The Cowboy Tutor

“Tell us about your brothers. Is Levi the youngest?”

“Yes. He’s seventeen. Redford is the next one. He’s teaching. Has been for…well, he’s twenty-three, so I guess he’s been teaching four years now. Then Carson is a lawyer. He’s a year younger than I am.”

“How old would that make him?” Madge demanded.

Judd tucked away a smile. Curious about him, was she? Even though she watched him with as much concentration as did Louisa’s small dog. “Carson is twenty-five.”

They studied each other across the table, measuring, assessing. He wished he didn’t have to conceal the truth about who he was. But he did. Determination stiffened his muscles, making his mouth tighten.

Her eyes narrowed. “How did you hurt your leg?”

“Madge!” Mrs. Morgan sounded as if she couldn’t believe her daughter, though whether because her question was so bold or because of the hint of mockery in her voice.

“I got thrown from a wild horse.” At least that part was true.

Louisa gasped. “A wild horse? Why would you be riding such a creature?”

“My job was to break him. I decided to do it the fast way. Only it proved to be the slow way for me. Someone else had to finish the job while I lay around recuperating.” Again, that part was true.

Madge squinted at him. “I thought you were a teacher. Isn’t that why you went to university?”

He chuckled, pleased he confounded her with the truth. “After a year of teaching I realized I didn’t really like the job, so I let Redford apply for the position and I headed to the foothills. That’s where I was when my mother lost her home.” If he’d been around, he might have seen what was happening. Perhaps been able to stop it.

Instead, he’d been away, unaware of events, but he aimed to right things as best he could now. The man responsible for his mother’s loss would not escape without somehow paying. Judd didn’t much care how, so long as he paid. He’d watch the man, see what he planned, who he picked for his next victim, then confront him, expose him to one and all, make him own the truth and then turn him over to the law. He wondered if the courts would make him repay his victims. Sometimes he considered taking the law into his own hands but so far had listened to the voice of reason—or moderation, perhaps—drilled into him by his mother.

“Where is your mother living now?”

Mrs. Morgan’s question pulled him back to the watchful interest of Madge and the quiet curiosity of her sisters. “Mother and Levi found a good home with Carson in Regina, Saskatchewan.”

“I’m glad. It must be a relief for her.”

“And me.”

Mrs. Morgan’s gaze softened. “Your mother is blessed to have sons who care about her.”

“She’s doubly blessed. Her faith has never faltered. She’s certain God will take care of her no matter what.” She’d repeated the words over and over as she tried to make Judd understand the man who stole her money shouldn’t be hunted down and tied to a fence to dry. “‘God,’ she’d said, ‘is in control. He will see to justice.’”

“As do I,” Mrs. Morgan said. “Girls, I want to assure you I interviewed Justin at length about his faith, and he convinced me he is a strong believer.”

At her faith in him, guilt burned up Judd’s throat. He certainly believed in God, had become a Christian when he was only eight, but he wasn’t willing to sit back and wait for God to take care of things that were in his power to deal with. Like the man who stole his mother’s life savings.

“Where were you when you broke your leg?” Madge sounded like Carson with his best lawyer voice. Her question was more than a question; it was a demand for an explanation.

“On a ranch in the foothills of Alberta.”

“A cowboy.” She sounded as if that explained everything.

His heart fell as he realized his words verified her suspicions about meeting him on the street a week ago when he’d been dressed as a cowboy rather than a teacher. In hindsight, it might have been better to disguise that fact. But it was too late now. Somehow he had to convince her—all of them—he was no longer a cowboy. He shrugged and remembered to cough. “It seemed like a good idea at the time, but it’s not as romantic and adventuresome as one might think. It’s mostly hard, unrelenting work that wears many a man down to the bone.” He spoke the truth—a relief to his burning conscience, though it wasn’t an opinion he shared.

“Wouldn’t the fresh air be good for your lungs?” Madge asked, her voice signaling a touch of disbelief.

“Madge, I’m sure Justin doesn’t care to have his health problems as part of our conversation.”

Madge gave her mother an apologetic smile, then fixed Judd with an uncompromising look. He didn’t claim any special powers at reading a woman’s mind, but he got her loud and clear. She silently warned him she would be challenging everything he said and did.

He would have to guard his words and steps carefully.

She pulled her gaze away and pushed back from the table. “It’s getting late. I’ve lingered too long. Sally, Mother, do you mind if I don’t assist with dishes tonight? I still have to get the cow and calf home and milk the cow. I have laundry to deliver to two customers as well as pickup for tomorrow’s customers.”

“I’ll help you.” Judd pushed back, then remembered his frail health and struggled with getting his breath. He’d watched her pack heavy baskets of wet laundry up the stairs. Fought an urge to assist as she’d emptied the tubs.

“No need.”

Louisa released a sigh, causing Judd to think she’d been holding her breath for a long time. “I wondered if we could do more lessons tonight.”

“Louisa, I don’t want you overtaxed,” Mrs. Morgan said. “Besides, I told Justin he would have the evenings to do as he wished.”

“Of course, Mother.”

Judd already realized how hungry Louisa was to learn. If the students he’d had in school had been half as eager, he might have found teaching a little more rewarding. But even then it wouldn’t have satisfied his love of wide-open spaces. Ranching had called to him. It was still in his blood. As soon as he finished with this other business, he’d head west again and perhaps find a place where he could start his own little ranch.

“I don’t need help.” Madge interrupted his thoughts. “But you’re welcome to accompany me. I could show you around a bit.”

The warning in her eyes let him know she had more in mind than friendly welcome. His lungs twisted with anticipation.

Mental dueling with Miss Madge might prove to be a lot of fun.

Chapter Three

“Where are we going?” Justin asked as he limped along beside her.

Her first thought had been to stride as fast as usual, leaving him to catch up as best he could, but she’d invited him to accompany her for a specific reason—to try to discover who he really was—the cowboy she’d seen on the street or this weak, namby-pamby man who seemed to prefer books to cows and horses. She’d glimpsed eagerness as he’d talked about ranching. Unintentional, she was certain. But it made her more curious. More convinced he hid something. More confused on how she felt about him.

“I’m forced to take the pair wherever I can find something for them to eat, even if it’s only weeds, which make the milk taste awful. Louisa needs the nourishment.”

“How do you plan to feed them through the winter?”

The question was continually on her mind. “I’ve kept the calf for butcher.” Feeding another animal strained her resources, but if she could provide adequate food for the family… “I hope I can trade some of the meat for winter fodder.”

“Though if no one has any feed…”

She knew as well as he how scarce hay would be. “Perhaps we can get some shipped in.”

“Or might be a farmer is giving up and ready to part with what he’s scraped together.”

“In exchange for cash, which is as hard to find as hay.”

They fell into a contemplative silence. Suddenly she realized how easy it had been to talk to him about her problems, how comfortable they’d fit into each other’s strides, even with his limp, and how she ached to tell him everything crowding her brain. But she didn’t trust him, she didn’t want to be attracted to him, and even though she’d seen him first, he was Mother’s pick for Louisa. Her protests chased through her thoughts like runaway children. “I must hurry. The cow will be begging to be milked by now.” She lengthened her stride, forcing him to step, hop and limp to keep up. She slowed and chuckled.