Well, here comes the next chapter. Sorry the last two were so rough with my writing and then rewriting them, but hopefully now we're back on track. I hope you'll enjoy this next one. We're going to get back to Adam and his feelings for Diana. Let me know what you think! Note.
Guest: I'm sorry if I didn't make it clearer in the last chapter that Anne Marie needed to notify Little Joe before apologizing to Johnny. The understanding was that he would accompany her to witness the apology, not because he didn't trust her but simply because her disappearing from the house does look like disobedience, and Anne Marie knew that. She intentionally sneaked out to pull a stunt, if you will, even though she did do what her father asked her to do. Her attitude, striding up to Little Joe and acting as if she'd done nothing wrong, needed to be taken down a peg too. Basically, she did ultimately do what he asked her to do, but not the way she should have, and she knew that, and Joe knew it too. That's why he spanked her. I suppose I thought it was clearer in the chapter, but I'm sorry if it wasn't. I hope you're still enjoying the story, and thanks for the review.
Chapter 11
"Well, good morning, Rachel. Don't you look pretty today." Adam tipped his hat to the girl as he entered the mercantile.
The fair-skinned, dark-haired child looked up upon hearing her name and a soft smile graced her lips at the sight of him. She stood in the window studying a selection of sheet music with the fresh June sunlight streaming in upon her and casting shadows on her dress and across her face in accordance with the letters painted on the glass. She was wearing the dress the Cartwrights had given her for Christmas – a bright red calico sprayed with a meadow of forget-me-nots. Though he had never told her so, Adam had picked it out himself, selecting the pattern precisely for the blue flowers that matched her eyes and made them appear somehow bluer. Rachel's eyes weren't as deep as her mother's; in fact, they seemed rather shallow. It wasn't as though the child herself was shallow, but her eyes reflected a diffidence and a gentleness that Adam believed to be not only rare but invaluable. She reminded him of Leah, the sister with weak eyes whom Jacob had been tricked into marrying. She wasn't at all like the Rachel in the Bible; in fact, if you stood them side by side, Adam was sure that any man would choose strong-willed Anne Marie over soft-spoken Rachel. Still, he had always felt a fondness for Leah, and though no girl would ever have the power to replace his niece, he found his love for Rachel increasing exponentially as his heart continued to swell with adoration for Diana.
"Good morning, Mr. Cartwright," Rachel said with a respectful nod.
He chuckled. "Rachel, how long have we known each other?"
She considered the question. "Almost three years."
He nodded then squatted down to her level. "Now don't you think it's about time you started callin' me Adam?"
A tender pink hue dusted her cheeks as she giggled and turned away bashfully.
Adam smiled. "Where's your mother?"
"At home cooking supper. She sent me to get more flour."
"It looks like you had your eye on somethin' else." He eyed the sheet music in the window as Rachel's face only grew pinker.
"I don't have the money yet," she said.
"I didn't know you played the piano."
The girl's features changed in the blink of an eye. Excitement coursed through her veins and her eyes lit up, erasing any timidity that had once been there.
"Ma started teaching me last year. I love it."
"It's a beautiful instrument," Adam agreed. "Takes a lot a skill to play it."
"I know a lot a hymns. I can play almost every one in Ma's old hymnal."
"Well, then it's time you had some new music." Adam dug into his vest pocket and fished out a silver dollar, placing it delicately in Rachel's left hand.
Her eyes widened and she looked from the silver coin to the generous cowboy in bewilderment. "I, I can't-"
He chuckled again, rising to his feet as he said, "You buy as much music as that dollar'll get you."
She clutched the currency tight in her fist and held it to her chest as if it were a precious family heirloom.
"Thank you, Mr.-"
Adam lifted an eyebrow in warning.
She giggled. "Adam."
His expression softened then and he smiled contentedly. "After I settle up with Bert I'll drive ya home, what d'ya say?"
Rachel nodded. "You should stay for supper too. I know Ma will be glad to see you."
"I don't think I could ever turn down such an invitation." And with that Adam sauntered up to the counter, paid his tab, and went to wait for Rachel in the buggy. A minute later she emerged with several pages of sheet music rolled up as a scroll and tied with a navy-colored ribbon. Adam leaned over and offered her his hand to help her into the rig, and then they were off.
Diana's house stood at the edge of town, very near the church. It had previously belonged to the former schoolteacher, Abigail Jones, who had moved away from the territory after marrying Hank Myers who had previously worked for Ben as a hand on the Ponderosa. As much as she had enjoyed teaching, no one would have ever been able to talk Hank out of his dream of homesteading. He was too much of a frontiersman to be cooped up in any town. The house had always been reserved for the resident educator, conveniently located just inside the city limits but within reasonable distance from the schoolhouse. It had been repainted a pale buttermilk yellow just before Diana moved in, and the new crown molding traced about the door and windows fairly glowed in the moonlight when the town finally went to sleep. A cozy porch swing hung beneath the balcony, and Adam longed to replace his humiliating memories with Abigail upon that very swing with pleasant evenings spent by Diana's side.
"Well, Rachel, I see you've brought a friend home," Diana said with a chuckle, looking up from the table where she had just finished setting a plate of bread. "Did you get the flour?"
The girl's eyes widened. "I, I forgot, Ma."
"Well, what did you bring home?" She eyed the paper in her daughter's hand with a stern expression.
"I think I distracted her," Adam said in her defense. "We got to talkin' about music and all thoughts of must have flour drifted clear out of her head, isn't that right, Rachel?" He looked down at her and winked.
She nodded.
"I know you didn't spend my money on sheet music," Diana said.
"No, Ma!" the child cried.
"I gave her the money, Diana," Adam said, intervening once again. "It was a gift."
Diana turned a critical eye toward the handsome man in the doorway, observing him for a moment before nodding in reluctant approval. "You made sure to thank Adam, didn't you, Rachel?"
"Yes, Ma."
"Good. I suppose I'll go to the store tomorrow." She looked up at Adam. "Thank you for driving her home, Adam. You'll stay to supper, won't you?"
"I'd be honored," he said, taking off his hat and sitting down at the table.
The three had a fine time together. The light from the lamps shining in from the parlor and standing on top of the stove sparkled merrily, casting a radiant glow upon Diana's cheeks and Rachel's hair. Their smiles were warm and their company soothing, like a cool balm upon a burning wound. Adam reflected later that he had felt completely content at that table, the way he did at his own after a hard day's work. His father's prideful grin, his brothers' teasing smirks, his niece's mischievous smile – they were home to him, and he had never felt at home in any other house as long as he'd lived, until tonight. He felt the presence of a peacefulness quite foreign to him settle deep within him, imbedding itself deeper and deeper into his soul as the meal wore on, and a haze of serenity engulfed him.
After supper Rachel delighted her audience with several pieces on the piano. During the first few songs they remained silent, but soon Adam and Diana were singing along with the familiar hymns, seated side by side on her settee. When Diana finally glanced at the clock, she hurried Rachel off to bed, realizing that it was well past the girl's bedtime. Before she climbed the stairs, Adam promised to return with his guitar some evening to play along with her. Rachel smiled and suddenly bestowed him a kiss, then scurried with rose-colored cheeks up to her room. In that moment Adam felt utterly satisfied. The girl's gentle expression had matched her mother's almost exactly, and it filled him with such pleasure that he was prepared to drive the rig back to the Ponderosa in a state of muted euphoria until Diana offered him a cup of coffee for the journey home then showed him out onto the porch.
She sat down on the swing and he followed suit.
"It's a lovely evening," she said with a contented sigh, bringing her cup of coffee to her lips.
"Nights like these always seem to remind me why I didn't stay back east."
"You liked it there?"
"I suppose my mother's northern blood almost insures my fondness for it."
"Why didn't you stay?"
"Because my family's here," he said simply. "I wanted to help my father build the Ponderosa. Besides, if I hadn't come back I'd hardly know Joe at all. He was just a kid when I left." He smirked. "In many ways he's still a kid."
"I'm sure he always will be to you," Diana said.
Adam nodded.
A tender silence swept down upon them like a refreshing summer shower. Adam sipped at his coffee then said, "Rachel has a great gift, Diana. I didn't know you played the piano."
"Gilbert taught me. It's how we met actually."
Adam turned to her, intrigued. She rarely mentioned her late husband.
"My father decided to move west when I was young, just like yours; he just never made it all the way. I met Gilbert in Kansas City. He played in the dining hall of our hotel when he wasn't working in his father's store. It was just a hobby, he said, but I knew it was his passion. I was amazed at how it came so easily to him. It was much harder for me, but he was so patient."
"I'm sure he was a great man."
She nodded. "He was."
"What was he like?"
"Like you, Adam," she said, her cheeks coloring slightly as she peered deep into his eyes. "He was very much like you. He was quiet but confident, and he had a good heart. And he was so smart. He knew me better than anyone else."
"I'm sorry for upsetting you," Adam said, noting that her eyes were brimming with tears.
She shook her head and brushed them away quickly. "Oh no, Adam, you didn't; I just don't talk about Gilbert much."
He rose then and helped her to her feet. "I'd better be gettin' back to the Ponderosa. Thank you for the wonderful evening, and the coffee."
She chuckled. "You're quite welcome, Adam. Rachel and I were glad to have the company."
"So was I," he said, placing his hat on his head and hurrying down the steps.
Out in the yard, Adam offered Diana one last wave as he looked back, then he hitched his horses up to the buggy and drove off into the dark, enchanting night. As she watched the encroaching darkness swallow the man and the buggy up within it, Diana felt her heart convulse just as it had on Christmas night, and as she turned and retreated back into the quiet house, she surveyed the empty kitchen and the vacant parlor, then leaned back against the doorframe and wept.