Authors: Vickie; McDonough
Sarah's Surrender
© 2016 by Vickie McDonough
Print ISBN 978-1-62836-953-3
eBook Editions:
Adobe Digital Edition (.epub) 978-1-63409-884-7
Kindle and MobiPocket Edition (.prc) 978-1-63409-885-4
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes, except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without written permission of the publisher.
All scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, and/or events is purely coincidental.
Cover Design: Faceout Studio,
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Published by Shiloh Run Press, an imprint of Barbour Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 719, Uhrichsville, Ohio 44683,
www.shilohrunpress.com
Our mission is to publish and distribute inspirational products offering exceptional value and biblical encouragement to the masses.
Printed in the United States of America.
Chapter 1
Gabe Coulter's Ranch
Outside of Guthrie, Oklahoma Territory
June 30, 1901
W
hat did you say?” Sarah Worley leaned back against the corral railing, staring at her longtime friend Luke McNeil. His vivid blue eyes sparkled, making even the cloudless sky seem dull.
He removed his hat, and the light breeze fanned his blond hair across his face. He sobered and cast an uncharacteristically apprehensive glance around the empty ranch yard then refocused on her. Luke took hold of Sarah's hand, sending odd tingles racing up her arm. “I said I want you to marry me. I think we should get hitched.”
Luke had been the one who made her smile when she'd first arrived at the Coulter ranch over eight years ago and had felt so out of place with the loving family. He was a happy sort, always joking or teasing, but from the look in his eyes right now, he was dead serious. Sarah glanced toward the Coulters' two-story house, almost wishing Lara would call her to come in and help. She didn't want to hurt Luke but neither could she marry him. “I don't know what to say. This is so sudden.”
“It's not sudden. I've been thinking about it for ages. Say you will. I can't imagine spending the rest of my life with anyone else.”
“You wouldn't care that your children would be one-fourth Cherokee?” Heat rushed to her cheeks at such an intimate topic.
“Of course not, especially if they have your dark eyes.” He waggled his brows and grinned in a manner that made her squirm.
Usually he could pull her out of her doldrums on the worst of days.
But not today.
She tugged her hand from his. “I care for you, Luke, but as a friend, not a beau. You've always been there for me, but you know I have no plans to marry.”
His lips pursed as he rolled the brim of his hat. “But I thoughtâ” He slapped on his slouch hat. “One of these days you're going to have to forgive your father and forget about what he did.”
She
had
forgiven Pete Worley, but she could never forget how he used the women in the bordello he ownedâthat horrible place she lived for over a year when she was younger. She also couldn't forget how horribly he'd hurt Jo, the first person who ever truly helped her, other than her mother.
She grabbed Luke's sleeve when he started to walk away. “Luke, wait. You know my dearest dream is to have a home of my own. You've asked me to marry you, but you live in Gabe's bunkhouse. Have you considered that?”
He shrugged. “I've some money put back. Probably enough to buy a speck of property somewhere. I can build us a cabin. Maybe I should've ventured out on my own before now. Then I'd already have a house to offer you.”
“If you had, you would have left years ago and our friendship would never have grown to what it is.”
“I don't want just friendship, Sarah. I care deeply for you.”
She reached out and touched his arm. “I care for you, too, and even though I'll be twenty-one soon, I'm not ready to get married. I feel like my life only started eight years ago when Jo brought me to her sister's ranch. I still have so much living to do.”
He frowned. “We could do that livin' together if you weren't so stubborn. I can give you the home you've always wanted if you'd let me.”
Her heart broke a little at disappointing him. She crossed her arms, lest he take her hand again. “I can't, Luke. I'm sorry.”
He stared at her for a long moment, nodded, and then turned and strode into the barn.
Sarah blinked her stinging eyes. Luke was the best friend she'd ever had, and now she'd hurt him deeply. She thought of the times she'd been lonely or not feeling like she belonged in the Coulter home, not that Gabe and Lara had ever made her feel that way. It had been her own insecurities, partly because of the way some people in town eyed her dark complexion. She was a half-breed, and some folks would just as soon spit on her as talk to her.
Feeling more out of sorts than she had in a long while, she pushed away from the railing and headed toward the house. The lovely day had dimmed. Why did Luke have to go and ask her to marry him? Why hadn't she noticed he was getting serious? But why should she when she had such little experience with men? Could they still be friends, or had her refusal of him ruined that relationship?
The sad thing was, in a small part of her mind she could almost see them married. But she had her dreams, and one way or another, it was time she pursued them.
Luke leaned on the stall gate, staring at his palomino, Golden Boy. “I messed up.”
The horse nodded as if agreeing then poked his head over the gate, hoping for a treat.
“Sorry, don't have any handouts today.” He scratched the gelding's forehead. Why hadn't he waited to talk to Sarah? Maybe he should have courted her before blurting out that he wanted to marry her. He kicked the stall gate.
“Something wrong with Golden Boy?”
Luke glanced at his boss, Gabe Coulter. “Uh ⦠no. I'm just frustrated about somethin'.”
Gabe leaned one arm on the empty stall gate next to Golden Boy's. “Care to talk about it?”
Luke shrugged. He and Gabe had been friends longer than Gabe had loved his wife, Lara, but this seemed almost too personal to speak of. Still, he needed another man's perspective. “I asked Sarah to marry me, but she flat-out refused.”
Gabe's eyebrows shot upward. “Well, I sure didn't expect that was your problem.” He rubbed his jaw. “I find it hard to believe she'd refuse you. The two of you seem so close.”
“Friends.” Luke raised his hands in a helpless gesture then slapped them against his pants. “That's all we are, according to her.”
“But you feel more than friendship, I'm guessing.”
“I reckon ⦠yeah. I thought so, at least.” He scratched his hand across his heart as if that would stop it from hurting. “How's a man to know for sure if he's in”âhe swatted a hand in the airâ“love?”
“You must feel pretty certain about your affections for her to propose.”
Luke shrugged. He lifted his head and watched the dust motes floating in the shafts of light that streaked through the cracks in the barn wall. He needed to fix those before winter set in.
“You know, Lara didn't want to have much to do with me at first.”
“Yeah, I remember. How did you manage to win her over?”
“Persistence. I kept at it, and I sure am glad I did.”
Luke thought of the three active children Lara had birthed since she married Gabe: Beth, Drew, and little Missy. It would have been a shame for them not to have been born. He couldn't shake the vision of a son of his own with Sarah's dark eyes and hair. Would that child ever have a chance at life?
He blew out a loud sigh at his sappy thoughts. “I'm thirty-one, Gabe. I'm grateful to have worked for you all these years, but if I ever hope to win Sarah's heart, I've gotta get a place of my own.”
Gabe slapped Luke's shoulder. “I don't know how I'll get along without you, but I understand. A man's got to do what God's calling him to do. Let me know if there's any way I can help. And allow Sarah to consider your proposal. Don't press her for an answer. You may be ready for marriage, but her life was difficult before coming here. She may simply need more time.”
He nodded. “I appreciate the advice.” Luke opened the gate and stepped into the stall. He grabbed a curry brush off the shelf above the feed trough and began running it across Golden Boy's shoulder. The repetitive motion allowed him to think. Something Gabe had said nagged him. “
A man's got to do what God's calling him to do.”
He believed in God. Daniel, Lara's grandpa, had been a good influence on Luke's life before he passed on. He missed the old man, as he knew the rest of the family did. Daniel had often talked about God as if they were old buddies. Luke's life had been pretty good since he met up with Gabe. He liked being Gabe's foreman, but now he needed more.
Maybe it was time he talked to God and asked Him if He actually had plans for himâand if those plans included Sarah as his wife.
The brush paused. But what if God said no?