Mail-Order Holiday Brides: Home for Christmas / Snowflakes for Dry Creek

“It’s a deal.” The boy swallowed and sat back against the wall. The desperate look around his eyes faded, as he was no longer quite as hungry. “I’m Toby.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Toby,” she said.

“Well, Toby, if you don’t mind—” the doctor gestured toward Christina “—I’m going to borrow your new friend for a few minutes. But I promise you, the marshal will see to the doling out of dessert.”

“I excel at that,” Elijah quipped, sending the doc a grateful nod. “I’m a scrupulous lawman except for when it comes to chocolate cake. I just thought I should give fair warning.”

“You wouldn’t try to keep a slice for yourself, would you?” Christina rose gracefully, bringing her plate with her.

“Me? No way. I’d never do anything like that. Never.” He winked, like a man feigning to do otherwise.

“I’ll have you know, I’m immune to those dimples of yours.” She swept away from him, unaware that he couldn’t take his gaze from her. “Any woman would be mesmerized by them, but not me. So there’s no need to go flashing them.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” He watched her leave the room with a swirl of her skirts. Down the hallway, over the pad of her step, she spoke to the doctor.

“I’ll find a way to pay you, Doc, I promise you.” Her quiet promise brooked no doubt. “Maybe I could clean your office in trade?”

“I’m sure we can work something out,” the doctor answered, their voices fading to silence.

“She’s really nice.” Toby stuffed a biscuit into his mouth. “She’d make a real good ma.”

“I’m sure she would.” A little arrow of pain speared him. Best not to think about Christina as a mother or as Tom Rutger’s wife. “It’s time you and I had a little talk.”

“Are you g-gonna arrest me?” Big green eyes widened. Toby glanced from window to door, like a trapped animal ready to bolt. “I didn’t mean it, honest. I wished after I’d done it that I could take it back.”

“You didn’t mean to startle the horses.” Elijah focused his attention on the kid. Toby shook his head, as if that wasn’t what he’d meant to say. Curious about that, Elijah continued on. “No one else was hurt...no harm was done except for the teamster who had to restack his load.”

“Oh. I’m real sorry about that, too. So, you ain’t gonna throw me in jail?”

It was tough to gaze into those worried green eyes and not feel something. It had to be hard being all alone. Elijah couldn’t help caring. “Want to tell me what happened to your folks?”

“Uh—” Toby focused on the door. He jabbed another hunk of biscuit into his mouth, making it impossible to talk.

“Let me guess. They passed away.” Elijah cut another bite of roast. “Was it very long ago?”

“Last year.” Still chewing, Toby hung his head. “We all got sick, Ma, Pa, me and my little brother. I was the only one to get better.”

“You don’t have anyone looking after you?”

“Nope.” He speared the last slice of beef on his plate. “After I ran off from the orphanage, I been doin’ okay on my own.”

“Let me guess. You rode in on one of the trains?”

“I’ve been riding the rails since summer.” Toby set his fork on his empty plate. “I haven’t got caught before. I run real fast.”

“Want to tell me why you were running out of the mercantile?”

“No.” Misery hung on him.

Not hard to figure what was going on. He’d have to talk to Lawson over at the mercantile next. “Toby, we’re gonna have you stay the night here, where the doc’s nurse can take care of you. Come morning, we’ll get you a fine breakfast and talk some more. Is that okay with you?”

“Talkin’ won’t do no good.”

“Just goes to show you’ve never talked much with me before.” He took Toby’s empty plate and stood. “I’ll go fetch your two pieces of cake from the other room. You know you’re safe here, right, Toby?”

“I guess.” He blew out a sigh. A line of tension remained burrowed into his forehead.

“Nothing bad will happen to you here. You have my word.” Elijah paused in the doorway. “So sit tight until I come back. Do I have your word on that?”

Toby nodded. “Mister?”

“You can call me Elijah.”

“You ain’t gonna send me back to the orphanage, are you?” The kid’s voice wobbled with worry.

“Not tonight. Your head has to hurt, so we’ll talk about all that tomorrow. Tonight, you’ll be safe and warm. I promise.”

The boy nodded, as if in agreement. Elijah wasn’t sure he could trust him. Best to speak with the nurse and make sure she kept a sharp eye on the door, just in case. Wind gusted against the siding as he left the room, a reminder of the frigid conditions outside. There was something about the kid. He’d come across runaways in his job before, but this one affected him.

He followed the sound of Christina’s dulcet alto. “...I really had hoped it was just a bad bruise,” she explained to the doctor. “Guess I was wrong.”

“You’ll need to keep icing it on and off to get the swelling down.” The doc tucked a final piece of gauze into place and stood. “There. When you take her home, Elijah, make sure and get her ice from the kitchen.”

“I’m perfectly capable of getting my own ice,” Christina said, rolling her eyes.

“I’ll take care of it.” Elijah leaned one shoulder against the door. The sight of her filled him with peace. It took every scrap of his willpower to keep from tracing the curve of her cheek and the adorable tip of her chin with his gaze. Stay unaffected, Gable, he thought, straightening his spine. “So, it was broken. I was right all along?”

“Yes, yes, no need to comment on it.”

He intended to say something light and breezy in return, but a loud whap, whap, whap echoed down the hallway behind him.

He stepped into Toby’s room to find the window open and the shutter slapping the siding. No sign of the boy. His clothes and coat were missing from the closet. He really hadn’t thought the boy would escape and leave chocolate cake behind.

Elijah hung his head. That was one dangerously cold winter storm and Toby was out in it. Alone.

* * *

“Elijah.” Christina spotted the marshal in the small crowd of the late-breakfast rush at the boardinghouse. The red-hot stove struggled to heat the dining room. The morning might be cold, but the storm had blown out. A small blessing. “Elijah.”

“Christina.” The broad-shouldered marshal turned in his chair, and the smile that stretched his granite face when he spotted her drove the chill from the air.

“How’s your arm feeling?” He bounded to his feet, looking strappingly handsome in a dark shirt and denims. Likely every woman in the room swooned at the sight, and it wasn’t only her.

“It’s better. See, I can wiggle my fingers. The swelling is going down. The doc is going to be happy, since now he can splint it properly.” She fiddled with her unbuttoned sleeve cuff, showing the makeshift splint over her broken wrist. “I can tell by looking at you that you didn’t find Toby. I worried about him all night.”

“Me, too.” Shadows darkened his eyes. “I looked everywhere I could think.”

“How late did you search?”

“No idea.” He pulled out a chair at his table. “The storm finally turned bad enough that I had to stop.”

“He’s a smart boy.” Christina couldn’t ignore the fact that Toby knew how to get by. He’d been on his own for a good while. “He would know to find shelter and warmth.”

“He was safe and warm where he was.” Elijah’s face compressed, a hint of his inner regrets. “I should have kept a better eye on him.”

“I should have, too.” She laid her hand on his, which rested on the back of the chair he held out for her. An act of friendship, that was all, a gesture of comfort. So why did it feel like more? Touching him was like coming home to a warm fire after being out in winter’s cold. She removed her hand and settled into the chair he held for her, troubled by her reaction to him.

Maybe it was because she’d been alone, that’s all. Of course it felt nice having friends again. First Annabelle and now Elijah. Tears of gratitude burned behind her eyes, even as she felt sad for Toby. Her life was changing for the better. She had friends, and in Tom she would have a husband and a home. The chance for a family and a happily-ever-after. She wanted that for the homeless little boy, too.

“Here, you may as well finish up the bacon.” Elijah shoved a small plate in her direction.

“Oh, no, I just came in for tea.”

“Fine, but I ordered too much. I’d hate to see it go to waste.” He shrugged, as if it didn’t matter to him, but it did. He turned over the clean cup at her place setting and lifted the small teapot sitting in the center of the table. “I was about to head out and continue my search for Toby.”

“Judging by the way you’re dressed, it’s your day off.” She studied the offered plate but didn’t move to take it.

“Yes, I had time off for the holidays, so I may as well use it for Toby. I don’t have much else to do but stay in and read.” He poured himself a steaming cup of tea, too.

“You read? Me, too. At least when my ma was alive, if we weren’t sewing or knitting, we were reading. Staying up way too late at night because we couldn’t put our books down and come morning, we talked books over the breakfast dishes.”

“You had a happy home.”

“I did. The Lord was watching over me for sure when Ma and Pa came to choose a child.” She looked wistful instead of sad, as if hoping the past could come around again. “I had it once, and it’s what I’m wishing for again.”

“I’ve noticed that you make your own happiness, Christina Eberlee.” He liked that about her. He wished he could get past the knot of worry in his gut.

Please let Tom Rutger be good to her, he prayed. He wanted the man to do his best for her. She deserved that and more.

“So, what do you like to read?” she asked after bowing her head for a brief, silent grace. “Adventure novels?”

“Good guess. I can’t put them down.” He nudged the sugar bowl in her direction. “I was going to start The Last of the Mohicans last night, but—”

“But you were out looking for Toby.” She stirred sugar into her tea. “I could hardly sleep last night thinking about him out in the cold.”

“Me, either. I’ve already put in some time trying to track him down. Will do more when I leave here. We’ll see if I can’t bring in the little renegade.”

“He’s far too young to be on his own. You know he’s been that way for a while. His clothes, his hair. How skinny he is.” She thought of the past five months spent sleeping in the shelter of alleys or stables. Toby deserved better. “And what about the bruise on his head?”

“The doc said he looked fine—it was just a hard bump, but he needs to be looked after. I’ll find him...don’t worry. I won’t stop until I do.”

“What will happen to him then?” She already knew the answer, her stomach knotting as she took a bit of bacon.

“The orphanage.” Elijah shrugged, a helpless gesture. “That’s standard protocol. When there are no parents or guardians, a minor child is surrendered to the territory.”

“I know.” Dark, dim memories of a cold bed and bland food, of stern, overworked women taking care of too many children threatened to well up. Memories she’d thought she’d forgotten. She didn’t want that future for Toby. There was something about him, a sweetness, that grabbed at her heart. “Maybe you know of a family around here looking for a little boy?”

“Times are hard. Many folks are having a hard time providing for the kids they have, but I’ll ask the sheriff. He knows everyone in this town, so he might know of someone.”

“At least there’s a chance.” The boy’s round face and owlish eyes flashed into her mind, an image of him staring at the wall and refusing to talk, refusing to trust. She would pray hard for him, she decided as a familiar man caught her eyes. He made his way into the room, dressed in a shaggy fur coat.

“Tom!” She took a step without realizing she’d stood. She was halfway across the dining room without realizing she’d left the table. She spun around, laughing at herself. “Elijah, I’ll see you later. Thanks for the bacon.” She held up the strip clutched in her good hand.

“Anytime, Miss Eberlee.” He went to tip his hat to her, only to find he wasn’t wearing one. Embarrassment crept across his chiseled face in a pink sweep.

He was funny. Her heart thumped an extra beat, likely in anticipation of being with Tom. He’d come to take her to see her new home.

He stood framed by the doorway with his bulky coat unbuttoned, his blue flannel shirt and red suspenders showing. Tension bunched along his jaw. Fury darkened his face. He did not look glad to see her.

Tom didn’t look glad at all.

Chapter Five

“What are you doin’ with him?” Tom demanded, beefy hands curled into fists. “Are you usin’ my dime to see if you can land yourself a bigger fish than me?”

“Why, Tom.” She surged forward, shocked by the words coming out of his mouth. This wasn’t the greeting she’d been expecting. No smile of welcome, no light in his eyes when he gazed upon her. Then she remembered he didn’t know her. They were strangers. She was determined to show him the woman she was. “In time you will come to know that I would never treat you that way. I’m hurt that you think I could,” she said gently.

“Oh.” Tendons stood out in his neck. He shot a cold, aggressive look the marshal’s way. “You were eating with him.”

“Yes, I was. He invited me over so I didn’t have to sit alone, and I’m grateful.” Her face heated, aware of curious diners watching. When she glanced back, the turmoil within her calmed the moment her eyes met Elijah’s blue eyes.

He looked concerned, but he didn’t need to be. She smiled at him to tell him so. Really, everything was going to be all right, but she wasn’t sure he believed her and she felt a little lost. She wanted Tom to be a good man; she needed him to be. “Tom, it’s your proposal that changed my life, and I’m so glad. That’s what matters here.”

“Guess I got all heated up.” He shrugged, self-conscious and a little sheepish. His hazel gaze caught hers bashfully. “Can’t hardly blame me. A pretty lady like you could have her pick of men.”

“Don’t try and soften me with flattery.” But a smile broke through. “It’s true a lady likes compliments.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” He had a charming smile and a farmer’s homespun way. “Do you want to see your new home?”

“Very much.” She fetched her coat from the large coat tree by the door, where she’d hung it last night to thaw, ice-driven from the near-blizzard conditions. Now, exactly why did that remind her of Elijah and the way he’d stayed at her side, shielding her from the brunt of the storm? Perhaps any woman would find him hard to forget. As for the snug, fond feeling building in her chest, that was a friendly feeling. Nothing when compared to what she would have with Tom.

“What’s wrong with yer arm?” Tom’s gravelly voice grated harshly. He didn’t help her with her coat as she slipped into it, careful of her splint.

“I fell and apparently broke it, but don’t worry, the doctor said it should heal just fine,” she finished quickly, buttoning up her coat. “By the end of January, it will be good as new.”

“Doctor?” His jaw snapped tight, and his polite tone was strained. “I didn’t agree to pay for no doctor.”

“I don’t expect you to.” She struggled with her mittens. Tom confused her. Perhaps he still feared she might take advantage of him, and it was true enough there were women in the world who thought nothing of such a thing. He would soon learn she was not one of them. He didn’t open the door for her, so she grasped the knob and pulled. Below-zero temperatures hit her like a punch. “I’ve made arrangements with Dr. Frost to work off what I owe him.”

“By doin’ what exactly?” Hazel eyes turned stone hard.

“By cleaning his office.” Now she was displeased with him. “I’m not that kind of woman, Tom. I would think you could tell simply by looking at me.”

“Sorry.” He flushed red and bowed his head. He appeared to be humbled, except for the strain snapping along his tight jaw. “I just saw you makin’ cozy with that man at your table, and I thought the worst. Shouldna done that.”

“No, and thank you. How about we make a pact?” She realized the only horse and vehicle tied at the hitching post had to be Tom’s, so she swept snow off the sled’s wooden seat with her sleeve before she sat. “Instead of thinking the worst, we’ll think the best of each other. Agreed?”

“Agreed.” Tom shook snow out of a fur robe and handed it to her.

“I’m so glad you are to be my husband, Tom.” She laid her mittened hand over his gloved one, willing her heart to feel. The spark of affection she longed for did not take root. Perhaps that would take time. “I can’t wait for my new life with you to start.”

“Me, either.” The corners of his mouth relaxed. He untied the horse, who flinched when he came near. The horse’s gray flesh rippled and the animal sidestepped.

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