Chapter 16
“All the cows are accounted for?”
Ella nodded, bouncing Addie on her lap. Cassie had come to visit while Cody and Travis went to town to find Blackwell.
Cody had wanted to make sure the man knew he wasn’t welcome at Brooks Ranch again.
Ella tried not to dwell on that while she answered her sister-in-law.
“Cody said they found the final four this morning several miles from the ranch.”
Cassie exhaled, leaning back against her chair. “I can’t imagine the burden it would have been to lose more cattle. Cody’s already struggling. This winter has been brutal.”
Isaiah came skidding into the kitchen, interrupting the conversation. “Is Uncle Cody back?”
“Not yet.”
The little boy pouted. “But I want to play with him and Sheriff Travis.”
Ella chuckled. “They’ll be back soon enough, sweetie. You have to be patient.”
“Humph.” Isaiah plopped onto the floor, chin in hands. “Fine.”
Cassie hid a smile behind her hand. “How’s motherhood?”
Addie snuggled against Ella’s chest. Her little eyes drooped shut. Ella breathed in her sweet baby scent before responding. “It has its challenges, but I love being a mother.”
Her friend surveyed her over a cup of tea, a smile playing on her lips. “So you’re glad you married my brother?”
“I am.”
Cassie shot her an impish look. “Has he kissed you yet?”
Ella’s cheeks heated. The memory of Cody’s gentle kiss by candlelight flashed through her mind. “That’s a rather personal question.”
“Ha!” Cassie pumped a fist in the air. “He did!”
Isaiah harrumphed again from the floor. “They were kissin’ in the kitchen last night. It was gross.”
“No, we weren’t.” Never mind the fact that they would have if the boys hadn’t interrupted them.
Isaiah made a face. “My mama and papa used to kiss. That was gross too.”
Cassie ruffled his hair. “That’s just what mamas and papas do. You might as well get used to it, Isaiah. I have a feeling you’ll be seeing Uncle Cody and Aunt Ella doing the same.” She winked.
Isaiah gagged. Ella buried her face in Addie’s soft curls.
Cassie’s laughter floated to her ears. “Don’t worry, Ella. Falling in love is a beautiful thing.”
“Girls are gross.”
The difference between the two statements made Ella laugh. “You’ll change your mind someday, Isaiah.”
“Ew!” Isaiah jumped to his feet and darted toward the stairs. “No way!”
Ella changed the subject before Cassie could continue her line of discussion. “How are you feeling?”
Cassie placed a hand on her stomach. “Most days I’m fine, but others I can’t stand the smell of food. Which makes owning a restaurant rather difficult. Josephine had to take on some of my shifts. We might have to hire another person to help out.”
A blast of cold air hit the room as the front door opened. Moments later, Travis and Cody appeared in the kitchen. Cassie pushed herself up to greet her husband. Cody slid into the chair beside Ella. His eyes looked troubled.
Her heart thundered. “What’s wrong?”
“Mr. Blackwell is gone.”
“What?” Ella’s mouth dropped open. She looked from him to Travis and back again. “Gone where?”
“Back to Boston, apparently.” Travis crossed his arms, a frown on his face. “The hotel manager said he checked out yesterday afternoon, and the station master said he caught the last train out of town.”
Cody’s hand clenched. “It makes no sense. He and Ella’s father claimed things weren’t over, and both left town soon after. Why?”
“It’s a power play.” The words tasted bitter on her tongue. “This leaves them holding the cards and us facing the unknown. My father thrives on this kind of manipulation. He uses it in his business deals all the time.”
Travis moved to the table. “How would being away from Harmony Springs help their cause? If the idea is to separate you and Cody, they can’t do much outside the territory.”
“My father has contacts all over the country. He might not be here anymore, but I’d be willing to bet he has someone here in town.”
Cody and Travis exchanged a look. Steely determination settled over her husband’s features. “Trav, has anyone checked into the hotel recently?”
“Not that I’m aware of, but I can find out tomorrow.”
“Good.” Cody reached for Ella’s free hand. “We’ll sort this out, darlin’. If your father or Mr. Blackwell is cooking up something fishy, we’ll find out.”
A hint of a smile played on her lips. “Fishy?”
“You don’t like fish. Seemed like a good point of comparison.”
Ella stared at him. “How do you know I don’t like fish?”
“Every time you see it, you wrinkle your nose.”
“I do?”
He nodded.
Travis raised a brow. “You’re observant, my friend. Even I didn’t know that. Have you considered a career in law enforcement?”
Cassie held up her hands. “Oh, no! I don’t need to be worrying about another person I love, thank you very much.”
Cody snorted. “Have you forgotten the number of ranchers who’ve been trampled in stampedes or thrown from their horses?”
Cassie shook her head, one hand planted on her hip. “Yeah, like the time you were trampled by that wild steer?” She shuddered. “I thought we were going to lose you.”
Ella blanched. Unwelcome images filled her mind. “You…you were trampled?”
“Once.” Cody shot a frown at his sister, then squeezed Ella’s hand. “It happens sometimes. I was fine.”
Ranching life could be dangerous. Everyone knew that. But to hear that Cody had experienced such a thing…
Terrible memories sprang to mind—a coachman’s lifeless body, bloodied and smashed against the pavement in Boston, the result of a horrific accident with another carriage.
He’d been thrown from the carriage, trampled by his own horses before the heavy vehicle fell onto him.
Ella had never been able to erase that image from mind.
Now, however, she saw Cody’s blank, unstaring eyes instead of the young man’s. Her hand trembled.
Cody stood. He pulled a sleeping Addie from her arms and passed the child to Cassie. “Excuse us a moment.” He took Ella’s hand again and tugged her toward the back porch.
The cold air hit her face and numbed her body. The tremors in her extremities intensified. “Cody…I…I can’t…”
He braced his hands on her shoulders. “Look at me.”
A creaky moan rose from her throat, forcing its way past her lips. She shook her head, the motion frantic, and buried her face in his chest. Her hands gripped the sides of his waist. “I can’t lose you.”
He stilled. For several beats of her heart, Cody said nothing.
Then, in one swift motion, his arms encircled her and pressed her against him.
The strength of his embrace soothed her anxiety.
He rested his head on hers, his voice a murmur.
“I promise you, I’ll always do my best to come home to you and the kids. ”
Her arms went around him in return. Cody’s right hand rubbed between her shoulder blades. After a few minutes, Ella pulled back just enough to meet his eyes. “I’m sorry. I don’t know where that came from. Usually I have better control over my emotions.” She swiped at the moisture on her cheeks.
Cody smoothed back a tendril of her hair. “Seems to me you’ve spent too much time keeping your feelings in check. Maybe this is good.”
“Panicking over something that happened in the past is good?”
His chest rumbled with low laughter. “It’s good that you’re letting yourself feel. I’m sure this situation with your father and Mr. Blackwell has you on edge.”
Ella sighed. “I thought I left them behind when I married you. My father finding me isn’t surprising, but hiring his lawyer to break us apart?” Her head fell forward, resting against him. “He can’t do anything, right?”
“Right.”
The tension in her shoulders vanished, and the knot in her stomach unraveled. She closed her eyes. “I’m glad you’re in my life.”
“The feeling’s mutual, darlin’.”
Acouple days after Blackwell departed, Cody lumbered around the yard with Isaiah and Jonah.
The afternoon sun lessened the chill of early spring.
The boys giggled as they ran, a game of tag underway.
The laughter gladdened him. Some of their somberness had lifted.
Jonah’s smiles were rare. To see them now made Cody feel as though he was doing something right.
Ella came onto the porch, Addie perched on her hip.
He paused to take in the sight. His wife smiled, ducking her head after a few moments.
Her sweet modesty tripped his heart. Add how motherly she looked holding their daughter, and Cody was hard pressed not to march right up to her and take her in his arms. Her recent admission about not wanting to lose him lit a hope he’d never felt before.
Little hands clasped Cody’s leg. “Got you, Papa!”
His jaw slackened. He looked down at Jonah. The little boy grinned up at him, proud of his conquest. “You it!” He let go and raced off toward Isaiah.
Cody’s feet stuck to the ground. Something poured through him, weakening his knees and making his body warm. Papa. That single word healed a crack in his heart. He felt lighter, buoyed up by a child’s trust. Cody laughed and took off after his boys.
Their boundless energy kept the game going longer than he expected. As he took a break against the porch, a hand came to rest on his arm. Cody turned to see Ella standing beside him, her eyes sparkling. “You have a new title.”
“I didn’t expect that.”
She smiled. “It speaks volumes, Cody. That boy loves you.”
Tears stung his eyes. “I feel the same.”
Addie babbled, patting his arm with her pudgy hand.
Cody leaned down, pressing a kiss to her soft hair. “I never thought I could love them like this.” His hand found Ella’s. “They truly feel like ours. Even if I don’t know what I’m doing.”
Ella chuckled. “You’re doing better than you think.” She gave him a little push. “Now, go chase those boys. I’ll get some hot cocoa ready.”
For another quarter hour, Cody chased Isaiah and Jonah around the yard. Jonah called him Papa again, and Isaiah—despite looking shocked—didn’t contradict his brother. Cody counted that a blessing.
When the boys stopped their game of chase, breathing hard and shivering from the cold, he gathered one under each arm and hoisted them up. “Your mama has a treat inside. Want to get it?”
Jonah’s head bobbed up and down. Isaiah chewed his lip. Had he picked up the nervous habit from Ella? Cody smiled at the thought. As he walked toward the house, Isaiah spoke quietly. “Do I have to think of her as my mama?”
Cody stopped just inside the house. He set the boys down and shut the door.
Jonah scampered toward the kitchen as soon as his feet hit the floor, leaving Cody alone with his oldest child.
He crouched in front of Isaiah. “We talked about this before, son. You can call her Aunt Ella. She doesn’t mind. ”
Tears welled in Isaiah’s eyes. “But…will Addie call her Mama? And you Papa?”
“I reckon so.”
The boy’s lip trembled. “That means I’ll be the only one saying Uncle Cody and Aunt Ella.”
Cody took Isaiah’s hand. “That’s all right. No matter what, we’re family. That’s what counts.”
“But I don’t want to be different.”
Isaiah looked so miserable, Cody pulled him into a hug. “I understand.”
“You do?”
“Yeah.” He moved to a sitting position and motioned for Isaiah to sit beside him.
“When I lived at the orphanage, people would come to see if they wanted to adopt a child. The other boys and girls talked easily with the adults. I didn’t.
Something changed in me after my parents died.
I couldn’t make friends. I felt alone, nothing like the other children.
I was different and didn’t know how to change that. ”
Isaiah peered up at him. “Did you ever change?”
“Not really.” Cody looked the boy in the eyes. “But I’m changing now. With you and Jonah and Addie. With Aunt Ella. All of you have changed me in a good way.”
“So you’re not different anymore?”
Cody chuckled. “I wouldn’t say that. It’s still hard to talk to people. A lot of folks probably think I’m different. But I’m okay with that.”
Isaiah nibbled his lip. “I guess I can be different too. For now.” Uncertainty crossed his face. “What if I want to call you Papa like Jonah?”
Cody grinned. “I’d like that.”
“It don’t mean I will.” A spark of defiance touched Isaiah’s eyes, but just as quickly, it vanished. “I’ll think about it.”
Cody gave him a one-armed hug. “Whatever you decide, I consider you my son, and your aunt does too.”
Isaiah nodded. He hopped to his feet. “Can we get that treat now?”
“Sure.”
When they entered the kitchen, Ella smiled at them. “Ready for some hot cocoa?”
Isaiah clapped. “Yeah!” He found a seat beside Jonah.
Ella ladled cocoa into a mug and set it in front of the boy. She poured more into another and offered it to Cody. “You must be cold from playing in the yard so long.”
He accepted the cup. The scent of chocolate hit his senses, sweet and dark. He inhaled deeply, then took a sip, opting to remain by the stove. “This is delicious. Thanks, darlin’.”
A pretty pink color bloomed in her cheeks. She busied herself pouring another cup. After taking a drink of her own, she motioned to Isaiah. “Everything all right with him?”
Cody lowered his voice to match hers. “He’s feeling a little left out. Doesn’t want to be the only one calling us Uncle and Aunt.”
“Poor boy.” Ella took another sip. Her lips pursed and her head tilted as she studied their son. “Do you think he’ll ever call us Mama and Papa?”
“I’d like to think so, but of the three kids, he has the clearest memories of his parents. It hasn’t been that long since they passed. He’s probably processing everything. Jonah doesn’t have the same inhibitions.”
“Hmm.” His wife set her cocoa down. “Then I suppose we’ll have to love on him all the more, let him know he’s just as much a part of this family as the others.”
Cody let his gaze trail over her face. “You’re a good woman, Ella.”
She blinked. “For loving a child?”
“Yeah.” He stepped closer. “And for putting up with me.”
A slow smile spread over her lips. “You’re not so bad.” She gave him a playful push. “Now let’s sit down with our children and enjoy this cocoa. Maybe we can play a game after.”
Cody enveloped her hand in his, leading the way to the table. “That sounds perfect.”