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Jesse dragged the blanket back over his legs. Beau could usually keep a clear head. Bass was another matter, especially when his family had been threatened. Jesse worried about both of them. He hated he couldn’t do a thing to help.
“Where’s Simon?” he asked.
“At Marmee’s, last I heard. Eden should be back soon.”
Jesse glanced at the window. “In this?”
“She’ll be in a buggy, not walking.”
“Road’ll be a mess.”
“The cowboys know how to handle a team.”
Jesse knew that. It did little to quiet his thoughts. The thought of Eden being around one, or more, of the Chapman cowboys made him grind his teeth.
Nate pulled the chair within reach of the bed but didn’t sit.
“Before you work yourself into a temper, remember everyone out there knows what they’re dealing with. We can do nothing useful here by guessing what might happen.”
Jesse hated the sense in that. “You always did talk too much.”
“I’ve been told.”
Nate checked his brother once more before returning to the front room.
Jesse listened to the storm, praying for his brothers and for the wagon bringing Eden home. He’d never found waiting easy. Tonight it was all he could manage.
He listened to the storm and counted the minutes between the louder gusts. It was a poor way to pass an evening, but better than imagining Bass under a fallen horse.
By the time Jesse heard voices in the clinic’s front room, the lamp had burned low.
Eden’s voice reached him first. Then Simon’s, speaking with Carolina.
A moment later, Eden entered carrying her notebook beneath one arm. Her dark skirt was damp around the hem, and strands of hair had escaped her braid. She looked tired.
“You’re wet,” Jesse said.
“Simon delivered me safely, but I’m afraid the road had other plans for my hem.”
“Must’ve been a rough ride.”
“Longer than either of us expected. We had to stop twice when the wagon wheels sank into the mud.”
“Could’ve stayed at Marmee’s.”
“And leave you wondering what happened?”
He had no answer for that.
“Besides,” she added, removing her shawl, “Simon was determined to get back to town before the road became a river.”
Jesse glanced toward the doorway. “He’s staying here?”
“Carolina’s making him eat something before he goes anywhere else.”
“Good.”
Eden set her notebook on the bedside table. Jesse hadn’t expected to like the sight of her making herself at home in his room. He did.
