Marry Me, Cowboy, page 15
Unwilling to give his fears time to bloom, he bent and scooped some pebbles from the ground and tossed them at the screen. Holding his breath, he waited. After what seemed like an eternity, he saw a shadow move between the lace panels.
"Mary Claire?" he called.
The shadow stepped closer to the window. "Harley? Is that you?"
"Yeah," he said, his voice husky with nervousness. "It's me. Can you come down for a minute?"
She hesitated so long he was sure she was going to refuse. Then her voice came softly, drifting down to him as it had so many times in the past, like the brush of velvet against his flesh. "Yes. Wait there.
His heart in his throat, Harley led the mare to the porch steps. Mary Claire slipped through the screen door, letting the door close quietly behind her. She stepped into the beam of moonlight, the hem of her nightgown whispering around her bare feet. When she reached the edge of the porch, she stopped and folded her arms protectively beneath her breasts.
She shifted her gaze suspiciously to the mare, then back to Harley. "What do you want?"
If there was a chill in her voice, Harley ignored it. "Well," he began hesitantly, wondering if it might not be wiser just to drop to his knees and beg, "I know it's not Christmas, but when I was in San Antonio a couple of weeks ago, I saw this mare here." he said. He lifted a hand to the animal's head and rubbed the white blaze that ran down her nose. "Her coat's almost the same color as your hair, and when I saw her, I thought of you. She seemed so proud standing there in the ring, but at the same time so alone."
He shook his head, letting his hand fall to his side as he dropped his gaze to his boots. "I didn't go to the auction to buy anything, but when I saw her, I remembered your telling me about always asking Santa for a horse, and then how disappointed you were when you didn't find one in the backyard Christmas morning." He found the courage to look at Mary Claire again and thought he saw the glimmer of tears in her eyes. "I know you aren't a little girl anymore, and you probably gave up on Santa ever giving you that horse years ago. But I wanted you to have her. I wanted to be the one to give you your dreams." Taking a chance, he held out the mare's lead rope to her.
Mary Claire started to move forward, then stopped and knotted her hands together at her waist. He saw the battle going on and prayed she'd take that first step.
When she didn't, he moved nearer, halting just shy of the foot of the steps. "She's gentle," he added, "though she hasn't been ridden in a while. Like me, she might be a little slow to take to a bit again."
"Why, Harley?" she asked, her voice sounding raw in the quiet night. "Why are you doing this?"
He shifted from one foot to the other and dropped his gaze to the ground again. "Because I love you, Mary Claire."
At her sharp intake of breath, he looked back up, his gaze colliding and locking with hers. The shock in her eyes, the utter pain behind it, tore at his heart. "I know that probably comes as a surprise to you after all I've put you through. But it's the truth. I swear."
Drawing that final ounce of courage, he held out his other hand. He saw the tremble in her fingers, a sign of the battle that continued to wage in her. But he kept his hand extended, offering to her with his eyes so much more than just a simple hand down the steps.
When she continued to hesitate, he knew he had to go for broke, gambling all that he'd held close for so many years. "I want you to marry me, Mary Claire, he said, his voice husky with emotion. If you will, I promise to always love you, both you and your kids, and keep you safe from harm."
Slowly her hands unknotted. Slower still, she reached out and slipped her quivering hand into his. Sighing his relief, he closed his fingers around hers and squeezed. "Oh, God, Mary Claire," he murmured. "I was so afraid I'd be too late."
She flew down the steps that separated them and he dropped the lead rope to catch her in his arms. Holding her tight against his chest, he covered her face with his lips, kissing away the salty tears that leaked from her eyes.
"I'm sorry, baby, so sorry for being such a coward."
She lifted her hands to cup his cheeks, then tipped his head back. The trembling smile the moonlight revealed on her face stole what was left of his heart.
"Don't be," she whispered as she looked lovingly into his eyes. "You're here now. And that's what counts."
He caught her hands in his and pressed a kiss into first one palm, then the other. A velvet snout bumped against his back, knocking him hard against Mary Claire. Laughing, he sidestepped, and the mare moved closer, thrusting her nose at Mary Claire.
A smile of the purest delight spread across Mary Claire's features, and she lifted her hand to stroke the mare's white blaze. "You didn't have to buy me a horse to convince me to marry you. You know that, don't you?"
Harley chuckled. "Figured it couldn't hurt."
Laughing, Mary Claire looped her arm through his, hugging him to her side, then turned to look at the mare again. "What's her name?"
Harley thought for a moment, watching the woman he loved bond with the horse who'd served him so well tonight. "Cupid," he said softly. "Her name's Cupid."
*****
Hank Braden gets more than he expected
when he hires Leighanna Farrow as a waitress in
A LITTLE TEXAS TWO-STEP (April 1998),
the second book of Peggy Moreland's
WIVES WANTED! mini-series.
Peggy Moreland, Marry Me, Cowboy
