A Headstrong Christmas Bride for the Lonely Father (4 page)

However, upon returning home, it was back to work as it had been before.

A few days later, Ella awoke to a particularly stormy, cold December day. She bundled up, and took Duke out with her to tend to the horses and cattle. He sat faithfully by, even in the cold rain, while she milked the cow and quickly collected the eggs. By the time she came in from her morning chores, she found Ben waiting for her. He had prepared breakfast, and Hannah was up and happily playing. Duke came in and greeted Hannah, then curled up near the fire to dry off.

“What’s going on?” she asked, taking off her wet coat and boots.

“We’re not going to get any work done on the barn in this weather, and we could both use a break today. I thought maybe we could relax a bit. Christmas is only a couple weeks away now, so I thought we could decorate today, while the weather keeps us inside.”

Ella found it a bit difficult to slow from the pace she had been struggling to keep, but the thought of resting up was wonderful. Ben pulled out a chair at the table for Ella, and invited her to her breakfast. Hannah happily squealed and played on the floor while Ella and Ben enjoyed their coffee. Ella realized that this was the first meal they had actually eaten together in days. She had been here for nearly three months, and yet, she and Ben had spent so little time together.

After finishing their breakfast, Ben disappeared into his bedroom, then returned with a small box.

“What’s that?” Ella asked, curiously.

“Something I picked up at the store the other day. Open it.”

Ella smiled, and opened the box. Inside, she found a roll of bright, beautiful red ribbon and a box of small, gold-colored glass ornaments.

“Oh! They’re so gorgeous!” she exclaimed, carefully taking them out and admiring them.

“I’m glad you like them,” Ben said with a big smile. “I thought we could hang them around the sitting room with the ribbon. I also cut a few boughs of greenery. I thought it might add some nice color.”

“What a wonderful idea!”

Ben and Ella spent all of that stormy morning decorating their little house. Ella tied delicate bows with the ribbon, and Ben hung the ornaments here and there. By the time they finished, their kitchen and sitting room gleamed as light from the fire reflected off of the glass ornaments, while the new red, green, and gold decor made everything look so warm and welcoming.

“Oh, it’s so beautiful,” Ella said quietly, soaking in the scene.

“Yes, it certainly is,” he replied. “You’ve been working so hard lately, I hoped that this might give you a break and freshen things up a bit.”

“Thank you, Ben. I love it.”

Their eyes met, and Ben held her gaze for a minute before looking down. Since the party a few nights before, things had been pleasant between them, but there was still so much work to do. They had both been so caught up in everything that needed to get done, they still hadn’t really slowed down enough to get to know each other.

“Ella, I’m sorry you’ve had to work so hard lately. This isn’t what I wanted for you,” Ben admitted.

“What do you mean? I’m just doing what needs to be done.”

“I know, but I had so wanted for you to have the normal, relaxed life that I’m sure you were used to back home. I had hoped to be able to handle everything for both of us, and to be able to make this to feel like home for you.”

“But it does!” she exclaimed. “Sure, it’s a different kind of work, but I’m no stranger to long hours. I want to help you. I had hoped that our marriage could be as much of a partnership as my parents’ always was.”

“What do you mean?” he asked her.

“Well, my mother always told me that a marriage should be a two-sided effort, and that a husband and wife are supposed to be a team. That one spouse would be strong while the other needed rest, and then they would likely switch places for a while. The husband may be the head of the home, but the wife is supposed to be the support. Both people are only human, and no one can bear the burden alone all of the time.”

“I guess I hadn’t thought of it that way. I was brought up to believe that the man should always bear the burden, and that the woman shouldn’t have to. My father always taught me that that was part of becoming a man, being able to carry the load for the family. That was why he suggested that I didn’t marry before chasing my dream out west. He knew it would be hard to provide the same kind of lifestyle for a wife out here.”

“You haven’t forced anything on me. I agreed to come out here. And, what I’ve done, I did willingly. I wanted to help,” she insisted.

“It seems, in all of the rush lately, we’ve just been working against each other.”

“I wasn’t trying to overstep, Ben. I was just trying to help get things done in time. I need your help as much as ever, though. You’re the one who knows how to run a ranch. I can follow directions, but I need you to guide me. I appreciate you wanting to take care of me, but there are just going to be times when we will have to work together.”

Ben agreed that he would stick to doing what he was able to do until his leg healed. He began helping Ella learn how to handle things with the livestock, teaching her the different commands that Duke would respond to, and the little tricks that only an experienced rancher would know. She learned quickly, and her abilities impressed him. With Ben’s help, Ella was able to finish the chores more quickly, giving them more time to work on the barn. Finally, after having struggled so badly over the last few weeks, they were actually working as a team, and making progress.

One day, Ben stood outside holding Hannah, letting her enjoy the crisp, fresh air, while Ella milked the cow. Duke lay nearby, enjoying having everyone outside.
She’s a hard worker,
Ben noticed.
Life out here may be hard at times, but she certainly is the kind of woman that I could trust to be able to handle it. I was only trying to protect her, but by not wanting her to do the things that I honestly can’t do right now, I was only making things harder on her.

Ella did still have to work hard, but things were much easier with Ben’s guidance.
He’s a gentle teacher,
she thought,
and far more patient with me than I would have been with myself.
She glanced up at Ben, holding Hannah. Hannah was squealing with delight as she watched the chickens strut around their pen.
He’s turned out to be a good father, too.
Ben looked over and caught her staring, and she blushed a little, and quickly got back to milking the cow.

Later that evening, after they had eaten supper and Hannah had been put to bed, Ben and Ella sat near the fire together. They sipped on tea, enjoying the warmth of the fire and the Christmas decorations gently reflecting its light. Despite the fact that most of their time together had been out on the ranch, they had spent so little time alone. They had Hannah to care for, and by the time she was put to bed each night, they had been too exhausted to sit up any longer.

“It’s so nice to just relax tonight,” Ella commented, gazing off into the fire.

“Now that things are finally coming together, it feels like we actually can relax. I’m sorry I’ve been so stressed.”

“I understand, Ben. I know the horses need the protection of a barn.”

“Yes, the shack Jack built for them in the meantime may protect them from coyotes, but it won’t be of much help against the snow. It’s been a blessing that the snow has held off this long, but it’s bound to start soon.”

“I know. But the walls are nearly complete, we just need to get them together so we can get a roof over it all. We’re almost there.”

“Thankfully,” he said with a smile, “Thank you for your help. I honestly don’t know how I would have done it alone, especially with Hannah.”

“I’m glad to be able to help,” she smiled back. “Soon, everything will be ready for the rest of winter, and we can get back to a more normal pace.”

On Christmas Eve, they awoke to a sight that they had been dreading … snow. Back home, Ella had always loved the first crisp, clean snows of the winter, but here, she knew the danger the livestock could be in without shelter. Once the snow fell in the mountains, it rarely thawed before spring, and the temperatures would soon dip far below freezing. Ben skipped breakfast, and Ella quickly fed Hannah and left her in a safe area to play with Duke keeping close watch. Outside, the wind was strong, and the temperatures frigid. If they didn’t get the barn up before the snow piled too high, it wouldn’t be going up at all.

They fought against the wind and cold, struggling to complete the job with too few people to raise a barn. They even hooked the horses up to the pieces of the frame, in an attempt to lift the walls into place. But, as the snow continued to fall, the tension level rose, as did Ella’s frustration. They had been working together so well over the last week, but the added urgency had them both on edge.

“You’ve got to drive the horse harder than that if we’re going to get this wall up!” Ben shouted at her.

“I’m trying! I didn’t want her to take it too far!” she shouted back.

“Push her harder, she knows what to do!”

Ella pushed her harder. But off in the distance, a sudden coyote howl startled the horse, causing her to pull at a diagonal instead of a straight line. The delicate angle needed to bring the walls together had been thrown off, toppling the one wall they already had propped into place. The wall had barely missed Ben, who had been holding the beams that held it in place.

“Ben!” Ella shouted, leaving the horse and running to check on him.

“Ella, get the gun!”

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, just get the gun!”

Ella ran into the house and grabbed the loaded gun from above the door. Rushing back out to Ben, she caught sight of a grey streak running through the yard. Coyotes. She rushed the gun over to Ben.

“Can you load a gun?” he asked her urgently.

“Yes.”

“There is one more shotgun in my room, go load it. Quickly! I’m going to need more shots than this.”

Running back inside, Ella heard the first shot fired, and then a pause as he reloaded. She knew she didn’t have much time. A pack of coyotes could take down a horse in a matter of seconds. She rushed into his room and grabbed the gun. She heard the second shot fired. This meant he was out. She hurriedly loaded it, and grabbed powder to reload the gun he was using. But on her way back out, she heard a third shot. Help. Someone had arrived to help! Rushing through the door, she was met by the sight of two wagons in the yard. Standing in one of them was Jack, with gun still aimed, searching for any remaining hunters.

“Oh, thank goodness,” Ella whispered, still shaking with adrenaline.

Ben came over and held her for a moment, trying to relax her.

“It’s going to be alright now,” he whispered in her ear, still holding her close. “I’m sorry I snapped, thank you for doing as I asked you.”

Ella’s fear turned to tears as she melted into his arms. But she quickly wiped the tears away, remembering that they now had company.

“You got here just in time, Jack,” Ben said, shaking Jack’s hand.

“When the snow started, we all got together to come make sure your barn was up, but apparently the coyotes had other plans,” Jack said. “It’s good to see your young wife can handle herself though.” He nodded at Ella who was still holding the second gun, “You’re sure to need her help at some point.”

Ella smiled at him.

“Well, Ben, we’ve got enough men here to get that barn up in time, and the women have brought plenty of food for us all. What do you say we have a barn raising?”

“That is music to my ears!” Ben laughed.