Chapter 6
Tate took Travis to his home to meet his wife and children.
The first look he had of Tate’s wife was of her sitting on the porch of the store watching five children playing in a small yard.
It was enclosed around an oak tree. Three of the youngest children were playing in a sand box…
two were little girls and one was a little boy.
Two older boys were up in a tree house. A beagle dog ran around the yard barking up at them.
The woman on the porch was pretty with her light brown hair braided and coiled on top of her head with curls falling around her face.
She was dressed in a blue dress that matched her eyes.
But it was the laughter that caught Travis’s notice.
It made you want to laugh with her. He hadn’t had much to laugh about in the last few years.
Tate walked up to Sam and kissed her drawing her up into his arms. “Travis this is my wife, Samantha Grace Buchanan, and the joy of my life. She is amazing and there’s nothing she can’t do.
Sam, this is my brother, Travis. I took him to see Malcolm to make sure that he was all right from having to travel by horse so soon after his injury.
He gave him a clean bill of health, but said he was to rest, get lots of good food, and to walk…
not ride with that leg of his. He’s to come back in a few weeks to see him. ”
“It’s nice to finally meet Tate’s brother.
He talks about you all the time. Come meet our children.
The three playing in the sand box are our youngest. Cassie has the blonde hair, she’s four.
The other two are our twins, Cara and Charlie, they’re two.
The two boys up in the tree are our oldest boys Chris and Cam.
Chris is seven and Cam is six. Tate has told them all about you and they’ve helped us make a room for you in the warehouse.
Come let us show you where we hope you’ll be comfortable.
” Sam told him. “Chris, can you watch over the little ones for a few minutes? We want to take your Uncle Travis in to show him where he will be staying while he’s here. ”
“Sure, Ma! Welcome home, Uncle Travis!” Chris yelled down to him and Cam waved to him. The three little ones kept on playing. They didn’t care what was going on.
Travis, Tate, and Sam walked through the store. Travis noticed that a very pretty woman was working at the cash register waiting on customers and another man was carrying out heavy bags from the warehouse. They both nodded at Tate and Sam, and Sam smiled at everyone they met.
The warehouse was hooked onto the store and was enormous.
It also housed the extra cases, bags, and large supplies that they sold, but didn’t keep in the store.
It’s where Tate kept the pot-bellied stoves he sold, half-barrels for tubs, wheelbarrows, and any of a hundred other items. At the end of the warehouse were two small rooms that Jill and Mike lived in.
They were the two people they saw working in the store.
Sam took Tate to a room that had been built just for him.
It was large enough to have a pot-bellied stove in it to keep him warm, a bed with a good mattress, sheets, blankets, a colorful quilt, and a pillow.
They had a dresser for his clothes, and he noticed that Tate or Sam had gone to the resale store and bought regular clothes for him to wear instead of Army clothes for the first time in four years.
She had picked out warm pants, wool shirts, long underwear, warm socks, and even working boots.
They had even picked out a warm shearling coat with gloves, hat, and a scarf.
Travis looked at all they had done to welcome him home.
He even noticed the pictures the kids had drawn, and they had put on the wall.
For the first time in four years, he felt like he had a home again.
“Now, I want you to know that I expect you for meals…three times a day, and we always have cookies in the cookie jar, or cake or pie for you to eat if you get hungry in between meals. Nobody goes hungry around here. We have a wagon that we put the three youngest kids in, and we’ll go walking with you whenever you want.
If you want solitude, just tell us. I’m good with a hammer, so if you want shelves or anything else built in your room, just tell us…
and it’ll get built.” Sam told him and leaned against Tate while she talked.
Travis could tell that they were very content with each other.
Would he ever find someone that he was that in love with?
“I really appreciate all you did to make me feel at home. It looks good. I can’t wait to sleep on that mattress.
I can smell the grass and clover…I’ve been sleeping on the ground for the last four years, so that bed will be like sleeping on air.
Thank you for all of this. I won’t know what to do wearing real clothes for a change! ” Travis told her with a smile.
“It was our pleasure, Travis. Tate and I have been praying for you to return home safely all the while you’ve been away in the war.
We’re glad you came home, not with a hurt leg and side, but home in one piece at least.” Sam told him and saw him smile.
“I know I’m not Leah, but Tate and the children have made the adjustment.
I hope you can too. I’ll leave you to get settled.
Tate, I’m going back to the children. If you need me, you know where to find me.
” She left and the two brothers stood there looking at each other.
“She’s a lot different than Leah was.” Travis started the conversation.
“You have no idea…Sam is not the quiet woman Leah was. To begin with, she is very proficient with her six guns and have already saved my life twice from robbers who were trying to rob the store. Some of those robbers broke out of jail and came to get revenge, she had the idea of using marbles on the stairs in the dead of night as they tried to come up and shoot us. She was eight months pregnant at the time, shot two shots in the air calling the sheriff and the deputy to the house, and then watched the four men fall all over themselves as they fell on those marbles. They were all at the foot of the stairs and could hardly stand up when they were re-arrested by the sheriff and deputy and taken to jail without a shot being fired. She’s smart, wonderful with the kids, organized, and I love her with my whole heart.
We were a mess, Cassie was throwing tantrums every time you turned around, I couldn’t watch the kids and take care of the store.
In one week, she made the playground for the kids, had Cassie sitting in the corner when she threw a tantrum until she stopped screaming and sobbing instead of holding her and getting all the attention.
The boys loved her as soon as the house was clean and they were eating good meals.
She got them included with helping her build the fence, the doghouse, and getting them pets.
She didn’t ask for anything. Just worked with what we had here in the store.
The kids loved her, and I fell in love with her gentle ways, and the way she took care of my family.
I was just lucky that she also fell in love with me.
Even Red wishes he could have hired her as his new deputy.
Rusty Granger, does a good job, but he’s nowhere near as good as Sam is with those six guns of hers.
” Tate told him and laughed at the look on his brother’s face.
“I’m glad you found someone after losing Leah, Tate.
I can see how well she takes care of you and your children.
She sure did a good job of getting me a room and making me feel at home.
I appreciate all of that. I’ll get to know her in no time.
Don’t worry about it.” Travis told him and wondered how long it would take him to get used to all the changes that had taken place since he had been gone.
Henry Williams had taken his sister to his home to meet his new wife and son. Angie was so glad he was happy at last. She loved holding the new baby and thought how long it had been since she had held a baby this small in her arms.
“Lynn, Hank is adorable. I love holding him in my arms. It seems like forever since I held a baby this small. My children are five and three, they aren’t that big, but they seem so much bigger when I compare them to little Hank.
I want to thank you for helping us come here and make a new home.
I knew that wasn’t easy for you to do with just having a baby and working as a nurse for Doctor Sinclair, too.
” Angie told her as she handed back little Hank.
“You have a lovely home, and it feels very welcoming.”