Page 7 of Valley of Dreams

“Will you wait for a bite to eat?” Maura offered before he could leave. “You’ve been so kind to Eliza. Allow me this small way to say thank you.”

He shook his head no.

Eliza’s heart dropped. “Oh, do pause long enough for something to eat as a thank you for being so helpful.”

Somehow he scratched at the back of his neck despite the rat’s nest of hair hanging there. “I need to be less helpful,” he muttered. “’Tis a terrible inconvenience.”

“But you’ll stay, at least long enough for a bite?” Eliza would feel better if he did.

He pushed out a sigh and nodded.

Maura continued watching him, curious. Between his unkempt appearance and his gruff manners, hedidmake an odd study.

“There’s a bit of a spread just in back of the house,” Maura said, motioning to a nearby door. “Help yourself to all you’d like.”

Again, he tugged at the brim of his hat. “Ladies first.”

Maura hooked an arm through Eliza’s. “There’ll be time and plenty for taking a look at your new room. For now, let’s get you a bit to eat as well.”

She led Eliza through the back door and directly into a large gathering.

“Who are all these people?”

“My late husband’s family. There are a lot of them, and I want you to meet them all. But first, let’s feed you. I remember well how long the journey is.”

Eliza was pulled into the crowd, introductions tossed at her, even as food was placed on a plate that had somehow made its way into her hands. Maura held Lydia, something she’d once done daily when they’d been neighbors back East.

The sheer number of people as well as their enthusiasm made the gathering both wonderful and a little intimidating. Still, she wouldn’t trade the feeling of “family” for all the quiet comfort in the world. She’d had more than enough loneliness for one lifetime. She was ready to finally belong.

Chapter Three

Patrick stood in thekitchen of this unfamiliar home, attempting to decide if he was in greater need of silence or food. He’d passed two days in a stagecoach with the most determinedly chatty woman he’d ever met. But he’d also gone twice that long with precious little to eat. His indecision was real, but it was not the true reason for his hesitation.

Seeing Maura O’Connor again without warning after ten years had upended him. That his sister-in-law, widow of his oldest brother, hadn’t recognized him hurt deeply. Coming to Hope Springs where his estranged family lived had been an act of desperation, really. He hadn’t anticipated the possibility that they wouldn’t even know him.

Maybe he could live among them without having to face them. It would be the coward’s way, something more apt than he cared to admit.

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