Guest: Potential cupid's helpers seem to be everywhere. I liked your inclusion of the widow Hawkins (even though it was so brief that she didn't get a chance to make a pass at Ben). I wasn't thinking – should have had Widow Hawkins chasing after Ben, shouldn't I? Sorry. I missed out there. Maybe another opportunity will arise in the future.

Chapter 10

An hour later everyone seemed to be in family groups, resting after eating their fill. Many of the women had brought along dishes of food, so there was ample to go around.

Tom, Mary and baby Stephen were sitting with Ben. Ben was holding the sleeping Stephen. Hoss and Rachel were also in this group. Joe had, as expected, wandered off with Margery, as had Adam with Susan.

"Having a good day?" Adam asked, as they sat under a tree. Adam had his arm around her, drawing her into his body, her head resting against his shoulder.

"Oh yes. It's wonderful to see so many people together enjoying themselves."

"All good friends. We sometimes have get-togethers at the Ponderosa, usually as a celebration of some kind; you know, someone's birthday, Christmas and there's always a party at the end of a cattle drive, once everyone has returned home."

"I can't get over the generous nature of you and your family."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

Then there was silence between them as they relaxed in contentment, until Susan decided to speak, and with a secret grin she said, "May I say, I think you could use a little more cologne, Adam; it would've been nice for the WHOLE congregation to have had the benefit of your cologne."

"What! That's not very nice, you minx. There will be payback for that comment. I know I over-indulged myself with the cologne."

"Over-indulged? What an understatement." Then with both of them laughing, Susan told him, "You don't have to impress me with your fine dress or entrap me with the fragrance of your cologne. I like you just as the annoying man you are."

"That's a backhanded compliment if ever I heard one. So you do like me then."

"Of course, didn't I just tell you that. Pay attention."

"So you did." Adam looked down at her and couldn't resist suddenly kissing her, and saw her smiling face as they pulled apart. Is she the one for me, he thought. It all feels so right this time.

"So, Adam, tell me about your life, from the beginning. No wait a minute, I'd like to get more comfortable." She proceeded to lie down with her head in his lap. "Now I'm ready, you may begin."

"Are you quite comfortable?"

"Yes, thank you. Now start or I'm going over to another group for some lively conversation."

"Now who's giving orders?"

"It makes a change from you." Adam smiled at that. "Come on Adam, make a start. I'm getting bored waiting on you."

"Okay, okay. Now let's see. I was born in Boston. My mother, Elizabeth Stoddard, died just after my birth."

"Oh, Adam, I'm sorry to hear that. She never knew you or you her. That must be hard to bear." Susan said

with instant tears forming in her eyes.

"It was and still is. The same can be said of you, but in your case your father."

"Yes, of course, that's how I can empathise totally with you." She smiled at him and squeezed his arm.

Adam could see the sincerity in her. "My mother named me from Milton's Paradise Lost, her favourite book, which my father was reading to her as she died. She had made my father promise to continue on with his dream of travelling west. Abel also encouraged this."

"Abel?"

"My grandfather, Abel Stoddard, my mother's father. I was named after him too."

"Oh?"

"Yes, I'm Adam Stoddard Cartwright. Just so you know and I'm thirty years old."

"A strong name; a name to be remembered."

"So we eventually started our journey, which took quite a few years."

"How many, Adam?"

"Seven, by the time we arrived here."

"Such a long time."

"I guess so. We travelled very slowly and Pa had to find work along the way to be able to feed us. But when we arrived in Illinois our lives changed for the better."

"Oh, I'm happy to hear that."

"Pa met and married Inger Bergstrom there, Hoss' mother. I was about five at the time and liked her from the start. She was all that a mother could be and I loved her."

"What happened to her Adam?"

"We had joined a wagon train but she was killed at a place called Ash Hollow. Hoss was but two months old and I was holding him when Ma died. We had been attacked by Indians due to one man having killed one of their tribe earlier."

"Poor Ben must have been suffering so."

"Especially when we had to bury Inger and let our wagon wheels trample all over her grave, to stop wolves and Indians from finding the body."

Susan could feel Adam's sorrow and said, "Let's leave it there for now Adam and join the others."

Adam sensed her empathy. He had never felt this way before, especially telling a woman about his life and his feelings. "Thank you, Sue." Her understanding of his feelings brought such amazement to him. She was so right for him.

"You're welcome. We can talk again at another time. Time now for enjoyment with the others."

….

They made their way back to the main group of people, but were startled to see they were all looking at the two of them as they walked towards them.

Mary Donovan stepped forward and placed herself between Adam and Susan, put her arms through each of theirs and guided them through the people, who had parted for them, and up to the food table and turned them round to face the crowd. Tom stepped up to join the trio.

"What's going on?" Susan whispered to Adam as she leaned across Mary.

"I've no idea." Came his whispered reply.

"Can I have everyone's attention please?" Tom announced. Everyone stopped talking and looked towards Tom. "Ladies and gentlemen, my wife and I wish to offer our grateful thanks for the tremendous help you've given us, plus your friendship, but Mary and I want to particularly thank both Adam and Susan for their belief in us and for our son, Stephen, which led us to choose them as Godparents to our son, and happily they agreed."

"Hop Sing," Mary called. Hop Sing appeared with a large cake and his cousins followed behind with trays filled with wine-filled glasses. "Thank you Hop Sing and everyone."

"You vely welcome Mrs Mary."

When everyone had a glass, Tom proposed a toast. "To Adam and Susan who made all this possible."

"To Adam and Susan," chorused everyone. Both Adam and Susan stared at each other in embarrassment, but quickly pulled themselves together.

"Thank you Tom and Mary," Adam said in replying to the toast, "but we must not forget the many people who helped. I wish to broaden the toast to "All Helpers."

"To All Helpers." Again the chorus from everyone.

"Come to table, prease." Hop Sing said as he directed the pair to the cake.

"Oh, how nice." Susan said as she admired the cake. "You make it Hop Sing?"

"Yes Missy Susan, just for you and Adam."

Adam too admired the cake, and smiled when he saw the sentiments iced on it. 'To Adam and Susan'. He did think that perhaps the word 'Thanks' should have been there.

Susan looked Adam in the eye, "This your doing?"

"Nope."

"It was mine," came Mary's voice from the other side of the table. "I wanted to surprise you."

"That you sure have." Adam said, feeling there was more to all of this.

"You should cut the cake together, I think," Mary suggested, with an innocent look on her face.

"I think Sue can do it on her own."

"Oh, I think it would be a nice gesture on our parts," Susan was knowingly smiling now, "especially after all the effort Tom and Mary have gone through this afternoon."

"Okay. Let's get this done." Adam handed Susan the cake knife and having put his hand on top of Susan's they cut the cake. There was applause around them, with two exceptions.

Joe and Hoss were laughing their heads off. "They're definitely a pair now." Joe giggling said.

Ben too could see what Tom and Mary were up to and had his own hopes that maybe Adam had at last

found a partner in life. …

Adam walked Susan home to the Martin's house and tied Sport to the hitching rail.

"What'd you make of all that, Adam?" Susan asked, as they reached the porch.

"Let's sit a minute." As they sat, he said, "I hope you weren't embarrassed this afternoon."

"Not at all. You?"

"Not really, but it got me thinking….about us."

"Us? I didn't think there was an 'us'."

Before they could say any more, Lilian and Paul made their way up the porch. Lilian addressed them. "That was a lovely picnic, wasn't it?"

"It certainly was." Susan acknowledged.

"Hope to have another get-together soon," Paul said with a smirk, as he opened the door for Lilian. They smiled at one another, then left the two alone.

"One hell of a day, eh?" Adam stated.

"That's an understatement. I didn't realize there were so many friendly people in Virginia City. Hop Sing and his cousins were wonderful, weren't they?"

"Yes, they were."

"Well, we'll have to pay their generosity somehow."

"Not a good idea." Adam told her.

"Why not?"

"It's their custom. They help anyone in trouble but won't accept anything in return. They work hard at all they do and have become very successful. The majority of Virginia City citizens have welcomed them into their lives. But I'm afraid there will always be some who treat them badly. But if caught, Roy Coffee knows how to deal with them."

"I shall always be indebted to them, always and should they ever need my help, they shall have it."

"Well said Sue. Now going back to our conversation before we were interrupted."

"What were we talking about?" Susan asked.

"You know full well…us."

"Us? Oh yes, I remember now."

"You're joshing with me, aren't you?"

"I guess so. What is it you want to say Adam?"

"I know we haven't known each other very long, and we didn't get off to a good start, did we?"

"I remember. How can I forget."

"You deserved that spanking and well you know it."

"Maybe. Anyway, we've moved on from there, have we not?"

"We certainly have. And I would like to go further in our relationship."

"That's very naughty of you Adam. I don't think I could go out with a man who has nothing but… carnal thoughts on his mind."

"You know very well I meant nothing of the sort. I can't say I don't think of you that way, but first, as is the respectable thing to do, I would like to court you officially if you agree."

"And after that? We'd probably continue to bait each other and have fights. Will you still like me after that?"

"That's part of what I love about you. A challenge for me. One that I welcome." He then took her hand and kissed it.

"You really like me, Adam?"

"Very much."

Susan lovingly looked Adam in the eye. "And I like you very much too, Adam. I don't know when it came about but I would be pleased to have you court me."

"You've made me a very happy man. It seems everyone is anxious for us to become a couple."

"After today you mean. It was made pretty obvious. Didn't you think so?"

"Oh yes. I tried to act unconcerned at what was going on."

"Me too."

"Now," Adam said, "I won't be able to see you this week, not until Saturday, that is. Ranch work is never ending. So I should be helping out there."

"That's alright, Adam. I'll be busy myself, working with Paul. He's thinking of letting me look after the female patients, some of whom would never come to see a male doctor. Of course if something serious turned up, then it would be my job to persuade them to see Paul, with me by their side."

"You're going to make a big difference, I can see that. My clever girl." He placed his hand on her cheek.

"Thanks Adam. You are a great support."

"I'm sorry to break up our day together, but I must see about getting home, an early night and an early start in the morning, though how I'm going to sleep with you on my mind, I don't know."

"Same here, Adam. We've had a lovely time together. Something I thought would never happen, the way we fought each other. And probably still will."

Adam pulled her onto his lap, his arms drawing her in and she instinctively brought her arms around his neck. Their kiss was long and deep. They drew apart.

"I believe I love you, Sue," he told her, "and now live in hope that it's reciprocal."

"Do you really mean that?" Susan said, with tears in her eyes.

"I wouldn't have said it if I didn't."

"Then I'll tell you, I think I loved you from the moment we met."

"What! Don't tell me you liked being spanked?" Adam said, smiling at her.

"Of course not." She punched him on the chest. "You know what I mean. I could sense at once you were a person who cared for his fellow man. How you looked after Henry. I'll never forget. Thank you for that." And then she kissed him. "Now, you'd better get going. You don't want to miss Hop Sing's dinner that will be waiting for you."

"You're right. But I'm still full from the picnic. I should go." With that Adam lifted her off his lap and stood. Leaned down and gave her one last kiss. "That's to last me the week." He walked down the porch step, untied Sport and mounted up. "Make sure you stay out of trouble."

"You're no fun, Adam."

"You've been warned."

Susan saluted him.

"Be very careful," he said in a warning tone.

"Bye, Adam, safe journey home."

Susan at last realized that Virginia City had proved to be her journey's end.