Chapter 20

They had slept later than usual.  Probably catching up from the lost sleep from the night before.   They could already smell the bacon cooking as they headed towards the back door that lead to the kitchen.  Supper was always in the big dining room.  Lunch was usually outside or in the bunkhouse.  Breakfast was always in the kitchen.

"'Bout time you two was gettin' up.  Can't be gettin' anything done around here sleepin' all day."  Georgia placed two heaping plates full of bacon, eggs, fried potatoes and biscuits on the large wooden rustic table that stood in the center of the spacious kitchen.

"Mornin' boys.  Ready for another day of horse breaking?"  Mr. McCreedy asked cheerfully as he smoked his cigar and sipped his coffee.

"Yep.  Hoping to get a saddle on that painted pony today.  And I'm gonna ride that big black today if it kills me.  I think he's gonna be a real good horse if he'll just let me stay on more than ten minutes,"  Heyes said as he stuffed his mouth with potatoes.

"Good, good.  I've got two more buyers lined up and I'm meeting with another potential buyer today in town.  Everyone who's bought from us so far has been mighty pleased.  You boys missed your calling the first time out.  You should have been horse wrangling the whole time."

The boys smiled at each other, pleased with themselves.  "The ladies up yet?"  Kid asked around a mouthful of eggs.

"They having breakfast in the parlor,"  Georgia explained as she poured the boys mugs of coffee.  "Ms. Livvy said she had a whole bunch of family heirlooms and photographs to show Miss Vangeline.  Now you boys can stop in there and say mornin' to 'em, but don't be hangin' around distracting 'em  all day.  Them young ladies is the only kin each other have left to depend on.  They need time to get to know one another.  So you two just tend to your horses and leave 'em be.   I'll put a picnic basket together later for your lunch.  I'll leave it by the back door.  I'll be busy gettin' the laundry boiled and then Mr. McCreedy'll be taking me into town to do some shopping."

"I thought Olivia had another sister,"  Heyes said between bites.

"She has a sister, but the poor thing suffered from a terrible fever some years ago and it left her with the mind of a child,"  Georgia said shaking he head.

"How do you know that?"  Heyes inquired.

"She told us all about it this morning while she helped me make breakfast.  Um um.  That poor child.  Been through so much."

"Olivia helped you make breakfast?"  Kid asked as he buttered his biscuit.

"Made them biscuits you been chompin' on.  You know everything ain't always what it seem on the outside, Mr. Jones.  That child may have money but she had her share of heart ache too."

The boy's exchanged looks then shrugged and continued to devour their breakfast.

                                                    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Good morning, ladies." The boys offered their most generous smiles to the two women when they stopped by the parlor on their way out to the corral.

They sat on a sofa their heads together bent over what looked like a scrapbook full of newspaper clippings and photographs.  Olivia was in the process of explaining the Sanders family tree to her niece.  They both looked up briefly when the boys said good morning.    Olivia smiled, nodded, said "Good morning"  and returned without a breath to her explanation of the family tree.  Evie just gave them a slight smile and a wave before returning her full attention to the scrapbook.

The boys looked at each other, puzzled.  Heyes had expected at least a good morning peck on the cheek.  And after the flirting that he and Olivia had engaged in last night,  Kid had expected more than the obligatory 'good morning' he'd received.

 "Let's go, Kid.  The horses are waiting."

"Yeah, maybe they'll be glad to see us."

                                                 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Father insisted on having a photograph made of the family whenever a photographer came into town.  This is the last one we made before Libby went off to finishing school.  Lilly and I clung to her and cried like babies."

Underneath the photograph in perfect penmanship was written, "The Sanders Family -Charles Oliver, Virginia Rose,  Elizabeth Grace, Olivia Hope, Lillian Faith - Autumn 1851."

"Charles Oliver Sanders and Jenny Rose Gregory - Sanders are your grandparents,"  Olivia announced with pride in her voice.  She obviously loved her parents very much. "Lilly was daddy's favorite.  He never said so and he loved us all, but there was always a special bond between the two of them.  It broke his heart when she refused to come home after she married your father."

"Refused?  I thought he wouldn't allow her to come home.  That's what Mama always told me."

"Of course that's what she told you.  Lilly was one of the most pig headed, grudge bearing people I ever knew.  I loved her dearly,  but she was not perfect.   Daddy did tell her if she stayed married to your father that she would never be welcome in his house again.  But he only said that because he was angry and hurt.  Your father had come in and stolen his baby girl away.   But he regretted his words of course and he sent her a letter asking her to come home.   But she sent him a letter back telling him she was washing her hands of the lot of us if we couldn't accept the man she loved.   Daddy and mother both sent her letters of apology  for the things they had said.  They begged and pleaded with her to come home.  They told her that she and Nathaniel were both welcome and that Daddy would even give him a position at the bank.  Her short response was that she would consider it.  We all wrote to her many times after that but she never replied.  Then about a year later, we received word from her that she had given birth to a daughter and she was coming home for Christmas.  She arrived on Christmas Eve with you.  You were only three months old.  You were so tiny and perfect.  So, you see, we've met before.  Your grandparents fell instantly in love with you."    A sad smile touched her lips as she remembered days long past.  "But on Christmas day,  Lilly and Daddy had a terrible argument and she snatched you out of mother's arms and marched out the door with you, and we never heard from her again.  Well, not until the day mother and I went to Arkansas to tell her about Daddy's death.  I think many times that he might have lived longer  if Lilly would have come home.  Even just to visit.  But when he became ill and Lilly returned every letter unopened, he just gave up."

Evie could not believe what she was hearing.  Her mother had told her all her life that her family had refused to let her be a part of their lives because she had chosen her father over them.  But if being in love with a wanted outlaw had taught her one thing, it was that there are always two sides to every story.  And now she knew the other side of her mother's story.  Evie loved her mother.  There would never be another person in the world like her and nothing would ever make her stop loving her mother.  But right now, she was feeling a little angry at her.  Evie and Gabe had lived their entire life without grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins.  They had lived without them because Lilly Webb had been too stubborn and begrudging to forgive her mother and father.  She recalled times now when she was younger that she could hear her parents argue about letters that had not been opened.  Evangeline had been too young to really know what they had been talking about, but now she knew.  Her father had tried to get her mother to at least read the letters, but her mother had always refused.  Why, Mama, why?

"And my grandmother?  What happened to her?   Is she still alive?"

"No.  Mother died about a year and a half after Daddy.  The stress of Daddy's death and taking care of Libby wore her down.  She became ill the winter of '64 and she died the following spring."

"Why did Libby have to be taken care of?"

"Libby miscarried three times before she finally carried a child to term.  The baby was very big and Libby was very small.  She suffered in labor for thirty-six hours.   At one point the doctor told us neither of them was going to make it.  But  finally,  David Gregory Kensington was born.  Libby suffered so much damage from the birth that she almost bled to death.  Then she developed an infection and had a high fever for three days.  When the fever broke her brain had been damaged and she was left with the mind of a five year old.  She had to be tended to like a child.  She is never left unattended."

"So I have a cousin named David?"  Evie managed after a few moments of digesting all the information.

"David also suffered from the difficult birth.   His little head had been partially crushed during the delivery and he only lived for 48 hours.  Libby never even knew he had been born let alone that he had died.  We buried him next to Daddy.  They had died exactly one month apart.  Daddy died November 7th,  David was born December 5th and died the 7th.  We had hoped that the promise of a new grandchild would help Daddy regain strength and heal, but after what happened to Libby and David, we were glad he wasn't there to see it."

Evangeline felt horrible.  So many tragic things had happened in her mother's family.  Her family.  And her mother never even knew it.

"Mama's Bible says that Libby was married to Stuart Kensington?"

"Yes."

"So I have an Uncle Stuart?"

"You did.   Stuart was never the same after David died and Libby's mind was altered.  Mother, Geoffrey and I came home from church one Sunday in April, just months after the baby had died, and he had gone.  He had taken all of his things, had left a note that he just couldn't stay and watch his beloved Libby waste away in a child's world.  A few years later divorce papers were delivered to the house.  We had heard he had remarried and now had several children.  His father owns several hotels on the east coast and he  manages one of them.  Father had planned on Stuart and Geoffrey running the banks and newspaper.  But that didn't happen."

"Who is Geoffrey?"

"Geoffrey was my husband."

"Was?"

"Yes.   After Stuart left, Geoffrey felt like the weight of the world was on his shoulders.  He was responsible now for the entire family.  And Daddy had never really been able to teach him all he wanted to about running the family business.  We married in August of '62 and Daddy started getting ill that winter and only lived another year.  Geoffrey tried very hard, but he just couldn't manage the three banks and the newspaper by himself.  I offered to help, but I think he thought it made him look weak, so he refused.  But one afternoon he had been particularly stressed and he decided to go riding.  It was late and all the stable hands had gone home.  He was saddling one of the more spirited horses and it kicked him and then stomped him.  Of course we assumed he was out riding and it was hours before we came looking for him.  He lived for a few hours after that, but he died in the early morning of June 16, 1864."

"So in the span of five years you lost your younger sister, your nephew, your father, your brother-in-law, your husband, your mother and in a sense your older sister as well?"

"Yes.  That's why I am now the president of three banks and a newspaper.  And I hope you understand why I want so desperately to know you Evangeline.  You are all that Libby and I have left.  And if I remember correctly, your father's family were all deceased, so that means we are all the family you have now, too."

"I'm terribly sorry for what you've been through, Olivia."

"Please, call me Livvy.  That's what your mother always called me.  But don't be sorry.  It was a long time ago.  And I have so many matters to attend to that my mind is constantly occupied with either banking or editors or making sure Libby's needs are met.  No time for feeling sorry for myself.   But you, you've been through far worse.  And you haven't had the time to completely heal yet."

"I don't think I could have gotten through any of it if it weren't for Joshua.  He's been like medicine for my soul."

"God certainly must have put him in the right place at the right time.  You care deeply for him don't you?"

"I love him.  Plain and simple."

Livvy reflected on that for a moment as Evie ate a biscuit smeared with butter and honey.  Did the child even know what love really was?  She had said it in such a matter of fact tone that one was forced to believe her.  And she probably did believe it was love. What she felt was probably gratitude mixed with an understandable crush.  Mr. Smith was certainly handsome and charming.  What normal girl wouldn't have a crush on him.  She wouldn't make a big deal of it though.  That would be making the same mistake her father had made when Lilly had declared her love for Nathaniel.  The more he protested the more determined she was to have her way.  This crush would pass.  They always did.  It was probably best to change the subject.

"I hope you don't mind, but I have made arrangements for your mother, brother, and your father to be buried back home with the rest of our family.  Their final resting place is a peaceful spot.  It's very serene and beautiful.  I hope you'll consider coming to see it.  If you don't mind having them moved of course.  I would never move them if you didn't approve."

Evangeline hadn't really thought about it.  The thought of disturbing them didn't exactly thrill her, but the thought of leaving them out in the wilderness where she could never visit their graves disturbed her as well.    "My father, too?" she asked hopefully but with a bit of skepticism.

"Of course.  He was the love of Lilly's life.  I admit at first I  thought Lilly had run off with your father just because our father had been so insistent that she not marry him.  And that in time she would regret her decision and come crying back home.  But when she came home with you that Christmas and we had a chance to talk, I could tell by the way her face lit up and the tone of her voice every time she mentioned Nate that she was desperately in love with him.  I  would never let them be separated.  Even in death. You know there were many times I blamed your mother for everything that happened.  If she would have come home maybe Daddy would have lived longer, and in turn so would Mother.  And Geoffrey wouldn't have gone out that night and gotten killed.  And maybe I would have had a child of my own.  But then I would think about her living happily, being in love  with the man of her dreams and I would envy her."

"Geoffrey wasn't the man of your dreams?"

Livvy laughed slightly.  "I cared for him dearly.  But not in the way your mother loved your father.  It was like being married to your best friend or your brother.  There was no passion and no romance.  But it had been a good match and Daddy had approved.  It was for the best.  Here is a photograph of him.  He was quite handsome.  Not as handsome as Mr. Jones or Mr. Smith, but still not a bad looking fellow."

Evie studied her aunt as she continued to show her photographs and mementos of the family she'd never known.  How lonely she must have been all these years.  No family except a sister who was trapped in a child's world.   And how sad it was that the few years of marriage she had known had obviously been cold and passionless.  And she was such a beautiful woman.  Just like her mother.  A woman so beautiful and smart deserved more from life than being stuck in a man's world, taking on a man's role of running a family business.  She should be loved and pampered.  She should be made to feel like a woman.  Her mother's life had been filled with love and passion and romance.  That's why she wasn't willing to settle for anything less for herself.  She had witnessed what true love and devotion was like.  But it sounded like Livvy had not even experienced any  frivolous passion filled moments.  Maybe a few frivolous passion filled moments were what she needed to loosen her corset, so to speak.   And maybe a distraction in the form of a blond haired, blue eyed ex-outlaw would buy the time needed for Livvy to see that she and Joshua were meant to be together.  Just like her mama and daddy had been.  And once she realized they belonged together, she would give up the idea of taking Evie back east with her.

"Speaking of Mr. Jones and Mr. Smith,  have you ever watched a man try to break a horse to be ridden?"

"No, I can't say that I have."

An impish grin and a mischievous gleam crept onto Evie's face.  A trip to the corral this afternoon might be just what the doctor ordered.

                                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Had there ever been a more glorious sight than the one that Evangeline Webb and her aunt Livvy were being treated to in this moment?   Evangeline certainly didn't think so.  Her hands gripped the fence rail tightly as she watched the man she loved ride the back of a bucking bronco.  Clad in his leather chaps, with his hat pulled low over his eyes,  gripping the black stallion's  powerful flanks with his jean clad thighs,  he was the most magnificent sight she had ever seen. Thaddeus, clad also in chaps, making his appealing posterior even more pronounced,  stood close by the bucking horse, encouraging his partner to keep after it and hang on.  After ten long minutes of the torturous ride the horse grew weary and stopped its bucking.  But when Joshua moved to climb from his back, he gave one last buck, tossing the man who would tame him hard to the ground.

Evie winced.  A few weeks ago she would have been running to his side to make sure he was alright.  But after the last few weeks of watching them break the horses, she had become almost immune to it.  Both boys insisted it looked worse than it felt.  Olivia, however, was not accustomed to it and gasped in horror.  "Oh, my Lord, is he alright?"

Joshua got to his feet and dusted himself off with the back of his already dusty hat.  After placing both hands to the small of his back and arching backwards,  he straighted himself up, put his hat back on his head and  strolled, slowly with a slight limp at first, towards Evangeline as she sat one the fence transfixed by every tempting inch of him.

The familiar achy longing started deep inside her again as she watched him strut towards her in those chaps, a smile parting his dusty, adorable face.   When he reached her he leaped upon the fence with both feet on either side of hers on the bottom rail.  He braced both hands beside her hips on the top rail, bringing his face a scant inch in front of hers before planting a hard but brief kiss on her lips.  He jumped back to the ground and she sprang from the fence to wrap herself, arms and legs,  around him.  He caught her and held her close, spinning her around.  He set her down and gave her another kiss, this one longer and gentler.  He released her, tipped his hat to Olivia and spun on his boot heels to head back to the center of the corral.  "Yep, he's just fine,"  she said on a sigh as she ogled his cute little behind as he sauntered off in those wicked chaps.

This was more serious than Livvy had thought.  The affection Evangeline had for Mr. Smith was obviously being reciprocated.  Enthusiastically so.  The hand holding and hugging from last night had been one thing.  But today they were making no bones about the fact that they shared affection and passion for one another.  That still didn't mean it was love.

Evangeline's hair whipped in the wind as she returned to her perch on the fence.   She rarely wore it up because Hannibal liked it long and loose.

"Really, Evangeline, you should try putting your hair up,"  Olivia protested as a wayward lock smacked her in the face.

Evie cut a sideways glance at her aunt as she tucked her unruly hair behind her ears.  Olivia had spoken to her but she wasn't looking at her.  Her eyes were glued to the blond haired, blue eyed cowboy who was trying to saddle an uncooperative horse.  If a parade of elephants had marched by, she doubted if Livvy would have noticed.  "Really, Livvy, you should try letting yours down sometime."

Livvy's head snapped around to stare at her niece who jumped from the fence rail and trotted off  to stand beside Joshua on the other side of the corral.  She watched as he bent his head down to hear her whispered words.  Then they both looked at her.  Then Joshua placed his mouth near Evie's ear and whispered.  Then they looked at each other, beaming.

When Evie returned to the fence rail, Livvy gave her a suspicious glare.  "Just what are you up to young lady?"

"Just helping you pull out some of the hair pins,"  she said with a mischievous grin on her face,  leaving Livvy with a confused grimace on hers.

                                      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heyes  slapped his partner on the shoulder, producing a cloud of dust.  "You know what, Kid?  I think we've had enough for today.  What do you say we get cleaned up and take the ladies down to the creek with that picnic basket Georgia promised us."

"I thought you wanted to get the saddle on this guy before the day was over.  That ain't gonna happen if we spend all afternoon by the creek, Heyes."

"It can wait 'til tomorrow.  Besides, Olivia hasn't seen the whole ranch yet.  She's barely left the house, what with her and Evie getting acquainted and all.  The fresh air and company will do her good."

"What ever you say, Heyes."  Kid looked over his shoulder at the tiny blond woman on the fence.   She was so beautiful sitting there in the sunlight.  "Might make for an interesting afternoon at that."

"Why don't you go on over and tell them the plans and I'll put the horses and the gear away."

Kid shrugged and made his way leisurely towards the two ladies.   Livvy was staring.  She knew she was staring and she knew it was rude and improper.  But she couldn't help herself.  Mr. Jones was the most enticing man she'd ever seen.  Especially in those chaps.  She wondered if the men realized that they accentuated the most interesting parts of their anatomy. My, Lord, Olivia.  What a thing to think about shame on you. But as she admonished herself she found her gaze being drawn to the accentuated anatomy in question.  Her cheeks burned.  She was certainly beginning to understand why her niece had leaped into Mr. Smith's arms.  Olivia Vanderbilt he fourteen years younger than you.  And you are here to get to know your niece, not ogle men. 

He tipped his hat as he spoke, "How would you ladies like to spend the afternoon seeing the rest of the ranch and having a little picnic over by the creek?"

"Why, we would love to.  Wouldn't we aunt Livvy?"  Evangeline accepted before Livvy had a chance to protest.

"Yes, of course.  I look forward to it,"  she managed in a small voice that sounded rather weak and vulnerable to her ears.   There was something about him that made her vastly aware that she was a woman.  In her everyday life, she was Mrs. Vanderbilt, the president of the bank, the owner of the paper, the mistress of the household.    The men she dealt with daily were all stuffy suit and tie types.  She never found them remotely appealing.  And they in turn had always viewed her as their boss, not as a woman.  But everything womanly inside her seemed to answer to an unheard beckoning of this man's masculinity.

"It's a date then.  Me and Josh will get cleaned up and meet you gals at the house in about an hour."  He tipped his hat again and smiled warmly at Livvy.

A date?  Livvy Vanderbilt on a date? She felt her face go hot with embarrassment.  But she also felt her heart skip a beat at the thought of spending an afternoon in the company of Thaddeus Jones.

                                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The afternoon sun glistened on the rippled surface of the creek water.  A slight breeze set the multitude of blue bonnets into a gentle sway.  Livvy and Evie gathered those swaying blue bonnets as the boys sat on a blanket nearby and digested their lunch.

"Did you know that blue bonnets only grow in Texas?"  Evie asked Livvy as she placed a sprig of the fragrant blossoms behind her ear.

"Really?  I'll have to press some in my scrapbook and take them back home with me."

Heyes and the Kid watched as two of the most beautiful women they had ever seen gathered flowers in their bare feet.  Evie had managed after much coaxing to talk Livvy into taking off her shoes and stockings so she could feel the grass beneath her feet.  They treated the boys now to tantalizing glimpses of their shapely legs and ankles as they lifted their skirts to wade into the shallow water at the creek's edge.

"Heyes, how did we get this lucky?"

"Huh?"  Heyes asked.  He hadn't really heard the question as he was too engrossed in the sight of Evie's creamy smooth thighs.  The same thighs he now vividly recalled caressing last night.

"Well, we got nice soft beds waiting for us every night after we put in an honest days work.  The law ain't been after us for months now.  No body's spotted us in months either.  And now here we sit, the sun shining, our bellies full of good food, our pockets full of money, while we get to spend the afternoon with two gorgeous women who are now wading up to their thighs in the  creek.  How'd we get so lucky?"

Before he could answer Livvy waded from the water and came to drop down on the blanket beside them.  "Whew,  I'm not used to all this outdoor activity.  I'm used to being stuck behind a desk in an office  or at the head of the table in a board meeting."

The outdoors had done wonders for her as far as Kid Curry was concerned.  Her lovely face had taken on a rosy glow.  Tendrils of her honey colored hair were escaping their pins to curl daintily about her face and neck.  "Told you you'd enjoy the peace and quiet of the ranch for a change."

"I am.  I haven't been outside in bare feet since I was a girl."   She turned thoughtful blue eyes towards Mr. Jones.  "I haven't done a lot of things since I was a girl."  Like day dream about kissing someone.  Her gaze fell to his pouty lips.  She wondered what it would be like to kiss Thaddeus Jones.

"I'll bet you can't beat me,"  Evie teased Joshua as she skipped a rock across the creek.

"Oh, you're in for it.  I was the best rock skipper in the whole state of Kansas."   Her removed his boots and socks and proceeded to roll up his pant legs so he could join Evie in the water.

"Ha!  Six skips!  Beat that, Mr. Smith."

"Alrighty."   He tossed his rock.  "Ha ha!  Eight!"

The contest continued as Thaddeus and Livvy watched from the creek bank.  Joshua had the best score so far with ten skips.

"Amateurs,"  Thaddeus said, shaking his head.  "Would you like to see a real professional rock skipper at work?"  he asked Livvy.

"Professional, huh?  By all means, Mr. Jones."

He too removed his boots and socks and rolled up his pants.  "Move over both of you.  Let a real rock skipper get a crack at it,"  Thaddeus bragged as he stepped into the water.

Joshua and Evie both with their hands on their hips gave him a "who do you think you are" stare.  Then both erupted into guffaws of laughter when his rock only made three skips.

Livvy laughed like she hadn't laughed in years.  The sound of her own laughter sounded strange in her ears.  Had she really laughed at all in years.  She couldn't remember.  And then she thought about Lilly.  Her life had not been long but it had probably been filled with laughter.  Laughter with the man she loved.  And children she adored.  As she watched the carefree threesome laughing and splashing,  she thought to herself, maybe Evangeline was right.  She lifted her hands to her mass of golden curls and began to remove the pins.  Her hair fell free about her shoulders.  She lifted her face to the sun as she shook her head allowing the golden locks to catch the breeze.  Then she stood and lifted her skirts and ran to the creek.  The others didn't even notice that she was behind them, searching for the perfect rock.

They still paid her no mind when she came to stand between Joshua and Thaddeus who were arguing about the most important factor in making the best skip.

"You're wrong, Thaddeus, it's all in the wrist,"   Joshua said.

"No it's all about the perfect rock, Joshua."

"Would you two stop arguing and start skipping,"  Evie scolded as she tossed another stone.

Livvy held her skirts in one hand and stepped into the water's edge and tossed her rock.  Three mouths fell open.

"I believe that was sixteen if I counted correctly."   Livvy turned to the stunned threesome with a smug smile.  "Amateur indeed Mr. Jones."

Heyes and Kid looked at each other puzzled.  "How'd you do that?"  Heyes asked.

"Simple.  You are both correct.  It's all about picking the perfect rock and using just the right snap of the wrist to make it skip.  Of course it doesn't hurt that my short stature allows me to be closer to the water's surface.  I was the rock skipping champion of the Tennessee River Valley for five years straight."

"I'm gonna find the perfect rock then,"  Thaddeus announced.

"Me too.  And when I do I'm gonna beat the socks off you,"  Evie declared.

"Yeah?  Well, we'll see about that,"  Thaddeus said as he continued to search.

"Joshua, would you mind terribly sitting with me for a moment, I'd like to talk with you,"  Livvy said.

"Sure."

They sat on  the blanket and watched as Thaddeus and Evie tried to best each other.

"Joshua, as you know, Evangeline is the only living relative I have now, besides my sister.  And as I explained to you earlier, my sister is incapacitated.  It is becoming quite clear to me that you and my niece have very strong feelings for each other,  so I would be negligent and completely remiss if I didn't ask...what are your intentions concerning my niece?"

Oh, great.  Here it comes.  The conversation he had hoped to avoid.  "Well, right now my intentions are to enjoy watching her beat the socks off Thaddeus.  After that I haven't given it much thought."   He flashed a charming dimpled smile at her.  But she wasn't swayed.

She sighed heavily.  "I wasn't referring to your intentions for the afternoon.  But you well  know that.  She is a very young, vulnerable girl.  She views you as her savior.  She has come to rely heavily upon you and her gratitude has turned into a severe crush.  She fancies herself in love with you.  You seem like a very experienced and worldly man, Joshua.  And a man as charming and handsome as you would certainly have no trouble finding a multitude of willing women to spend his time with.  I guess what I'm trying to say is, I don't think it is right or fair that a man like you should encourage a vulnerable young woman's obvious infatuation."

"And you came to the conclusion that it's a mere infatuation after knowing her for less than twenty-four hours."

"I realize I may not know her as well as you do, but I certainly have a more objective view of the entire situation.  And I can tell you as an objective observer that what she thinks is love is merely a crush.  You are probably the first man she's ever had these feelings for and she can't see past the warm fuzzy feeling inside of herself to think of the future.   And I think you should be encouraging her to come back east with me.  I've already made the arrangements.  She can go to the finest schools,  even the music conservatory if she chooses.  Or she can learn to manage the family businesses as I have.  And I know that the only reason she would ever refuse is you."

"One thing I've learned in my twenty-nine years, Olivia.  And one thing Evangeline has learned in her nineteen, and we've both learned it the hard way...is that none of us is guaranteed a tomorrow.  We're only promised today.  So my intentions are to love her and be loved by her for as long as the good Lord will allow me to.  Just like her ma and pa.  And what isn't fair is you asking her to give up her life here when she's happy.  That's what this is all about after all isn't it.  You live an unhappy, miserable life and you think she's going to change all of that for you.  Don't ask her to sacrifice her happiness for yours."   He watched Thaddeus approach.  "Maybe you should try finding some happiness of your own.  Now if you will excuse me, it appears that Mr. Jones has lost again and Evie needs some real competition."   He got to his feet and headed for the creek.

Wonder what they've been talking about, Thaddeus pondered as he passed his partner on his way back to join Evie in the creek.  The firm set of Livvy's  face when he settled on the blanket beside her, told him that the conversation had not gone in her favor.  It didn't take a genius to figure out that she had confronted him about his relationship with her much younger niece and that he'd obviously not told her what she wanted to hear.

"Any of that pie left in the basket?"  he asked as he put his socks back on his feet.

"Yes, I believe so.  I'll get it for you."   She felt oddly feminine and dainty as she placed a slice of apple pie on a plate and handed it to him.  She wasn't used to taking care of someone else or waiting on anyone.  She was always the one being waited on and taken care of by servants and staff.  The simple act of handing Thaddeus Jones a piece of pie on a plate felt so right and natural to her.  She was stunned at her own reaction to the small gesture. "I take it you're through skipping rocks for the day,"  she said as she took note of his boots back on his feet.

"Yep, I know when I'm licked.  But give me a target and a pistol and I know who'd win,"  he stated with confidence before stuffing his cheeks with pie.

"So you actually know how to use that thing?  It's not just strapped to your leg to make women swoon at the appealing picture of extreme masculinity it creates?"

Kid Curry stopped chewing and eyed the pretty  woman next to him.  Had she meant to say that or was she thinking out loud?

"Uh, what I mean is, uh,  uh...."

He sat his plate down on the blanket, crossed his arms in that way only he did and smiled cockily at her while she tried to explain her way out of her comment.

When he'd let her stew long enough he said, "And have you been swooning lately, Livvy?"

Realizing that her foot was lodged firmly in her mouth, she hung her head and began to laugh.  She was getting accustomed to hearing her own laughter now.  "All right, I admit it.  That first time I saw you at the train station, I thought you were quite a striking figure of a man.  And that gun strapped to your leg certainly adds to the impression."

"You should see me shoot.  I'm pretty good.  So they tell me.  Maybe when we get back to the ranch we can go out to the barn, just the two of us and I'll do a little target practice."

"I'd like that very much."

                                                          ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"Do you think it's working?"  Evie whispered as she and Joshua watched the other couple engage in some heavy flirting.

"Judging by the body language, I'd say yes.   Kid's all smiles and he's talking about his gun.  See how he keeps motioning towards it.  He's probably inviting her to watch him target practice."

"How do you know?"

"I know Jed Curry like the back of my hand.  That's what he always does.  Give him another day or two and you won't have to worry about her wanting you to go back east with her.  She'll be ready to pack up and move out here."

"I don't know.  She's seems like the type of woman who always gets her way.  Or dies trying."

He ran his fingers through the length of her rich thick hair, then caressed her bottom lip with his thumb.  "She may always get her way, but Kid Curry always gets his woman.  Trust me."  Then he pulled her more than willing mouth to his and kissed her, as he walked her behind the privacy of a large elm tree.

                                                   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Thaddeus noticed Livvy's spine stiffen slightly when she saw Joshua and Evie disappear behind the trunk of a large tree, seeking privacy for obvious reasons.

"What bothers you so much about it, Livvy?  Is it the age difference.  Or is it the fact that Joshua isn't a rich gentleman with a mansion and six figure bank account?"

"What makes you think it bothers me?"

"Well, if your spine gets any stiffer it's gonna snap in two."

She willed herself to relax.  Then breathed deeply and exhaled.  "Alright, I admit it.  It bothers me.  But it certainly has nothing to do with money or station."  She shot him a reproachful glare.  "Thank you very much,"  she added for emphasis.  "And women have been marrying men twice their age for a million years.  Age has nothing to do with it.  It's just that...well...I guess I consider her like my daughter.  And nobody wants to see their daughter engaging in such grown up activity,"  she nodded in the direction of the love birds who had reappeared and were now wading hand in hand through the creek.   "And with such a scandalously handsome man.  I haven't even gotten to know her and I've already lost her."

"So in other words your jealous."

"Yes, I guess I am.  I envisioned Evangeline running into my arms like a child and seeking motherly comfort from me.  Instead I was confronted with a very grown up woman who had already found her comfort in Mr. Joshua Smith."   She sighed and studied her hands which she had folded in her lap.  "She's just infatuated with him, I'm sure.  And he's probably just caught up in a bout of lust."

"You know she didn't exactly cotton to Mr. Smith at first either.  In fact she drew a gun on him the first night they met.  And he couldn't wait to get rid of her at the first sheriff's office he came to.  Now, a whole team of them wild horses we round up couldn't drag either of them from the other.   That old saying 'love at first sight' now that's wrong.  Infatuation and lust those are the things that happen at first sight.  But love is something that grows with time.  And maybe that's all she needs from you.  A little time.  She's only known you for one day.  She's know Josh for months.  And we both feel like we've known her all her life."
  
"When I asked him what his intentions were there was no mention of commitment or marriage.  I'm afraid she's going to get her heart broken. Men who look like you and your friend have probably left a string of broken hearts up and down the west coast."

"Well, you can rest easy.  If anybody gets their heart broke it will probably be him.  I've known him all my life and I've never seen him this way over a woman.  He's head over heals for her.  He'd never do anything to hurt her.  I can guarantee you that.   And if he ever did,  I'd skin him myself."

"You know, Thaddeus I think you probably would,"  she smiled warmly at him.

"You look so much prettier with a smile on your face.  And with your hair down and blowing in the breeze like that."

She was doing it again, blushing like a school girl.  She didn't think he had even noticed her hair was down.

"And with those rosy cheeks," he added, acknowledging her blush.

"You are a relentless flirt, Mr. Jones.  A woman doesn't stand a very good  chance around you does she?"

"And  I'm only half trying.  If I really put my heart into it Livvy, you won't have a chance at all."

Oh, my.  The suggestive tone of his words made her toes curl.  She felt slightly breathless.  If Mr. Smith had said things like this to Evangeline, maybe she really had fallen in love with him.  Livvy, you cradle robbing old fool.  He's probably just trying to make you feel good.  But even if that were the case, what harm could a little flirtation with a much younger man do.   She found herself suddenly very anxious to be back at the ranch and in that barn being treated to a private shooting lesson from this cowboy.
                                           
                                                  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"Are they making any progress?"  Evie asked Joshua as he peered covertly over his shoulder at the couple sitting on the bank.

He turned laughing eyes to her.  "Yep,  he's got her blushing.  And Kid Curry doesn't set down a plate full of pie unless he's really smitten."

Evie clapped her hands together.  "Oh, goody.  Maybe a budding romance between the two of them will be the answer to my prayers."

"And what prayers are those?"  he asked her as they waded from the water.

"Oh, I've been praying that...."

Joshua watched as her face pinched with pain, then her mouth opened to an ear splitting scream.  She reached for her lower leg.

Joshua crouched and lifted her skirt to find a copperhead snake latched onto her right calf.  He drew his Smith and Wesson and blasted the snake in half.  Its severed top half fell from Evie's leg to twitch on the ground at her feet.

"Oh, God, help me!"  she cried as the searing pain began to overwhelm her.

Johsua lowered her to the ground and inspected the wound made by the puncturing fangs.

Thaddeus and Olivia both jumped to their feet.  Thaddeus with his hand on his Colt and Livvy with her skirts in hand ran to the creek where Evangeline had screamed.

They reached the creek as Joshua drew his Smith and Wesson and blasted a slug at the ground.  The twitching body of a copperhead snake, its head now severed, lay on the ground where he'd fired.  

"She's been bit,"  Joshua said.  "We've got to get her to the ranch as soon as possible."

He placed his mouth over the wound and sucked as much of the venom out as he could, then spat it onto the ground,  before lifting her in his arms and carrying her to the surrey.

The ride back to the ranch  was the longest ride of Evie's and Joshua's lives.  Joshua knew that a copperhead bite, though not deadly, was one of the most painful snake bites you could endure, and it made you deathly ill.   It was going to be a long few days of sickness.

The minute they arrived, he carried up to her room and Thaddeus rode into town to fetch the doctor.
He wanted to protest but didn't when Georgia and Livvy shooed him from the room and shut the door to undress her and get her into her night gown.  He paced nervously outside the door until they opened it to let him back in.  Once inside he sat on the bed with her, letting her lean back against him.  Her anguished cries of pain ripping his heart.

Georgia and Livvy bathed the bite with hot soapy water and supplied cool clothes for Joshua to bathe her flushed face.

It was becoming difficult for her to breathe and she was becoming nauseous.

By the time Thaddeus returned with the doctor, she was violently vomiting.

Joshua held  her hair back and bathed her face with the cool cloth after each episode of sickness.
Livvy could see the worry on his face.   Saw the pain he felt each time she cried out in pain. She heard his promises to stay with her and not leave her.  He loved her.

Evangeline fretted every second he wasn't there holding her and speaking words of comfort with his deep soothing voice.  Each time he left her side to re wet the cooling cloth she was reaching for him begging him back.  She loved him.

                                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"You're sure it was a copperhead?"  Dr. Aaron Preston asked as he inspected the bite marks with the magnifying glass that was attached to a leather strap he wore around his small balding head.

"Yes, doctor, we  brought it with us.  It's outside if you'd like to see it."  Thaddeus said.

Everyone stood in Evie's room waiting to hear what the doctor had to say, except Joshua who still sat with her on the bed.

"I'll take a look on my way out.  If you sucked out most of the venom, then the tissue damage probably won't be too bad.  But there will probably be some loss of tissue around the bite area.  She's going to be sicker than all get out for at least twenty-four hours.  And she might talk out of her head a little.  A copperhead bite won't kill you, but it sure makes for a miserable few days.  Keep the wound clean and bandaged.  I'll leave a little something to help with the pain.  Other than that, there's not much else to be done.  She's young and healthy.  I expect she'll be up and around in about three or four days.  Until then she should rest and drink plenty of fluids.  Keep an eye on her and if anything changes, let me know."

"I won't leave her side, doctor,"  Joshua assured the doctor.

"Nor will I,"  Livvy declared as she locked eyes with Joshua and gave him a small but  hopeful smile.

The next twenty-four hours were sleepless ones for everyone in the McCreedy home.  But by Friday afternoon,  the nausea had passed, the delirious babbling had ceased and the swelling and redness of the wound were dissipating. By Sunday, Evie was almost completely healed.

It was early Sunday afternoon and Joshua had left long enough to bathe and change clothes while Livvy sat by her bedside.  The three of them had spent all morning together, with Livvy sharing more memories and heirlooms from their family.  Evie had been particularly intrigued by the piece of tartan cloth that was pinned to one page of the large scrap book.  Livvy had explained that it was the binding used by her grandparents during their hand fasting ceremony.  It was a Scottich ritual where two people swore their commitment to each other and their hands were bound together with a cord or ribbon to symbolize their binding of spirits and souls.  It was usually performed a year or two before marriage and had been considered legally binding centuries ago.  Evie had grown tired and after Livvy's promise to take her to Cold Springs for a shopping spree  as soon as she felt up to it, she'd drifted off to sleep.  When Joshua had returned both women were asleep.  He touched Livvy's shoulder as she snoozed on the chaise lounge.  "I'm here now.  You go on and get some rest."

She could smell the clean scent of soap and aftershave that emanated from his freshly bathed self.  It made her wish for two things... a bath of her own and the company of Mr. Thaddeus Jones.  He had been so sweet to her the last few days while she helped keep vigil over Evie.  Bringing her food and drink.  Offering to sit with Evie while she got a few hours of sleep.  Always asking if she was alright and if she needed anything.  Well, she did need something.  She needed him.  Watching the love and devotion that Evangeline and Joshua shared had stirred a longing inside of her.  All these years she had been missing something.  And now she knew what it was.  Life was too short to sit around and be miserable.  We weren't guaranteed a tomorrow.  So she was going to seize her happiness today.


                                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Kid wiped the remnants of the shaving cream from his face with the damp towel.  Clean shaven and freshly bathed, he felt like a new man.  He and Heyes and Livvy had hardly been out of Evie's room since she's been bitten by that snake.  But this morning she had improved by leaps and bounds.  Heyes had already had a bath and Kid just couldn't resist one too.  He was just about to pull on a clean shirt when he heard the sound of the bunkhouse door closing.  "You forget something?"  he asked as he turned from his bunk to face the door.  Expecting to see Hannibal Heyes, he was shocked to see Olivia Vanderbilt leaning with her back against the closed door.

"Yes,  I think I forgot what it's like to be alive.  I was hoping you could help me out with that."  There was a sultry seductiveness to her voice that didn't go unnoticed.

He let the shirt in his hands drop back onto the bunk.  He walked slowly towards her in bare feet as he spoke.  "Exactly what kind of help is it you think I can give you?"

She bit her bottom lip as she took in the length of him stalking slowly towards her.  When he finally reached her, he braced one hand on the door beside her head.  With the other he ran his fingers through her loose honey blond hair, still damp from her own bath.  "This kind."  She put her hands around his head and pulled his mouth down upon hers.  He lifted her in his arms and pinned her to the door,  deepening the ravenous kiss.  One hand left his exploration of her soft womanly assets long enough to lock the bunkhouse door.  And there behind the locked door of the bunkhouse on a sunny Sunday afternoon, Kid Curry gave Livvy Vanderbilt a very detailed reminder of what it felt like to be alive.

                                                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, look.  There's that poor woman from the train."  Livvy said as she looked out the large window of the Cold Springs Cafe.

"The one with all the rambunctious children?"  Kid asked.

"Yes.  And they are all following right behind her.  She called them down so many times on the train ride between here and Oklahoma that I can name them all right now."

Kid, Heyes and Evie all followed Livvy's gaze towards the woman crossing the street from the apothecary's shop to a street cart of vegetables.  Her floppy bonnet hid her face, but she was very thin with slumped shoulders.  She looked tired.  With seven children, she probably was.

"The oldest is John Thomas, then James Albert, the three girls are Rebecca Gail,  Anna Mary  and Eliza Pearl.  The little one that clings to her leg is Hannah Belle.   And the infant on her hip is baby Hannibal."

The forks that had been busily digging into blueberry pie stopped all movement.   Kid looked at Heyes and then at Evie.  Evie looked at Olivia then at Heyes.  Heyes looked at Evie then at Kid.

"Yes, I know.  I thought it was a rather strange name as well.  I can't imagine any mother naming a sweet little baby Hannibal."    Livvy took a sip of her coffee.  "Unless of course you consider the mother of that horrible outlaw.   Whew, I sure am glad they haven't gotten as far east as Nashville.  I'm sure I'd be bankrupt by now if they had."

The three laughed nervously.  Evie, unable to control her tongue couldn't resist defending her beloved former bank robbers.

"Maybe her baby is named after someone who was once very dear to her.  And maybe the outlaw's mother did as well."

"I doubt if a crook like that even had a mother,"  Livvy retorted.

Evie watched the boys exchange that look.

"Now, Livvy,  everybody has a mother, even outlaws.  And  the Good Book says, 'Judge not, lest ye be judged.'  You don't know what may have happened in those outlaws'  lives that may have caused them to turn to a life of crime. Nobody is all bad or all good.   And who knows, except for taking a little money that didn't belong to them Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry may be the two most handsome, kind, brave, gentle and loving men on the face of the earth."    Heyes and Evie locked eyes.

"I hardly think that's possible, Evangeline, when the most handsome, brave, and kind men in the world are sitting right here with us."   She gave Kid a coy look from her blue eyes.  "You know I think I've changed my mind.  I would like to have that bonnet that matches that blue dress. Thaddeus would you mind terribly escorting me back to the dress shop to pick it up."

"Not at all, ma'am.  I'd be glad to."

"Please don't call me ma'am. I told you it makes me feel so old."

"Whatever you say, ma'am,"  Kid teased, and was rewarded with a playful swat to the arm from a pair of frilly gloves.

Heyes and Evie  shared a secret smile as they watched the couple stroll arm in arm down the street towards the dress shop.  Mission accomplished they said silently to each other.

"Anything else you'd like to pick up before we head back to Red Rock?"  Heyes asked Evie.

"Yes, as a matter of fact,  I would like to go to the mercantile to see if they have any sheet music.  I'd love to learn some new pieces."

 J.P. Handy and Sons General Mercantile was bustling with business.  They offered the widest selection of goods in three counties.  Hannibal waited his turn at the counter to purchase a tin of tobacco while Evie looked over the assortment of sheet music and music books.  As she was making her selections a chaotic noise from the entrance of the store caught her attention.  It was the woman with all the children.   As soon as they entered the mercantile the five oldest children immediately dispersed and began reeking havoc on the display tables and shelves.

"Stop that Rebecca Gail and please watch your sisters.  John Thomas, what have I told you about that.  Put that down.  Hannah Belle, where did you go?"

Oh, dear.  She was beginning to see what Livvy had been talking about.  The poor woman had no control over the children at all.  They paid  her no mind and did whatever they wanted.  And poor little Hannibal, looked like an unwanted sack of potatoes on his mother's boney hip.  His little nose was in need of wiping, his big brown eyes were red, and tears clung to his lashes.  He had obviously been crying.  Evie felt sorry for the babe.  Maybe it was just the fact that he shared a name with her beloved Hannibal.  How odd, she thought.  That another human being named Hannibal would be in the this town and now in this store.  "Find anything interesting?"  The voice of her beloved Hannibal sounded in her ear.  She whirled around to find his beautiful face behind her.

"Yes, I did.  I found...."

She stopped short when his face registered surprise.  They both looked down to find the toddling Hannah Belle wrapped around his left leg.  Her big brown doe eyes looked longingly up at him.  He bent down and scooped the tiny girl into his arms.  When he smiled at her she poked a chubby little finger into the deep dimple of his left cheek.

"Awww,  how sweet.  I think she likes you,"  Evie gushed as she watched the little girl being held in the arms of the big handsome outlaw.

"You must be the missing Hannah Belle,"  Hannibal spoke to the two year old.

"Oh, there you are.   I'm terribly sorry.  I hope she hasn't been a bother."

Heyes and Evie turned together to see the mother of the little girl approaching.

"She gets away from me sometimes and I..."    The woman was suddenly struck dumb.  She  looked as though she had just seen her own tombstone.  Her already pale skin went ghostly white.  Her dull hollowed eyes grew large with disbelief.  What was wrong with her, Evie thought at she watched the woman gape at Hannibal Heyes. Then she whispered the one word that would change everything.... "Hannie?"