Chapter Twenty-Five: Elizabeth

My legs felt wobbly and weak when I dismounted from Noah's horse, but I tried not to show it. The last thing I wanted was to be seen as weak. I wanted to be an equal partner, able to carry my weight and not be a burden or hindrance.

Somehow, though, he knew. "It'll get easier in time, I promise," he said with a kind smile. "I think you're a natural."

My cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "It wasn't that hard now," I informed him primly. Did I sound too confident? "Well, maybe a little hard. I just need to practice."

Noah reached over, took my hand in his, and gave it a squeeze. Before he could say anything, though, the unfamiliar man did. "So this is your girl," the US marshal commented as he reached the fence. He pulled his hat off and nodded at me. "Pleasure to make your acquaintance, ma'am."

"Marshal Westler, this is Miss Elizabeth Garrison," Noah said, making the introduction. "Elizabeth, this is the US marshal I was telling you about."

"Nice to meet you," I said politely. There was no point in mentioning that he had interrupted us and I was annoyed by it. "I understand you're not from around here. Do you expect to be here long?"

The man simply grunted. "You've come a long way to make a match."

Was that a subtle criticism of Noah and myself? Well, I wasn't going to stand for that! "The distance is well worth the effort when I am getting an honorable man in the bargain," I told him sharply. "Do you know how rare it is to find a man like that?"

His eyebrows shot up. "Yes, ma'am. I mean, no ma'am. I don't think I've ever thought about it before."

Of course he hadn't! Why would he?

"I wasn't expecting you back, Marshal," Noah spoke up. "Did you run into some trouble?"

Marshal Westler put his hat back on with a sound that was close to being a huff. "You might say that," he responded. "I couldn't get close to the Burns' place. Too many kids running around."

"So you haven't arrested Owen Burns?" I asked, feeling more than a little disappointed. That would have been one less thing to worry about! "He tried to kill Noah!"

"I can't arrest a man I can't find, ma'am."

Why did he keep calling me ma'am? Several men had done so since I had crossed the Mississippi. It made me feel old and I didn't like it. Would it be churlish if I told him not to do it?

"Well, you're welcome to stay the night again," Noah said. Was I the only one who heard the note of hesitancy in his voice? "I'm afraid I won't be much help in finding Burns."

"I appreciate that. Thanks, Coleman." Westler looked between us. "I don't want to interfere with your sparking. I'll just put my horse away and hide away in the house. Do you mind if I help myself to some food? I didn't want to draw attention to myself by going to that cafe in town."

Increased disappointment made my stomach sink. I'd begun to think that Noah and I would have dinner together, but how awful would it be to share with this stranger!

"Help yourself," was Noah's response. Polite, and not giving away anything he was really thinking. "I should be getting Miss Garrison back to the Harpers' place before too long."

With a nod, Marshal Westler turned to walk towards the house. "I do have a question, Marshal," I said to stop him. I didn't even wait for him to pause before I charged ahead. "You've already said it is too difficult to get Owen Burns. At what point do you ask for help?"

"Ma'am, I know how to do my job," he said over his shoulder. "Have a good afternoon."

Well. That was hardly reassuring. He increased his speed. Either I would have to run after him, or give up. For the moment, I decided to let him go. "I had more questions to ask," I said with a frown.

"Such as?" Noah asked.

"Well. I want to know what it takes for someone to intervene when a person's life is threatened." That should be an obvious point he should want to know. After all, he was the one who had been shot at.

Noah let out a slight laugh. "That's the problem. There is no proof it was Owen Burns." He held up his free hand to cut off my protest. "I think someone would have to be an idiot not to see that it was him, but unless he or his brother confess, there is no way to prove it was them."

Why did he have to be so logical? "My friend Molly would like you," I informed him.

"From what you have told me, I'd like her as well," he responded. "We need more women like her in the territory. There would be no trouble or shenanigans that wouldn't immediately be solved."

And wouldn't Molly love that? I could well imagine her running things with ease.

"If you're interested, I'll show you how to hitch up a horse to a wagon," he said, changing the subject. He swung his hand and mine, reminding me that we were still holding hands. "And we can get you back to the Harpers."

It took all my strength to hold back my sigh. "Alright."

~*~

It had been an interesting day, to be sure. Noah's explanation of his childhood and background had given me a great deal to think about. Was he a coward as his family believed, making it more likely that he would abandon a problem instead of facing it head on? Or was he a man of strict principle who wouldn't do anything that would compromise those principles?

I was leaning towards the latter, but I wasn't about to make a hasty decision.

Which made the early return to the Harpers frustrating. How was I supposed to get to know him when our time together was cut short?

"There's no point in being annoyed with the marshal, you know," Noah said as he drove the wagon. "He's only here to do his job."

Were my thoughts showing on my face? How else would Noah have guessed the direction my thoughts had taken? "I know he is doing his job," I responded evenly. "I just wish his job had... I don't know. Somehow didn't involve interrupting us, I supose."

Noah chuckled. "I agree. Maybe we didn't have to leave, but I was in no mood to have an audience to our activities. And what else could I do? Turn him away? He has no one else to help him while he is here."

"I would think he would be used to working alone," I commented, refusing to feel mollified. "Is that more common than him having a partner?"

"I have no idea," Noah confessed. "I've never thought about what it must be like to be a marshal. But if I can help him, I think I should. After all, if he can take Owen Burns away, it might help defuse the rest of the situation."

Again, he was being reasonable, which shouldn't annoy me as much as it did. How much patience did he have to be so calm? "I suppose I should be sympathetic to him," I said with a sigh. "It can't be easy to have to track down dangerous crimainls wherever they might go."

"It is not a job that I would want," he agreed. "He did make a good suggestion, though. The town ought to have a sheriff. I don't know how we would go about that. Should we find someone in the area or advertise for a sheriff in the newspapers?"

He glanced over at me and his smile became mischievous. "I think advertising has good results."

My cheeks heated up. Was he teasing me? "I'm glad you think so," I managed to say. "Why is it that there isn't any sheriff? Do you have a mayor? A doctor?"

"No, and no," he said succinctly. "I suppose we just haven't needed a sheriff. We've been fortunate that we haven't been bothered by any gangs or criminals. Everyone has been law-abiding citizens."

"Isn't that how it always goes? Something isn't necessary until you need it."

Noah gave a grunt of agreement. "I'm hoping Westler will mention the matter to someone in town. I don't think a suggestion from me will go over well with anyone at the moment."

How sad that a matter as important as upholding law and justice would be ignored just because they disliked someone. Maybe his jest that they needed more reasonable women like Molly wasn't as much of a jest as I'd thought it was.

Clearing my throat, I turned my attention to the scenery. "Have there been many women moving to Wyoming?" I asked. Thinking of Molly had reminded me of her one reasoning point for me to come west.

"I don't really know. There certainly haven't been any new women in this area. Besides you, I mean. Why?"

"Well, women have the vote in Wyoming. I haven't followed the suffrage movement much, but Molly did. She was ecstatic when she learned about this. She said it was a victory for women."

Noah glanced over at me. "Miss Garrison, did you come all this way just so you could vote?"

This time, I couldn't tell if he was teasing me or not. "No," I said hastily. Stupid! I should have kept the thought to myself. "Molly tried to convince me that it was an advantage."

"I wouldn't blame you if you had thought it worth it," Noah said, turning his gaze back to the vague road we were following. "I might be a rare man, being honorable and all, as you put it earlier. But being able to decide important things is a privilege."

He was teasing me, using my words against me!

"Maybe if you had waited a year or two you wouldn't have needed to advertise for a bride," I told him. Maybe he would have met someone who knew what it was like to work on a farm.

"Nope. There's no use playing a what-if game. I'm satisfied with how things have turned out," he responded firmly. "I expect the bigger towns might have seen more women come along, but not out here in the wilds."

And it really was wild. I had become accustomed to roads that had been used often enough that the dirt was packed down and hard. Here, the road was barely visible. The wagon bumped along the uneven surface.

But there really was something to be said for the view. The trees were different from Peru. Instead of oaks and maples, it looked like most of them were pine trees. They made the horizon a dark, pleasant green.

Though there were some hills around Peru, they were nothing to what I was seeing around me. The landscape rose up and dipped down. Grass, tall and brown, waved in the breeze.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Noah's voice startled me back to where I was. "There's no need to throw your money away," I informed him with a slight laugh. "I was just admiring the view you have out here."

"It is something," he agreed. "It's nothing like what I grew up with in Georgia."

"I imagine each place must have its own unique beauty that sets it apart from anywhere else." What would it be like to travel? I hadn't thought much about it before, being content with staying at home with my family. Now, however, I could understand why those who were financially secure might spend their lives seeing as many places as they could.

Just ahead, I could see the Harpers' house. My time with Noah was about to conclude for the day. "Thank you for teaching me how to ride," I said to him, "and for telling me about...well, everything."

"I promised you the truth," he said, his tone becoming serious. "I don't want there to be any secrets between us."

That was the kind of relationship I'd known my parents to have. Everything had been open between them. Sure they had argued and disagreed with each other over the years, but had always been careful not to air their grievances to us children.

I had seen two of my siblings find the same kind of relationship with their spouses. Not John and Angelica. Their marriage was difficult to understand, and I wasn't sure I even wanted to understand.

"So, will I see you tomorrow?" I asked.

"Unless something happens over night."

A chill went through my heart. "Don't say that! Not even as a joke. I—" My voice faltered. "I don't want to see you hurt."

Taking the reins into one hand, Noah reached over with his free hand to squeeze mine. "I believe I am safer than I have ever been since I have a US marshal staying at my place. He'll keep me safe."

Given my interaction with him, I wasn't so sure about that.

"I've noticed that the Harpers seem to have a lot going on," I commented. "They discussed several tasks that they had to do today. I was just wondering. Am I keeping you from work?"

He hummed a note. "And don't lie to make me feel better," I warned him before he could say anything. "I want to know the truth of how things are out here."

"If I relied solely on crops, I would probably be harvesting them now," he responded. "But I planted mostly wheat this year. I harvested it a few weeks ago, which is why the field closest to my house looks empty."

How many different crops were there to grow? My aunt and uncle had fields of corn, but I hadn't seen those plants outside of Mrs. Harper's garden. There was so much I needed to learn!

"I suppose there are some things in the garden that ought to be put up," he continued, his tone thoughtful, "but nothing urgent. You'll soon find out that there's always something to do out here if you look hard enough, but taking some time off won't make everything crash down."

That was hardly reassuring. "Then, perhaps we can spend tomorrow tackling some of those tasks," I suggested. "After all, we have to know if we're going to work well together."

To my surprise, Noah called out, "Whoa!" and slowed the horse to a stop. We were still some distance away from the Harper house.

"What are you doing?" I asked in confusion. Had my suggestion been too forward? Was he frustrated by how much I didn't know?

"Elizabeth, don't you realize we've already worked well together," he said, turning slightly in his seat to face me. "We made lunch together without any problems, didn't we?"

A laugh left my lips before I could stop it. "Lunch? Well, I suppose we did, but that is such an easy thing—"

He interrupted me by leaning forward and getting within inches of my face. The sides of my bonnet were long and got in the way. Noah gave a huff of frustration and sat back. "I would very much like to kiss you, but your bonnet is getting in the way," he said. "Would you mind terribly taking it off for a moment?"

A laugh bubbled up. "You want to kiss me?"

"Yes. Do you mind?"

In answer, I tugged the bonnet ties free and let it fall onto my back. With a smile, Noah leaned forward and tilted his head. He cupped the sides of my face with his hands and then his lips pressed against mine.

The warmth of his lips was a pleasant feeling and my heart skipped a beat. Too soon, though, Noah straightened up. "I wanted to do that where no one was watching," he confessed.

My cheeks were flushed. "I appreciate that." I glanced towards the house. "But I think they can probably see us anyway."

"Oh. Well. I suppose that's true." Noah cleared his throat. "I understand if this is too soon, but will you marry me?"

Surprised, I let out a laugh. "That is why I came."

"No. I mean, yes, it is." He huffed. "Will you marry me this Sunday? When the preacher is in town."

Oh. Oh!

"He doesn't have a regular schedule that he follows," Noah said hastily. "I just heard that he'll be here this weekend. Who knows when he will be back? It might be a couple weeks, or it might be a month, depending on the weather."

"I see," I said slowly. We were supposed to be taking time to know each other and be sure, but how much more time did I need? I was comfortable talking to him and there had been nothing but honesty from him.

"I'm sure of how I feel," he continued. "I don't think I've ever enjoyed talking to someone like I have with you, in person and in letters. I know I'm not a perfect man. I have flaws and will make mistakes. No doubt there are bad habits that I haven't even realized that I have, but I believe you and I could make a success of marriage. And—"

"I agree," I interrupted. I didn't know what else he could have to say. What he'd already spoken was enough. "Yes, Noah. I will marry you."

A wide grin spread across his face. "You mean it?"

"Of course I do. I never say something I don't mean."

Noah let out a whoop and leaned forward to kiss me again, his hands moving to my shoulders. Only this time, instead of our lips meeting, our noses mashed together. I laughed, struck by how ridiculous we must look. He shook his head, chuckling, and then kissed me properly

~*~

Dear John,

I hope this letter finds you and your family well. Has Molly and Maryanne been keeping you aprised of my journey? I have made it to the Wyoming territory without any complications.

You will be glad to know that I have been staying with a very kind family, the Harpers. They are one of the closest neighbors to Noah Coleman. Their generosity and hospitality has been the best I have ever known. Mother would have approved of them very much, I think.

You may have worried that I was coming west only to be disappointed. I am pleased to inform you that Noah and I have agreed to marry this Sunday. By the time you receive this, your spinster sister will be a married woman...