{Chapter} 4

“Did you get it signed, Curtis?” Brant Alexander asked of Mark.

Mark grinned. “Oh, yes. It was much easier than I thought. Such a naïve woman.”

Brant and his other three partners smiled and examined the document. “It’s that easy?”

“No, not quite. She’ll put up a good fight, believe you me. We’re gonna have to ease her and the cowboys into this” Mark leaned back into his chair.

“How?” Brant asked.

“The cattle drive.”

Brant threw up his hands. “Nope. No. Not a chance. I’m not gonna go out there and bust my back with them stupid cows for ten percent.”

Mark sighed. “Fifteen?”

“Done.”

“You just wait” Mark smirked. “We’re gonna be filthy rich by the time this is over.”

**********

Erik was about to go crazy. He couldn’t handle his wife’s cry of pain every few minutes anymore. It had to be that two-bit doctor. He wasn’t doing something right.

“Come on, Erik. Sit down and relax” Wade told him.

Everyone was crammed into the front room of Erik and Toni’s house. Wade, Aubrey, Jay, Sandy, Rawhide, J.T., Tiny, Mark, and Adam. Katie was in the room with Toni, and the doctor had just arrived. Erik sat in a chair beside the fire. Just then, another wail of pain came from the room. All six men bolted to their feet for the umpteenth time.

“Would you guys stop this?” Aubrey complained. “The tension is bad enough on poor Erik without all of you pitching a fit every contraction.”

All of them sat back down.

“Erik” Aubrey’s voice softened. “Birth is a natural process. It happens many times a day. Toni is going to be just fine. Her contractions seem to be getting closer together so we can expect an outcome soon.”

Erik was still nervous.

“Shall we pray for the seventh time?” Wade asked.

Erik nodded.

Wade spoke a brief, sincere prayer “Erik!” Toni’s voice wailed. “Where’s Erik?”

Erik bolted to his feet again. Katie came from the room.

“Erik. She wants you,” she said.

“How is she?” Aubrey squeaked, revealing the nervousness that she had - not five minutes before - scolded the rest of them about.

“She’s fine. Everything looks about normal to the doctor,” Katie answered.

Erik went inside the room. Toni was a sight. Her hair stuck to her face and sweat beaded down her face. Her jaw line was strained and her eyes were wild. He hated seeing her like this.

“Hey, honey” he smiled weakly.

“I’m going to kill you,” she growled.

“I know” Erik sat beside her in a chair.

Another wave of pain came over her, and she wailed again. Erik winced as her cry pierced his ears. The pain passed after a few moments and she looked up at him.

“Don’t leave me,” she pleaded.

“I won’t leave you, honey” Erik took her hand in his.

Toni took a deep breath.

“That’s good, honey. Just breathe” Erik told her, rubbing her hand.

Toni managed a weak smile and ran a hand through his hair. “You’re a good husband.”

Just then, while her hand was still buried in his hair, another contraction came over her. Her hand clamped around a chunk of his hair and she screamed.

Erik felt his face contort as she nearly tore his hair out of his head. Toni didn’t even realize that she was torturing him in her screaming. The pain passed, and not a minute too soon. Erik felt his head to make sure all his hair was still in place.

“It’s almost over, Mrs. McBride” The doctor said.

Erik kept a close eye on the young doctor, just to make sure he didn’t peek at his wife more often than was necessary. He didn’t trust young doctors. Seemed like Sundance had a new doctor every six months.

“You’re doing splendidly, Toni” Katie encouraged from the foot of the bed.

Toni took a few deep breaths and nearly crushed his hand when another contraction came.

“Push” The doctor commanded.

Toni’s face contorted, and Erik had to look away. He hated seeing her in pain. It did things to him, like make his stomach queasy and his knees wobble.

“It’s coming, Toni. Just push” Katie smiled.

“Stop smiling!” Toni growled as she put all her effort into pushing.

Katie’s smile disappeared and struggled not to resurface.

A few moments later, Toni held an ugly, funny colored crying mass in her arms.

Erik snarled. Sandy had looked equally ugly. Well, all babies looked the same, didn’t they? Erik just expected his own to look better.

“Look at him!” Toni’s relieved and proud voice reached Erik’s ears and suddenly he, too was proud of the little thing.

Wait.

“Is it a he?” He asked the doctor.

Doc nodded.

Erik grinned with pride and looked down at where Toni cradled their son in her arms, rocking gently back and forth. She looked so tired, so weak… so not herself. Yet the pride in her eyes made all of that seem trivial.

“You wanna hold him?” Toni asked.

Erik sat on the side of the bed and accepted the little bundle into his arms.

“Hey little guy” he mumbled.

A wave of love passed over him, the same way it had when he had held Sandy for the first time. He felt the incredible responsibility of having another child to care for.

“Have you decided on a name?” Katie asked.

Toni smiled. “Justin. Justin Cade McBride.”

Katie smiled. “That’s a perfectly good name.”

“Erik, we have to clean them up now. We’ll call you back in when we’re finished,” Doc said.

Erik gave Justin back to Toni and smiled at her. “You did good, honey.”

Toni smiled back. “Thank you.”

Erik kissed her sweaty forehead and left the room, rejoining the cowboys.

He heaved a sigh of relief. “It’s a boy.”

The entire room whooped and hollered and laughed. Erik smiled and shook his head. He knew how the cowboys didn’t want another woman around the place.

In the midst of the congratulatory group, Erik was relieved because the nine-month trial was over, yet he knew that there were only more trials to come.

**********

Katie left Toni sleeping and walked out with the Doc. The entire front room was packed with dusty, smelly cowboys.

“Oh for Pete’s sake, guys. You’d think Toni was dying or something,” she complained teasingly.

“It sounded like it” little Jay said.

Katie laughed and saw the doctor out before turning to the men. The dawn sun broke through the windows and over their weary faces. Aubrey had fallen asleep in Wade’s lap and Sandy was sleeping on Rawhide’s shoulder. Jay looked bright eyed and bushytailed, but he was the only one.

“A’ight boys. We’ve gotta cattle drive in a few weeks. Let’s get to work” Mark spoke up.

The cowboys started filing out the door, then Katie caught sight of Adam, who had finally put his hair back in its ponytail.

“Adam? What are you doing here?” she asked.

“He got hired on, Katie” Wade told her.

Katie’s jaw dropped. Adam wasn’t a cowboy! He was a deputy sheriff. This was tragic! There was no way she was going on that cattle drive with him around.

Yet what other choice did she have? She was the only decent cook around this place.

Sighing in resignation, Katie followed the cowboys out the door. She wanted to go back to bed, that’s what she wanted to do, but there was the pressing problem of Jane’s match. She had to at least get the two in a relationship before the cattle drive. Adam was a good match for her, but something deep inside wanted to spare Jane the pain when Adam took her heart and broke it onto a million pieces.

*“I don’t understand, Adam. This doesn’t make any sense to me” Katie was on the verge of tears.

“One day I’ll explain it to you, I promise. I have a really good reason for this, believe me” Adam defended.

Katie rolled her eyes. “Sure you do. More like you tired of me, is that it? Found someone better? Someone who was a better friend? Someone who treated you better? Someone who didn’t have a mind of her own? Someone who…”

“Katie, listen to me” Adam interrupted. “You are the best friend I’ve ever had.”

“Yes, you’re proving that right now, aren’t you?” Katie was unnaturally sarcastic, which hinted that she was very angry with him.

Adam sighed. “I don’t expect you to understand, honestly. I can see why you would be upset right now, but you’ll thank me for this one day.” *

Katie closed her eyes against the memory. Sure, she would understand. Well, now it’s been five years and she still didn’t understand a single thing.

She did thank him, though. Because of her heartache, her relationship with Ben was much sweeter than it would have been had she not at least tasted love before.

Looking up at the sky, she muttered into the clean air. “I miss you, Ben.”

Her stomach clenched with the familiar feeling of grief, making her feel as if she would never get over her fiancé’s death.

No, his murder.

********

Thanks a ton for reading! You guys are awesome.

I think it's confirmed now that Adam and Katie had a past relationship. What do you guys think of that?

What do you think Uncle Mark is up to?

That pic is just to help my fascination with bluebonnets:P