Evie tipped her head to his shoulder.
Silence, save for the tick of the mantel clock and the crackle of the fire in the hearth.
He cleared his throat. “No one can stop you from writing, Evie. Write something, turn it in anonymously, and I’ll see that it gets in the paper.”
“You really care about this frontier girl?”
Air leaked from his lungs. “Yes.” His voice scraped. “But even if I can manage to get back there, chances of her agreeing to be my wife are about as slim as having a Fourth of July blizzard.”
“She’d have to be blind not to see all of your good qualities.” She bumped her knee against his.
“I’m afraid you must be thinking of the brother you used to have before the war.”
“I’m certain I am not.”
“Well, even if you’re not, Cora has had a hard life and endured many losses. She’s afraid that despite the qualities you mention, life wouldn’t be any better at my side.”
“Then she is either blind or doesn’t love you quite enough yet, because if she did, her love would overcome all.”
He chuckled. “You’ve been reading too many romance books.”
“Look at me.” She sat up straight and tugged his chin until his gaze met hers. “Do not give up on this woman. I see it inyour eyes. You love her. And I’m glad you’ve stopped taking the medicine. Your eyes were never clear when you were.”
He smiled, despite his chain-weighted heart. “Thank you.”
“You could ask her to come here.”
“She’s fighting to hold on to her family’s ranch. It’s all she has left of her family, except for a nine-year-old half brother. It would be like tearing her heart out to ask her to leave it. I went to Texas to save her ranch and provide for her, not steal her away from the land her family lived and died for.”
Evie studied him for a moment. “If she loves you, she’ll come if you ask her.”
“Too many novels, Evie.” He squeezed her hand and stood. Best get out of there before she inflated his hopes. “But if you find a way for me to return to Texas in the future and plead my case with my fair maiden, without forsaking Father and causing mayhem, you let me know.”
“I will.” She hopped up and stood on tiptoe to kiss his cheek.
Should he write Cora a different type of letter from his last two? Declare his love as he had back in Texas? But that would require hope. Hope that Cora might have a change of heart. Hope he could somehow fulfill his obligation to his father without binding himself to permanent residence in Pennsylvania. More hope than he could scrape together tonight.
The Lord had delivered him through harrowing battles and from the hell of Andersonville. Then led him to Texas, to Charlie and Cora. But why had the Lord put such an amazing woman in his life and left every door to their future shut? So that he could save their ranch?
Ben ran his hand over his hair. Cora and Charlie’s need and love for him and his wanting to be his best for them had helped loosen laudanum’s hold. The Lord had worked in the situation to break the chains, although the shadow of the fetter remained. The cravings had dulled significantly, not vanished. But God hadfortified his stomach and will. Maybe that was another purpose for his time with Cora.
What did the Lord have to say about a future with Cora in light of his promise to his father? The Bible said that all things were possible through the Lord. But Scripture didn’t look lightly on a man not keeping his word.
CHAPTER 38
Cora found the first gift, a gutted deer, in late September, on the far side of the garden, a few feet from her largest pumpkin. An arrow lay beside the animal, like a calling card. Mr. Franklin had said nothing of an intruder, had probably not noticed the giver who must have climbed over the palisade wall, probably from horseback. As soon as Charlie saw the arrow, he confirmed her suspicions. It was Wolf Heart’s arrow.
No use starting trouble. They were safer if they kept Wolf Heart on friendly terms. She said nothing to Mr. Franklin who still came every evening, and occasionally stayed for the day to help out. With only the five longhorns and the garden to care for, she and Charlie could manage the daily workload. Her heart ached every time she looked at the stable loft where Franklin slept now instead of Ben. A hollowness akin to homesickness plagued her day and night.
A second gift, a dressed-out buffalo loin, appeared in mid-October. In between, Charlie reported a couple of visits from Wolf Heart while the boy was on the far side of the ranch. The third gift came the first week of November—a pair of buckskin moccasins, lined with fur. Too big for Charlie. She’d taken theminto her house, set them by the coat rack in the hallway, but hadn’t put her feet in them.
“Tell him I can accept no more gifts,” she said to Charlie. She didn’t want to think about what the gifts meant.
“He only wants to help us.”
What if he aimed to fill Ben’s place in more ways than one?“Ben wouldn’t want me to take the moccasins.”
Charlie studied her for a moment. “Maybe Wolf Heart and Ben could be friends.”
