Chapter Nineteen
Luke’s Ranch — Early afternoon
Madelaine had been cleaning the house frantically to get rid of her anxiety and outrage, while Evelyn was kind enough to play with Belle and Simon in the dining room.
They were putting together some simple little ornaments with items they’d found in the yard, such as sticks, acorns, and pinecones, tying them together with leftover ribbons and twine.
It didn’t matter how much Madelaine scrubbed and swept and cleaned—she could not shake the tension that had gripped her body since the big fight earlier. She felt an undeniable urge to get out of this house, into the cold, crisp air, to clear her head.
It had stopped snowing, and the sun was peeking through the light fluffy clouds more and more. By the looks of it, the day was turning out to be beautiful.
“Do you think you could look after these two a little longer, Evy?” she finally asked when she genuinely felt that her head might explode if she stayed in this house a second longer. “I would like to get some fresh air and take Tinsel for a ride. Would that be all right?”
Evelyn was watching intently as Belle tried to tie her first bow, so she didn’t look up when she replied.
“Of course! We’re having a great time here,” she said with a smile at the little girl, who’d scrunched up her face with utmost concentration.
Madelaine could truly say that she loved Evelyn like another sister.
“You are the best!” she said as she gave Simon a kiss on his brown curls while he built some strange-looking creation, a pile of sticks held together by numerous pieces of twine. He was lost in his own little world, so Madelaine didn’t want to interrupt him.
“I promise I won’t be long. I will stay close to the tree line,” she said, suddenly feeling a burst of excitement coursing through her body.
It had been too long since she’d gone for a ride, but with the weather being so bad and Tinsel’s injury, she’d been forced to wait it out.
However, when she’d gone to the barn before breakfast to bring her mare some extra grains, she’d briefly talked to Alvarez, and he had reassured her that Tinsel was as good as new, and she could be ridden again.
Wrapping her shawl around her hair and shoulders, Madelaine stepped out into the beautiful wintery sun and inhaled deeply. Just as she imagined, the air was crisp and refreshing, and the excitement reached new heights when she felt the warm sunlight on her face.
In the barn, Madelaine walked Tinsel out of her stall to examine her leg in better light.
The wound had healed amazingly well, the slight pink streak was barely visible.
She carefully put the saddle on Tinsel’s back, and the mare immediately began her happy dance.
Madelaine laughed—it was something Tinsel had always done, so it was a great sign.
“You’re as keen to get outside as I am, huh?
” she said to the mare, and Tinsel bobbed her head as if she was agreeing.
Madelaine stepped into the stirrups, swung herself onto the saddle.
Tinsel whinnied, and Madelaine laughed when she reared up a little.
The pure joy of the horse transferred to her, and she instantly felt better.
Clicking her tongue, Madelaine steered Tinsel behind the barn to where the fields opened up to the valley.
It was a stunning scene with all the snow-covered hills and treetops.
Madelaine kept her reins loose and let Tinsel decide her own pace. She fell into a soft trot as she went along the other side of the pasture, where Madelaine led her closer to the trees. The area was mainly made up of soft meadows, so it wouldn’t be too harsh for Tinsel.
Another benefit was that the wind had blown a lot of the snow deeper into the woods, so it wasn’t all that deep where they were riding. Tinsel broke into a full-blown gallop when Madelaine clicked her tongue just once.
“Yeeeeeeeehaaarrrrrr!” Madelaine yelled, laughing. Being out here in the sun felt so very good. “I thank You, Lord! For this beautiful day! For this glorious sunshine! For keeping Belle, Simon, and Tinsel healthy and well! I thank You, Lord! With all my heart!” she called out into the sky.
They rode along a gurgling river, partially covered by ice, so they made sure to stay clear of it.
A small group of deer burst out of the woods in front of them, and Tinsel came to an abrupt halt, turning both her ears in all directions to listen for potential danger.
There wasn’t anything, so she kept going, almost chasing the deer in front of them.
Every outburst of laughter created white clouds in front of Madelaine’s face, mimicking the ones from every breath Tinsel took. She seemed to be back to her old self, which filled Madelaine’s heart with so much gratitude.
Despite what Madelaine had promised Evelyn, they didn’t turn around until the sun began to disappear behind the trees. Belle and Simon were in great hands, so she didn’t worry. She’d needed this time alone more than she’d thought.
Madelaine dreaded going back to the house, and she hated the feeling.
It reminded her of the way Phineas had made her feel in her own home.
Her heart told her that Luke wasn’t at all like Phineas, but in reality, his behavior had been almost exactly the same.
It bugged her a lot. Had she made a mistake by marrying him?
Had she done it just out of spite, to show Phineas that he couldn’t control her? Wasn’t Luke trying to do the same?
Madelaine released a heavy sigh. “Don’t be silly, Maddie,” she said to herself.
“Don’t forget, he didn’t marry you out of love!
Don’t ever forget that.” To the trees, she said, “This is a marriage of convenience. Maybe I shouldn’t have touched Isabelle’s embroidery.
Maybe she was the love of his life, and I am just… ”
A loud whistling sound echoed across the valley.
Madelaine stopped Tinsel on the spot when she saw a lone rider galloping toward them. Given that this rider came straight from Luke’s ranch, Madelaine wasn’t immediately alarmed, and it didn’t take very long before she recognized Luke’s Stetson.
Her heart began to race when she saw that it was him.
Foolish little heart! It clearly knew nothing of this man, who came barreling toward them in a huge cloud of kicked-up snow. His quarter horse was significantly larger and stronger than Tinsel, and it covered the ground much faster.
Not to show any weakness, Madelaine defiantly raised her chin when he was close enough to slow down. Tinsel seemed happy to see Chester, but Madelaine couldn’t say the same about Luke.
Although, admittedly, he looked very handsome in this particular moment.
His eyes were brighter than when she’d seen him in the house earlier this morning, and he’d obviously freshened up a bit.
His beard had been groomed, and she could see from the collar of his shirt that he had changed his clothes.
She kept her face as emotionless as she could.
“Madelaine, I…” he began, but didn’t finish.
She could see in his face that he was searching for the right words.
At least, that was what she guessed while she patiently waited.
Meanwhile, her silly little heart stumbled over itself at the cuteness of his shy behavior—a vast difference from his previous demeanor. If he wasn’t so darn good-looking…
“Look!” he said as he pulled off one of his gloves to rummage around in his inside pocket. He pulled out a folded piece of paper, spread it to its full size, and held it in front of her face. “The Christmas Dance!” he announced enthusiastically as she glanced at it.
She didn’t speak, only raised a single eyebrow, and his enthusiasm faded a little. His hand sank, he lowered his head, and heaved a sigh.
“Madelaine, I am so very sorry.” When he looked back up at her, his eyes showed genuine remorse.
“I am so, so sorry about the way I’ve treated you and the children over these last few days.
You did not deserve it. I…” He paused, but only for a second.
“None of you deserved it. Not my bad behavior, not my drinking, not my absence, not my disregard… I treated you so badly, and I was such a bad husband to you. Please, forgive me. Please allow me to make it better.”
Madelaine had expected some kind of apology, but she had the feeling that this was much more. This was an admission. It was clearly visible in his eyes.
She sat there staring at him with an open mouth, utterly surprised.
Once again, her silly little heart hammered against her ribcage, as if it wanted to burst out of her chest. Was she hallucinating, or had he really said all those things?
And why couldn’t she shake the feeling that she had yearned to hear him say all this?
When she didn’t react, he cleared his throat and held up the pamphlet again. “I want to prove to you that I can be a good husband. I want to take you to the dance with me. Please. If you’re willing to forgive me.”
She lifted her gloved hand to her mouth. “You want to take me?”
Luke steered his horse a little closer to hers, which forced her to lift her head a little. He took off his Stetson, combed his strong fingers through his unruly brown hair, and looked deep into her eyes, which made her nervous.
“I would like to formally introduce you as my wife, Madelaine,” he said, and his voice sounded solemn. “I would like to take you out to this dance, to show you to the world. I want to do right by you, and that means that I don’t want to hide you any longer.”
“You weren’t hiding me,” the words burst out of Madelaine’s mouth before she could stop them. “I was… never mind.” She shrugged because she didn’t know what else to do. She didn’t know how to feel or what to do about the flutters she was feeling in her stomach right now.
The corners of his mouth tilted upwards into a soft smile, and Madelaine felt a tingle roll down her spine. What was happening here?
“Will you forgive me?” he asked as he reached over, taking her gloved hand with his ungloved one.
His grip was gentle, yet strong, and she almost wanted to pull her hand back.
His touch seemed so intimate, but it felt comforting, so she didn’t.
All she could do was nod and stare up at him with wide eyes.
All her fighting spirit had drained from her bones the second he’d touched her.
“Would you like to come to this dance with me? So, I may introduce you as my wife?”
Again, all she could do was nod while her body tried to fight against this onslaught of unknown emotions and feelings of hope, excitement, and also a little wariness. Madelaine had never been this confused in her life.
“Marvelous!” His smile widened, revealing his perfect white teeth, and his hazel eyes seemed to be glowing, so full of warmth. Truthfully, it was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. Her body wanted to lean toward him, but she pushed the unfamiliar urge aside.
What was wrong with her?
What was wrong with him?
“There is one more thing. And I truly apologize for taking this away from you and the children. I want us all to go to church tomorrow…”
Madelaine escaped a choked gasp. “What?”
“I would love to take Belle and Simon there. Have they seen it? It’s very beautiful, and I want them to have a healthy relationship with the Lord.
I might not have it, but they should at least get the chance to experience it so they can make up their own mind.
Would you allow me to bring you all there? ”
Whatever it was, something cracked inside of her. A huge boulder-sized weight fell off her shoulders. “You’ll take us to church?” She needed confirmation, or else all of this would be a dream.
He nodded and squeezed her hand gently. Madelaine was overcome with so much joy she thought she might fall off her horse.
She stared up at his handsome face and couldn’t hold back tears of happiness welling in her eyes while he watched her expression very closely.
“Thank you, Luke! This is all I ever wanted,” she said in a breathless whisper.
He exhaled a sharp breath when one tear rolled down her cheek, and he leaned a little closer.
His ungloved hand came up to her face, and he carefully brushed away the tear with his thumb.
Then he kept it there. His touch was as light as a whisper.
Madelaine had to fight the urge to lean into the warmth of his hand.
She didn’t know what was happening. The air seemed to sizzle between them, and she was overly aware of how close his large body was to hers.
All these feelings were new. It was unnerving, exciting, and overwhelming, all at the same time.
As she looked into his face, something flashed across his gold-flecked hazel eyes, and they visibly darkened a little, but not in a bad way. Her insides melted.
Madelaine’s mouth felt dry as desert sand. She licked her lips, and his gaze immediately fell to her mouth.
Something was happening here that much was clear, but she didn’t know how to react, so she did the only thing she could think of. She grabbed her reins and turned Tinsel around, with a curt nod.
“Perfect. That’s settled then,” she simply said. Luke’s face looked perturbed when she kicked Tinsel’s flanks. The white mare took off at lightning speed, leaving Luke behind in a cloud of snow.