Chapter Sixteen
“Oh, Micah,” Ellie breathed as she watched the waves lap on the shoreline the same way they had when she was a girl, when she and Mama had come to the beach and found the starfish. “It’s as beautiful as I remember.”
As Micah had promised, they’d left Cartwright as soon after the judge’s ruling as they could catch a stage.
Micah had stayed awake the entire night before, guarding the door of their hotel room, lest Percival or any of his men try something.
No one had even tried, but they’d left for the stage stop early that morning in the hopes of missing anyone who might mean them harm.
It hurt her heart not to have the chance to say goodbye to Miss Lutken, but she knew the woman understood.
Perhaps, at some point, she could write her a letter and send her train fare to come visit them in Texas.
Now, she had the money to do whatever she wished, though the only thing she really wanted was to return to the ranch with Micah and begin their lives together.
Micah wrapped his arms around her, his attention solely fixed on her.
“Yes, it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.
” Understanding his meaning, Ellie blushed until he lowered his lips to hers.
They’d be pulling out of Los Angeles later that day, but the stage had run early enough Micah had been able to bring them to the beach.
It was likely the last time she’d ever see it, but standing here with Micah made her feel complete in a way she hadn’t felt since the day she came with Mama.
“The best day of my childhood happened on this beach,” she reflected.
“Tell me about it.” He laid his coat out in the sand and gestured for her to sit on it before taking the spot next to her. “Tell me more about your mama.”
Goodness, where did she start? “She’d been hurt, and she could sometimes be harsh with others as a result.
She was fiercely protective of me. She was often stressed about money, especially before we moved in with Grandfather, but then the stress turned to other things.
Once, when he had to come to Los Angeles on a business trip, he brought us with him.
I assumed he was trying to set Mama up with one of the businessmen here to get us out of his hair and make an advantageous match, but Mama never played by his rules. ”
Micah smirked, his thumb tracing a pattern on her hand as he held it. “Sounds like someone else I know.”
She shrugged, smiling with feigned innocence.
“Anyway, the last morning we were here, he disinvited us to breakfast as a result. Mama brought me out to the beach in front of our hotel, and we walked around in our bare feet for hours looking for shells. Feeling the sand between my toes felt like freedom, as did the breeze on my face.”
“You said you found a starfish?” She’d told Micah about the beach day before, but only in passing. Still, the fact he’d clearly understood how important the moment was to her and did his best to get them to visit the beach before they left meant more to her than he’d ever know.
“We did. Miss Lutken and I had been reading through a book about sea creatures, and the starfish was one of my favorites. Mama knew that, so she’d let me hold it before I threw it back.
That day, it was like the lines on her face from stress and heartache were a little softer, her shoulders were a little less tense.
She looked ten years younger. It was just me and Mama enjoying the ocean. ”
She lowered her head onto his shoulder, staring out at the blue sky over the darker blue ocean. Waves continued to crash against the shore, but it felt like they were the only two people in the world. “Thank you for giving me this.”
Ellie felt him press a kiss to her hair as they sat there a little longer.
“I’ll give you everything you’ll let me, darlin’.
” He spoke with conviction, but she could also hear the smallest piece of insecurity in his words.
She wasn’t sure exactly how or when yet, but it was time to make sure her husband understood he wasn’t the only one in this marriage for the long haul.
Having her trust now would make things easier if they ever decided to access it, but there was more to life than money and security.
For the first eighteen years of Ellie’s life, she’d felt a little like the starfish tossed about in the waves until she accidentally landed on the shore in Texas. Maybe, unlike the starfish who needed the water to survive, the shore was exactly where she was supposed to be all along.