Free Pony Express Courtship by Rhonda Gibson Page B

answered. He stood slowly. “I’ll ask him—if he’s agreeable then I’ll move out to the barn.”
    He watched Jacob shut the door behind him. The sound of thunder shook the house. The storm reminded Seth of the Youngs. Just when he thought things were going well and they were all working together, lightning seemed to strike and was always followed by thunder.
    There was no doubt in his mind that if Andrew didn’t want to move into the main house, Jacob wouldn’t be moving into the tack room in the barn. He laid down on his bed and listened to the rain hit the tin roof.
    And if that wasn’t enough, now the townspeople were talking about Rebecca and him. As far as he knew, neither of them had given them reason to talk. Seth sighed. Jacob felt as if he needed to protect his mother’s reputation but really wasn’t able to.
    Frustration gnawed at his gut. If he didn’t need the money to find Charlotte, Seth would move on. He didn’t need this family’s problems and he certainly never intended to cause them more. Drawing on the only source that had sustained him the past couple of years, Seth closed his eyes and prayed that God would provide a way to keep Rebecca’s reputation free of harm and that God would help him find Charlotte so that he could return home to St. Joseph.

Chapter Seven
    A fter dinner, Seth walked out to the front porch. The rain had stopped but it had brought a chilling wind. He wrapped his coat tighter around his body and sat down on the porch swing. The sound of kids laughing and talking loudly caused him to grin. Even though the Young kids weren’t related, they behaved very much like brothers and sister.
    Over the meal, Rebecca had told them all that not only was the farm a Pony Express station, but now it was also a stage stop. She explained that twice a week the stage would stop there and she and Joy would sell things like sandwiches, cookies and beverages to the passengers. The boys had asked questions and Rebecca had answered each of them with more patience than Seth thought he could ever exhibit. Joy excitedly told her brothers how much Mr. Bromley had enjoyed her cookies. Seth had to admit that he’d felt a bit like an outsider.
    Even now, sitting on the porch, he longed to join in but felt he had nothing to contribute. After he found and married Charlotte, would he then feel like part of a family? With no brothers or sisters, Seth had grown up an only child. His mother had abandoned him and his father when he was very young. Grandmother always said his pa had died of a broken heart. Seth gleaned from the retelling that women couldn’t be trusted and loving one would break your heart and kill you. As an adult, he didn’t believe that his dad literally died of a broken heart, but Seth did know that women couldn’t be trusted. If it wasn’t for his grandmother, he’d not be on this wild-goose chase looking for a woman who’d probably simply changed her mind about marriage.
    â€œSo this is where you got off to,” Rebecca said, coming through the front door. She wore a light brown dress and her blue cloak covered most of it.
    The swing rocked gently under her slight weight as she sat. He grinned over at her. “Yes, it’s a little quieter out here.”
    At that moment, Joy let out a loud squeal and Rebecca laughed. “Yes, they are a mite keyed up tonight. It’s probably from being cooped up most of the day.”
    If she hadn’t said it, he would have. “Joy is very excited about the stage stopping here,” he said as the little girl’s voice drifted through the window.
    â€œYes, she wants to make all the cookies we sell.” Rebecca pulled her cloak tighter about her middle.
    â€œShe told me she’d read a recipe that had nuts in it that she wanted to try. I didn’t know she could read,” he said, looking over at his pretty companion.
    â€œOh, she can a