Hattie Read online

  Hattie tied the horse to a post just outside the fairgrounds and pushed through the lingering crowd to find Will. She rushed to the tents where they had first met, but everything was dark. She thought people might be trying to sleep in the tents, and she didn’t want to wake them. But Will was nowhere to be found, and she had to find him—she just knew it.

  Hattie stepped around the tents, whispering his name urgently. “Will! Will!”

  Jessie popped her head out of one of the larger tents. “He’s in that one, love,” Jessie said merrily, as if Hattie showing up in the middle of the night was a regular occurrence.

  Hattie smiled gratefully at the older woman. “Thank you!”

  Hattie stood outside of the tent where Jessie thought Will was. “Will!” Hattie hissed. “It’s me! It’s Hattie!”

  A muscular arm shot out of the tent and pulled Hattie inside.

  Hattie gasped in surprise, then smiled in relief as Will’s handsome face came into focus by the lantern’s light. “It’s so good to see you,” Hattie blurted out.

  Will took a deep breath. “I could say the same thing to you. When you didn’t come before the show, I thought I’d lost you forever.”

  “I’m so sorry!” Hattie cried.

  “It’s okay,” Will soothed, pulling her close to his chest.

  Hattie closed her eyes and relaxed in Will’s embrace. When she was in his arms, everything in the world made sense. All was well. But Hattie knew it wasn’t fair to make him think that she was going to run away with him. As painful as it was, she had to tell him.

  Will couldn’t believe Hattie was in front of him in the flesh. He had dreamed about her ever since they had met, so the fact that she was in his tent was rather astounding. “I can’t believe you came,” he said with a huge smile on his face.

  “Will,” Hattie began, taking a deep breath. “I need to tell you something.”

  Will’s face fell. He knew whatever she had to tell him wasn’t going to be good. In an instant, he knew exactly what she had come there to say. He put his hand up. “Please. I know what you’re going to say, and I respect your decision. But for this one night, can we pretend that it’s not true?”

  Hattie nodded eagerly, relieved she didn’t have to spell out the words. After all, she’d already told Will exactly how she felt. She would have loved to take him up on his proposal, but it wasn’t possible. She wasn’t going to leave her family.

  Will took Hattie’s face and brought it closer to his. He kissed her slowly and deliberately, and once again, Hattie’s body felt strange and wonderful sensations all over. When she was with Will, she felt unstoppable, like she could go anywhere or do anything.

  Will’s hand fumbled with Hattie’s blouse. He began to undo some of the buttons. Hattie jumped to her feet. “What are you doing?”

  Will’s face turned beet red. “I’m sorry, Hattie. I shouldn’t have done that. I got carried away.”

  Hattie felt unexpected tears cloud her vision. “You’re right. You shouldn’t have done that!” She turned and rushed out of the tent.

  Will followed after her as she ran toward the entrance to the fairgrounds. “Wait, Hattie! Please!”

  Hattie shook her head as she ran. The truth was, she was terrified by how powerful her feelings for Will were. She couldn’t trust herself to stay in that tent any longer than she had. She longed to feel his touch in new and different ways. The way a wife might feel a husband’s touch.

  But Edna Petunia and Cletus had made it clear that Will and Hattie would never be husband and wife. There was no point in temptation and making a bad decision she could never take back.

  Hattie untied the horse and hopped on. Will was about to mount his horse, but Hattie held her hand up. “Please, Will, just stop! I need to be alone.”

  Will saw Hattie’s expression and knew she was serious. He respected her wishes and nodded. “I love you, Hattie Sanders!” Will called after her.

  Hattie wiped the tears from her face with one hand as she steered the horse back toward Nowhere. She couldn’t believe all she had risked for a man she barely knew. She didn’t know much about rodeos, but she knew one thing for sure—cowboys only led to broken hearts.

  When Hattie approached the Sanders’ house, she was quiet as a mouse as she returned the horse to its original spot in the stable and crept through the back door. She sneaked up the staircase as softly as possible and slipped into her room. It seemed like everyone else in the house was sound asleep, and Hattie was grateful for it.

  As she changed into her nightgown, she replayed the evening’s events over and over again in her head. The feelings she experienced with Will were beyond comparison. She wished she could do that every day for the rest of her life. But she also was afraid of what Cletus had said. He didn’t have a high opinion of Will or his friends who worked in the Wild West show. Could Hattie really trust Will?

  It was all too much to think about as she tried to go to sleep. She rolled over, unable to get comfortable in the dark. Thoughts kept racing through her mind. What was she going to do?

  Will Hart shined his shoes with a rag over and over again outside the tents.

  “Son, if you’re not careful, you’ll shine that shoe into smithereens!” Robert remarked.

  “You should be packing!” Jessie chided. “You don’t want Mr. Ingalls to leave town without you, do you?”

  Mr. Ingalls was the owner and operator of the Wild West show. Each day, he sold tickets and collected payments, and each night, he announced all of the acts. He was a good man, but he also was prone to drinking, and sometimes that meant he got behind in his payments to some of the performers.

  After the final show in each town, Mr. Ingalls would lead a caravan of horses and wagons the following morning and set off for the next stop on the rodeo tour. Will had a tendency to sleep in, and Mr. Ingalls often threatened to leave him behind.

  Will grinned confidently. “He won’t leave without me.”

  Jessie swatted at Will’s head, but she was smiling. “How’d you get so full of yourself, Will? It certainly wasn’t under my watch.”

  Will simply shrugged, continuing to polish the shoes.

  “I can’t take it any longer.” Robert sighed dramatically. “Why is it so important that your shoes be perfect?”

  Will took a deep breath. “I’m going into town.” Will was afraid to be more specific. He didn’t want to bring any bad luck to his trip to Nowhere. His mission was already an uphill battle at best. He didn’t need any other pressure.

  Will finished shining and stood up. He tipped his hat. “Wish me luck.”

  “For what?” Jessie wondered out loud.

  “Good luck, I guess,” Robert put in.

  Will chuckled and waved goodbye. He walked to the makeshift stables where they kept the horses and found Cranapple, his trustiest steed.

  “Ready for a journey?” Will asked Cranapple as he let her out of her stall. He took an apple out of his bag and fed it to her.

  Cranapple licked his face happily.

  Will found a saddle and placed it on Cranapple’s back, then mounted the glossy brown horse. “Here goes nothing,” Will whispered as they set off.

  The trip to Nowhere seemed long and uneventful. Will considered turning back more than once, the nerves nearly overtaking him, but they carried forward.

  When they arrived in Nowhere, Will searched the storefronts for the one he was looking for. He saw a bank, an ice cream parlor, an auction house, a mercantile, and other establishments. Finally, his eyes came to a stop on a nondescript door with a small sign out front—Town Judge.

  Will tied Cranapple to a post and gave her some water from the flask he’d packed. He patted her. “Wish me luck, girl.” He walked toward the door and knocked on it.

  To Will’s surprise, a young man opened the door. “How can I help you?”

  Will’s nerves returned. “I’m looking for Cletus Sanders. Am I in the right place?”

  The man smiled and held the door
open wider. “You sure are. Come on in.”

  Will stepped through the entryway and saw Cletus sitting at a large table. When Cletus saw Will, he immediately frowned. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be gallivanting around upside down on a horse?”

  Will fought the urge to fire back a sarcastic retort. He was determined to keep calm. No matter what Cletus said to him, he would focus on the reason he had come here in the first place. “I’d like to talk to you.”

  Timothy Parker shoved his hands into his pockets. He didn’t know who the one-armed man in front of him was, but he could have cut the tension between the stranger and Cletus with a butter knife. “I’m going to run an errand. I’ll give you two some time.” He nodded to Cletus and walked out the door.

  Will looked at the table. “May I sit down, sir?”

  Cletus frowned. “Fine. I don’t have all day, though.”

  “I have strong feelings for your daughter, Judge Sanders,” Will began. He had learned from some of the locals who had visited the fairgrounds that Cletus was the town judge and that he suffered no fools. Will hoped he could prove to Cletus that he was worthy of his daughter.

  “You’ll have to be more specific,” Cletus grunted, holding up some newspaper in front of his face.

  “I intend to marry Hattie,” Will said boldly. It was just like his work with horses. He had to be confident, to say what he meant and mean what he said.

  Cletus laughed. “I’m not sure why you’re sharing your hopes and dreams with me.”

  Will sighed. The old man was going to make this difficult. “I know you have some . . . issues with my profession.”

  An angry look flashed across Cletus’s face. “I don’t have issues! Your profession has issues.”

  Will softened his tone. “Sir, I know Hattie holds you and your wife in the highest regard. If you would just give me a chance—”

  Cletus held a hand up. “I’ve heard enough.”

  Will couldn’t contain his temper any longer. “If you have a problem with me, tell me what it is!”

  Cletus stood up. “I think men who join the rodeo have never truly grown up. The Wild West Show is fun to go see, but it’s not the lifestyle I want for one of my daughters. I don’t think you’d be able to give Hattie the life she deserves.”

  Will took all of this in, trying to figure out what to say in response. “I understand your concern, sir. I want what’s best for Hattie just the same as you.”

  Cletus fixed his gaze on Will. “That’s hard for me to believe, son. For instance, where would you live?”

  “There are tents, sir. Other couples live in the tents, and the wives travel with us each time we change towns.” As the words poured out of Will’s mouth, he realized it didn’t sound like a very stable life.

  “And I expect you’d bring children into these tents?” Cletus looked as though he was going to burst into laughter.

  Will fought back a swell of emotion. He knew he had a lot he could offer Hattie, but he was having trouble finding the right words to explain it to Cletus. “The thing is—” Will stammered.

  Cletus waited impatiently.

  Will finally blurted out what was in his heart. “I love your daughter. I want to be with her. I swear to you, I’ll do everything in my power to give her everything she could ever want in life. I may not know how or when that will happen, but you have my word, it will happen.”

  Cletus stopped scowling. He worried he was becoming soft in his old age because in that moment, he bore no ill will toward Will Hart. The young man clearly had feelings for Hattie, and Cletus didn’t blame him. His daughter was beautiful, intelligent, and kind, a combination of qualities that was rarely present in young women of her age. “I believe you, son. I just don’t think you’re considering the realities of the hardships you two would face. I’m sorry. I can’t allow it.”

  Will realized that Cletus was not going to budge from his position. He was glad the old man was candid, but that didn’t make the sting of rejection hurt any less. “I’m beginning to understand your perspective, sir. I’ve taken enough of your time. I hope you’ll reconsider. If you do, I’ll be at the rodeo for just one more night until we move on to the next town.”

  “Take care of yourself, son,” Cletus said gently.

  “Thank you, sir.” Will tipped his hat and exited the building.

  Outside, the man who’d let him in paced nervously. “I’m Timothy Parker,” he said, extending his hand.

  Will shook Timothy’s hand. “Will Hart. Pleased to meet you.”

  “I hope Cletus wasn’t too hard on you. In addition to being my boss, he’s also my father-in-law,” Timothy explained.

  Will smiled in spite of his sadness. “You must be a very patient man.”

  Timothy shrugged. “I don’t know about that. But I do know that Cletus’s bark is worse than his bite. I hope you don’t take it personally.”

  “I appreciate it,” Will said cordially. “Unfortunately, Cletus doesn’t much care for me, and I don’t see that changing any time soon.”

  Timothy wore a pained expression. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  Will forced a grin. “Well, you can’t win ’em all. I apologize for disrupting your day. Take care.”

  Timothy nodded quickly. “You as well.”

  Will untied and skillfully mounted Cranapple. Together, they set off for the fairgrounds. He hadn’t even started packing yet, and he was responsible for the gear and equipment used during the show in addition to his own belongings. It was going to be a long day.

  8

  When Cletus returned home from work that evening, he found Edna Petunia waiting for him outside.

  Edna Petunia gestured inside the house. “We have a problem.”

  Cletus’s heart clenched. “What kind of problem?”

  Edna Petunia chuckled and swatted his arm. “Probably not whatever you’re thinking!”

  Cletus followed Edna Petunia into the house, scared of what awaited him inside. As his mind flitted through worst case scenarios, he saw Hattie, sadly sweeping a dust rag back and forth in the entry way.

  “That’s the problem,” Edna Petunia whispered.

  Cletus was confused. “Hi, Hattie!”

  Hattie paused. “Hi, Cletus,” she said slowly, without any emotion. She resumed dusting, moving like molasses.

  Edna Petunia shrugged. “See? I told you.” Edna Petunia led Cletus into the formal parlor. “What are we going to do?”

  Cletus had never seen Hattie so listless. “Have you tried talking to her?”

  “Of course I’ve tried talking to her!” Edna Petunia exclaimed, indignant. “She seems to be broken-hearted over that one-armed cowboy. Poor little bastard.”

  “Speak of the devil, that cowboy came down to my office today, saying he intends to marry her!” Cletus said grumpily. “Any man who would be in a traveling rodeo is a good-for-nothing troublemaker.”

  “I must admit, though, he was a looker.” Edna Petunia looked into the distance dreamily.

  “Now I need to worry about you running off with the rodeo, too?” Cletus complained. “It’s enough stress to give a man palpitations.”

  “Oh, hush. Don’t be so dramatic.” Edna Petunia smirked. “No matter how handsome that cowboy might be, there’s only one man in the world for me.”

  Cletus grinned. After so many years of being alone, he truly had found his soulmate. He knew that he and Edna Petunia were very lucky.

  “Now, what are we going to do about Hattie?” Edna Petunia persisted.

  “I hate to say it, but I’m stumped,” Cletus admitted. “I didn’t realize the two of them cared for each other so deeply. I thought it was merely a passing crush.”

  Edna Petunia nodded. “What did Will say when he came to see you?”

  Cletus thought back to the conversation. “He assured me that he was going to do everything he could to give Hattie everything she’s ever wanted.”

  “Wow. It sounds like he really does love her.” Ed
na Petunia’s heart went out to her daughter and Will. She knew what it was like to love someone but not be able to be with them due to circumstances. Her first love had died just before their wedding. She had lived decades of her life alone before she’d met Cletus, and she hoped Hattie wouldn’t suffer a similar fate.

  “Do you think I’ve been too hard on him?” Cletus asked, cutting into Edna Petunia’s thoughts.

  Edna Petunia considered her husband’s question. “I know you were just trying to protect our Hattie.”

  “That’s right.” Cletus sighed. “So why do I feel like I’ve made a terrible mistake?”

  Edna Petunia was surprised to hear her normally decisive husband sound so unsure. Cletus prided himself in his ability to consider all the angles of a situation and resolve them swiftly and fairly. That was one of the reasons the people of Nowhere chose to elect him. “Maybe you need to sleep on it,” Edna Petunia suggested.

  Cletus brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. “Thank you, my darling. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  In the entryway, Hattie dusted lethargically. Her parents’ voices carried through the house, but she didn’t mind that they were talking about her. She didn’t mind anything. She just wanted to go to sleep. She didn’t care if she ate dinner or not. All she wanted to do was to close her eyes and dream of things that had nothing to do with cowboys, rodeos, or weddings.

  No matter how hard she tried to focus on the dusting, her thoughts kept returning to Will Hart and his proposal. She wondered what he was doing at that very moment. She had overheard some men talking about how they were moving on to the next town in Texas.

  She imagined Will in another small town, performing and gaining the adoration and praise of all its citizens. She pictured young women throwing themselves at him after the show. For a man like Will Hart, she was sure women came as easily as water flowed through a winding river.

  As she thought about Will settling down with a pretty young woman, she did not cry. Her tears had come and gone. Now she felt numb. She didn’t like thinking about Will moving on without her, but she felt helpless. There was nothing she could do.