Mirror Image Bride

Granted, the job wasn’t ideal, but it enabled her to stay on the ranch and get to know her sister and brother better.

Snapping back to reality, Maddie glanced at the corral where several horses stood, ears pricked, awaiting their morning hay. It was still amazing to her that she was here on the Colby Ranch.

What if she had not responded to Landon’s phone call a month ago? She’d been avoiding him ever since she’d broken their engagement. Yet answering had led her to discovering she had an identical twin she hadn’t known about. She had invited Violet to her apartment that fateful afternoon. Once inside, her twin had been drawn to some of the photographs on the mantel—especially a favorite one of her father and two brothers. Violet had been startled to see Grayson—a twin to her brother Jack!

Violet had invited her to the ranch, and Maddie had agreed. With her father away on a missionary trip due to last until Thanksgiving, and her two brothers unavailable, it seemed the perfect time to go. Landon thought she was rushing into something that required a bit more contemplation, but she’d gone with her instincts.

It still seemed weird to look at Violet and see herself. As far as they could piece together, they’d been separated as babies, each parent taking one of each of the two sets of twins. Jack had been kept in the dark, just like her—and he hadn’t taken the news well.

Even their longtime housekeeper, Rachel Everett, had not known the truth when Maddie called her to tell her about Violet and where she’d be going for a few weeks.

Now they were all asking the same question—what had happened to their family so long ago?

Reaching the small porch in front of Ty Garland’s wooden house, she stepped onto it, her shoes echoing on the surface. The small house was rather plain with a porch that ran the width of it, green shutters flanking the two windows, and a green door in the center. While the clapboard was white, the mossy green was the same color used on the barn trim. Her focus shifted to the job at hand. She hadn’t felt this nervous since her first day on the job at Texas Today, the beloved magazine she’d worked on for three years. Budget cuts had eliminated her job. She’d been devastated at the time.

Now, losing her job seemed like the work of God. She’d had time to extend her visit and a job had materialized almost the same moment she began to talk about returning to Fort Worth.

Thank You, Lord, for working this all out. Please, let us find some answers soon. And please let me do a good job here.

Ty Garland was the foreman of Colby Ranch. A week ago, to his stunned amazement, he’d found out he had a daughter—an eight-year-old little girl who was coming to live with him. According to Violet the news had rocked him. He hadn’t even known his ex-wife had had a child, much less that it was his.

The foreman’s job came with a small house, situated between the large brick house the Colbys lived in and the huge barn that held horses, hay and other accoutrements needed for ranching. She’d been given a tour of the prosperous ranch when she’d first arrived. This past month had given her a chance to get to know Violet and, to a lesser degree, Jack.

She was so delighted to have her twin sister in her life. She should focus on her blessings and live in the here and now. Speaking of which, she’d signed on to watch the little girl so in need of help and hoped she could do a good job. Ty’s displeasure was not something she wanted. Quietly, she said a quick prayer for wisdom and guidance in dealing with Darcy. And her dad.

Knocking on the front door, she waited. Turning, she surveyed the barnyard, which was coming awake as the sun rose. Chickens searched for food in the dirt around the corral. Three horses remained standing near the fence. She could hear the nanny goat bleating. Was she waiting for food, too?

It was still, quiet and pleasant. Quite a difference from her rented high-rise condo in Fort Worth on a busy thoroughfare. Unexpectedly, she was growing used to it. Growing to appreciate the silence of the early morning. The beauty of God’s handiwork spread before her. The ageless work of cowboys raising beef for the masses.

Ty opened the door and she turned, a bright smile on her face.

“Good morning. Here as promised.” She was good at pretending she didn’t feel as nervous as she did.

Maddie held her smile even though he merely nodded and opened the door wider for her to enter. The tall, fit cowboy with the stern face gave a whole new meaning to the word taciturn. He topped her by several inches. Without his hat, his dark hair gleamed in the light. His dark eyes rarely gave anything away. She always felt small and feminine around his wide shoulders, strong arms.

She’d met him several weeks ago when she’d first come to the Colby Ranch. Over the days since, she’d seen him often enough when he discussed ranch business with Violet and Jack. Yet she didn’t feel she knew him any better today than that first day. Not for lack of trying. She always had a greeting for him when they met. He usually touched the edge of his cowboy hat with two fingers and moved on.

His frowning eyes met hers. She knew in a heartbeat he thought this was a dumb idea. Her gaze locked with his and Maddie wondered if Ty had only agreed to the arrangement because his boss put him on the spot. Now Maddie was having second thoughts herself. Could she work for this man? He was unlike anyone else she knew. Usually people were friendly enough when she smiled at them.

Not Ty. He replied to any direct questions with as few words as possible. Still, she was glad for the job opportunity. She’d been out of work for six weeks and her savings would only stretch so far.

The assignment was simple enough—watch Ty’s daughter for a month or so until he could make other arrangements. But could she deal with being in constant contact with the man whom she’d steered clear of in the weeks she’d been on the ranch? He obviously didn’t like her.

Much as she wanted to dislike him, she didn’t. He fascinated her. He looked as at home on a horse as he did walking. He’d study the day as others might study a financial report. She often wondered what he saw when he gazed off in the distance. His air of quiet confidence made the other ranch hands look brash and wild. His manner was always respectful, but distant. She had yet to see him smile and sometimes at night she’d daydream various ways to get him to smile. So far no brilliant ideas had come forth.

“We’re in the kitchen,” he said, heading down a short hall toward the back of the house. Maddie quickly followed, glancing into the living room as they walked by. A big recliner sat against one wall, lined up perfectly with the big flat-screen TV that hung on the opposite wall. There was a comfortable leather sofa with a throw over one arm. The coffee table was scarred as if he’d put his feet on it many times. There were beverage stains and a stack of what looked like ranching journals and a day-old newspaper. The hardwood floors rang with the sound of her shoes.

Stepping into the kitchen, she smiled at Ty’s eight-year-old daughter.

Maddie liked the kitchen the instant she stepped in. The wide window over the sink framed a beautiful view of the land as it spread out in front of her. Trees scattered here and there, a slight roll to the ground. In the distance she could see some of the cattle grazing.

The appliances were fairly new and were in pristine shape. No dishes in the sink, nothing on the counter but a toaster and coffee machine. Ty kept a neat home.

Maddie was glad the job required her to cook for this small family. It meant she wouldn’t have to share a dining room with Violet and Landon when he came to visit. After all, the newly engaged couple deserved their privacy.

“Good morning,” she said. “Ready for breakfast?”

“I guess,” Darcy said, darting a quick glance at her father.

Maddie looked at Ty also, struck by the mixture of confusion, hurt and longing she saw there. Her heart went out to him.

Maddie knew exactly how both Darcy and Ty felt. She had not known about her sister, he had not known about his daughter. Why did people do that? Keep families apart? It hurt to know her mother had so easily walked away and that her dad had never mentioned his other two children.

Pushing away the thoughts that spun in her mind daily, she focused on Darcy. Was it any more difficult to find the father she’d been told was dead was alive and had never known she existed?

Maddie hoped the little girl would bounce back faster than she was doing with the stunning news about her own family. Darcy had lost her mother only a week and a half ago when a drunk driver had rammed her car. Her grandparents were out of the country and no one had reached them yet. She wound up on the doorstep of a father who had never known she’d been born. How confusing and scary was that?

Ty looked at her. “We’ll try this for a couple of days. If you can’t hack it, I’ll find someone else.”

“I’ll do my best,” she said, hoping he would genuinely give her a chance and not merely bide his time until he could fire her. “What’s your favorite breakfast?” she asked the little girl, hoping she could do something to ease the pain of loss and set this child on the right path to recovering from her grief.

“Pancakes,” Darcy said, her forlorn expression tugging at Maddie’s heartstrings.

“One stack of hotcakes coming up.”

Ty poured himself a mug of coffee and gestured to the machine, which Maddie took as an invitation to help herself. She nodded and then took a few minutes getting familiar with Ty’s kitchen. She felt his eyes on her the entire time. Gathering all the ingredients, she enlisted Darcy’s help as they prepared the batter. Soon golden pancakes were filling plates. Ty had rocked back on the chair he sat on and balanced on the back two legs, watching her without saying a word.

Once or twice Darcy had glanced his way, halfway curious, halfway uncertain.

“All ready,” Maddie said, placing another golden pancake on a stack she kept warm in the oven.

Ty’s chair came down with a thump that startled her.

She looked at him. His dark eyes stared back into hers, then he nodded.

If that was the best he could do, she’d take it.

“What do you want us to do today?” she asked him.

“You’re in charge of her,” he said, eating the pancakes, taking a sip of the hot coffee.

“Can I see the horses?” Darcy asked.

“Sure. We’ll go to the barn when we finish eating.” Maddie made the suggestion but watched Ty to make sure he was okay with that.

As the silence dragged, Maddie began to get annoyed. “We need to talk about this job,” she said.

He looked at her. “What about it?”