Page 101 of The Enchanted Land

Both men rose and stood facing one another.

“I know I haven’t deserved your consideration, but I thank you, and I thank you for taking care of Morgan. Jessy seemed to think you two liked one another.”

“Jessy? Ah yes, Morgan’s friend. Jessy told you Morgan’s story, then?”

“Yes.”

“I looked for you for a long time after that night, even though Morgan refused to mention your name. When I did find out about you, she was already in New Mexico.”

“I have a great deal to do before I can leave San Francisco. I need to take care of my property. As soon as I can, I’ll be off to New Mexico—to Morgan.” He took Theron’s hand. “You won’t regret trusting me. I know you care for her.”

Seth left the room and Theron stared after him. He wondered if he’d done the right thing. Morgan was happy at the ranch with Gordon and Adam. He didn’t know if he should have broken into her peace. But he knew how much she’d always loved Seth. And, of course, there was Adam now. No matter what, Adam was Seth’s son and Seth deserved at least to see the boy.

He smiled to himself. He’d like to see Seth’s face when he discovered he had a son. And Morgan’s when she saw Seth! He laughed aloud. It was almost tempting to make the journey to New Mexico. He shuddered. New Mexico was too ghastly to even consider. How could anyone want to live in that wasteland?

Oh, well, he sighed. Back to work. Mrs. Osborne needed some new drapes. Morgan would have loved these. They were several shades of Morgan’s abhorred purple, and the figures on them resembled gargoyles rather than the young ladies they were supposed to be. He still missed Morgan’s cutting little remarks and, he had to admit, the stir they caused when they went places together.

It took Seth a week to take care of his business in San Francisco. He found a young lawyer, Tim Bradbury, who was disillusioned and disgusted with the gold fields. Seth was his first client. With Seth’s holdings to administer, he was able to set up his own law practice. He was grateful to Seth. To keep his gratitude, Seth gave him a share of the rents and a percentage of the profits from the sale of any land. Revenues were to be sent to a bank in Santa Fe.

His mind was clear when he set out for Santa Fe. He was free to give all his attention to his wife.

Chapter Nineteen

MORGANwas happily surprised by the ranch house of the Three Crowns. It was built in the Spanish tradition, like the Montoya ranch. It was enormous.

“What do you think?” Gordon asked her as they looked down on the spacious house from the ridge above.

The house was the same color as the surrounding countryside and seemed always to have been there. It nestled down amidst the piñon trees and the much taller cottonwoods.

“There’s a river near the house.” Gordon pointed to a strip of green not far from the house. “Are you surprised?”

“Very. It’s practically a mansion. How many rooms does it have?”

“I’ve never counted them, but you’ll have a lifetime to count them.” Gordon looked back at Adam, who’d climbed into the back of the wagon and fallen asleep. “We’d better get Adam into a bed.”

Morgan thought the inside of the house was even more beautiful than the outside. The rooms on the first floor were large and airy. They opened into a spacious courtyard, in the center of which was a tiled pool. Stone benches and statues were sprinkled among the trees and flowering shrubs.

“He’s asleep.” Gordon returned from putting Adam to bed. “Now, let’s meet the servants and have dinner.”

“Servants?” Morgan laughed. “I’m afraid I’ve become accustomed to doing most of the housework myself.”

“This is your home and here, if you want to, you can sit and eat chocolates all day.”

“Chocolates! I needed you when I was carrying Adam.”

Gordon looked puzzled and then smiled. “Oh, yes, Jake told me about your unusual eating habits.”

The servants were lined up in the foyer, at the bottom of the stairs.

“Roselle, our cook. Martin is our butler and general factotum. This is Carol, who takes care of the upstairs rooms. Donaciano, who is our groom. Carol’s sister, Magda, comes in during the days to help with the downstairs rooms.”

Morgan shook hands with each of them. Roselle and Martin were married and had worked in the house since it was built. Carol was a young girl, in her teens, very plain and rather shy. Donaciano was just a boy, about twelve or thirteen. Morgan learned later that Gordon had adopted him when his parents drowned two years earlier.

Gordon escorted her into the room adjoining the foyer, the dining room. The pine table was enormous, with at least twelve large pine chairs. It was covered now with a snowy white linen cloth and set with the finest Limoges porcelain and crystal. The silver was heavy and ornate.

“Gordon! It’s really beautiful.”

Gordon smiled at her praise. He liked to live comfortably. “Roselle is an excellent cook, and I think you’ll be pleased.”

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