Everything hurt on Cole when he awoke in the morning. He started his night in the lone hammock he had found in the barn, however, during the night there was a giant wrenching noise and the fabric gave way. Cole had been tossed bodily onto the dirt floor from a dead sleep and judging by the darkness outside, he had not been asleep long.
Like a good sport, he grabbed his blankets, gave them a good shake, and found a halfway decent pile of hay to sleep on for the remainder of the night. It was prickly, it was musty, but it was dry and warm.
It could always have been worse
, he supposed as he stretched and grimaced. He had slept in his clothing and smelled like horse. If he had to get up quickly, he did not want to race out bare-assed naked into the night nor did he want to have straw poking him in places it should not be prodding.
Walking over to the house, he listened for movement and decided to wash up in the cold water from the pump. It was invigorating and helped a bit with the grogginess he felt from sleeping so poorly. Hearing nothing from the house, he went ahead and got tools out of the barn to start on the garden. Cole wanted to let Beth sleep as long as possible and he wasn’t sure if things would be strained between them. Maybe he should take her out to the Rowletts’ place after all? He shook his head against the thought and aggressively began to dig at the old garden area.
Elizabeth woke to the sunlight streaming in between the slats of the shutters. Flipping the turnkey latch, she opened the panels and spied Cole hard at work. Rising, she tightly braided her hair and quickly dressed, complete with her new bonnet. She grabbed two slices of cheese, two apples, and two tin cups for water. She needed to have Cole show her how to make coffee so she could prepare it for them now that they had the fragrant grounds. She dashed happily through the back door, eager to start the day.
“You are quite the early bird,” she started, “so I brought a little something to break our fasts. Could you show me how to make coffee when you get a moment? I thought you might like a cup each morning and I would be happy to make it, if I knew how.”
Elizabeth was hoping they could start out on the right foot since she felt so off when they parted last evening. She didn’t want things to be odd between them, nor did she know what she exactly wanted from him. The things she felt when he kissed her? It scared her, but only because she enjoyed his kiss so much. These wild thoughts kept Beth up for quite some time last night.
Cole welcomed the company and the help. Taking her back inside the house, he happily showed her how to make coffee. They even started some bread rising while they prepared to work the garden. He was determined to get the seed in the ground as soon as possible so they could start harvesting.
He told her what it was like growing up as a boy, helping his mother in the yard. They had always planted a large field because his mother had canned and dried items to keep prepared for the unknown. Her forethought had come in handy when they had raided the larder. The fruit trees that had once held Beth’s stockings, which now lay on the ground and were finally dry, he revealed that each tree was a gift from his father to his mother on their anniversary. Pear, apple, and fig for jams and pies. His father had a sweet tooth and would make pear mash occasionally, saving the fermented beverage in large urns and serving it up on holidays or special occasions.
He watched as Beth picked up her other clothes that had been lain out to dry overnight, and suggested if the heavy skirt had not dried as of yet, to flip it over for the sun to bake it today. The shirts and other delicates, she carried back into the house and returned quickly to him.
They were able to get quite a bit dug up and hoed early on. She grabbed a hoe and after some direction, began digging at the dirt like she had been born to it. Not once did Beth complain or say anything contrary to Cole as they worked throughout the morning. Once the rows were heavily turned and ready for seed, he saw her stretch and groan.
Cole declared it was time for a break and they would enjoy their coffee and rest for a bit. He was more than pleased, they had gotten a lot more taken care of than he expected and was relieved. The faster they got the seed in, the faster they would have hearty stews with vegetables to eat. For Elizabeth’s sake, he would have her drop the seeds later today, while he covered the mounds and hauled water. He planned on setting out a lot of beans and peas, which would require posts and lines for the crop but that could be done easily another day…heck, even over the next week or so.
Glad to be taking a break, Elizabeth willingly went inside the small house and sighed that the hearth had seemed to go out while they were outside.
Another thing she would need to be taught,
she thought. Having the fire out significantly kept the house cooler, but that also meant their food would need to be uncooked or the fire relit. This time, Cole moved towards the small stove in the corner explaining that since they were going to make bread it would be a lot easier and tastier in the oven rather the fireplace.
Nodding, Elizabeth clenched her hands tightly to relieve the aching heat in her palms and moved to the sink to soak them. As the cool water splashed over her hands, Elizabeth groaned in pain that brought tears to her eyes. Her soft hands just needed to be toughened up a bit to be able to accommodate the hard work she would need to do. She knew it would be rough but the pain lancing through the blisters and sores was excruciating.
Hearing Beth’s whimper of discomfort, Cole dropped the wood and quickly rushed to the sink to see what was the matter. Seeing her torn hands, Cole let out a loud curse at his own stupidity. He had though to get her a bonnet to protect her fair skin from the sun, but it never dawned on him about her soft hands. She had not said a word to him all morning long and had worked the garden with the same fervor he had- the only difference was that he had been doing hard labor all his life, she had not.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were hurting, Beth?” he queried as he studied each palm carefully and put them in a clean basin of water to soak at the table instead of standing uncomfortably at the sink. He sat her down and moved to see if there was any ointment remaining in the kit his mother had kept. Seeing a small jar of salve, he grabbed it and a roll of linen thanking his mother again for her foresight and always being prepared for the worst.
Cole sat at the table with Elizabeth, neither saying a word, as he doctored each of her hands carefully and insisted she stay put for a bit. “If you get an infection, it can be serious. Keep your hands clean and rest the remainder of the day,” he ordered gently feeling responsible for the damage.
Feeling helpless and like a failure, Elizabeth began to protest only to be cut off by Cole. She wanted to pull her own weight and to be able to help out. They still had the garden to get in the ground and food to prepare. She could not just sit there and let him do it all.
“No. You have to let your hands rest so it will callus up. It takes years to get thick skinned like me,” he said, teasing her to make light of the situation and make her feel better.
“If its feeling better later, you can drop a few seeds but only if you can grasp them without pain and you can keep your hands clean,” he bargained, knowing that she would insist on aiding him if he went back outside to finish.
Elizabeth watched as Cole picked back up the split wood and started the oven. She moved over to the chair by the hearth, since it was more comfortable. Sitting, she placed her hands in her lap, palms up as if to air them out. Under her gaze, she watched Cole move around the kitchen to fix them a small luncheon and said he would return later. She knew he was going out to work but was unable to help.
The salve made her wounds sting and making a fist was not going to happen at this point. Her palms were littered with blisters ranging in size from a pea to a nickel, some oozing and bleeding. Elizabeth sat alone, feeling frustrated and listened for each sound from outdoors. When he finally returned, she was practically in the same spot. Her hands ached but were finally scabbing over. Getting up from the chair was near impossible without the use of her hands and her corset prevented her from moving.
Feeling guilty about his lack of foresight, Cole decided he would finish the garden for her so she did not attempt to aide him. Her hands looked really bad and he debated taking her into town to the doctor. The translucent skin was mottled with injury; he could only hope that they would not get infected. The liniment his mother kept had always worked miracles on cuts and even bruises. He hoped it would be the same on Beth’s hands. He would not let her do anything else until he got her some gloves. They would be making that trip into town to get the livestock sooner than he had imagined.
Several hours passed, seed was sewn and an unimaginable amount of water was drawn from the well and poured gently into the valleys of the garden. The fruit trees would produce, but the garden had to be tended carefully to make sure drought did not cause the crop to suffer.
Cole returned to the house and heated some leftover beans for the two of them, along with baking a loaf of bread. He moved quietly through the house after seeing Beth asleep in the chair. Her head rested on her shoulder and would almost be guaranteed to hurt when she awoke. Gingerly, he picked her up and laid her down on her bed so she could rest.
Exhaustion must have set in because she did not stir when he moved her from the chair. She only gave a slight groan and he assumed that was due to her mistreated hands. Cole tenderly leaned down and kissed her on the forehead, whispering softly, “Get some rest, princess”. He set the latch and stepped out of the door, closing it gently behind him.
Turning off all the oil lamps and banking the fire, he debated sleeping in his room or the chair at the hearth. He decided against both. Cole stepped out into the evening toward the barn where he attempted to get some rest while keeping watch on Elizabeth and the house.
Unfortunately for Elizabeth, when she woke early the next morning her hands were still sore and tender as well as her body. She had been exhausted from the work and had fallen asleep in the chair, heavily. Lying there, realizing she was still in her clothing, she faintly recalled being carried into the room by Cole.
Working her hands gently, she tried clenching and unclenching in an attempt to stretch some of the soreness out of them. She felt the skin pulling along her hands and dull aching. Gingerly propping herself up on her elbows, she managed to work her way into an upright position without further injuring her tender palms regardless of the whalebone in her corset.
Elizabeth was able to manage the knob of her bedroom door by carefully using her fingertips as she opened it. The house was empty but there were signs Cole had been inside recently. Bread had been torn off the loaf and waited on a tin plate, accompanied by cheese for her. The coffee pot sat on the large planked table and one small tin cup nearby.
“Cole?” she asked, not expecting an answer. The hearth was cold and the door was not latched. Oh yes, he had been in and out of the house at some point. Elizabeth checked the other room to see if he had slept there and saw he had not. “Curious,” she muttered to herself. Could he have left and gone to the barn, regardless?
He had been nothing but proper with her except for that single, uncontrollable, heated kiss. Sighing at the thought of it, she returned to the table and gingerly picked up the morsels in an attempt to assuage her hunger. Her stomach clawed at her since she had not eaten since early yesterday, but her mind would not let her sit and enjoy it. She wanted to find Cole and thank him for his help as well as his kindness.
It took a truly good man to not take advantage of a situation. Here she was, alone, near penniless, and at his mercy but he had been very respectful of her and made sure she would lack for nothing. Her hands were not his fault as he had suggested, but her own in not realizing that such hard labor would have repercussions. She should have listened to her body when her hands began to sting at using the shovel and hoe, but her hardheadedness carried her through it all.
Elizabeth smiled, grateful that she had someone she could look to and count on. Wondering what she would need to learn next to keep a home, Elizabeth carefully opened the front door and stopped in her tracks. The sun was just coming over the rise and it was truly breathtaking. The sky was red and golden across the horizon where the sun was coming up over the edge. The barn stood in the forefront and looked almost black against the illumination. She saw a lone figure coming from the barn and caught her breath.
A disheveled Cole was walking towards the house, towards her. She could see that he was dressed in his jeans, boots and not much else. Her eyes were transfixed as she watched the sun slowly illuminate his shoulders and torso, while the shadows sculpted and accentuated him in other areas. Elizabeth swallowed hard the bite she had in her mouth as she turned away, embarrassed, but very aware of how her body was reacting suddenly. What would it be like to have him pursue her and almost laughed aloud as she realized it might not be much pursuit if she would just welcome the attention.
“Good morning,” she murmured as he joined her, reaching for her hands.
“Good morning yourself, sleepyhead,” Cole teased as he inspected each hand carefully for any signs of redness. He had seen her step out of the house and hoped he had not awoken her when he had come in from the barn. It had been a long night with little sleep. Leaving her alone in the house, unlocked, had bothered him greatly and he spent the night propped against the barn wall watching the house. He had nodded off at one point and awoke, deciding instead to just get the day started.