Joseph, My Son

Chapter 2

The next morning, Hoss and Pru were up with the sun. It might technically have been their honeymoon, but there were chores to do. They had a young milk cow to take care of, chickens to be fed and their eggs collected and their horses to be put into one of the two corrals. Their saddle horses, Chubb and Polly had one corral and their two Clydesdales, (who they had named "Jack" and "Jill") had the other so that there would be no interbreeding.

An hour later Pru had a big Cartwright breakfast on the table when Hoss came in. He greeted her with a kiss. It really felt good to sit at the table with his wife in his own house. He had waited a long time for this, and he decided it was worth it. His father was all for having them come over in the evening for dinner, but they both agreed that they wanted the time to establish their own rituals in their own cozy home. With the beginning of the next school year only a few months away, this time where they could spend the entire day together was precious, even if they both had things to occupy them. Just knowing that he could decide on the spot that he wanted to lay down any chore he was doing and go into the house to sweep Prudence into his arms made Hoss happy.

After she'd finished with her morning house chores, Pru strolled over to where Hoss was working in the barn. He had decided that the whole structure would need to be expanded since the hay loft barely held enough hay, now that he had seen what the Clydesdales ate on a regular basis. He was also very nearly convinced that Jill was carrying a foal which meant at least one more stall would be needed in the coming year.

Since they had no ranch hands to accommodate yet, there was no bunkhouse. They could expand the barn in any direction they pleased, but the simplest would be just to lengthen it. He wouldn't need any fancy building plans to do that and could even do it by himself if he was only going to add a few stalls. Pru came to his side, putting her arm around his waist.

"Thinking about more space, Eric?" she asked. She was the only one who called him by his real name, and he adored it.

"Yep. A couple or four more stalls and a lengthened hay loft. I think we might have a foal by next summer."

"Really! That would be wonderful!" Pru exclaimed. Hoss looked at her with just a tinge of sadness behind his happiness. In order for his wife to continue to be the teacher of the Virginia City School, they had had to promise not to start their own family until Sally Ann had graduated from her teacher training and could take over a year from now. He couldn't wait to have children of his own, but the foal would have to do for the time being.

"And that brings me to the next thing I'm thinking of," he responded. "We only bought the two horses because of how expensive they are and wanting to see how they do in this climate, but…"

"You don't get very far in building a herd with only one male and one female," Prudence finished.

"No, you don't. I'm going to have to speak to Pa about loaning us the money for a couple more mares. We don't have the money to do it ourselves yet, and I'd rather owe him the money than the bank."

"I agree. Besides, it all comes under the banner of the Ponderosa brand." Hoss kissed the top of her head appreciatively. "Now, I'd like to talk to you about my project."

"Oh?" he asked.

"Yes. I want to start a kitchen garden. I know that July is late for a lot of produce, but I'd be able to plant root crops for next spring. And Mrs. Hawthorne said she'd give me some cuttings of her lilac bush. I'd like to plant them in front of the house."

"That would be really pretty. I suppose, however, that you came out here to sweet-talk me into laying out and plowing the soil for your vegetable patch?" he asked with an arch look.

"Well, I wouldn't say anything," Pru responded. "But just remember who cooks your food and shares your bed!"

Hoss laughed. "I could never forget that!"

XXXXX

Joe had spent the morning in the busting corral with some new horses. Getting thrown was part of taming wild horses, but the youngest Cartwright brother was beginning to feel that the aches and bruises of breaking the animals were getting to be too much. When he was in his teens, he thought nothing of being bucked off of a large horse. Now he was very aware of how easy it would be to get caught and crushed under the hooves of one of them. Ben had often come out to observe the process and Joe finally realized how tense his father would get, especially if one of his sons was on the back of a wildly bucking animal. Thank goodness Hoss's two Clydesdales had been broken before he bought them. The idea of getting into a corral with them to do the job sent a long shiver down his spine.

Of course, the other way to tame a horse was through gentling. It was Hoss's preferred method, one that he'd learned many years ago from the young daughter of a neighbor. The girl had a crush on him, but his brother had been too shy to respond. Probably just as well, thought Joe. Just like his brother had learned to determine what each horse needed to learn to trust him enough to be harnessed, saddled, and ridden, Hoss had learned what he himself needed in a life partner.

The only problem with gentling was the time it took. The Ponderosa's horse sales depended on having a steady supply of tamed animals. Gentling was a luxury that they generally couldn't afford, so he had no choice but to get once again on the back of the large stallion. At least he could look forward to seeing Eleanor Hood that evening. Despite his father wanting all his children at the dinner table that night, Joe had arranged to take Miss Hood to the Palace Hotel for a meal.

At last, the stallion calmed down and accepted the rider on his back. Joe took him through a few turns in the corral before dismounting. Adam had just come into the yard on his horse after going out to one of the camps to check on a water sluice that some of the men had reported to be in poor condition.

"Hey, Big Brother! Are we going to have to rebuild that sluice?"

"I'm afraid, so Joe. It won't last through another winter, but it will hold out long enough so that I can explore other options for rebuilding it. How the bronco busting going?"

Little Joe groaned a bit. "One last one to go. The stallion I just finished up on was tough. My backside is going to be one big bruise. Hey, you wouldn't take the last one for me, would you? It's a mare. She shouldn't be too tough for you."

Adam looked at him as if to say, "You really don't want to know what I'm thinking," but Joe was putting on his best "Help Me" puppy eyes. Adam knew that he'd be taking the William's niece out to dinner-it had been the only thing his youngest brother talked about all through breakfast that morning and he'd thought that maybe for old-time's-sake he'd work with the last horse. It would give Joe time for a good hot soak in the tub to relieve his soreness before going into town. Shaking his head, the oldest Cartwright brother climbed up and over the corral fence. This really was a job for a younger man, but what the hell?

XXXXX

Ben Cartwright was disappointed. He really enjoyed having his family around him, especially in the evenings. He had hoped that now Prudence would be with them as well, gathering everyone together would only be that much better. However, he understood the new young couple's desire for some privacy in these first days of their marriage. He already thought of the young woman as his daughter, not his daughter-in-law, and with the departure of her family back to Ohio, he was concerned that she might feel a bit lonesome. "Well," he decided to himself with a sigh, "Hoss will make sure she doesn't miss them too much."

And then, this morning Joseph had let him know that he was taking Eleanor Hood out for dinner in town. That boy certainly worked quickly, since he'd only met her at the wedding the day before. However, he had to admit that the young lady was quite pretty and high spirited. Just exactly the type of woman that Joseph would be attracted to. Hopefully her aunt would not be in the background pushing for a quick match. Ben thought that young people rushed into marriage much too quickly these days. Hoss and Prudence had taken many months to get to know one another and their bond was strong because of it. His youngest son, however, could be like quicksilver. There had been times when his impulsivity had nearly been the death of both of them.

At least there was Adam. Strong and steady Adam who rarely did anything rashly. In fact, a little letting go, especially where women were concerned, would do him good. Of course, his eldest believed that he had passed the age at which he would marry, but Ben had learned long ago to never say never. Falling in love with Joe's mother had been entirely unexpected, but a very happy delight. Who knew what the future might hold?

What that evening held was a table set for the two men and a very unhappy Hop Sing.

"Where everybody go? Yesterday house filled with many, many guest. Today, only two!" He held up two fingers to emphasize his point. "Mr. Hoss, Missy Pru and Mr. Joe suddenly tired of Hop Sing food?" A long string of angry Chinese followed.