Chapter Four

Ben sat behind his desk going through some contracts when Adam walked through the front door. The Cartwright patriarch would have continued looking at the papers on his desk only his oldest son was actually whistling as he took off his gun belt, rolled it up and put it in the credenza. That is, after he'd taken his pistol out and emptied its chambers. Only when Adam had put the pistol and bullets up did Ben speak.

"Have a good trip to town?" Ben asked, grateful that this particular son was radiating a happier and lighter mood than had been Adam's companion for quite some time.

"Yes, I did." Adam turned to face his father and then told Ben that he, Adam, had asked Mary to the dance and that she'd accepted. "I never should have stopped seeing her. It's time I got back to living."

Ben started grinning. He'd been praying for this day ever since Adam had started sliding backwards and hoped-after Hoss had admitted talking to Adam about getting a date and going to the dance-that this would be the result of his son's trip to town. He almost started hating the fact that he needed to talk business with his oldest son; almost, but not quite. "That's good, because before the dance, I need your help. Someone has to meet with Peter Jensen, at the gentleman's club on Friday, and go over these contracts, the ones stating that the army is going to be buying more horses from us." The moment he said the words he saw a lightning fast look of darkness pass through Adam's eyes; though, it was gone as fast as it had appeared. Ben sighed; he didn't have to be told why he'd received such a reaction. He just hoped Adam wouldn't pull away from helping with the matter.

Telling his father he wouldn't be available was tempting; however, Adam had meant what he said. And, getting back to life didn't mean losing out on selling their horses just because it was the army buying them. "You said before the dance." Adam put his hands on his hips and asked, "Please, tell me that doesn't mean on Saturday." He didn't want to chance anything going wrong on Saturday. He and Mary both needed to put the past behind them and move on. Talking to the army on Saturday would only put a damper on things-especially if Mr. Jensen insisted on dragging out the negotiations. That, spending more time on negotiating things, was something the man was famous for; Adam didn't like it.

Ben wasn't about to admit he'd originally thought about having the meeting set for just that day until Hoss had talked to him. Why should he when it was rather irrelevant? "No, Friday at noon at the gentleman's club." Ben sat back in his chair and folded his arms. "Or, I can send word into town we'd like to have him come here." It was all Ben could do not to laugh as Adam shot him a look that said 'I just told you I'm seeing Mary again which means…you know full well I'll be going into town on Friday anyway' As it was, he refrained from laughing and waited for Adam to answer.

"No need to send for him," Adam said as he turned and headed for the stairs, "I'll meet him at noon." He then disappeared up the stairs and around the corner. He'd no sooner left his father than Hoss opened the door and stepped aside, allowing Cynthia to enter the house first. When she did, Ben's eyes widened and his jaw hit the floor.

Hoss and Cynthia couldn't help but start beaming and chuckling. When she'd left for California, she and Hoss knew that-since she'd be gone a month-there was a high chance the secret they'd been keeping would no longer be able to be hidden. They'd been right; the small bump underneath Cynthia's dress was just large enough now to be noticed by anyone who happened to look her way.

"I think these two have been keeping something from us, Pa." Adam, who had realized the items he'd went upstairs for had been left on the bookshelf downstairs-not on the one in his room-was standing on the top of the stairs. His eyes were laughing as he spoke, and they laughed harder when his Pa threw him a looked that said, "What on earth gave you that idea?"

"We wanted to surprise you." Hoss said in between his own chuckles. "We're going to be parents next spring!"

Ben stood up, his face glowing with happiness, as he hurried over to his daughter-in-law and Hoss. He could hardly believe he was going to be a grandfather at last. Besides, after all the pain that they'd experienced over the past few years, Ben was more than ready for the joy he always found in the face of a newborn baby. "I'll take these kinds of surprises any time!" Ben replied, still beaming.

"Congratulations," Adam, who was now standing in the living room, smiled the best he could. "You'll be great parents; I know you will." He then excused himself, saying he was going to sit on the porch and relax after the long day he'd had. With his mind on his expectant wife, Hoss didn't see the flash of sadness pass through his brother's eyes. However, Ben did. That being the case, he visited them just long enough to avoid arousing suspicion and then excused himself…telling them to feel free to partake of some of the leftovers Hop Sing had in the kitchen. Ben then made his way out of the house and to the porch, where Adam was once again sitting on the porch plucking a few notes on his guitar.

Adam kept his eyes on his guitar but, as soon as he heard the approaching footsteps stop, he said, "Don't worry about me; I'm fine." Ben wanted to believe that only he knew 'that' look; he'd seen it too often…especially since Adam had come home from the war. It made him concerned that; maybe, he'd been wrong to ask Adam to deal with the horses and the army.

"Then what's wrong?" He asked as he walked around to the other side of the porch table and sat down.

Adam sighed and continued plucking his guitar. "I'm thrilled for Hoss and Cynthia, really. I also love the idea of having a niece or nephew to spoil and send back to their house." He stopped plucking his guitar and looked Ben straight in the eye. "Think about when that baby is due, and then let it go, okay? I'll be fine. Now," he said as he looked back at his guitar and began plucking the chords, "I ran into the mayor and agreed to sing a few songs at the dance. I need to practice."

Ben felt like kicking himself. Joe had been born in the spring! Naturally Hoss' and Cynthia's announcement that their baby was due in the spring would hit a sore spot. Ben inwardly sighed; he knew that once the excitement of finding out he was going to be a grandfather wore off, it would hit him just as hard. "As long as you're okay." Ben said as he stood up and started to walk away.

"Pa," Adam stopped his playing and waited for his father to turn around.

"Yes, son," Ben tilted his head ever so slightly and looked at Adam.

"Thanks," Adam smiled warmly. "Thanks for everything." He then turned his attention back to his guitar while Ben smiled wide and walked away.

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