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  Closing his eyes, Nathan huffed and turned his head to the side. “I wish I could say I can’t believe it, but knowing Herbert, I can. I understand your position. I thank you for giving him a job and a chance, Mr. Bainbridge. I truly hoped that, once he got away from his mother’s coddling, he would grow up and show more responsibility. I’d appreciate it if you don’t hold his antics against me.”

  “I don’t.” Royce laughed and shook his head. “When he thinks it will benefit him, you two are brothers. When he wants to avoid responsibility to help you, he makes it clear that you are stepbrothers.”

  Nathan grinned. “I know. He’s always been that way.”

  Royce grew more serious. “I’ll see him tonight when I put him on the special ore run for Pueblo. I’ll tell him you’re doing better. However, especially after the stunt he pulled here yesterday…”

  Nathan shook his head. “Yes, Declan told me some of it.”

  “Then you understand that I can’t allow him back here, not until you’re well enough to control him. Even then, if he comes to visit you, I’d prefer he stays on the other side of the river.”

  Dahlia excused herself so they could continue talking. She donned her cape and grabbed the basket Royce had given to her the day the men brought Nathan home. She then rushed to the mercantile in search of eggs, butter, lard, and vegetables. The opportunity to walk outside on this bright day with its brisk weather free of falling snow or blustering wind raised her spirits immeasurably.

  When Desi sold six eggs to her, she felt like she had struck gold. She also asked the Brinks to keep an ear out for news of who might be missing a live chicken and explained why she needed to know. That will get tongues in this town wagging. As long as she could make things right with the owner of the fowl Herbert took, she didn’t care.

  She arrived back at her home in time to meet Royce who had barely walked out of her back door.

  Upon seeing her, Royce reversed his steps until he drew close enough to her to speak. “I helped him with the chamber pot, but I’ll warn you. He’s hollering about needing his drawers. He’ll be looking for his pants, boots, and jacket soon, too.” Eyeing the eggs in her basket, Royce reached a hand to pat her shoulder. “Be patient with him, Mrs. Price. He told me how uncertain he feels about the circumstances surrounding your marriage, but he’ll come around.”

  “I think he’s sorry I came. He doesn’t want to be married to me.”

  Royce offered her a knowing grin. “No, Mrs. Price, that’s not it at all. He thinks very highly of you. It’s the situation he’s in right now that worries him.”

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  Chapter 24

  ~o0o~

  December 27, 1881

  U pon hearing a male voice shout almost above her head, Dahlia awoke with a start.

  “What are you doing sleeping on the floor?”

  Dahlia turned her head to stare at Nathan, who stood over her. His armpits rested on the crutches the doctor had brought the previous afternoon. In addition to holding the handles on the crutch, his right hand clutched the edges of a blanket he had draped around his lower half.

  Dahlia sat up and then rolled to her side so she could push herself to her feet. As she realized Nathan was seeing her in her nightgown, she felt her face heat. She snatched up her quilt and wrapped it around her shoulders. “Nathan. What are you doing up?”

  “I’m going to the necessary, as soon as you find my pants and boots for me. I don’t like that jug, and I’m not using that pot under the bed again.” He paused and looked off, as if searching his memory. “I do have some clean clothes somewhere, don’t I?”

  “All your clothes, except the ones you have on, are clean. I washed everything Charlie and Albert brought over. Nathan, I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to try to make it to the necessary this soon. It’s fairly icy out there. Our neighbors shoveled paths around the house for me, but I’d feel better if I could widen the one to the necessary so you don’t have to fight the snow with your crutches. Besides, are you sure you want to put pressure from the crutches on your shoulder that’s healing?”

  “My left shoulder feels like it’s going to snap off every time I lean it on the crutch, but I need to get up and moving. Please, find my pants and a work shirt. This nightshirt is driving me crazy. It has to go.”

  “But, Nathan, if you fall, I don’t know if I can get you back up.”

  Nathan shook his head. “I’m not going to fall. And even if I do, between both of us, I can get back up.” He hesitated, and then softened his voice. “I’m sorry if it sounds like I’m barking orders at you. Just, please, don’t fuss over me, Dahlia. Let me keep a little bit of control over my life.”

  In spite of the dim early morning light in the room, Dahlia felt helpless to turn her gaze away from staring into Nathan’s eyes. How often had her father complained about her attempts to be helpful or to prevent him from additional harm? Although he had expressed it in different words, she had often listened to the same sentiments from him she now heard from Nathan.

  Dahlia nodded and then offered him a smile. “I’ll bring your clothes, and then I’ll leave you alone to put them on in private while I go in the wash room to dress. Do as much as you can, and I’ll help you with the rest, if you need it. In the meantime, please set the crutches aside and sit in the kitchen chair.”

  Dahlia swept up the blankets that she had fashioned into her pallet and tossed them in the corner of the room to fold later. She next entered the bedroom and pulled the requested clothes out of one of the drawers in the chest. After she placed them on the table, she walked to the wash room and retrieved the boots that still bore dust from the mine in their creases, in spite of her brushing them the previous week. After placing them on the floor within reach, she left Nathan while she used the wash room as a dressing room so she could prepare for the day.

  As Dahlia reentered the kitchen, the announcement that she would start breakfast for him died on her lips. Nathan, his pants and shirt on and his unlaced boots on his feet, sat with his head leaned back and his eyes closed. The crown of his head pressed against the wall. Her blood raced, and she rushed to his side where she placed quivering fingers against the spot on his cheek free of bruising. “Nathan, are you well? What can I do to help?”

  His head and eyes remained in place, but his mouth twisted into a grimace. “I got dizzy when I bent over to tie my boots. I’ll be fine in a minute.”

  Dahlia stood straight and thrust her fists against her waist. Stubborn man. She dropped to one knee and began tying his laces. “I don’t intend to make a habit of this, Nathan. I’ll do it today and maybe tomorrow. By Thursday, you need to do it yourself or use the chamber pot.”

  After she tied the second lace, Dahlia glanced up and witnessed a grin split Nathan’s face. He straightened his neck, and his gaze met hers. “You never answered my question. Why were you sleeping on the floor in the kitchen?”

  Dahlia rose to her feet and spread her hands as she shrugged. To her, the reason should have been obvious. “You need the bed, Nathan. I’m only heating the two rooms for now. I decided it was better to sleep in here, next to the stove, where I could hear you during the night.”

  “But you don’t have a bed. I thought they would have at least brought you a mattress or moved the sofa from the front room back here for you.”

  Dahlia shook her head. “I slept on the floor next to my father’s bed many times. I’m fine.”

  “No. There’s plenty of room on that bed for both of us, Dahlia. You need to sleep in there where you can be comfortable.”

  “Not yet, Nathan. I told you what Pastor Alwin said.”

  “Yes, and I promise I won’t touch you. You can keep your blankets separate from mine. You’re the one who said, in the eyes of the law, we’re married, so I don’t see the problem.”

  Dahlia turned her back on him and walked several steps away. “No, Nathan. I’m not comfortable with that arrangem
ent. Even though we are legally married, the commitment on your side isn’t resolved. I’ll continue to make my bed on the floor in here.”

  Dahlia waited as she heard him pull his coat on. She listened to the tap of the crutches on the floor as Nathan positioned them so he could pull himself to his feet. She turned to face him. “Wait until I find your hat before you go outside. I don’t want the sunlight to hurt your eyes.”

  She met him by the back door and placed the hat on his head, pulling the brim low on his forehead to protect his eyes from the glare as much as possible. Once she finished, Dahlia shifted her gaze to focus on the captivating blue eyes that studied her.

  “Why are you so good to me?” Nathan spoke in a tone which hinted that his words floated upon the waves of emotion.

  Dahlia’s lips parted as she continued to study his face, her gaze always returning to his eyes. She felt overwhelmed with the love for him that had taken root as she read his letters. It had expanded from a bud of promise to a marvelous full bloom of love that she wished to share with him the rest of her life. Dare she tell him the truth? “It is easy for me to do what I can to make your life better, Nathan. After reading your letters, I was already halfway in love with you before I ever arrived here. Now I’m here, nothing that’s happened has deterred me from that.”

  Working the muscles in his jaw, Nathan said nothing for several seconds. He then turned his gaze away from her, as if to study the kitchen. “I need to get some shelves built for you and one of those cupboards that match the table.”

  To Dahlia, his words sounded like a commitment to their future together. Dare she hope? She patted his strong shoulder. “I’ll help you down the stairs and then wait on the back porch while you make your way to the necessary. If I decide you’ve been out there too long, I’ll come to check on you.”

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  Chapter 25

  ~o0o~

  December 30, 1881

  T he strap of his tow sack full of clean and mended clothes pressing on his shoulder, Nathan maneuvered his way along the path in the snow beaten down by the men travelling from their homes in the married miners’ housing to their jobs at the mine. His right hand held the handle of a cane he used only for balance. He marveled at the beauty of the misty sunlight on snow that covered the otherwise ugly, utilitarian clutter of Prosperity Mine property. Even his eyes had grown less sensitive to the brightness so he could enjoy the landscape before him.

  He found even more inspiring than the surrounding scenery the woman whose hand rested in the crook of his left arm. His left shoulder ached, but he ignored it in favor of the warmth of her shoulder pressing against his upper arm.

  Nathan turned his head toward the beautiful woman wearing a gray travel suit and her matching hat on top of curls she had, in his opinion, taken far too long to fuss with that morning. Then again, he did admire the result of her effort.

  Nathan leaned toward Dahlia to speak quietly in her ear. “Is this not better, Mrs. Price, both of us returning the mended clothes to the dispensary together instead of arguing over who will perform the task?”

  She turned to him, her smile a mirror of his. “Yes, plus, it has the added benefit that we will save Dr. Sprague a trip to the house to check on your progress. I think he will find it noteworthy.”

  “Even more noteworthy than my progress is you, Mrs. Price. Has anyone told you lately how beautiful you are? If not, I’m telling you now.” As he watched her breath catch and she raised an eyebrow, he grinned.

  “Knowing your vision is still rather fuzzy, Mr. Price, I hardly think you are a fair judge of my appearance.”

  “Oh, but didn’t I tell you? As of yesterday afternoon, I have been able to see things as well as I did before the accident. And, it is my opinion that you are a very beautiful woman in more ways than one.”

  Dahlia tipped her head back, and she laughed. “I don’t think Dr. Sprague would consider your opinion of my appearance a sign of your progress. He might take it as proof you have become addle-pated. I think you need to stick to reporting on how far your physical body has come in the last few days.”

  “Ah, so practically minded. I didn’t convince you I should come with you in order to report my progress to Dr. Sprague. I was thinking more about our being able to enjoy each other’s company during our walk.”

  Dahlia giggled. She stepped closer and pressed her side against his arm. “There is that, too, Mr. Price.”

  Once they arrived at the dispensary, Angus Sprague welcomed them in. “Ah, good to see you, Nathan. And you’ve walked here with only a cane and your lovely wife for support. You are coming along quite well since you regained consciousness.”

  Nathan submitted to the short examination although, except for a few brief times he turned to the doctor to answer questions, his eyes never left Dahlia. As she studied the unadorned treatment room and cots where he and Gus Braun spent several nights, he wondered what she thought. He knew Royce Bainbridge had done him a great favor when he made provisions for Dahlia to be recognized as his wife so she could stay in the house set aside for him while he recovered from his injuries.

  Angus turned his attention to Dahlia.

  While the two discussed the charges for her mending, Nathan remained preoccupied by his awareness of her beauty, inside and out. When he wrote and asked her to marry him, he felt confident she was a good choice for a wife. Now that he had met her, she exceeded anything he had hoped for in a woman. As much as he had tried at first to distance himself from her, during this past week, he had succumbed to her tremendous capacity for kindness and dedication.

  Nathan grunted and shook his head. “I’ve been a fool.” He thought he had said the words only in his mind, but by the way Dahlia looked past Angus and focused her gaze on him, he realized he had spoken aloud. He turned away and studied a chart of the human skeleton nailed to the infirmary wall.

  The two of them walked in silence almost halfway back to their house before Dahlia addressed him. “Nathan, why do you think you are a fool? You aren’t, you know.”

  As he pondered how he should answer her, Nathan continued in silence. “Just some thoughts going through my head, Dahlia. I know I need to make a decision. It’s just that, I don’t want my limitations to leave you in a bad situation. You came here expecting to marry a man who worked in a good-paying job who would provide you a house to live in.” He stopped walking long enough to prop the cane against his leg. His right arm stretched in front of him, he flexed his fingers and then tightened them into a fist. “It looks like they work fine, but I can tell how weak my hand really is. What if I can never grip a four-pound hammer every day for a ten-hour shift?”

  He watched Dahlia stare straight ahead. She spoke in that reassuring tone of voice typical of her. “Dr. Sprague explained to me how an injury on one side of your brain can affect the opposite side of your body. Nathan, you heard him today. That incision and place where he and Dr. Adams opened your skull is healing well. There’s no more swelling on the outside at all. He believes, as the brain heals, you will experience a full recovery.”

  Holding his cane a foot below the handle, Nathan reached across his chest and tapped it against his left shoulder. “What about this? Even if it appears to fully heal, I may not be able to hold a drill bit and absorb the shock from it being struck by my hammer hundreds of times a day, day after day. What if I can’t continue to work at the mine? We’ll have nowhere to live, and I don’t know what I’ll be able to do to provide for you.”

  “We must hope your worst fears will not come about, Nathan. And, if they do, and you need to change jobs, we’ll deal with those circumstances then.”

  “Why, Dahlia? Why would you risk facing something like that by staying with me rather than getting an annulment?”

  How he desired to kiss her, but that would not be fair. He closed his eyes as the woman he had come to love—love too much to saddle her with a husband who could not support her properly—
grazed his cheek with her fingers.

  “I came here to marry Nathan Price, the man, not a well-paid miner with a house. Let’s return home. I’ll make lunch.”

  As they continued walking, Nathan remained silent. He chastised himself for destroying the light-hearted mood they had enjoyed earlier.

  While Dahlia changed to her brown everyday dress, he stepped back outside to fill the coal bucket for the stove. He shook his head at the dwindling supply. Herbert might have bought her less than Royce Bainbridge expected, but it was Nathan’s responsibility, not his brother’s, to provide for his wife. He sat in a chair at the table and stewed about his failings while Dahlia warmed part of the bean and potato in chicken broth dish she had prepared the day before. Once she joined him, although his heart was not in it, he said grace over their meal. They ate in silence.

  As Dahlia rose and collected the dishes, he opened his mouth to bring up the subject again.

  She turned to him. “Nathan, Dr. Sprague insisted you still need to take a nap each day to get the sleep you need to heal. Please do that now, so you’ll be able to fall asleep at a good time tonight.”

  Nathan clenched his teeth then he stood and reached for the cane. In a show of defiance, he twirled the cane in the air as he walked toward the bedroom. Yes, he was willing to take a nap. What he wanted was for Dahlia to take a nap with him so he could feel her next to him like he had when they had walked side-by-side that morning. However, by expressing his fears that he might never fully recover enough to keep working so he could support a family, he had destroyed that closeness on their walk home.

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  Chapter 26