An Elaborate Scheme Leading to Love – Extended Epilogue

“What a difference a year makes, don’t it?” Silas remarked, rather glumly.

“Huh. Or two, or three,” agreed Emmet, just as glumly.

“What’s yours upset about now?”

“It seems,” Emmet responded, with enormous dignity, “that the smell of the barn follows me inside. And it would be greatly appreciated if I could please, please, please, do some washin’ up outside first. Yours?”

“Just about the same. I’m either trackin’ dirt and rocks into the kitchen when the weather is dry, or mud when it’s been rainin’. Any yellin’ or snappin’ goin’ on with yours?”

Emmet grimaced. “Naw. Lil wouldn’t dream of behavin’ like that, she’s too well bred. Just that cool, composed tone of hers that makes me feel like a schoolboy what ain’t got the sense to button his britches. How about you?”

“Oh, yeah. Some yells. Some snaps. Once, she threw a cup at my head.”

“Empty, I hope.”

“The cup or my head?”

Emmet gave him a look. “So, what do we do about it?”

Silas grinned. “We talk out our troubles, man to man, like this. We do our work. And then we go back to our homes at night and tumble ’em into bed and love ’em like there’s no tomorrow.”

Emmet’s concurring grin rippled into a gut-wrenching guffaw. “Ha. Now, that sounds like a plan. Gotta keep those ladies on their toes, don’t we?”

Both men, each comfortably chewing on a stem of grass while they discussed the inequities of life, were taking advantage of a shade tree overhanging one of the corral fences. Silas was perched upon the top wooden rail; Emmet, less agile, stood with one boot heel angled upon the bottom. Once problems with the ladies had been resolved, they talked about the coming harvest of hay and oats, the current market price per pound of beef and whether that would increase or decrease in the near future, the latest venture—a lumber yard—that was being built in town, and so on. Man talk.

Three years had passed since the Hollands had first arrived in Texas, each year with its portion of small troubles and huge joys. And positive changes.

Today, the rapidly growing family had gathered at the Cedar Sage to celebrate the wedding anniversaries of Emmet and Lillian (slightly belated) and Adam and Josie (slightly early). And, coincidentally, the engagement party and 21^st birthday of Leila Wade. While Maddie MacNeil insisted she could still run the household with one hand tied behind her back, especially with Mrs. Wade pitching in so often, an assistant had been hired to help with some of the more menial labor.

First and foremost was Silas Holland’s position at the ranch.

About two years ago, Sadie Gunther, the foreman’s wife, had contracted some serious medical problems. She and her husband, Percival, had been forced to give notice and move closer to a large city for long-term care. Much as he had hated to see the pair leave, Emmet had provided a generous bonus to help them along the way and had promoted Silas, as his stepson, to the post.

Silas had stepped eagerly and enthusiastically—and, it would be determined, quite competently—into the role.

At the same time, a young woman named Effelina Garbot had landed in Rockwood Springs like the head of a comet. Having arrived at the request of the town council to teach the local children their ABCs and arithmetic, she quickly attracted the notice of all local bachelors. Including one Silas Holland.

Effie was possessed of a rousing temper, a sharp tongue, and a kind heart. Along with that came a head of blazing red hair that refused to stay confined, eyes the color of a mountain brook, and lips that curvetted like the blush-pink petals of an Alpine rose. And a figure that just about knocked the socks off every male in the vicinity.

A brief verbal skirmish had ensued between some half dozen would-be suitors.

Silas won.

And Effie failed in her chosen employment.

Only some six months into the school year, she had—encouraged (pressed) by the most persistent of her beaux—given notice to the board who had hired her with such high hopes. She and Silas were married another six months later, then settled into the foreman’s house at the Cedar Sage.

The Rockwood Springs Council had never forgiven him. The blame for their having to seek out and hire another teacher, in such a brief period, lay squarely on the shoulders of Silas Holland. Blast his hide.

So, two younger members of the Wade-Holland ménage were safely and happily wed.

Silas, hunched forward from his position on the fence rail, was wishing he had a cup of coffee about now, but was not quite brave enough to sneak into his own kitchen to get it.

“You happy bein’ married, Em?”

“Ain’t nothin’ like it in the world,” Emmet promptly replied. “You young folks, you got a lotta fire and brimstone to sort through when there’s an upset. But people my age, why, we’ve mellowed out pretty well. Takes a lot to upset us, and mostly it’s easier just to let the little things go. Somethin’ you’ll learn in time, son.”

“Well, I got no complaints with Effie. She’s near about everything I ever wanted. Can’t figure out the town council, though.”

“Yeah? How’s that?”

“Oh, consarn it, they’re still carryin’ a grudge ’cause I swept their prized schoolmarm off her feet and swooped her away. What’d they expect, I’d like to know, bringin’ somebody here so lively and pretty?”

“Sure enough.” Emmet chuckled. “They’d be better off to hire a middle-aged spinster with no hope of gettin’ hitched. Although,” he paused to consider, “usually there ain’t any gal so unappealin’ that some pickle-faced old feller might not be sniffin’ around. Whaddya say, shall we head out to the cook shack and see if they got any coffee worth drinkin’?”

“Anything to stay outta Effie’s way,” Silas, sliding lithely down with a thump of boots onto the ground, said fervently. “With this party goin’ on later today, seems there ain’t no safe place for a man to hide out.”

It was big doings, this jamboree to celebrate four separate social markers. By mid-afternoon, some hundred guests or so would begin arriving. As convivial as the males at this ranch tended to be, on rare occasions they viewed such an invading horde like a plague of locusts: people came in, ate everything in sight, drank even more than that, took up air and space, and, if they lived too far away to go home, spent the night wherever they could find a place to drop.

Which could make for quite a mess and mix-up in the morning.

However, in another couple of hours, both men’s wives would be calling them to come in and clean up, so they could get ready to be sociable.

Before they could take a step in any direction, the back porch door opened and shut with a determined bang and Adam reluctantly emerged. From his movements, and the hand pressed to the middle of his back as he crossed the threshold, it appeared he had been forced out of the house.

“Dang it all,” the two could hear him gripe. He looked up and around, spied male company in the near distance, and hastened toward them.

“You in trouble with the law, too?” Emmet, eyes twinkling, wondered aloud at his nephew approached.

“If by law you mean all the so-called keepers of the hearth, I reckon so. Women just don’t take kindly to bein’ ordered around.” Adam, apparently feeling much abused, shook his head.

Silas gave him a quick once-over. “I dunno. Doesn’t look like you’ve been beaten with a rollin’ pin or hit with a broom. What are you claimin’ my sister mighta done to you?”

Adam returned the once-over with a sour glance. “There’s other ways than physical, my friend. You can figure the honeymoon is over when you’ve been kicked outta the place you practically grew up in.”

His uncle eyed him with interest. “Yeah, we’d go on commiseratin’ with you, my boy. if we weren’t in a similar position. What caused the rumpus you just went through?”

“Well, little Davie—he’s two now, y’ know—is takin’ a nap upstairs, outta the line of fire—smart kid—and I reckon I made a little too much noise when I went inside. She was mad I might wake him up. And when I suggested—just suggested, mind you—that Josie maybe should sit down for a bit and put her feet up, well, she—reckon you’d call it throwin’ a hissy fit.”

“Pretty far along by now, ain’t she?”

“Near eight months. And sometimes her mood ain’t so sweet…”

“Like a bear just comin’ outta hibernation, if I recall correctly,” murmured Emmet. He scuffed one boot along in the dust, as if the resulting swirls might help him concentrate. “Women get awful techy when their time is comin’ soon.”

Adam appeared irritated. “Well, yeah, I know that. Went through it once already. So I was only tryin’ to look after her health, and she took offense. Near to took my head off, and then gave me the heave-ho.” He sighed. “Who’d a thunk it?”

“Huh.” Silas glanced warily from one to the other. “So, what’s goin’ on in there?”

“Oh, you never saw such a beehive. You got Josie and Alice and Leila, Lillian and Grandma and Effie, all racin’ around like chickens with their heads cut off. Stuff bein’ cooked, places bein’ cleaned, dishes bein’ washed, orders bein’ tossed back and forth… Feared for my life, I did.”

Emmet sent an eyeroll toward the house, from whence faint and continuous sounds were emanating. “I s’pose we’ll need to set up the tables and chairs outside, pretty soon. And whatever other chores the womenfolk need done.”

“Sure, I got no grief with that.” Adam’s shoulders moved in a slight shudder. “I think I’ll just be relieved when all this foofaraw is done and over with. Maybe then I can convince my wife to take it easy.”

“I wouldn’t count on it, son. They all got a mind of their own, and they ain’t afraid to speak up and tell us so.”

“For certain,” agreed Silas glumly. “And we let ’em get away with it.”

With a laugh, Emmet hitched at the trousers that felt just a little bit tight around his waist—a waist thickened by three years of good living. “You maybe think you could prevent it? So, Adam, your pa gonna be comin’ along soon?”

“Far as I know.” He shifted position with the shifting shade. “They planned to be here by around three. And Abigail is bringin’ some kinda dish to pass. Lord. There’ll be enough food to sink a warship.”

Another change in the family dynamics.

No one was the least bit surprised when, two years ago, Phineas Burke and Abigail Buchanan had announced their betrothal, with the wedding to follow within the next few months. The ceremony was small and intimate, with just immediate family attending, and then a celebratory dinner hosted by the residents of Cedar Sage.

Since then, Abigail, who was a real go-getter, had thrown herself heart and soul into her marriage and her baby, the Rockwood Springs Dispatch. She coddled her fledgling enterprise, but she coddled her husband even more.

Which left her little time for the mundane chores involving housework and, usually, cooking. So, she’d hired someone to clean and she and Phineas often ate at restaurants. When they didn’t, he cooked, and he seemed happy to do so. Male chefs, he had reminded Abigail, were the best in the world; why should he not join their ranks?

Most of the women in town, real go-getters themselves, but typically in the direction of home and family rather than independent business, had a few words to mutter among themselves about its owner every time they walked past the office. However, that did not prevent their husbands from buying her newspaper.

It left quite a warm, satisfying glow for everyone to see how blissful these two widowers were feeling with their second wives, and just how well they were faring. As if they had somehow found themselves, in this older age of maturity, and were pouring all their energies forth into a fresh start.

“And how’s the addition to your house comin’ along?” Emmet wanted to know next. “Everything goin’ smooth?”

“Ha!” Adam snorted. “Does anything ever go smooth, when somebody is puttin’ on a new room to make more space?”

The younger Burkes had bought a cottage in Rockwood Springs shortly after their wedding, located only a few streets away from the mercantile. The place was small but well-appointed and cozy, and decorated by Josie’s knowing touch. The addition of a small, active boy to their couple-hood had put a slight strain on the overall size; now, with their second child due soon, they knew their family needed extra room.

Living through construction work had called upon every ounce of patience they possessed. From heavy rains delaying the start even of measurements and supplies to one half-built wall collapsing under a hurricane-force wind to a layer of dust and plaster and grit over everything in the main house, both senior Burkes were extremely anxious to have the whole thing finished. They had also vowed never to do it again.

“Huh. Well, maybe it ain’t just bein’ in a family way that makes Josie’s temper so short,” suggested Silas, with sympathy. “Maybe it’s havin’ to put up with all the noise and frustration, besides.”

“Entirely possible,” confirmed Adam. “But it’ll be over soon, and then we can get back to normal. Say, you think we might skedaddle on down to the cook shack and get a cup of coffee?”

Emmet grinned. “Funny. Silas and I were thinkin’ that very thing, b’fore you showed up. Looks like you’re as scared to go back inside as we are.”

“Wait a minute. Sounds like—”

The slam of the back porch door was, by now, becoming laughingly familiar. Phineas Burke appeared, paused, and glanced around. Then, catching sight of his fellow exiles, he shrugged and meandered in their direction.

“Another one who got kicked out, huh?” said Emmet, with a grin.

“Strange,” admitted Phineas. “Nobody seems to want me around.”

“Don’t worry. We’ll all be popular again, once those little despots realize they need somebody to do the heavy liftin’. How’re you doin’, Fin?”

“Oh, I’m fair to middlin’, thanks. Is Leila gettin’ a little nervous about the shindig tonight?”

Leila, who would not technically reach the exalted age of twenty-one for several weeks yet, had been mooning about and walking in a cloud of unawareness for the past month. Ever since young Dwight Patterson had returned from attending college in some eastern city to work in his father’s law office.

She had despised the boy during their grammar-school years, and probably rightfully so: he had teased her unmercifully. Silver-gilt braids, china blue eyes, sharp and sometimes insulting speech—all had been fodder for his own quick tongue. Once he had grown older and left town, no one was more delighted than she.

But when he returned just a year ago, as a seasoned adult with maturity and geniality softening all the rough edges, what a difference! After she had bumped into him in Burke’s Merc, Leila hadn’t even recognized nasty little Ike, the terror of Rockwood Springs third grade, in this tall, attractive, and sophisticated Dwight Patterson.

He had immediately asked if he might come calling out to the ranch and renew their acquaintance.

“Renew?” Leila, knowing a good thing when she saw it, twirled her lacy parasol provocatively. “We were mortal enemies during our younger years, Dwight. I hardly think we want to renew anything.”

“Start fresh, then,” he’d suggested, with a smile that made her toes curl in their neat little boots. “Don’t you know why I teased you so much, Leila? I was trying to attract your attention. I was quite taken with you, even then. You were such a pretty, saucy little thing; you’re much prettier all grown up.”

Flattery, flattery. She had refused to heed it.

“Oh. Well. If you’re really all that interested… I believe I’m free on Sunday afternoon.”

“Sunday! But that’s almost a week away!” He stepped closer, in order to clasp her hand. “How about tomorrow night, instead?”

And that was that.

As day followed day, the young couple spent more and more time together, meeting parents and extended family, taking drives, sharing meals. And, eventually, the inevitable happened.

Leila wore a ring on her left hand, the size of whose diamond surpassed any of those in the local jeweler’s. Once the marriage had taken place, she would be moving from a comfortable life on the ranch to one even more comfortable as an attorney’s wife.

It wasn’t thought of those physical trappings that entranced her, however.

It was the fact that she was simply, madly in love with Dwight, and he with her. While relations with all the Burkes and Wades now ran smoothly and graciously, and she felt safe and secure in their midst as never before, once she was married, she would finally come first with someone. Her partner, her husband, her mate. And that felt very good, indeed.

Best of all, Dwight was fortunate enough to claim a brother just two years younger than himself. John, who was destined to become a doctor, was studying this very moment to attain that goal but was due home for a visit very soon.

She couldn’t wait to introduce Alice to John, to see what might ensue. Possibly another match…

“Silas! Are you out there?”

“Emmet, would you come in here, please?”

“Adam, I’d like your help now, if you don’t mind.”

“Fin, where are you?”

As if the calls from their wives would not be enough to drag all these reluctant males back inside, Maddie emerged onto the porch to begin ringing the dinner bell with a clarion blast.

The men exchanged a grin, along with a rather sheepish look. Recalled to duty.

Regretfully putting aside all thoughts of hiding out in the cook shack, sharing coffee and salty masculine talk, all four turned their steps in the opposite direction.

It wasn’t until some time later—after lanterns had been hung on tree branches, ready to light, and tables had been set up around the freshly raked back yard with plenty of chairs and benches around them, and the laborers had been able to clean up and don their best bibs and tuckers—that Emmet took charge of the proceedings before the general crowd arrived. That meant the immediate family and, now, Henry and Delilah Patterson, who, as parents of the prospective groom, would join the ranks as well.

That was when Emmet called for a toast.

Bottles of champagne, cordial, and fine wine, kept chilling in the deepest recesses of the well, were brought up and opened, and glasses handed around. Emmet, as patriarch, rose and lifted his own half-filled goblet.

“First, my thanks to everybody who’s come to honor us today,” he announced, proudly looking over what had been wrought. “And to everybody who’ll be comin’ later on this afternoon. We’re celebratin’ a lot of happy times. But most of all, the upcomin’ marriage of my daughter, Leila, to her betrothed, Dwight. I wish them all the happiness in the world. And I wish all of us the same.”

“Hear, hear!” The cheerful response rang out, as guests savored the offering their hosts had provided. “Best of luck, you two!” “Good wishes always!”

Emmet, much relieved, sank down onto the chair beside his wife. “We come a long way, Lily, darlin’,” he said softly, after a survey of all those gathered in love and good will. “A long way.”

Although rarely demonstrative in public, she moved to frame his face with both hands. Teary-eyed, she whispered, “We have, indeed, Emmet, my dearest. And I can think of no one with whom I would want more to do so than you.”

She leaned forward for a lengthy, leisurely kiss.

The table erupted with applause.

For whatever bad must be endured, there is always good to be found somewhere. The strength, love, and support of family and friends carries us all through.

THE END

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