An Angel in Thistleberry Read online

  It didn’t take long for them to reach the mill. He climbed down, his cracking knees evoking a grunt from him as he reached the ground, but he couldn’t help the little jaunt that had worked its way into his stride. He had to consciously slow his step.

  A little bell rang as he opened the door and the moment he saw Ethel Fawcett he froze. An awkward smile tried to break onto his face, but his breath caught in his chest and he spun back around and placed his hand on the wooden handle to leave.

  “Did you need something, Mr. Deardon?” Ethel asked in a voice that spilled like warm butter down his shoulders.

  He dropped his head, turned back to face her, and removed his hat.

  “Is Myron here, Mrs. Fawcett?”

  “He’s out in the yard.” She pointed to the back door that led out to the barn-like structure where the saws were stationed. “Is there something I might do for you?” She looked up at him with eyes that sparkled in the light.

  “I just need a word with your son, ma’am.”

  “Oh,” she said, and Gabe thought he detected disappointment in her voice. “All right, then.” She nodded.

  “If you’ll excuse me.” Gabe placed his hat back on his head and tapped the brim.

  “I must say, Mr. Deardon,” she called out before he could leave, “that beard is coming along quite handsomely.”

  Heat flooded his neck and he reached up self-consciously to stroke the lengthening whiskers. He winked brazenly, then strode out into the back without a second glance behind him. Once outside, he released a long breath. How did that woman affect him so? Wasn’t he a little too old to let a woman get under his skin?

  Myron, the owner of the mill, looked up from one of the boards he was cutting. As soon as the wood had made its way over the saw, he wiped his hands on his apron and jutted his hand out to shake Gabe’s.

  “I’m glad you stopped by, Deardon. It saves me a trip out to your place. I’m afraid your lumber order has been delayed.”

  “What do you mean my lumber has been…delayed,” Gabe grumped at the man. He was running out of time and needed at least some of the wood to complete his secret projects. With the addition of today’s discovery, he would need even more.

  “An emergency order came in from Middleton and I’m a little shorthanded right now.”

  “Shorthanded indeed. Word has it that you just laid off several of your men. Holidays are coming. A lot of folks are going to have a real hard time of it.”

  Myron’s face flushed and Gabe immediately regretted his judgement. Old habits were hard to break—even after years of trying.

  “I’ve got quite a large order of my own.”

  “How large?” the mill owner asked, scratching his chin.

  “Big enough it will make Humville’s order look like beans.” He made sure to catch the man’s eyes. “And I’m willing to pay handsomely—if you can have at least half of the order to Whisper Ridge no less than two weeks before Christmas.

  He handed the millworker a scrap of paper and the man whistled softly as he read. Gabe hadn’t used any of his inheritance in more than thirty years, not since his wife had left him with four small boys to raise on his own, until a few years ago after his newest granddaughter was born. She’d had an effect on him that he couldn’t explain—inspired him to be a better man and to do something with his life. Now was as good a time as any to use it.

  “And how am I supposed to get an order like that done in less than a month’s time?”

  Gabe didn’t say anything, but waited.

  “I guess I could hire Mr. Collins back—temporarily,” he noted with a raised finger. “And maybe some of the others.”

  There it is.

  “Cratchit!” Gabe yelled out.

  “I’m sorry.” Myron looked at him as if he’d gone mad.

  “Bob Cratchit.” Gabe laughed remembering the name of the character who reminded him of Mr. Collins. Good man.

  “Who?”

  Gabe cleared his throat and returned a stern expression to his face. “Never mind. Just get me that lumber.”

  Chapter Three

  December

  As Noah Deardon pulled through the gates of the Whisper Ridge Ranch with his little family, it took everything he had to stop himself from slapping the reins of the wagon team to incite them to move faster over the compressed snow path. It had been a long time since he’d seen his brothers. Christmas had been nothing more than an inconvenience in the Deardon household when he was young, but over the last few years he’d grown to love the holiday. Kate, his wife, loved Christmas and took every opportunity to make it a special time full of love and laughter.

  “Does Uncle Lucas have any children for us to play with?” Easton, Noah’s oldest son of twelve, asked as they came to a stop in front of the homestead.

  Noah placed a hand on his son’s shoulder and squeezed. “I’m sure you will make friends with your cousins in no time,” he reassured him as he helped Kate down from her cold wagon seat, and placed her lightly on the porch with a quick kiss. He stepped up to the door, ready to burst in, but before he could grasp the handle, it squeaked open and a little girl with a headful of bouncy curls looked up at them with wide eyes.

  “Hello,” she said with a smile that looked just like her father’s. “Who are you?”

  “Hello, Sophia,” Noah said, dropping down to a knee in front of her.

  “How do you know my name?” she asked in a small voice, her eyes wide and twinkling.

  “Well, I…” he wasn’t sure how to answer her.

  “It’s Uncle Noah, dear. Daddy’s brother,” Lucy, Lucas’s wife, said as she placed her arm on the little girl’s shoulders and gently nudged her forward.

  Sophia gasped with delight and jumped forward unexpectedly with a hug around his neck. “I’m so glad you’re here!” she squealed, holding him tighter than he would have expected.

  Noah stood up, his arms wrapped around her, basking in the attentions of his little four-year-old niece.

  When she pulled away, she still beamed at him. “It’s a pleasure to meet your acquaintance,” she said with a slight nod of her head. Then, she looked down at his boys.

  Noah set her down on the ground with an amused grin.

  “That means you are…” she looked up at the air, as if trying to remember, “Easton, Gavin, Quinn, and Ian,” she said the last as she pointed up at the toddler in Kate’s arms.

  Each of the boys’ eyes lit up as she said their names.

  Kate giggled.

  “Come on,” she said, grabbing Gavin by the hand and dragging him into the house. “We have to let papa know that you’re here.”

  Easton looked up at his father for approval.

  Noah nodded and the boys happily followed Sophia inside.

  “She is beautiful, Lucy,” Kate said, wrapping her arms around her sister-in-law.

  “She’s been practicing everyone’s names for days,” Lucy said with a laugh, reaching out to hug Noah as well. “Where are my manners? Come in. Come in. Lucas will be so glad to see you. We weren’t expecting you until early next week, so give me a minute and I’ll just get your room fixed up.”

  Noah stepped inside and placed a large travelling case on the floor next to the door.

  “Can I help?” Kate asked, switching Ian to her other hip.

  Lucy nodded and grasped his wife by the hand, then turned back to look at Noah. “I think the men are all out in the barn. There is plenty of room for your wagon and stalls for the horses. Jake will help you see to them.” With that, she, like her daughter, pulled Kate into the house and disappeared.

  Noah breathed out a laugh and turned back to take care of the wagon.

  When Lucy had first contacted them about coming to Whisper Ridge for the holidays, Noah had been reluctant. After his mother had left them to sing on a big city stage when he was but nine years old, it had only been him, his three brothers, and their father, who had decided that Christmas was just another working day, and happy memories of t
he holiday season were hard to come by.

  Sentimentality had not been a priority in their home, and while he and his brothers had been close, they’d not experienced the same type of family life they’d seen when they visited their cousins at Redbourne Ranch in Rock Creek, Kansas. Besides, Thistleberry was a long way from Laramie and would be an arduous journey with his little ones—especially since the rail line had not yet been completed between the two places.

  Being married to Kate and starting a family of their own had changed him, and what he’d believed was simply an unachievable ideal, only experienced by others, had grown into a reality he and his wife had created for their own children. When he finally realized just how much he missed his brothers…and his dad—though that was the hardest to admit, he’d sent a telegram back to Lucy with a resounding yes.

  Gabe Deardon was a stubborn man, and none of his sons had ever seen eye to eye with their father, but Noah felt life was too short to allow misunderstandings and petty differences get in the way of family. Besides, his father had been at Whisper Ridge now for several years. He hoped that he’d been able to rebuild his relationships with his own brothers in that time, but couldn’t help his desire to see his father proud of him and all he’d accomplished.

  As Noah stepped off the front porch, he looked over to the barn, where Lucas was already running over the snow toward him. A few strides closed the distance between them and he pulled his not so little brother into a fierce hug. Noah clenched his jaw, refusing to allow the tears welling up in his eyes to escape down his face. He just held on. It had been so long.

  “I thought you weren’t going to be here until next week,” Lucas finally said once they pulled apart. “Where are Kate and the kids?”

  “The boys are with that little sweetheart of yours. Does that girl just have you wrapped around her little finger? She is a doll.”

  Lucas laughed. “Sounds like she’s already worked her charms on you. I know she’s got Dad right where she wants him.”

  Noah stared at Lucas. “No,” he said, disbelievingly.

  “Sure does.” His brother nodded. “He’s like a different man when that little girl is around.”

  “This I’ve got to see.”

  “You will.”

  Chapter Four

  The sound of several small voices outside the door alerted Gabe to his granddaughter’s presence.

  “It’s here! It’s here!” The excited squeals of the little girl had Gabe to his feet in moments.

  “What’s here?” he asked as Sophia took his hand and dragged him across the house to the front door where Lucy stood watching with her hand resting at her chest.

  As he made his way to the entrance, he glanced out into the yard and was greeted with a sight he hadn’t thought he would ever see again. His boys—all but Henry, God rest his soul, were inspecting the sleigh his nephew Ethan had shipped to him. He clenched his jaw and ground his teeth to quell the emotion that threatened to surface. He opened his mouth to call out, but fear overtook him and he started to back away.

  Lucy glanced back over her shoulder. “Gabe. Can you believe it? They’re here. All together. Finally.”

  “Come on, Granddad. What are you waiting for?” Sophia tugged on him, but he stood his ground.

  “Nobody asked them to come,” he said gruffly as he pulled his hand from the little girl’s steady grip and dropped down as far as his knees would allow, then placed a light kiss on the child’s small nose. His heart flooded with mixed emotions. “Maybe later.”

  “Gabe,” Lucy tried to stop him as he strode to the kitchen, “your sleigh is here,” she called after him.

  He threw open the back door and headed into the barn. Seeing his sons all together like that brought back memories he’d sooner forget. Years of Christmases that had been ruined with grief and bitterness. He hadn’t been the best of fathers and didn’t blame any of them for the resentment they felt for him. He regretted the years his anger had stolen from them, but nothing could make up for lost time.

  At least he’d been able to repair much of his relationship with Lucas over the last few years, but he’d been the youngest—barely seven—when their mother had left and things had changed. When he’d changed.

  He wiped a rogue tear from the corner of his eye and threw back the blanket hiding his little treasures. Most of them had been completed, but there were several that still needed sanding and a little paint.

  “Why, Gabe Deardon, if I didn’t know any better I would say you are hiding.”

  He whipped around to see his daughter-in-law, Emma, standing in the doorway, her hands tucked into a blue fur muff. A grin spread across her face as she made her way toward him.

  “It’s good to see you,” she said, leaning down and placing a kiss on his cheek. “Lucy said I’d probably find you out here. I hope you don’t mind.”

  Gabe didn’t know what to say, so he just picked up the piece of wood he’d been carving and started sanding the edges. The last time he’d seen Emma, he’d just had words with Jonah and had left things on uncertain terms.

  “We did it,” she said as she sat down on the stool next to him. “We bought the MacPherson place.”

  Gabe shot her a surprised look, then returned his focus to his work.

  “And the ranch?” he finally choked out.

  “Sold it.” Emma placed the muff on the top of the work table and placed a hand on Gabe’s shoulder. “I suppose that means we will be seeing a lot more of each other.”

  He thought about saying something sarcastic, but couldn’t force the words.

  “I’d like that,” he said simply.

  “Did Ethan really make that sleigh?” Kate asked as she appeared at the back of the barn.

  “Isn’t it beautiful?” Lucy asked, joining them and closing the barn door behind her. “I still can’t believe you had it shipped in, Gabe. I’m sure Mr. Gibbons would have been willing to make something for you. Unless…”

  The town’s blacksmith was handy enough in his trade, but the type of intricate design work and sturdy durability he’d wanted could only come from the hands of his talented nephew, Ethan Redbourne.

  “Unless what?” he asked with a raised brow.

  All three women gathered in close around him.

  “Unless you didn’t want everyone in town to know that sleigh belongs to you.”

  “What are you talking about?” He looked down at the train in his hands and quickly shoved it back into the box and dusted off his hands.

  He didn’t fluster easily, but having all three of his daughters-in-law closing in on him, he’d begun to feel cornered.

  Lucy pulled the blanket off of the rocking horse he’d just finished last night.

  “Ah,” the women collectively gasped.

  “Oh, Dad, it’s stunning.”

  “So, I’m making myself useful. What is it you think you know?”

  “I think we’re looking at Thistleberry’s own Father Christmas.”

  “That’s ridiculous.” He knew there wasn’t much use denying it. He’d been caught.

  The women each placed their hands on their hips, grins spread across their faces.

  “How can we help?”

  Gabe glanced to the doorway where Ethel Fawcett now stood, a deep red mantle draped over her arm. He slid back the stool and jumped to his feet, his knees cracking at the effort.

  “Mrs. Fawcett?” he said, self-consciously slicking his white hair down with his hand.

  “We’ve known each other a long while, Gabriel Deardon. Don’t you think it’s about time you called me Ethel?”

  Gabe flitted a glance at each of his daughters-in-law and bowed his head before looking back at the woman—striking in her deep green dress. “Yes, ma’am, but how—?” He was still a little confused as to how all of these women had any idea what he’d been up to.

  “I’ve always had a sense about you.” She winked and Gabe thought his heart might bust the buttons on the front of his shirt.

 
“What can I do for you…Ethel?”

  She held up the drape from her arm—a cloak that boasted finished brown, fur-lined cuffs, collar, and hemline. It looked like one out of a Father Christmas story.

  He took a step toward her, but didn’t dare reach out for it. He liked doing things anonymously and was sure his color matched the hue of the coat at having his secret discovered. He couldn’t help the smile that cracked his features as all four women beamed at him.

  “Well, go ahead. Try it on.” Ethel held it out for him.

  This was silly. And Gabe Deardon was not a silly man, so why did he want to try it on?

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake, Dad.” Lucy got behind Ethel and nudged her closer to Gabe.

  He felt his heartbeat quicken as the woman held open the cloak and waited.

  As he slipped one arm through the coat, the weight of it enveloped him in warmth. He quickly donned the rest of it, wrapping it eagerly around his front.

  “I’m afraid I don’t have the right belly for it.”

  The women laughed.

  “You look wonderful, Gabe,” Emma beamed at him.

  “Very handsome,” Kate confirmed.

  “A right Father Christmas,” Lucy added.

  He turned away from them, refusing to allow his emotions to get the better of him. It wasn’t long before he was encircled in the encouraging and loving embraces of the women who meant the most to him in this world—minus one little angel who couldn’t know his secret. At least not yet.

  “Thank you,” he whispered. “Now,” he cleared his throat, “let’s get to work.”

  Chapter Five

  “I understand the need for a sleigh in a Montana winter, but isn’t this a little extravagant for Dad?” Jonah asked as he admired the hand-crafted embellishments that lined the edges of the large red contraption.

  Lucas looked up at his oldest brother, then over at Noah, who had climbed up into the front seat of the sleigh. It was good to have them here for the holidays. Then the thought hit him and it seemed as if his brothers had had the same idea as they all turned and looked at each other.