Page 50 of A Steadfast Heart
Without Tillie’s usual cheerful chatter, the meal felt quiet.
David scanned the table, his expression unsure. “The calves out on the range are looking good. Even the white calf is putting on weight. I think she’s gonna make it.”
His voice was steady, not gloating, but Jo bristled anyway. “You saw Daisy, and I got stuck with stupid laundry.”
“You’ll go tomorrow.” David placed a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged away from it.
Drew cleared his throat. “Jo, I’ve had enough of your attitude today. Apologize to your brother.”
Jo’s shoulders slumped. “Sorry,” she muttered.
What had Jo done? Kaitlyn looked at him, tilted her head questioningly. He shook his head slightly, then tapped the pocket where his father’s watch resided. Kaitlyn found the energy to smile at him. Message received. He’d tell her later. One side of his mouth quirked.
His mouth. She raised a hand to her own lips, which still tingled when she thought of the last moments in her room. He’d kissed her, held her, comforted her. And said he’d remember that Michael was her half-brother, as if he knew it mattered to her.
Ed pushed back his plate and looked her way. “Why’d the marshal come out?”
“She brought me a message from town.” The words flowed as smoothly as they had when Kaitlyn had practiced them earlier.
“Must have been some message, to be worth the trip. Who sent—” Ed stopped abruptly, looking in Drew’s direction. “Never mind.”
Kaitlyn looked at her husband, caught the glare he’d sent to his brother.
Jo snickered. “She said Kaitlyn’s in trouble.”
Drew caught his daughter’s eye. “Jo, that’s enough.”
“Well, she did. Didn’t she Kaitlyn?”
Kaitlyn bit her lip. How little of the story could she get away with? She met Jo’s challenging gaze. “Not in the way you think, Jo. There is trouble, but not between me and the law.”
“You don’t have to leave, do you?” Tillie’s whining tone increased, and tears seemed imminent.
“Everyone leaves, Tillie. You’re just too much of a baby to know it.”
Tillie pushed her chair back, the legs scraping against the floor. She jumped down, an elbow nearly knocking over her water glass. She climbed into Kaitlyn’s lap and dissolved into tears. Kaitlyn rubbed her back as she wept. Ed, Nick, and David gathered dishes and carried them into the kitchen. Happy for an excuse to avoid the drama, no doubt. Drew stood and signaled Jo to join him on the porch. Kaitlyn’s hand paused on Tillie’s back. She’d never seen that expression on Drew’s face before. Stricken? Guilty?
He crossed the parlor and exited through the front door. Jo followed, her steps lagging.
Tillie’s tears slowed, and she pulled back from Kaitlyn. “I d-don’t want you to go! You’re my mama now. Mamas aren’t s’posed to leave.”
Tillie’s dark eyes seemed so trusting. A tear spilled down her plump cheek and seared Kaitlyn’s heart. She pulled Tillie closer. If Kaitlyn left, would the little girl understand how much she’d wanted to stay? Or would Jo’s words continue to sow bitterness?
Michael had already shown his hand. He was coming to Wyoming. The only question that remained was what to do about it. But right now, Tillie needed her. “I know you don’t, sweet pea. I don’t either, but sometimes we have to do things we don’t want to do.”
“Now?” Tillie’s voice broke on the word.
Tillie had already lost one mother. Amanda had been trying to take the girls from their father when she died, and the family hadn’t been the same since. Kaitlyn couldn’t stand to add to that wound. “No matter what, there’s one thing you need to know. It isn’t your fault. There are grown-up things going on, but they have nothing to do with you.”
Tillie nodded, but doubt lingered in her eyes. Kaitlyn wiped tears off Tillie’s cheeks, then stilled and laid her hand against the little girl’s forehead. It was hot. Kaitlyn’s stomach clenched. No wonder Tillie was emotional.
“Are you feeling okay, little one?” Kaitlyn brushed the hair from Tillie’s cheek.
Tillie shook her head. “My throat hurts.”
A fever and a sore throat? What if it was scarlet fever? Or diphtheria? Did they need to find a doctor?
Kaitlyn forced her breathing to calm. Tillie was whining, but she still seemed mostly normal. Drew would know what to do. “Let’s go talk to your father for a minute.”
