The Redhead (Romancing the Ponderosa Book 2)

Chapter 8

I walk out the front door and into the slightly cool air. Glancing up at the sky, I see it filled with thousands, no millions of twinkling stars. A quiet humming sound reminds me of why I came out here. Walking across the yard to where Misty stands leaning on the corral fence, I rest my boot on the bottom rail and lean on the fence. She turns, looking up at me, the moonlight like a beam lighting up her face.

"I came out here to give you this." I drape the shawl I was carrying over her shoulders. "Hannah thought you might need it."

"Thank you." She wraps it tighter around herself with a slight shiver.

"What were you humming?" Propping my elbow on the top rail, I admire the beautiful sky while I wait for her answer.

"Oh, it was just a song that my mother used to sing me to sleep with when I was a little girl." She sighs, her shoulders dropping sadly. "I can't remember the words."

"If you hum it again, I just might know the song." She begins to hum the tune again. As soon as she starts I know what song it is. "I know the song very well. It's called Early One Morning."

"Would you sing it to me?"

"Of course." I look down at her, finding her grey eyes peering up at me patiently. "Early one morning, just as the sun was rising, I heard a maiden singing in the valley below. Oh don't deceive me! Oh never leave me! How could you use a poor maiden so?

"Remember, remember your vows to marry. Remember, remember your promise to be true. Oh don't deceive me! Oh never leave me! How could you use a poor maiden so?"

Feeling her hand on my arm, I look down. Her eyes are slightly misted over. "I always fell asleep before she finished the song. I haven't heard the words to that song since I was ten years old in the back of our wagon traveling west. Thank you, Adam, for singing it to me."

"Don't worry about it." I push off of the fence. "It's such a beautiful night, it would be a shame to waste it. Will you walk with me?"

"Yes, I'd love to." She steps away from the fence, taking the arm I hold out to her.

"What was your mother like?"

"She was a wonderful woman. My father always said that I looked exactly like her. But she was quiet, patient, and kind, while I'm fiery, wild, and crazy just like my father." She leans her head back peering at the stars before continuing. "My brothers were the complete opposite of me. They looked just like Pa but were quiet and kind like Ma."

"If you look anything like your mother, I'm sure she was a very beautiful woman. What was her name?" She hesitates slightly and I feel bad for asking because she might not be able to remember. "That's if you don't mind talking about her."

"Elizabeth. Her name was Elizabeth."

"My mother's name was Elizabeth also."

"Our mother's have the same name, yet I'm sure they were very different women from very different places." She stops looking at the stars and gazes at me. "Adam, what was your mother like?"

"I haven't the least idea." Just like Joe, my mother has always been a soft and touchy spot for me. But since Misty has been through a lot more than me and is being so honest and open with me, I figure it would only be right of me to return the favor. "She died right after giving birth to me, so I only know what Pa's told me about her. Actually our mothers have more than just a name in common."

"I'm so sorry, Adam." Her brows scrunch together a little bit. "What else do they have in common?"

"My mother also was from New England. My father used to be a seaman and my mother was his captain's daughter. He quit the sea after their marriage and ran a little shop that sold sailing supplies to ships. After I was born and my mother's death, Pa decided to fulfill his dream of going west. So go west is what we did. When I was five years old we met Hoss's mother, Inger, during our stop in Illinois when Pa needed to find a job. They fell in love and got married right before we continued on our way west. She was a wonderful woman, tall and strong with blonde hair and big blue eyes. She had one of the biggest hearts that I've ever seen. Hoss carries that big heart of hers within him and proudly shows and uses it every chance he gets."

"You loved her a lot."

"Yes. Yes, I did. She was a wonderful mother to me." I shake my head trying to clear the mistiness in my eyes. "But enough about me. What were your father and brothers like?"

"My father's name was Gavin, but I remember my mother calling him Gavie. He was tall, about as tall as your Pa, with dark features. Actually you slightly remind me of him with your black hair and brown eyes. I remember his voice was deep and smooth like water on rocks." She quickly grabs the shawl as it slips from her shoulder. We've walked in a circle and are back at the fence so we lean on it again, resting our elbows on the top rail, staring up at the stars. "I had four little brothers."

"Four?" Shaking my head, I try to imagine what it would be like to have four younger brothers.

"They were good quiet boys, quiet but brave. My mother used to say we were a stepping stone family, all of us two years apart. Kody, the oldest of the four, was eight. He died when his horse slipped and rolled on top of him. Hamilton, who was six, climbed into a corral full of cattle when we were in Independence City. The cattle stampeded and before we knew what was even happening, Hammy was dead. Only four weeks into our trip and the two oldest boys were already gone." She takes a shuddering breath as I watch tears stream down her cheeks. "Right before we crossed into the Nevada Territory, the youngest two David and Jeff came down with a fever. They passed away peacefully in their sleep four days later. With each son my mother buried a part of herself. Two weeks later Pa and I lost her to a broken heart. Those boys were so much to her that I sometimes feel like she loved them more than me."

"Ah don't talk like that, I know she loved you as much as them."

"I was different from them, I gave my mother trouble while they didn't. They were like angels while I was the devil child." Turning, she looks up at me, cheeks still wet with tears. "Your father loves all of his sons, but he loves you all differently."

"What do you mean?"

"Today while you were in town he had a sad look in his eyes. That sad look disappeared as soon as he heard Little Joe's voice outside. I watched him give you all loving looks throughout the day, but they were all different."

"I know what you mean. Pa's been sad since the wedding yesterday, but Joe's very special to him. He's the youngest and is the spitting image of his mother in temperament." I sigh. "We're all special to Pa because we each remind him of lost love."

"Adam, do you have any lost loves?"

"I've loved a few, but we ended up choosing different paths, paths that separated us." Looking over I can't help but notice that the woman I'm talking to possesses a rare beauty that would be hard to surpass. There's a beam of moonlight streaming across her face lighting up her hair making it seem to shine like a red light. "Misty, you're a very beautiful woman."

"No, I'm not beautiful. My mother was beautiful, but not me." She glances over at me before quickly looking back at the stars. "It's just the moonlight, it makes things appear differently."

Reaching up, I cup her chin in my hand, turning her face towards me. Her face is soft and smooth in my roughened hand. Without even thinking about what I'm doing, I lean down and kiss her. At first she very weakly tries to fight it, but then she just leans in and allows me to deepen the kiss. Both of us pull away slightly breathless. I've kissed plenty of different women, but none of them have ever made me feel like this. Running my hand over the front of my black shirt to smooth it, I feel my heart hammering away. It feels like it's going faster than Joe can ride Cochise, which is pretty fast, if I don't say so myself. Misty must feel the same because she quickly leans on the fence acting like nothing had just happened. Taking the same attitude, I lean on the fence beside her.

"What do you plan on doing now that you no longer live with the Indians?" I try to fill the tense silence with casual conversation. I feel bad about what I did, I had no right, but something deep inside of me doesn't regret it either.

"Hannah is going to teach me how to act like a white woman and once I learn all I can, I'll find a job somewhere. Or maybe even marry if the right man were to court me."

"That sounds like a decent plan. But, of course, it will take some time to relearn our ways. And then it depends on what type of job or man you try to find." Looking behind me at the house, I see the light go off in Joe's room. "It's getting late, we better get back into the house. We've both had a long day and I don't know about you, but I'm beat."

Walking together to the house we make it to the door, I stop her, "Misty, I'm sorry about what I did out there tonight. I had no right, I hope I didn't offend you."

"Don't worry, you didn't hurt my feelings."