Love's Sweet Surrender (19 page)

The guest room was small, but it suited her just fine. It had a fair-sized bed with a pretty bedspread adorned with intricate patterns of flowers and birds that were done by needlepoint. Having done some of that with Kathleen, she knew how long this must have taken someone to do, and it was magnificent!

The bureau appeared to be very sturdy although clearly handmade.

Running her hand over its top, she wondered if Seth had made it. A moment later, she noticed the rocker in the corner. Its hand-carved seat gleamed in the sunshine streaming through the lace curtains on the window. Lily stopped to smooth her hand over the shiny surface when she saw the small pillow gracing the back of the seat. She picked it up to examine it, and her heart sank when she read the letters stitched into the fabric.

Seth and Victoria. Married May 21st, 1871.

The pillow was so pretty and each stitch exhibited so much love, she couldn’t continue to hold it. It hurt to see how much love the two of them had shared here in this house.

The rocker had to have been made by Seth for his beautiful Victoria to rock his newborn children in.

Lily suddenly felt completely inadequate when it came to womanly skills when she realized she had never been very handy with needlepoint.

She had been too busy working with Edward on the numbers and just couldn't be concerned about needlepoint or sewing. Kathleen had tried to teach her, she really had, but Lily hadn’t been interested. Numbers fascinated her as well as the records Edward kept for his shipping business, so if given the choice, she would always choose to follow Edward to the shipyard. She could get by with cooking and mending, but when it came down to the finer aspects of womanly crafts, she felt she'd failed miserably.

She would in no way be able to compete with the pretty things that Ebook piracy is stealing. It is a federal offense.

Report ebook piracy to [email protected].

Love’s Sweet Surrender

121

surrounded her in this room, especially the things that screamed of a woman’s presence. This house held the presence of the one woman she hoped she would never have to compete with for Seth’s affection, Victoria Sanford.

Lily spent the rest of the day in the guest room while she tried to come to terms with her feelings for Seth. She knew she cared for him more than she should at this point, but she couldn’t stop the way her heart fluttered in her chest when her eyes met his. She couldn’t stop how she leaned into his kiss whenever his lips met hers and he traced her mouth with his tongue.

When he’d actually invaded her mouth, the heat pooling between her legs had almost been her undoing.

He had also been her saving grace in this crazy town, even before she had arrived. Seth had been responsible for saving her on the train from the robbers, saving her from the townspeople who wanted to send her home, and saving her from the men who tried to attack her the night before. Now she was here, in his home. What was he doing? He was here to save her from herself so she could muster her courage to return and continue to live in her home by herself.

It was so clear that he loved Victoria with all his heart and probably would never be able to love anyone else. He had said so himself hadn’t he?

He'd told her he would never be able to move on until Victoria’s killers were found, so why didn’t she listen? Tears rolled down her cheeks while she stared out the window.

The afternoon wore on, and the sun began to slip behind the hills when Carmen came to the guest room to tell her supper was ready. She pulled herself up from the rocker where she had dropped when she realized her feelings for Seth ran deeper than they should. Her heart lay heavy in her chest as she walked down the hall toward the dining room. The smiling faces of the Sanford children met her gaze when she headed for the table.

The love she felt for them overwhelmed her, and she had to fight back her tears.

Johnny pulled out her chair and said, “Mrs. Backman, you can sit here by me."

“Why thank you, Johnny. That’s very kind of you.” She took the seat next to him, which also put her at his father’s elbow, since Seth sat at the head of the table.

Ebook piracy is stealing. It is a federal offense.

Report ebook piracy to [email protected].

122

Sandy Sullivan

* * * *

The afternoon had been a long one for Seth. He’d spent the day doing small chores in the barn to avoid Lily. It probably hadn’t been a good idea to bring her here, but he couldn’t leave her alone, not after the attack last night.

The guilt he harbored was enough to bring him to his knees. If he hadn’t already shown her how to shoot, she could have been seriously hurt or killed, and the thought brought a knot to his stomach.

The look on her face when she entered the dining room was

disconcerting and made him frown. Before he could comment, Johnny said,

“I’ll say grace.”

“Thanks, son,” Seth murmured as he looked from his son back to Lily again.

After grace everyone started eating, and conversation was limited between the two adults while the children chattered aimlessly. Talk around the table centered on work around the house and what the children had done that day.

Lily stayed very quiet during supper, Seth noticed. She kept her head down and picked at her food, and it bothered him. It wasn’t like her to be so quiet.

When supper was finished, she quickly began picking up the plates and dishes and taking them to the kitchen to help Carmen clean up.

Seth sent Johnny and Jarod out to finish feeding the animals and Anne off to get ready for bed while he picked up the final dish and carried it to the kitchen.

The two women were chattering about the proper way to can beans, or something, but when Seth walked in, all conversation ceased.

“Carmen, can you put on some water for Anne’s bath, please? She’s been out in the dirt all day and really could use a good cleaning.”

“Of course, Mr. Seth. It should be warm in just a few minutes since the stove is still hot from supper.”

“I’ll help her, if it’s all right with you.” Lily met his gaze for the first time since she’d come out for supper.

Ebook piracy is stealing. It is a federal offense.

Report ebook piracy to [email protected].

Love’s Sweet Surrender

123

"I know she’d like that." Suddenly he felt uncomfortable in his own home. “I'm going out to check the mare.” He turned on his heel and quickly headed out the front door.

Out in the barn Seth paced. The mare was fine. It had just been an excuse to get out of the house. With Carmen and Lily in the kitchen talking, he felt like he was intruding in his own home, in his own kitchen.
Why all of
the sudden do I feel uncomfortable? Maybe it’s how easily Lily fits in my
home, Victoria’s home? It is still Victoria’s home, isn’t it? Maybe I need to
finally let her go. No! She’s only been gone six months, six long and lonely
months.

He continued to tread up and down the floor of the barn until the mare started to shift back and forth in her stall. His attention returned to the horse and the coming foal.

“Easy girl,” he said, moving into the enclosure with her and stroking her with his hands, trying to calm her as the contractions gripped her.

* * * *

Lily had helped Anne with her bath and settled the little girl down to sleep. She’d sat in her room and read a story while Anne drifted off into what Lily hoped was a peaceful sleep. When she had returned to the front room, she was surprised to see Seth hadn’t come back into the house from the barn. The boys were playing quietly in their room.

The minutes ticked by and Seth didn’t return, so Lily peeked out the front curtains and could see a lantern lit in the barn.

The horse must be doing poorly.
Grabbing her shawl, she opened the door to head to the large structure. Dark was fast approaching, and it was still fairly cool in the evening air as she pulled the shawl tighter around her shoulders.

Approaching, she could hear Seth talking softly to the mare. The low hum of his voice sent shivers down her arms while she listened to the calming whispers.

“Easy girl. I know this is hard, but you’ll be fine. Just relax.”

Lily followed his voice to a stall near the back, where she could see the mare lying on the soft straw, bathed in sweat and breathing very hard.

Ebook piracy is stealing. It is a federal offense.

Report ebook piracy to [email protected].

124

Sandy Sullivan

“Is she all right, Seth?” Lily kept her voice in a low whisper while she leaned on the wall nearest her.

“She’ll be fine. She’s having a bit of a hard labor, that’s all.”

She could hear the worry in his voice although he tried to appear calm.

His hair clung to his brow when he wiped his face with his shirt.

Shirtsleeves rolled up to his elbows revealed strong, muscular arms heavily corded under the skin. His hands moved tenderly as he stroked the laboring horse.

“Is there something I can do?” She was afraid to approach, lest she spook the horse and make her to hurt herself.

He motioned to the room across from where he now sat, crouched with the mare. “It’s starting to cool off outside. Could you grab one of those blankets that are rolled up in the tack room over there? I need to keep her warm.”

“Of course.” She was only too happy to leave his side for a moment to catch her breath. Watching him stroke the mare with his big hands was doing things to her breathing she didn’t want to identify.

When she returned, she gave the blanket to him, but when he looked up at her and smiled, her breath caught in her throat.

* * * *

The smile slid from Seth’s lips while he continued to stare at the beautiful woman before him. She was perfect. It made him cringe to think of what must run through her brain that he could never comprehend. She knew exactly what to say to his children, whether they were misbehaving, or just needed a little encouragement. She didn’t even have to say anything to make his blood rush through his veins to the point where he could hear it pulsating in his ears.

The mare began to thrash and tried to rise to her feet, drawing his attention back. “Oh hell.”

“Something wrong?” Her voice came out with a squeak while her chest rose and fell with her rapid breaths.

“Yeah, you could say that,” he grumbled, moving down near the back end of the horse. Pulling her tail aside, he started to curse. “The foal’s trying to come out nose first.”

Ebook piracy is stealing. It is a federal offense.

Report ebook piracy to [email protected].

Love’s Sweet Surrender

125

“Is that bad?” She stepped closer while he tried to focus on the mare.

“Yeah. It needs to come out feet first, so I’m going to have to try to help her. I need you to help me get her to stand. Grab her halter.”

He tried to push the nose of the foal back into the mare’s birth canal, but it didn't work. Lily went to the front of the mare, grabbed her halter and tried to pull her to her feet, without much success.

“Talk to her, Lily. She’ll listen.”

“Come on, girl. You need to stand up.” Lily coaxed softly, tugging on her halter again, and the mare rolled more onto her stomach, pulling her feet under her. “That’s it, pretty girl. Come on. Stand up for me.” Seth was amazed as Lily continued to tug more and the mare managed to struggle to her feet.

“All right, now get her to walk a little. Lead her by the halter around a bit so the foal will slide back into her birth canal.”

He positioned himself behind the mare to make sure the foal slid back in as Lily continued to walk her around the barn. Lily lead her back into the stall, and the mare went down on her knees, then onto her side, while the contractions rippled along her stomach.

“Now, let’s see if this little one will make its appearance without any more help from us.” He moved back to his position at her hind end to see if the foal was now coming out correctly. “That’s it, girl. You’ve got it now.”

A moment later, two hoofs protruded from the back of the horse. Lily moved around to stand next to him while he continued calmly to encourage the mare. The mare’s belly continued to ripple with each contraction, and Lily stood with her mouth open while the new foal slipped from the mare into the straw at their feet.

When it was all over, she sank down next to the mare’s head. Lily stroked her nose and talked softly to her while Seth cleaned the birthing sack from the new colt. Soon after, the mare struggled to her feet and turned around to nuzzle the pretty new baby.

While the new baby and mother bonded, Seth wiped the fluids from his arms and then noticed Lily sitting with tears on her cheeks and a soft smile to her lips. The sight left him speechless for a moment.

When he held out his hand to her, she slipped hers into his palm and pulled herself to her feet before she wiped the tears from her cheeks.

Ebook piracy is stealing. It is a federal offense.

Report ebook piracy to [email protected].

126

Sandy Sullivan

“It is pretty amazing to watch, isn’t it?” They turned to see the new mother and her baby standing quietly in the stall. After a moment they shut the stall door behind them and moved out into the main barn.

“I’ve never seen anything so beautiful in my life. It was just amazing.

And to watch you help her! I just couldn’t believe it.”

Uncomfortable with her praise, he changed the subject. “Are the children in bed already?”

“Yes, I hope you don’t mind. I tucked them all in, and they settled down quite nicely. I left the boys playing in their room, but I see their lamp is out now, so they must be in bed.”

The moon hung high in the sky and illuminated the yard as they walked toward the house. The light reflected like diamonds, sparkling on the tears still lingering on her lashes, and he fought the urge to wipe them away.

“I don’t mind. They can sure be a handful at times. Thanks for taking care of them for me while I was tied up with the mare.”