Wild Horses (Sadie's Montana #1)(57)

“You okay?”

Meeting his eyes, Sadie nodded.

That was a mistake, was her first coherent thought, before his arms came around her again, crushing her to him. He held her so tightly, her ribs actually hurt a bit. Then he released her quite suddenly, stood up, cleared his throat, and went to pick up the wagon tongue. He trudged back to the house, not saying a word.

Sadie was stung, mortified. What had she done wrong? Had she offended him?

At the house, he declined her invitation to come in for coffee. Instead he hurriedly hitched his horse to the carriage and flew down the drive at a dangerous speed. It seemed he couldn’t get out of there fast enough.

Sadie knew she had lost him again.





Chapter 16




AFTER THE CUMBERSOME CAST was removed, Sadie returned to the ranch.

It was wonderful to be back. Richard Caldwell welcomed her with his powerful voice bouncing off the cathedral ceilings. Jim told her, in his drawly, shy manner, that the place was not the same without her.

“Yer sorta like one o’ them sunbeams that comes down out o’ the gray skies, Sadie,” he said, sliding the ever-present toothpick to the opposite side of his teeth.

“Why, thank you, Jim. That’s a very nice compliment,” Sadie told him.

Dorothy held nothing back. She wept, she hugged Sadie close, she stood back to look deep into Sadie’s eyes, wiped her own eyes with a paper towel, honked her nose into it, then shook her head.

“In all my days, Sadie honey, I never seen nothin’ like it. When I walked into that there hospital and seen you layin’ there, I thought the hand o’ God was hovering right above your head. God brought you through. Only God. Praise his Almighty Name, an’ I mean it.”

Dorothy paused for breath, plunked her ample little body onto a kitchen chair, reached for her half-empty coffee cup. She set it down, pulled at her skirt, and began rubbing her knee.

“You know there’s a new store in town called Dollar Tree? Well, that’s where I got you that china cross. The artificial flowers around that cross looked so real, I swear I coulda pulled ‘em out o’ my own flower patch. You liked that, didn’t you?”

Sadie nodded enthusiastically.

“Oh, yes, I put it away with the rest of the things in my hope chest,” she said carefully.

Dorothy’s eyes brightened.

“You did? See? I knew you’d like that! Too pretty for your room, wasn’t it? You had to put it away for your own house once you get married! Well, I always had good taste when it comes to gift-giving. Just have a knack there. I’ll tell you what, on your weddin’ day, I’ll get you another one, an’ you can have one on each side of your hutch cupboard.” Dorothy slapped her knee with enthusiasm, watching Sadie’s face like a small bird.

“Well you can, can’t ya?”

“Of course, Dorothy. I will.”

“Now that Dollar Tree, it’s not quite like my Dollar General. They don’t have them good shoes, mind you. Their Rice Krispies is two dollars a box, though. That ain’t so dear.”

Sadie nodded.

“Well, here I am runnin’ my mouth about the price o’ cereal and you didn’t tell me how you’re doin’.”

Sadie took a deep breath, then poured herself a large mug of coffee.

“My leg and foot are still swollen and sore. I have to be careful how I walk on it. My hair…”

She reached up to brush back the unruly, short strands on one side of her head.

“Be glad you’re alive. Just be glad!” Dorothy said, nodding her head for emphasis.

“Oh, I am, I am. I don’t mind my hair so much, but it’s hard not having the strength to be able to work the way I used to.”

“Well, today yer gonna do the light dusting and run the vacuum. Then you can sit right here at this table and chop vegetables. I’m havin’ vegetable soup with lots of ground beef and tomatoes, the way the boss likes it.”

There was a knock on the kitchen door, a small tapping sound.

“Now, who’d be knockin’? No need to do that!” Dorothy said, her eyebrows lowered.

She lifted her head and yelled, “You don’t need to knock!”

Sadie cringed when she saw Barbara Caldwell enter the kitchen, her long, white robe clutched around her middle. Her hair was disheveled, and without makeup she looked young and vulnerable. Her face was a ghastly color, so pale Sadie was afraid she’d fall over right there in the kitchen. Her voice trembled as she told them she’d been sick all morning, and was there anything Dorothy knew of that could help her digestive system?

Sadie held her breath, knowing Barbara was not Dorothy’s favorite person on the ranch, but Dorothy was cordial. She clucked and stewed, fussing on and on about the merits of gingerroot tea and how she would put in plenty of sugar for strength.

Barbara Caldwell sank gratefully into a kitchen chair, then looked at Sadie and smiled.

“How are you, Sadie?”

Sadie could not believe the smile or the question, especially since she had refused to come to their house on New Year’s Eve. Richard Caldwell had canceled at the last minute, apologizing profusely, and the whole family had eaten the delicious food all by themselves, shrugging their shoulders in resignation. Barbara was probably just too high-class to eat in an Amish home, they thought.