Rekindled by Tamera Alexander Read Free Book Online

how yet. “You and the other men will be paid, like we agreed.”
    She couldn’t tell if it was the cold or a blush, but Matthew’s face noticeably reddened. “I don’t doubt your intentions, ma’am. None of us do.” He motioned, including the men behind him. His gloved hands gripped his saddle horn. “Have you heard from your husband yet?”
    Kathryn shook her head but injected hope into her voice. “But I’m expecting to . . . any day now.”
    The men with Matthew muttered to each other, but with a backward glance from Matthew, they fell silent.
    “Mrs. Jennings, I understand you want to keep hopin’, but you have to face the possibility that your husband might not have made it out of the storm that night. He might have—”
    “My husband possesses an instinct for direction, Mr. Taylor.” Kathryn purposefully phrased it in the present. “He’s never owned a compass a day in his life and he’s never been lost. He knows this territory better than any man.”
    Matthew’s eyes softened. “And I’m not sayin’ otherwise, Mrs. Jennings, but—”
    One of the other ranch hands nudged his horse forward. He was a man slight of build but surly-looking— mean was the word that came to Kathryn’s mind. A ribbon of scarred ruddy flesh ran the length of his right jawline and disappeared beneath his shirt collar. Kathryn would not have wanted to be left alone with him. “Winter storms can make a man lose that sense of direction, Mrs. Jennings. It can blind you. Turn you ’round, where you don’t know where you are or where you been.” He laughed, and the shrill sound of it surprised her, set her defenses on edge. His eyes swept the full length of her. “You ever been out in a storm like that . . . Mrs. Jennings?”
    Matthew turned in his saddle. Kathryn couldn’t make out Matthew’s response to the man, but his manner was curt and harsh. With one last look at her, the ranch hand turned and rode back down the trail.
    Matthew slid from his horse and came to where Kathryn stood. From the concern etching his eyes, she had the distinct feeling that what he was about to say hurt him somehow.
    “I’m here to tell you that we’ve been offered jobs at another ranch.” His announcement felt like a physical blow to Kathryn’s midsection. “The rancher’s payin’ double what we get here, Mrs. Jennings.”
    “But, Matthew—Mr. Taylor,” she corrected. “You each have jobs here. You’ve agreed to work through the spring.” She knew they didn’t have formal agreements like her father did with his employees back East. But still, wasn’t their word worth something? She took a step toward him. “You gave my husband your word to work through the spring, did you not?”
    “Yes, ma’am, we did. We made that agreement with your husband.” Kathryn didn’t miss the emphasis on his last words. “But he’s not here anymore.”
    “But he will be.” Her voice involuntarily rose an octave.
    “Yes, ma’am.”
    “And I’ll have the payroll as promised for every man this week.”
    “Most of the men are taking the other offer, Mrs. Jennings.” At her protest, he raised a hand. “You have to understand that a lot of these men have families to feed. They got wives and children dependin’ on them. And I gotta tell you . . .” A sheepish look came over his face. “Couple of the men say they spotted an owl yesterday.”
    Kathryn’s confusion must have shown on her face.
    “It wasn’t just any owl, ma’am. They say it was pure white.” He shrugged. “I don’t hold much to the Indian lore around here, but the sayin’ goes that seein’ a white owl’s a bad sign. Means more snow’s coming, it’s gonna get colder. Things are gonna get worse before they get better.”
    Kathryn tried to mask her mounting frustration. She looked past him to the other men. “Mr. Taylor, if I ask them personally, will they stay?”
    “Ma’am?”
    “I said if I ask each of the men personally, will they stay and work my