Robin Lee Hatcher (35 page)
Authors: Wagered Heart
“Hutchens!”
“Shut up, Richards.” Sheriff Cook looked at his deputy. “Keep an eye on all of them.” He turned to Hutchens. “Now, why don’t you take me to that office so I can have a look-see for myself.”
Silence prevailed in the dining room for several moments after Hutchens and the sheriff disappeared from view. Then Bethany looked up at Hawk. “It’s over.”
He pulled her into his arms and buried his face in her hair. Holding her, some of the dread he’d felt when he learned Vince had taken her began to drain away.
“I’m unharmed, Hawk. So is the baby.”
He drew back and cradled her face between his hands. “If I’d lost you . . .” He let the sentiment go unfinished.
“But you didn’t. I’m right here.” She glanced toward Vince. “He can’t hurt us again. It’s over.”
Of all the ways Hawk might have imagined God would bring truth into the open and set him free, what had just happened wasn’t one of them. Apparently the book of Romans was right. It was better to leave vengeance to God. And instead embrace the miracle that was his wife and child.
Nine months later
Bethany looked in the direction of the springs even as the orange sun slipped behind the highest peak. She could see the skeleton of their new home rising against the darkening mountainside. The sounds of hammering had faded as daylight waned. Hawk would be here soon.
She glanced at the infant in her arms, and then lowered her lips to brush them against the baby’s downy head. Everything about this child amazed and delighted her. That their love could create something so perfect, so precious was a miracle beyond all else.
When the baby girl arrived on a hot July night, they’d named her Phoebe because she was so like her father — dark eyed, black hair, firm chin. The daughter, Phoebe, a small bird. The father, Hawk, swift and strong.
Thank you, Father. Thank you for them both.
Phoebe wriggled. Her lips sucked at the air and a frown wrinkled her forehead.
“Are you hungry, little bird?”
Bethany turned with a contented sigh and went into the house, leaving the door open to catch the evening breeze. She sat on the sofa beneath the parlor window, unbuttoned her bodice, and brought Phoebe to her breast. The baby suckled noisily.
“You’ll not stay small very long with such an appetite.” She stroked the baby’s cheek with her index finger.
As often happened when she was alone with Phoebe, her thoughts began to wander, settling on one thing one moment, moving to another the next.
Ingrid and Rand’s little boy, RJ, would soon be crawling. It amazed her how quickly babies grew and changed. Yesterday, Ingrid had told her that she would have another baby come next spring.
Bethany smiled. Rand should have built a bigger cabin.
A new pastor, the Reverend Talbot, had arrived in Sweet-water before Phoebe was born. Bethany liked him, although she missed the Sunday mornings when she and Hawk had read the Bible to one another and shared what God had laid on their hearts. She imagined at times that her father was looking down from heaven and nodding his approval. He would be pleased with the man her husband had become. She hoped he would be pleased with the changes that had taken place in her as well.
In the spring, Bethany had struck a deal with Mr. Grant. The bakery was no longer hers, but to her surprise, he didn’t change the name. “People like you,” he’d said when she asked about it. So Bethany’s Bakery it remained.
She thought then about Jasper Hutchens. He had left Sweet-water after the trial of Vince Richards was over, but Bethany would never forget him nor would she cease to pray for God to bless him for clearing her husband’s name and putting her fears to an end.
So many things to be thankful for.
The room was bathed in shadows by the time Hawk stepped through the doorway. He paused a moment and smiled at her. Even in the dim light, she could read the love in his eyes. Love for her. Love for Phoebe.
He crossed to the sofa and leaned down to kiss the crown of her head, repeating the action with the baby. Knowing what he wanted before he asked, Bethany lifted the sleepy infant into his waiting arms.
“Look at you,” he said as he straightened. “You’re the prettiest little girl in the world.” He rocked from side to side. “Maybe we’ll get you a kitten or a puppy for your first birthday. What would you think of that? And when you’re older, we’ll get you a pony, and we’ll go riding every day.”
Bethany laughed. “You’re going to spoil her, aren’t you?”
“Only as much as your father spoiled you.”
“Mercy. She’ll be a handful if that’s true.”
“I’m sure of it.” He pulled her up from the sofa with his free arm and drew her to his side.
Was it possible to be too happy? Bethany wondered. Could a heart burst from an overabundance of joy?
As she looked at her husband, she remembered how unreadable she’d once thought his eyes. But that had all changed. Love had made the difference. She had become a part of him as he had become a part of her.
“I love you,” he whispered.
She sighed, remembering how she had longed to hear those words while at the same time refusing to say them herself. What a fool she’d been. “I love you too.”
They walked together into the bedroom where Hawk laid the baby in her cradle.
“She looks more like you every day.” He straightened. “Beautiful, like you.”
“You’re wrong. She takes after you in every way. Beautiful, yes, but like you. That will never change.”
He grinned as he brought his head close to hers. “Care to make a wager on that, Mrs. Chandler?”
She laughed again. “You’ll lose.”
“Ah, that’s something I’ve learned since the day we first met.” He lifted her into his arms. “When you win, my love, so do I. I’ll wager my heart on that truth until kingdom comes.”
Dear Reader:
I began my storytelling career with historical fiction written for the general market. My favorite books to read back then were the sweeping historical sagas that were so popular in the late 1970s and early 1980s. I took great pleasure in immersing my imagination in other times and places. Thus, those types of stories were what I first attempted to write. And, being a romantic at heart, my books couldn’t avoid including a love story.
But eventually a greater love story demanded to become a part of my books — the love story between God and mankind — and so the Lord led me into a new career, writing faith-based fiction, both historical and contemporary, for the Christian market, stories that I hope will please Him as well as my readers.
Hawk and Bethany first found their way into my imagination and onto my computer screen about twenty years ago. After all this time, I’m delighted that I was able to revisit these two characters and bring their love story to life on the page in a new and better way. I hope you enjoyed your visit to Sweetwater, Montana, as much as I did.
In the grip of his grace,
Robin Lee Hatcher
www.robinleehatcher.com
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