Chapter Nine
Garrett hung the butcher’s knife back on its hook in the barn, then wiped the sweat from his brow with his forearm as the hot Texas sun climbed higher into the sky.
Despite his late start to the day, he’d made up for it by hustling.
Though they were a bit more expensive than he would have liked, the new, much younger chickens were now in the coop.
The ones too old to lay were now hanging on hooks in the barn, draining so that they could be plucked without much mess.
Another surprise had waited for him when he first approached the coop, though. That too had been mucked out.
The six hens and old rooster were small, but he figured they had enough meat on them to feed the children for at least the next two to three days.
He’d also parted with some precious pennies to purchase three dozen eggs from the Colson’s so that no one, including himself, would have to suffer through another bowl of porridge.
The children might have been more accustomed than he to eating the bland stuff, but even so, he had seen by the look on their faces that they detested it as much as he did.
His stomach growled as he stepped outside the small workshop in the barn, but he ignored it.
There was still the pig to butcher and the plotting out of the additional room to be taken care of.
He did, however, stop at the open barn doors where he’d hung his canteen, and paused long enough to take a deep swig of the sun-warmed water.
As he was hanging the canteen back up, he spotted a cloud of dust coming up his long drive.
His empty stomach tightened, worried that it was Mr. Clipper and Mr. Shear coming to bother him again.
He grimly began marching from the barn, this time with his pistol firmly in his holster, but relaxed as he saw not two horses, but a familiar buggy and its two familiar occupants.
Garrett’s broad shoulders relaxed, and he smiled and waved as Amanda Hayes and Grace Walker came to a stop before him.
“Howdy, stranger!” Amanda called cheerily, “Heard you got yourself hitched!”
Garrett chuckled as he walked to the driver’s side of the buggy and helped Logan’s little sister down from her seat.
“You heard that, huh?” He asked, and accepted Amanda’s tight hug.
Her smile was beaming as she drew back and playfully slapped at his shoulder.
“Shame on you for keeping your bride-to-be a secret!” She lightly scolded.
“Shame indeed,” Grace, Dean’s little sister, added, her voice startlingly cold compared to Amanda’s.
Garrett turned to her and found her expression as frigid as her tone.
“I have no excuse other than just being plum nervous,” he explained, walking around to help Grace from her seat. Her cornflower blue eyes looked down at Garrett’s hand as if it were poisonous, and she pushed it out of the way and climbed down from the buggy on her own.
Garrett stepped back, reaching up to awkwardly remove his hat and scratch his head. He had thought Grace had gotten over her little crush on him years ago; apparently, he had been wrong.
“Well, I do apologize for keeping everyone in the dark,” Garrett offered after a tense moment of silence, “But I’d love for you both to meet Hannah and the children.”
He paused, then added, “Especially Hannah. I’m sure she’d love to make a friend or two.”
“And we would love to be her friends, wouldn’t we, Grace?” Amanda said warmly, looking to her childhood friend.
Grace said nothing as she kept her head down, kicking at invisible stones in the silt-like dirt at her feet.
“Grace?” Amanda repeated, walking over to join her and Garrett.
She tentatively reached out to touch her friend’s shoulder, but before she could, Grace turned around and walked toward the barn.
Garrett turned to Amanda with a quizzical look, and she only smiled wanly.
Like her brother, she had bright copper hair and spring green eyes, but Amanda’s freckles ran rampant over her button nose and cherubic cheeks, giving her a more impish, playful look.
“She’ll come around,” Amanda insisted, “I think she just thought you’d eventually change your mind about her, is all.”
Garrett felt another shot of guilt spear through his heart as he bowed his head. For him, his feelings for Grace had never been in question. He’d always loved her like a little sister, just as he’d loved Amanda.
“Hey, don’t pout, you’re too old for pouting,” Amanda playfully scolded. “Come on, help me get this basket out of the buggy, then take me to the house. I want to meet this new wife of yours and her siblings. Logan told me she brought a whole mess of children with her!”
Garrett grimaced as he pulled the large wicker basket from the back of the buggy.
“Just five,” he grumbled.
“Five?!” Amanda half-laughed, half-gasped. “Oh my, talk about a surprise, I’m sure!”
Garrett chuckled dryly as he fell into step beside Amanda as they walked toward the house.
“It’s alright, we’ll figure out a way to get used to it,” he replied.
God, please let me find a way to get used to it.
Amanda affectionately patted his arm, as if she’d heard his silent prayer.
“I’m sure you will,” she answered. “And I was just teasing. I knew there were five. Logan told me. You can handle it, Garrett, I know you can. You’re the kindest, strongest man I know. Aside from my brother, that is.”
Garrett gave her a lopsided smile, grateful for her support. He could only have faith that she was right.
“I’ve always wanted a big family,” he said, then chuckled, “It just came sooner than I expected.”
“And Hannah’s siblings will give you great practice for when you’re ready to have your own children,” Amanda pointed out.
The tips of Garrett’s ears turned red as he thought of the day that he and Hannah would be close enough to try such an adventure together.
“Say,” he said, wanting to change the subject. He held up the heavy basket. “This is a mighty fine wedding present. What all do you have in here?”
“Oh, just a little bit of this and that, things to make the first few days for your new bride a little easier,” Amanda replied. Then, as if something caught her eye, she looked straight ahead and let out a girlish squeal.
Garrett looked toward the small front porch just in time to see Amanda rush into Hannah for a tight hug that sent her stumbling backwards.
For a moment he panicked, not sure what to do as Hannah’s bright blue eyes grew wide and her cheeks flushed.
Then a timid smile spread across her lips.
She gently reached her arms around Amanda, hugging her back, and Garrett relaxed.
He gave the two young women a sheepish smile as Hannah shifted her questioning gaze to his, and he quickly joined them on the porch.
“Hannah Mercer, this is Logan’s little sister and a good friend of mine, Amanda Hayes. Amanda, this is my wife, Hannah,” he introduced them.
Garrett felt his heart thump and his ears turn red all over again as Hannah’s cheeks grew a deeper shade of red as he said the word wife.
Wife. She was his wife- and he was her husband.
It was the first time he’d thought of the fact without the heavy weight of responsibility that usually came with it.
His smile grew more confident. He finally had someone who he not only called his own, but someone who called him their own, too.
“I’m so, so pleased to meet you, Hannah!” Amanda said excitedly, pulling away from the tight hug. She looked Hannah up and down and positively beamed.
“Oh, aren’t you a beauty?!” She gushed. “Garrett, isn’t she a beauty?”
“She sure is,” Garrett agreed, still caught up in his recent revelation.
Hannah’s blush deepened to crimson, but he didn’t miss the gratitude that gleamed in her eyes before she shifted her gaze from him to Amanda.
“It’s very nice to meet you, Amanda,” Hannah replied warmly. “Would you want to come in?”
“Oh, I certainly do,” Amanda excitedly agreed, stepping back just enough to take the large basket from Garrett.
“I want to meet your siblings. Oh, and I brought you a wedding gift! All kinds of things. Some vegetables from our garden, jam, cheese…”
Hannah cast Garrett one last amused look before she was ushered back into the house by an excited Amanda.
For a moment he just stood there, chuckling a little as he shook his head.
Then his smile dimmed as he remembered Grace, and he turned to look at the barn.
Dean’s younger sister was sitting outside the large double doors now, plucking one of the chickens he’d just butchered.
Taking a deep breath, Garrett left the porch and the sounds of laughter coming from within the house, and made his way back toward Grace.
“You don’t have to do that,” he said, nodding toward the chicken in her hand.
“Well, you need help,” Grace answered, her tone sharp. Then, under her breath, she muttered, “Since your shiny new lady is too good to step out of the house, I’ll do it.”
Garrett reached up to rub the bridge of his nose, feeling the beginning of a headache come on.
“Hannah’s not like that at all,” he replied calmly. “She is willing to help. So are most of her siblings. You just don’t know them yet. You’ll see that they’re good people.”
Grace scoffed as she started to pull out chicken feathers with more gusto.
“Good people,” she echoed, “You have good people here too, you know? You didn’t have to bring in someone all the way from Michigan!”
“Grace,” Garrett’s tone was pleading as he took the half-plucked chicken from her hands. “What is wrong? You and I? We talked about this. Years ago. You know how much I care for you! But I care for you like a sister! I thought you understood that.”
Grace’s head snapped to his direction, her blue eyes full of hurt as she shot to her feet.
“If you would have given me more time, I could have changed your mind,” she shot back, but Garrett shook his head.
“I know what’s in my heart, Grace,” he said softly.
Grace let out a bitter laugh.
“A stranger? That is who is in your heart, Garrett? Not someone you’ve known since you were twelve years old? Someone who has watched and admired you as you changed from a scared, orphan boy to a strong, kind, and patient man?”
Garrett shook his head, not sure what to say.
“I know you, Garrett,” Grace went on, a tinge of pleading in her voice, “I watched you grow from an awkward boy who was thinner than a fence post to a handsome man that can wrangle a cow or a horse with his bare hands. I watched as while every other boy around grew up and turned mean and competitive and cocky, you remained humble and hardworking and compassionate. You know how rare that is in these parts? How rare you are?”
Garrett lowered his head, completely lost for words.
Sure, he’d been told he was handsome before, but he’d never quite gotten used to the compliment.
And rare? He always thought he’d been lacking in manly features because he lacked a temper, while every other man around him seemed to be able to grow one.
“Grace, I’m—I’m sorry,” he said quietly.
She stepped closer, pushing her face so close to his that her nose nearly touched his.
“Do you have any idea the type of men my father is trying to marry me off to?” She asked. “These wealthy ranchers old enough to be my Daddy. They have no manners; they have no kindness. All they think about is money! None of them would treat me like you would! Like I’m a real person!”
“Grace, again, I’m sorry. But I’m married now,” Garrett replied earnestly, taking a few steps back, “I chose Hannah. And like I said, I never felt that way about you—”
“Felt what?” Grace cut him off, her face twisting in a painful expression, “Felt in love with me? Well, you’re not alone; those men my father keeps bringing around don’t love me either!”
Garrett sighed warily.
“I was going to say,” he pushed on gently, “Even if I did have those feelings, you know what your father thinks of me. He never would have let us get married, Grace. You know that. And if I am the man you say I am, then you also know that I wouldn’t have agreed to marry you without his blessing.
I wouldn’t ever force a woman to choose between me and her parents! ”
He didn’t mean to raise his voice. It wasn’t like him to ever yell at a woman, and the fact that he just did startled him. He took a step back, trying to catch his breath, but Grace grabbed a hold of his lapels and yanked him back to her.
“We could have made it work!” She yelled, tears brimming in her eyes. “We could have figured something out, Papa would have—”
“Grace, I didn’t want to marry you!”
Grace’s pretty face crumbled with heartbreak. Then she struck.
The slap he felt across his cheek was quick and sharp, sending his head snapping to the left. He closed his eyes and went utterly still, shame and guilt filling him for snapping at Grace when she was so clearly upset.
“You break my heart, Garrett Mercer,” Grace choked out as she took a step back.
Opening his eyes, he reached up and rubbed the mark across his cheek.
“I’m sorry, Grace. I’m sorry I’m not the man you expected me to be.”
Grace shook her head as a tear rolled down her cheek.
“No. I guess you’re not,” she replied, her chin wobbling as she brushed her tear away.
She walked away from him then, back to the buggy, and climbed into the driver’s seat.
“Tell Amanda I had to get back home,” she said, gathering the reins, “Surely you’re at least man enough to see she gets back to town safely.”
Garrett only nodded as he braced his hands on his hips, looking anywhere but up at Grace.