Chapter Six

      Hannah waved goodbye to Opal and the girls just as the sun slipped over the horizon. She shut the door and bolted the lock. The schoolhouse felt silent and peaceful. After the day she’d had, silent and peaceful seemed wonderful.

      She walked back to the bedroom and dropped onto the soft mattress. Her gaze moved to her suitcases. This day had not turned out the way she’d thought it would. Daniel Westland wasn’t the man she’d expected.

      She’d assumed he would be open, talkative and thrilled that she wanted to get to know him and fall in love before they got married. Daniel was far from those things. He seemed angry all the time, except when he was with the little girls. The man hadn’t said fifty words to her since they’d met, not that she’d been seriously counting, and he wanted a quick marriage and children so he could have the family ranch.

      But he was handsome, and when he’d talked to Daisy and Mary she’d seen a soft side of Daniel that touched her heart and took away her anger at him for not telling her she was expected to teach the schoolchildren on the ranch. She’d also seen the sadness in his eyes that told her he was a wounded soul.

      And what about Bonnie Westland? Hannah hadn’t given his mother any thought when she was writing him letters and had agreed to come to Granite to be his mail-order bride. Now that she’d met the woman, Hannah wasn’t sure what to think of her.

      What kind of mother pitched her sons against each other? And of all things, over a plot of dirt? Why did she demand that they marry and have children if she wasn’t going to be happy with the women they chose?

      Hannah turned the wick up on the kerosene lamp that Opal had lit earlier, and then walked to her suitcases. She opened the first one and began unpacking her books. The Holy Bible was on top, and she caressed the cover before taking it to the small table beside her bed.

      After that she arranged The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There and the remaining books on the shelf closest to the headboard. She ran her hand over the spines of her favorite stories.

      Hannah took out her shoes and lined them up at the foot of the bed. Her gaze moved to the other suitcase and she wondered where she should put her clothes.

      Weariness tugged at her. She slipped her shoes off and placed them with the others. Opening the second suitcase, she pulled out her nightgown and then proceeded to get ready for bed. Hannah decided she’d worry about the rest of her unpacking tomorrow. Carefully, she folded her dress and laid it on one of the many empty shelves.

      Before climbing between the fresh clean sheets, she knelt beside her bed and prayed. She thanked the Lord for her safe travel from Cottonwood Springs, New Mexico, to Granite, Texas. She asked Him to help her and Daniel work through their new relationship, and she prayed that Bonnie Westland would learn to accept her as a potential daughter-in-law. Once her prayers were complete, she pulled back the covers and climbed into bed.

      The sound of hammering woke Hannah the next morning. She quickly rose and pulled on a simple dress. The noise was coming from the back of the building, and with the room’s one window facing west instead of south, she had no idea who was making the racket.

      Running her fingers through the tangles in her hair, she rushed to see what was going on. Hannah took a deep breath before opening the back door. Daniel and the man who had been with him the day before were working on a small building. The rancher turned with a soft smile. “Good morning, Hannah.”

      “Uh, good morning.” For the life of her, she couldn’t figure out what they were building. It was too large for a wood box and too small for an extended room to the building.

      “I see that we woke you. Sorry about that.” Daniel was looking at the ground in front of her. A frown replaced the smile that had seemed so warm.

      Hannah looked down, too, and realized her bare feet were showing. The scars on her right foot were pale but visible. She felt heat flood her face. “I’ll be right back.” As quick as her feet would carry her, she hurried inside.

      The horror that he and his hired man had seen the scars filled her with a sense of illness. No one had seen them since she was a child. Hannah had always been careful to keep them covered. She even had special socks she wore at all time, except when she was sleeping.

      Now that he’d seen the scars, what must Daniel think of her? She hurried to her suitcase and pulled out a pair of stockings, then proceeded to put on her shoes.

      The sound of hammering resumed.

      Taking a steadying breath, Hannah decided he’d have had to seen them sooner or later. She would have preferred later, but the damage was done and she’d have to deal with whatever results it brought.

      She sank down on the edge of the bed. The thought had come to her in the middle of the night that she would need supplies if she was going to live in the schoolhouse. And as soon as she could get up her courage, she’d go back outside and ask if Daniel would escort her to town. She wondered again what they were making as she combed her hair and pulled it into a braid.

      The hammering stopped, and Hannah stood up. She inhaled deeply to soothe her nerves. Be brave, Hannah Young, she silently told herself as she walked to the door once more. He’s just a man and you need him to take you to town. You can do this.

      Even if he is as handsome as sin and has now seen your worst flaw.

      * * *

      Daniel turned toward the sound of the door opening. He saw that Hannah had donned shoes and fixed her hair. Color still rode high on her cheeks, but her blue eyes held his. “I thought you might need a storage shed.”

      Hannah smiled. Even white teeth flashed in the morning sun. “So that’s what you are making. I wondered.”

      “Ma sent over a washtub and a small armoire. I thought you might like to have a place to store the tub and any supplies.” He took his hat off and wiped sweat from his forehead. Hannah looked as pretty as the flowers Levi had given her the day before.

      “That was very considerate of both you and your mother.” She played with a ribbon on her dress. “Speaking of supplies, do you think we could go back into town today so I can pick a few things up?”

      Daniel thought of all the jobs he still had to do. They needed to finish the shed, a stall in the barn needed to be mended and he wanted to check his fence line in the north pasture. The thought came to him that he could send one of his men. He turned to Cole.

      The man was grinning at Hannah as if she was a slice of his favorite pie. He tipped his hat to her and said in a husky voice, “Good morning, ma’am.”

      No, sending her with one of the ranch hands was out of the question.

      “Sure. Let me talk to Cole here and then we’ll be on our way.” He enjoyed the sweetness of her smile, which brightened her eyes and face. Strands of black hair had escaped the braid and curled about her rosy cheeks. She almost looked like a porcelain doll he’d once seen in a city shop.

      “Thank you. I’ll go start a list.” Her skirt swished as she turned and reentered the school.

      Daniel glanced back at Cole, who had picked up another board and was about to resume working. “I need you to take care of a few things while I’m in town.”

      “Sure, boss, you name it,” he said, hammering the board into place.

      He was a great worker, but at some point Daniel knew he’d have to talk to him about Hannah. She was going to be Daniel’s wife, so Cole was going to have to stop looking at