Bertie (Pendleton Petticoats Book 6) Page 4

  It was good to have a cat around. Mice would invade an empty house in short order, and Riley didn’t plan to be inside much for the next few months.

  He returned to his work until the barn stood completely empty. Riley walked around every inch of it, both in the loft and on the ground floor, making mental notes of needed repairs.

  As he trudged around the back of the barn, he came across a pile of lumber, grown over with grass and weeds. He lifted the boards and found most of them to be in good condition. The top boards were weathered and a little warped, but the rest of the stack appeared to be like new.

  He carried a stack to where several boards were rotten on the side of the barn that faced the nearby corral. After retrieving his toolbox from inside the barn, he lifted his hammer and began prying off the old boards.

  Riley worked for the next two hours, removing and replacing rotten boards, patching holes, and oiling the rusty hinges on the doors.

  Up on a ladder oiling the pulley above the loft that he would use to move hay inside, he heard the distinctive drum of hoofbeats on the road. A glance over his shoulder confirmed someone approached the house.

  Before he could descend the ladder, the rider reined their horse to a stop and dismounted.

  Riley took a moment to study his visitor. The man was tall, as tall if not taller than the deputies he’d met yesterday, but not nearly as brawny. The cowboy exuded strength and confidence, though, as he walked across the barnyard and reached out a hand in greeting when Riley stepped off the ladder.

  “Howdy. I’m Garrett Nash. Yesterday, I heard you purchased Marvin’s place and wanted to stop by and introduce myself. We own the property across the road.”

  Admiring the rolling wheat-covered hills, Riley had wondered if it was part of Nash’s Folly.

  “Riley Walsh. Nice to meet you.” Riley shook Garrett’s hand then removed his hat and wiped the sweat from his forehead across his sleeve. “Can I offer you a cool drink from the well? I made some coffee this morning, but I doubt it’s fit to drink by now.”

  “I’m fine, but thanks for offering.” Garrett glanced around, taking in Riley’s wagon and the animals in the nearby pasture. “What part of the country do you come from?”

  “Kansas. Decided I wanted to see what life was like further west.” Riley couldn’t tell a stranger the real reason he needed to leave the only home he’d ever known. Driven by demons no one knew but him, he hoped a fresh start would finally give him the opportunity to escape the torment of his past. “So far, I like what I’ve seen.”

  Riley took note of the kind light in his neighbor’s silvery eyes as the man nodded approvingly. He’d worried what sort of neighbors he might encounter, despite Marvin’s assurances the Nash family were all “good folk.” It appeared Marvin had been correct in his description of Garrett Nash.

  Garrett pointed to the boards Riley had just nailed on the barn. “Looks like you’ve made good progress on the repairs already. As bad as the buildings look, they mostly need a few boards replaced and a good coat of paint. Are you planning to get some crops or a garden in this year?”

  Riley shook his head. “No. I figured it’s too far gone in the season to try to get anything in the ground and hope to harvest it before the first frost. My cattle will arrive Friday on the train and I’ll run them on the pasture. I hope to cut enough grass and the alfalfa Marvin planted on the back section of the place to get them through the winter. I’ll put in winter wheat for next year’s crop.”

  Garrett appeared impressed with Riley’s plans. “What kind of cattle do you run?”

  “Shorthorns. I’ve got about seventy-five cow-calf pairs.” Riley watched as Garrett leaned his arms on the top rail of the fence of the corral and studied the horses and mule.

  “My wife will be excited to see your cattle. Shorthorns were what her first husband raised, but Aundy had to sell them not long after he passed away. She ended up buying sheep.”

  Riley raised an eyebrow at Garrett. “So you run both sheep and cattle on your spread?”

  Garrett grinned. “We sure do. The sheep are at our place while Ma and Pops keep the cattle.” Garrett observed Riley a moment. “Need any help moving your cattle from town? It can be quite a chore with all the side roads and lanes leading up to homes between here and Pendleton.”

  “I don’t want to put anyone out. Are there some boys around the area who might want to earn a little change?” Riley needed experienced help, but could hardly afford to pay a handful of kids.

  “Probably, but you’d be better off letting your new neighbors and friends give you a hand. My brothers-in-law would be happy to help and we can spare a few of our hired hands. It really isn’t a bother at all. In fact, I’ll insist on it because if any of your critters happen to run up the lane to my mother’s or wife’s yard and get into the flowers or gardens, I’ll never hear the end of it.” A teasing spark glinted in Garrett’s eyes. “You wouldn’t want to get me in trouble with the womenfolk would you?”

  Riley’s mouth lifted in a grin. “No, I wouldn’t want that.” He held out his hand to Garrett. “I appreciate the help. If there’s anything I can do to pay you back, I’d be happy to do it.”

  “You can come to dinner at our house tomorrow. Aundy would like to meet you over supper and she won’t take no for an answer. One thing you’ll quickly learn about my wife is that she’s as stubborn as the day is long. Once she sets her mind on something, you might as well stand back and agree because she won’t give up without a fight.” Garrett good-naturedly slapped Riley on the back and walked to where his horse munched on a few weeds by the house. “We would have had you over tonight, but she busted up her arm yesterday when she took a spill off a horse she’s training. She’s still tired and hurting today.”

  Riley stared at Garrett in surprise. He’d never met a woman who trained her own horse and certainly not one who seemed to stand on such equal footing with her husband as Aundy Nash’s reputation indicated.

  Despite what he heard about her working outside alongside the men, he still couldn’t believe she’d be interested in having company if she was injured. “Your wife doesn’t sound like she’s in any shape to have company. Please, extend my thanks to her for the invitation, but I can’t come.”

  “Sure you can.” Garrett gathered the reins and swung onto the back of his horse. “Aundy’s arm is in a sling for a few weeks, but that won’t keep her down for long. Doc dosed her up pretty good with medication for the pain and she’s sleeping it off today. She won’t be the one doing the cooking, so don’t worry about it. Plan to show up about five o’clock. We’re on the main road on the way back to town. Just turn at the lane with the sheep in the pasture out front and you can’t miss us.”

  Garrett waved his hand then rode out of sight.

  Astounded and somewhat confused, Riley stood in front of his barn, wondering how he’d been talked into being a guest for dinner and accepting Garrett’s offer for help to move his cattle.

  For some reason, the situation left him feeling better than he had for a long while.

  Chapter Four

  “Are you sure, Bobby?” Bertie looked long and hard at her brother as they sat at the table in the kitchen eating supper. She and Bobby had discussed Garrett’s job offer at length the previous evening. Still, she wasn’t convinced it was a good idea for her to accept the position and move out of the house she’d lived in her entire life. “Are you one hundred percent, without a single, solitary doubt sure?”

  Bobby set down his fork and grinned at his sister. “Good grief, Bert. I’m absolutely, positively sure you need to take the job with Garrett and Aundy. I’ll be fine. Even Millie told you it was a good idea.” He reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “Seems to me you’re the one having doubts, but if you want my blessing to be gone for the rest of the summer, you have it. If you need my assurance everything will be fine without you here, it will.”

  “But who’ll fix your supper and make you breakfast and do your la
undry and clean the house and…”

  Bobby rolled his eyes and sighed. “I can manage to not starve myself or burn the house down without you around, Bert. Although, I will most likely miss your babbling my ears off and listening to you snore like a drunken bear at night.”

  Bertie smacked his hand then tossed her napkin at him for good measure.

  He laughed and caught the napkin, handing it back to her before picking up his fork again. “Honestly, Bert, it will be quiet without you around, but rest assured, I’ll be fine. You’ll still come into town on Sunday for church. Maybe we can spend those afternoons together. I could take you back to Nash’s Folly after supper.”

  “I’d like that,” Bertie whispered, pushing food around on her plate while trying to push down the lump that suddenly filled her throat. She couldn’t imagine spending the entire summer away from her brother.

  Five years ago, their parents died in a buggy accident on their way back from a trip to Walla Walla where their father had interviewed for a position as principal of a school.

  Only fourteen at the time, Bertie had watched Bobby go from a carefree young man of nineteen to her guardian and provider. He’d already been training to become a plumber. While working at any job he could find, he continued learning all he could about plumbing.

  The opening of his own plumbing business relieved their financial burden, especially when a barely seventeen-year-old Bertie graduated from high school and took a full-time job at the telephone office as an operator.

  In the years since the tragedy, Bobby and Bertie relied on each other and learned to trust each other completely. They became close friends and devoted siblings.

  Richard Kent’s attack had wounded Bobby nearly as much as it had Bertie because he felt responsible for not keeping her safe.

  Perhaps if she wasn’t around every day, Bobby would have the opportunity to relax and realize what happened wasn’t his fault.

  For that reason alone, Bertie would take the job at Nash’s Folly. Aundy had invited her to come out to the ranch for supper the following evening to become better acquainted with everyone there before she made a decision.

  The astute woman must have sensed her hesitation because she’d made sure to include Bobby in the invitation. He had a meeting to attend, but assured her he’d make sure she got out to the ranch then pick her up when his meeting ended.

  Bertie didn’t like the idea of going without him. Regardless, since she didn’t ride a horse or know how to drive a buggy, she was at the mercy of the person he found to give her a ride.

  The following afternoon, she nervously tinkered with her headset between incoming calls, anticipating the evening ahead. She knew Aundy and Garrett, and some of their ranch hands, but she couldn’t recall if she’d met them all.

  What if they didn’t like her? What if they liked her too much? What if one of them frightened her the way…

  Bertie took a deep breath and calmed her runaway thoughts. Garrett and Aundy wouldn’t allow anyone to work on the ranch who wasn’t a kind and good person. She would be safe there. At least she continued convincing herself of that until Millie insisted she run home and change before she rode out to Nash’s Folly with Tony and Ilsa Campanelli.

  Aundy had decided to invite her entire family to join them for dinner. Normally, Bertie would have been excited at the prospect of something resembling a party. However, after what happened to her with Kent, she dreaded being around so many people at once. Large groups of people tended to look at her with pity and concern, treating her like some fragile thing that might shatter at any moment.

  She hated it. Hated feeling damaged and broken.

  Bobby kept telling her time and prayer would fix everything. She sure hoped he was right. If not, she’d make him eat liver and onions every day for a week once she moved back home in the fall. That would serve him right, since he turned up his nose at the mere suggestion of eating it for supper.

  For the first time since Kent’s attack, Bertie walked home by herself. Although she kept her pace just shy of an all-out run most of the way there, she felt proud and breathless when she arrived at the house. Hastily, she unlocked the door and hurried inside, then locked it behind her.

  She rushed up the stairs to her room and plopped down on her bed, letting her heartbeat settle back to normal. Quickly, she changed into a fresh dress and made a half-hearted attempt at subduing her wild curls.

  As she gazed into the beveled mirror above her dresser, she blew a wayward ringlet away from her face. She pinned a straw hat at a saucy angle over the curls piled on top of her head and gave herself a cheeky smile.

  After snatching up a pair of lace gloves and her reticule, she clattered down the stairs.

  Determined to take something to Nash’s Folly to contribute to the meal, she’d baked a pan of chocolate bars. The recipe came from a cookbook she’d recently purchased. Bertie enjoyed making new recipes and Bobby gamely tried them all. A few ended up tossed out for the alley cats to enjoy, but most of her experiments turned out well.

  The chocolate recipe filled the house with a rich, decadent scent as it baked that morning before Bertie went to work. She’d cut the treat into square bars and packed them in a tin. Three bars rested on a plate in the middle of the kitchen table, covered by a clear glass bowl so Bobby would be sure to see the cookies when he arrived home from work. She hoped he’d have time to eat something before his meeting that evening.

  Opening the door then locking it behind her, Bertie kept a fast pace down the walk and back toward downtown. She would meet the Campanelli’s at Ilsa’s dress shop, located around the corner and down the street from the telephone office.

  With haste in her steps, Bertie arrived as Tony pulled up in a surrey with a friendly wave.

  “Miss Hawkins, how does this day find you?” Tony asked with a broad grin.

  “Very well,” Bertie said. She smiled at Tony as he stepped out of the conveyance and opened Ilsa’s shop door, motioning her inside.

  “Hello, Bertie!” Ilsa rushed forward and gave Bertie’s arm a gentle squeeze. “I’m so glad you can join us this evening.”

  Bertie grinned. Ilsa was one of the most beautiful women she’d ever seen. Elegant and graceful, the diminutive woman stood several inches shorter than Bertie’s five-feet, five-inch height.

  Tony towered over his petite wife, but he gave her a tender glance and sweet kiss on her cheek then glanced around the shop. “Are you ready to go, chickadee?”

  “Yes, I am. Marnie took Laila home with her. You won’t believe how much I accomplished this afternoon without our busy little girl underfoot.” Ilsa pinned on her hat, tugged on her gloves then guided Bertie out the door. Tony locked the shop door behind him. He swung Ilsa onto the front seat then offered his hand to Bertie as she settled against the smooth leather of the backseat.

  “I bet it was peaceful. If I didn’t know better, I’d think Laila is part magpie for all the chattering that goes on when she’s awake.” Tony grinned at Ilsa as he clucked to the horse and guided them down the busy street. “Guess that’s what happens when the poor baby has a chickadee for a mother.”

  Ilsa playfully smacked Tony’s leg and looked up at him with a mixture of humor and love. “Don’t forget the hawk she has for a father.”

  Tony chuckled and glanced back at Bertie, changing the subject. “Garrett mentioned you might go to work for them this summer. I’m sure your help would be greatly appreciated.”

  Bertie nodded her head. “Garrett explained about Aundy’s injury. He also mentioned she likes to do things herself.”

  Ilsa laughed and turned around with a wide smile. “That is painting a rosy picture around the truth. Aundy is stubborn and independent. Most likely, she won’t appreciate having to rely on anyone’s help around the house beyond her own. Regardless, she’ll be gracious about it. If you do decide to take the job, you’ll probably learn all of her tricks for cleaning and some of her favorite recipes. She’ll no doubt share with you what she kno
ws about canning and making preserves. I’ve often marveled at how my sister manages to accomplish so much in a day, especially when she also works outside alongside Garrett. She’s good with a gun and has been learning to train horses, too.”

  “Don’t forget her flowers,” Tony said, looking at Ilsa then Bertie. “Other than Nik, Aundy’s pride and joy rests in her flowers.”

  Ilsa bounced a little on the seat. “I was getting to the flowers, bell'uomo.” At Bertie’s confused look, Ilsa grinned. “That means handsome man in Italian. Anyway, Aundy has oodles and oodles of flowers. There are daisies and sweet peas, hollyhocks and asters, violets, foxglove, bleeding hearts, and sweet William, although she calls them pinks. My gracious, but they smell heavenly when they bloom.”

  Bertie’s eyes widened, thinking of all the work that would surely await her at Nash’s Folly. She’d always lived in town and had no idea about country life. Uncertain, she questioned whether she would do a good job for Aundy and Garrett. Ilsa failed to notice or chose to ignore the look of concern on Bertie’s face as she reached out and patted her hand.

  “My favorites, though, are her roses. Wait until you smell them. In the evening, the scent of the roses combined with the aroma of the honeysuckle vine in the backyard is divine. Garrett buys Aundy a rose bush every year for their anniversary. She just planted a new one a few weeks ago. It’s supposed to have buds that are yellow in the center and pink around the edges. I can hardly wait until it blooms.”

  “It sounds lovely,” Bertie managed to say. Her thoughts ran rampant, wishing she could ask Tony to turn around and take her home. She and Bobby had a few flowers around their yard and grew a small, simple garden with basic produce. It wasn’t much work to keep the house clean because neither of them was home that much to get it dirty.

  Suddenly overwhelmed with the possibilities of what she might be getting herself into, Bertie sat back against the seat, slightly ill.