The Cowboy's Ready-Made Family. Linda Ford

mind whirled. What was a stranger doing in her yard? Even more, what was he doing with Robbie? She grabbed Robbie and pulled him to her side. “Did this man hurt you?”

      The man in question studied her with ebony eyes. He wore a black hat with a feather in the band and a fringed leather shirt. Leather trousers and dusty cowboy boots completed his outfit except for a large knife at his waist. She glanced about but saw no weapon she could grab. She was defenseless, but if he meant to attack she would fight tooth and nail.

      His appearance was the icing on the cake for an already dreadful morning. First, the milk cow was missing. Frank had gone looking for her. He was a responsible boy but, still, he was only eleven. He shouldn’t be doing her job. She needed to get the fences fixed so the cow wouldn’t get out. But she simply couldn’t keep up with all the things that needed doing.

      Then Liz went to get the eggs. She was ten but had gathered eggs for her mother even before Susanne had come out to help. But six-year-old Janie had followed her and left the gate open. Now all the chickens were out racing around. If Susanne didn’t get them in before dark, some predator would enjoy a chicken dinner.

      She thought that was as bad as the morning could get. Then on top of that Robbie had disappeared again. The boy wandered about at will. She had been searching for him when Alfred Morris had shown up with a renewed offer.

      “You can’t run the farm on your own,” Alfred had said, as he did every time he crossed her path—which he made certain occurred with alarming regularity. “That’s obvious to anyone who cares to look. Sell it or abandon it. Swallow your pride and accept my offer of marriage. You’d have a much better life as my wife.”

      “Mr. Morris, I’m flattered. Truly I am. But I don’t want to sell my brother’s farm. Someday it will belong to his sons.”

      Alfred lived in town where he ran a successful mercantile business. She was sure he’d make someone a very good husband. Just not her. No, marriage was simply not in her plans. Hadn’t been even before she became the sole guardian of four children.

      Her own parents had died, drowned in a flash flood, when she was twelve. Her brother, Jim, was fifteen years older and had already moved west. He’d come for the funeral and made arrangements for Susanne to live with Aunt Ada. But living with her relative was less than ideal. Aunt Ada treated her like a slave. Never had she let Susanne forget how much she owed her aunt for a roof over her head and a bed. Well, more like a cot in the back of the storeroom but, regardless, according to Aunt Ada Susanne should be grateful for small mercies.

      When Jim’s wife grew ill, he’d sent for Susanne to help care for her and the children. Weeks after her arrival, Alice died. And now Jim was gone, too, dead from pneumonia right after Christmas.

      The farm had gone downhill since then. Now it was time to plant the crop, but Susanne wondered how she’d be able to get it in the ground.

      Only one thing mattered—the children. Keeping them together and caring for them. She would never see them taken in by others, parceled out to relatives or neighbors and treated poorly as she’d been. Somehow she’d take care of them herself.

      But she hadn’t counted on having to face an Indian. Didn’t he look familiar? Where had she seen him before?

      “Auntie Susanne, he gots some of the wild horses.”

      At Robbie’s words, she tore her gaze from the man before her. “Is that where you were?” Her voice came out higher than normal. “You stay away from wild horses. You could get hurt.”

      “Mr. Harding brought me back.”

      She jerked back to the man on horseback. So that’s why he looked familiar. He was a Harding. The family owned a big ranch—the Sundown Ranch—to the east of Jim’s little farm. She hadn’t recognized him right away because he’d always worn jeans and a shirt when she’d seen him in town. Why did he dress like an Indian now? “Thank you for seeing him home safely.”

      “My pleasure, ma’am.” He touched the brim of his hat. “Don’t guess we’ve been properly introduced. I’m your neighbor Tanner Harding.”

      The girls left off chasing the chickens and stared at Mr. Harding.

      Frank trotted up. “Aunt Susanne, I can’t find the cow.” He turned his attention to their visitor. “You an Indian?”

      “Frank,” Susanne scolded. “You shouldn’t ask such a question.”

      Mr. Harding chuckled. “It’s okay. I’m half Indian, half white.”

      “He gots wild horses in a pen,” Robbie said with some importance.

      “I’m Frank.” The boy held his hand out for a proper introduction.

      Mr. Harding swung out of his saddle with more ease than most men. Certainly with more ease than Alfred Morris, who struggled to get in and out of the saddle.

      Mr. Harding took Frank’s hand. “Pleased to meet you, neighbor.”

      Frank’s chest swelled at the greeting. “You, too, Mr. Harding.”

      “Prefer you call me Tanner. Mr. Harding is my pa.” He let his gaze touch each of them.

      That left Susanne little option but to introduce herself and the others. “I’m Susanne Collins. You’ve met my nephews. These are my nieces, Liz and Janie.”

      He doffed his hat at the girls and they giggled.

      “Ma’am.” He brought his dark eyes back to Susanne. “I know where your milk cow is. I can bring her in if you like.”

      She hesitated. She didn’t like to be owing to anyone. She’d learned that lesson, all right.

      “I looked everywhere and couldn’t find her,” Frank said, half-apologetic.

      “She’s way on the other side of the trees.” Tanner continued to look at Susanne, awaiting her answer.

      She wanted to say no but how long would it take to tramp out and persuade Daisy to return to the pasture next to the barn? She wouldn’t be comfortable leaving the children while she went, and it would take all day if she took them with her. Which left her with only one option.

      Relying on this man—any man—made her shudder. She remembered when she’d learned that lesson firsthand. Four years ago, when Susanne was sixteen, Mr. Befus had offered to take Susanne off Aunt Ada’s hands. Had even offered a nice sum of money. Susanne still got angry thinking her aunt had been prepared to sell her like so much merchandise. When Susanne had protested, Aunt Ada had reminded her she had no right to say no. “You are totally dependent on the goodwill of others and if Mr. Befus sees fit to offer you a home, you best accept.” Reasoning a home with someone who wanted her would be better than staying with Aunt Ada who clearly didn’t, Susanne had agreed to the arrangement.

      Aunt Ada had left him alone with Susanne at his request. “I need to know what I’m getting in this bargain,” he’d said. As soon as the door closed behind Aunt Ada, he’d grabbed Susanne and started to paw her. Her skin crawled at the memory.

      “I’ll not marry you until I know you’ll be able to pay me back properly.”

      She’d fought him.

      “You owe me, you little wildcat.”

      She’d broken free and locked herself in the bedroom, refusing to come out until Aunt Ada promised she wouldn’t have to go with the man.

      The next day she’d sent Jim a letter. It had taken two more years for him to invite her to join him. He’d said he always meant to get back to her, but he got busy with his family and working on the farm. She would have left Aunt Ada’s but without Jim’s help and without a penny to her name, she would simply be throwing herself from one situation to another. Better the one she knew and understood.

      Ever since then she’d been leery of men offering any form of help, and vowed she would never marry and owe a man the right to do to her as he wished.