Mistletoe Mommy Page 22

  The back door opened, and Will entered. “Luke! Nellie! I’m so sorry. I’m glad you’re all safe.”

  Luke turned and looked at him. “We’re fine. Is everything all right at the bank?”

  Will nodded, looking disgusted. “It was part of Big Jim’s plan. He convinced his men to rob the bank to get their stake for the game, knowing we’d divert our men to the robbery. Stupid fools—barely old enough to shave, and Big Jim got one of them killed. The other is terrified of prison, and he’s spilling his guts. Poor kid. Big Jim had him convinced it would be an easy job, but security is tighter at Jackson’s than any other bank in town. I’m pretty sure he was hoping both kids would be killed so no one would know his involvement. The kid is giving us a lot of good information. Won’t save him from jail, but it might spare his life.”

  Will turned his attention to Nellie. “You warned us he was wily. We didn’t realize his reach, or how many associates he had. I’m sorry I didn’t bring in more men to protect you.”

  The marshal clapped Will on the back. “Don’t blame yourself. When Seamus arrived at the sheriff’s office, I was kicking myself for not getting on an earlier train. None of us thought Big Jim would act so early. But it all worked out. We have one dead robber, two men under arrest, and by the end of the night, I’m sure the rest of Big Jim’s accomplices will be in jail, as well. Go home to that pretty wife and baby of yours and get some rest.”

  Luke nodded. “I agree. We all did the best we could, and I’m grateful everyone is safe.”

  “That sounds like a good idea.” Will glanced over at Nellie and the children, then back at Luke. “I’m sure we’ll all be counting our blessings tonight.”

  He turned to the door, and the marshal followed him. “I’ll walk with you. Your house is on my way to the hotel, and we can compare notes.”

  When the men left, Luke brought his attention back to his family. “You were all so brave. I’m so proud of you all.”

  Amos looked at him sternly. “We couldn’t let him take our Nellie. We’re not going to let her go. So fix all the grown-up things between you two and kiss her already so I know everything is going to be all right.”

  What could Luke tell his son to help him understand that making amends to Nellie for the way he’d treated her wasn’t as simple as giving her a kiss?

  “Please, Papa,” Ruby said. “Don’t let her go.”

  Luke glanced at Nellie, wondering how they were supposed to have this conversation with such insistent children around, especially when he’d agreed to give her time.

  “I don’t want Nellie to go,” Luke said, hoping Nellie could see the sincerity in his eyes. “Please don’t go.” He addressed her with all the love in his heart, bestowing his full attention on her. He’d wanted to have this conversation with her alone, without an audience, but it seemed like everything important he had to say ended up being this way.

  “I know I’ve done a terrible job being a husband to you, because I was still grieving my late wife. I’m grateful that God put so many good friends in my life to remind me that I haven’t loved you as I should, and that I was ignoring a beautiful gift from God in you.”

  Luke swallowed as he tried to read Nellie’s expression. “I tried to show you that I cared for you by letting go of my past with Diana in small ways. I built you a room, I bought you a new stove, I got the Christmas tree Ruby wanted, and I was willing to use the settlement to save you. But I never asked you what you needed from me to know that I truly love you.”

  Tears dotted Nellie’s cheeks as he continued. “Will suggested that we get a house that doesn’t hold all the memories of Diana and we start fresh using the money in the bank to build our own life. I like that idea, but I’ve learned my lesson. We’ll decide what to do together. Because from here on out, I want our lives to be about what we choose together. Not for convenience’s sake, but out of our desire to spend the rest of our lives with each other. I love you, Nellie Jeffries, and I want you to be my wife, fully, completely and for always.”

  Nellie kissed the top of Maeve’s head as she set the little girl down and stood. “Then I guess you’d better kiss me, then.”

  She took a step toward him and put her arms around him, but Luke pulled away for a moment.

  “Wait,” he said, digging in his pocket. “Look what I found. I know we don’t need it, but Amos seems to think kisses are better with mistletoe, and I’d like to see if that’s true.”

  Luke pulled the mistletoe out of his pocket and kissed Nellie. Though he quite liked the kiss, and he would never say so to his son, he was looking forward to having Nellie alone later so he could give her an even better one.

  Then again, they had the rest of their lives for that.

  Epilogue

  Christmas morning dawned more perfectly than Nellie could have imagined. Once again, the good women of the church had come over to help clean the mess Big Jim had made of their house, scrubbing Nellie’s floor until every trace of the blood from his head wound was gone. The doctor said he would survive to stand trial, and Will was confident that they had enough evidence to put Big Jim in jail for the rest of his life.

  The rest of Big Jim’s men were also in jail. The man who’d been captured in the bank robbery provided a great deal of information that helped in that endeavor.

  Luke came out of Nellie’s room. “There seems to be a lot of packages under that tree,” he said, coming behind her and wrapping his arms around her as he kissed the back of her neck.

  “More than I put there,” Nellie told him.

  “You might have had a little help.”

  He spun her around and kissed her, properly. The children would be up soon, so they had to take advantage of these moments while they could. Now that Luke had finally kissed her for real, Nellie wasn’t sure she ever wanted him to stop.

  “I love it when you kiss,” Amos said, startling them.

  Luke gave Nellie a quick peck before letting her go, the promise of more to come when they were alone again.

  “Good morning,” Nellie said, bending down and kissing him on top of the head. “I hope you slept well.”

  Amos grinned. “Now that Papa’s not up there snoring all night, I sleep great.”

  “Hey!” Luke ruffled his son’s hair. “I don’t snore.”

  Laughing, Nellie said, “You do, but I love you anyway. Now get some more wood for the fire so I can make breakfast before church.”

  As Luke turned for the back door, a knock sounded at the front. Amos ran to open it.

  “I hope it’s someone with more presents,” he said.

  They hadn’t even opened the ones they had, and already the little boy wanted more. But how could she fault the joy of a child?

  “Well,” said a familiar voice, “that will depend on whether or not you’ve been a good boy.”

  Was it...?

  Amos opened the door fully, and tears sprang to Nellie’s eyes as she saw Mabel standing there, her husband and children behind her.

  “Mabel!”

  “Nellie!”

  Her sister hugged her tight. “Don’t ever run away again. I don’t care if they burn my house to the ground or destroy everything I own. You will always be more important to me.”

  “I’m sorry,” Nellie said. “I thought I was doing the right thing. But I’m glad you’re here.”

  She stepped aside to admit the rest of Mabel’s family. “How did you all get here so quickly?”

  Mabel grinned. “Apparently your lawman friend is married to a very wealthy woman. Or at least that’s what he said in his telegram. They sent the money for us to come, saying that after all you’ve been through, you needed your sister by your side. Which is true, but without their generosity, I would have never had the means.”

  Tears fell down Mabel’s cheeks as she looked
at Nellie. “You don’t have to stay here if you don’t want to. Our home is your home, and I’m so sorry you felt you had to enter into a marriage of convenience to survive.”

  “It’s all right,” Nellie said, giving her sister another quick hug, then turning to gesture toward her husband. “I fell in love with Luke, and as it turns out, he loves me, too. So, Mabel, meet my husband, Luke.”

  The rest of the children came down from the loft, and Nellie introduced Mabel and her family to Nellie’s new family. Nellie couldn’t remember a time when her heart had felt more full.

  “Cousins!” Ruby’s eyes lit up with excitement. “I’ve always wanted cousins! You never said your sister had children.”

  Nellie smiled at her. “It hurt too much at the time. I missed them all so much, and I couldn’t bear to speak of them, knowing I’d never see them again.”

  “But we’ll see them more now, right?” Amos asked, grinning at Mabel’s son Ely. The boys were of similar ages, and Mabel’s daughter Ruth was just a bit younger than Ruby. Mabel’s other children, Charlie and Lydia, were between Amos and Maeve in age, but Nellie had no doubt that the children would all be friends.

  “We sure will,” Mabel said, looking at Nellie with such a tender expression, Nellie wasn’t sure how she’d gone without her sister for so long.

  Hank, Mabel’s husband, nodded. “I’ve heard there’s a lot of opportunity here in Leadville, and we’ve been talking about going West for a while now. Mabel wouldn’t hear of it as long as she didn’t know where you were. She wanted to stay put in case you found your way back. Now that you’ve found each other again, we’re free to pursue other things.”

  Nellie hugged Mabel again, unable to believe that she was really here. The women quickly fell into their old routine, preparing breakfast together. Only, it wasn’t the same routine, because in the background their children were playing together, a dream Nellie had never imagined would come true.

  When breakfast was ready, the men came inside and Luke said grace, and his voice caught as he thanked God for their many blessings. Nellie squeezed his hand.

  After they all said “Amen,” Luke said, “I know I promised we’d make decisions about our future together, and I’m keeping that promise, but I wanted to see how you felt about an idea I have.”

  Nellie smiled at her husband. “I’d love to hear it.”

  “I ran into Owen at church last night, and he said that the events of the past few days made him realize just how much his work took him from his family. He’s going to sell his house and move to a ranch he owns just outside of town. He wanted to let me know, because he thought his place would be good for our family. It’s not the one Diana wanted, but it has good space for us and would suit us well. I was thinking we should take a look. If you like it, we’ll buy it, and Mabel and her family can stay in this house until they find a place of their own.”

  Nellie stared at her husband for a moment. He was letting go of the last pieces of Diana. “Are you sure?”

  “We need to build a life that’s ours, not something based on what Diana wanted. If you don’t like Owen’s place, we’ll keep looking until we find something that suits you.”

  “That suits us,” Nellie said, taking his hand.

  “Yes. Us,” Luke agreed, leaning over and kissing her.

  * * * * *

  Don’t miss these other books by Danica Favorite, also set in Leadville, Colorado:

  ROCKY MOUNTAIN DREAMS

  THE LAWMAN’S REDEMPTION

  SHOTGUN MARRIAGE

  THE NANNY’S LITTLE MATCHMAKERS

  FOR THE SAKE OF THE CHILDREN

  Available now from Love Inspired!

  Dear Reader,

  When I was researching this story, I read newspapers printed in the same time when my story takes place. I was expecting to see something reflecting what we see in the media today about Christmas. Instead, I saw articles about activities the church planned, or, what became my favorite, commentary about how lovely the church choir sounded, and that parishioners were in for a treat come Christmas.

  How I long to go back to that time! I can’t imagine a better Christmas than not having all the commercialism our society associates with the holiday, and being able to truly soak in the spirit of the season.

  My hope, and my prayer, for you is that during the busyness of the season upon us, you find some quiet time to soak in the gift God has given us. May God give you a reminder of His deep love for you this Christmas.

  I always love hearing from my readers. Connect with me at the following places:

  Website: DanicaFavorite.com

  Twitter: Twitter.com/danicafavorite

  Instagram: Instagram.com/danicafavorite

  Facebook: Facebook.com/DanicaFavoriteAuthor

  Peace to you and yours,

  Danica Favorite

  Keep reading for an excerpt from A MISTAKEN MATCH by Whitney Bailey.

  A Mistaken Match

  by Whitney Bailey

  Chapter One

  June 1895

  En route to New Haven, Ohio, on the Toledo and Ohio Central Railway

  The train’s wheels clattered in perfect harmony with Ann Cromwell’s racing heart. Each beat brought her closer to her new life, and her hands trembled as she thought of what awaited her at journey’s end.

  “Would you like an apple, miss?”

  Ann had nearly forgotten she had a seatmate. She could pretend she hadn’t heard her, but something told her this woman wouldn’t give up easily. Her voice held the kind of friendliness that was the hallmark of a talkative traveler.

  Ann waited a beat before blinking the sun from her eyes and turning from the window. Silver hair streaked the woman’s temples and deep lines bordered her mouth. Slightly overweight, she carried it well on the tops of her cheeks and across her bosom. Once Ann faced her, the smile lines deepened.

  “Would you like one? They’re perfectly ripe.”

  Her outstretched hand held a large, red apple blushed with gold.

  “No, thank you,” Ann whispered, even as her stomach groaned.

  “Are you sure? I have a whole bag.”

  Though the apple looked delicious, would it stay down? The queasiness in her stomach grew with each station stop. Ever since childhood, nerves always made her belly rebel. She’d last eaten yesterday from a food cart on the Pittsburgh station platform and only managed to force down a few bites before throwing the remainder of her ham sandwich in a rubbish bin.

  “I’m quite sure.” Ann kept her voice as soft as possible while still remaining audible.

  The woman’s eyes widened as she returned the apple to her bag. “My, what a sweet accent you have! Are you English?”

  No one in New York had noticed Ann’s accent. Only when the train boarded passengers in central Pennsylvania did her voice attract attention. Now in Ohio, it seemed impossible to keep from drawing notice—like a scullery maid embarrassingly visible in the parlor. She wasn’t trying to be unfriendly, but conversation was the last thing she wanted.

  The woman’s eyebrows arched higher as she awaited Ann’s response.

  “Yes, ma’am. I’m from London.”

  “London? How exciting! What brings you to America?”

  Before Ann could respond with her usual falsehood about visiting an aunt—the story she had crafted to help draw as little attention and interest from her fellow passengers as possible—something gave her pause. As she drew closer to her final destination, so grew the chance of someone catching this particular lie.

  “If you don’t mind, I think I’ve changed my mind about that apple.”

  The woman smiled broadly and fumbled with her bag to retrieve the fruit.

  “Here, let me clean this up for you.” She buffed the apple against
the fabric of her skirt. Ann flashed a cursory smile of thanks and turned back toward the window. The apple lay heavy in her hand and her mouth watered at the heady scent of ripe fruit. Crisp and sweet, it tasted glorious after weeks of ship and train food. She savored each bite to prolong the silence. Each time Ann entered into a conversation, it led to questions she had no desire to answer.

  All too soon only the apple’s sticky core remained. She glanced about for a place to tuck the scrap.

  “Let me take that from you.”

  The woman produced a small paper sack. Ann dropped in the core and wiped her tacky hands briskly against her skirt. Before she could turn away, the woman spoke again.

  “I’m returning from a visit with my sister. She just had her tenth child.” She paused, clearly waiting for a reaction, and Ann humored her by opening her eyes wide in a show of surprise. “Yes! Tenth! Her sixth girl. She needed help, of course, with some of her younger ones, and I was delighted to lend a hand.”

  The woman paused again. Her eyes softened, and she reached out and patted Ann’s hand in a motherly way. “My children are all older now. My oldest daughter is near your age. I so enjoyed being near babies and young children again.”

  “How lovely for you.”

  The woman grinned. “My, your accent really is nice.”

  “Thank you.” Ann had learned long ago how to mimic the melodic upper-class accent of her employers.

  “Are you traveling on from Columbus?”

  “Yes, to New Haven.” Her own words sounded strange. She hadn’t told anyone even a fraction of the truth in days.

  The woman clapped her hands. “Isn’t that wonderful! I’m from New Haven.”

  Ann felt a rush of thankfulness that she hadn’t lied.

  “Are you visiting someone?” the woman continued.

  Ann shook her head. “No, not exactly. I’ll be living there.”

  The woman waited a beat for Ann to continue. Ann smiled weakly.

  “Who will you be living with, dear? I was born and raised in New Haven. I’m sure I must know them.” The woman’s voice grew softer than before, but no less friendly.