Chapter 3 – Reminiscing

Rose had some great horses, but then Anderson always did, too. There were several that I would like to try cross-breeding my Arabians with, the problem would be gettin' 'em back to Texas.

She'd had two saddled – a bay and an almost pure white horse. I took the bay and left her the other horse. Both animals were spirited and we had a great ride. We went out past the old silver mine and stopped to rest a while at the spot where we almost made love. "Remember when we got caught in the rain?" she asked me.

"That's not something I'm likely to forget," I replied. "That was the first time I kissed you."

"Yes, and we were both sopping wet. But your kisses were so different from Elliott's. Slow and sensuous, like you really enjoyed it. His were short and perfunctory. What a difference! He's still in town, you know. His father died in prison and Elliott took over the store. He married a little girl named Susan and they had four children. She left him two or three years ago. He tried to rekindle our romance and I shut him down completely."

"Good," I replied. "He was nothing but trouble from the very start. I can't believe you ever got involved with him."

"I was young . . . and stupid. And when he tried to kill you . . . I wanted to put a knife in him. He's just lucky you didn't press charges against him."

"I probably should have. But that was a long time ago . . . and you weren't the only one that was young and stupid. If we'd met a few years later . . . by that time you were married to Riley and I was seriously courtin' Doralice. She sends her condolences, by the way. She really wanted to come with me. You'd like her. Everybody does. Except me, and I love her."

"Even after all these years?" Rose asked me.

"Yes, ma'am. We've been through a lot together, and I'd be lost without her. She's the perfect woman for me."

Was it my imagination, or did Rose's smile fade just a little? When she'd said she needed a friend, did she need more than that? Or was my mind playing tricks on me again? It wouldn't be the first time.

"Tell me about your children."

"They're great kids. Belle's in college studying journalism and Maude's working the ranch. Beauregard doesn't know what he wants to be; to tell you the truth, I think he'd like to do what Bret and me did. Even though I've warned him that the world is changin' and gamblers don't have it as easy as we did. Breton is the most caring little boy you'll ever meet. I really think he's gonna be a doctor. He just likes to take care of people. Lily and Tim are still too young to be sure of anything. Tim especially. He just turned six and he's little for his age. I almost lost Doralice when Tim was born, and he's kinda special."

"They sound like great kids."

"They are. Doralice and me got real lucky."

"I don't think luck has anything to do with it. You're just good parents."

I laughed. "Doralice is a good parent. Me, I'm kinda average."

"I'm lucky mine turned out as good as they did. That's from Dad's influence. Their father had nothing to do with it."

"You were lucky to have Anderson as long as you did."

She nodded her head, agreeing with me. "That's for sure. At least there was a father figure in the house, even if it was my father. Well, we've sat here long enough. Let me show you the property that Daddy bought when it became available."

We were back on the horses and headed somewhere I'd never been before. Anderson had done right well for himself, considering the mess he was in when he came to visit us. "Rose, I'm sure this is a difficult subject, but how are you fixed financially now that Anderson's gone?" She'd also been in a mess due to her ex-husband's gambling debts.

"I'm fine, Bart, thanks to Dad. He recouped everything we'd lost and then some. Mind you, it wasn't easy and there were still some lean times. But I don't have to worry about money anymore."

"Good. I'm glad to hear that."

It was late afternoon when we got back to the ranch. "Well, that's it. The acreage is about twice what it was when you were here. And since Dad bought the land that the railroad eventually built on, we get a fee every month from them."

"Sounds like you're pretty well off. And independent to boot. Why hasn't one of the men in town come courtin'?"

"Oh, they've tried, believe you me. I sent them all packing, one after the other. I have no intention of getting married again. Once was enough, thank you."

"Yeah, but not every man is like Riley, or Elliott for that matter."

"No, some of them are like you. But you never know what you're gonna get until it's too late and you're married, and I'm not taking that chance. Well, looks like Sarabeth's home already. I sure hope she started supper."

When we got inside, we discovered that Sarabeth had. And whatever it was, it smelled great. "How about a cigar? You can smoke it on the porch and I'll join you."

"Sounds good. Say, do you still have any of that brandy your dad used to drink?"

"I do. He was just about to open a new bottle before he . . . died. Don't tell me you drink now?"

"Oh, some wine now and then. But somehow this cigar requires a little of Anderson's special brandy. Don't pour me too much."

She gave me about one-third of a glass, and that was just about right. We went out on the porch and sat in the rocking chairs. "If I close my eyes and you don't talk, I can almost imagine that Dad's still here." I didn't expect her to cry, but she did. It wasn't much and it didn't last long, still, it was the first emotion she'd shown since I'd been there. "Sorry, some things still get to me."

"You don't have to be strong for my sake, Rose. I know what he meant to you."

"It's not for me, it's for the kids." She glanced into the house. Sarabeth was in the kitchen humming. "What about you? Have you grieved for him?"

"More than you'll ever know. Even though we hadn't seen each other in years, Anderson was the first real friend I ever had. If it hadn't been for him, I might have lost my brother forever."

"He told me that story. He was always so pleased that you took his advice."

"How could I not? It was perfect, and it saved me a lot of heartache in the end." I thought about the time I'd spent with Anderson in Prescott and the story he'd told me about his own brother. That's what ultimately caused me to go back to mine in Chloride and take care of him. "You know, I never asked him. Was that story real? Was there a younger brother named Simon?"

"As far as I know that was the God's honest truth. He told me about Simon one time and I've never seen him so sad. After that, any time I tried to question him he put me off. I think it hurt him just to talk about it. I'm still surprised that he told the whole thing to you."

"Thanks to him I got my brother back before it was too late. If I hadn't met Anderson I don't know if I ever would have gone back to get him."

"Dad was like that. He took care of everybody but himself."

Sarabeth stuck her head out on the porch. "Alright you two, supper's ready."

Rose gave me her hand, and I pulled her up out of the rocking chair. Tomorrow was Thursday, and I needed to take a bath tonight. It would be my last chance to say goodbye to a man I cared a great deal for, and one of the saddest days of my life.