Authors: Maya Stirling
Tags: #Romance, #historical 1800s
***
Lydia watched Zack make his way out of the parlor and wondered where he could be going. She caught his attention as he passed her.
"I'm going to find the children," he explained touching her arm. He glanced at Laura and Eva. "Having a nice time?"
Eva nodded. "It was a good idea to stay indoors," she said. "Even if it is a little cramped."
Laura rolled her eyes. "I think we'd have all ended up with pneumonia if we'd been outside."
"That's something I'll have to get used to again," Lydia said.
Zack leaned in and kissed Lydia on the cheek. She smiled and watched him make his way out the room.
"He's a lucky man," Eva said.
Lydia felt her face flush. "He's always been lucky. Ever since we've known each other, things have usually worked out for him. This ranch is amazing," she declared glancing around the room.
"That's not quite what I meant," Eva said. "He's lucky to have someone as beautiful as you for a wife. I think he already knows that, though."
"He sure does," Laura agreed. "These ranchers sure know how to grab a wife when they get the chance."
Lydia took a sip of her drink. "Actually with Zack things are a little different. But I guess you both know all about that already," she said.
Laura glanced at Eva. Both women's brows furrowed ever so slightly in unspoken agreement. Laura spoke quickly, changing the subject. "Are you looking forward to your new life on the ranch?"
Lydia nodded. "I sure am. I know it's going to be a huge change for us. But the children have already taken to life here like a duck to water," she said.
"I cannot imagine what it must feel like for those adorable children," Eva said. "Aren't they just beautiful, Laura?"
The other woman nodded over the rim of her glass.
Eva continued. "I believe I have never seen a child as sweet and enchanting as little Daisy. She looks so like you, Lydia. You must be so proud."
"I'm proud of all of them. Even if they do drive me crazy sometimes. But in a good way, of course. I wouldn't exchange being with them for anything in the world."
"So, what are they going to do about schooling?" Laura asked.
"Zack told me there's a real good schoolhouse in Great Falls. It's a bit of a journey, but it'll be worth it," Lydia said warming to the topic. "Once the winter has passed, we'll think about it. In the meantime I can do some homeschooling. Gretchen is so smart. She takes after her father, of course," Lydia said and suddenly felt a twinge of emotion at the first mention she'd made to the two women of Daniel. But, such was the sensitivity of the Laura and Eva that they barely batted an eyelid. The conversation moved smoothly on to another subject.
"Have you thought about what it's going to be like working the ranch with Zack?" Eva asked.
"I haven't thought about it too much. Yet," Lydia said. Glancing at Laura and Eva she smiled broadly. "But you two have grown up on ranches. I guess I'll just have to rely on you both to make sure I don't make too many mistakes."
Eva rolled her eyes. "If you grew up being a doctor's daughter, there's nothing on a ranch that will compare to the kinds of things you'd have seen your father doing with his patients," she said.
Lydia frowned. "My father went to great lengths to shelter me from his medical practice. But, I did see enough suffering to make me realize that whether you're in the country or the city, life can be hard."
Laura's eyes softened and she placed a hand on Lydia's arm. "You must have wished that your father could have been here today."
Lydia nodded. "It would have been special if he could have been here. The time we spent in Great Falls meant a lot to him. But then he chose to go to San Francisco and practice. Said it would do him good. Develop new skills. New specialisms." Lydia glanced away, her eyes feeling moist. "Things didn't turn out quite the way he expected, I guess," she said her voice dropping to a murmur.
Eva reached over and touched Lydia's other arm. "Never you mind. Laura and I will always be on hand if you need anything. You must promise us that you won't hesitate to ask us for anything you need. Anything at all. And we are going to be regular visitors to this ranch. Isn't that right, Laura?"
"Yup," Laura said cheerfully. "If for no other reason than to keep an eye on that new husband of yours. Make sure he's looking after you," she concluded with a smile.
"Speaking of husbands. I wonder where our own have gotten to," Eva said scanning the room.
"I don't like it when they disappear like that. Especially all at once," Laura said joining Eva in the search.
"Maybe we should go and find them," Eva said.
"You want to join us, Lydia?"
"I'll just wait. Don't want to leave the guests unattended," she explained.
Laura and Eva headed off with determined looks on their faces.
Lydia sipped her drink and looked around the room. Everyone seemed to be having good time. She was glad of that, even if deep down, she really wanted to be anywhere else except mingling amongst strangers, here in such an unfamiliar place.
The effort Lydia was having to make to maintain an appearance of calm, poised good nature was beginning to take it's toll on her. She was starting to feel tired. Real tired. Not because the day hadn't been a beautiful one. On the contrary. In spite of the gnawing sadness that had been biting at her all day she had to admit that she was feeling happy. She had done what she'd set out to do. Ensure that her children had security, that they were safe.
In the process she had become the wife of Zack Buchanan, a truly good, fine man with qualities.
So why was she feeling such a persistent and troubling sense of unease? Surely it wasn't anything Zack had done. Ever since she'd arrived at the ranch with the children, Zack had only ever been kind and patient. He had gone to extraordinary lengths to make them all feel at home.
No. It wasn't anything that Zack had done. It was who he was that was troubling her. He was simply the most generous, kind and handsome man she'd ever encountered. And then the thought came to her again. The one thought that had flitted into her mind so many times in the past week and had made her feel utterly ashamed of herself.
Zack was a better man than Daniel.
Standing by the side of the table, holding her drink, glancing at the faces of one guest after another, Lydia tried to hide the shame she felt must be written across her face.
How could she possibly think such a terrible thought? How could she be so selfish, so unkind, to a man with whom she had borne three beautiful daughters? How could she even compare Daniel to Zack in such an unseemly fashion?
But she had done so. In spite of herself, ever since she had seen Zack again after all these years, the old feelings she'd had for him, those intense sensations of affection that had overwhelmed her during their initial courtship, had come back to her.
And she had been battling with those feelings ever since the moment Zack had emerged from the ranch house with that expression of sheer, unadulterated joy on his face. The one emotion she had forced herself so many times in the last week not to reciprocate.
Lydia had thought of Daniel on the way to the church; she had thought about him during the ceremony; and again here she was, thinking of her recently departed husband at the reception to a wedding which was beginning to seem more and more inappropriately hasty the more she considered it.
What was she to do? On the one hand she'd had to provide for her children, and she had done so in a way that had brought her many moments of satisfaction in the last few days. However, on the other hand there was a war going on inside Lydia, and she felt it keenly almost every moment of every day.
Lydia had loved Daniel, but he was now lost to her. The question that circled around inside her mind was insistent.
Now that she had found Zack Buchanan once again, did she, could she, dare love him?
CHAPTER SEVEN
The guests had all left, the early evening darkness had settled over the ranch, and Lydia had taken the girls upstairs after discovering that they were all worn out after the excitement of the wedding day.
Zack was starting to clear up some of the dishes when Mrs. Brodie came bounding into the room.
"Don't you dare do that!" she ordered him.
Zack looked up, a pile of plates held precariously in his right hand.
"In any case, I think there are some children who need attending to upstairs, judging by the noises I can hear," she said.
"What do you mean?" Zack asked putting the plates back down on the table.
"I heard some crying from upstairs," she explained.
"Crying? Who's crying?"
"Sounded like Gretchen."
"I better go up. See if Lydia needs my help," Zack said hurrying out of the parlor.
Zack made his way up the stairs. With every step the sound of muffled sobbing became more audible. He felt a gentle tug at his heart and increased his pace up the stairs.
On reaching the hall he slowed his pace, stepping gently lest he step on a creaking floorboard. He halted just before the girls' bedroom. The door was slightly ajar. He held his breath and listened to the sounds from the girls' bedroom.
He heard Gretchen's voice, quiet but with an obvious tone of distress. "But, why, mama? Why did it have to happen to papa?"
Zack heard Lydia's soothing tones. "Remember what we said before, my sweet one. Life can be hard. It's like that for everyone. And your papa was a very strong man. It's just that he was very unlucky. People get sick all the time. You remember when you had the measles." There was a pause and then Lydia spoke. "Your father loved you so much. He wouldn't want you to cry or feel sad," she said.
"But I do mama. I feel real bad. Seeing you today. You looked so beautiful."
"Thank you, Gretchen. That's a lovely thing to say."
There was another pause and Zack could imagine Lydia perhaps caressing Gretchen's hair, trying to sooth her pain. But then he heard Gretchen's voice again. "Do you like Zack like you did papa?"
There was a silence, almost as if Lydia had been taken aback by the question. Zack felt his breath stop in his throat for a second as he waited for Lydia's reply to her daughter.
"Of course I like Zack. He's my husband now," he heard her say. "And he's your father, too."
"No he isn't," Gretchen replied sharply. "He'll never be my father. Not truly."
"Don't say things like that, Gretchen," Lydia said. "Zack is a very kind man. Hasn't he been good to you all since you got here?"
There was a long silence and then Zack heard Kate's quiet voice. "I think he's great," she said bluntly and Zack had to suppress an appreciative smile.
"Me, too," he heard Daisy add. Daisy was always agreeing with Kate.
Lydia spoke up again. "I know things have been hard for you all. But, we're here now. This is a good place to live. You know that I lived here for a few years when I was younger. And I can tell you all that life here is going to be good. Really good."
"But it's so cold," Gretchen complained.
"It's winter, Gretchen. What do you expect?" Lydia answered.
"It'll be Christmas soon," Kate added with a hint of excitement in her voice.
"I want to be back in San Francisco," Gretchen declared.
"You do not," Kate answered with an emphatic tone.
"I do so," Gretchen responded and Zack knew there was an argument brewing between the girls. Time to make his presence known.
Zack stepped to the door, knocked gently and peered around the corner. "Can I come in?" he asked.
Lydia looked up and smiled. She was seated on the side of one of the beds. Gretchen was lying back looking cross, her head propped on a pillow. Her eyes were red, but she'd stopped crying and Zack figured she'd do everything she could to hide any evidence of her distress from him. Kate and Daisy were on their own beds. Everyone still had on their outfits from the wedding.
Lydia reached out a hand to Zack. "Of course. Come in. We were having a little talk. Weren't we girls?"
Daisy and Kate nodded. Gretchen's face was blank.
Zack went to Lydia's side and sat down next to her. He saw Gretchen shift slightly as he took his place.
"It's been such a lovely day. And we were talking about Christmas," Lydia said glancing at Zack with a knowing expression.
"Christmas. That'll be here before you know it," Zack responded.
"I was saying that Christmas can be a real fine time in Montana," Lydia explained. "And I'm sure there will be lots of things we can do to have a great time. Isn't that right?"
Zack looked at Kate and Daisy. Their eyes were wide and expectant. "Mrs. Brodie sure knows how to cook up a Christmas dinner. I can tell you that. And the ranch hands can throw a mean party. One thing I can guarantee is that there will be presents. Lots of them," Zack said.
Daisy's eyes lit up. "Presents? Can I ask for anything I want?"
Zack laughed. "Anything."
Lydia smiled at Zack. "I think Daisy has a list," she said.
"Really. A list?" Zack leaned across toward Daisy and Kate. He could see the excitement on their faces. "Well, if you let me take a look at that list, I can see what we can do about it," he said.
Daisy head turned quickly and she shot an amazed glance at Kate.
"Give it to me tomorrow, and I'll get to work on it. Okay?" Zack said.
Daisy's mouth opened and she looked completely lost for words. She nodded at Zack, saying nothing. Zack figured Daisy was impressed.
Zack turned back to Lydia and saw that she was smiling at him.
"You girls have had a busy day," she said. "Get yourselves ready for bed."
There was a universal cry of protest from all three of them, but Lydia shook her head. "It's late. Way past your bedtime. The three of you. Gretchen. Kate. Help Daisy get her outfit off," Lydia said standing. Zack stood up and took his place next to her. He watched with satisfaction as the girls immediately set about following Lydia's instructions.
Zack impulsively slid an arm around Lydia's back. It just seemed like the right thing to do. He noticed that she neither moved closer to him, nor further away from him. Her reaction was a neutral one. He glanced at her but her attention was focused on the children.