Travis clamped a hand on his arm. “Don’t beat yourself up. You’re new to parenting.”
A struggle tightened Cody’s forehead and jaw. His gaze flitted from the doorway to Jonah to Addie. He swallowed hard. “Trav, I think you’re right. I need a wife.”
Jaw dropping, Ella stared between the two men.
Travis, however, looked unfazed. Her friend nodded with a sympathetic smile. “That couldn’t have been easy to admit.”
Cody shook his head. The gruffness returned to his voice. “I don’t like it, but I have to think of the kids. Can you help me place an ad for a mail-order bride?”
A stifled shriek came from the door. Cassie stood there, eyes wide and arms akimbo. “Cody! You can’t possibly be serious!” She came into the room, sinking into the chair beside Ella without removing her eyes from her brother.
He ran a hand through his blond hair. “I don’t have any other choice, Cass.”
“But…a mail-order bride? You could end up with anyone.”
Travis reached for her hand. “Cassie, we’ll make sure he finds a good woman. Cody can correspond with potential candidates for however long he feels necessary.”
Cody shifted, fiddling with his fork. “That’s the problem. I don’t have much time. These kids need care now. I have to be on the range. A few women are able to watch them now and again, but every day?” He shook his head. “The kids need stability. They need a mother.”
Cassie bit her lip, staring between her husband and brother before turning abruptly to Ella. “Will you please talk some sense into these men?”
Ella reared back. “Me?”
“You’re a woman. Explain to them that a marriage of convenience is not something we want.” Cassie’s gaze begged her to comply.
“Well, actually…” Ella cleared her throat, pulling Jonah closer. “That doesn’t sound all that bad.”
Cassie’s mouth fell open. “What?”
Ella strove for a calm she didn’t feel. All eyes were fixed on her. She took a sip of her tea to fortify herself. “Mr. Brooks is in dire circumstances. He’s right that his children would benefit from a mother. I’ve heard mail-order brides are common here in the west. Maybe it would be good for everyone involved.”
Cody jerked his head in a nod. “That’s my hope. Thanks for your opinion, Miss Mountbatten.” He turned to Cassie. “Whoever I marry would gain some benefit as well. While the loss of cattle this winter set me back, I make a good living, and my wife would have the protection of my name.” He continued, his voice fading into the background as his words danced in Ella’s mind.
The protection of my name.
That was an option she’d never considered in her flight from Boston. If her father came to find her, he had every right to take her back…unless she was married. Then he would have no power over her. Neither would Howard.
Her gaze darted to Cody again. For the first time, she saw deep lines etched on his face, signs of exhaustion and stress. He needed help as much as she did.
Travis’s voice broke into her thoughts. “It’s settled, then. We’ll write up an ad this evening, and I’ll send it to the papers tomorrow. With any luck, you’ll be married within a few weeks.”
Cody’s shoulders fell further. “Great.”
The look on his face—at complete odds with his comment—touched a deep part of Ella’s heart. Instead of relief, he seemed defeated. A cry split the silence from the other room. Addie must be up from her nap. Jonah snuggled closer to Ella, wrapping one arm around her neck. The warm feeling returned, pushing away some of her fear. The children needed a mother. She needed protection. There was a solution that would help them all.
Cody pushed up from the table, likely to get the baby, when words came tumbling out of Ella’s mouth.
“What if you married me?”
He couldn’t have heard her right. Cody stared at the young woman across from him. She looked like a deer caught in a hunter’s trap. Even so, she held his gaze without flinching.
Addie cried again.
Cassie shot up from her chair. “I’ll get her.” She smiled at Ella, and Cody thought he saw relief on his sister’s face. Was she pleased with Ella’s shocking question?
Travis considered the woman in question steadily. “Are you sure about that, Ella? I don’t want you to make a hasty decision you’d later regret.”
Cody agreed with Travis. While he needed a wife, that didn’t mean the skittish Ella Mountbatten had to volunteer for the job.
