Falling for the Rancher Father

Mercy guided his hand so Nugget got his treat.

“What else can I make him do?” Ladd asked.

“Before I show you, maybe Grady and Allie would like to do a trick.” She held a hand toward the pair.

Grady jumped forward. “Can I get him to bow, too?”

“You sure can.” She repeated the trick with Grady and helped the boy feed Nugget his treat.

Allie stood nearby, rocking back and forth in anticipation. “Can I do something different?”

“What would you like to do?”

“Me and Ladd saw you standing on his back. Can I do that?”

Mercy considered the request. Nugget was still saddled and he wouldn’t protest, and if she held Allie, she could see no problem. The child would be perfectly safe. “I don’t see why not. Come on, I’ll show you how.”

She lifted the featherlight child to the saddle, placing her feet so she balanced then held her hand as she straightened. “There you go. What do you think?”

Allie giggled. “I’m a bird.” She held out her free arm.

A man came out of nowhere direct to Mercy’s side. Although alarmed at the sudden appearance, she held Allie firmly.

He lifted Allie from the horse and stepped back. “How dare you put my child at risk?”

“You! Mr. Abel Borgard, I presume. Haven’t we met before?” She didn’t much care for the dark expression on his face.

“And you would be...? Just so I know to avoid you in the future.”

“Mercy Newell. So pleased to make your acquaintance.” But her sarcasm was wasted on him.

“Papa,” Allie patted his cheek to get his attention.

“Yes, baby.”

Baby! This child was no baby. Why did he call her that? Worse, why did he treat her like an infant?

“It was fun,” Allie said. “And she held my hand really tight.”

“It was exceedingly foolish. Ladd, didn’t you think to say something?”

Ladd faced his father without a hint of fear. Or remorse. “Miss Mercy held her real good. She is smart about horses and—”

“Children are different than horses, Miss Mercy. Mrs. Gardiner knows I’ve come for the children. I’m taking them home.” He still carried Allie in one arm and took Ladd by his free hand. “Where they’ll be safe.” He hurried away.

Ladd and Allie sent Mercy pleading looks. She couldn’t say if they were silently apologetic or simply regretting that their enjoyment had been cut short. Regardless, something about their silent appeals released her own caution and she trotted after them, reaching Abel’s side before he made it to his horse. She grabbed his shoulder and forced him to stop.

“Sir, you are mistaken if you think I was about to let something happen to your children. I was only allowing them a bit of harmless fun. Everyone should be allowed to enjoy life and not shoved into a corner.”

He put Allie down and released Ladd. “You two go wait by the horse.”

They scampered away and stood watching the two adults.

Abel turned his back to the children. “Miss Newell, whether or not you agree with my choices on my children’s behalf is immaterial to me. But Allie has been very ill. Her heart has been damaged and the doctor says she must not get overly excited, nor can she be allowed to overexert herself. It could have very bad consequences.”

There was no mistaking the agony in his voice as he spoke those words and then he strode away, swung to the back of his horse and lifted the children, Ladd behind him, Allie sheltered in his arms.

How was she to have known about Allie? The last thing she would ever do was put a child at risk.

Abel reined his horse about. He was about to leave. She couldn’t let him go without trying to explain.

“Wait.” She raced to the head of the horse, forcing Abel to pull up. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know. But believe me, I would never put a child in danger.”

Abel studied her a moment. Then he shifted his gaze to Allie. He cupped her head then reached back and pulled Ladd closer. He lifted his gaze to Mercy.

“So you say. But it is immaterial to me. My one and only concern is my children.”

She fell back, struck by the depth of emotion in his eyes.

“Whatever foolish thing you choose to do with your time is your business.” He rode away. Ladd lifted a hand in a wave.

Mercy stared after them, her insides churning. She knew the look in Abel’s eyes. Not because she remembered ever seeing it but because she had longed for it all her life. Instead, all she’d ever seen was indifference. Seems Butler was the only child who had mattered to her parents and when he died, Mercy became a necessary nuisance. She could never do enough to get them to acknowledge her. No matter how absurd her behavior.

She shook off the feeling.

She’d hoped she’d found the acceptance she longed for when, at seventeen, she fell in love with Ambrose, the preacher’s son. They’d enjoyed many adventures together. But after their romantic summer—oh, how mistaken she’d been about that—he’d introduced her to a sweet, young thing he identified as his fiancée. When Mercy confronted him, he said he couldn’t live with a person like her who longed for adventure. A man wanted to come home to peace and quiet, not restlessness. Mercy realized then that men, in general, preferred a woman to be invisible in her husband’s shadow. Mercy could never be that.

The circle of her thoughts widened. Wasn’t the Wild West show exactly the kind of thing she’d wanted since she was sixteen years old and watching Cleopatra’s Needle unveiling in London? They’d buried a time capsule beneath it that included pictures of the twelve most beautiful women. That struck her as unfair. What if a woman was born ugly? Was she to be ignored? What if she was beautiful but no one noticed? No, a person had to be able to do something to earn notice and value.

She would do something. She would join a Wild West show and perform for others. The audience would appreciate her skills. It didn’t matter what Mr. Abel Borgard thought.

Chapter Two

Abel held Allie tight as he rode toward the cabin. He found comfort in Ladd’s arms about his waist. Miss Mercy was a menace to his kids and likely to herself, though that didn’t concern him. It surprised him, however, that Eddie allowed such conduct. Like his parents said, “You reap what you sow. If you sow to the wind, you reap sorrow.” He’d learned the truth of their words the hard way. He’d left home at sixteen to follow a sin-filled path, thinking it meant excitement. It had led him to marriage with Ruby. She wanted to continue their wayward path but once the twins were born, Abel wanted only to provide them with safety and security. Poor Ruby hadn’t signed up for that sort of life. So she paid in frustration. With an unpredictable, unreliable mother, the twins paid, too, and unable to stop the train wreck of his marriage, Abel would likely spend the rest of his life making up for his foolish decisions.

And he would not allow Miss Mercy to undo the good he aimed to achieve by settling down and giving the twins a home like they’d never known.

The children were quiet on the trip home. He let them off in front of the cabin. “Go inside. I’ll be there as soon as I take care of Sam.” The faithful horse would get a few oats and some hay, which reminded him of another job awaiting him. He must find feed for the horse and the milk cow he hoped to obtain. This late in the year, locating feed would prove a challenge.

He returned to the cabin, ducking his head to enter. The inside was as inadequate as the door—barely big enough for a table, four chairs and a narrow bed. Beyond that, a corner of the roof had been damaged. He’d repaired it, but a good wind or a heavy snowfall would threaten the entire roof. He had to get a bigger, sturdier cabin built before winter set it.

Allie and Ladd stood shoulder to shoulder and watched as he hung his hat on a hook. He faced them. “What’s on your mind?”

“You were rude to Miss Mercy,” Allie said, her face wreathed in distress.

“Oh, honey. I was only concerned about you. Can you imagine how I felt to see you standing on the back of her horse?” His heart had punched his ribs with such force they still hurt.

“She wouldn’t let me fall.”