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“Yes, as long as you’re sure your mother doesn’t mind.”
Grace smiled. “She said she doesn’t mind as long as I get to school on time.”
Rebecca frowned. Had Mrs. Miller planned on Grace going with her to Seth’s house? That’s the way it sounded, but then again, children often maneuvered things around to fit what they wanted to do. Besides, what difference would it make as long as Grace got to school on time? “Well, then, let’s go.”
They arrived and Rebecca knocked on the door. Grace shifted from foot to foot as they waited. Seth opened the door. He stood before them with wet hair and stocking feet. The brown curls coiled about his white collar and Rebecca itched to reach out and touch the damp strands.
“Good morning,” she said in a soft voice.
Grace looked up at her. The young girl tilted her head as if to study Rebecca’s face further. The expression in her eyes said she knew something was wrong but wasn’t sure what.
Rebecca cleared her throat and said a little more forcefully, “Good morning, Marshal.”
He smiled at Grace. “I see you brought a chaperone this morning.”
“I’m not a chaperone. I’m Grace Miller.” The nine-year-old stood up taller as if to remind him of who she was.
“So you are.” He tugged her braid.
Rebecca pulled her shawl closer around her shoulders. “May we come in?”
Seth opened the door farther and Grace slid around him. He looked into Rebecca’s eyes and smiled. The dimple in his left cheek winked. “Sure, come on in.”
He inhaled as she walked past. “What’s in the basket?”
“Applesauce-oatmeal muffins. My mother’s recipe.” Rebecca walked past him and headed for the kitchen. “I thought you might like them with a hot cup of coffee for breakfast.”
“Sounds wonderful,” he answered, following close behind.
Her mother used to say that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Rebecca hadn’t thought of that in a long time. She made the coffee and listened to Grace and Seth talk about school and the spelling test that Grace was dreading.
She put the muffins on the table and got down three small plates. Next, she poured herself and Seth coffee. “Would you like a glass of milk, Grace?”
“If you have it,” the little girl answered politely.
“I do. I’ll be right back.” Rebecca went out to the well and pulled on a long rope. The evening before, she’d tied a mason jar filled with milk to one end of the rope and lowered it into the cold water below.
She returned a few minutes later to find both Grace and Seth munching on the muffins.
“These are very good.” Seth indicated the muffin in his hand and then sipped his coffee.
Rebecca smiled. “Thank you. I never think they taste as good as when Mother made them.” She poured the milk for Grace and set the glass down beside her.
“Thanks, Miss Rebecca.” She picked it up and gulped it down. “Oh, it’s so cold!”
“That’s because it just came out of the well.” Rebecca sat down and picked up one of the muffins. She bit into the sweetness and sighed. They were good, but like she’d said earlier, not as good as her mother’s. The brown sugar and oatmeal topping didn’t taste as sweet.
“May I have another one, Miss Rebecca?” Grace was already reaching toward the bowl.
“Of course you can.” Rebecca licked the sugary sweetness from her lips. She looked up to see Seth watching her. Tingling heat filled her face.
He pushed his chair back. “If you ladies will excuse me, I need to get to work.”
Rebecca followed him to the door. “Is there anything special you want me to do today?” she asked as he stepped out onto the porch.
“Just do what I’m paying you to do, and don’t expect anything more from me.” He stomped off around the house. Rebecca knew the barn was behind the house and figured he was going after his horse.
Grace came to stand beside her. “What did he mean by that?”
Rebecca shook her head. “I have no idea.” The man seemed as skittish as a mother deer with a new fawn, another good reason to stay away from him. She knew opening her heart to a man like him would only lead to heartbreak.
Chapter Six
The sound of the school bell had both Rebecca and Grace hurrying back inside. Grace to get her book and lunch pail, Rebecca to get the breakfast and the previous night’s dinner dishes washed. She’d noticed earlier that Seth had piled his dinner dishes into the new dishpan.
“See you after school, Miss Rebecca!” Grace yelled as she raced back out the front door, the sound of the slamming door a sure sign of her departure.
Rebecca grabbed the water bucket and walked out the kitchen door to the well. What had Seth meant by “don’t expect any more from me”? Did he think she’d expected him to give her this job? Surely not. He’d been the one to suggest it and had even seemed angry when he’d realized she’d been out seeking employment elsewhere. She carried the water to the stove to heat.
Then she made her way to the bedrooms. The guest room looked the same as when she’d left it the day before. Seth’s bed looked as if he’d wrestled a bear during the night. Rebecca stripped the sheets and quilts off it and then remade the bed.
Next she returned to the kitchen and poured the hot water into the dishpan. After the dishes were washed, Rebecca swept and mopped the kitchen floor. While it dried, she stepped outside and looked at the backyard. To the left someone had hung a clothesline between two boards and to the right an overgrown garden spot had been fenced off. At the back of the lot stood a big red barn.
“Lovely day, isn’t it?”
Rebecca turned toward the sound of the male voice. The speaker stood beside the corner of the house, under a large Cottonwood tree. He looked to be about her age. A hat covered his dark hair and hid his eyes. “Yes, it is.”
He pressed away from the tree and moved closer to her. “I haven’t seen you around here before.” His voice dripped of sweetness.
Unease warned her not to allow him to get too close. She took a step back.
The stranger bent down and plucked a piece of grass, he chewed the end of it. His gaze never left her.
“I’m new to Cottonwood Springs.” She walked backward toward the door. “If you will excuse me, I have work to do.”
He stood and started toward her again. “Aw, why don’t you stay outside for a bit? We could get to know each other.” A crooked-toothed grin inched across his face.
The hair on the back of Rebecca’s neck prickled. She continued walking backward. “I don’t even know your name, sir. Now if you will excuse me.” Rebecca turned and opened the door.
“Hello! Is anyone home?” The voice came from the other side of the house.
Rebecca looked to find a short man with a mustache and thinning light brown hair walking around the corner of the house. Where were these men coming from? Were they together? Panic crept up her spine. Rebecca’s head spun back to where the other stranger had been, but he was gone. Where had he gone?
She jerked her head back in the direction of the shorter man. He’d come a short distance in a fairly fast time. He extended his hand out as he walked toward her. “Miss Ramsey? I’m Reverend Griffin, the circuit-riding preacher for this area. I don’t believe we’ve met. I hope you don’t mind my stopping by this morning.”
She grabbed his hand within hers and pulled him inside. “I am so glad to see you. There was a man here. He frightened me,” Rebecca explained once they were both within the kitchen.
“What man?” Reverend Griffin looked back out the door.
“I don’t know who he was. He didn’t give me his name, but everything about him made me nervous.” Rebecca placed her hand over her pounding heart.
“I’ll go see if he’s still hanging around.” Reverend Griffin barged out the door like a mama bear after her wayward cub. The look in his eye said he was in a no-nonsense sort of mood.
Rebecca stood up and poured herself and the reverend cups of coffee. She waited at the table for him to return. Sipping the rich beverage, Rebecca allowed her mind to go over the events of the past few minutes. Maybe she had overreacted. By the time the preacher returned, her heart rate had slowed its terrified rhythm and her hands had ceased shaking.
The reverend stopped in the open doorway. “I’m sorry, Miss Ramsey. He’s gone.”
“Please come in and sit down, Reverend. I’m glad he’s gone.” She took a drink of her coffee and then continued, “I might have been a bit excessive in my reaction to him.”
He entered the kitchen, shutting the door behind him. “Never underestimate your first gut reaction to a person, Miss Ramsey. It’s better to be cautious than to be sorry.” He picked up the coffee cup and took a sip. “You make very good coffee, young lady.”
“Thank you. Would you like a muffin?” She took the cloth off the basket of muffins she’d made that morning.
He waved a hand. “No, thank you. I appreciate the coffee but I need to be on my way. I only stopped by to introduce myself and invite you to church on Sunday.” Gulping the last of his drink, he stood.
Rebecca stood, also. “Thank you for stopping by. I’ll be sure to attend Sunday morning.”
“Very good. Services start at ten.” He opened the kitchen door and left the way he’d entered.
She gathered their cups and took them to the full dish basin. Had the strange man been innocent of wrongdoing? Had she overreacted like she’d told the traveling preacher she might have? The hair rose on Rebecca’s arms. No, she’d been right in staying away from him.
Rebecca washed and rinsed the dishes. She pushed thoughts of the stranger away and focused them on Seth and his parting words. She didn’t know why he’d snarled at her, but she was determined not to give him a reason to fire her. The rest of the day was spent scrubbing his house and cooking dinner.
Grace arrived shortly after school let out. “Hi, Rebecca!” she called as she came through the front door. “Oh, something smells delicious.”
“I’m in the kitchen,” Rebecca called back to her. “I baked chocolate-chip cookies.”
The nine-year-old tossed her lunch pail on the table. “May I have one?”
Rebecca smiled. “Yes, you can tell me if they are any good.”
Grace grabbed a warm cookie from the plate on the cupboard and took a big bite. “Mmm, these are great,” she mumbled around a mouthful of cookie.
“I’m glad.” Rebecca finished wiping off the table. Grace reminded Rebecca of her sister back home. Joy would be ten in a few months. Joy loved her sweets, and her little round body was proof that their mother had been the best baker in all of Maryland. Tears filled her eyes as she thought about Joy and their mother. She blinked hard and reached for the pan of dishwater. Thankfully their stepmother had taken a liking to Joy. Probably because Joy looked so much like her father. Rebecca, on the other hand, looked like Mother, which didn’t sit well with her stepmother at all.
“Do you want to walk home with me today, Miss Rebecca?” Grace asked as Rebecca tossed the dishwater out the kitchen door.
Rebecca looked to the roast and potatoes she’d cooked for Seth’s dinner. They were finished and would stay warm until he came home. She looked about the house. There really was no reason for her to stay longer today. “I would like that, Grace. Thank you.”
The little girl smiled her pleasure. “I can’t wait to tell Ma how well I did on the spelling bee.” She picked up her lunch pail. “May I have another cookie?”
Rebecca handed her two and then covered the dish with a clean cloth. She placed it in the center of the table for Seth to find when he got home.
“Thanks!” Grace skipped to the front door.
She followed and pulled her shawl from a row of nails she’d hung earlier in the day. As she put it on, Rebecca looked about the house once more. The smell of fresh baked cookies was inviting, the house was clean and dinner was on the stove.
Thanks to her hard work, Seth Billings would have no reason to fire her. She pulled the door closed behind them and followed a skipping Grace home.
The hair prickled on Rebecca’s neck. She looked about nervously. Was it her imagination? Or was someone watching them? Seeing no one, Rebecca hurried after Grace. She prayed the stranger from earlier in the day wasn’t around.
* * *
Seth glanced over his shoulder at the man tied to the horse behind him. He stifled the yawn that threatened to reveal just how tired he truly felt. It had taken all night to track the man, but he’d done it. Thanks to the reverend’s quick thinking, Seth had been on his trail fairly fast.
Thankfully the reverend had seen the stranger running from his house. He’d watched to see which direction he’d been going before returning to Rebecca. It hadn’t taken the preacher long to find Seth at the jail and give him the man’s description and details he needed to track the villain.
A yawn over took him and he winced as the cut on his lip stretched with the motion. The prisoner had put up quite a fight and had gotten several good hits in before Seth had knocked him out. Once subdued, Seth had learned the man’s name was Jacob O’Malley and that he was the newest member of the Evans gang.
Seth frowned; he hadn’t gotten much out of the prisoner. Jacob was willing to admit that the Evans gang had grown in the past few months. He’d even confessed he was supposed to be watching Jesse’s girl, but other than that his lips were sealed. Seth didn’t like it; he didn’t like it at all. Rebecca Ramsey was in danger. He’d put her there. Guilt over Jesse’s death and his failure to keep her safe ate at him.
What would have happened if the reverend hadn’t arrived when he did? Would Jacob have kidnapped her? Hurt her in some way? Taken her to Maxwell, the gang leader?
The reverend had said she’d been frightened. Had her blue eyes shown that fear? He wanted to hurry back to his house and pull her into his embrace. The thought of holding her and stroking her soft hair, inhaling the sweet fragrance of sweet vanilla that was her scent alone, pulled at him.
He gently kicked his mount’s sides and put both horses into a gallop. The sooner he got Jacob back to Durango, the sooner he could return to Cottonwood Springs and Rebecca. He told himself he only wanted to be by her side to protect her, but knew it wasn’t true.
Seth pulled the animal back and forced himself to remember why he and Rebecca could never be a couple. You are a U.S. Marshal and people who get too close to you die.
Chapter Seven
Rebecca frowned. Nothing had changed. The roast and potatoes still sat on the stove, now ruined. When Seth hadn’t answered the door, she and Grace had let themselves in. Now, seeing he hadn’t been home, Rebecca found herself chewing on her bottom lip.
“May I have a few cookies to take to school?” Grace asked, lifting the cloth from the desert.
She nodded and watched Grace take three. “I don’t think the marshal came home last night,” Grace said around a mouthful of cookie.
“No, I don’t think he did either.” Rebecca moved to the stove. She removed the pan from the stove and set it on the white cabinet. They hadn’t talked about what she should do, should he not come home.
Grace looked up at her. “What are you going to do?”
“I’m not sure.”
The bell at the school rang. Grace started for the front door. “I have to go. Should I come by after school?”
“No, I think I’ll head home and when the marshal gets back, I’ll find out what I need to do in circumstances like this one.” Rebecca pulled her shawl closer about her shoulder and followed Grace outside.
Grace raced up the hill to the school. Hannah stood on the porch. She waved and Rebecca returned the gesture. Her new friend herded the children into the building much like a mother hen shelters its chicks from a spring rainstorm.
Rebecca decided to toss the meat and potatoes. She returned to the house and let herself in. What was she going to do with the ruined meat? Rebecca returned her shawl to the nail and walked into the kitchen. What she needed was a slop bucket. Her gaze moved about the kitchen.
A few moments later, she’d decided on a pan to use as a slop bucket. She dumped the meat and potatoes into it. Then she went outside to get water to wash the pot she’d dirtied the night before. Her gaze darted to the trees. Seeing no one, she hurried to pull the water up and go back inside.
While it heated, her thoughts went to Seth. Being a marshal, he probably didn’t come home every night. Why hadn’t she thought of that before? She rinsed out the coffeepot and began to make fresh coffee.
Her mind worked on what to do. She didn’t want to waste food, but she also didn’t want the marshal going hungry or having to eat at the diner in the evenings. If she didn’t come up with a solution fast, Rebecca reasoned she’d be out of a job.
Simple food, that’s what she needed to make. She needed to create easy meals so that no matter what time he came home, Seth Billings would have something good to eat. She poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table. What had her mother fixed? Fresh bread came to mind.
