{Chapter 25}
Wade smiled as he looked out over Kansas in front of him. Each step his horse took gave him more and more anticipation and brought him closer and closer to his wife.
“You okay, Dylan?” Erik asked.
Wade looked over at the man, glad to be sharing the job of handling the remuda with him. Wade and Erik shared the love of horses.
“Yeah, why?” Wade asked.
“You look a little anxious.”
Wade sighed. “Just wanna be home.”
“I can understand that,” Erik said with a smirk.
“It… it doesn’t feel natural, Erik.”
“Natural?”
“Bein’ away from my woman for so long. If God made us one flesh, then He sure didn’t expect us to be apart for over a month at a time.”
Erik smiled. “You’ll make it. She’ll be waiting for you when you get home.”
“I know that,” Wade smiled, looking back to check on the horses he was leading.
Erik chuckled. “Bet she’s having the time of her life with those kids, huh?”
Wade nodded. “I hope so. Jay’s a good kid, but he can get a little rowdy at times.”
“Sandy can be the same way. You know those two go berserk when they’re together.”
“Not helping, McBride,” Wade mumbled.
Erik grinned again. “Eh, you’ll get used to it.”
Wade sighed. That’s what everyone said.
**********
Aubrey tucked Jay in that night, the subtle moonlight spilling over the boy’s blonde head and over his quilt.
“When will Pa be home?” he asked groggily.
Aubrey sat on the bed beside him, her heart aching in pity for the boy. She had been so caught up in missing Wade herself that she hadn’t even thought of Jay missing his father.
“He’ll be home in a few weeks,” she answered, rubbing Jay’s arm.
“I want him home now.”
Aubrey sighed. “Me too, bud. Your Pa has a job to do, and you wouldn’t want him to be bad at his job, would you?”
Jay shook his head.
“Once he comes home, you’ll be glad he left. You know why?” Aubrey pressed.
“Why?”
“Because we talked about getting you a pony when he gets back and has the money for it,” Aubrey smiled as she poked Jay in his stomach.
Jay giggled. “Really?”
“But that’s only if you’re really good,” Aubrey cautioned.
“I’ll be good,” Jay reassured her.
Aubrey smiled. “Good. Now off to sleep.”
She kissed his forehead and walked to the door.
“Goodnight, Jay.”
“’Night momma.”
She shut the door with a sigh.
A few more weeks, Aubrey. Just a few more.
She sauntered into the kitchen where a few dishes were still waiting to be washed. She stared at the sink and found herself dreading doing the dishes alone again. Wade had always helped with the dishes, which was sweet because he knew that she hated washing dishes.
“What I don’t see is why I always have to be the one to dry. Why can’t I ever wash?” Wade asked her one morning.
Aubrey handed him the dishrag. “Have at it, bud.”
They switched places and Wade began washing the dishes, and Aubrey drying.
“You won’t believe the dumb piece of advice Rawhide gave us yesterday,” Wade said.
“What now?” Aubrey gave him a pointed look.
“He told us that bathing was overrated, and that it stripped your body of natural oils. He and Gringo were trying to convince the Boss Lady that they didn’t need to get baths every Saturday night,” Wade explained with a smile.
“That’s the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard.” Aubrey shook her head.
“That’s what I said. You’d be surprised about the stunts they’ve pulled over the years to get out of things.”
“I don’t think I want to know.”
Wade chuckled. “No, you don’t.”
There was a brief moment of silence.
“There’s a full moon out tonight,” Wade winked over at her.
“Is there?”
Wade nodded. “What do you sat to, after we put the kid to bed, we go take a walk?”
Aubrey thought a moment. “Hmm… I don’t know if I could trust myself out there with you alone.”
“Haven’t I always been the perfect gentleman?”
“No,” Aubrey stated definitely as she teased him.
Wade placed a mound of soapsuds on her nose and laughed.
She gaped at him and threw suds back at him.
“Ha!” She gloated.
Wade blew suds out of his face and poked her in side. She giggled and jumped back.
“No! Don’t start poking me. I’ll hurt you for sure,” she said breathlessly.
“Oh, was that a threat?” Wade stepped closer.
Aubrey shook her head. Wade gave her a pointed look, then she nodded.
Wade smiled. “Go get the kid settled in.”
Aubrey turned and did as he told her, wiping suds from her face.
Jay was all settled in bed and Aubrey reentered the kitchen. She and Wade grabbed their coats and went outside. They didn’t even make it off the porch before she was wrapped up in his arms… just where she wanted to be.
Aubrey smiled at the memory. They hadn’t gone back into the house for a while that evening.
Then, it hit her again like all memories did - like a knife to the heart.
“He’ll be home soon,” She whispered to herself. “You’ll be backing his arms before you know it.”
**********
Adam glared at Alex Harrison from across the campfire that night. He didn’t like the way Alex was glaring at his woman. He knew the thoughts that went on in a man’s mind when he looked at a woman that way. And they weren’t settling well with Adam’s jealous nature.
You touch her, and I’ll kill you.
His mind was screaming the words at him, and they threatened to come out of his mouth.
He looked over at Katie, who was completely oblivious to the look that Alex was giving her. She was always oblivious. He’d seen men give her all manner of looks through the years when they didn’t think he was looking. Not that it mattered, because Katie was a completely loyal woman. She was loyal to him for the first few years, then she was loyal to Ben, and now Adam was confident that he had her loyalty again. That was what made Katie special.
She turned and his eyes caught hers. She smiled at him for brief moment, and then went on about her cleaning. She fully believed in a clean campsite, Adam had found that out over the past month.
His gaze wandered from where Katie was to where Erik was holding his son, with Toni hovering over his shoulder saying something to him. Erik smiled and looked back at her. She looked more annoyed than happy at that moment.
Adam smiled at them. One day he was going to have a little family - hopefully with Katie.
Then it hit him.
How was he going to get Katie to marry him? Was that what she wanted?
Was it even what he wanted?
Yet another thing he needed to do some serious praying about.
Adam was laying on his bedroll but not sleeping later on that night when he overheard a mumbled conversation coming from a bunch of trees a ways from the campsite. He looked around the campsite and saw Mark missing. Curiosity outweighed his common sense and drove him silently over to the small bunch of trees and shrub where he crouched behind a bush.
“I want to be closer to Texas when we make our move, Brant,” Mark’s voice said.
“Just make sure you tell us the details before you go for it,” Adam heard Brant Alexander warn.
“I was fully planning on it,” Mark informed him.
“Your niece must be a real gullible person,” Adam could hear the humor in Brant’s voice.
“Don’t count on it,” Mark stated. “It’s taken me three years to get her to let her guard down this much. You wait and see. We’ll have our money and that ranch all to ourselves soon.”
Adam nearly fell over. The ranch? Mark was planning on taking the ranch? How would he go about accomplishing that?
The paper.
That paper he had made Toni sign quickly while Adam was trying to get a job. Of course! It all made sense now.
Adam retreated to the campfire. He needed a plan for rival theirs.
He would need help, though. Who could he trust enough to keep this a secret?
The answer was clear.
Katie.
OK, so there you have a little snippet of Mark's plan. I'm currently trying to sort out a few more details, but in the next few chapters you should have more of it. I never know these things. I sit down and don't know what in the world is going to come out of my fingertips!! Anyways, thanks so much for reading!