Sealed with a Kiss
Chapter 1
The December sun quietly rose over the frosted Sierra Mountains, turning silver-white glitter into golden-rose colored gems. The early morning light was peeking through the parted curtains in Emily Carter's room at the Ponderosa ranch. She was awakened by the gentle light filling her room. Leaving the bed, she quickly donned her robe and slippers against the chilled air. After adding some wood to the heater and lighting the kindling, she moved to the window and pulled one curtain aside to take in the sunrise and view.
Mesmerized by what she saw, she stood for several minutes, not wanting to believe it was all real. Looking out over the meadows and distant mountains, Emily couldn't believe how beautiful Adam's home was. It was nothing like she imagined, but then she had hardly been outside any city for most of her life. It seemed unbelievable that this was only her first morning on the ranch. She and Adam had left Sacramento two days ago and had arrived at the Ponderosa yesterday just in time for the Ponderosa Christmas party.
The party was a sumptuous affair, fancier than anything she had ever attended, yet the atmosphere was light and friendly. She had so much fun meeting Adam's family and friends. She felt so welcomed she had forgotten she had only just met them all. Now she was just starting her first day of a three week stay that would last just into the new year.
Emily sighed as the sun broke over the mountains. It had been a fun party but it turned frightening near the end. Her former fiancé, Jason Landry, had appeared out of nowhere and attacked Adam. A fight ensued as Adam's brothers tried to subdue Jason, but Jason escaped and dragged Emily to a waiting carriage. Jason had plans to carry Emily away and do who-knew-what to her. She shivered at the memories of how Jason had hurt her over the summer. But Joe and Hoss had prevented Jason from getting far from the house. Now he was in the jail in town, waiting for charges to be filed.
She glanced down at her left hand – yes it was still there. Adam had proposed to her last night after everyone else had gone to bed. Emily held her hand up to the sunlight. The light danced all around the stones. She recalled Adam's words after he had placed the ring on her finger, "The sapphire is for the depths of our love, as eternally deep as Lake Tahoe. The two diamonds are for our eternal love, formed by fire and unbreakable by anyone. The gold is for the purity of our love, intertwined with each other." A smile crept across her face as she looked forward to seeing Adam very soon at breakfast.
A quiet knock on her door brought her out of her reflections. She crossed the room and opened the door a crack. Hop Sing bowed and spoke quietly. "Hop Sing prepare hot bath for Missy Emily, if okay? Just at end of hall. Hop Sing go fix breakfast. Ready at eight o'clock. Missy has plenty time to enjoy hot bath."
Emily thought for a moment then smiled. "Yes, that would be very nice. Thank you Hop Sing."
The cook bowed and smiled warmly then turned to go downstairs.
Emily closed her door. Her clock said she had an hour so she gathered her things and headed to the washroom. A nice soak was just what she needed to get ready for her first day with the Cartwright family.
Just before eight o'clock, Emily finished brushing her hair. She inspected herself in the full length mirror. She'd chosen a long-sleeved white blouse with an open neck so she could wear the silver heart pendant Adam had given her for her birthday in October. She also wore her favorite blue skirt which matched the sapphires in the pendant. She was nervous about wearing her long hair down but she didn't have time to put it up before breakfast.
She smoothed her skirt then headed for the door. She opened it and found Adam standing there with his hand poised to knock. Startled, she stepped back. "Oh, Adam, I didn't hear you knock."
"That's because I didn't get a chance." He smiled awkwardly. "Ready for breakfast?"
Emily stepped into the hall and looked at Adam. "Yes I am. Oh my, Adam your nose and cheeks! Is that what Jason did to you yesterday?" She reached up to touch his nose but Adam pulled his head away.
"It's pretty sore so I'll ask you not to touch. Dr. Martin said nothing's broken, just swollen and badly bruised. I'm afraid I'll look like a raccoon for a few days." He offered her his arm and headed to the stairs. Emily pulled back. Adam turned to see what the problem was.
"Adam is it alright if I don't have my hair put up? Your father is very kind but he seems so formal at times and certain protocols seem to be important to him."
Adam placed his hands on Emily's shoulders to calm her. "My dear, Pa does prefer we not be in our bed clothes for breakfast but he won't be bothered by the fact that your hair is down. In fact I much prefer it this way." He leaned in to kiss her forehead and ran his hand through her dark brown tresses at the same time.
Emily pulled away and barely tapped his bruised nose. "I believe we will be late to breakfast if we don't go down now." She headed down the steps and turned to see if Adam was following her. He tried to smile again but his swollen face made it difficult. He caught up with her and they descended the rest of the way together.
As they neared the table Ben, Hoss and Joe stood. Ben extended his hand indicating that she should sit beside Hoss. "Good morning Emily. Did you rest well last night?"
She sat down as Adam helped her with her chair. "Good morning Mr. Cartwright, Joe, Hoss. Yes I slept very well, thank you. The room is quite nice." Emily briefly glanced at Joe, noticing his cut and bruised face, and then she saw a bandage peeking out from under Ben's sleeve. She felt bad for their injuries due to Jason's temper. It just wasn't right, the pain Jason had left in his wake.
Ben offered to say the blessing, then they began passing the food around. Adam cleared his throat. "Um, could I have everyone's attention for a few minutes? I have something I'd like to say." Adam also called for Hop Sing to come out.
The platters were put down and everyone looked his way. Adam took a deep breath. "I have some news that I want to share with all of you. Last night, I asked Emily to be my wife and she accepted." There, he had said it. He looked at Emily who was smiling at him, and then he looked at his father. Ben looked a bit stunned but recovered as the news sank in. He stood and was immediately at Adam's side hugging him and shaking his hand. Joe and Hoss were whooping and slapping Adam on the back. They each took turns giving Emily a kiss on the cheek. Grinning broadly, Hop Sing disappeared into the kitchen and returned with six full champagne glasses. Ben passed them out then offered a toast to his son and future daughter-in-law.
"Adam, son, I'm beside myself with joy at this news but more so I am very pleased to welcome you, Emily into our family. To Adam and Emily, may you both be blessed with great joy in your marriage." Everyone raised their glasses to toast the engaged couple. Afterward, breakfast became a very animated meal with questions abounding from Hoss and Joe, wanting to know more about Emily and the plans for the wedding.
Adam cleared the air. "We just got engaged. We haven't had time to set the date or even decide where to hold the wedding. Emily and I will discuss it and let you know what we decide."
After breakfast Hoss and Joe headed out to check the cattle in the nearby pastures. Ben went to his desk to work on the books. Adam and Emily went to sit on the settee and talk about the wedding plans.
Ben watched the couple from his desk. He could see in their eyes and how they were around each other that they loved each other very much. He just wished Adam had been more open with his family about seeing Emily in Sacramento and her relationship with Jason Landry. He reckoned some of that might be explained now that Landry was in the Virginia City jail. He hoped there would be nothing more to spoil their happiness in the coming weeks.
Adam and Emily had moved over to the dining room table to begin making lists of things they needed to do for the wedding. After an hour Adam called his father over.
"Pa, Emily's just told me her father is coming here after Christmas. They haven't seen each other for over a year. He'll be here the same week that Theodore Watkins will be here. He's coming from New York City and Emily doesn't know when she'll be able to see him again, so we've decided to be married on New Year's Day. And we'd like to be married here in the house. What do you think?"
Ben sat down and thought about this for a minute. He looked at Adam and Emily with a most serious look. "That's about three weeks from now. Are you sure you don't want to wait until Spring? Take a little more time to plan everything out?"
Adam attempted to grin, despite his sore nose and cheeks. "No, Pa. We're sure. It'll be a small gathering. Emily only has two other friends she wants to invite from California. Maybe later in January we can have a larger party in town at the hotel to let the rest of the town celebrate with us."
Ben broke into a huge grin, and clamped his hand on Adam's arm. "I was only joking. You know that I'm fine with whatever you two decide. I better go let Hop Sing know we have a wedding coming up." He smiled at both of them then headed into the kitchen.
Emily was nervous and confused. "Adam, are you sure your father is okay with this? I don't want to make trouble for you or him."
Adam leaned toward her and held her hand. "My love, he is just fine with it. Trust me. You've only been here a day. You'll have plenty of time to get to know him. I can tell he adores you. You have nothing to worry about." He tilted her chin upward and kissed her lips. "Now let's see if we can finish the guest list before lunch."
As they went back to their task, there was a knock on the front door. Adam rose to answer it but Ben came from the kitchen and got there first. Adam and Emily stood nearby.
"Hello, Roy. Come on in. What brings you out this way on a Sunday?"
"Hello, Ben. Adam, Miss Carter. I assumed you wouldn't be in town goin' ta church after what happened yesterday, and I'm awful sorry for disturbin' your Sunday and all, but I need to talk to each of ya about what did happened. The boys here, Ben?"
"Hoss and Joe will be back soon. We'll be having lunch in about a half hour. You're welcome to stay."
"Thank ya, Ben. I'd be pleased to. I'd like ta get ta work on those statements iffn ya don't mind."
"Of course. Have a seat. I'll have some coffee brought out."
"Roy, how much are we going have to say about this? You were here yesterday; I thought you had all you needed to determine the charges against Landry."
"Well, ya see Adam, it's like this. Doc Martin helped me find the guests in town an' get their stories. But I need ta hear it all from you and Miss Carter as well as yer family. You all were the ones most involved, and I assume you and she will be pressing charges. I was outside when Landry arrived and all the fightin' started. Then I seen him take Miss Carter out and Joe came out yelling for everyone to saddle up. So I rode with 'em to find this Landry fella and Miss Carter."
Adam could feel Emily tense up beside him. At that point Ben brought coffee out for everyone.
Roy started with Ben's account of the events, then moved on to Adam and Emily. It was hard for Emily to recount everything because she wanted to hide from it all, but Adam's closeness and gentle encouragement helped her get through it. Ben watched Emily very closely. Knowing what Adam and Emily had shared with the family last night about Landry, Ben thought she was holding up pretty well. However, he sensed there was much more to her story than they had shared so far.
Once they finished, Roy began to lay out the list of charges for Landry. "Adam, here are the possible charges so far: trespassin' on private property, destruction of private property, assault and battery against you Adam. And the last one is kidnappin' of Miss Carter here. As it stands now, if Landry's found guilty of all the charges he's lookin' at about twenty years in prison. So what do you two want me ta do with him?"
Adam and Emily looked at each other for a few minutes, a form of silent communication happening between them. Finally, Adam spoke. "Roy there is some other information you need to know about Landry before we can make the decision about charges."
Emily laid her hand on Adam's to get his attention. "Adam if it's alright, I'd like to go to my room while you talk about this." Adam stood and walked her to the stairs. After he heard her door close he returned to the settee. At that point Hoss and Joe walked in, beating snow and dirt from their jackets.
"Pa, it's starting to snow out there. But Hoss doesn't think it'll amount to much."
They froze when they saw Roy sitting by the fire.
"Hey Roy. Whacha doin' out here?"
Ben spoke up. "Boys come on over and have a seat. Roy's here to get our stories about yesterday when Landry showed up. I expect he'll speak with you two in a few minutes. Adam was about to fill Roy in on some other information about Landry."
His brothers sat down and Adam began. "Roy, what I am about to tell you must stay in this room. You can use it to do your job of course but I ask that you not discuss it with anyone outside of the case, and that includes Dr. Martin, or your deputies. I'll tell Paul at a later date. Do I have your word?" He looked at each of his family as well to emphasize that they were included in the promise. Everyone verbally agreed.
"Thank you. Roy, Jason Landry has outstanding warrants for his arrest in San Francisco. He attacked Emily back at the end of July. It was a brutal attack with a knife which left scars on her arms. They are mostly gone at this time. The attack also left her emotionally traumatized. He had someone following her for some time and thereby found out about me. That prompted the attack in July. He threatened to kill me and make her watch if she had any contact with me. She withdrew completely in order to protect me. Pa, that's why I remained in Sacramento until November. She was responding to me and returning to normal, but I wanted to make sure she was fully recovered before I left for home. Theodore was taking care of her at his house and he invited me to stay there.
Adam closed his eyes for a moment before continuing, then got up to pace. "Roy, I'll give you the name of the detective who has been handling this case. He's been keeping an eye on Landry since he had moved eastward. What I want to know is how Landry made it back here and found us without us being notified by San Francisco police. I guess you'll need to coordinate with the detective to work out the charges and the jurisdiction. Emily and I will press charges for the attack here."
Adam stopped pacing and leaned on the sofa table. Ben stood up and made Adam take his seat while everyone absorbed all the information.
"Son, why didn't you tell us about this when it happened? We could have helped in some way."
"Pa, I only knew of the first attack on Emily just after I met her. When the second one happened, I had just discovered how violent Landry could be in his fights. She was attacked when I was on my way back to Sacramento on the ferry. That was the day before we left to come home. I didn't find out about it until after Hoss and I reached Sacramento in September after the cattle drive. At that point my focus was on Emily and I couldn't even register that I needed to tell you. I'm sorry but there was too much to have to sort out at the time."
Ben rested his hand on Adam's shoulder. "Adam, I'm not accusing you. I'm just sorry we couldn't do anything at the time to help. I see now how complicated the situation really is."
Adam looked up at his father, then over at his brothers. He could see they understood and wanted to help however they could. There was only compassion and concern in their expressions. He dropped his head and rubbed his neck. "Roy, what's the next step?"
"Well, reckon I'll draw up the charges for what happened yesterday. You and Emily will need to come in ta town ta sign 'em. Tomorrow I'll wire this fella in San Francisco and see what we need to do about that and let him know I have Landry in my jail. Then I reckon we wait till we can get it all sorted out. We'll hafta get a judge involved at some point. I'll let ya'll know when we reach the next step, whatever that turns out ta be."
Before anyone else could speak, Hop Sing announced that lunch was ready. Adam excused himself to go tell Emily. Everyone else went to the table to await the couple's return.
"Ben, Adam's got his self a right sweet girl there. You don't reckon there'll be an announcement coming out anytime soon, do ya?'
Ben fiddled with his coffee cup trying to avoid looking at Roy directly. "Well, Roy I think that will be up to Adam and Emily to say."
Just then Adam and Emily walked up and joined everyone for lunch. During lunch, Ben managed to send some signals to Adam that he needed to tell Roy about the engagement. While Hop Sing was serving dessert, Adam got Roy's attention.
"Uh Roy. I guess this is a good time to tell you our news." He took Emily's hand in his. 'Emily and I are engaged and plan to marry on January first. We'll hold the ceremony here and would be very pleased if you would attend."
Roy's grin couldn't have been any bigger. He took Adam's hand and started pumping it which caused the entire table to shake. "Well, I kinda suspected somethin' was up between you two but I didn't know it'd be so soon. Ben, you old dog, you already knew?"
"Adam told us this morning, Roy. He and Emily became engaged last night after the, uh, party."
"Well, you can count me in for the weddin'. I've known ya so long, ain't no way I'll miss somethin' as important as that."
Adam managed to extract his hand from Roy and cleared his throat. "Well, why don't we celebrate by having some of Hop Sing's apple pie?"
After lunch, Roy took Joe's and Hoss' statements then returned to town. As he rode off, he was still muttering to himself about Adam getting married.
Adam put his arm around Emily and looked at his family. "If he doesn't stop that muttering on the way, by the time he gets to his office, everyone will know about the wedding."
Joe looked at his brother with an impish grin. "And would that be a bad thing, brother?"
Adam took a swing at Joe as they all entered the house. "Welcome to the Cartwright family, Emily."