Читать книгу The Cowboy's Surprise Bride - Linda Ford - Страница 9

Chapter One

Northwest Territories, Canada

October 1881

For the first time she was about to meet Eddie Gardiner. The man she intended to marry. The answer to her prayers.

Linette Edwards parted the curtains on the stagecoach—meant to keep out the dust and cold. The first few days of their trip, dust had filtered through them, and now cold with the bite of a wild beast filled every inch of the tiny coach. Four adults and a child huddled against the elements.

“You’re letting in the cold,” her traveling companion complained.

“I fear we are in for an early snowstorm,” one of the male passengers said.

Linette murmured an apology but she managed to see the rolling hills and the majestic mountains before she dropped the curtain back in place. Since they’d left Fort Benton, headed for the ranch lands of the Northwest Territories of Canada, she’d peered out as much as she could. The mountains, jagged and bold, grew larger and larger. A song filled her heart and soul each time she saw them. This was a new country. She could start over. Be a different person than she’d been forced to be in England. Here she would be allowed to prove she had value as a person. She ignored the ache at how her parents viewed her—as a commodity to be traded for business favors.

She shifted her thoughts to the letter of invitation hidden safely in the cavernous pocket of the coat she’d acquired in Fort Benton. She longed to pull it out and read it again though she had memorized every word. Come before winter.

“I expect more than a shack,” her friend Margaret had fumed when she’d read an earlier letter from the same writer. “After all, he comes from a very respectable family.” With bitterness edging each word, Margaret read the letters describing the cabin Eddie assured her was only temporary quarters. “Temporary? I’m sure he doesn’t know the meaning of the word. A year and a half he’s been there and he still lives in this hovel.”

“It sounds like an adventure.” Linette could imagine a woman working side by side with her man, being a necessary asset to establishing a home in the new world. It sounded a lot more appealing to her than sitting and smiling vacantly as a female spectator. She’d been raised to be the lady of the manor but she wanted more. So much more.

Margaret had sniffed with such disdain that Linette giggled.

“I have made up my mind,” Margaret said. “I cannot marry him and join him in the wilds of the Canadian West. I expected far more when he asked for my hand before he left to start a Gardiner ranch out in that—” she fluttered her hand weakly “—in that savage land.” Her shudder was delicate and likely deliberate.

“Oh, Margaret, surely you don’t mean it.”

“Indeed I do. I’ve written this letter.”

Seated in the overstuffed parlor of Margaret’s family home in London, Linette had read each word kindly but firmly informing Eddie that Margaret had changed her mind and would not be joining him now or anytime in the future. I expect it makes me sound small and selfish, but I can’t imagine living in a tiny house, nor being a woman of the West.

“But what about your feelings for him? His for you?”

Margaret had given her a smile smacking of pity. “I enjoyed his company. He was a suitable candidate for marriage. There are plenty other suitable men.”

How often she’d envied Margaret the opportunity to head to a new world with so much possibility simply for the eager taking of it. “But he’s counting on you. Why would you want to stay here when the whole world beckons?” Wouldn’t he be dreadfully hurt by Margaret’s rejection?

“You should marry him. You’re the one who thinks it would be a lark.” Margaret was clearly annoyed with Linette’s enthusiasm. “In fact, write him and I’ll enclose your letter with mine.”

“Write him? And say what?”

“That you’re willing to be his wife.”

“I don’t know him.” A trickle of something that felt suspiciously like excitement hurried up her limbs to her heart. But it couldn’t be. It wasn’t possible. “My father would never allow it.”

Margaret laughed. “I think the Gardiner name would make even your father consider it a good idea. And would it not provide an escape from the marriage your father has planned?”

Linette shuddered. “I will not marry that old—” Her father had chosen a man in his fifties with a jangling purse of money and a drooling leer. His look made Linette feel soiled. She would do anything to avoid such a fate. She’d been praying for a reprieve. Perhaps this was an answer to her heartfelt petition.

Yes, the Gardiners were an old family, well respected, with a great estate and vaults of money, as her father so often said with utmost reverence in his voice.

“Of course,” Margaret started, considering her with a mocking smile, “if you’re dreaming of love and romance—”

Linette jerked back. “All I’m thinking of is escape.” Love did not enter into a suitable marriage, which was fine with her. She fully intended to keep her feelings out of the picture. A trembling in the depths of her heart warned her that love would make her weak, vulnerable, ready to give up her personal goals. Not something she intended to let happen. She grabbed a piece of paper. “I’m going to do it. Anything is better than what my parents have in mind.” Being a rancher’s wife in the new world suited her fine. She was weary of the social restrictions her parents insisted on and not at all loath to living the kind of life she’d heard existed in the new world. There, women marched side by side with their men. They were even allowed to own land! Doubtlessly they’d be allowed to get their hands dirty and be involved.

Before she could change her mind, she’d penned a short letter. A marriage of convenience if it suits you. Please reply to Margaret’s address. She knew her father would read any letter that came to the house. Much better to know she had a positive answer from Mr. Gardiner before confronting her father. If she had to be part of a business deal, it would be on her terms. She’d say who and where.

She clasped her fingers on the answering letter that had carried two tickets—one for herself and one for a traveling companion. The missive was brief. Not much more than an invitation to come. Her heart had danced for joy. Margaret was right; her father had glowed at an invitation from a Gardiner.

The stagecoach swayed to a stop. “Hello, the house.” The driver’s call shivered up and down Linette’s spine. They’d arrived at Eden Valley Ranch.

It wasn’t as if Eddie were a total stranger. She’d read his letters to Margaret. He sounded like a strong man, an independent thinker. She had no trouble imagining herself sharing his life. Yet her insides clenched in trepidation.

She squeezed right back in protest. She would not let nerves weaken her resolve. She’d prayed for such an escape and God had generously provided. Hitherto hath the Lord helped me. Renewed faith filled her, driving away any doubts and fears.

One of the two men who also rode in the coach flicked aside a curtain. “Looks like a fine establishment.”

Linette parted the curtains again and peeked outside. The coach had drawn up before a log cabin with only a narrow door and small window in the wall facing them. This must be where the man lived. She pressed her tongue to the roof of her mouth and refused to think how small it looked. Hardly big enough for all of them. Never mind. Nothing could deter her now. She’d prayed her way from London, over the Atlantic Ocean, and across most of the North American continent. The rooms she’d had on the trip had left barely enough space for stretching. Although vastly different from the spacious home she’d grown up in, she’d gotten used to it readily enough. This cabin would be no different.

The door of the cabin opened and Linette took a deep breath. A man stepped forth, ducking as he crossed the threshold. This had to be Eddie Gardiner. She’d seen his likeness in pictures, but they failed to do the man justice. Despite the chill in the air, he hadn’t bothered to grab a coat or hat and in the bright sunshine his brown hair shone. He dressed like a range hand—dark denim trousers, a blue shirt that had faded almost colorless on the sleeves with dark remnants of the color in the seams, and a leather vest that looked worn and friendly.

Her heart jumped to her throat. She hadn’t expected to feel anything for him. Surely it was only excitement, combined with a touch of nerves. After all, despite the letters, he was a stranger. She wanted nothing more or less from him than a marriage of convenience.

His gaze sought the parted curtains and his dark eyes narrowed as he tried to make out the face in the dim interior.

She flicked the curtain closed and turned to her traveling companion. “You keep the child while I meet him.” The boy would remain a secret for now. Seeing her intention, one of the gentlemen stepped down and held out a hand to assist her. She murmured her thanks as Eddie strode forward.

He slid his gaze over her as if she were invisible and looked toward the stagecoach. “Is Margaret inside?”

Linette shook her head trying to make sense of his question. Surely he’d mistakenly spoken her name out of habit.

“Is she at Fort Benton? If so I’ll go for her immediately.” He glanced at the sky as if already trying to outrace the weather.

Her mouth felt like yesterday’s dust as she realized what he meant. “You’re expecting Margaret?” It took every ounce of her stubborn nature not to stammer.

“Any day. I sent tickets for her and a chaperone to come before winter.”

Come before winter. She remembered the words well. They’d bubbled through her heart. But she thought they were meant for her. “Did you not get the letter?”

At that the driver jumped down. “’Spect any letters you’d be wanting are in here.” He waved a small bundle. “Seems you haven’t picked up your mail for some time, so I brought it.”

Cold trickled across Linette’s neck, dug bony fingers into her spine and sent a faint sense of nausea up her throat. She swallowed it back with determination. If he hadn’t received her letter, then the tickets he’d sent hadn’t been meant for her. He didn’t know she was coming. He wasn’t prepared to welcome her and accept her as a suitable helpmate on the frontier. Now what?

She stiffened her shoulders. She had not crossed an ocean and a vast continent to be turned back now. Her prayers for escape had been fervent. God held her in the palm of His hand now as He had on the journey. This was her answer. She nailed her fears to the thought. Besides, nothing had changed. Not really. Margaret still wasn’t coming and he still needed a wife. Didn’t he? She sought her memories but could not remember that he’d ever said so in clear, unmistakable terms. Had she read more into his missives than was meant?

Eddie took the bundle of mail and untied the strings. He flicked through the correspondence.

Recognizing Margaret’s handwriting, she touched the envelope. “That one.” Her own message lay inside, unseen by the man she thought had invited her to join him. She sucked moisture from the corners of her mouth and swallowed hard.

He slit the envelope and pulled out the pages in which she’d offered to take Margaret Sear’s place. I look forward to being part of the new West. He read her letter then Margaret’s, his fingers tightening on the paper as he understood the message. A flash of pain crossed his face before he covered it with a harsh expression.

Her heart twisted. He expected Margaret and instead got his hopes and dreams shattered. If only she’d known. But what could she do about it now? Except prove she was better suited to be a woman of the West.

Thankfully he did not read the letter aloud, which would have added to her growing embarrassment as the three men listened intently—one peering from the inside of the coach, one standing at its side where he remained after helping her alight, the other pretending to check on the horses though he made certain he could hear what was said. Even so, her face burned at their curiosity about an obvious misunderstanding of mammoth proportions.

Eddie jammed the pages back in the envelope. “This is unacceptable.”

Her muscles turned to warm butter. It took concentrated effort to hold herself upright, to keep her face rigid. She would not let him guess that the ground threatened to rise up and clout her in the face.

One hand clasping the mail bundle, he jammed his fists to his hips and turned to the driver. “You can return her to the fort.”

The man tipped his hat back on his head and shook his head. “Ain’t goin’ a mile more’n I have to. It’s about to snow.”

The wind bit at Linette’s cheeks but the cold encasing her heart was not from the wintery weather. She could not, would not, go back to London and her father’s plans.

The coach driver went on in his leisurely way of speaking. “I’m taking these two gentlemen to the OK Ranch then I’d hoped to make it back to Fort Benton where I intend to hole up for the winter. I don’t fancy being stuck in Edendale.” He made a rattling noise in the back of his throat. “But it looks like I’ll be stuck at the OK for the time being.”

Linette cared not whether the man was returning to the tiny cluster of huts bravely named Edendale or back to Fort Benton. She wasn’t going anywhere.

The gentleman who’d helped her down still stood at the steps, waiting and watching. “The girl is strong. Tough. Takes a special kind of lady to take care of travel arrangements and her traveling companions. Not a lot of young women are prepared and able to do that. You could do worse than have her at your side in this brave new frontier.”

Linette gave the man a fleeting smile of appreciation then turned back to Eddie.

Eddie met her gaze. He must have read her determination though she hoped he hadn’t seen her desperation. “We need to talk.” He grabbed her arm and marched her around the side of the house, out of sight and hopefully out of earshot of the others, where he released her to glare hotly at her.

She tipped her chin and met his gaze without flinching even though her insides had begun to tremble. Where would she go if he sent her away? Not back to the marriage her father had arranged. Perhaps money would convince him. “I have a dowry.”

“Keep your money. I have no need of it.”

“I came in good faith. I thought you’d received my letter.” Come before winter. The words had seemed so welcoming. She’d made preparations as quickly as she could. How was she to know he didn’t respond to her letter? Hadn’t even received it. She stood motionless. She wouldn’t let so much as one muscle quiver.

“Obviously I hadn’t.” He stared at the bundle in his hand, sounding every bit as confused as she felt. A contrast to the anger her parents had expressed when she’d informed them she would not marry the man of their choosing and meant to go West. Only after she showed her father the letter from Eddie and only because the Gardiners were a well-respected family had he agreed. With many constraints. Her father knew her too well. Knew she would avoid this marriage, too, if she had the means to strike out on her own. Knew she would not flinch before the dangers nor shirk from the challenges. That’s why he’d allowed her barely enough money to keep from starving to death on the journey and made sure her dowry would be held until he had proof she was married. He’d made her understand he would allow her only enough time for the necessary documents to cross the ocean. Should they not arrive in a reasonable time he would send one of his henchmen to bring her back. She’d used the limited funds he’d provided caring for the sick and destitute she’d crossed paths with. She had not so much as a penny to her name.

She shuddered as she imagined one of her father’s cruel servants poised and ready to pursue her.

There was no escape from her father’s plans apart from this marriage.

She understood Eddie’s shock. It couldn’t feel good to realize Margaret had refused to come, refused his offer of marriage. She swallowed back a swell of sympathy, and resisted an urge to pat his arm. She brought her thoughts back to her own predicament. “I’m prepared to care for your home.” As soon as she and Margaret agreed Linette should take her place, Margaret had reluctantly arranged for their cook to teach Linette to prepare food and run a house. She hadn’t dared to ask for such instructions at home. Her father had often enough said they were rich and had servants to do menial work. Only the death of some distant relative of her mother’s who’d made a fortune in India had changed the family circumstances from penniless to well off before Linette’s birth. Father wanted everyone to believe they were landed gentry, but she often wondered how much of the inheritance still existed and suspected her father’s plans for her were meant to add to the coffers. But how much was enough to satisfy her father? She wondered if enough existed.

“He should have servants to do those things,” Margaret had fumed when Linette badgered her to arrange instruction.

“It will be an adventure to do something useful.”

Unless Eddie changed his mind, her lessons seemed destined to be useless. She stiffened her spine. Failure was not an option.

Eddie turned his gaze back to her then with a great sigh eased toward the stagecoach.

She followed at his heels. “I’m a hard worker.” She would press her point but she wouldn’t beg.

The driver stood at his horses, staring at the horizon and shifting from one foot to the other. “Eddie boy, the wind has a bite to it. Winter is likely to clutch us by the throat any moment.”

She’d wondered at the earliness of the snow, but the man in the coach had explained it was due to being in high country. “Snow can come early and stay or leave again. There’s no predicting it.”

Eddie turned to speak over his shoulder. “I’m to be stuck with you then. But only until the weather moderates then I’ll send you back.”

“Stuck? Seems you’re getting the better part of this bargain.” She had no intention of staying one day more than she must, but she silently prayed the winter would set in early and be long and cold, preventing travel. That would give her sufficient time to persuade Eddie to change his mind.

She would not—under any circumstances—return to her father and his despicable plan for her.

Despite her lack of funds, she considered setting off on her own but she must acknowledge the facts—her father would not let her escape his clutches. He had ways and means of tracking her wherever she went. And he wouldn’t hesitate to use them. She knew she couldn’t hide from him even if she found a means of surviving on her own.

Eddie still provided the only answer to avoiding her father’s plans. Winter provided a reprieve. She would use the time to prove to him she was the ideal pioneer wife. She would make him want to keep her. He’d beg her to stay.

Eddie ground to a halt and turned to face her.

She blinked back her silent arguments lest he guess at her thoughts.

He edged forward, forcing her to retreat until they were again out of sight and hearing of the interested party waiting at the stagecoach. “You might want to reconsider this rash decision of yours. It’s wild out here. There are no luxuries. No chaperones.”

“I brought my own chaperone.” If he found her arrival a burden, he was not going to like her next announcement. She tipped her chin and faced him squarely. Not for all the roses in her mother’s garden would she reveal so much as a hint of trepidation. “And a child.”

“A child?”

“Yes, I brought a child.”

He swallowed hard enough to lose his Adam’s apple. “You have a child?”

He thought the child was hers? Embarrassment, laced with a heavy dose of amusement, raced through her at the shock on his face. Her amusement could not be contained and she laughed delicately, feeling her eyes dance with merriment. “He’s not mine.”

“Then why do you have him?”

“I met his mother on the boat. She died in the crossing and asked me to take the child to his father.”

“I’m not his father.” The poor man almost choked at the thought.

She laughed again, thoroughly enjoying his discomfort. “I didn’t mean to imply you were. His father met us in Montreal and when he heard his wife had expired, refused to take his son.” A dreadful scene had ensued as Linette tried to convince the man of his duty. “I had little choice but to bring him along.”

Eddie choked again.

Maybe she would have to thump him between the shoulders, and found the idea rather satisfying. With every passing moment, he proved more and more annoying. She’d expected a welcome of some sort, guarded perhaps, or even perfunctory. She assumed he would have made arrangements to have someone present to perform their emotionless union. But never in her many far-flung imaginings had she considered this possibility.

He cleared his throat. “I think a place the size of Montreal would have a foundling home. I think the nuns have—”

“Are you suggesting I should have abandoned him to strangers?”

“It’s not called abandon—” He must have read the challenge in her eyes for he stopped short. “Seems to me that’s what a sensible woman would have done. Besides, wouldn’t he be better off there with schools and playmates?”

She pulled herself as tall as she could, annoyed she still had to tip her head to glare at him. “We better get something straight right here and now. I have no tolerance for the pharisaical affectations of our society. I refuse to stand by and not offer help to someone when it is within my power to give more than an empty blessing. I could not, nor would I, turn my back on a small child.” Helping others was one of the many things she and her father had warred about. She expected things to be different in the British Territories of Canada.

She planned to make sure they were.

Eddie stared at her then scrubbed at the back of his neck. “All I have is a small cabin. Only one bed.”

She had gained a small victory. No need to push for more at this point. “We’ll take the bed.”

“And I’m to what?”

“I understand from your letters to Margaret that there is a bunkhouse for men who work for you.”

“I will not sleep with them.”

His words had a familiar, unwelcome ring to them. “Does it offend your sensibilities to share quarters with the men who work for you?”

“Not at all, but it would be awkward for them. I’m the boss. They deserve a chance to relax without thinking I’m watching them.”

His reply both surprised and pleased her. She admired a man who thought of others. But her admiration did not solve what he perceived to be a quandary. She didn’t see a problem. “I believe the cabin has two rooms. You can sleep on the floor in the other room.”

“You are too generous.” The look on his face made her want to laugh, but she sensed he did not share her amusement.

“Eddie boy,” the driver called. “I’d like to get on my way before nightfall.”

Eddie and Linette did silent duel with their eyes. Although their weapons were invisible she understood her life and her future hung on the outcome of this battle. Finally he sighed. “Come along. Let’s get your things.”

“There’s something I better tell you first.”

“You mean there are more surprises? Let me guess. Another child? A brother or sister? A—”

“My chaperone is a woman I met in Montreal. Her husband died and she has no family.”

“You traveled from England without a chaperone?”

She flicked him an impatient glance. It was easy to see that rules meant a lot to him. She’d prayed he wasn’t like her father. Now he seemed frighteningly so. “Of course not, but Miss Snodgrass was eager to return, and when she saw I intended for Cassie to accompany me, she got on the next boat home.”

He waited, aware there was more.

“Cassie is a little...well, I suppose you could say she’s having trouble dealing with her grief.”

“Trouble? In what way?”

Words came quickly to her mind, but none of them seemed the sort to make him kindly disposed toward Cassie. Perhaps the less she said the better. “Let’s just say she’s a bit sharp.” She hastened to add, “I’m sure she’ll settle down once the edge of her grief has passed.”

He scrubbed at his neck again. “Let’s see what you have.”

She hurried past him, fearing if he thrust his head in the door and ordered the pair out, the ensuing reaction would give them all cause for regret. The kind gentleman who had assisted her from the coach watched for her return, doubtless listening with ears cocked. She wondered how much he’d heard. Not that it mattered. He’d already managed to get most of the story from her as they bounced along for several days with nothing to do but stare at each other. He held the door for her and with a quirk of his eyebrows silently asked if things had gone well.

She gave a quick nod, grateful for his kindly interest, then turned to the other occupants. “Cassie, we’re here. Come out. Grady, come here.” She reached to take the four-year-old from Cassie’s lap.

Grady seemed to shrivel into himself. Only at Cassie’s gentle insistence did he let Linette take his hand and lift him to the ground. He took one look at Eddie and buried his face in her skirts. She knew he would stay there until she pried him free.

Cassie grabbed her small travel valise and paused in the open doorway. The look she gave Eddie blazed with anger.

Please, God. Keep her from saying something that will give him a reason to put us on the stage again without any regard for where we’ll end.

“He’s passable, I suppose.”

Linette’s breath stuck halfway to her lungs. She stole a glance at Eddie. Surprise flashed in his eyes and then he grinned. He had a nice face when he smiled, but more than that, his smile made her feel he would be patient with Cassie, who often expressed her pain in meanness. Relief poured through Linette like a warming drink.

“Thanks,” Eddie said.

“Wasn’t meant as a compliment,” Cassie murmured.

“I’ve been told worse.” He held his hand out to assist Cassie, but she pointedly ignored him and accepted help from their traveling companion.

Linette’s attention was diverted as the driver handed down the two trunks she’d brought. Grady had only a grip bag.

Eddie whistled sharply, causing Grady to sob. Two men stepped from the building across the way.

“Yeah, boss?” one called.

“Boys, take these trunks to my house.”

Linette watched the two cross the roadway in long, rolling strides. Their gait reminded her of the sailors on the ship. They had on Stetson hats, worn and rolled, unlike the new, uniformly shaped ones she’d studied back at the trading post in Fort Benton where she’d exchanged her fine English silks and bustles for frocks she considered more appropriate for living in the wilds—simple-cut dresses of calico or wool. She’d procured a dress for Cassie too but the woman refused to wear it. “I am who I am and I’m not about to pretend otherwise,” she’d said. Linette hadn’t pressed the point. Sooner or later the old garment Cassie wore would fall apart and then she’d be glad for what Linette offered.

She glanced at her own dress. A little the worse for wear after crossing the prairie. She’d clean up once they got settled in case Eddie took note of her rumpled state.

As they walked, the men jingled from the spurs on their boots. They yanked their hats off and squirmed inside their buffalo coats. “Ma’am.” They nodded to Linette and Cassie.

“Miss Edwards, may I present two of my men, Slim—” he indicated the taller, thinner man. “And Roper.” The other man was heavier built. Solid. Younger. And he watched Cassie with guarded interest.

Linette realized she hadn’t introduced her companion and did so. “Cassie Godfrey.” Then she indicated the boy half-buried in her skirts. “This is Grady Farris. He’s four years old.” He shivered enough to make her leg vibrate.

The men nodded then jammed their hats back on and took the trunks into the house.

Eddie spoke privately to the driver who then swung up to his seat and drove from the yard. Linette stared after the coach, knowing she now had no escape. She was at Eddie’s mercy. Her resolve hardened. Only so far as she chose to be. She’d be no man’s slave. Nor his chattel. Any arrangement between them would be based on mutual benefit. No emotions involved to turn her weak.

The stagecoach no longer blocked her view and she saw, on the hill overlooking the ranch, a big two-story house, gleaming in its newness. It had the unfinished look of raw lumber and naked windows. They must be expecting neighbors. People who put more value in their abode than Eddie. When would these people finish the house and move in?

“I suppose you would like to see your quarters.” Eddie indicated they should step toward the low dwelling.

She turned from studying the house on the hill to closer inspection of the cabin. It looked even smaller than she expected. But she didn’t care. She’d escaped her father’s plans and the future beckoned.

* * *

Eddie resisted the urge to squeeze his neck. It was tight enough to withstand a hanging. He’d expected the mail would contain a message to meet Margaret. He’d planned to marry her at the fort before bringing her to his home. He’d thought of her every day as he worked on the new house. He’d counted the days until she joined him.

Margaret was the ideal young lady for him. He remembered many a pleasant afternoon sharing her company in her family home in London before he’d left for the British Territories. He’d grown quite fond of her and she of him. Or so he thought. In time their affection would grow. He anticipated the day she would arrive and marry him. Margaret would grace the big house he would have completed by now except for the necessity of making sure the breeding stock he’d had shipped from Chicago was herded safely from Fort Benton to the nearby pens.

Instead, a ragamuffin of a woman stood before him in a black woolen coat that practically swallowed her. As it flapped open he saw a crude dress much like those he’d seen worn by wives on hopeful dirt farms and the half-breed women in the forts. She looked ready to live in a tepee or log hut, which was likely a good thing because the latter was all he had to offer her.

The cold wind reminded him he’d hurried outside without a coat. “We might as well go indoors.”

How Linette managed to make her way to the house with the boy clinging to her side like a giant burr amazed him.

She was an Edwards daughter if he believed what she said. He wasn’t prepared to believe anything about her at the moment. How had he ended up in such an awkward position? And with an Edwards woman! His father had had some business dealings with Mr. Edwards years ago and had expressed distaste for the other man. “A churlish man,” he’d said. “Thinks because he inherited money through his wife it makes him an aristocrat, but he lacks any sense of decorum or decency. I vow I will never have business dealings with him again and I intend to avoid any social contact.” Eddie couldn’t think the Edwards daughter would warrant any better opinion from his father.

Slim and Roper hurried out and jogged back to work. Not, he noted, without a backward glance at the women. They’d be filled with curiosity for sure and spend the rest of the day speculating about this turn of events.

Eddie had always done his best to live up to his father’s expectations. After all, he owed the man so much. Coming West and starting a ranch to add to the Gardiner holdings, establishing a home that would make his father proud provided him an opportunity to repay his father for giving him the Gardiner name. Randolph Gardiner had married Eddie’s mother when Eddie was an infant. If not for that, Eddie would have been an outcast bastard child and his mother would have lived in shame and disgrace.

He held the door for the ladies and Linette stepped inside first. The sigh that whistled from her lips drove back the gall in his throat and made him grin. Had she been expecting something fancy? No doubt this crude cabin shocked her. It was only temporary and then would serve as quarters for a foreman. If the man was married and had a family, Eddie would add on to it but had not seen any need for that now. It had solid walls. It was warm and dry. It served as a place to put his feet up and have a cup of coffee and somewhere to catch a comfortable night’s sleep. Not much else.

The letter clutched in his fist crackled. Margaret had changed her mind. As if he didn’t measure up. His insides twisted in a familiar, unwelcome way.

He studied the woman he was stuck with. Linette was almost plain. Her eyes too direct. Her lips too narrow and stubborn, almost challenging. Her hair was light in color. Neither brown nor blond and coiled in a braid about her face. Her eyes were so pale they didn’t deserve to be called brown. She was too small. Built like a struggling sapling out on the prairie. In fact, everything about her was wrong. Quite the opposite of Margaret. No way would she fit into his plans. His father’s instructions were clear. “Find suitable land and build a house. A replica of our home and life back here in England.” Eddie had been surprised his father had entrusted him with the task and vowed he would make his father proud.

Linette Edwards could not be allowed to ruin his plans.

But he couldn’t send her away with the weather threatening to turn nasty. He’d shelter her until it moderated...which likely meant for the winter. Then, under armed escort if necessary, he would see her returned to England or wherever she might have a mind to go...just so long as it wasn’t here.

Trouble was, she wasn’t alone. Not that she should be. But the woman she’d brought along looked as if she’d been rescued from the gutter. Her clothes barely missed being called rags. Her untidy black hair and scowling face indicated she was not happy to be here. He snorted silently. At least they shared that. He wasn’t happy to have any of them here.

Then there was the boy with a flash of blue eyes and a mat of blond hair sticking out from under his cap. He often thought of children to fill the rooms in the big house, but children bred with a woman like Margaret. Not waifs.

Cassie hesitated at the doorway. The noise that escaped her mouth was full of anger and discontent. “I had more room back in Montreal.”

Linette laughed softly—a merry sound full of pleasure. She didn’t seem the least bit distressed about the conditions.

“You slept in the train station after your husband died and left you stranded in a strange city,” she said to Cassie. “Of course it was bigger. But it wasn’t home. This will be home.” The word was full of promise and warmth.

He figured he better make sure she remembered it was temporary. “Until better weather.” Silently, he again acknowledged that might not be before spring and the thought made his neck muscles spasm. “Then you’re headed back to your father.”

“There’s many a slip between the cup and the lip.”

Her disregard of his warning made him chomp on his back teeth. It took an effort to release the tension so he could speak. “There’ll be no slips here.”

Cassie edged forward into the room and stood with her arms crossed. He figured her eyes would be crossed, too, and full of displeasure. Good. If both women found the situation intolerable... But it was a long time until spring. A crowded house with two women dripping discontent would be miserable for everyone.

What had he done to deserve this?

Margaret’s letter said she didn’t think she could face the challenges of frontier life nor live in small quarters. He’d meant the big house to be a surprise. Now he saw keeping it a secret had been cause for her to think she’d be confined to some sort of settler’s shack. His mind kicked into salvage thoughts. Miss Edwards would see the house. She’d realize it was almost finished. She could report its fineness to Margaret. Margaret would change her mind. She’d be pleased to join him. Tension drained from him so quickly his limbs twitched.

He realized the interior of the little house lacked warmth and closed the door behind him. He’d been about to leave the cabin and had let the fire die to embers. “I’ll get some heat in here.” Deftly, he added wood, and in minutes welcoming flames sprang to life. Now he’d have to plan on heating the house all day. He’d have to get more firewood chopped. These women and the boy were going to be a nuisance as well as a threat.

“I didn’t realize how cold I’d grown,” Linette said, holding her hands toward the stove. “Is it usually this cold in October?”

“Snow comes early this close to the mountains, though I hope it holds off for a time yet. The cows are still up in the higher pastures.”

“And you would prefer to have them where? Down here?”

“Yes. Down in the lower meadows where they’ll be able to get to the grass.”

“You don’t feed them?”

She sure was full of questions. “Do you know anything about ranching?”

“A cousin raised cattle. He always kept them in barns and pens in the winter and fed them hay.”

He chuckled. “Hard to build a barn big enough for a thousand head or more.” The way she widened her eyes in surprise gave him a moment’s victory then he wished he’d kept the fact to himself. If she was a gold digger he’d provided her with more to dig for. “I have some hay. Most ranchers don’t think it’s necessary, but one of the first men I talked to when I came out here was Kootenai Brown. He’s lived in the mountains for years and says only a buffalo can survive without hay. They dig through the grass like a horse. He told me if I want to succeed in this venture I should plan to have hay available.” Why was he telling her all this? Surely she didn’t care. But her pale brown eyes flashed with intelligent interest. Not the fake batting of eyelashes he’d seen from women who seemed to think any sign of intelligence would frighten off a man.

“Kootenai Brown? Isn’t Kootenai the name of an Indian tribe?”

He couldn’t hide his surprise. Didn’t even try. “How do you know that?”

“I’ve read everything I could find about the Northwest.”

He turned his attention to stoking the fire to conceal his reluctant admiration.

Cassie groaned. “And she likes to talk about it all day long.” She moved marginally closer to the stove as if reluctant to allow herself any comfort her circumstances might provide.

Linette laughed softly. “I didn’t realize I was boring you.”

“You and that gentleman from the coach. Did he say he was going to another ranch?”

“Yes. I believe he said he was an investor with the OK Ranch and intended to check on its operation.” She turned back to Eddie. “Would that be correct?”

“Could be. Good thing if it’s true. The OK bunch has run into some trouble.”

“What sort? Wild animals? Rustlers?” She practically quivered with excitement.

He studied her more closely. Was she the sort to be bounding into trouble just because it sounded adventuresome? He did not need that sort of aggravation. He answered her question first. “They lost cows by driving them north too hard. The rest of the herd is weakened. If they don’t see them properly fed I fear they will lose the works.” He intended to make sure she wasn’t about to turn his life inside out and upside down and put his peace and security at risk—any more than she had already. “You don’t find trouble to be exciting, do you?”

“If you think I’d be happy to hear of a herd of cows suffering—” Her eyes snapped with anger.

“I was thinking you seem overly anxious to think there might be wild animals or rustlers. I warn you I won’t tolerate anyone deliberately putting themselves or others at risk simply for an exciting experience.”

“What will you tolerate?” Linette demanded.

They studied each other with wariness. And a startling sense of shared determination that shifted his opinion of this woman. Of course, they shared that. Only in different directions. He was determined to carry out his original plan to marry Margaret and establish a home he could be proud of. She meant to upset his plans. “While you are here, I expect you to conduct yourself wisely and in a ladylike fashion.”

Her nostrils flared. “You mean play the lady of the manor.”

Behind her, Cassie snorted.

She’d no doubt been raised as such. Why didn’t she offer to be so here? Not that it made any difference. He wasn’t about to toss Margaret aside over a misunderstanding. Softly, he asked, “What do you see your role as here?”

She ducked her head so he was unable to see her expression. “I suppose I thought you meant to marry me.” She lifted her head and faced him with her eyes flashing courage and challenge. “I will make a good pioneer wife.”

“I never got your letter or I could have warned you I’m not desperate for a wife. Besides, you can’t simply substitute one woman for another as if they are nothing more than horses.”

“Why not? Are you madly in love with Margaret?”

Love? There was no such thing as love in an arrangement like theirs. “We suited each other.”

“She doesn’t seem to share your view of suitability.”

He guessed she meant if she had, Margaret would be here instead of her. He pointed toward the window. “I mean to correct that. Did you see that house out there?”

She nodded.

“I built it for Margaret.”

Linette’s eyes widened. “But she said...” She looked about at the tiny quarters and shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

“I wanted it to be a surprise. I see now I should have informed her about the house. But you can write and tell her how special it is. Once she knows, she’ll reconsider and come.”

She fixed him with a direct stare. “You really believe that’s all there is to her refusal to come?” Her gaze demanded honesty.

His neck knotted and he squeezed the back of it. He thought Margaret wanted to share his life. He still believed it. Surely what he had to offer was acceptable to Margaret. She only objected to meager quarters and that would soon be a thing of the past. He looked about the small room. “I obviously don’t need help running this place. And I don’t need or want a pioneer wife. My wife will have a cook and housekeeper to help her run the big house.” He returned to confront her demanding look. “But with winter coming on—”

“You’ll tolerate our presence until spring?” Her voice carried a low note of something he couldn’t quite put his thumb on. Warning? Challenge?

He scrubbed the back of his neck again, wondering how much more tension it could take before something snapped. Most of his time was spent with animals who had little to say but moo and with cowboys known to be laconic. It didn’t much prepare him to pick up on subtle nuances of social communication, but even a dolt would understand her question was more than mere conversation. “I expect we’ll have to tolerate each other, crowded as we’ll be in these quarters.”

Cassie spun away to stare at the door. “I should have stayed in Montreal.”

Linette gave her a tight smile. “You weren’t exactly happy there, if I recall.”

“Seems happiness is too much to hope for.”

Linette hurried to her side and wrapped an arm around the woman’s waist. “Of course it’s not. We’ll be happy here. About as happy as we make up our minds to be. All of us.” The look she sent Eddie warned him to disagree or make it impossible. “Isn’t that right, Mr. Gardiner?”

“I’m sure we can be civilized. After all, we’re adults.” Except for young Grady, and all eyes turned toward him. “I expect he’s the only one we need to be concerned about.” The child had been abandoned then put into the care of strangers. Which made Eddie that much more grateful to his father for the life he’d been given.

Seeing everyone watching him, Grady started to whimper. The boy’s fears vibrated through the room.

Eddie thought of stroking the child’s head to calm him but knew it would only upset him further. He was at a loss to know how to comfort the boy.

Linette knelt to face Grady squarely. “You’re safe here. We’ll take care of you.”

“I want my mama,” he wailed loudly.

Linette dropped to the floor, pulled the boy to her lap and crooned as she rocked him. “Mr. Gardiner, I believe Grady is hungry. Can you direct me to the food supplies and I’ll gladly make us tea.”

Food? He had no food to speak of in the cabin. “I’ve been taking my meals over at the cookhouse.” Would they like to go to the cookhouse, too?

Grady wailed louder, as if Eddie had announced they were all about to starve. Seems Grady had answered the question. He would not be comfortable among so many strangers. Best to let them eat here. “I’ll rustle up some supplies right away.” Grateful for an excuse to escape the cabin, crowded as it was with bodies and feelings, he grabbed his coat and hat and headed across the yard.

Dare he hope the weather would moderate long enough for the stagecoach driver to decide to venture back to Edendale or Fort Benton? If so, he would have that trio on their way.

But he knew that scenario was about as likely as finding a satchel full of money on the ground before him.

Another thought sprang to life. After less than an hour his nerves were strung tight as a drum. How would he endure months of this?