Chapter One

Beech Creek, PA

June 1875

“Anne Ellis, I declare!” Anne’s best friend, Lila, planted her hands on her generous hips, her eyes full of laughter. “You look like some kind of fine lady up in that carriage.”

Anne tilted her head, giving her friend a coy smile from atop the shiny black buggy. Dressed in her Sunday best and wearing a new hat, she felt rather like a fine lady. She tightened her gloved fingers around the reins, her smile faltering as the horse shifted, making the buggy roll forward a few inches.

“Whoa, there!” she exclaimed. For some reason, the edge of panic in her voice made Lila burst out in a chorus of giggles. Anne did her best to frown at her friend while still keeping most of her attention on the fractious horse. “What’s so amusing?” she demanded.

“Oh, you are,” Lila said. “What on earth are you up to, Anne? And whose buggy and horse have you snatched?”

“I told you,” Anne protested.

As the horse threatened to move forward again, she abruptly remembered the coachman at the Beckhams’ stable showing her how to set the brake. Reaching over, she wrenched it into place and wrapped the reins around it, knotting them with some difficulty.

Lila waited patiently, her expression still sparkling with amusement as Anne clambered down from the carriage and carefully shook out her dark green gingham skirt. The dress was one she usually saved for cooler weather due to its richer colors, but she was aware that it complimented her brown hair and eyes better than any of her other dresses, which was why she had chosen to wear it that day.

“I’m going to Salt Springs to surprise Oliver today, remember?” Anne asked when she was safely on the ground. “You said you would come with me!”

“That I did,” Lila agreed, nodding cheerily. “But I certainly didn’t expect you to show up driving your own horse and buggy.”

“He—or she—belongs to the Beckhams,” Anne explained, turning to look at the restive bay horse hitched to her buggy. It tossed its black mane, turning its head to look back at her from between its blinkers. Anne bit her lip lightly. “Does he or she look like he or she is being rather…aggressive toward me?”

Lila let out another peal of laughter. She shook her head in disbelief, marching past Anne to pat the horse fearlessly on its long, muscular neck. “He, Anne. It’s a gelding. Goodness gracious, I don’t know how you talked anyone into lending you a horse when you can’t even tell if it’s a boy or a girl. And no, he’s not being aggressive. He’s just curious.”

“Oh.” Anne shifted from one foot to another as she watched her friend bond with the animal. “Do you want to drive then? Please tell me you’re still planning to accompany me.”

Lila gave the horse one more pat before turning back around. “Yes, I’ll drive.” She lifted her eyebrows, giving Anne a quick once-over. “I didn’t realize this was going to be such a fancy occasion, though. Do you want me to change into another dress?”

Anne shook her head quickly. Lila was wearing a tidy blue check and a straw hat with a cluster of blue forget-me-nots. Compared to Anne’s outfit, it was simple, but Lila wasn’t the one whose fiancé they were going to surprise.

“You look lovely,” she assured her friend. “And I’m probably over-dressed. I just really want to make a good impression on his family. Especially since we’ll be showing up unannounced like this.”

Lila nodded, her gray-blue eye growing more serious. “What did your mother have to say about this little adventure of ours?”

“She’s not opposed to it,” Anne said quickly. She felt her cheeks flushing and hurried to climb back into the carriage before Lila noticed. But of course, Lila noticed. She climbed into the buggy beside Anne and unwound the reins from the brake before asking.

“What’s wrong?”

Anne slid a folded paper fan from the pocket of her dress and fanned her hot cheeks. “Mother thinks this is a good idea, actually. She said…. Well, she said I really ought to find out why Oliver is hiding his family from me—or vice versa—before we’re actually married.”

“Ah.” Lila kindly did not look at Anne for a few moments, giving her time to compose herself as she guided the horse back onto the road. She flicked the reins, bringing the gelding to a steady trot. “Your mother still doesn’t approve of Oliver, does she?”

“I don’t know. I guess not.” Anne dropped her gaze to her gloved hands, now folded lightly in her lap. It was a huge relief to have Lila driving. Anne had felt the entire way here that the horse was on the verge of bolting. “We don’t talk about it a great deal. We really don’t talk that much at all. When she’s not with the Beckhams’ children, Mother spends most of her time doing things about the house. She says she never feels caught up on all the things she needs to do. I try to help, but I’m also so busy with getting things ready for the wedding….” She trailed off before adding, “Well, you know, Lila. It’s always been complicated between us.”

“Yes, I know,” Lila agreed. She pressed her lips together and gave Anne a sidelong glance. “Not to take your mother’s side over yours,” she said, “but I have to say I agree. It’s high time you met Oliver’s family.”

“He would have invited me if I’d hinted even the slightest bit that I wanted to come,” Anne said quickly. Her hands tightened in her lap as excitement and nervousness rose to fill her chest. “I just thought a surprise would be even more enjoyable.” She pictured Oliver’s handsome face and the way it lit up when he smiled—especially when he smiled at her. He was being considerate when he chose not to invite her. He knew how nervous she was about meeting his family.

Lila chuckled, her naturally good-humored expression returning. “I’m certainly going to enjoy it,” she said. “No matter how it turns out.”

“What do you mean?” Anne turned to face her friend, her nerves bounding. “You think he’s not going to be happy to see me?”

“I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you,” Lila soothed. “I’m just looking forward to seeing that perfectly smooth demeanor shaken up a bit. Oliver’s always on his best behavior around me—and for good reason. He knows I’d run him out of town in a minute if I suspected he wasn’t worthy of my best friend.” She gave Anne a warm smile, and Anne felt her tension ease slightly.

“Oh, he’s worthy of me, Lila,” she said, turning forward in her seat again with a little bounce. “He’s probably too good for me.” She gave a little squeal, closing her eyes for a blissful moment. “I just can’t believe all my dreams are so close to coming true. God has given me a perfect man, and we’re going to have a perfect home and, someday, a perfect little family.”

Her face flushed hotly once again as she said it, but she couldn’t keep her anticipation inside. At twenty-four, Anne had been waiting a good many years longer than she would have liked for God to bring the man of her dreams into her life. When Oliver had finally shown up and swept her off her feet, her future took flight, and she couldn’t wait to see her long-cherished vision for her own little home and family become reality.

Lila arched a brow, looking away from the road once more. “Perfect? Anne, you know you can’t expect—”

“I know, I know,” Anne interrupted. “Nothing is perfect until heaven. But I can’t help but feel that Oliver’s and my life together is going to be as close to perfect as things get here on Earth.”

“Hmm.” Lila still looked doubtful, but she let it drop.

Anne tilted her head back, letting the sun touch her face under the brim of her new hat for a few moments. It was a beautiful day. June was a beautiful month—the perfect month for a wedding.

Just two more weeks, she thought.

Her stomach fluttered at the thought.

Two more weeks, and she would no longer be Miss Anne Ellis, spinster daughter to a widowed governess. She would be Mrs. Oliver Tenpenny, happily married housewife.

“You are staying in Beech Creek after the wedding, right?” Lila asked beside her. “Or are you moving to Salt Springs?” She cast a worried glance Anne’s way. “I know it’s only a few miles away, but we won’t see each other nearly as often if you do.”

“We’re staying in Beech Creek for now.” Anne sighed happily. “Oliver is going to rent someplace small while he builds a house for us. He hasn’t decided yet whether he wants that to be in Salt Springs or here. But either way, no distance will ever come between you and me, Lila.” She slipped her arm through her friend’s, pulling the other woman close for a moment. “I’ll make sure of that.”

Lila laughed unsteadily. “You’d better,” she said. “Because I expect you to be at my wedding whenever that happens.”

“I will absolutely be at your wedding, Lil,” Anne said warmly. “And I suspect it will happen before either of us expects.”

“Oh? Do you know something—or someone—that I don’t?” Lila asked, twisting up the corner of her rosy mouth teasingly.

Anne laughed, hugging her friend’s arm closer. She was so full of love and happiness that she couldn’t help but wish it for her friend as well.

“Who knows?” she said. “Maybe you’ll meet him today. A church picnic would be the perfect introduction, don’t you think?”

Lila tilted her head. “Hmm, maybe. Today is about you and Oliver, though. And his family, if they truly exist.”

“They exist!” Anne protested. She drew back and hit Lila gently on the shoulder. “Just for that, I’m not speaking to you again until we get to town,” she said, sticking her chin in the air. Lila laughed and shrugged.

“Do as you please, Anne,” she sighed magnanimously. “That’s always been your specialty.” She followed up the comment with a sly glance, but Anne bit her tongue, refusing to react. Lila smiled triumphantly. Then, she leaned toward Anne, bumping their shoulders together as if to soften her comment.

Both women did spend the rest of the journey to Salt Springs in comparative silence. Anne couldn’t have said what Lila contemplated during that time. Blissfully free of the need to focus on guiding the borrowed horse that pulled their borrowed carriage, Anne spent most of the ride imagining the surprise and delight on Oliver’s face when he saw her at the church picnic he’d told her he would be attending today in his hometown.

She could hardly wait to see him; sometimes, she still had to pinch herself to believe that he was truly her fiancé. He was so handsome and charming and gentlemanly. The fact that he’d chosen to forgo visiting her to attend a function at his home church only increased her already high opinion of him. Although they hadn’t discussed their Christian faith in depth, he knew how important it was to her. She was happy to have it confirmed that his faith was equally important to him.

The nervous and excited flutters in her stomach grew stronger as they entered the edge of town. Anne pointed out the faded wooden steeple of the church, and Lila nodded, turning the horse down the correct street.

As they approached the church, Anne felt a slight frown crease her forehead. The churchyard was full of horses and buggies, but the only people in sight were a couple of boys crouched by the hitching rail playing marbles. She glanced around, searching for the food, the games, the clusters of chattering church folk.

“You’re sure it was a picnic Oliver said he was attending?” Lila asked.

Before Anne could answer, the doors of the church suddenly opened, and people began streaming out. Anne took a deep, uneasy breath. Here was the lively chatter and joyous laughter she had been missing, but something still felt off. The people were all in their Sunday best—even the children, who certainly would have worn clothes they could play in to a picnic.

And there was something else: an air of celebration to the way everyone flooded from the building. Lila tugged on the reins, and the horse stopped in the road. She and Anne watched, puzzled, as the churchgoers formed two lines leading to a carriage hitched at the post. A cheer rose from the crowd as a couple exited the church. The man and woman held hands, ducking and laughing as the children pelted them with rice and flower petals.

“Anne,” Lila said, leaning close to be heard over the commotion, “are you sure we’re at the right place? This looks like a wedding, and I don’t see Oliver any….” Her voice trailed off as the couple emerged from the flurry of well-wishers, and the man straightened.

Anne remained mute. She felt paralyzed. At the same time, it felt as if someone had just taken sewing shears to her heart and snipped it right in two. If she could have moved, she would have put her hand to her chest in search of blood. But all she could do was stare with wide, horrified eyes as Oliver Tenpenny helped the woman into the carriage and turned back to the cheering crowd with a brilliant smile.

“Thank you!” he cried. “Thank you all! I can’t tell you what a dream come true it is today for me to be married to my childhood sweetheart, Marie.” Turning back to the woman in the carriage, who was beaming down at him, he swung up beside her and leaned forward, planting a kiss right on her lips.

Suddenly, Anne was no longer frozen. In fact, she was trembling all over. She put a shuddering hand on Lila’s arm and whispered, “Drive. Please, drive.”

Lila didn’t need any further urging. She slapped the reins to the horse’s back, and the buggy rattled into motion. Tearing her gaze from the nightmare scene unfolding before her, Anne ducked her head, suddenly fearing that Oliver would look up and see her. His fiancée. The other woman he had promised to marry.

“Anne. Anne, honey, are you all right?” Lila shifted the reins to one hand, sliding her arm around Anne’s shoulders and giving her a little shake. She dipped her head, trying to catch Anne’s vacant stare. Lila’s blue-gray eyes were round with concern, and her face was tense and flushed.

“I just want to…get away.” Anne’s voice caught in a sob.

“We should go back,” Lila said, her voice shaking with anger. “We should tell everyone what a sneaky, conniving snake—”

“No!” Anne gasped.

She shrank into Lila’s embrace, overcome with dread at the thought of facing any of the unbelievable tableau she had just witnessed again. She was horrified now to imagine the expression on Oliver’s face when he saw her.

Oliver. Her Oliver had just taken another woman as his bride. Another sob tore from her throat, and she closed her eyes. Her head throbbed with trying to wrap around what she had just seen and heard. How could he? Why had he?

“No,” she whispered again. “Please, just take me home.”

Chapter Two

Shreve, Ohio

June 1875

The sound of Danny’s tiny shoes hitting the wooden floor yanked Felix’s drifting attention back to the church. He turned his head to see the three-year-old scampering toward the center aisle. Lurching sideways, Felix managed to snag Danny’s suspenders just in time. Grabbing the waistband of his son’s trousers with his other hand, he swung him back up into the pew beside him.

At the sudden arrest, Danny let out a shrill shriek of delight and surprise.

Reverend Myers paused in the midst of his sermon, his eyes flickering to the small boy as he smiled. “I appreciate that hearty amen,” he joked.

A chuckle rippled through the church. As the eyes of everyone else in the congregation turned toward Felix and his recalcitrant toddler, Felix felt his face and neck grow hot. He glanced across the aisle and caught Alfie’s eye. His cousin smirked before turning back to face the front of the church as the reverend continued.

Beside Felix, Danny wriggled back toward the edge of the wooden pew. Felix lay a firm hand on his leg. “No,” he whispered between tight lips. “Sit still.”

Danny froze, his blue eyes big as he looked up at him. His lip began to tremble, and tears glinted at the bottom of his eyes.

No, no, no, Felix thought.

He shook his head, willing the little boy not to burst into sobs. However, his stern look only made things worse. Opening his mouth and closing his eyes, Danny began to wail.

Felix was sure he couldn’t grow any redder as he scooped up the sobbing toddler and hoofed it toward the back of the church. He pushed through the big wooden doors into the warm June morning. The sound of the reverend’s voice faded as the door swung shut behind him.

“Hey, hey. You’re all right,” Felix shushed his son.

He slowly lowered himself to the step, situating Danny on his lap and rocking back and forth gently. Danny continued to wail. The sound grated on Felix’s already raw nerves. Closing his eyes in the brilliant sunshine, he sucked in a deep, calming breath.

The sound of the door swishing quietly open behind him caused Felix to open his eyes again. He twisted to look over his shoulder. Alfie’s wife, Ellen, emerged, one hand resting lightly on her gently swollen abdomen.

“Here, give him to me,” she said, reaching for Danny. Feeling both reluctance and relief, Felix surrendered the toddler to her. Danny lay his head on her shoulder, his sobs slowly quieting to whimpers. Ellen stayed standing, rocking gently back and forth on her feet.

“You didn’t have to come out,” Felix mumbled.

“Oh, I needed to stand up and move around,” Ellen said. “Sitting through an entire sermon on those narrow pews with this baby pressing on my tailbone is basically torture.” She laughed softly. “Please don’t tell Reverend Myers I said so.”

“All I’ll be doing when I speak to the reverend is apologizing,” Felix said. He stood up as well, watching as Danny quieted against his cousin’s wife’s breast. “I’ve never felt like more of a failure as a father.” He paused, biting his lip. “Danny does better for you than for me.”

“You’re not a failure,” Ellen replied, smiling kindly. “Toddlers are just like this sometimes. And he’s used to me comforting him when he cries.” She rocked back and forth without speaking for another moment, but the way her expression shifted told Felix that she had something else she wanted to say. “I love watching little Danny for you during the day, Felix, but have you thought about what you’re going to do with him when the baby comes?”

Felix sighed, reaching for his hat before realizing he’d left it in the church. He rubbed a hand through his longish dark hair. It was getting rather shaggy, he realized. He needed to find time to stop by the barber’s shop. He didn’t know how he was going to do that if he couldn’t find time to watch his own son, though. No matter what Ellen said, he still felt like a failure.

His heart pinched with longing for the life he was supposed to be living right now—with a wife and a happy family to come home to each night. Instead, he was farming his three-year-old off to his cousin’s wife all day every weekday. Sundays were really the only time he spent any time with him. It was no wonder he couldn’t comfort him when he cried.

“Perhaps you could hire someone,” Ellen suggested. Danny had fully relaxed against her. His crying had quieted to just a sniffle now and then.

“Who would I hire?” Felix asked, frowning. “Most of the women around here are busy with their own families—or aren’t reputable enough to be raising a child.”

“You could send for a governess,” Ellen said. “From back East. From ads I’ve seen in the papers, there are plenty of young ladies searching for such employment.”

Felix rubbed the back of his neck, uneasiness stirring within him. “I don’t know,” he said. “I’m not sure I want some stranger living in my house and raising my son….”

“Well, you’re going to have to give somewhere, Felix,” Ellen sighed. “Because this baby is coming sooner than later. I can already barely lift this little tyke, and my belly isn’t growing any smaller.”

“I know. I know. I’ll figure something out.”

The sound of singing from inside the church signified the end of the sermon. Felix took Danny back from Ellen so she could slip back inside and exit with Alfie. When the door opened a moment later, the reverend stepped out, preparing to greet each of his parishioners as they exited.

“Felix,” he greeted. “Glad to see Danny’s feeling better.”

“I’m so sorry about the disturbance,” Felix said. “I don’t know what got into him.”

“Oh, he’s three.” Reverend Myer waved a hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about it.”

Felix shook his head. “I should have been paying closer attention to him,” he said. “Things wouldn’t have gone that far.” The reverend chuckled softly, his eyes keen on Felix’s face.

“If I’m not mistaken,” he said slowly, “you were dozing off a bit back there.”

The heat returned to Felix’s skin. “I—I’m sorry,” he muttered again. The reverend shook his head.

“I understand,” he said. “Sunday is the only day of rest most ranchers get. I just hope you are able to find some refreshment for your soul as well as your body.”

“Yes, sir. Of course.” Felix was overwhelmed with embarrassment as he tried desperately to think of anything he could say about the reverend’s sermon and realized he had missed almost everything about it. “I will definitely keep that in mind next week,” he promised.

“You’ll let us know if there’s anything the church can do to help, won’t you?” Reverend Myer said. “That’s what we’re here for, you know. Anything at all.”

“Thank you, I will let you know,” Felix began. Then, he hesitated, remembering the conversation he’d just had with Ellen. “Actually,” he said. “If you hear of a trustworthy woman who is looking for a position as a governess, I do need more help with Danny here.”

“Of course, of course.” The reverend nodded. “I will ask around. I have connections back East that I can reach out to as well.”

“Thank you,” Felix said. “That would be a load off my mind.”

Shaking the reverend’s hand, he moved on to let the other folks flooding from the church greet him. Danny was quiet against his shoulder, and glancing down, he noticed that the little boy’s eyes were closed, and his breathing had evened out. He had fallen asleep.

Felix headed for the wagon, wondering if he laid the boy down in blankets in the back if he would stay asleep on the way home. Behind him, the chatter of the congregation as the people continued to pour from the church was a steady hum, spattered with laughter and voices raised in the storytelling.

“Felix, wait up!” Alfie’s familiar voice struck Felix’s ear, and he paused, glancing over his shoulder. His cousin jogged across the churchyard, grinning from ear to ear, as usual.

“Shh,” Felix warned. He nodded toward the sleeping toddler in his arms. Alfie nodded his understanding.

“Danny’s done making trouble for today, is he?” Alfie chuckled. “Really, Felix, you don’t need to feel bad about it. He’s three, for Pete’s sake.”

Felix nodded. Obviously, Alfie had already spoken to Ellen. “I just wish I had more time for him,” he murmured. “The poor kid hardly knows me.”

Now it was Alfie’s turn to nod, his face sobering. “You’re probably not going to be interested in the proposition I was about to make then.”

Felix tilted his head. “What proposition?”

“I was just talking to Burns,” Alfie said. He nodded toward the town sheriff, who was busy chatting up Miranda Sykes, the daughter of a fellow rancher over by the church doors. The sheriff nodded and smirked, touching the brim of his black felt hat. “He’s been contacted by the leader of a wagon train that’s coming through at the end of the month. They’re looking for someone to guide them as far as the Dakotas.”

Felix gave a low whistle. “That’s a fair piece,” he said. “Are you going to take it?”