“Because it’s the Paxton way. We’re going to do this properly.”
She could see that arguing with him would get her nowhere. “How long will doing it properly take?”
The following morning, Joseph opened the back door wide and led Rachel to the ironwork over the opening so she could look out on her courtyard. “It’s perfectly safe,” he assured her. “Nothing can get in but birds, butterflies, and bugs. Do you feel up to going out there?”
Rachel wasn’t sure. “Oh, Joseph, I don’t know. I’m fine standing here behind the bars, but—”
“You’ve got more bars out there, honey.” He stepped in close behind her and encircled her waist with his arms. “I’ll hold you close. How’s that? If you start having a problem breathing, I’ll carry you back inside.”
Rachel had taken to carrying both keys in her skirt pocket at all times. He loosened one arm from around her and went fishing. When he plucked out the key, she shrank against him and closed her eyes. “Wait!” she cried.
“I’m right here,” he assured her. “I won’t let any harm come to you, Rachel. I swear it. We’ll go out together. I won’t turn loose of you unless you want me to.”
He reached around her to insert the key into the lock. The mechanism grated loudly as it disengaged. He dropped the key back into her pocket and pushed open the ironwork. Rachel felt like a bit of flotsam being carried forth by a wave. His chest was a wall at her back, his arms like steel bands around her, his legs pushing against hers to make her feet move.
“Joseph?” she said shrilly.
“I’m right here. One little step at a time. You’re okay.”
They were out on the porch. Panic washed through her in cold waves. She expected her lungs to freeze. But that didn’t happen. He stopped at the steps and just held her close. She felt his heartbeat thrumming against her shoulder, felt his breath sifting through her hair to warm her scalp. She leaned weakly against him and closed her eyes, scarcely able to believe that she was outdoors and not suffocating.
“I love you,” he whispered near her ear. “I love you as I never have anyone or anything. Please open your eyes, Rachel. Trust me.”
She trusted him as she had never trusted anyone. She lifted her lashes. A little bluebird came down through the ironwork roof just then to light on the back of the bench. Then, with a flutter of his wings, he sailed over to the birdbath. Water flew as he dunked his head and flapped his wings. Rachel watched through a blur of tears.
“Oh, Joseph.”
“Pretty wonderful, huh?” Then his body went suddenly tense. “Oh, shit.”
“What?” Rachel glanced up and all around, but she saw nothing alarming, only thick rock walls and stout iron bars to keep everything but the smallest of creatures out. “What is it?”
“The fish. When the mortar was set, I was supposed to fill the pond and put them in. I forgot all about them. I hope the little buggers didn’t freeze last night.”
Rachel’s heart caught. “Where are they?”
“In that can by the bench.”
“Oh, the poor things.” Rachel broke free of his embrace and hurried down the steps. She was halfway across the courtyard before it struck her that she was outside. Oh, God, outside. She staggered to a stop, frozen in her tracks. Her heart pounded violently. But nothing else happened. She could still breathe. She just felt a little dizzy and disoriented. “Joseph?”
“You’re fine, sweetheart. You’ve got walls all around you. Look at them. Name me anything that can go through that rock.”
The tension eased slowly from Rachel’s body. She turned in place, looking all around, and there were walls everywhere. She let her head fall back to put her face up to the sun. The gentle warmth on her skin was beyond wonderful. She held her arms wide and turned again, filling her lungs with fresh, cool morning air. Oh, lands, it smelled so good.
She heard Joseph chuckle. She stopped spinning to face him. A smile curved her lips. She wanted to shout. She felt just that wonderful.
“Have I ever told you that you’re the most gorgeous creature I’ve ever clapped eyes on?” he asked.
Rachel shook her head.
“Well, you are. I think I fell in love with you the first time I ever saw you.”
It occurred to Rachel then that she’d never told him that she loved him back. She swallowed to steady her voice. “I love you, too, Joseph. I love you, too.”
He said nothing, but that was all right because his eyes told her all she needed to know. “You gonna stand there all day or check on those poor fish?”
“Oh!” The bluebird skittered away as Rachel ran the remaining length of the courtyard. She picked up the can to peer inside. She saw a flash of orange. “They’re fine,” she cried. “There are three, Joseph. My goodness, they’re so tiny.”
“They’ll grow. They’re probably just babies.”
“Whatever shall I feed them?”
“Clarissa Denny brought you a tin of food,” he assured her. “The first order of business is to fill the pond so they’ve got a place to swim.”
He set himself to the task of hauling water from the kitchen in a milk bucket while Rachel knelt to admire her violets. Joy creased her cheeks as she fingered the delicate purple blossoms. She’d thought never to touch a living flower petal again.
“You okay?”
“I’m fabulous. I’ve never been better.”
After filling the pond, he set the fish loose in the water and scattered granules of food from the tin that he’d fetched from the porch. Rachel sat beside the pond to watch the fish eat. The sunlight played on the water, sparkling like diamonds. It had been so long, so very long, since she’d been outdoors.
The morning breeze drifted in through the garden gate, ruffling her hair. It carried with it scents that she’d almost forgotten—the smell of oak and pine, of grass and manzanita, and fresh air blowing in off the mountains.
“Oh, Joseph.”
He sat on the garden bench, one boot propped on his opposite knee, his arms riding the top rail of the backrest. When Rachel glanced up, she knew that she’d never seen any man more handsome. When she said as much, he laughed.
“Yeah, well, you haven’t seen many men in a good long while. Could be I’m homely and you just don’t know it.”
Rachel had more trust in her memory than that. Joseph Paxton was one good-looking fellow. She pushed to her feet and walked slowly toward him. A guarded look entered his eyes.
“Don’t even think about it,” he said.
Rachel stopped and put her hands on her hips. “How do you know what I’m thinking about?”
He gave her a mischievous wink. “Because I’m thinking about the same thing.”
She tapped her toe on the dirt. “Are you now?”
“I am, and thinking about it is all I’m going to do.”
Rachel sighed in defeat and went back to admiring her violets.
The wedding took place three days later. Joseph meant for it to be a simple affair, with only the preacher, Darby, and members of his family in attendance, but somehow the word got out that Miss Rachel, presently the most popular lady in town, was getting married, and everybody and his brother came to witness the nuptials. Taking a head count through the garden gate, Joseph saw that everyone who’d worked on the courtyard was there, plus a few extras, and they evidently meant to stay afterward to celebrate, for they’d brought sawhorses and planks to serve as makeshift tables, along with countless dishes of food.
Didn’t they understand that Rachel was terrified of strangers? Joseph was afraid that the presence of so many people might force them to have the ceremony inside, and that wouldn’t do. He wanted his bride to be standing outdoors in the sunlight when she gave him her hand in marriage. He thought about stepping outside to ask them all to leave but changed his mind when he saw Caitlin’s redheaded brother, Patrick O’Shannessy, along with his lovely, newly pregnant wife, Faith, and their daughter, Chastity. Not all were strangers. Some were family who had r
eason and right to witness this wedding.
As that thought went through Joseph’s mind, he saw a woman with a cane standing off by herself under the oak tree. She was dressed all in blue, her day gown mostly covered by a matching double-tiered cape. Atop her head she wore a blue Venice bonnet with a veil covering her face. Through the netting, Joseph had to stare hard to make out her delicate features. He inclined his head to her and smiled. She nodded in return. Amanda Hollister had come to attend her great-niece’s wedding.
The knowledge filled Joseph with a sense of rightness that was multiplied a hundredfold when his bride emerged from the kitchen to stand on the porch. She wore a white dress that Caitlin had worked day and night to complete, a delicate, ethereal creation of satin and lace. Sunlight pooled around her like a halo. Joseph took one look at her and knew she was the most beautiful creature on God’s green earth. Through the lace veil, she was smiling at him—a radiant, angelic smile made all the more brilliant by the sparkling tears on her cheeks.
A raucous clamor of bells rang out. Joseph was startled by the noise and glanced over his shoulder to find the source. Esa, shaking three cowbells, grinned from ear to ear. “I never thought I’d see this day, my brother Joseph tying the knot. We have to mark the moment.”
Joseph winced. He’d been joking about ringing cowbells at Darby’s wedding. What was Esa thinking? Only somehow it was the perfect touch, a dash of family craziness tossed in to make the most wonderful day of his life truly memorable. Years from now, when he remembered this moment, he would smile over Esa’s idiocy.
Only his brothers weren’t done. Oh, no. David unearthed his fiddle from behind the bench, Ace plucked his mouth organ from his shirt pocket, and the three of them filled the air with a blend of sour notes and clanging that sounded a little like the wedding march with church bells ringing in the background—if Joseph used his imagination.
Rachel clung to Darby’s arm as he led her down the porch steps. If asked at that moment what her thoughts were, she couldn’t have said. She had eyes only for Joseph, who stood waiting for her at the garden gate. In her mind, Bubba’s iron bars had come to symbolize freedom and new beginnings, so it seemed fitting that Joseph should be standing in front of those bars. Joseph had made all of this happen for her, after all. Sunlight, fresh air, the scent of new violets, birdsong. He’d filled her life with so many wondrous things, and now he meant to fill it with still more—a future with him, the chance to love and be loved, and possibly to even have babies. Never had she felt so happy.
When the music began, Rachel thought it was so beautiful. Music. She’d heard not a single note in over five years. She moved slowly forward, taking her cues from Darby, her oldest and dearest friend, but keeping her gaze fixed on Joseph. He was so handsome. He wore a black, Western-cut suit jacket that showcased his muscular build, a black string tie dividing the starched points of his white shirt collar. Though she’d never seen him in anything but faded denim and chambray, he wore the finery with aplomb.
As Rachel drew closer to him, she glanced at his feet and almost burst out laughing. A woman might take a cowboy out of his jeans, work shirt, and Stetson, but never out of his boots. Though he had polished them up, he wore his Justins, scuff marks, gouges, and all. No spurs, thank goodness. If he accidentally dropped the ring, he might have to squat.
Through the veil, she met his gaze. The burning intensity in his blue eyes made her feel like the most loved woman on earth. Darby put Rachel’s hand into Joseph’s, then discreetly stepped aside to stand by Caitlin, the matron of honor. As best man, Ace stood at the other side of the gate, opposite his wife. David and Esa also stood nearby, the latter holding Little Ace.
Joseph gave Rachel’s hand a gentle squeeze and placed it on the crook of his arm, his fingers resting warmly over hers. Then he turned her so they faced the gate that opened from the courtyard into the surrounding backyard. Rachel leaned closer to him, needing to feel his solid strength as they made ready to say their vows.
Hannibal St. John, No Name’s new preacher, stood just outside the courtyard gate, gazing solemnly at them through the bars. He was a tall, fine figure of a man with hair almost as blond as Joseph’s. His earnest blue eyes were kind and understanding, which helped soothe Rachel’s sudden attack of nerves when she saw all the people gathered in the backyard behind him. Lands. Joseph squeezed her hand again, as if he sensed her panic. I’m here, that squeeze said. Don’t be afraid. I won’t let anyone hurt you.
Rachel willed the tension away and tried to focus on the preacher.
“Dearly beloved,” Hannibal said in a booming voice, “we’re gathered together here today . . .”
St. John went on to give a short homily on the sanctity of marriage, but Rachel scarcely registered a word. No matter. She knew what marriage was all about. She’d been raised in a loving family by parents who’d taught her with their everyday actions. She also had Joseph to guide her if ever she should falter. No hallways to frighten you, just a big room like this with water closets all around. With a husband like that, how could she fail to be a loving, selfless wife?
“Do you, Joseph Simon Paxton, wish to take this woman, Rachel Marie Hollister, to be your lawful wife?”
Joseph squeezed Rachel’s hand again and turned to look at her face through the veil. “I do,” he said in a loud, certain voice.
Rachel didn’t hear the rest of the ceremony. Somehow she managed to repeat her vows on cue, and Joseph got the wedding band on her finger as well.
When Hannibal St. John pronounced them man and wife and then told Joseph that he could kiss his bride, Joseph lifted her veil with shaky hands, drew her into his arms, and kissed her as if tomorrow might never come. Buddy barked, casting his vote of approval. Cleveland echoed the sound. Joseph’s brothers hooted, whistled, and cheered. Weeping as if at a funeral, Caitlin rushed over to hug them both.
“Congratulations!” she cried. “Oh, you make such a beautiful couple.” Sob, sniff. “Our Joseph, married. I just can’t believe it! Your mother will have fits when she learns it happened without her being here.”
“I know,” Joseph replied, “but I wasn’t about to wait for her to travel all the way from San Francisco.”
Rachel felt a large pair of hands settle on her shoulders, and the next thing she knew, she was being kissed by her eldest brother-in-law, the fearsome gunslinger Ace Keegan, who, she’d learned, wasn’t really fearsome at all. Next, she was passed to David, who teasingly arched her back over his arm and pretended to kiss her deeply.
“Jealous, big brother?” he asked as he allowed Rachel to come upright.
“Hell, no,” Joseph retorted.
Esa, who looked more like David than he did Joseph, approached Rachel shyly and thrust out his hand. “Us never meeting before this, I don’t reckon it’s appropriate for me to kiss the bride today.”
Joseph piped in with, “If you’re thinking on doing it later, little brother, you’d best think again. I’ll let it pass today. Tomorrow I’ll rip your ears off.”
Everyone laughed. Rachel went up on her tiptoes to kiss Esa’s cheek. And then she found herself facing Darby. She loved every wrinkle in his craggy old face. He drew her gently into his arms. Beneath his shirt, Rachel could feel the bandage around his middle, so she returned his embrace with care.
He turned his nose against her hair, putting his lips just behind her ear. In a choked whisper, he said, “Be happy, little girl. That’s only ever been my wish for you, that someday you might be happy.”
“Oh, Darby.” Rachel put her arms around his neck where she could hug him with no fear of causing him pain. “I love you so. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all that you’ve done for me. You’re my best friend in the whole world, and you always will be.”
“Not no more, sweetness. That gent over there who’s now your husband will be your best friend from this moment on. He’s a good man. You caught yourself a keeper.”
Still hugging Darby’s neck, Rachel nodded. “I did, didn
’t I? I can’t believe how lucky I am.”
“It’s high time some luck came your way, darlin’. I only wish your ma and pa could be here today.” He drew back to smile down at her. “They would be so proud and happy for you.”
“I’m sure they are here, Darby,” Rachel replied. Recalling Joseph’s sentiments on such matters, she added, “If we believe in God and a life hereafter, we have to believe that they’re here. They’d never miss my wedding.”
Darby grinned. “Well, now, I suppose that’s right.”
Joseph joined them just then. He slipped a possessive arm around Rachel’s waist. “All my brothers just informed me that they’ll be standing in line to kick my ass if I don’t treat this lady right,” he informed Darby. “Are you gonna threaten me next?”
Darby chuckled. “Nah, I’ll leave the ass-kickin’ to them. I’m gettin’ too old for all that shit.”
Joseph smiled and shook the old foreman’s hand. “I thank you for giving her away, Darby. You’re like a father to her, so that was fitting.”
Ace moseyed over to them. He curled a big hand over Darby’s shoulder. “Good to see you back on your feet, old friend.”
Darby pursed his lips and gave his head a partial shake. “It was touch and go there for a bit. But I’m on the mend now, for sure.” He angled a glance at the garden gate, then arched an eyebrow at Rachel. “How do I get out of here, darlin’? There’s a lady out there I want to say howdy to.”
Joseph knew to which lady the old foreman referred. “I’ll let you out through the house. Rachel might have trouble breathing if we open the gate.”
Darby nodded. “Nobody knows about that better than me.” He bent to kiss Rachel’s cheek. “I’ll be back shortly, little girl.”
Using the key that Rachel had left on the kitchen table, Joseph made fast work of showing Darby out. When he returned to the courtyard, he found his bride, slipped an arm around her waist again, and raised his voice to tell his brothers, “The show’s over now, everybody. You can all go home.”