floor.

“Thank you.” She started to edge away from Grady’s grip. “I’ll see to tea.” Please let there be something in that sack I can prepare.

Eddie signaled her to remain seated. “First, I’d like to hear the answer to Mrs. Godfrey’s question.”

Linette shook her head and did her best to look confused, as if she didn’t recall.

The way Eddie quirked one eyebrow she knew she hadn’t fooled him. Nevertheless, he repeated Cassie’s question. “Why would you cross the ocean and most of North America to marry a stranger? Surely there are interested men in England.”

Linette’s shudder was sincere. “Of course, and my father made sure all the men I met were suitable in his estimation.” She tried to keep her voice strong but suspected everyone heard the tremor that came from the pit of her stomach. She swallowed hard and forced back her revulsion. “He agreed to a marriage between myself and a distant relative who to all accounts is rich in land and money.” She clamped her teeth together to keep from revealing how disgusting she found the idea then released them to speak again. “He is a fat old man.”

“How old?” Eddie’s voice rang with doubt.

“He’s fifty-one.” Did he think she’d made up the age difference? Even that wouldn’t have been so bad. It was the way the man looked at her, his eyes undressing her as he licked his lips like a hungry dog. Realizing she clutched at her upper arms as if to protect herself, she lowered her hands to her lap.

“How old are you?” He still sounded unconvinced.

“I’m twenty.” She tipped her chin proudly. “Some might think I’m old enough to welcome any sort of a marriage, but I’ll never be that old.”

Eddie chuckled.

“You wouldn’t find it amusing if you were in my position.”

Cassie sniffed. “Men are never in that position.”

Eddie sobered though his eyes continued to spark amusement. “I’m trying to guess what you said or did to convince your father to let you travel West.”

“Your good name and your letter were enough.” She ducked her head. “I also pointed out the nearness of a convent where I knew I could find shelter and protection.” Her father had vowed all kinds of damage to the convent if she had actually gone there, so it wasn’t really an option.

Grady edged a hand to Linette’s lap and gingerly explored the largest rock.

“Do you know my age?”

She returned her gaze to Eddie. “Margaret said you’re twenty-five.” How must Eddie feel to be turned down by the woman he expected to become his wife? It hurt to think about it. “I’m sorry for your disappointment.”

He held her gaze for a heartbeat. She read a distant hurt, then he blinked and let only his disapproval reveal itself. She would assuredly make a far better rancher’s wife than Margaret ever would. But of course, the heart did not always see what the head knew was best.

“I was married at sixteen,” Cassie said, rocking slowly, pulling Linette’s attention to her. She wished she could erase the pain from the woman’s expression. “We worked hard to save enough money for our passage. Then we worked in Ontario. I wanted to stay there. We had a nice house, but George heard there was good land along the North Saskatchewan River. He saved enough to buy an outfit and settle in the Northwest. We sold everything. But George got sick in Montreal.” Her voice fell to a whisper. “I thought I’d die when he died. I used the last of our savings to have him buried,” she moaned. “He deserved far better.”

So did Cassie, but Linette didn’t say so, knowing far too well the woman was given to bouts of discouragement and defeat.

Cassie gave the stove a bleak look. “Here I am not yet twenty-five, a widow. I’ll be alone the rest of my life.”

“God has a plan for your life. He says His thoughts toward us are of peace, and not of evil.” She spoke of a verse she thought to be in Jeremiah.

“I’ve seen little reason to believe God wants to do me good.” Cassie’s voice shook. “Until I see otherwise, I think I’ll trust my own resources.”

“What is your opinion?” Linette asked Eddie. Even if he’d received her letter and agreed to a marriage of convenience, she’d made up her mind not to marry until she was certain of his convictions. He’d expressed his faith in his letters, but she wanted to hear it firsthand. She still wanted to hear it, though marriage now seemed but a distant possibility. But no, she would not abandon hope that God could work a miracle over the winter.

He gave his answer some consideration. “I believe God honors those who honor Him.”

“Yes. I agree.”

“And how do you suggest we do that?” Cassie demanded.

“I can’t answer for everyone,” Eddie said. “For me, it means doing my duty. Honoring my father and mother. Being charitable.”

A man of honor, just as she’d guessed from the first. Surely she stood a chance of finding favor in his eyes. She tried to signal her relief to Cassie. But the other woman only stared at Eddie.

“So you think if we do what is right, God will treat us fairly?”

“That’s my belief.”

“So what did I do wrong to lose a husband and two babies? They were born beautiful and whole but never drew breath.”

“I can’t say. That’s between you and God.”

“Oh, no,” Linette protested. His words sounded condemning, as if Cassie harbored secret sins. Linette found such reasoning to be flawed. “You can’t reduce God to human intelligence and emotions. There are circumstances we aren’t aware of. We don’t see the big picture, but God does. That’s where trust comes in.”

Cassie made a sound of raw disbelief. “When you’ve lost everything, then you can talk to me about trust. Until then, it’s only childish wishing.”

Linette ached for Cassie’s pain, but the woman was stronger than she realized to have survived such hardship. However, Linette couldn’t imagine enduring such tragedies without God’s help. “Whatever happens I will trust God.” She wondered what Eddie thought and met his gaze, felt a jolt in her lungs at the way he studied her.

“I hope you never have occasion to believe in anything but the goodness of God.” Did he sound just a little doubtful? As if he considered it possible? This situation was about as bad as things could get. And her faith had not faltered.

“‘He will never leave me nor forsake me.’ Now I’m going to make tea.” She clapped her hands to her knees, startling Grady, who whimpered and buried his face against her shoulder. She put the toys on the floor, took his hand and drew him after her toward the sack.

Eddie jumped to his feet and accompanied her. “Cookie wasn’t sure what you would want. She says if you need anything, just trot on over to the cookhouse.”

“There’s another woman on the place?”

Eddie chuckled at her delighted surprise. “Yup. Cookie.”

Linette stepped past the sack to peer out the window. “Which is the cookhouse?”

Eddie stood close to her, bending a little so he could see out the window. “Can’t miss it. It’s the two-story building right across the road. Cookie—Miz Liza McCormick—and her husband, Bertie, live on the upper floor, but mostly you’ll find both of them cooking and feeding the crew.”

“Liza? Pretty name. How many are in your crew?”

“During the summer, there’s twelve men, give or take, plus me and the McCormicks. Less once winter sets in. Six or eight men. Right now most of them are up in the hills, edging the cattle down. And best call her Cookie.”

“Another woman. Isn’t that nice, Cassie?”

Cassie showed marginal interest. But it didn’t dampen Linette’s relief. The place suddenly seemed a lot more civilized and friendly. She studied the building across the wide expanse Eddie had called a road. As soon as possible, she’d pay Liza—or Cookie, if she preferred—a visit. Eager to get on with this new life, Linette spun away from the window and almost pressed her cheek to his chest.

His eyes widened.

Something quivered in the pit of her stomach.

Their gazes held for a moment of nervous awareness at the realization they were going to be sharing these tight quarters for several months.

She ducked her head, lest he guess at the way her heart had come unsettled. She could expect such encounters throughout the winter. She must prepare herself. Learn how to keep her emotions under lock and key. She would not be controlled by feelings.

The winter...only a few months...but more than long enough for God to work a change in Eddie’s heart. In the meantime, she had to prove to him how nice it was to have her around.

* * *

“Let’s see what Cookie sent over.” He hadn’t meant to be drawn into questions about Linette’s personal life. What did it matter to him if her father had chosen a marriage partner she didn’t welcome? Yet the idea made his muscles tighten. He’d seen the way she held herself and knew she didn’t make up her fears. It couldn’t be pleasant to be controlled by a father who didn’t take her feelings into consideration.

He could only hope something would change on her behalf before spring when he’d send her back to her father.

Linette tried to extract herself from Grady’s clutches. “Look, Grady. Play with these things and I’ll make you something to eat, but I can’t work with you hanging from my arm.”

Grady poked his face around Linette enough to expose one eye. He saw Eddie and with a loud cry burrowed into Linette’s skirts.

Eddie backed off, carefully avoiding looking directly at the boy.

Grady waited until Eddie picked up the sack and carried it to the table before he untangled himself from Linette’s side and hurried back to the stove, where he squatted to examine the objects that would have to pass as toys until something better could be found or fashioned. Grady made sure to keep his face toward Eddie as if he had to know where the enemy stood.

Linette edged to Eddie’s side. “Thank you for being patient with him.”

He pulled flour and sugar from the sack as he considered her words. Why should she care, when she had no connection to this child? Yet it made him realize even more how generous his father had been in taking in himself and his mother and giving them his name. He redoubled his vow to live a life that would honor that gift. “He’s not a lot different than a scared animal. Here’s a slab of bacon and other things Cookie thought you could use. Lots of women wouldn’t give an orphaned child a second glance.” In his case, his father and mother had married. Eddie was part of the union. But Linette had no connection to this boy. “Why do you?” He kept his voice low so Grady wouldn’t hear.

She shifted the supplies around, examining them and lining them up. “We need a shelf for these.”

Just when he thought she intended to ignore his question, she faced him.

“I simply cannot walk by someone in need and pretend I don’t see them or can’t help them.” Her eyes flashed some kind of challenge as if she’d had to defend her views before.

“I’m guessing your feelings haven’t met with approval.”

Her sigh puffed out her cheeks. “According to my parents, ladies don’t soil their hands with such matters. They say there are people whose calling is to do such things. People of the church. Not regular people.” All the while she talked she held his gaze. Her compassion and conviction poured from her like hot tea.

“You’ve rescued an orphan boy and a widowed woman. I’d say you’ve done your share.”

Her eyes turned to cold amber. “Are you warning me?”

“Miss Edwards, sometimes practical matters must be considered. And propriety. This cabin won’t hold any more charity cases.”

“Propriety?” She kept her voice low, but still managed to make the word ring with distaste. “It will never stop me from following my heart and conscience.”

Eddie stopped removing items from the sack. “Are you informing me you will have no regard for how you conduct yourself? I warn you, so long as you are under my roof and living with the protection of my good name, I expect you to live in a way that will not bring dishonor to it.” Why couldn’t Margaret have chosen to follow through on their agreement? She had proven an agreeable companion. Was this all some colossal joke played by the universe? Until this moment, he would have said God had a hand in all the events of his life. Now he wasn’t sure. Seems Linette was a stubborn, headstrong woman. If people acted contrary to God’s directions, how could they still be under His control?

His jaw ached and he forced it to unlock. He would not let any of these people bring disgrace to the Gardiner name.

Linette regarded him, her face set in hard lines and flat disapproval. “I have always lived in an honorable fashion. I simply refuse to live by silly social expectations, especially if they require I go against the teaching of my Lord and Savior.”

He squeezed the back of his neck, feeling the muscles corded like thick rope. “I certainly wouldn’t ask that of you. Honoring God is first in life.” Right along with honoring his father and mother.

“Good. Then we are agreed.” She reached into the sack and pulled out a fry pan and pot. “I’ll soon have something for tea.”

Eddie didn’t feel nearly as satisfied that they understood each other. Somehow he expected she would agree to his terms only if they suited her. How was he going to make sure she didn’t turn this into a disaster for him and his family?

She smiled across the table. “Mr. Gardiner, you have nothing to fear from me. I promise I will do all in my power to make this a most pleasant winter. In fact, you might decide you want us to stay.”

“Only until it’s safe for you to travel.”

She ducked her head, but not before he glimpsed the self-assured satisfaction in her expression.

What did she have in mind? Whatever it was, he could tell her she could do nothing to make him change his decision.

Besides, Margaret would reconsider becoming his wife when she heard about the fine house.

He glanced at Cassie, who sat staring at the stove. She had the look of someone lost in her thoughts. The woman was supposed to be Linette’s chaperone. As such, shouldn’t she be the one preparing the meal? Seems Linette couldn’t see when she was being taken advantage of. Allowing a father to thrust a child into her care, allowing a widow woman to sit idle while she did the chores.

If Cassie had been one of the cowboys, he would have whistled and tipped his head toward the work.

How did one order a woman to do her share?

Linette stood at the table, turning the hunk of bacon over and over. He watched her, wondering what her problem was.

She set aside the meat and lifted the towel from the bowl of cooked potatoes Cookie had sent over. She poked them with one finger. Her brow furrowed. Was she unfamiliar with basic cooking? His stomach growled at the thought.

Thanks to Cookie’s generosity, there were baking powder biscuits and some cold roast beef. Linette set the latter two out on a plate and put out butter and syrup, along with the tea she had made. She set the table carefully, arranging each piece of silverware as exactly as if she used a ruler. “It’s ready,” she said, indicating they should sit at the table.

Eddie pulled himself from the wall where he’d been alternately observing the newly arrived occupants of his house and studying the darkening sky out the window. He should be with the men, bringing the cows down from the hills, but the unexpected guests had delayed him and now the sun dipped toward the horizon. It would soon disappear behind the distant mountains.

Heavy clouds hung from the sky. It would be good if the snow held off a few more days. A few more weeks would be even better, but he didn’t like to sound greedy.

At Linette’s call, Cassie sighed and pushed heavily to her feet. She wasn’t as old as Eddie first judged. Life had been hard on her. He suspected a strong woman lay beneath the sharp exterior. Only a fighter would have survived what she’d been through.

The first step Eddie took had Grady scuttling toward the wall. Eddie stopped.

“I’ll feed him later,” Linette said.

It grated on Eddie’s nerves that his presence was unwelcome in his own home. But not nearly as much as it bothered him to be the cause of Grady’s fear. “We might as well start out the way we intend to continue. I eat my meals in a civilized fashion. I expect the same from my guests.” He made no threatening moves as he squatted to Grady’s level. “Grady, this is my house. You’re welcome here, but when we eat, we sit together at the table. Think you can do that?”

Grady shook his head and whimpered. His gaze brushed past Eddie, not quite connecting but allowing Eddie to see something in the boy’s eyes. Hurt. Insecurity. Rejection. He didn’t understand how he knew and recognized it, but he did as surely as he knew his name. This boy was filled with consuming fear and loneliness. He had every reason to feel that way. His own father had turned his back on him.

Eddie’s insides trembled and a pain shot through his jaw as he struggled to keep his expression from revealing what he thought of such a man. The boy did not deserve the hurt heaped on him by his father. No one did.

He ached to promise the boy he was safe now. But hurting and fearful animals—and little boys—needed lots of reassurance. “Aren’t you hungry?”

Grady glanced toward the table then he studied Eddie hard and solemnly.

Eddie didn’t move. Didn’t smile. He just waited, letting the child see he meant him no harm. Finally Grady edged away, keeping as much distance between himself and Eddie as possible. He hurried to Linette’s side and buried his face in her skirts.

Eddie pushed to his feet. “Grady, you will sit on a chair to eat.” Linette’s glare seared, while Cassie watched with indifference.

Grady climbed to a chair and sat, giving Eddie a look of defiance. Eddie could almost read his thoughts. I’m sitting on the outside, but I’m doing what I want on the inside.

Eddie struggled to keep from laughing.

Linette sat down with a huff of exasperation.

Sobering instantly, he met her gaze. Did she find all rules and conventions to her dislike? “A man is ruler in his own house. Is that not from the scriptures?” At the flash in her eyes he wondered if she would defy the word of God.

The winter looked longer and colder with every passing hour.


Chapter Three

Why had God made woman to be subject to a man?

Linette knew the verse he referred to. It had mocked her on many occasions. She would never dispute God’s word, but some of it was hard to swallow. It made marriage most unappealing. She would avoid it altogether except it provided her only hope of escaping her father’s plans.

Eddie waited until she was settled. “I’ll say the blessing.”

She bowed her head. Although Eddie had insisted on Grady’s obedience, he’d at least been gentle with the boy. It wouldn’t be hard to be wife to a man who treated her with such kindness and respected her heart’s yearnings. But she feared she wanted more than she could hope for. More and more it looked as if she would not find freedom here any more than she had in England. Still, anything was better than marrying a lumpy, lecherous old man.

She waited until everyone had taken a biscuit or several. “I’m afraid I’m not much of a cook,” she murmured. “We had a cook at home who refused to let me in the kitchen.”

“This is fine.”

She’d done nothing but put stuff on the table. If she expected to prove her worth she would have to do much better. “I’m sure I’ll manage.” If only someone would explain what to do with the supplies. Surely Cassie knew. She sent the woman an imploring look. They had to learn to enjoy each other’s company. “This is your second winter on the ranch, isn’t it?”

Eddie looked relieved to have something to talk about. “It is.”

“Tell us what it’s like.”

“Unpredictable.”

She laughed at his tone—half regretful, half admiring. “How so?”

“It can snow four feet. The temperature can drop out of sight. Then we get a Chinook that melts the snow and makes us all foolishly think the worst is over.”

Cassie perked up. “A Chinook? What’s that?”

“A warm wind that blasts over the mountains. We can go from shivering under a heavy coat to working in our shirtsleeves all within an hour or less.”

“It’s a legend then?” Cassie said, sarcasm dripping from each word.

Linette silently prayed Eddie wouldn’t be offended. Was she destined to spend her days interceding on Cassie’s behalf?

Thankfully Eddie chuckled. “Part legend in that the Indians have all sorts of stories about what it is, but there’s nothing remotely imaginary about what happens.”

“I can hardly wait,” Linette said. “It’s going to be exciting to experience a wild Canadian winter.”

Eddie’s look challenged her before he pushed his plate away to indicate he was done. Did he think she had undertaken this trip solely for the sake of an adventure? She willingly admitted she enjoyed seeing new and exciting things. But no, the impetus behind her bold venture was twofold—escape the specter of a marriage with a man who made her skin crawl, and hopefully, God willing, find a place where she could obey the dictates of her conscience without regard to foolish social expectations.

The kettle steamed again and Linette prepared to do the washing up with the hot water. Cassie turned her chair and pushed it closer to the stove.

Eddie stood and piled up the dirty dishes. “Everyone does his share here.” He glanced toward Cassie.

Linette’s hands remained suspended over the washbasin. She could manage on her own and didn’t mind doing the work, but Eddie gave her a warning look. She ducked her head. Seems he was intent on establishing his rules and she was helpless to do anything but cooperate. Not that she didn’t think Cassie should help, but she didn’t know how far he meant this rule making to go. She kept her head down as she studied him, measuring him, wondering what would happen if she refused to obey one of his directives. His expression remained patient. On the other hand, how pleasurable to share goals and dreams with such a man.

Slowly it dawned on Cassie that Eddie expected her to help. She pushed her chair back so hard it banged into the table. “Don’t see how much help it will be for me to be stuck under Linette’s elbow. There’s not enough room for one, let alone two.”

Linette pulled the basin closer and handed Cassie a towel. She took it silently and dried the few dishes.

Eddie strode outside.

“He’s lord and master here, that’s for sure,” Cassie grumbled. “I’m sick of men controlling everything. Why don’t we pack up and leave?”

“Cassie, where would we go?” She’d gladly leave if she could find an alternative that wouldn’t bring her father’s wrath about her head. Except—an errant thought surfaced—this was where she wanted to be. She’d dreamed of it for weeks as she prepared to leave home and as she crossed the ocean and the country. She pictured herself sharing life with a man who honored her heart’s desire, and the dream refused to die in spite of Eddie’s insistence that she go back home. She forced her mind back to Cassie’s question. “It’s not like there are hundreds of homes around here that would welcome us.”

“What about that ranch where those men were going? They seemed like nice gentlemen.”

“They were very polite but no doubt would expect to rule their home as well.”

“I’m sure we could throw ourselves on their mercy.”

Linette grabbed Cassie by the shoulders. “I don’t intend to beg any man to keep me.” She’d prove her worth to Eddie. She’d make him want her to stay. “Wherever I go, whatever happens, I will do my share. In return, I will expect freedom to make a few decisions on my own.”

Cassie shook Linette’s hands off. “Mr. Gardiner told you he expects obedience.”

“Surely a woman can please a man and still be allowed to express her opinion and choices.”

Cassie rocked her head back and forth. “He could make life miserable for us.”

“I pray it won’t be so.”

“You were prepared to marry him.”

“I thought I knew a bit about him from Margaret’s letters.” Now she wasn’t so sure. In fact, nothing seemed so simple anymore.

Cassie plucked at her sleeve. “He could take advantage of us if he wants. Both of us. Look at how small this place is. We have no hope of escaping him.”

Linette smiled. “The closeness is our protection. If you feel threatened, you only have to call out. But I think we have nothing to fear from him. Does he not strike you as a man of strong morals?” He seemed intent on doing things the right way. Just how far that went, they would no doubt see in the following weeks as they shared this tiny cabin.

Eddie strode through the door with a length of lumber and a hammer in hand.

Cassie watched with undisguised wariness as he fastened a shelf across one side of the room.

“This should serve as a pantry for now.”

“Thank you.” Linette truly appreciated his efforts. She hoped it meant he intended to make the best of the situation—a thought that buoyed her heart.

Now that she’d finished the clean-up, Linette called Grady to her and washed him in preparation for the night. “Cassie, do you want to put Grady to bed?”

Cassie jerked her gaze away from studying Eddie, relief filling her eyes. “I’ll lie down with him.” Linette understood she was grateful for escape from the close quarters.

Linette soon had the shelf neatly organized with their kitchen supplies. Cassie and Grady were only a few steps away in the bedroom, but suddenly she was alone with Eddie. Neither of them spoke and the quietness crowded every corner of the room.

“Tell me about Grady.”

His question shattered the stillness and made her nerves twitch. Then she drew in a deep breath, grateful he had initiated conversation. “You mean besides the fact he is an orphan?”

“He has a father, so technically he is not an orphan. No other relatives?”

Was he hoping he could send the child away? “Apparently not.”

“And what if the father changes his mind and wants him back?”

“It would be wonderful if he did. I pray he will.”

“In the meantime, you have his care, but who is his legal guardian?”

“I am.”

“By whose authority?”

“His father signed the papers naming me such.”

Eddie quirked an eyebrow, perhaps in disbelief. “It surprises me he cared enough to do so.”

“He didn’t. I asked him to do it.”

Both his eyebrows rose and Linette allowed herself a little smugness at having surprised him.

“You seem to have thought this through.”

“You might be surprised at how carefully I consider my choices.”

His pause filled the air with quivering tension. “And yet you still do them.”

She ignored the slight sarcasm.

“Cassie has no family she could appeal to?”

“What is this? Trying to find alternate arrangements for your guests?”

He looked at her with annoyance. “No need to be rude. I’m only trying to learn as much as I can.”

For a moment she silently challenged him. But he was right. The man deserved to be treated better. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude. To answer your question, Cassie has no family she’s willing to admit to. I know she complains a lot and Grady is still afraid of everything, but I promise I will do my best to—”

“I’m not trying to get rid of you. I said you’re welcome until spring. Rest assured, I won’t withdraw my word.”

She wondered when the deadline had shifted from improved weather to spring but wasn’t about to question God’s good favor. “It’s good to know I can count on it.” There was so much more she wanted to say. How much she’d enjoyed seeing the vast plains of the Northwest. How she’d felt free for the first time in her life. How she didn’t mind the crowded conditions of the cabin because it felt cozy. How she couldn’t keep from wanting to help those in distress. Instead, she turned the conversation to less controversial topics. “You said you met Kootenai Brown. He sounds like an interesting man. Tell me about him.”

Eddie relaxed, stretching his legs out and angling back in the chair. “Kootenai Brown has been in the western territories for twenty years or more. In that time, he has established quite a reputation, if one were to believe all the stories told about him. Soldier, gold miner, police constable, wolfer, whiskey trader. Tales say that he was captured by Sitting Bull and escaped. Another says he murdered a man in Fort Benton. Still another claims he was shot in the back by a Blackfoot arrow, pulled it out himself and treated the wound with turpentine.”

Linette watched Eddie as he spun tale after tale of a man larger than life. Some of the stories were undoubtedly exaggerated. Eddie’s eyes flashed with humor as he talked. His mouth gentled and his voice carried a rich timbre. And as she listened, she came to a firm conviction. “I can’t go back.”

Eddie blinked and seemed to pull his thoughts toward her words. “Are you really Linette Edwards?”

Her chin came up and her eyes stung with defiant challenge. “Of course I am Linette Edwards. Why would you doubt it? Who do you think I am?”

He took his time answering. “You aren’t dressed like the daughter of wealthy man.”

She laughed. She’d managed to confound him and it pleased her to no end. “I traded my fine dresses for practical ones at Fort Benton.”

He didn’t seem to care that his eyes revealed doubt.

She smiled. “I’m grateful for the few months I’ll be able to enjoy this vast country.”

The door rattled as if a person sought entrance.

She turned. “Is someone there?”

Eddie chuckled. “You might have cause to hate the country before the winter is out. That, Miss Edwards, is the wind knocking at the door.”

He looked a totally different man when he relaxed and smiled. Handsome, kindly and appealing. She caught her thoughts and pushed them into submission. Yet one lingered long enough to be heard. Sharing his company throughout the winter might be pleasant enough.

His smile deepened and his eyes darkened.

She ducked away, pretending to examine an imaginary spot on her skirt.

“Hear the snow against the window?” he asked.

Glad to leave the awkward moment, she turned toward the window. Wet white flakes plopped against the glass with a definite platt sound.

“Come have a look.” Eddie pulled himself into action with the grace of a young kitten.

She followed him to the door. When he slipped a coat over his shoulders, she did the same. As they stepped out into the night air, she was glad she’d traded her gold locket for the heavy coat even though it was too large. She pulled it tight around her neck and waited for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. Large flakes of snow, driven by the wind, stuck to the side of the cabin. She lifted her face and let flakes land on her cheeks. Cold and refreshing. She put out her tongue and laughed at how the snow tasted.

Eddie chuckled.

She closed her mouth and swallowed. “It’s so clean and fresh.”

“If it keeps up all night, it will be deep and dangerous.”

“But we are safe and warm.”

“My cattle aren’t.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be selfish. What will happen to them?”

“The wind will drive them, hopefully, into a place of shelter. Then we’ll have to find them and push them out.”

“Why can’t you leave them there?”

“We can if the snow isn’t deep, but if it is, cattle can’t dig through it. They’ll starve. We’ve been moving them down, but this snow is earlier than expected.”

“Then I will pray you’ll be able to get your cows to a safe place.”

“I will pray the same.”

It made her feel as if he valued her offer. It made her feel as if they were partners in some small way. Linette wished she could see him better and gauge if he felt even a fraction of the same connection.

“It’s cold. We better go inside.”

His words were her answer. He obviously did not wish to prolong the moment.

* * *

Eddie rolled up in his buffalo robe and got comfortable on the floor. He’d slept on the ground many times, often out in the cold. In comparison, this was warm and pleasant. If the temperature dropped too low, he would put more wood on the fire during the night.

He lay on his back listening to the women murmur. He could make out enough to follow their conversation.

“Where did you go?” Cassie’s voice carried its perennial sharpness.

“Just outside the door.”

“What for? You two got secrets?”

Eddie groaned. Cassie seemed bent on seeing evil and inconvenience at every turn. He wondered if Linette would scold her.

But Linette laughed softly. “I wanted to see the snow.”

“You’re twenty years old. Surely you’ve seen snow before.”

“Not like this. It was so quiet you could hear each flake hit the ground. And the wind sighed as if carrying the snow had become too much of an effort.”

Eddie clasped his hands under his head and listened unashamedly. Linette made it sound magical. Perhaps it was. He hadn’t put it into words, but there was something about the country. Maybe its newness. How many times did he wonder if he was the first white man to set foot on a certain spot?

“I told Eddie I would pray his cows are safe.”

Eddie. She said his name as if it was as special as the new-falling snow. Yet face-to-face, he was Mr. Gardiner, all formal and stiff. But then, that was proper.

Somehow proper didn’t sound as pleasant as Eddie.

“Who cares about cows?” Cassie obviously didn’t. “I don’t know how I’m going to endure this for an entire winter.”

Linette chuckled again.

Eddie smiled just hearing her.

“Cassie, my friend, you don’t have to endure. You can enjoy.”

Cassie snorted so loud Grady whimpered. When she spoke again, Eddie couldn’t catch her whispered words. He strained to hear Linette’s response.

“God gives us each day to enjoy.”

Cassie made a sound so full of doubt that Eddie choked back a chuckle.

Linette spoke into the darkness. “I had a nurse who taught me many scripture verses. One in Psalm 118 says, ‘This is the day the Lord hath made... Let us rejoice and be glad in it.’ She said it’s a choice. An act of our will to rejoice. And she would sing the verse.” Linette softly sang a song putting the words of the verse to music, repeating it several times.

She’d had a privileged upbringing. Despite Mr. Edwards’s dubious background, he’d expect his daughter to be treated as aristocracy. Eddie would have to be careful. He wouldn’t give her father a chance to ruin the Gardiner good name.

Cassie didn’t say anything. Perhaps she’d fallen asleep, comforted by the lullaby of the song.

Eddie turned to his side and listened to Linette sing. Even after the voices in the other room had grown quiet, the lyrics played over and over in his head. He fell asleep to the tune.

He woke next morning, started a fire and put the coffee to boil. It had settled in to snow seriously. He wanted to head out and look for his cows, but doing so would be foolhardy in this weather. He had good men, experienced cowboys. They knew enough to circle the cows and keep them from drifting. He didn’t need to be there helping them. Yet it was his responsibility—and his alone—to insure the herd was safe. The future of the ranch depended on it. But he was stuck here, away from the action, doing nothing to protect his investment. Or more accurately, his father’s investment.

Noises from the next room informed him the others were up. He slowly turned from the window and poured a cup of coffee. He’d make sure the guests were safe. Later, he’d head out to the barn. At least he could check on the stock that was there.

The three other occupants of the storm-wrapped cabin stepped into view. Cassie’s expression was enough to stop a train and send the occupants dashing for safety. Grady fussed for no reason. But Linette smiled and hummed. He immediately recognized the tune. It was the same one playing over and over in his head. “‘This is the day that the Lord hath made... Let us rejoice and be glad in it.”’ She seemed intent on enjoying the day. She went immediately to the window. “It’s beautiful. Snow covers everything like piles of whipped cream.”

She turned, and her smile flattened and she frowned. “I’m sorry. This is not what you need, is it?”

“I would have preferred to have the cows closer before this hit.”

She nodded, looked thoughtful a moment longer then turned to the others with a beaming smile. “Cassie, Grady, look. There’s snow everywhere.” She lifted Grady to the window to look out.

He laughed. “I play in it?”

Eddie stared at the boy. It was the first time he’d heard anything but a cry from his lips.

“I don’t think—” Linette looked at Eddie. “It doesn’t look safe out there.”

“Not while it’s coming down so hard.” He lowered his gaze to Grady. “You’ll have to wait for a little while.”

In his excitement over the snow, Grady had forgotten Eddie. Now he clung to Linette’s neck. His lips quivered.

Eddie sighed inwardly. He couldn’t bear the idea of more fussing and crying. “If you don’t cry I’ll take you to see the horses as soon as it’s safe. But only big boys can come.”

Grady swallowed hard and blinked half a dozen times. “I not cry.”

“Good boy. Now climb up to the table and let’s see what Linette can find to feed us.”

Grady edged around Eddie and sat as far away as the small space would allow.

Linette hadn’t moved from the window. She stared at Eddie, her eyes wide.

Had he done something wrong? Did she think he was out of place telling Grady to stop crying? Or—he stifled a groan—had he offended her by calling her by her Christian name? “I’m sorry. I meant Miss Edwards.”

“No, Linette is fine. Much more comfortable.”

Were her words rushed and airy? He jerked his gaze away in self-disgust. Less than twenty-four hours with two women and a child in his little cabin and he was already getting fanciful. He needed the company of some cows and cowboys.

But first, breakfast.

Linette again pulled the bowl of potatoes toward her and turned the slab of bacon over and over.

Eddie grabbed the butcher knife. “I’ll slice us off some pieces. You can fry them up.”

“Thank you.” She avoided meeting his eyes.

“I take it you’ve never seen bacon before.”

“I’m unfamiliar with the term and the format.”

He chuckled. She had a unique way of admitting she didn’t have a clue. “It’s the same as rashers in England.”

Understanding lightened her eyes. “You mean—” She pointed to the chunk of meat and watched with keen interest as he carved off thin slices. “That’s what rashers look like before they’re all crispy?”

He dropped the pieces into the hot fry pan. “They’ll soon be something you recognize.”

She stared at the sizzling pan. A heavy sigh left her lungs. “I told you I wasn’t a good cook, but I assure you I won’t have to be shown twice. In no time at all I’ll be creating culinary delights to warm your heart.”

A man needed a good feed, especially after working out in the cold. “I could continue to take my meals over at the cookhouse.”

Linette’s brow furrowed. “Are you suggesting I can’t manage? I’ll learn. You’ll see. Just give me a chance.” She sucked in air and opened her mouth to start again.

“Okay. Okay.” He held up his palm toward her to stop any further argument. “I’ll see how things go.” Besides, he could well imagine Cookie’s protests if he left the ladies alone and sought his meals with the rest of the crew. No, sir, he didn’t need to get a tongue-lashing from that direction. “Maybe Cookie will help you.”

Her shoulders sank several inches in relief and she let out a noisy gust. “Thank you. You won’t be sorry.”

He kept any contrary opinion to himself, but he’d been nothing but sorry since she’d landed on his ranch. He expected he’d be sorry until the day she left.

As he waited for her to prepare breakfast he went to the window and scratched a peephole in the frost. Slim and Roper hustled toward the cookhouse. They slid their attention toward the cabin, saw him peeking through the foggy glass and nodded as if they only wanted to say good-morning when he knew they burned up with curiosity.

“Um.” Linette sounded mildly worried. “Is it supposed to smoke like this?”

He spun around. The fry pan smoked like a smoldering fire. “It’s too hot. Pull it to the side.”

She reached for it without any protection on her hands.

“Wait. Don’t touch it.”

But her palm touched the hot handle and she jerked back with a gasp.

At that moment the pan caught fire.

Cassie jerked to her feet and pulled Grady after her as she retreated to the far corner, casting desperate looks at the door—their only escape route.

Linette danced about. “What do I do?” She grabbed a towel and flapped it.

“Stop. You’re only making it worse. Get out of the way.” He crossed the room in three strides, grabbed a nearby lid and clamped it over the pan. He snatched the towel from her hands, clutched the hot fry pan and dashed for the door. He jerked it open and tossed the sizzling pan into the snowbank. It melted down a good eight inches.

He tossed the towel to the table and grabbed her wrist. “Let me see that.” He turned her palm upward. The base of her fingers was red and already forming blisters. “Put snow on it.”

She seemed incapable of moving, so he pulled her to the door, grabbed a handful of snow and plastered the burnt area.

“Oh, that feels good.”

He grabbed her by the shoulders. “Are you trying to burn the place down?”

She glowered back. “You could have told me this might happen.”

“Told you?” He sputtered and slowed his breathing. “You said you were prepared to be a pioneer housewife. But you can’t even fry bacon.”

“I most certainly can and will.” She marched past him and back to the house, grabbed the hunk of bacon and whacked off pieces, unmindful of the pain the burns surely gave.

Grady whimpered. Cassie pulled him close. “Shush, child.”

Linette gave the boy a tight smile. “Everything is fine, Grady. Don’t worry.”

Eddie watched her butcher the meat. “You’ll have a great time trying to fry those.”

“I’ll fry them.” Whack. Whack.

“Three days from now perhaps.”

She paused. “Why do you say that?”

“Because you’re cutting them too thick.”

“Fine.” She slowed down and methodically sliced narrow strips.

He went to retrieve the fry pan, scrubbing as much of the charcoal from it as he could with snow. “Practically ruined a perfectly good pot,” he muttered.

“What did you say?” she asked.

“Not a blame thing.” He took the burnt pot inside and poured boiling water into it then set to scrubbing it clean.

“I can do that,” she protested.

Somehow he doubted she was a fraction as capable as she tried to make him believe.

“I will make a great pioneer wife.” She spit the words out like hot pebbles.

“I’ve yet to see any evidence supporting that claim.” He held up his hand to silence her arguments. “It’s a moot point. I don’t need or want a pioneer wife.”

“You don’t know what you’re missing.”

“And yet I don’t seem to mind.” He again returned to the window and stared out. Spring was a distant promise. If the sun came out and stayed. If a Chinook took away the snow. If the stagecoach headed back to Fort Benton or even Edendale, Miss Edwards and her entourage would be on it.

But the snow continued to fall, shutting him in the tiny cabin with Miss Edwards and her entourage.

A few minutes later, she announced breakfast was ready.

Acrid smoke still clung to the air, drowning out any enticing aroma, but still she served up a passable meal. He’d had worse. A lot worse. Some from his own hands.

Afterward, Cassie favored him with a defiant look as she helped Linette clean up.

Life had gone from simple to challenging since Linette thrust herself into his home. He shifted his chair toward the stove and pulled out a newspaper that had come in yesterday’s package of mail. Linette and Cassie worked in silence and Grady huddled at the corner of the table, darting regular glances toward Eddie. The skin on the back of Eddie’s neck itched. He refused to scratch it, but like the presence of the others in the room, it would not go away. The walls of the cabin pushed at his thoughts. “I’m going to check on the stock.”

Grady nudged Linette and indicated he wanted to whisper in her ear.

She bent to hear his words. Her gaze slipped toward Eddie as she answered the boy. “Not yet.”

She straightened and returned her attention to the dishes.

Whatever Grady said had something to do with him. “What is it?”

“Nothing,” Linette replied.

He waited. He would not be ignored or dismissed in his own house.

Linette lifted one shoulder. “He wanted to know if you were taking him to see the horses.” She smiled down at Grady. “It’s still snowing heavily.”

Eddie studied the boy. The air around him vibrated with expectation—whether in anticipation of seeing the horses or fear of being told no, Eddie couldn’t be sure. Seemed the boy had every reason to expect rejection. “Grady, as soon as it’s decent out I’ll take you to the barn and you can visit the horses. It’s a deal.” He held out his hand. Perhaps the boy would trust him enough to shake, but Grady shrank back against Linette.

Eddie lowered his hand. “Well, then.” He grabbed his coat and ventured out into the cold. It would take time. Trust didn’t happen all at once.

The heavy wet snow reached his ankles. It would be even deeper farther up the mountains. If the men hadn’t been able to hold the herd... He refused to think of a disaster. Yet how many stories had he heard of cows driven by the wind, trapped in a box canyon, found dead in the spring?




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