Second Chance Suitor Read online

  “Hot!”

  “She means heart,” Maddie said.

  Bill cocked his head to the side. “That does kind of look like a heart, doesn’t it? Smart girl,” he said. “Too bad that’s the only nugget I ever found like that.”

  Maddie shook her head as she handed it back to him. “That’s more than I ever found,” she said. “So let me see here…you’re not just a chicken farmer. Already today I’ve seen you’re a chef and a prospector too,” she said.

  Bill shrugged. “You could say that, I guess,” he said. “Tess, you want to find some gold of your own?”

  Tess put on a grin that shined brighter than the nugget.

  “I don’t know about that,” Maddie said, but Tess had already kicked off her shoes and was headed for the water.

  “Hold on there,” Bill said, stopping her before she left the riverbank. He gathered up her dress and tied the fabric in a loose knot, leaving it bundled around her thighs. “She’ll be fine,” he said to Maddie. “We won’t go in too deep.” He held out one hand and Tess grabbed on quick before stepping into the water and wading out until it was halfway up her calves.

  Maddie put one hand to the grass to make sure it was dry, then sat down at the river’s edge. It was very odd to watch her daughter there with Bill. She and Tess had usually kept to themselves back home, so Tess was shy and wary of other people. Usually she wouldn’t let others even touch her, let alone escort her into a creek. Then again, Maddie hadn’t met many men who had the same knack with children that Bill seemed to have. Very odd indeed.

  “Let me fill the pan first,” Bill said, dipping it below the surface and retrieving a pile of watery muck. “Now you rinse it off like I did.”

  Tess nodded and took the pan, trying to mimic the movements Bill had made earlier, but sending waves of water and mud over the edges of the pan with every pass. Shortly she had emptied everything back into the river.

  “No, no,” Tess said. Her smile had disappeared.

  “Well, I don’t know why we’re not finding any gold in there,,” Bill said. “Here, let me see that pan.”

  Tess held up the pan and Bill looked at it closely. “I see the problem. This pan is broken. I just need to fix it quick.”

  Well, maybe it’s not so odd. Tess can tell he’s a nice guy. But even if he were the nicest guy in the world, one day certainly wasn’t going to make a difference in how Maddie felt about him. He was still just her husband on paper, not in her heart. Nevertheless, as Maddie watched them there, the water reflecting the clouds above and making it look like heaven itself was flowing around them, she couldn’t deny that she was feeling…something. It wasn’t attraction, certainly. In the first place, Bill wasn’t even the kind of man who would normally turn her head. Dusky blond hair and brown eyes, like every third man I might bump into? And that messed-up cheek? Nope, not my type. And what’s more, as a little girl she had never dreamed of spending her life with a man who kept chickens for a living. No sir, not once.

  Bill refilled the pan with a bit of mud, then cradled it in the crook of his elbow and turned toward the shore so that Tess couldn’t see what he was doing. Then, quickly, he pulled his gold bottle from his pocket, took the cork out between his teeth, and sprinkled a few flakes into the pan.

  “Now let’s see here,” he murmured, shaking the pan as he turned back to Tess. “Take another look. Just swish the water around a little bit. Be gentle with it. Gentle.”

  “Gentle,” Tess repeated softly as she took the pan. The water splashed over the edges haphazardly, and Bill reached to steady it.

  “Just like that, honey,” he murmured, as they together washed the grit away. “Let’s see what’s hiding in there.” He dipped the pan just under the surface again and let the fresh water rinse out more mud, finally revealing three large flakes in the bottom, shining brightly.

  Tess whipped her head around. “Mama! Mama, here!” She hurried to the shore and held out the pan to display the gold. Her smile was as broad as Maddie had ever seen. In fact, she couldn’t remember a time when Tess had seemed as happy.

  “Mama goad!”

  “Gold, Tess, not goad,” Maddie said. “That’s pretty, isn’t it? Good work, sweetheart.”

  “Here, let’s give your mother these pieces,” Bill said. He picked out the three flakes and deposited them in Maddie’s palm. “She’ll keep those safe for you. Want to try again?”

  Tess nodded. They waded out again and while Bill filled the pan, Tess suddenly leaned over and hugged his leg tightly, resting her head against his thigh.

  Not attraction. Acceptance, perhaps, she thought. Today’s been a good day. Maybe the rest of our days will be good too.

  “Here you go,” Bill said, handing Tess the pan. “Just like I told your mama, you stick with it and you’ll find something worth hanging on to.”

  That could be, Maddie thought. Could be.

  ~

  “Night-night, chickens!”

  “That’s enough,” Maddie said, scooping Tess up from where she stood at the fence and taking her inside. “You’ll see them tomorrow.” Once she got Tess into bed, she returned outside to find that Bill had already cleared the table.

  “You didn’t have to do that.”

  “No reason not to,” he said. “Anyway, it’s been a long day. I’m going to bed. Are you going to stay up?”

  Maddie turned her face away to conceal her smirk. Here he goes again, she thought. One nice day and he thinks I’m ready to leap into his bed? She snorted. Men. She put on a serious face and turned back to Bill. “Yes, I’m going to sit and enjoy the fresh air for a while.”

  He stood up from the bench and nodded. “All right, then. Good night.”

  “Good night,” she replied, and she watched him closely as he went toward the door. Now he’s going to turn around and ask me to join him. Except that he didn’t. Instead, he didn’t even turn his head as he went inside and closed the door behind him.

  It was almost enough to make her laugh. So he thinks I’m going to go running after him now, she thought. Unbelievable. Granted, her first full day as a married woman had been about as good as she could have hoped. He had been kind—sweet, actually, even if his motives weren’t so pure—and Tess had spent the day playing. Heck, just for making Tess happy she was already feeling charitable towards Bill. But even so, she wasn’t so comfortable with him as to sleep alongside him yet, and she’d tell him exactly that as soon as he came back out.

  After twenty minutes, however, she was beginning to think that Bill wasn’t coming. When she finally went inside, he wasn’t waiting for her in the kitchen. Nor in the sitting room. Nor was he waiting for her in his bedroom. In fact, when she knocked, he didn’t even answer. Maddie slowly opened his door and poked her head inside. Her lamplight showed that he was in bed, under the covers, and already snoring. Or, more likely, pretending to snore.

  “Bill!”

  He didn’t move. Maddie stepped into his room, went up to him and shook his shoulder. “Bill!”

  He jumped a bit as he woke, and quickly rolled over to face her. “What’s wrong?”

  “Everything’s fine,” she said. “I just wanted to tell you, I’m not ready to spend the night with you yet,” she said.

  He said nothing, only blinking several times as if he didn’t understand.

  “Just so we’re clear,” she said. “I had a nice day, but I don’t want you waiting for me when I’m not coming.”

  “You woke me up to tell me not to wait up for you?”

  “That’s right.”

  “But…well, all right. Goodnight, then.”

  “Goodnight,” she said. She smiled to herself as she stepped outside, closed his door and went to her own room. Well, that’s that, she thought. I bet he won’t try that again.

  Chapter 6

  It was one thing to be invited over to the neighbors’ house for dinner. It was another thing for Bill to suggest she make a dish to pass. Not that Maddie minded making anything; she certainly
wouldn’t have wanted to show up empty-handed. The problem is what to make, she thought. And how to make it.

  Bill apparently did most of his cooking with a single frying pan, and she could count all of their utensils on two hands, with a couple of fingers left over. The nice thing was that cleaning up took no time at all since there were so few things to get dirty, but it did make mealtime a little more challenging.

  She opened the door to the pantry and stared at the nearly empty shelves, as if something would materialize if she simply looked long enough. It didn’t work. The list that she had started had gone onto its second sheet of paper, and she was already anxious for Bill to pick up supplies the next morning. Then I’ll finally be able to cook a decent meal. Until then, however, she was constrained by what was available, and what she had available was the frying pan and a yard full of birds. All right then. Fried chicken it is.

  She put on her apron and tied it around her waist, then headed outside. Tess was in the pen with the chickens, wandering around trying to interest them in a late bellflower she had picked. Bill was at the far end of the pen, repairing a section of wire fencing, and when he saw her he stood up and waved.

  “How’s it going?” she called.

  He wiped his brow. “Not bad, I guess,” he said. “I’m getting tired of fixing this fence, though.” He stared at the ground and shook his head. “Something’s been sniffing around here the last couple of days and keeps pulling the wires loose.”

  “What do you think it is?”

  “If I had to guess, I’d say it was a wild hog. The ground is torn up pretty bad,” he said. “Anyway, I’ll worry about that later. You need any help with anything?”

  Maddie glanced at the chickens milling around at her feet, and in a flash bent down to grab one, snatching it up by the neck first, and then taking both feet in her fist. “Do you still have that hatchet on the stump behind the henhouse?”

  “Yep, it’s there.”

  “Then I don’t need any help with anything.”

  An hour later, after a lot of flapping and a little running around, the chicken had traded its feathers for a coat of flour and salt, and was resting comfortably in the skillet. Maddie stood back to avoid the oil spatters, wiped her hands on her apron and looked at her hands.

  Why are my palms sweaty? It didn’t make sense. The day wasn’t too hot, and she wasn’t nervous about anything, though she probably had reason to be. She was frying a bird the same day it had been killed, when it was always better to wait a day; she had hardly any spices to use and the oil was old already. This might not turn out at all, she thought as she eyed the chicken. And, of course, this was the first time she would be meeting friends as a married woman. Meeting his friends. As his woman.

  She wiped her hands on her apron again and began to turn the pieces in the pan.

  ~

  Audrey Abbott was one of those women who managed to become pregnant without gaining an ounce beyond the belly. She was well along—in her sixth or seventh month, Maddie guessed—yet for all the world it looked like she had simply chosen to hide a pumpkin under her dress. Her husband Roger was similarly slim, as was their son Timothy. It certainly wasn’t from lack of food; Audrey had put together a spread that included fried pork chops, mashed potatoes, roasted carrots and parsnips, pickled eggs and what looked like a squash pie. Maddie tried to ignore how small her basket of fried chicken looked among all the other dishes on the table.

  “Now, you two get on out of here while Maddie and I finish getting things ready,” Audrey said, shooing the men out of the kitchen. “I’ll ring the bell when it’s time to eat.” She turned and nearly stepped on her son, who was clinging close to her.

  “Mommy,” he said, holding his hands around his mouth as if he had a secret for her. Audrey leaned over and listened, then turned to Maddie.

  “You don’t mind if Tess goes to play with him, do you? He wants to show her where he saw a grasshopper this morning.”

  “I’m sure she’d love to,” Maddie said. “You go ahead, honey.”

  While Audrey let the kids out, Maddie took a quick look around. She had not yet gone down to look at the old soddie on their property, and had only briefly poked her head inside the henhouse, which not surprisingly looked and smelled like a bunch of birds were living there. Thus when she saw that the Abbotts lived in a sod house, she had entered with a mix of curiosity and alarm. It was surprisingly pleasant inside. The floor was wooden, the walls were plastered, and the window was made of glass. If you ignored the slightly earthy aroma, it was possible to imagine that you were in a real house.

  “So Roger tells me that you two got married right out of the blue,” Audrey said as she went to the sideboard in the corner. She handed a stack of plates to Maddie and then dug around in a drawer, producing a fistful of knives and forks.

  “Yeah, it wasn’t exactly planned,” Maddie said as they began to set the table. “To be honest, I was going to marry somebody else, but it didn’t work out.”

  “That’s what I heard. You were engaged to Larry Eastman, weren’t you?”

  Maddie nodded.

  “Well, take if from somebody who’s been here for a while, it’s for the best.”

  “You think so? I’m still not sure,” Maddie said. “We didn’t get off on the right foot, that’s for certain. But I can’t help but wonder what it would have been like to get married to a man like that. Sounds like he would have been a good provider.”

  “That part’s for sure. There’s nobody around who does business like he does. And I can’t deny, he’s got some good qualities,” Audrey said, quickly glancing over her shoulder to make sure that the men weren’t lingering outside the window. “Like his eyes. And he has the cutest dimples—”

  “I’ve seen them.”

  “Then you know he’s a handsome man,” she said. “On the outside. On the inside, not so much.”

  “I think I’ve seen a bit of that already,” Maddie said. “But what do you mean, exactly?”

  “Oh, I just don’t care for people who brag on themselves,” Audrey said. “You ever get into a conversation with him, you’re going to find out right quick that his business is better than yours, or his family is better, and so on. I swear, if that man spent as much time talking about his beef as he does about himself, his ranch would be the most successful one in the country.”

  “Guess I’ll never know, now.”

  “You actually got lucky,” Audrey said. “Bill’s a good man. Couldn’t ask for a better one, in fact.”

  “Yeah, I guess so. I mean, I’m thinking of this whole thing as more like a business arrangement.”

  “Business?”

  “You know, instead of like a real marriage. I just needed somebody to provide for us, simple as that.”

  “Did you say ‘I do’ in front of a judge?”

  “Of course.”

  “Did you kiss?”

  “Well, yes.”

  “Then you’re really married, honey,” Audrey said. “There’s no business about it.”

  “I just mean it’s not like we got married for love or anything. Bill’s fine,” Maddie said. “He’s been nice. I just wouldn’t have picked him as my first choice. He’s…well, I never would have chosen a chicken farmer for a husband. And he’s kind of plain-looking, plus he has that scar on his cheek, and so on, you know? He’s a common man, nobody special. But he’s been real nice.”

  Audrey was looking at her as if she were confused, and finally she let out a little laugh. “I’m sorry. I guess I just have a different idea of him. Do you want to know how he got that scar?”

  ~

  “The field looks terrific,” Bill said as they walked out to inspect the crop.

  “Should be a good year, finally. Lots better than last year, anyway. We had a few cutworms early on, but overall not bad,” Roger said. “How are things going for you?”

  “Can’t complain,” Bill said. “I’ve got a trip up to Omaha this week. Last one of the year.”
r />   “You’re leaving already? So soon after getting hitched?”

  “I know. It couldn’t be helped. I had the trip planned before the marriage.”

  Roger laughed. “I won’t tell Maddie that you put more forethought into your chickens than your eternal bonds of matrimony,” he said. “How’s it feel to finally be married? I’ve gotta tell you, I was beginning to think you’d never land a girl.”

  “So was I,” Bill said. “It’s a good thing Lawrence Eastman has no taste in women.”

  Roger’s face quickly turned serious, and he stopped as they reached the edge of the cornfield. “About that,” he said. “I wanted to tell you that word’s going around about you and her.”

  “What do you mean? From who?”

  Roger shrugged. “I wouldn’t worry too much about it,” he said. “You know how some of these idiots in town are. I was just at the mercantile this afternoon when I heard Jerry Raney going on about it.”

  Bill rolled his eyes. “Given the source, I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised. What’d he have to say?”

  Roger’s voice dropped lower as he glanced around. “He said Eastman threw her away like a piece of trash and you were there to scoop her up. Said you couldn’t do any better on your own.”

  Bill shook his head slowly. “I can’t believe that man has an opinion about anything besides liquor,” he said. Not only was it offensive, but it was ridiculous. Laughable. Just plain silly. And yet, that’s not entirely wrong. In fact, that’s pretty much exactly what happened.

  “I told him that was pretty rich talk from a guy who had never been with a woman he hadn’t paid for,” Roger said. “That shut him up for a while.”

  “Yeah….” Bill took a corn leaf between his fingers, like he was examining the plant, but it barely made an impression. He threw her away and I scooped her up. Fine. I couldn’t care less what they say about me, he thought. But talking about my wife like that goes too far. He could imagine Raney now, putting trash and Maddie in the same slurred sentence, and he felt his pulse begin to race.