{Chapter 14}

Aubrey woke up the next morning and rolled over to check on Jay. Both her men were still sound asleep.

Wait, both of them?

What was Wade still doing asleep when the sun was up?

She faintly remembered him coming in late last night, hardly making a sound. She would just let him sleep. He needed the rest.

Wait.

Today was Sunday. He didn’t work on Sundays. Aubrey breathed a sigh of relief and sent a thankful prayer to God for this day set aside to rest and to worship Him. Rising slowly, she was careful not to wake the sleepers up and looked at the supplies on the table.

She would be able to actually make a decent breakfast this morning. Feeling like a child on Christmas morning, Aubrey made biscuits, bacon, eggs, and coffee with the dishes Toni had let her have. The smell had apparently stirred the men from their sleep, as she saw Wade roll over and groan, more than likely dreading the day of work that wasn’t coming.

“Are you two gonna sleep all day?” Aubrey asked loudly so they would wake up.

Wade rolled onto his back his hands on his forehead. “Please tell me it’s not a work day.”

“It’s Sunday, Wade” Aubrey smiled.

Wade heaved a sigh of relief and let his hands drop. “Thank goodness.”

“Wake the kid up, will you? Breakfast is ready.”

“Aubrey, you never told me you could cook this good” Wade told her after they had finished breakfast.

“Did you like it?” she asked, smiling.

Wade held up the corner of his empty plate as proof.

“I’m stuffed” Jay announced.

Aubrey smiled and started gathering the dishes.

“We’ve got to head to the main ranch in a little bit” Wade told her.

“Why’s that?” Aubrey asked as she poured some water that had been heating into a big pot to wash the dishes.

“Erik holds a little service there on Sunday mornings,” Wade explained.

Aubrey smiled. She thought she would have to go without Sunday services when she moved hours from the nearest town.

“Really? You didn’t tell me that” Aubrey began gathering up dishes.

Wade stood and helped her. “I must have forgotten. He’s been doing it since he first arrived. Thanks to him and the Lord, every person on this ranch is a believer. Even Mark Curtis as of two months ago.”

“That’s great” Aubrey smiled.

“God’s been good to us. We’ve had some hard times, but He’s been good through it all” Wade began drying once she finished washing.

Aubrey’s father would have never helped with the dishes. The entire Cutshall family would rue the day that Roy Cutshall had to wash his own dishes. That was women’s work, as he used to say.

Aubrey thought a moment. “He’s been good to me, too. Think about it, he could have stuck me somewhere out in the middle of the Arizona desert with an old fat man twice my age.”

Wade laughed. “I’m gonna take that as an odd compliment.”

“You should” Aubrey smiled.

“I’m gonna play outside” Jay said, rising from the table.

“Okay. Don’t get dirty” Aubrey threw over her shoulder.

“I won’t!” Jay yelled as he ran outside.

Wade chuckled and shook his head. “That boy’s either runnin’ hard or not at all.”

“He’s got too much energy. He goes out there and runs around by himself all the time,” Aubrey said.

“That’s what I’ve been thinking. What do you say about finding him a dog?” Wade asked.

“A dog?” That was a wonderful idea!

“I had one when I was a boy. Seems to me a boy can’t grow up proper without a dog” Wade told her.

Aubrey smiled and nodded. “I think it’s a great idea.”

“Then it’s settled. I heard they were selling a litter out at the neighbor’s. I’ll ride over there tomorrow.”

Aubrey smiled up at Wade. “You make a good father figure.”

Wade smirked but didn’t say anything.

They finished washing the dishes and Aubrey looked through her dresses for a suitable one to wear.

“Should I go with the blue? Or the green one I wore when we… got married?” Aubrey asked.

Wade sat at the table, reading his worn, leather bound Bible. “Whichever you want, honey” he said absentmindedly, focused on the page in front of him.

Aubrey smiled and chose the blue. “Turn around so I can change.”

Wade turned his back to her but continued reading.

Aubrey finished changing and washed her face, brushed her hair and braided it, then called Jay in to make sure he was clean. The boy had obeyed her and was clean as a whistle when he came back, so unlike a normal six-year-old boy.

“We ready?” Wade asked, closing his Bible.

“I reckon so. Okay if we walk? I couldn’t possible straddle a horse in this dress” Aubrey looked down at the deep blue cotton dress she wore.

“Sure” Wade smiled.

**********

All the ranch hands gathered in the kitchen on Sunday mornings, all sitting around the table with cups of coffee and a plate of cookies in front of them, provided my Katie. Aubrey, Wade, and Jay sat with them.

Erik stood up in front of everyone with his guitar in hand. “Guess we’ll start this off like we always do. Reckon we all know Amazing Grace, right?” Erik asked, situation the instrument in his arms.

Everyone nodded.

They all sang the song to the music that Erik coaxed from the strings of his battered guitar. After that, Erik brought out his Bible.

“Remember the verse I told you all to memorize?” he asked.

Everyone nodded except for Aubrey and Jay. Wade hadn’t been there, but he had apparently got the memo.

“Wade? Mind reciting it to us?” Erik asked her husband.

Wade nodded. “Sure. Jeremiah 29:11, wasn’t it? For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”

“Right. That verse is special to Toni and I. Helped us get through a rough time. Guess most of us remember when I got shot and my wife accepted the Lord.” Erik sent a loving, private smile to his wife. “I don’t really have much to say this morning except that God is in control, and he doesn’t mean to hurt us. Everything that happens in this world had a higher purpose. God has all this planned out and all we’ve gotta do is trust Him. He’ll always pick us up and dust us off. It’s our job to get back into the saddle. I know this is all a jumbled mess, but that’s what I had on my heart. Rawhide, would you do the honors and pray for us?”

Rawhide said a brief prayer and everyone echoed an “Amen” when he was finished.

“Guess we’re dismissed” Erik smiled.

“Right. It’s Sunday, but chores still need to be done. Wade, it’s your turn, ain’t it?” Toni looked to Wade.

Wade shrugged.

“No, it’s Gringos, as I recall” Mark objected.

“Ain’t neither!” Gringo exclaimed.

“I’ll get them. Besides, Aubrey was wanting me to teach her a few things, weren’t you, hon?” Wade asked.

Aubrey felt her heart flutter at another endearment. “That sounds good.”

Wade stood and got his hat off a peg be the door. Aubrey then noticed little curls forming where his hair ended at the back of his neck from the need of a haircut. She found herself noticing little things about him she hadn’t noticed before. The way he opened the door with his left hand, signaling that he was left handed. That twinkle in his eye when he looked back to see if she was following. The way he wore his hat low, nearly covering his eyes. And how good he looked when he wasn’t wearing chaps.

Aubrey closed her eyes and bid the thought away, following her husband closely out to the barn where the horses were lined up in stalls.

“You wanna help me feed them?” Wade asked.

Aubrey nodded.

“Usually we all do our own share, but on Sundays one of us does it so that the rest can have a break” Wade gave her a pail full of grain. “Dump that in the bucket in the first stall.”

Aubrey carried it to the first stall where a big black horse stood staring at her, perking up his ears.

“Who’s this big guy?” Aubrey asked.

“That’s Storm. The Boss’ horse” Wade said, feeding the horse in the second stall.

“Which one?” Aubrey asked, smiling.

“When I say ‘The Boss’, that usually means Toni. Mark is just… Mark” Wade told her.

Aubrey nodded. It was obvious that none of the cowhands particularly liked Mark.

They fed all the horses and then it was the pig out back behind the barn.

“Tom’s a new addition to our posse” Wade smiled, motioning to the big, dirty animal.

“Tom?”

“Sandy named him.”

“Oh.”

Once Tom was fed, they moved to the chicken coop.

“Now Tiny’ll swear up and down that this rooster is out to get him, but he’s just imagining things,” Wade said as he sprinkled corn around on the ground for the chickens.

“Why does he say that?” Aubrey watched the rooster peck at the corn on the ground.

“Well, because Mr. Cluck here chases him all the time. We don’t know what it’s about, Tiny and the rooster just don’t get along” Wade explained.

Aubrey smiled.

Wade came out of the chicken coop and set the pail down beside it.

“Let’s get out of here,” he said, taking her hand in his.

“What about Jay?” Aubrey asked as he led her away from the ranch.

“He’ll be fine. They’ll take care of him” Wade assured her.

Aubrey giggled and went along with him. “Where are we going?”

“I dunno” Wade winked at her.

“We’ll freeze” Aubrey protested.

“I’ll keep you warm” That look in Wade’s eye made Aubrey giddy.

She gave him a look and fell into step beside him. Once they were well away from the ranch, they settled into a slower pace.

Wade still held her hand, rubbing the back of it with his thumb. Aubrey felt her stomach overflow with butterflies, but they felt so good. She just took in the chilly breeze as it blew a few strands of hair that had escaped her braid out of her face. She looked over at Wade, and wondered if they were falling in love, surely he wasn’t doing this because he felt like he had to.

She had never heard of anyone consciously falling in love. Would a person willingly allow such a thing?

One look at Wade and she knew she would.

“So tell me something you want to do,” Wade said.

“What do you mean?”

“Tell me something fun you like doing.”

Aubrey thought a moment. “Oh, I don’t know. I like trying new things, you know. Even if a sensible person would never try them.”

“Hmm…” Wade thought on that.

What was going through his head?

“Wade” Aubrey stopped.

“Uh huh?” Wade turned toward her.

“Why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?”

“Why are you doing things like picking me flowers and taking me out to see the stars and taking me out on walks and... well, everything?"

Wade took a step toward her. “I told you why. I’m gonna make you fall in love with me, even if it kills me.”

Aubrey felt like crying. No man had ever shown such interest in her.

“What if…” she couldn’t bring herself to finish.

“What if…?” Wade coaxed.

“What if it doesn’t work?” Aubrey blurted.

Wade looked hurt for a moment, and Aubrey regretted saying those words. But she had to know.

“Then I’ll die trying.”

It was so hard choosing which to dedicate the chapter to! Thank you all for your lovely feedback on this! It means more than you know!

Today's question to answer: How do you think Aubrey feels about Wade?