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Chapter Fifteen Her words filled Sully’s heart to the point that he felt as if he could burst with happiness. He looked into her eyes and saw such beauty and life inside of her. He had never seen her so beautiful before, and as she stood there, waiting for him to respond, the storm seemed to pass, and the sun began to shine. “Sully, I love you too,” she whispered again, feeling the words fill her own heart. She’d wanted to tell him for so long, and now that she had, she felt as if she could tell him anything. Sully’s arms, still soaking wet from the rain, wrapped around her and pulled her close. His lips found hers again, and as their lips and tongues danced in the timeless rhythm of love, the entire room seemed to spin around them. They were dizzy and drunk on love, and Michaela wondered how she ever could have thought of leaving. When they parted, Sully framed Michaela’s face with his hands. “You’re stayin’?” Her hands moved to rest upon his, and she smiled. “I’m staying.” Their lips met again, and his arms moved to pull her close once more. Their hearts began to beat in the other’s rhythm, and each were oblivious to the two sets of peeping eyes in the window. The sound of the stagecoach rumbling out of town startled Michaela and Sully, and they both looked toward the window to see Colleen and Matthew’s grinning faces. The children began to laugh when they’d been caught, and the Reverend came running up behind them. They ran toward the clinic door and burst inside. Reverend Johnson came in with Brian in his arms. “I’m so sorry,” he said quietly. “They just got away from me. When he saw that Sully’s hand was resting comfortably on Michaela’s hip, and one of her arms was draped around his neck, he cleared his throat. “Come along children.” “Are you two getting married now?” Colleen asked. Michaela’s eyes went wide, and she looked at Sully. “What have you been telling them?” she asked with a laugh. “Don’t worry,” he whispered softly. “They’re the ones who think it’s all so simple.” Sully took Brian into his arms. “Thanks for watchin’ ‘em, Reverend.” The Reverend tipped his hat to the lady doctor and went about his way, obviously sure that they wouldn’t need to send an advertisement for a new doctor. “It stopped rainin’,” Matthew noted. “We can go home now. Dr. Mike’s comin’ too, ain’t she?” “She can speak for herself, Matthew,” Sully replied quietly. Colleen tugged on her father’s hand and wiggled her finger for him to kneel down so she could whisper into his ear. When he did, she whispered: “Ya should ask her to come to the house for supper tonight.” Sully grinned at his daughter and stood back up. He smiled, and Michaela had to smile back. Seeing Sully happy made her even happier. “Go on out to the wagon,” Sully advised his two oldest. The children frowned but knew to give their father a minute with Michaela. When they had left, shutting the door behind themselves, Sully turned his attention back to the woman he loved, while Brian held his arms out to Michaela. “Looks like he loves bein’ held by ya too.” Michaela smiled. She gently took Brian into her arms and held him close. He smiled and rested his head on her shoulder. “He loves ya.” “That’s good, because I’m quite fond of him too,” she said with a grin. Her hand softly rubbed Brian’s back, and a few moments later, he was sleeping soundly. Sully watched her for a few moments as she swayed back and forth with the sleeping boy in her arms. He actually felt embarrassed for ever having doubted her ways with the children. She was the most nurturing, loving woman he’d ever seen. “Michaela?” Her eyes brightened when he said her name that way. She smiled at him. “Um . . . do ya mind if I call ya that?” “Why would I mind?” “Well, I called ya Dr. Mike all this time, and I just thought . . .” “Sully, whatever you wish to call me is fine,” she replied with a smile. A grin played upon his lips. “Michaela,” he repeated, “would ya like to join us for supper this evenin’?” Michaela looked around the clinic silently, her eyes surveying the work that needed to be done. She gazed back at him, and he put his hand on Brian’s back and stepped closer. “Did ya have any appointments scheduled for today?” “No,” she answered softly, a smile slowly spreading across her face. She felt her cheeks growing rosier as Sully’s eyes stared into the depths of her entire being. “Well, how ‘bout you come out to the homestead and spend the day?” “The entire day?” Michaela asked, her heart beginning to beat a little faster. “Sure. The kids would love to have ya almost as much as I would.” Michaela grinned. “Well, I’d love to, Sully, but as you can see, I have a lot of work to do here.” “Can’t it wait?” “I suppose it could, but I . . .” Sully leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. She was taken by surprise but didn’t mind it one bit. “I’ll tell ya what,” he started, “if ya come with me today, I’ll spend all of tomorrow helpin’ ya get unpacked.” That sounded wonderful. There was always the possibility of tomorrow being sunny, and spending such a beautiful day with the man she loved, working side-by-side with him in the confines of the clinic sounded like a splendid idea! Perhaps afterwards, they could take a stroll through the meadow all alone and enjoy whatever the rest of the day had left to offer. “Alright,” she breathed softly. “That sounds like a lovely idea.” Sully did help her take the suitcases that belonged upstairs up to her room, and when that task was finished, the three joined Matthew and Colleen in the wagon and started off toward the homestead. *~* Myra sat on the porch of Widow Hanson’s boarding house. She had a book in her hands, but she couldn’t concentrate on the words that were typed across the pages. In the morning, they were burying her baby boy. They were sticking him in the ground where he’d never be seen again. He’d be forgotten by those who barely knew him, but he’d forever live in his mother’s memory, growing and loving as if he’d never stopped. She’d never forget his first breath or the first time he cried. She’d never forget how he used to hold onto her finger so tight as she rocked him and nursed him in the wee hours of the morning. Sam was a good little boy, and his mother would never forget how it had felt to carry him for nine months. He’d been safe inside of her from the moment he’d been created until it was time for him to be born. It had been a relatively easy pregnancy, so why did it all have to come crumbling down after he was born? She felt guilty for even thinking that it might have been easier had she miscarried and never gotten the chance to absolutely fall in love with the tiny person that she had helped to create. Horace was the one person she’d always been able to trust, but now she couldn’t trust him anymore. He wasn’t the same person to her now that their son was dead. All she saw when she looked at Horace was pain and suffering that their little boy had to have gone through before his tragic death. Horace was no longer security and warmth. She couldn’t live in a marriage where she could never stop blaming and hating. After the dust settled after the funeral, she had to move on. She had to get out of the marriage that had already caused her an unbearable amount of pain. People would look down at her for the way she thought about her husband, but she didn’t care. She cared about nothing anymore except for the spirit of her poor little boy. She hadn’t eaten since she’d heard the news, and even hunger seemed less painful than the heavy agony that tore at her heart with every beat and every breath she took. “Miss Myra,” Abagail said softly, stepping out onto the porch with a tray in her hands. “Widow Hanson wanted me to bring this out for you. It’s kinda chilly out here, and she thought some hot soup would do ya some good.” “Thanks Abagail, but I ain’t real hungry right now.” “Ya gotta eat,” Abagail said softly, trying not to sound too persistent. Myra shook her head, turning her body away. She stood and walked over to lean against the porch railing. Abagail watched as Myra’s spirit darkened and became more depressed. It was painful to watch, especially considering the fact that Myra had been one of the nicest people she’d ever known. Their age difference was only a couple of years, and before Myra married Horace, she and Abagail had been good friends, almost like sisters. It had all changed now, and Abagail only wished there was something she could do to get that close sisterly friendship back. She stood, placing the tray down on a small table, and she walked over to stand beside Myra. Her hand moved to the older woman’s back and rubbed it sympathetically. “Remember a few years back when we ran away for three hours ‘cause I was mad at my Ma and Pa?” Myra smiled a little. Strangely enough, she couldn’t remember the last time she had smiled. Perhaps it was the morning Sam died, and she had been helping Dr. Mike to change his bandages, and he’d made a soft coo when the doctor had accidentally touched the sensitive underside of his arm where he was most ticklish. “I didn’t want ya runnin’ away all alone.” “We sure weren’t good at it, huh? They found us ‘fore we even reached Snow Creek.” “Your Pa sure was mad,” Myra remembered. “Yeah, but he bought me a new dress the next day,” Abagail replied, rolling her eyes. “He hates yellin’ at me, so I suppose I always found it best not to give him a reason to.” “But ya got a new dress out of it,” Myra replied. Abagail smiled brightly. “Sure did,” she replied with a laugh. Myra felt something lift off of her shoulders then. She felt lighter now that she had been able to smile and laugh a little. She felt guilty, but she wasn’t angry with herself for allowing a laugh to escape or a smile to brighten her mood. She looked gratefully at Abagail. “Thank you.” Abagail smiled at her friend. “Anytime,” she replied. “Now will ya please eat?” Myra thought for a moment before her stomach rumbled, answering for her. She and Abagail moved to sit back on the bench, and Myra ate for the first time in what seemed like forever. *~* Sitting upon the porch of the homestead was quite relaxing for Michaela. She hadn’t been this relaxed in days, and just watching Matthew and Colleen play with Wolf brought more happiness to the woman doctor. “No!” Colleen giggled. “Get Matthew!” Wolf sniffed the air and went after the boy. Matthew laughed and rushed into the barn. Wolf chased him, and Colleen jogged along behind. Sully came out from the house after putting Brian down for a nap, and he sat down next to Michaela. “You cold?” “No, I’m surprisingly warm,” she replied. It was the warmest that it had been lately, and rather muggy since the rain had passed. The children were giggling inside of the barn, and Wolf barked. “Sounds like they’re havin’ fun,” Sully noted. He glanced at Michaela. “What did ya do for fun when you were little?” Michaela blushed. “I read.” “Read?” “And I wrote. I always wrote in my diary, and sometimes I would make up stories.” “What kinda stories?” “Oh, they’re nothing, really.” Sully knew she was lying, and he wanted to know more about how she acted as a child. “C’mon, tell me?” Michaela smiled and thought back to her childhood. “Alright. Let me see if I can remember.” She closed her eyes for a minute, and Sully’s hand moved to rest on the small of her back. His hand there practically made her toes curl! “Once I wrote a story in my diary about being a princess in a tower in the farthest land. A prince was supposed to come rescue me, and I was going to . . .” She giggled a bit. “I was going to bandage his sore hands when he finished climbing to my window.” Sully chuckled. “Then I was going to serve him tea. After that, he whisked me off on his white horse and into the sunset.” “Well, I don’t think I can get ya the white horse right now, but the sunset’s a different story.” He smiled and pointed toward Pike’s Peak. “Come dusk, the sky looks beautiful.” Michaela smiled, eager to see that with him. As they were staring off toward the high peak, Michaela jumped when she heard a splash and saw Sully get absolutely drenched. “Oh!” Michaela cried as Sully looked over his shoulder. The children had snuck up with buckets in their hands. “You little,” Sully said with a laugh. “I just got dry!” Matthew ran off with the empty bucket, and Michaela couldn’t help but laugh. She stood and protected Colleen, but Colleen ran around the front. Sully noticed Michaela laughing. “Ya think it’s funny?” She bit her bottom lip to stop herself from bursting out into continuous laughter. “Well, you do look rather handsome when you’re soaking wet!” A gleam appeared in Sully’s eye, and he took the bucket from Colleen. Michaela’s eyes went wide, and she knew exactly what he was thinking of doing. “Oh no! You wouldn’t! Sully, you wouldn’t!” “Run!” Matthew yelped. Michaela let out shriek and ran around to the other side of the house, while Matthew went to fill up his bucket from the large barrel beside the barn. Sully ran toward Colleen, but she ducked out of the way to go get another bucket from the barn. Michaela pressed herself against the other side of the homestead, hoping Sully wouldn’t catch up to her. But then again, if he did, she knew she wouldn’t mind that a bit either! This was exhilarating! “Michaela?” came Sully’s voice. She grinned widely and bit her bottom lip to stifle and laugh. A moment later, she was drenched in water from her head to her feet. “Oh! Sully!” she exclaimed with sweet laughter. Sully threw the bucket aside and stood, equally drenched, a few steps from the woman he loved. “Looks like ya been initiated into the family,” he joked. Michaela liked the sound of that, and a moment later, she felt Sully’s arms pulling her closer, and their lips met with a tender kiss. Splash! Two cold streams of water hit them, forcing them apart, and they stared at the children. Michaela winked at Sully, and he cleared his throat. “Let’s get ‘em!” The children screeched with happiness and rushed away as the adults moved to get water from the barn. Robert E. was riding up toward the homestead to deliver some letters to the lady doctor that Horace hadn’t wanted to give to her himself. He smiled when he dismounted and saw the water fight in the progress. He cleared his throat, and everybody stopped, looking like pitiful drowned rats, but he could tell by their red cheeks and the smiles on their faces that they were happy. “Sure look like a real family,” he commented. “Nothin’ wrong with havin’ fun.” Michaela blushed, and Sully walked over to Robert E. “What can I do for ya?” he asked. “Oh, Horace opened up the telegraph office when the government sent the army to convince him to do it.” Robert E. shook his head with exasperation. “He asked me to bring you and Dr. Mike your letters and such.” “Thanks Robert E.” Sully took the stack of mail between his thumb and forefinger, the driest two digits on his hand. Robert E. left a minute later, and Sully handed Michaela the majority of the envelopes. “Ah, letters from home,” Michaela said with a smile. He saw a hint of sadness appear in her face, and he didn’t like seeing that. He turned to Matthew and Colleen. “Kids, why don’t ya go inside and get changed into some dry clothes?” “Aww,” they groaned in unison. But, they started into the house. Michaela had disappeared into the barn, and Sully followed slowly behind her. He quietly moved behind her and placed his hands upon her shoulders. They moved down, and his arms wrapped securely around her waist. Michaela closed her eyes for a moment and finally pulled away. Sully understood that this much attention was a bit much for her right now. “Not bad news, is it?” Michaela sighed. “Well, it’s from my mother, so it’s not bad news, and it isn’t good.” She turned around to face him. “They’re all from mother and father, but unfortunately, reading this makes me hesitant to read the others.” “How bad can it be?” Michaela sighed and shook her head. She looked down at the paper and began to read. “Dearest Michaela, I don’t know when you’ll receive this, seeing as the speed of the post is abominably slow! I’ve had a bit of time to think about how you feel about this Sully character. I’m sure you find him charming, but that is only because you are too far from civilization to truly appreciate the handsome gentlemen that Boston has to offer.” She paused and turned to pace about the barn. Sully watched her, feeling terrible for the way her mother was speaking through her written words. “I understand that your practice mostly consists of females and children as patients. They don’t accept you out there, Michaela, and you need to face that. Your father is convinced that I will agree to this travesty that may become a relationship between you and this Sully fellow, but I will never comprehend how you could care for someone who has no class or sophistication whatsoever.” Sully sighed, and Michaela continued. “I’m disappointed in you, Michaela, and I suggest that you return to Boston immediately to help your father with his practice. Your mother, Elizabeth Quinn.” She looked up into Sully’s eyes with tears in her own. Everything was quiet, and Wolf, who was lying in the corner, put his head down on his paws as if he was oblivious to the fact that humans were in his presence. “You alright?” “Me?” Michaela asked. “What about you? My mother has absolutely no right to form such an opinion! She doesn’t even know you!” Sully smiled. “Ya know, this ain’t usually the way to get on the parents’ good side, I’m thinkin’, but what really matters is how you feel and how you think.” “You know how I feel,” Michaela replied. She looked down and brushed tears from her eyes. “I love you.” Sully touched her cheek and gently lifted her head. “I love you.” He pressed a kiss to her lips. “Don’t worry ‘bout the words in that letter. I’m sorry ya had to read it.” “It’s nothing new,” Michaela replied, placing the letters down upon a barrel. She shook her head and took a deep breath. “Nothing I ever did was ever good enough for her. Everything I did was only ‘nice’ or ‘interesting’ or ‘not as good as before.’ She always compared everything I did to my sisters and would point out how different I was from them. She said that I had no respect for her and only for my father. I respected her, but she didn’t want me to be me. She wanted me to be someone completely different.” “C’mere,” Sully whispered. He pulled the lady doctor into his arms. Her head rested upon his chest, and her arms wrapped around him to softly caress his muscular back. “The only thing that matters is how you feel about yourself. Your Ma obviously don’t know just how special you are. I do, Michaela. I see that light in your eyes, and I know you were brought to me for a reason. I don’t ever wanna let ya go.” “Good,” Michaela whispered as she and Sully gently rocked back and forth together, holding onto one another. “Never let go.” |
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