Robin Lee Hatcher (10 page)

From this vantage point, they had a clear view of the rocky mountain sentinels that surrounded the basin. Through the dense woods below them, they caught glimpses of the crystal-clear lakes that dotted the area, the icy waters fed by melting glaciers, and the Salmon River that wove through the tall, drying grass on the valley floor. The colors of autumn were everywhere. Reds and oranges and yellows were splashed among the forest greens, aspen and birch trees quivering in the breeze.

“It’s so . . . so untouched,” Emily said, her tone reverent.

Gavin dismounted and walked to her horse. “Let me help you down. There’s a spot over there where you can see even more.”

Their eyes met, and he saw the wariness there. Did she think he would drop her? She might, given how coolly he’d treated her from the beginning. At last, she leaned forward and placed her hands on his shoulders, allowing him to lower her to the ground. She was light, yet there was something real and solid about her. Not like Dru, who was wasting away to nothing.

The breeze ruffled the net of her bonnet and teased him with whiffs of her honeysuckle cologne.

“Thank you, Mr. Blake.”

It wasn’t until she pulled away that he realized he’d held onto her waist after her feet touched the ground. He rubbed his palms on his trouser legs and turned toward the children, hoping they could distract him from the unwelcome sense of loss that had filled him after Emily moved from his grasp.

Nine

Sabrina didn’t always like being the oldest. Sometimes it was hard. She knew things her little sister didn’t know. Sometimes she heard the adults talking when they thought she was asleep. Other times they thought she wasn’t smart enough to understand what they were saying. But she
was
smart enough. She
did
understand. She longed to be able to talk to somebody about the things she heard and the things she knew. But who? She couldn’t talk to her little sister about any of it because it might scare her. She couldn’t talk to Ma because Ma didn’t want her to know.

Sabrina remembered when their pa was gored by the bull. Not Gavin, their new pa, but their real pa. She’d heard her ma weeping after Mr. Martin and Mr. Chamberlain brought him home in the wagon, and she’d known he was gonna die. Nobody had to tell her. She’d just known. And now she knew their ma was gonna die too. Ma tried to hide it, tried real hard, but Sabrina still knew.

Some days it was nice to pretend she didn’t know. Days like today, up there on the ridge with her pa and Miss Harris and Petula. Days when she could play games, like she and her sister were doing now. The two girls stood with their backs pressed against a tree, waiting to see if Miss Harris would find them in their game of hide and seek.

“Brina?” Petula tugged on her skirt. “What’re those?” She pointed at large prints carved into the hardened earth.

Sabrina studied the prints, then answered, “Bear tracks, I think.”

“Is there a bear around here now?” Her little sister scooted closer to Sabrina’s side.

”Shh.” She put an index finger to her lips. “We don’t want Miss Harris to hear us.”

“But is the bear around?”

“No, those tracks are old. They were made when the ground was muddy. See? It’s hard now.”

“I’m scared of bears, Brina. I think we oughta go back. Miss Harris would be scared too if she knew there was a bear around here.”

As if summoned, Miss Harris called for them. “Brina! Pet! Game’s over. You win. Your father says it’s time to go.”

Sabrina squeezed Petula’s hand. “Let’s see if it scares her.” She grinned. “Let’s pretend there’s a bear chasing us.”

“Come on, girls.” Miss Harris’s voice was closer now. “We don’t want to be gone so long that it worries your mother.”

Sabrina let go of her sister’s hand and ran from their hiding place. “A bear! There’s a bear after us!”

Petula shrieked as she followed right behind.

Sabrina had expected their governess to turn and run away with them.

Instead, Miss Harris grabbed each of them by their hands before they could rush past her, drawing them to a sudden halt. “I’ve never seen a bear before. Let’s wait and have a look at him. Is he very big? What color is he?”

Sabrina felt a flash of panic. What if there was a bear? What if the prints weren’t old?

“You know, girls.” Miss Harris leaned down, her tone ominous. “When you want to play a trick on someone, make sure they’re not listening on the other side of the tree. It spoils the surprise.” She dropped their hands and tapped Sabrina and Petula on the tops of their heads. “Tag! You’re both it.”

Lifting the hem of her riding habit, her laughter trailing behind her, Miss Harris raced away from them. Sabrina turned a startled expression on her sister, then took out after their governess.

Gavin turned from the horses in time to see Emily run out of the trees. She had removed her hat earlier and now her hair had tumbled free of its pinnings. It flew out behind her like pale gold wings, and her laughter rang like bells in a mountain cathedral.

Sabrina appeared a moment later, intent on catching her governess. Petula’s shouts were heard long before her short legs carried her into the clearing. But Emily was too quick for either of them.

Joker evened the field. The young hound bounded into Emily’s path. She tried to stop, but it was too late. Over the dog she went. Sabrina, in hot pursuit, fell onto her governess, then the two of them tumbled head over heels down a grassy incline. Seconds later, Petula threw herself after them.

Gavin hurried forward, but by the time he reached them, their giggles told him no one was hurt.

“You’re it, Miss Harris,” Sabrina said.

“Yeah, you’re it, Miss Harris.”

Emily’s cheeks were flushed, and her tangled hair was decorated with dried grass. A smudge of dirt accented the tip of her chin. “Where is he?”

Gavin thought she meant him and almost answered her.

Then she swung around. “Ah! So there you are.”

Joker lay on the ground a few feet away, his head flat against the ground, a paw on either side of his muzzle, a look of contrition in his dark eyes. His tail slapped the ground in a slow beat.

“Benedict Arnold.”

Joker whined and inched his way forward.

“Don’t think you’ll win my forgiveness so easily.” Emily turned away, her nose pointed into the air.

The dog slinked across the remaining distance and placed his chin on her thigh. His whimper pleaded for absolution.

Gavin stepped forward, wondering how she would respond.

“This time, you mangy hound.” She stroked the wiry hair on top of dog’s head. “But don’t you turn traitor on me again.”

Joker sat up and barked.

Laughter filled the air again as the girls each gave the dog a tight hug. Then Joker was up and running, Sabrina and Petula racing after him.

Gratitude washed over Gavin. It was good to see the children acting carefree. He might not want Emily Harris around, but he had to concede that the girls and Dru liked her. She had brought happiness back into the Blake home.

He moved to stand above Emily. “Let me help you up.” He took her by the hand and pulled her to her feet. “I’m afraid Joker’s antics may have ruined your dress.” He pointed to a ragged tear in her sleeve.

She inspected the damage, then shook her head. “It will mend.” With her eyes, she sought out the girls, who were by then rolling in the grass with Joker. “It’s worth it.”

An odd sensation twisted in his chest, a feeling he didn’t much like nor wish to understand. “Like I said, we need to be heading back.” He turned toward the horses. “We’ve been up here too long as it is.”

On the ride down the mountain, Emily found herself watching Gavin as he led the way. He rode his horse with a relaxed ease, but she suspected he was alert for hidden dangers. There was something about him that made her feel protected.

In fact there were many reasons to like Gavin Blake, his gentleness with his wife and his affection for his stepdaughters chief among them. If only he weren’t so cantankerous with her. She’d given him no reason to be. None at all.

There had been a moment, when he’d helped her to her feet up on the ridge, that she’d almost felt she had earned his approval. Or at least a little respect. But then he’d spoken to her in that same abrupt and clipped manner of his. The manner he only seemed to use with her. She felt so frustrated she wanted to scream.

Miserable, impossible man.

Guilt pierced her heart. It wasn’t right to think that way about another person, no matter how he had offended her. Christ called her to love her enemies, and from all appearances, Gavin Blake fit that bill. No matter how he treated her, she mustn’t respond to him in kind. If he sued her for her coat, she must give her cloak as well. If he smite her one cheek, she was told to offer him the other one.

You will not drive me away with your brusque behavior and ill
humors, Mr. Blake. Before the spring, you will acknowledge you were
wrong about me. Before I go home, you will realize that your wife hired
the right person for the job. So help me, you will.

Gavin stopped his horse when they reached the valley floor. Sabrina nudged her horse into a trot, and she and Petula giggled as they rode past him. Emily wasn’t sure if she should do the same or not, but as she drew close, he clucked to his horse and fell in beside her.

“We’ll leave for the main ranch in a couple more weeks,” he said, his gaze searching the clear blue sky. “Weather’s going to change soon.”

“You would rather go now, wouldn’t you?”

A frown furrowed his brow. “Yes. I’m worried about Dru. She doesn’t look good. I’d rather we were home.”

Again Emily wanted to ask what was wrong with Dru. Again she bit back the question. It should be up to Dru to tell her.

“How did you all get along while I was gone?” he asked, intruding on her thoughts.

“Fine. The children are working hard at their lessons. They’re inquisitive, both of them, and they’re a great help to their mother.”

“Dru’s brought them up well.” His voice cracked with emotion. “I’ve never known a better mother than she is.”

Emily was tempted to reach over to him, to cover his hand where it rested on the pommel, to tell him everything would be all right. But it wasn’t her place to try to comfort him. And it surprised her that she wanted to do it anyway.

Ten

The temperature took a sharp drop before the sun set. By nightfall, the sky was hidden behind low-slung clouds. Stillness blanketed the basin, making every sound inside the log house seem an intrusion upon nature.

Emily pulled the warm quilt up from the foot of the bed. “Snuggle close,” she told the girls. “It’s going to be cold tonight.” She leaned down to kiss their foreheads, their hair hidden beneath white nightcaps. How had they claimed her heart so completely in such a short time?

“Miss Harris?”

“What is it, Pet?”

“I’m glad you wasn’t scared about the bear. You’re lots of fun.”

She swallowed the lump in her throat. “Thanks, Pet. Good night, Brina.”

“Night, Miss Harris.”

Holding her skirt out of the way, she climbed down the ladder from the loft. Her fear of heights always caused her to breathe a sigh of relief when her feet touched the floor again. As she turned around, the front door swung open before Gavin. His hat and shoulders were dusted with snow. He frowned when he saw her, and even from across the room, she could see concern in his eyes.

“Good thing we got the herd out when we did. That’s quite the storm blowing in.” He removed his hat and slapped it against his leg. “I don’t like the looks of it.”

Again she felt that desire to offer him respite from his many worries. But what could she say? What had she the right to say?

He shucked off his heavy coat. “Where’s Dru?”

“She went to bed already. The girls too.”

Gavin met her gaze a second time. “I’d better check on her.”

After he went into the bedroom and closed the door behind him, Emily crossed to the window, moving aside the curtain with her hand. Snowflakes, chased by an icy wind, had carpeted the yard with a thin blanket of white. The barn was hidden from view by the blowing snow. How was it possible it could change so abruptly? Only this afternoon they had been riding with the warm kiss of sunshine on their faces.