Caroline shook her head. “They didn’t harm me,” she said. “Aside from a little bruising and trauma, I’m all right.”

  Travis blew out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding. He didn’t know what he would have done if someone had harmed her. If any of those men had had their way with her, Travis would have committed murder. Women—especially women like Caroline—had to be respected.

  The kitchen heated up and the water on the stove boiled. Travis got up and made Caroline a cup of tea. When he handed it to her, she wrapped her fingers around it and shuddered.

  “I was so cold,” she said, “cold and scared.”

  Travis pulled up a chair and sat close to her. He didn’t even want to be just on the other side of the room. He would protect Caroline, no matter what.

  “You’re safe now,” he said. “No one will harm you.”

  Caroline smiled at him and it lit up her face like sunshine. Her features in the candle light were beautiful and he was struck again by how he’d almost lost her.

  “How did you know where to find me?” Caroline asked.

  Travis shrugged. “The bandits, although a nuisance, are predictable. I had sighted them a few times in the last few days. I figured their camp had to be close. I’m only sorry we took so long to find you.”

  Caroline shook her head. “Don’t be sorry. You came for me. That means more than you know.”

  Travis looked down at his hands and nodded. He would always come for her.

  “Will Cole and the others be all right?” Caroline asked.

  Travis nodded. “They’ll be along in the next hour, I think. Cole knows how to wield a gun. There’s not a better shot in the West than my little brother. When I’d taken the time to settle down with a woman, he’d gotten intimate with his gun.”

  Caroline smiled again. It was a pretty sight, seeing her alive and smiling, so Travis kept talking.

  “We fetched Harley—who saw you being kidnapped—John Davies, Eustace and Phineas, and we set out to find you. You won’t find finer men around these parts.”

  Caroline frowned. “Eustace, our neighbor? Martha’s husband?”

  Travis nodded. “Yes, ma’am. He was one of the first—they’ve been here for years and years and he knows the land better than the back of his hand. He was the one that led us right to the gorge, the shortest route he could find.”

  “We should have them over as thanks,” Caroline said. “Seems to me they’re good neighbors to have.”

  Travis nodded. “We all look out for each other here. It’s a close community, and we have each other’s back. The moment the men heard what had happened to you they dropped everything for their guns. These are the people you’ll want behind you once you settle down here.”

  Caroline nodded. Travis watched her. Her delicate features were serious again, all signs of the smile evaporated. He didn’t want to ask about her visit with Reverend Shreve. He didn’t want to remind her of what happened after, and he didn’t want to remind her she was leaving.

  He liked her here, in his care, wrapped in his blanket. He liked her in his life.

  “Caroline,” he said, and she turned her big blue eyes to him. “I wanted to ask you…” he swallowed hard, trying to find the words and failing.

  “What?” she asked.

  Travis took a deep breath. “Are you still set on leaving us?”

  Her face fell as if she had expected him to say something else. She shrugged.

  “Reverend Shreve has promised me I could meet some of the men in town. I don’t want to think about all that right now.”

  Travis nodded. “Of course,” he said. “I’m asking because…well, the truth is, I don’t want you to leave.”

  Caroline blinked at him. He’d taken that first step. He had to push through with it now. “I didn’t realize what I felt for you until I lost you. What is it they say, you don’t know what you got until it’s gone? When you were taken, I realized how I feel about you and I don’t want you to leave us.”

  Caroline nodded slowly. “I don’t want to leave, either,” she whispered.

  “I apologize for pushing you away. I know this has not been easy on you and I haven’t helped.”

  Caroline shook her head. “Don’t…”

  “Let me finish,” Travis said, interrupting her. If he didn’t get it off his chest now, while they were alone and he had all the courage in the world, he would never say it. He took a deep breath. “I care for you, Caroline. I care for you and I want you to stay.”

  He slid off the chair landing on one knee.

  “I have little to offer. It’s a hard life out here. I can’t give you much other than my care and affection and the promise I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe from harm.”

  She cried again, and Travis wasn’t sure what to do. A crying woman was always a difficult thing to handle. Travis was much more comfortable with a gun or a wild horse than a crying woman.

  “I thought you didn’t want me,” Caroline said.

  Travis shook his head. “I didn’t know what I wanted. I was a fool. But I know now. I want you. Will you marry me?”

  Caroline smiled through her tears, nodding.

  “Yes,” she said in a shaky voice. “That’s what I’m here for, after all.”

  Travis smiled, feeling for the first time in a very long time like he was alive again. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tightly against him. He would not let go of this woman again. He wouldn’t lose her, even if he had to give his own life to keep her safe.

  When they broke the embrace, Travis put his hand on her cheek. He looked into those mesmerizing eyes, leaned forward, and kissed her.

  Ten

  Caroline

  “I can’t believe this is it,” Martha said. She was in Caroline’s room, braiding her hair before pinning it up in an elegant style. “You’re getting married!”

  Caroline nodded, beaming. She lifted her hand to touch her hair and feel what Martha was doing.

  “Quit fussing,” she said. “You can look in the glass when I’m done.”

  “This wouldn’t have been as special as it is without you,” Caroline said.

  After the men had come back from the shootout, Caroline and Travis had announced their engagement to Cole. He had been ecstatic. Caroline had hugged the man that was to be her brother and thanked him for saving her life along with the other men.

  In the following month, they had prepared for the wedding. Travis didn’t want it to be a quick ceremony in Reverend Shreve’s office, as was the custom. He wanted to celebrate the marriage the right way.

  Caroline and Martha had been working on her dress all month, making sure it was something special.

  In the meanwhile, life on the ranch had gone on. Caroline had worked harder than before. It was something else to know she was building her own future by putting in so much work in and around the ranch house.

  Travis took her out on horseback often, showing her the grounds and everything that belonged to them. When he’d proposed, he had said he didn’t have a lot to offer, but the ranch was big and well run by the two brothers, and Caroline realized how wealthy they really were.

  Martha and Caroline had become good friends, too. After inviting them over to thank them for their help in retrieving Caroline, the two had become fast friends. Caroline had helped look after the children when Martha needed to run errands in town, and Eustace was an uncle to her now.

  Having your life saved by strangers built a new respect that everyone in town seemed to share.

  When her hair was ready, Caroline got dressed. Martha helped her into the dress they had worked on together. The material was smooth under Caroline’s fingertips and the dress was tight around her body with a skirt that flared out. She’d designed the dress according to the latest fashions in Richmond.

  When she turned around to face Martha, the older woman put her hands to her mouth. She looked emotional.

  “Are you crying?” Caroline asked.

  Martha shook her head. “If only you knew just how happy you’re making Travis. He was a mess when they arrived here. I was scared the loss of his wife—I never knew her—would cripple him for life. I thought your arrival was a mistake when you told me you were to be married to a Davison brother on the coach, but this is a dream come true. Travis looks alive again.”

  Tears welled up in Caroline’s eyes, too, and the two women hugged.

  Caroline’s wedding day was a dream come true. Everything happened for a reason. If she hadn’t been kidnapped by the bandits she might not have been on her way to marry Travis Davison right now. Everything was working out.

  “We need to get going, we’re starting soon,” Martha said when someone knocked on the door. Caroline nodded and Martha handed her the wild flowers she had collected that morning. When she opened the door, Cole stood there.

  He looked her up and down and smiled. He’d cleaned up, too, looking smart in his Sunday best.

  “Before you head on out, I would like to show you something,” he said.

  Caroline looked over her shoulder at Martha, who shrugged. She followed Cole down the passageway to Travis’s room. He pushed open the door.

  A large bed stood in the place where Travis’s bed used to be.

  “It’s a wedding gift,” Cole said. “I made the frame myself.”

  Caroline hugged Cole.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  He nodded, looking shy, and turned to leave.

  “I’ll see you out there,” he called over his shoulder.

  Martha walked first, stepping out onto the porch of the ranch house. When Caroline followed through the door, cheers greeted her. The whole town had turned up. They stood in a group on either side of a man-made aisle, and at the end, Travis was waiting for her. His eyes locked onto hers, drowning deep, and he smiled.

  Caroline stepped off the porch and walked to him. He reached out his hand and she took it. They stood together in front of Reverend Shreve and recited their vows.

  When they kissed, the crowd applauded again and somewhere in the background, someone started with a violin. The music was simple and beautiful. Travis pulled Caroline against him and the people made a circle. Caroline let Travis lead her in a first dance as husband and wife.

  The wedding lasted the whole day and most of the night. Everyone had brought food with them—from smoked beef and chicken to salads and vegetables, each of them had brought what they could from their own gardens. Some had also brought gifts—furniture or clothes lovingly made by the hands of the people who loved them.

  Finally, after hours and hours of dancing and laughing, the crowds dispersed until it was just the three of them on the ranch again.

  “I’m going to bed,” Cole said sleepily. “I’ll see you two in the morning.” He winked at Travis.

  Travis smiled and picked Caroline up, carrying her into the house. He put her down on the bed and closed the door behind him before joining her on the bed.

  “Today is the happiest day of my life,” he said to her.

  “Me, too,” Caroline said. Travis kissed her and she closed her eyes, melting into his arms.

  “I’m so happy,” she said when he broke the kiss.

  “Have I told you I love you?” he asked.

  Caroline smiled. “I believe you have, Mr. Davison,” she said.

  Travis smiled.

  “Not enough. I love you, Mrs. Davison.”

  Caroline smiled when he said it.

  “It has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?”

  Travis nodded. “Very.”

  He leaned in and kissed her again. It was enough talking for one night.

  About the Author

  Eliza Ester is the pen name of USA Today Bestselling author Wendy Meadows. She lives in “The Granite State” with her husband, two sons, two cats and lovable Labradoodle.

  When she isn’t working on her stories she likes to tend to her flower garden, relax with adult coloring and play video games with her family.

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