Millie Marries a Marshal, Page 6

  I can do this. I have to do this. Millie told herself as she took deep breaths and willed her feet to walk over to the waiting horse that looked curiously her way. Millie hoped it wasn’t the famed Nutcracker that everyone had talked about earlier.

  Hilda handed Millie a slice of apple when she got close to her new friends.

  “Millie, hold your palm out flat and steady and let Louise eat this apple slice. Her funny nose hairs will tickle your palm, but she won’t bite you…if you keep your hand flat.”

  Millie couldn’t keep her hand from shaking until Adam took her by the elbow and steadied her in front him at the horse’s head. “It’s okay, Millie. Hilda trains her animals to be calm and gentle. There’s no reason to be scared of this little mare.”

  “But she’s taller than me and could stomp on my foot,” Millie barely whispered. She couldn’t help leaning back on Adam to soak in his support and the strength of his warm chest.

  Cora was already sitting comfortably on a brown and white blotchy looking horse that she thought Hilda had called a palomino paint. “Just relax Millie, and talk to her,” encouraged Hilda.

  Oh dear. Cora is already at ease on top of a horse, and I’m afraid to stand near one?

  Millie’s brain scrambled to take in what Hilda was saying. “…just put your boot in the stirrup and swing your right leg over to the other side. Adam will steady you, so don’t be afraid.”

  She took a deep breath and did as she was told, with the help of Adam’s guidance. He patted her leg and said, “Now open your eyes and keep them open.” Millie realized she did have her eyes squeezed shut and opened them to stare at Adam’s twinkling, hazel eyes.

  Hilda had a hold on the mare’s reins. “Okay, Millie. Hold on to the pommel, that’s the horn-shaped piece on the front of the saddle, and I’ll lead you around for a bit first so you can get your balance.”

  Millie couldn’t help panicking, seeing how high she was off the ground, so she decided to stare ahead at the scenery instead. Adam kept his hand on her thigh to help keep her balanced, although it made Millie’s nerves tingle instead. She willed her attention off the man and onto the horse because she needed to learn how to ride. Besides it being a way of life here, Millie might need to know how to ride should she ever need to escape danger.

  ***

  Overall, Adam thought the morning’s lessons of riding and shooting had gone well. Cora knew how to ride, but Millie knew how to shoot, it turned out. After Millie got comfortable with the weight and length of each weapon, she picked off the targets like a pro. When asked about her knowing how to shoot, she just answered that her father had instructed her when she was a child.

  It was fun to watch Dagmar lean over, almost in half because of his height, to put his arms around petite Cora to steady the rifle for her. Hilda and Adam made eye contact and then rolled their eyes in unison, because they both knew that Cora was leading Dagmar on with her helpless act. Adam would bet a month’s salary that Cora could shoot a jumping prairie dog at twenty yards away, but she seemed to miss every target on purpose so Dagmar would “help” her with the next shot.

  Adam’s mother had shown up with a picnic lunch that they enjoyed while sitting on blankets in the shade of the barn. And the meal was topped off with a mouth-watering slice of Millie’s Sunshine Cake. The Paulson’s had received the angel food cake that Millie had used eleven egg whites to make. Adam wished he could have tasted that, but he was satisfied when Millie used the egg yolks for the cake they had just eaten. He was going to get fat—and spoiled—on her delicious baked goods. Millie was going to get the hotel’s baking job, if they could come up with a plan for someone to take care of Tate.

  Tate was warming up to Adam, even though they didn’t talk much. The star still bothered Tate for some reason. Adam figured out he could pick the boy up, if he took his badge off and stuck it in his pocket first.

  The relationship between Millie and her boy seemed odd to him at times, not the usual bond he’d seen between a mother and child. Maybe that was because of their home situation before coming to Kansas, but neither talked about Tate’s father, and supposedly Millie’s husband.

  Twice this week Adam found Tate visiting with Henry and Homer in front of the mercantile. At least both times Tate was fully clothed. Luckily the old men had appointed themselves as Tate’s unofficial babysitters. Tate wandered off as Millie got caught up in her baking, forgetting about him until thirty minutes later when she’d coming running down the street calling for him.

  There was something else that Adam wondered about. He would ask Tate, “Where’s your momma?” and the child would look around, tears forming in his baby blue eyes. When Adam asked where Millie was, Tate would point toward the house. Part of the time Tate called Millie “Illie” instead of “momma” too.

  Adam, as the town marshal, had gotten a wire from St. Louis asking if a young woman named Donovan, and a red-haired boy had arrived safely in Clear Creek. It wasn’t signed, which wasn’t unusual to save on the cost of a wire. Adam answered back right away as he was requested. Millie didn’t talk about her family. Her mother and siblings had all passed, and it sounded like the father didn’t have a presence in her life. Adam guessed the brother-in-law wanted to be sure Millie made it to her new home so he was the one who sent the wire.

  He didn’t know how single mothers like Millie made it in this world. And, he couldn’t help feeling a little bit of satisfaction knowing he was helping them both out. Adam felt blessed to have a close family and a good set of neighbors.

  Adam watched Tate toddle by with Hilda’s little mutt yipping at his heels. Maybe he’d get Tate a pet—but definitely something quieter than Hilda’s. Jacob brought in a dozen hens to Adam’s chicken house the first of the week so Millie would have fresh eggs, and darned if Tate didn’t capture one of the squawking chickens and carry it down to show Henry and Homer. Adam chuckled to himself, thinking of that scene he had come across.

  Everyone was enjoying themselves, but it was time for Adam to return to town. And he had also learned that it was best if Tate took a nap in the early afternoon. Only a week ago he was a carefree bachelor, immersed in the protection of Clear Creek.

  Why today, am I thinking about a child’s nap time instead?

  Chapter 9

  Millie, elbow deep in hot dishwater, looked out the kitchen window, watching Tate chase the kitten he and Adam had picked out yesterday from the neighbor’s latest cat litter. She’d have to rescue the poor little cat soon. Even though Adam patiently showed Tate how to be careful with the “baby”, it was going to need a nap, just like Tate. Adam had fenced in a section of the backyard so at least she didn’t have to worry about Tate escaping now—until he was old enough to figure out how to open the gate latch.

  Two weeks had done wonders for Tate’s weight and acceptance of his new life. The toddler was a chubby happy boy now, enjoying the simple pleasures of life and the people who doted on him. Tate still fussed at night, but never asked about his father.

  Millie thanked her lucky stars every day. The Wilerson women and Hilda stopped to visit when they were in town, plus women from the church welcomed her, even if she was living with the marshal. Cate’s announcement that she was a widow had nipped any gossip in the bud.

  Millie caught herself wishing—no pretending—that Adam was her husband coming home for lunch soon instead of just the town marshal she worked for.

  What would it feel like for Adam to come in the back door, hug her from behind when she stood at the sink and give her neck a kiss? Would the kiss tickle? What sweet words would he whisper in her ear?

  Millie remembered her parents doing just that sort of thing when she was young. It made her feel loved and secure, and Millie wished Tate could see that kind of relationship between parents as he grew up. He needed that solid foundation to build his own future.

  ***

  Sam had described his farm to Millie in his letters, but it was a harsh reality to finally see it in person. Jacob and
Rania had invited the family to their home after church today, of course including her and Tate. Millie sensed this dinner was planned for her to finally see the place she would have called home. Adam pulled the buggy near the house, but didn’t talk or get down. He sensed what an emotional moment this was for her.

  This would have been my house. Millie slowly looked at the outline of the one-story home, the placement of the door and windows; wondering what it would have felt like to wash their glass, look out them to see Sam’s and her children playing, watch storms roll over the prairie, see Sam walk toward the door at the end of his day.

  Other than the house, there was a small barn with corrals around it and a chicken house. Millie tried to tell herself this was like visiting any homestead, until she spied the row of tiny twigs with a few leaves on each one, planted in a straight line on the north side of the house.

  Sam had promised he would plant trees for Millie as soon as spring allowed. The saplings were so tiny, but he’d fulfilled his promise to her. She couldn’t help it when a whimper escaped her choked-up throat. This was supposed to be her home, her new start of a happy life with a loving man and their healthy children. Why did Sam have to die?

  She couldn’t see through her tears when someone reached for Tate and took him from her lap. But she felt Adam’s strong arms gently gather her into his chest, surrounding her with sympathy and concern. Oh what would she have done if the Wilersons hadn’t taken her and Tate into their fold? I would have been alone and penniless in a little Kansas town.

  She wasn’t sure how long Adam held her until her weeping subsided. Millie pulled away from Adam, immediately feeling the loss of his warmth and compassion, but she had to face the rest of the tour of the place. She knew tears would fall when they arrived at her—no, she needed to remember to think of it as the Hamner home—so she had her handkerchief already balled up in her hand to wipe away the tears that streaked her cheeks.

  “I’m going to be all right now.” She looked past Adam, realizing the whole family stood quietly with compassion as she faced the final blow of Sam’s death.

  She had to sniff up a tear, but she turned to Rania, “Thank you for having me out here today.” Millie then looked to each member of the family, “And thanks to all of you for your support. I needed to see where I would have lived, but I’m glad we waited. I’ve gotten to know Sam’s wonderful neighbors first.”

  Cate signaled for her and Adam to get down from the buggy. “Let’s finish the tour of the place, then you can put the past behind you. Life has other things in store for you, and I’m sure they are just as good.”

  Yes, Millie thought as she felt Adam’s hands around her waist, something just as good might be in town, if only a certain marshal would consider marrying her.

  Millie couldn’t help but compare Adam’s house to this house as the women walked through it together. The small rooms had a minimal amount of plain furniture, just what you’d expect from a bachelor furnishing a homestead house. Sam told her she could do whatever she wanted to make it a home once she arrived, but now she couldn’t think of what she would do, or would have done.

  Adam’s house had become her home in two short weeks, and she thought of feminine touches she’d like make there in certain areas. Instead of blushing, thinking of being with Sam in his bedroom, she was thinking of Adam’s room upstairs in his house. The bedroom across the hall from Adam’s room would be perfect for a nursery during the night when they were upstairs, and she could use the downstairs room off the kitchen as their baby’s day room.

  Oh, dear. Millie was appalled that she was thinking of another man while viewing her fiancé’s home. When had she fallen in love with Adam?

  “Come see ‘eep an’ little horsey!” Tate yelled as he rushed in the front door, plowing into Millie’s knees as she walked back into the front room of the house.

  “I believe Tate’s met my flock,” Rania chuckled. “Shall we continue the tour to the barn next, Millie?”

  Millie took in the simple shed where a few chickens scratched in the dirt around the structure. The barn was two-story, to accommodate hay storage above the lower section of stalls. She knew that much about barns after she and Tate had crawled into the hayloft of Boyer’s livery barn, twice, their first night in Clear Creek.

  Jacob caught Tate as he rushed toward the three animals where the men were standing. “Here Tate. Now you can ride King. Hold on to his fur, but don’t kick him with your feet. You have to sit real still, okay?”

  Oh, what a sight! Tate sat on the back of the largest white dog Millie had ever seen, Jacob walked beside them, ready to steady Tate when he was sure to slide off… with two sheep trailing behind the trio.

  “Will show Momma!”

  “Yes, you’ll have to show your mother the dog and sheep when she gets here…”

  Millie froze as everyone turned to stare at her. Oh. No. She’d been worried about Tate letting their secret slip—and she had just done it herself.

  Millie watched Adam’s expression change instantly from friendly to calculating and cold. It was crystal clear that the marshal did not like being deceived, especially by the woman living under his roof.

  Surprisingly it was Cora who spoke up before Adam. “Tate, how about if you and I see how far King will take you into his pasture? Maybe he has a secret place he’d like to show us.” Cora gave Millie a sympathetic nod and then led King away from the adults.

  Tell the truth, Lassie. You know it will come out eventually. Millie pursed her lips, and sucked air into her lungs thinking of her father’s words.

  “I’m sorry…I let you think my sister was dead when Adam assumed it. I was trying to protect Tate.”

  “And Tate is…” Cate asked, but Millie guessed she had an inkling of who he was.

  “My sister’s son.”

  Millie felt Adam’s eyes bore into her head, even though she didn’t turn toward him. “Did Sam know you were bringing Tate with you?”

  She had done nothing wrong, so she met Adam’s eyes straight on. “Yes, well he would have… Darcie asked me to take Tate with me so I wrote to Sam right away. Unfortunately, he didn’t get the letter, did he?” Another thought quickly lit in her mind. “So where did the letter go if it wasn’t with Sam’s things?” She tried to squash the panic that threatened to grow in her chest.

  “I imagine the post master sent it back to the name and address on the envelope.”

  “Oh no. Oh no. It cannot go back to Darcie’s house.”

  “And why not?” demanded Adam.

  Dots appeared in her vision as a panic attack started to develop at the thought. “Her husband always gets the mail, and he’ll find out where we are.”

  Cate’s arm across Millie’s shoulders helped her regain her composure. I have to figure this out, think this though.

  “I think it’s time you tell us what’s going on, Millie. Sam can’t help you, but we can,” Cate quietly stated as they walked back to the front porch. “Please start from the beginning.”

  Millie took a deep breath, looking out to Tate and Cora wandering around the pasture.

  “Darcie was so happy when Curtis Robbins asked our Da, I mean our father, if he could marry her. Curtis was handsome, and Darcie assumed he was a good man, seemed to be respected by everyone.” Millie paused to glance at Adam. “He…worked with my father.”

  “It wasn’t long after they were married that Curtis became very possessive and demeaning. He was a wonderful husband when our father was around, but a different man when I was alone with them. And I feared what he was like to Darcie when I wasn’t there.

  “Against Darcie’s protests, he decided they’d move after Tate was born. Da and I didn’t know where they were for several months until Darcie’s neighbor mailed a letter to me. They were in St. Louis; just far enough away we couldn’t visit easily. After that, Darcie and I wrote back and forth through her neighbor.”

  Hilda let out an exasperated breath. “Why didn’t your father go get her a
nd Tate then?” Millie looked at Sarah and Rania, holding on to Cate’s arms as they heard her story, and as usual Hilda had her fists up and ready to charge in to help.

  “Da wouldn’t tell me what, but Curtis had something on him or the family, something that made Da back off from getting involved in their marriage. That’s when I decided to advertise as a mail-order bride out west. I’d disappear out on the frontier, and then Darcie and Tate would follow when it was safe.”

  “So what went wrong since Tate is with you, but not your sister?” Cate was the next person to ask a question.

  “Darcie became pregnant again, and too sick to write according to the neighbor. She said to come when the baby was due so I kept working to make more money for their escape.”

  “So you led Sam on, planning to use his money and his home as a place for the four of you to live?” Adam ground out.

  Millie met Adam’s glare, getting tired of this man’s accusations. “No, I did not lead him on. I would have been a loving and faithful wife to Sam. But yes, our home, Sam’s and mine, would be a safe haven for my sister and her babies until she could get on her feet. That’s what family does, right? Wouldn’t you do that for your family and vice versa?”

  Chapter 10

  Adam lowered his glare at Millie’s last question. She was right. He would help his family, and knew Millie would do the same for hers, seeing how she was covering up for her sister, pretending to be her nephew’s mother while living in Clear Creek.

  “I’m sorry, Millie. You’re right. And Sam would have helped your family any way he could. So what happened after you got to your sister’s home?”

  He hated when she paused, almost at a loss for words and then she hugged herself. “I hardly recognized my sister. She was so thin, even if she was about to give birth. The left side of her face had shades of yellow shadowing it…and I’m positive her right wrist was broken it was so swollen. Tate wasn’t in much better shape as you remember. Curtis ate most of his meals out, rarely bringing home decent food or giving Darcie money to go buy supplies when she felt up to it. The widow lady next door was sneaking food to them, and using her own money for Darcie’s stamps for mailing the letters.”