The Wedding Promise

She’d thought about him for three days. And now he was here, appearing at the crest of the long slope, atop his big horse, making his way to where she stood.

“I came out to see if you were needing anything, ma’am.”

Rachel considered the man standing before her. He’d been studying her with a penetrating eye, all the way up the hill, as if he could somehow see beneath the wash dress she wore. And then he’d offered a neighborly suggestion.

Did she need anything? Here she stood, fresh from praying upon the highest spot available in the valley, as if the height of the small hill could somehow make her more noticeable to heaven’s eye. She’d just asked God’s help in stretching her pitiful supply of money. There was about enough left to feed her brothers for another week or so, but not much longer.

With the oatmeal about done for and the flour gone weevily when she made biscuits this morning, she’d had to face the facts. She’d shuddered as she sifted the small brown bugs from her measuring cup, and cast them out the door of the shack. She’d manage to feed the boys a while longer, but even after the trip to town, the end of her supplies was in sight.

And so was the bottom of her small cache of coins.

Now here, as if he bore a message from the Almighty, came the man who’d not been far from her thoughts since Thursday, when he’d announced his ownership of the very spot they’d taken over as their own.

“Do we need anything?” She repeated his words and her voice was alive with wry incredulity. “I suppose I should be polite and tell you that my brothers and I have everything under control, Mr. McPherson.”

Vainly, she tried to smile, but the worry of the long night hours had left her without a trace of good humor.

Cord McPherson swept his wide-brimmed hat from his head and slapped it against his thigh. “I’m not looking for niceties from you, ma’am. I’d take the truth over a polite denial any day of the week.”

“We can survive for a while,” she said finally, her breath escaping in a sigh. “We had enough food to last a month or so, when we got here, with fresh meat and fish to fill in. But we’ve about reached the bottom of the barrel, and I don’t know how many more trips to the store in Green Rapids we can afford.”

“Green Rapids? You’ve been there?”

She nodded. “I wasn’t sure I could find the way back there, to tell the truth, but we made it.”

He nodded. “Any problems in town?”

“No.” She smiled, remembering the welcome they’d received. “The shopkeeper was pleasant. He gave me a tin of tea as a gift.”

His brow lifted in disbelief. “Conrad?”

“He seemed very nice,” she said primly, her eyes lowered, her cheeks flushing, unable to meet his gaze.

“I’ll just bet he did.” His words were gruff, and he settled his hands against his hips.

“I didn’t expect you back,” she said finally.

“I told you I’d come.”

Her shrug was answer enough, he decided. She’d probably hoped he wouldn’t show up, if he knew anything about it.

“Anybody give you any trouble here?” He looked beyond her to where the shack huddled in the small valley, the two horses tethered on the other side of the stream, the empty wagon under a tree.

“No.” She shook her head. “A man rode up yesterday and looked things over. But he left after a few minutes.”

“Probably Moses havin’ a look-see. I told him if he got a chance, to check on you.”

“Moses?” She rolled the name on her tongue, her quick mind nudging her dormant sense of humor. “Do you suppose he thought he’d discovered the promised land?” The wave of her slender hand encompassed the shack and its surroundings.

His chuckle warmed her. “And here I thought you didn’t have a lick of jocularity to your name.”

She caught a glimpse of white teeth beneath his dark mustache when he smiled. She’d had little to brighten her days lately, other than meeting Conrad Carson. And even that small bit of pleasure had not been enough to lift her spirits for long.

In fact, until this very minute, she’d about decided life had reached rock bottom.

The small valley had seemed an Eden of sorts for a while. Only when the store of supplies began running out had she faced facts. Eden would soon pale once the cornmeal and sugar sacks were emptied.

“You asked me to come to your place and do your washing, Mr. McPherson. Does the offer still hold?” Unbidden, the words rushed from her lips and she hesitated, her cheeks flushing with her own temerity as she waited his reply.

His fingers gripped the dented top of his hat and he swept it from his head. “Matter of fact, that’s the very reason I came out here this morning,” he said politely.

Her heart skipped a beat and she felt a rush of warmth flow through her veins. That her prayer should be answered so quickly was surely a sign.

“You want me to go back with you and work on your laundry?” she asked, her mind already speeding ahead to the preparations she must make, were that the case.

His mouth quirked at one corner, and she wondered if he were mocking her eagerness. And then he grinned outright, a smile that carried a welcome message. “More than that, I want you to take on some cooking chores, if you will.”

“If there’s any great amount of washing to do, it may take the rest of the day,” she countered. “I might not have much time left over to spend cooking a big meal for you.”

He ran long fingers through his hair, scratching a spot at the crown, as if he pondered her words. Then the big hat went back in place over his dark hair and he set his jaw, as if he had reached a decision and would not be swayed.

“I’d thought you might be persuaded to take on the ranch kitchen. Just to see if you could handle it. It’s probably too much of a job for a girl like you to cope with, but—”

“I’m far from a young girl, Mr. McPherson,” she said sharply, interrupting him. “I’ve been cooking and scrubbing out the washing on a board for several months now. I’m sure I can handle cooking for a man and doing his clothes without much effort at all.”

Her mouth set primly, she awaited his reply, her pride the issue now. If he thought for one minute she was too puny to be of any use, he could just…Just what? Find someone else for the job? When she so desperately needed the security of cash money in her hand and food for the table?

“Well…” He seemed to hesitate, and she urged him silently, her mouth firm, her eyes intent on his, her breath stored tightly in her lungs, as if she feared to release it before he made up his mind.

“It’s not just for me,” he told her. “There’s my brother, too. Plus four ranch hands and Sam. He’s been cookin’ for us, but I doubt he’ll ever be able to put a decent meal together to save his soul. That’s seven men to cook for. The washing is just for me and my brother, but if you wanted to earn more money, I’m sure the men would be happy to get their duds scrubbed out on a regular basis. They like clean clothes come Saturday night, usually.”

Seven men! The image was daunting, but Rachel swallowed her urge to spew the words aloud. She caught her breath, her mind in a whirl. If the ranch house was farther than an hour away, she’d spend much of the day driving the wagon back and forth and never have time to do her own work here.

And then there was the question of the boys.

“Can I bring my brothers along for the day?” she asked, her heart beating rapidly as she bargained.

His shrug was casual. “Don’t know why not They can give you a hand, maybe. Or just pitch in with the barn work.”

She glanced at the shack, where Jay had just appeared in the doorway. “They’ll need to eat, too. If I’m cooking for you, it will be for nine, not just seven.”

“Ten,” he corrected her. “I’ll expect you to share the table with us, Miss Sinclair.” His eyes lit with a glow of triumph and she noted it uneasily.

“How far from here is the house?”

“Better than an hour in a wagon,” he told her. “Little less on horseback.”

“It’ll take me a few minutes to get the boys ready and set things to rights here.” She brushed her hands against the front of her skirt. “I probably should change my clothes too.”