An Uninvited Bride on his Doorstep by Ava Winters
Chapter Fifteen
Winona glanced anxiously between her father, stepmother and Logan. Logan and Heath talked easily enough and neither seemed particularly hostile toward the other, but Winona could see the unspoken tension in her father’s shoulders and the set of Logan’s jaw. She shared a look with Gregory and Jay and could see they felt a similar apprehension.
Her stepmother made no attempt to hide her feelings. Audrey sat back in her chair, frowning and glaring at Logan and Winona. She didn’t so much as look at her roasted quail or green salad and spoke less than she ate. Winona decided she preferred her stepmother’s silence to her sarcasm and made no attempt to engage with her.
On the bright side, the others seemed to enjoy the food. Her father even went out of his way to compliment Winona on the quail. After his compliment, Audrey saw the tension between the men ease considerably. Logan and Heath even had a lengthy conversation about proper pastureland management. If Winona hadn’t known any better, she would never have guessed there was bad blood between the two of them.
Her father’s politeness encouraged Winona and she forgot all about her stepmother’s attitude until her father asked Logan to walk with him outside. Logan looked to Winona for approval and Winona desperately wanted to ask him to stay with her, but she knew it was better to give Logan and Heath a chance to hash things out. So, she nodded and smiled so he’d know it was okay to leave. At least she’d have Gregory and Jay to talk to.
Of course, no sooner had she thought that then Gregory and Jay excused themselves, saying they needed to ensure the herd hadn’t migrated out of the southeast field again. That left Winona alone with her stepmother.
Winona forced a smile and said, “You really should try the quail. It’s—”
“I will never acknowledge that man as your husband!” Audrey spat.
Winona was shocked for a moment. Then anger replaced her shock. “Well then it’s fortunate that our marriage doesn’t depend on your acknowledgment.”
“Just look at you!” Audrey continued, ignoring Winona. “You’ve aged ten years since you’ve lived here. I told you before, you’re not cut out to be a rancher’s wife. Hard work doesn’t suit you.”
Winona didn’t for a second believe her stepmother, but her words hurt nonetheless. She fought back tears as she replied, “Not all of us consider work beneath us, Audrey.”
“Look around you, Winona! Look at this house! Look at this ranch. You’re living like a … like a … like a peasant!”
“Well at least it’s my life!” Winona shouted. The tears that threatened her now trickled down her cheeks as she shouted at her stepmother. “It’s a life on my terms and no one else’s! A life free from you!”
Audrey shook her head dismissively. “This isn’t a life. This is barely an existence.” She looked at Winona. “I wanted so much more for you. I expected so much more from you. Now look at you. You’re a failure.”
Winona was too stunned to reply. A moment later, it didn’t matter because the door opened, and Logan and Heath returned. Both seemed far more relaxed. Whatever they’d discussed outside, the heat between them seemed to have cooled.
At least one of us managed to rebuild bridges, Winona thought.
“Winona, Logan, I want to thank you both for a wonderful meal,” Heath said. “I hope we can all meet again soon.”
“Sure thing, Heath,” Logan replied. Did he really just use her father’s first name?
Winona and Audrey remained silent. Heath glanced between his daughter and wife and frowned but chose not to say anything. He simply thanked Logan and Winona again and left with Audrey.
“Everything okay?” Logan asked.
“No,” Winona replied. “But I don’t want to talk about it right now. Let’s just clean up and worry about everything else later, okay?”
Logan didn’t respond immediately, and Winona feared he would press the issue but finally he simply said, “Okay.”
***
Logan surveyed the repairs to the barn roof, nodding approvingly. The building was now weatherproof and could finally hold the vast amount of feed it took to support both herds without fear of spoilage from rain, or predation from birds.
“Fine job, Darrell,” Logan said. “The place looks brand new.”
Darrell smiled. “Thank you, boss. I can’t take all the credit. The boys did all the work. I just stood around and barked orders at them every now and then.”
Logan chuckled. “I wish I had it as easy as you, Darrell.”
“Naw, you’d go stir-crazy if you couldn’t work with your hands.”
“I guess you’re right at that.”
They fell silent a moment. Then Darrell asked. “So how was dinner last night? Gregory tells me you and Heath talked privately a while. How was that?”
“It was fine,” Logan said. “I have to admit, I was surprised. He wasn’t confrontational at all. We just talked about the ranch a while. He actually gave me some good advice.”
“That so?” Darrell said, raising an eyebrow. “What advice?”
“He told me to plant mint and thyme in a pasture at least a month before we move the herd. Horses like those plants a lot. That’ll help keep the herd from migrating so much to the wrong pasture. During the winter, we can use bales of mint and thyme instead of the fresh plants.”
Darrell nodded, impressed. “That’s not a bad idea. Cheap, too. Mint spreads like wildfire once you plant it and thyme’s easy to get a hold of. I can get some from the grocer on Wednesday when I to town.”
“Great,” Logan said.
“So, what else did he say?” Darrell asked.
“He said to take care of his daughter.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s it. Just, ‘Take care of my daughter.’ Then he shook my hand, and we went back inside.”
“Wow,” Darell replied. “He doesn’t seem all that upset about you marrying Winona after all.”
Logan smiled. “No. No he doesn’t.”
He wanted to be mad at Heath—to hold on to the hate he’d had for the man since his father was killed, but he couldn’t. The truth was, Heath seemed almost happy to see Logan and Winona together. He’d treated Logan as an equal the night before. Maybe he’d finally come around to accepting Logan.
Logan didn’t know if he could accept Heath, but he could at least see a way for them to stop being enemies. Maybe that was good enough.
***
Winona’s pencil skipped again, leaving behind a rough, jagged line that intruded into the shading on the face of the portrait. She sighed heavily and tossed the pencil onto the table. She’d spent nearly an hour perfecting that shading, and now it would have to be redone. Why did it feel like every time she tried to accomplish something things would go well at first, only to collapse around her?
She was pulled from her thoughts by a knock at the door. Probably Logan coming to wish her good night. “Come in,” she called.
The door opened and Gregory walked in. “Gregory!” Winona exclaimed. “What a pleasant surprise!”
Gregory smiled and sat on the edge of the bed. “Hey, Winona. I just wanted to say I’m sorry about last night. I heard you and your stepmother talking outside. Jay and I thought if we left you two alone you might be able to work things out with her like you did with us. We should’ve known better.”
Winona smiled. “That’s okay, Gregory. My stepmother’s arrogance isn’t your problem.”
“I know,” he replied. “It’s not yours, either. What I mean is, you’re not a failure. Audrey’s wrong about that. Actually, I think you’re one of the bravest people I know. Leaving like you did, making a life for yourself here … you really inspire me.”
“Thank you, Gregory. It means a lot to hear you say that.”
He nodded and then stared pensively at the wall. Winona waited, allowing Gregory to gather his thoughts. He finally said, “When my parents died, I promised myself I would never put myself at risk the way they did. Not in business and not in life. I never wanted to feel that kind of hurt again. I pulled away from my brothers and pulled away from the ranch, from everything.
I thought if I could just avoid conflict my whole life, I would be safe. After meeting you and seeing you fight through everything in your way to have the life you want, I think I’ve changed my mind. I might not rush off to elope with someone like you did—” Winona chuckled at that— “but I’m not going to hide anymore.”
“What do you want, Gregory?” she asked. “In life, I mean. What do you want?”
He didn’t respond right away. When he did, his words broke Winona’s heart. “I want us to be a family again. Like we were before Ma and Pa died. We’re not fighting right now, but we’re not a family. Not like we used to be. I miss when it was the three of us against the world. I want that back.”
In reply, Winona took Gregory’s hand. “The four of us,” she said. “It’s the four of us against the world now. I promise you, we’ll be a family again.”
He squeezed her hand and smiled. “Thank you, Winona.”
He released her hand and stood. “Well, I should be hitting the hay. I promised Darrell I’d help him move the horses tomorrow. Good night, Winona.”
“Good night.”
Later, as she drifted off to sleep, Winona smiled as she recalled her promise to Gregory. Come what may, she had her home. She had her family.
The next morning as she tidied up the kitchen, she noticed a book laying open on the table. It appeared to be a bank book. She picked it up, curious, and discovered several entries related to purchases at the ranch. This must be the ledger! She’d wanted to ask Logan about the ranch’s finances but never seemed to find the time in the middle of everything else going on. She decided she would ask him about it tonight at dinner.
“Oh, sorry,” a voice said. Winona looked up and saw Jay in the doorway. “I left that there this morning. I’ll put it away now.”
“Is this yours?” Winona asked.
“Yes. I’m in charge of the books.”
“Really? I used to help my father with the books back home!”
“That so?” His face brightened. “Can I show you something?”
“Of course!” Winona said, excited that Jay was finally reaching out to her.
He sat next to her at the table and opened the ledger, flipping it to a page in the back with dozens of figures and calculations scribbled on it. She gazed admiringly at the work and asked, “What’s this?”
“It’s my plan to grow the herd. The cattle herd, I mean. Here, these numbers are projected costs for each hundred head added. These are projected sales assuming we sell each head at ten percent below the market rate.”
Comparing the two numbers revealed that investing in cattle would greatly increase the ranch’s profits. “This is amazing!” Winona cried. “Have you shown this to Logan?”
Jay’s face fell. “Naw. Logan’s just like Pa: stubborn and set in his ways. He’s convinced that horse breeding is the only way to grow the ranch. I’ve tried to show him the numbers, but he just dismisses them.”
“Why don’t we show him again? You and I?”
He shook his head. “Honestly, I’m tired of fighting with him. If we show him this, it just means more fighting and I don’t want you fighting with him over this. We’re getting along now. That’s more than we’ve done in a while. The cattle can wait.”
Winona didn’t respond. She wanted to encourage Jay to fight, to tell him that if it meant she stood up to Logan with him then that’s what she would do. She didn’t, however. The truth was she, like Jay, didn’t want to risk the fragile peace that had sprouted between the brothers. She was so close to making them a real family. But how could they be a real family if the whole family didn’t have an equal say?
Jay stood. “Well, I appreciate the talk, Winona. It’s nice to have someone who’ll listen to me every now and then. I’ll see you later.”
He left with the ledger, leaving Winona to wonder if she was really doing the right thing by keeping quiet. She resolved to speak to Logan about the cattle at dinner that night.
When the meal came however, she found it impossible to focus. Gregory had picked that night to come out of his shell and engaged the three of them in lively conversation the entire evening. When he wasn’t in his shell, he proved to have a great sense of humor and quick wit. Winona found herself crying tears of laughter as she listened to the banter between the brothers.
After one particularly sharp jab from Logan, Gregory grinned evilly and said, “Did Winona give you permission to say that?”
Winona burst into another laughing fit and Jay clapped his hands as Logan reddened. “Hey, at least I have a wife.”
“A real man wouldn’t allow himself to be tied down,” Gregory replied. “No offense to Winona, but I choose to remain a free man.”
“So, I should tell Louise Parker you’re not interested?” Logan retorted.
This time it was Gregory’s turn to redden.
“Wait a minute,” Winona interrupted. She looked at Gregory. “You never told me you liked Louise Parker! I know her parents! They’re good people and Louise is just the sweetest thing! You should talk to her parents! They’ll be honored to have you court her.”
“Not gonna happen,” Gregory replied amidst peals of laughter from Logan and Jay.
“Oh, come on,” Winona pressed. “Didn’t you tell me earlier you didn’t want to hide from life anymore?”
Before Gregory could reply, they heard a crack of thunder. The brothers immediately silenced. Their smiles faded when they heard a second crack of thunder and disappeared entirely when they heard the pattering of raindrops. Immediately the brothers rushed outside, Winona following closely behind. The rain fell in icy sheets and Winona was reminded uncomfortably of the night she arrived on the ranch. Thunder cracked again and Winona knew the animals were in imminent danger.
“Get back inside!” Logan called to her.
“No!” she shouted back. “I can help put the animals away!”
Surprisingly, he didn’t argue with her. She felt a swell of pride at his trust. That pride quickly turned to fear when the brothers left her at the corrals and galloped off to help the hands corral the horses and cattle. A few minutes later, Gregory returned with two hands and a hundred head of horses. The hands remained behind and helped Winona lead the horses to stables while Gregory left to find more.
Darrell came next, leading more horses. Then Gregory again. After an hour, she saw Jay and Darrell driving what looked to be the entire remaining herd of cattle into a nearby corral. Then Gregory arrived with another fifty head of horses.
“Where’s Logan!” she shouted.
Gregory only shook his head before riding off.
Winona felt her blood turn to ice. She forced herself to focus on stabling the frightened horses, but her thoughts kept turning to Logan as time and again Gregory and Darrell and eventually Jay returned with more horses, but Logan was nowhere to be seen. When they’d finished stabling the horses and there was still no sign of Logan, she feared the worst.
Then she heard Jay shout, “Logan!”
She turned to see Logan struggling through the rain. Over his shoulders, he carried a newborn colt. Winona watched in amazement as he brought the animal into the barn. She slammed the door shut and barred it just before she heard the crack of hailstones on the roof of the stable.
Logan lowered the colt with a groan and turned to her. She threw her arms around him and hugged him hard, closing her eyes and drinking in the feeling of his body against hers. “I’m so glad you’re safe,” she whispered.
The storm raged around them, but for Winona it no longer held any fear.