Chapter 3

"Want to explain what that was all about today?" Jarrod asked softly.

Jarrod and Sarah had retired to their room. Sarah had hoped to avoid this conversation, but knew it was inevitable. She sighed as she let her hair down.

"I'm sorry, Jarrod. I know I bullied you and Nick into hiring Emma."

Jarrod had been watching her from across the room. To be honest, he wasn't upset with her. But curious as to why she felt she needed to champion a stranger. Emma seemed nice enough and if her letters of recommendation were true, which he had no reason to believe they weren't, Emma was going to be an asset to the Barkley Ranch.

"May I ask why you did it?"

Sarah had taken off her dress and was now replacing it with her nightgown. Jarrod looked at her stomach and smiled. She was beginning to show a little bit. He couldn't wait to wrap his arms around her and feel their baby between them.

Sarah was oblivious to her husband's thoughts about her body. If she had looked up at him, she would have seen his smile, but as it was, she was ashamed of what she had done that day. Sarah couldn't believe the words she had said to her brother in law. He had barely spoken to her all evening. Her throat ached as she tried to hold back tears. Finally, she couldn't stop them from coming and buried her face in her hands.

Jarrod was immediately by her side, holding her, whispering loving words to her. He led her to the bed and sat her down.

"I'm so sorry, Jarrod. Please forgive me," she cried. Jarrod stroked her hair and drew her close to himself.

"Sarah, do you think you can answer my last question. Why was it so important for us to hire Emma?"

Sarah sniffed and tried to calm herself down. After a moment, she told Jarrod what she had seen when she first entered town earlier that day.

"I felt sorry for her when all those men were laughing. Her face was so red. I don't know if it was from anger or embarrassment or both. I just couldn't stand to see her hurting, Jarrod. I...I wanted you to hire her, so that she wouldn't have to be rejected again. And now Nick hates me, and I can't stand that!" she said in a fresh burst of tears.

Jarrod waited patiently for this storm to pass. Sarah was more emotional these days and he wanted to be understanding.

"I don't think Nick hates you."

"He barely spoke to me all evening, Jarrod. I need to apologize."

Jarrod considered this. Did Sarah need to apologize? He decided to let her work that out herself. She stood up, walking toward the door, her robe going about her shoulders.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"To talk to Nick."

Jarrod walked over to her and placed a tender kiss on her lips. It was late and he wanted her to rest. It had been an emotionally difficult day.

"Not tonight. Nick will be there in the morning and you can talk to him then."

Sarah was exhausted enough that she knew if she tried to talk to Nick tonight, she would cry the entire time. She hated crying and felt as though that was all she ever did anymore. She allowed Jarrod to lead her back to the bed and he tucked her in. He then undressed and climbed in next to her. Sarah was already dozing when he pulled her close to him. She snuggled close and sighed.

"I love you, Jarrod," she said sleepily.

"And I you," he whispered.

Nick woke up in a terrible mood. He knew it was because of what happened the day before with Sarah. He wasn't against Emma, but he didn't like the thought of a woman doing such rough work. She said that she had grown up on a ranch. Well, why didn't she just stay there instead of coming here?

Nick dressed and started down for breakfast. He stopped when he saw Sarah standing at the top of the stairs. That she was waiting for him was clear. The door to hers and Jarrod's room was open, so he assumed Jarrod was already downstairs.

"Sarah," he said as he walked past her.

"Nick, please wait."

Nick stopped but didn't turn around. He wasn't sure what Sarah was going to say to him. He was hurt by her words yesterday, more than anyone knew. He waited for her to go on.

"Nick, please forgive me for yesterday. For the things I said and for muscling you and Jarrod into hiring Emma, I wanted to explain why I did what I did. You see, when I first saw Emma she was being laughed at by a group of men when she had asked for a job. My heart ached for her. I hate seeing that done to anyone, but for some reason, it really bothered me with her." Sarah was choking up and had to stop for a moment.

Nick turned and saw her fighting for control. She was sincerely sorry, he could tell. He had seen his share of women who used tears to get their own way, but Sarah had never done that, not to his knowledge anyway. He came to stand before her. She brushed away her tears before looking up at him.

"I'm sorry for my actions as well, Sarah. I would rather Emma not work on the ranch, but not for the reasons you think. I'm sure she's a hard worker. Things'll be fine."

Sarah tried to smile but couldn't quite manage it.

"Thank you, Nick. I just couldn't stand the thought of you being angry with me."

Nick smiled slightly. "Aw, even if I was ever angry with you, I couldn't stay that way for long. You've brought so much joy into Jarrod's life. Into all our lives. Now, I expect you to take care of yourself and not think about this anymore. You've got Jarrod or Sarah Junior to think about now."

Sarah did smile then and accepted Nick's arm as they walked down the stairs. Jarrod looked up as they walked in and smiled at them both. He didn't know what had been said between them, but he knew things were on firmer ground now. Sarah loved Nick as if he were her own flesh and blood. She felt the same about Heath and Audra too, but there was a special connection between Nick and Sarah that couldn't be explained. He enjoyed watching their relationship as did the others. It was good to see them back to normal.

Jarrod's thoughts turned to Emma and he hoped she would have a good first day on the ranch. There were sure to be some protests by the men. But Jarrod was sure Nick and Heath would give her a fair chance to prove herself.

"You haven't said a word about Emma, Heath. What are you thinking?" Nick asked this as the two men rode toward the south ridge. Up ahead of them were several cowhands, including Emma, who were leading the herd to water.

"Nothing to say. You and Jarrod wouldn't have hired her if you didn't feel she was qualified. I saw her letters and from watching her just today, she seems to know what she's doing."

Nick nodded. Emma did seem to know what she was doing. She handled her horse with great care and looked as comfortable in the saddle as he was in his. She was able to keep control of her section of herd and none seemed to be straying.

The rest of the day was busy and passed quickly.

The ranch hands returned home tired and hungry. Emma wanted nothing more than to get her food and go to her room. She was pleased with her accommodations. They weren't fancy, but she was thankful for the privacy she had been given and so far, she seemed to have been accepted by the others.

Emma walked into to bunk house to pick up her plate. Her intention was to take her plate to her room when someone stopped her. It was Jeb. He was one of the younger men on the ranch and she could tell by the way he looked at her that he was interested.

"Why don't ya just come in and sit with me?" he asked.

"No thank you. I'm rather tired and would like to just go to my room."

Emma tried to side step Jeb but he blocked her path again.

"Please move," she said.

"Now don't get all riled up. I'm just trying to be friendly," he said. Jeb made the mistake of placing his hand on her shoulder to steer her around. Emma wasn't going to be led anywhere and gave him a swift kick in the shins.

Jeb cried out in pain and said, "What'da do that for?"

"I said I wanted to leave. Now, get out of my way or I'll place my kick a little higher next time."

The men who had been watching laughed and Jeb slowly moved to the side. Emma walked past him and quickly walked into the barn. She didn't notice Heath and Nick who were bedding their horses for the night. They noticed her and the angry look on her face.

"Emma, are you all right?" Heath asked.

Emma jumped and almost dropped her plate.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you."

Emma shook her head.

"I'm fine. Just going to my room."

Both Heath and Nick noticed she seemed upset.

"Are you sure you're all right?" This was from Nick.

Emma looked up at him. She expected to see a smirk on his face, but he seemed genuinely concerned.

"The men giving you any trouble?" Heath asked.

"Nothing I can't take care of myself."

Heath nodded and looked over at Nick. He was quiet which made Heath wonder what he was thinking. Usually, one didn't need to wonder.

Emma walked into her room and shut the door. When the men heard the door lock, they looked at each other and shrugged. They figured if there were a problem they'd hear about it sooner or later.

Emma sat on the edge of her cot, trying to stem the flow of tears. She was angry at herself and at Jeb for what he had tried. Why is it that men always think a woman wants his attention? And why would men not take no for an answer? She just wanted to work. Do her job and do it well. She looked down at her plate, the smell of the food finally getting to her. When she realized she had forgotten her fork, she knew no end to her frustration. The stew was difficult to eat with her hands, but she managed. She cleaned up as best she could and decided to return the plate in the morning so she wouldn't have another run in with Jeb.

Emma looked out toward the window and noticed the sun was just beginning to set. This was her favorite time of the day. She was thankful for the fact that her one window faced the West. She settled in to watch the glorious site. There was a knock at the door and Emma hoped it wasn't one of the men. She didn't want a visit to her room from them and would just as soon walk away from this ranch as to have to endure harassment from anyone.

"Who is it?" she asked sternly.

"It's Sarah," came the reply.

Emma smiled as she unlocked the door and saw Sarah standing there. She invited the other lady in and then realized the only place to sit was on her cot. Oh well, she shrugged. Can't do a thing about it now.

"Are you getting settled?" Sarah asked, taking a seat on the cot without any embarrassment.

"I think so."

Sarah smiled and looked around. The tack room was not very big and rather dreary looking. Sarah could remember staying in similar looking places after leaving the orphanage but was thankful for her room with Jarrod. They had been talking about building a house but were going to wait to decide anything until after the baby was born.

While Sarah's thoughts drifted, Emma watched her. Sarah was a lovely woman and not only on the outside. Her tenderness toward her yesterday was what Emma had needed.

Sarah looked over at Emma and realized her mind had wandered.

"I'm sorry," she apologized.

"No problem. I've seen it happen to my mother when she was expecting."

Sarah's eyes widened. Other than the family, no one knew about the baby. She was sure neither Nick nor Heath would have said anything.

"How did you know?"

Emma shrugged. "You have a glow about you."

"Sarah?"

Both women turned at the sound of Jarrod's voice. Sarah smiled as she stood and walked toward the door.

"In here," she called to him.

Jarrod stood in the doorway and smiled at Emma as his arm went around his wife.

"Is everything all right?" he asked both women.

"Yes, I was just making sure Emma was settled in."

"Well, I think we should let Emma get to bed. From what I've heard from Nick and Heath, she's earned a good night's rest."

Emma smiled in appreciation. She knew she had worked hard and was thankful others had noticed. She bid the couple goodnight and changed from her dusty clothes. It only took a few moments for her to fall asleep.