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CHAPTER TWELVE

A nnie rose the next morning, determined to go back to her initial decision to enter into a loveless marriage. She wanted nothing more than security, with her heart locked firmly behind thick barriers.

She had coffee prepared when Grandfather shuffled into the kitchen.

“Storm’s over,” he announced.

She glanced at the window. Dawn turned the frost covering the glass to a blushing pink. She hadn’t even noticed the change in the weather.

And just in time. No more being shut up together as if the rest of the world didn’t exist.

Hugh, Evan, and Happy hurried into the room. Happy went directly to the door and waited to be let out. He ran around snapping at the snow and yapping.

Hugh, his hand resting on Evan’s shoulder, laughed. “Silly dog thinks snow is fun.”

As Annie watched father and son, feelings she didn’t want to acknowledge tugged at her heart. Determined to keep her emotions firmly in control, she turned to the stove, stirring the scrambled eggs with more vigor than was necessary.

Hugh whistled, and Happy bounced into the house, circling the room at a gallop.

Evan laughed as the pup bumped into him, knocking him to his bottom.

Annie looked at Hugh—to share the enjoyment of this boy, nothing else—but at the warm, claiming look in his eyes, her heart revolted and burst free.

Claiming? She shook her head and returned to breakfast preparations. It took every ounce of her determination to push her heart back behind the barriers she’d once thought solid and impenetrable.

A few minutes later, she was able to speak without any trembling in her voice. “Breakfast is ready.” She served it and sat down, keeping her head bowed as if waiting for the blessing to be asked when, in truth, she didn’t know if she could look at Hugh and keep her feelings under control.

Grandfather said grace, and for a few minutes, attention was on the food.

“I need to check on the Barrets this morning,” Hugh announced. “They might have run out of wood.”

He finished his breakfast, drained his coffee, and pulled on his heavy outerwear. “I’ll shovel a path to the woodshed and the church before I leave.”

Silence followed his departure. The room seemed empty, hollow even.

She would not let herself think it might only be her heart that had that feeling and turned to Evan. “What would you like to do today?”

The boy’s eyes went toward the door.

“You want to play outside?”

He nodded.

“That’s a good idea. I’ll take you out as soon as I have the kitchen cleaned.” She washed the dishes and tossed leftovers into a pot to make soup. The delay would ensure that Hugh had left by the time they went out.

Evan was almost as excited as Happy and squirmed as she helped him put on warm clothing. Outside, the snow sparkled with shards of light in the bright, warm sunshine. The wind had pushed the snow into drifts and odd shapes.

Happy raced around, and Evan did his best to keep up.

While they played, Annie took several armloads of wood to the kitchen.

Her task finished, she leaned against the wall of the house, enjoying the sun and watching Happy and Evan. They’d tired of running about. Evan found a stick and dug at one of the snowdrifts, creating a hole.

Annie’s gaze went beyond the yard. How had her family managed during the storm? Was everyone safe? Was Pa safe? Had he seen the ocean? She missed them all.

Logan and Sadie lived in town but they hoped to build a house next spring and move to the ranch. She could visit them. What would she do with Evan? She’d ask Hugh.

She heard the sound of the front door opening and closing. Had Hugh returned? She realized how long they’d been outside. “Evan, Happy, come along. It’s time to go in.”

Evan carefully stuck his stick into the snowbank, and then he and the pup followed her inside.

Happy flopped on the mat in the corner for a nap.

Annie looked around. “I thought I heard someone at the front door.”

“It was Hugh,” Grandfather said. “He’s in his office.”

“Oh, I wonder how the Barrets are.” She helped Evan take off his coat, his woolen outer pants, and boots, along with his snow-crusted mittens. She hung everything behind the stove to dry. The smell of wet wool soon filled the air, and water dripped to the floor as the snow melted from the clothing.

She spared a glance at the closed office door, hoping it didn’t signify bad news and then stirred the soup. A glance at the clock informed her she had an hour before lunch. Time enough to make biscuits.

A little later, she went to the office door and tapped on it. “Dinner is ready.”

“I’ll be right there.”

She waited, but when she didn’t hear a chair scuff or boots on the floor, she returned to the kitchen and set out the food.

Hugh slipped into the room and sat at the table.

She met his gaze, knowing hers expressed concern. “Was everything okay?”

He looked confused.

“With the Barrets?”

“They were down to their last stick of wood. Other than that, still feisty as ever. I carried in a bunch of wood for them.”

“Good to hear.”

“I was working on my sermon for Sunday. Here it is Friday, and I don’t have anything prepared. I’ll be in there all afternoon if anyone is looking for me.”

That meant she couldn’t ask him to watch Evan. Perhaps she’d take him with her, but was he ready to go out? She had no wish to push him harder than he was prepared for.

She waited until the meal was over, and Hugh headed back to his office, and then she hurried after him. “Do you have any objection to me taking Evan out to visit Logan and Sadie?”

“Will he be okay with that? It’s only a few days ago that he was about as social as a feral cat.”

“I thought it would be worth seeing how he reacts. If he doesn’t do well, I’ll simply bring him home.”

He studied her, searching her gaze.

She couldn’t guess what he looked for, didn’t know if he found it, but he nodded. “I trust you to do what’s best for my son.”

“Thank you.” And she meant more than permission to take Evan out. Trust. A far better basis for their marriage than love— even if it did feel a little lackluster.

She returned to clean the kitchen. As she worked, she prayed for wisdom in presenting her idea to Evan. Before she could think of what to say, a knock came on the back door.

She opened the door to Sadie with little Jeannie at her side. The girl was less than a year younger than Evan…a good playmate for him.

“I couldn’t take another day shut in like that,” Sadie said.

“Come on in. I was just thinking of going to visit you but thought it might be too soon for an outing.” She tipped her head toward Evan, who had backed into the corner and stood with his hand on Happy’s head. Somehow, the pup seemed to know he needed to remain at Evan’s side.

“I left the others at home,” Sadie said. “They’re a bit much all at once.” She smiled at Evan. “Hello, Evan. We met before. Do you remember me? I’m Aunt Sadie, and this is Jeannie.”

Annie could have hugged her sister-in-law for introducing herself as Evan’s aunt. At least she took Annie’s plans seriously.

Sadie turned to Grandfather. “Hello, Grandfather. I see you survived the storm.”

“We’re fine,” he said.

Jeannie hugged Grandfather and then stood by his side, studying Evan.

Hoping to make it possible for the two little ones to become friends, Annie introduced Happy. “He’s Evan’s dog. You may say hello to him.” She meant Evan as much as Happy.

Jeannie edged closer. “Hello, Happy. Hello, Evan.” She touched the top of the dog’s head, then drew her hand back and stood as if waiting for Evan to make the next move.

Annie tried to think how best to help them. “Evan, why don’t you show Jeannie your pretend puppy?”

Evan looked at Spot near his foot and nudged it forward.

“Can I play with it?” Jeannie asked and waited until Evan nodded before she picked it up.

“I like this puppy.” Jeannie sat on the floor close to Evan’s mat and began to talk to the stuffed toy, telling it all about the things she and her brother and sister had done during the storm.

Annie saw the tension leave Evan’s shoulders, and he sat on his mat, Happy crowded close to his knee.

“They’ll be okay,” Sadie said, and Annie was inclined to believe her. “I see a lot of improvement since I last saw him. Was that just a week ago? Hard to believe it’s only been that long. The last three days seemed to go on forever.”

Annie decided not to say she’d felt quite the opposite. “Have you heard anything from the ranch? I’ve been wondering if everyone was safe.”

“Logan was out there during the storm. He returned this morning to let me know he was okay.” She twisted her wedding ring round and round. “You can’t imagine how worried I was not knowing.” She shuddered.

Annie squeezed Sadie’s hands. “That must have been terrible.” She would not think how she would have felt if Hugh had been absent during the storm. Would not let herself shiver.

“Anyway. He’s already gone back to the ranch. Said he had to help check on the herd. Everyone hunkered down at the ranch during the storm. Logan said Kate did her best to keep everyone occupied, but he couldn’t stop worrying about me.”

“I’m glad everyone is safe and sound. That’s an answer to prayer.”

Sadie gave Annie a piercing look. “How are you doing? And I don’t mean because of the storm.”

“I’m perfectly fine.” If Grandfather hadn’t been there listening, she might have been tempted to ask Sadie about love. No. She immediately retracted the thought. She meant she’d ask her about marriage. She could do that even with Grandfather listening.

“I expect we’ll be married by Christmas. It would be convenient for everyone to have this settled. It would give Evan the home and stability he needs. There’s no need for Hugh to look further.” She knew she rattled on, but she couldn’t help it.

Grandfather bolted from his chair, grabbed his canes, and thumped over to Annie’s side. “I’ve no reason to object to you marrying Hugh. He’s a fine man. But you both need to be honest about what you need from a marriage.”

“I think we are pretty clear about it.”