The Milch Bride (16 page)

Feeling cheated, Jackson rolled to curve around them both, and
then he realized his mistake. One touch against her slim hips and he was fully
aroused. Even worse, Hattie was instantly aware of his presence and his
condition. He knew it, because she slipped from the bed, J.D. held before her
chest. The boy looked over his shoulder and gave Jackson a dirty look for
spoiling his morning meal and cuddles.

“It’s not what you think … it is … but I didn’t mean anything
by it.”

She looked more irate than J.D.

Jackson realized it was time for him to make a retreat but
he had a very large problem.

“Hattie, I’m sorry. Its morning …” At her angry scowl, he
shrugged. “You’ll need to spin around.”

She lifted the complaining baby to her shoulder and a
humiliated Jackson climbed out of bed, quickly pulling on jeans and shirt. Carrying
his boots and hat, he padded out of the room, holding his pants up with one
hand.

In the quiet room he dressed and rubbed his chin. Donna had
hated for him to go unshaven. If Hattie felt the same, she’d need to allow him
back in the bedroom. Fat chance of that. He headed into the kitchen and started
the fire. He put coffee on and took the empty pails and headed to the barn.

James Boyd was already on the job, one pail full of milk
beside him.

“I thought you quit.”

“Nope, not until I’m replaced. You know me better than
that.”

Jackson stared at the old cowhand. Forty-two or three, some
old man. But ranching did that to a person. A rough season, an injury or two,
suddenly you found yourself on the chuck wagon instead of heading up the crew
chasing the cows.

“How long have I known you, boss?”

“Since I was a sprout, about like J.D., about as long as
I’ve known anyone.”

“That’s our first real fight.”

Jackson laughed, rubbed his chin, and laughed again. The
startled cow moved away and James barely caught the pail. Jackson moved the
other pail out of reach.

“Now look, I can remember the time you nearly broke my jaw,
the time you did break my arm.”

“I don’t mean physical fight, I mean hurting words fight.”

Jackson stared at him a long time. “Women?”

James nodded, “Women.”

“Yeah, that’s always what comes between good friends. I’m
sorry. It’s just Rubye is so bossy, like us, and she spent a good deal of time
keeping Hattie in her place. I just think if she is the one asking to come
back, it might let them establish a better relationship.”

“I was afraid you wouldn’t let her come back. I know how she
was, not fair to the girl at all. I just, well, she’s got no real home.”

Jackson looked around at the horses, all leaning over their
stalls, ears perked forward as though intently listening. “None of my business
…but why haven’t you ever proposed to Rubye? Everyone knows you love her.”

James surprised him by offering no denials. “What have I got
to offer a wife, a broken down saddle tramp like me? Naw, it wouldn’t be fair
to a fine woman like her.”

“We’ll see her Sunday at church. We’ll go from there.” Jackson
switched the pail to his left, then held out his right hand and waited. James
set down his bucket and shook.

“I guess I better get the eggs, let you finish this up.”

When he came back to the kitchen, Hattie was dressed in the
same outfit as yesterday. J.D. lay on a folded quilt on the floor, playing with
his pony and carved wooden cow, the little lamb nearby. He could smell bacon
frying and biscuits baking and was astonished to see the table already set. He
set the bucket of eggs on the counter.

She pointed at the eggs, “Count seems a little low.”

“Oh, guess it could be the new surroundings, put ‘em off a
little in their laying.”

“They finished the chicken coop?” She gave a little clap of
excitement.

“Sure did, you’ll have to inspect it soon. Boys are pretty
proud of the job, but we’ll make changes if you have any suggestions.”

She grabbed a trivet and the handle of the oatmeal but he
took both and carried them out to the table, along with the molasses. Hattie
added grease to the skillet, then cracked the first four eggs into the pan,
waited, then when the edges started to curl, raised the pan to flip all four. In
minutes the men were piling in, each taking time to check the baby. He raised
both legs in the air, then settled on one to twist so he could chew on his
toes.

“Pretty slick trick,” Cliff said. “Bet you can’t do that
Hank.”

“Bet you’re right, but my bones aren’t still stretchy like
his.”

James bustled in with the fresh milk, hurrying into the
kitchen to filter it into the churn, then going down to bring cold milk and
butter up.

J.D. seemed to realize he was his last chance. He rolled
onto his belly, arched up and made demands that someone come back to lift him
up.

Jackson grinned and went to pull him up into his arms,
twirling around like a big bird for a second. J.D. squealed in pleasure.

Hattie handed James the platters of bacon and biscuits,
carried the plate of eggs herself. She served two or three to each man, then
put the platter down in front of Jackson. He took a biscuit, buttered it and
poured a puddle of molasses on his plate to dunk the bread in.

“Mighty fine, Mrs. Harper, mighty fine vittles,” Cliff said,
as Hattie settled in the chair beside Jackson and took J.D. into her own lap,
smiling at the complement, aware of her new position in the house.

“You know,” Hank said, “I purely do like ranching chickens,
except for that scrawny going-to-be-rooster.”

Tony laughed. “He sure was cock-of the-roost last night.
Soon as they all went in he set about sorting them out and claiming top perch.”

When everyone had been assigned tasks and sent off to work, Jackson
held Cliff back. “You ever find any leads in town about our vanishing
rustlers?”

“Nary a sign.”

“I figure someone got them on a stage.”

“Yeah, James, Hank and I were talking about that, how to
find out. I told them the station master’s daughter might be able to find out,
if she had the right incentive. She’s an old, buck-tooth gal, looks like her
papa, but she’s mighty sweet on Tony. She’s always trying to block him in the
aisle at church, main reason he doesn’t like to go, according to Hank.”

“What did Tony say?”

“I can’t repeat it in mixed company, but it boiled down to,
no.”

Jackson grinned. “I can telegraph the marshal, have him make
inquiries in Abilene, tell him what we suspect. But pretty much everything sent
gets seen by the sheriff and Charlie Dawson. I hate to muddy the waters in my
own drinking hole.”

“Know what you mean. Maybe I could ride on into Waco, send a
wire from there, maybe check on their owl-hoots while I’m in town. It would
take a day or two away and maybe a little pocket money.”

Jackson smiled, drew out a gold eagle and told him to fill
his saddle bags with biscuits and jerky.

James Boyd came out from the kitchen. “You know Rubye’s
being at Dawson’s house, she might be able to learn something, that is, if I
could get away a little. Wouldn’t need no gold piece to go calling, neither.”

Jackson nodded. “Take the wagon, pick up supplies and mail
while you’re in town. I’ll see if Hattie needs anything, make sure she can
handle lunch alone.”

When he found Hattie, she was in the side yard washing
clothes. He noticed she had J.D. out on a quilt on the porch, with one of the
cow dogs standing guard duty. When the baby would start to roll, the dog would
move so the boy ended up alongside him, where J.D. would lustily grab fur and
ears until the dog would nudge him and the baby would roll in a different
direction.

It wasn’t the best solution, but he noticed the slight
bruise on the boy’s forehead where he’d already taken a tumble this morning. With
her keeping watch, he guessed the big yellow dog was the best choice.

He walked to where she was rinsing and wringing clothes. “Hattie?”

She turned to eye him coolly and looked past him to the dog.
“He always seemed to be watching him anyway, so I put him to work when Jackie tilted
the cradle over. I know it looks bad, but he only cried a minute and I don’t
think it’s going to raise a knot.

“Sam, the dog’s name is Sam.”

At his name, the dog sat up, his mouth open in a grin. Hattie
smiled, for the first time this strange morning. J. D. squealed and the big dog
flopped back down, still grinning, to let the baby curl into him.

“What did you think of the chicken coop?”

“I haven’t seen it yet.”

He growled. He and three hands had spent two days working in
the heat to get that job done, just to please her. “Leave that and come take a
look.”

“I’m almost done. If I leave it, something might spill the
clothes out and I’d have to start again.”

He picked up the basket, surprising her, and began hanging
the clothes, checking to see how she had hung the others.

She wrung out her dark blouse and followed the basket and
Jackson to the line. “Here, I have to hurry before Jackie starts crying.” Snapping
the blouse out sharply, then quickly pinning it to overlap the corner of the
shirt he had already pinned, she shook the tail of his shirt out without
pulling it loose from the pin.

He laughed and handed her the next piece, moving to keep up
with her as she made quick work of hanging their clothes side by side on the
line. Jackson felt a sudden tightness in his chest as he stared at the dog, the
baby, and the slim blonde beside him. She tugged at the last piece in his
hands, feeling her breath catch at the tender look in his eyes as he stared
down at her.

“Jackie?”

“I’m used to calling J.D., Jackie, when it’s just the two of
us. J.D. seems so grown up for such a little boy.”

He shrugged in acknowledgement. “I don’t know if you should
trust Sam that much, with Jackie. He’s great at herding reluctant heifers and
surly bulls, I’ve seen him back down wolves, but I’m not sure if he might not
snap at the baby.”

She left the washtubs to empty later and hurried to the
porch, squatting to rub the head and ears of the rough yellow dog, before
picking up the happy baby. The dog whined and raised his head to lick the bare
foot of the boy, making him giggle and squirm, trying to reach the dog.

Jackson shook his head. “Well, I’ve seen it all.”

Happy at the light sound of his voice, Hattie laughed.
“Well, I haven’t. We need to see this fantastic chicken coop, don’t we Jackie?”
She leaned to kiss the bruised spot. “Poor little noggin.” J.D. lifted a hand
to capture her face and she nibbled at his thumb as they walked.

When Jackson set down the basket, she passed him the baby. With
the boy held in the crook of his arm, he managed to loop an arm around her
waist and tug her forward. He relaxed when she didn’t pull away or struggle to
remove his arm. Not willing to tempt fate, he let the arm slip, but captured
her hand as he did so.

He noticed her glance at the washtub and the garden
wistfully as they walked past. “I’ll help with that when we get back.”

Once again, Hattie felt the warmth of their connection. She
smiled up at him.

At the barn, she started for feed but he stopped her. “Taken
care of when we turned them out and collected eggs.”

Another fleeting smile, then the dazzling one he’d been
hoping for when she saw the finished coop.

It rose like a wing against the regular barn. She was
surprised to see the stack of the roof panels against the barn. At her puzzled
look, Jackson handed her back the baby.

“Let me show you.” He lifted and slipped a panel in place
between the upright poles. “Comes a blow or blizzard, we can close it all in. We
figured why rebuild it when its winter.”

“Clever,” she nodded, “very clever, Mr. Harper.”

Smiling, he gave her a mock bow, delighting J.D. with the
quick motion.

She laughed and suddenly the worry from the morning was
gone. If he could just keep her happy, the world would be a fine place.

“If you had a ramp up to the first plank, then they could
run up and go to roost at night.”

“We debated it, but Cliff said foxes or coyotes might follow
them in and destroy the flock. Better if someone is around at night to close
the door.”

She shrugged, I’m sure he’s right. “It’s wonderful, thank you.”

“You’ll need to thank the hands, Cliff and Tony worked
really hard on it.”  He stared at her, read the gratitude in her eyes. He
wanted to fall into the sweet blue clarity of her gaze. Slowly he moved closer
and leaned down to kiss her softly. Hattie surprised them both by leaning in
and kissing him back. J.D. squirmed between them and they pulled apart.

“Hey, boss.”

Surprised, Jackson turned to see James standing at the barn
door.

“What was the decision?”

Hattie looked up at Jackson in confusion. He shook his head.
“I came out to ask you a couple of questions. Do you think you can handle the
meals, if James drives into town?”

“I’ll try.”

James shook his head and disappeared inside.

She stared up at Jackson, regretting the interruption by the
older cowhand. “What was the other question?” Her voice quavered as she focused
on his mouth, remembering how amazingly soft and warm his lips had felt.

Jackson put out a hand to touch her shoulder and J.D.
reached out a small hand to touch his face. At the baby’s squeal of delight,
Hattie raised a hand to feel his stubbly jaw. She raised her eyebrows at him.

“I was chased out before I shaved. I’ll go back and do it.”

“I’m sorry, but I was afraid you were going to take
advantage of the situation.”

“No, ma’am. I’m waiting on your permission.”

“Then why were you ….” She blushed so prettily, he wished
they were back in the bedroom.

“Aroused?” he growled the word and she turned her back on
him, ready to walk back to the house. Quickly he stepped closer, an arm around
her waist, clutching J.D.’s legs gently as he whispered near her ear. “You keep
me this way. Looking at you, hearing you talk, smelling you,” he growled.

He waited for her protest of terror, but all he felt was the
quiver of her as she inhaled quickly against his body.

James emerged from the barn, riding in the buckboard behind
a pair of big red horses. “I have your missus’ list. Did you think of anything
else you need?”

“Yeah. I need a nightshirt, maybe a couple of pairs of
summer drawers.”

James Boyd whistled, blushed red to his ears, and snapped
the buckboard into motion.

Hattie pushed out of his arms and stomped back to the
kitchen, J.D. craning his neck to watch his laughing daddy.

<><><> 

While Hattie put the elk shoulder in the oven to roast,
Jackson emptied the wash tubs on the garden and stacked the tubs on the end of
the porch. Next he grabbed the hammer and nails and picked up the sawed rails
to get to work.

When Hattie came out, ready to hoe the garden, she deposited
J.D. back in the porch cradle, setting it to rocking with the sleepy baby
drowsing beneath a clean diaper for shade.

She stared at him, noting his shirt was already damp from
the heat. Stepping down, she examined the corner of the porch, where the
closely spaced rails were tacked into place to close in the lower half. “I
didn’t expect it to be done instantly.”

He put down the hammer and straightened. “It’s not nailed or
screened, but at least you won’t have to rely on a dog to let him down on it.”

“Sam was doing a good job,” but even as she spoke, J.D.
awoke and tried to pull up on the side of the cradle, tilting it to one side. Before
he could spill out they both raced to catch him. Jackson swung the baby up,
crying “whoa, boy.” And Hattie wrapped an arm around the baby and him. He
stared down at her smiling face for the second time in an hour. Again he felt
the urge to kiss her but knew if he did he would only push for more so he shook
his head to clear it. “Do you think it will be all right if I put him down in
the corner that’s fenced?”

“You can if Sam can block the open end.” She spread the
quilt again and laid the happy baby on his back. In a minute he was ready to
roll over and Jackson slapped his thigh and called “Sam.” The big yellow dog
was instantly back on the job.

An hour later, she set the washed basket full of cucumbers
and green tomatoes, along with one big cabbage and a pail of water on top of
the step. She then opened the new gate so she could step up onto the porch and
slide the basket forward. She stared down at the sleeping baby, “He’s asleep?”

“Yeah,” he finished pounding the last rail and grinned at
her. “He watched a while, but I guess it was too boring. As soon as Sam yawned
and plopped over J.D. yawned and went back to sleep.”

“But you’ve been hammering, look at all you’ve done.”

She sank into the rocker, staring around at the enclosed
porch. “Is it finished?”

“Finished.” He wiped his face and neck with a hankie from his
back pocket. “I’m planning to ride out to your old ranch to look around. Is
there anything you want me to look for? Anything you’ve been missing?”

She clapped her hands. “Yes, I need crocks, the little one
for pickles and the large one to make sauerkraut. James is supposed to be
bringing me jars, pickling spice, and two gallons of vinegar, but I like sour
pickles too and they require the crock.”

He stared at her. “Is there anything you can’t make or
cook?”

She blushed at the complement and laughed. “Cake. Rubye was
teaching me, but I’m still not sure I can. And sewing, embroidery, all the
beautiful things your Donna made for Jackie. I can’t do any of that.”

“You made his pretty pony.”

She smiled sadly. “I felt like Donna was there, you know,
helping me have the courage to try it.”

He nodded, “Yeah, I’m not a carpenter, but I felt her say,
Jackson go on, try it.”

Hattie shivered despite the heat and he felt the same chill
sweep through him.

“I still feel sad, that she was robbed of all this, his coos
and laughs and little bumps,” she said.

“I think she’s watching over him. That’s why we feel her so
much.” The words left his mouth dry. He lifted the pail and drank the cold
water from the dripping bucket. “Well, I’ve got to go. Tony is staying close by.
You need him, just give a shout and he’ll come running.”

She looked around, but didn’t see any sign of the young
hand. She shivered again. “You think the rustlers might show up? I thought they
were gone.”

“I’d rather be too careful, then sorry. Stay close until I’m
back. Keep a gun close.”

She had just finished moving the cradle and vegetables
inside when he rode up beside her. “You sure that’s all you want, two crocks?”

“No, I need momma’s meat mill. It should be under the floor
in the kitchen, too. I could make some sausage if you brought it.”

“Sausage? I don’t see any hogs here. Besides it’s the wrong
time of year.”

“Dad and I made sausage out of deer, antelope, whatever he
shot. Ground well and seasoned right, it’s a nice change from roast or stewed
meat. I could have used more of the elk, if I’d saved the gut and ground the
scrap meat for sausage. But I can use some of what’s left to make mincemeat if
I have my mill.”

“All right, I’ll look for it.”

She opened the gate and stood on the top step. Before she
would never have had the courage, but now she dared, reaching out to him as she
asked. “Why are you going?”

“They were hiding there before. Maybe they went back.”

Then she moved into him, wrapping her arms tight around his
neck. “If you think they’re there, don’t go alone. It’s too dangerous.”

He smiled, gave her a tight hug back and a light kiss on the
forehead. “I’ll pick up one of the men along the way. Stay inside with the baby.
Be careful.” It almost slipped out, I love you too, but he firmly removed her
arms and gently pushed her back onto the porch before he let the emotion
swelling in his chest burst out.

She stood still as she watched him ride away. Why didn’t she
tell him what she felt? Grabbing up Jackie, she hurried into the house, closing
the door behind her. As soon as she put the baby down, he started crying. Several
minutes later she had him changed and happily playing with his toys while she
made yeast rolls, her father’s pistol on the counter beside her.

Minutes later, she was busy shredding cabbage for coleslaw. She
pushed washed greens in a pot to wilt down. Finally she poured molasses into a
small pan, added the sliced tomatoes and peppers and some ground cayenne and
added a generous splash of cider vinegar. She stirred it, adding black pepper
and paprika, tasting until it was right, then left it over the other back-eye
to finish stewing down into a barbecue sauce.

Since Jackie was still playing quietly, she went to the
bedroom for her cloth and scissors, this time using the flour-sack gown and
another of her homemade diapers, she cut a pattern for a little cowboy. Working
quickly and with far more confidence then she had on the pony, she had him sewn
and stuffed before the baby woke. She cleared the scraps and put everything away
before rescuing the hungry baby.