Oil Patch Romance (Mail Order Bride Series) (8 page)

A distressed look appeared on Johnny’s face when he walked in from the barnyard. 

“Hello, Jonathon,” said Laura.

Rebecca was more to the point.  “You despicable little shit,” she said.

“Hello, Laura.  I’m surprised to see you here.  Rebecca, I suppose Bill told you?”

“Told me what?  No, he didn’t tell me anything and he’s going to pay for that.  I’m here because no one could find you, and Laura was worried.  When she called me and told me you had
disappeared, but she thought you would be here.  She asked for directions to get here.  She was coming to make sure you’re all right.”

“Since Laura already told you, I won’t go into the details, but I am ashamed of what I did.  I thought it would be best if I extricated myself from their lives and let them return to normal,” he said.

“Return to normal?  Don’t you understand?  She loves you and is worried about you.  What in the world did you do?” Rebecca asked.

“You didn’t tell her?” he asked Laura.

“No, I didn’t think it was anything she needed to know,” Laura replied.

“Needed to know what?” asked a confused Rebecca.

“Let’s go into the living room, and get Mama too,  She might as well hear about it.  Can we wait until Pa comes in.  I’ll just tell everyone.”

With the entire family assembled, except for Cassie, Jonathon, Laura and Rebecca were on the sofa, John and Sarah in the easy chairs, Jonathon stood, “Let me begin by saying how I’m ashamed of what I’m about to tell you, and the hurt I’ve caused Laura.  I’ve apologized and I’ve left Texas Fuels.”

“What is this about, Jonathon?” his mother asked.

“Please, Mama, I’m about to tell you, but let me tell it my own way.  I love this girl here so much it hurts, and I’ve caused her humiliation, and embarrassment.  I know I’ve hurt her deeply and I’m truly sorry.”  He looked at Laura, saw the tears forming in her eyes, and choked, then he continued.

“At Texas Fuels, new employees are on probation for ninety days.  Their supervisor writes an evaluation at the end of the probationary period.  Laura was assigned to work with me, so that fell to me.  I didn’t want to work with anyone, so I asked them to assign her to another area, but was told in no uncertain terms, she would be working with me.  It wouldn’t have mattered if she had been a male genius, I would have felt the same.”

Rebecca interrupted, “Now there’s an oxymoron if I’ve ever heard one.”

“Please, Becky,” Jonathon said.  “At the end of the ninety days, I wrote the most one-sided deprecating report possible.  I put several unkind and untrue things in the review.  I suggested she didn’t belong in the field and should be reassigned to the home office, if she were retained.  I submitted the report directly to corporate instead of giving it to Bill Barnes.  He wouldn’t have allowed it to leave the office.”

A look of disbelief appeared on his mother and father’s faces.  Rebecca had a shocked expression.  She was having trouble keeping her composure, she was so mad.  Laura was crying, the tears flowing down her cheeks.

“After I turned in the report, things changed.  It turned out we worked well together and Laura was making positive contributions to my blowout preventer project.  On a few occasions, after working late, we joined some of the office people at the Gusher Tavern.  And to make it short, I fell in love with Laura, and told her so. 

“The realization of the enormity of what I had done hit me.  I told her everything. All of the dirty details.  I didn’t leave anything out.  I tried to get the evaluation blocked, but it was too late and had already been acted on.  Laura was reassigned to the corporate office.  I pleaded with Bill, but he was unable to do anything.  Laura’s assigned to corporate, Bill requested a transfer to Katy, not wanting to work with me any more.  It was time for me to leave the company and let things return to normal.  So I did.”

“I don’t believe this,” Rebecca said.  “Looking at Laura, I can see it’s true.  And for your information, little brother, Bill didn’t request a transfer to get away from you, he’s too strong a man to do that.  He wanted to be closer to Houston, where I am.  If you’ve messed things up between us, you’re dead meat.”

Neither of his parents could find words to express their feelings.  That their son was suffering, there was no doubt.

“Jonathon,” Laura began, her lip quivering, “the transfer was cancelled.  I’m still assigned to Beaumont and to you and your project.  I forgave you as soon as you told me about it.  I was hurt and I was mad, but I forgave you.  I love you.  Please come back and let’s work together.  We’re a good team.”

She reached over and took Johnny’s hand and buried her head in his shoulder, her body shaking with the emotion, and her sobs audible.  He put his arm around her, and pulled her close.  “I love you, Laura.  I do.”

“You don’t deserve her, Johnny.  “Don’t cause her any more pain,” Rebecca said.

“Laura, come take a walk with me.  Please.”  He took her hand, then put his arm around her shoulder; she responded by putting her arm around his waist, as they went outside.

The walk took them down the paths between the cotton fields.  Jonathon told her about his mother being a mail order bride, after having lost her husband in the Civil War.  He told her how his father’s first wife had died of pneumonia, leaving Cassie for him to raise, how after corresponding, she and Rebecca left their family in South Carolina to come to Texas and marry his father-to-be.

“That’s a beautiful story,” Laura said, as they returned to the porch and sat in the swing.  “Your mother is a courageous woman.  It’s no wonder her children are so accomplished, and I include Cassie.”

“She is courageous.  So is Pop.  He was wounded and held in a Yankee prison for over two years, then came home to find his wife frail and worn out.”

“What are you going to do, Jonathon.  Can you come back and continue as my mentor?  What are we going to do about us?  I love you.  You’re the first and only man I’ve ever loved.  I want you in my life.”

“I want to be part of your life, too,” he said.  “I’ll call Bill and talk to him.
 

…

“Bill, Jonathon.  I’m at the farm.  Laura came up here with Becky.  Laura is asking me to come back to work.  I’ll only do that if…”

“… if you are okay with it.  Can we make it work? 

“Okay then, We’ll see you the day after tomorrow.

Later…

“Laura,  I love you with all of my heart and soul.  Will you do the honor of becoming my wife?”

“Yes, I will, Jonathon, I will.” 

“I told Bill we would be there day after tomorrow.  Will you go with me to ask your father for your hand?”

“Yes.  And he will be pleased.”

“Let’s go tell everyone.” 

“Mama, Pop, Becky, we have something to tell you.  I have just asked Laura to be my wife.  She has accepted my proposal.  She will be going with me tomorrow, to ask her father for her hand.”

“Rebecca, thank you.  I’m not sure this would have happened without your help.” Laura said.  “Would you be my maid-of-honor?”

“I would be honored to.  I’m so happy for the two of you, I could cry.  I knew you were meant for each other the first time I saw you together, even when Johnny was at his worst.  Any thoughts on when?”

“Mother always wanted a big wedding for me.  Since I’m her only daughter, she’ll not miss this chance.”

Sarah walked over, put her arms around Laura and hugged her.  “Welcome to our family.  You’ll be a great addition.  Maybe you can give me grandbabies.  My two daughters don’t seem to be making any progress toward that end.”

“Don’t be too sure.  You might be surprised,” Laura said.

Looking at Rebecca, “Is there something you’ve kept from me?” Sarah asked.

“Mother, how can you ask such a question.  When I become engaged, I promise you will be the first to know.”

Always quiet, Clint said, “Warts and all, you’re getting a fine man, Laura.  He’ll make you a good husband, or he’ll answer to me.”  He smiled and hugged her.

Later that afternoon…

“Are you familiar with the signs of an oil deposit,” Jonathon asked Laura.

“A little.  I was at school when most of the wells on our property came in, but Papa showed me the sites, and I was there when a few were struck.”

“Come on, I want to show you something.”  They went to the back where he hitched the horse to the wagon and gave her a boost onto the seat.  They rode down the path between the cotton fields.  Jonathon stopped the wagon, and helped her down.  They walked over to a slight rise in the ground. 

He pointed.  “I think this is a salt dome.  There’s a small vent in the earth.  Do you smell the sulphur?  I think there’s oil down there.  We’ve got several places like this around the farm.  Rebecca’s drawn up lease contracts for them.  I want to get an exploration team in here and see what they say.  What do you think?”

“The smell is certainly familiar.  We had that all over our place.  I think you’re right.  What does your father say?”

“He led me here some time ago.  He will follow my lead.  I’ve been holding off,  When I came back, I had decided this would be the right time to follow up.”

“Are you thinking of not going back to Texas Fuels?” A tinge of fear had hit her.

“No, of course not.  I want to finish the blowout preventer.  I want to work with you.  I want you to partner with me on this.  I intend to ask Bill to send a team up here.”

A hand on each of her shoulders, he turned her to face him.  He lowered his head until his lips came into contact with her’s.  Her arms went around him; she pressed herself against him, and  returned his kiss with reckless abandon.  She felt his passion grow as it pressed against her thigh.

She moved his hand to her breast and held it there, feeling the heat through the fabric.  She broke the kiss.  “I love you so much, the thought of losing you made me sick and I cried for two days.”

“I’m so sorry I hurt you.  I will never do that again.  “Right now, I feel as if I’m the luckiest man in the world,” he said. 

* * *

The Ingram Ranch…

Following Laura’s directions, Jonathon drove the wagon to Laura’s home.  When they came to a stop by the hitching post, a young cowboy came out, and said, “I’ll see to your horse.  Welcome home, Miss Laura.”

“Thank you, Jim.  Are they inside?” she asked, inquiring on the whereabouts of her steps.

“They are.”  He led the horse away.

“Laura, I didn’t expect anything like this.  It’s an enormous place.” he said, as they went through the front door.

“Welcome to our home,” Elizabeth Ingram said.

“Thank you.  It is good to see you again.”

He looked around.  “You have a beautiful home,” he said.

“Mother, where’s Papa?” Laura asked.

“He’s in his office,” her mother answered.

“I’ll show you,” Laura said to Jonathon, and led the way to a room off the front hall.  She started to enter, but he stopped her.

“Let me,” he said.  He rapped on the door frame and heard a “Come in.”

He entered a paneled room, lined with bookcases and dominated by a massive walnut desk.  Her father stood and came around the desk.  He shook Jonathon’s hand.  “Elizabeth said you two might come out,” he said.  “What brings you out into the boondocks?”

“Sir, I’ve come to ask you for your daughter’s hand.  I love her with all my heart.  I’ve asked her to be my wife and she said yes.  I would like to have your blessing,” Jonathon finished in a rush.

“We’ve been expecting something like this.  Her mother and I talked about it last night.  If Laura chose you, then you must be a special man, and I give you our blessing.”

Jonathon breathed a big sigh of relief.  “That was about the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” he told Hank Ingram.  “I don’t know what I’d have done if you’d said no.”

“We’d have eloped,” Laura said as she entered the room.  She ran into her father’s arms.  “Thank you Papa.  I’ve waited for him my entire life.” 

“Jonathon, let’s tell Mama now.  Together, they went back down the hall, followed by her father.

As she watched her daughter approach, she said, “Jonathon proposed, didn’t he?  And you said yes, didn’t you?”

“Yes and yes,” Laura said.  “Mama, I’m so happy.  He asked me yesterday but he said Papa had to give us his blessing.  I’m getting married Mama.  I’m really getting married.”

Her mother put her arms around Jonathon and said, “I’ve hoped for this day since she went away to Harvard.  I’m glad she fell in love with someone close by.”

“Thank you.  We told my parents yesterday.  She came to the farm with my sister.”

“Have you thought about a date yet?” she asked Laura.

“We haven’t had time.  If it were my decision, it would be tomorrow, but I know how much it means to you, so Jonathon insists we let you do your thing.”

“We have so much to do.  We have to get a dress.  You do want a church wedding?  Have you decided on a maid-of-honor?”

“We do want a church wedding and I’ve asked Jonathon’s sister, Rebecca to be my maid-of-honor.”

Jonathon wandered off as mother and daughter chattered away.  “The women have already taken over, huh,” Hank Ingram said from behind him. 

“Would you join me in a bourbon and water? He asked, and walked back toward his office.

“Yes sir, that would be good.  Maybe it will calm my nerves.”

“Is cattle your major business, Mr. Ingram?”

“Call me Hank.  Please.  Laura hasn’t told you anything about us, has she?” 

“No sir, she just told me you were into oil and cattle.  I was showing her some spots on our farm, where there’s a strong odor of sulphur, and she remembered it from your wells here.”

“Our spread is about 12,000 acres and we run some cattle on it.  After some dry holes, we got lucky with a few wells.

“You’re an Aggie, aren't you, Jonathon?  Were you in the Corps?”

“Yes sir, I was.  I did a little time in Cuba after I graduated, but I’m Maroon and White all the way.”

“It’s a good school. We’ve hired some good men from there.  Let’s see if the women have slowed for a deep breath yet.”

“You are going to stay here tonight, aren’t you?” Laura’s mother asked.

Jonathon looked at Laura, and received a slight nod of the head.

“Yes ma’am.  I’d like that.  We plan to go into the office tomorrow.  I’ve been away for a few days and want to catch up on our project.”  He looked at Laura, “Notice, I said our project, honey?”

“You heard him Mama.  That’s the first time he called me honey.  I like it.”  She linked her arm in his, possessively.

“You’re done for, son.  What are you working on, if you don’t mind my asking.”

“We’re working on a blowout preventer design, sir.”

“If you can make it work, it would be huge for the producers. There’s no telling how much oil we’ve lost through gushers,” Hank said.

“Yes sir.  I think we’re getting close.  I understand Cameron Iron is working on one too.  I’d like to be able to meet with their engineers to discuss the designs.  Laura’s a quick study.  Maybe she could spot something that would help us.”  Laura beamed, and patted his hand. 

“Hmmmm…” said Hank.