On instinct, Rick went down on a knee, grinning, yet holding his lips closed over his teeth. “Look at you,” he mused.
“He isn’t purebred. We still have a few of the two-year-olds left if you’d like to look at them, but something told me to bring this fellah,” Sean said.
The pup trotted right up to him, bushy tail wagging, floppy ears perked. His pink tongue darted out to slather Rick’s hands. Laughing, he petted the pup’s head and scratched behind his ears.
“He’s fantastic. What else is he, besides wolfhound?” Rick asked.
Crouching beside the pup, Sean petted him as well. “Husky. One of our neighbors is Dutch and he brought the dog all way from Siberia. Gorgeous animal. He was quite furious about the pairing, insisted we kill the pups. This fellah was the only one she bore, though, and ’twas easy enough to convince him that he died.”
The story stirred something that slumbered deep within Rick. He scratched beneath the pup’s chin with both hands, looking deep into its unique blue eyes as he did so. Tongue lolling out the side of its mouth, it seemed to smile at him. Within its eyes rested the gentleness customary to the Irish wolfhound breed, but something else sparkled there as well, mischievousness, or a sense of adventure perhaps.
Watching the little fellow wriggle beneath his attentions, trying to lick him again, Rick grinned. “Your instincts were spot on. He’s perfect.”
Sean rose to his feet. “Fantastic! What will you call him?”
Caught up in the pup’s blue eyes, Rick thought hard for a moment. “Lincoln, after our esteemed President, God rest his soul.”
“A fine name. Now that I have softened you up a bit, there is a favor I must ask of you, me friend,” Sean said.
The serious tone his voice took at the last part made Rick rise and meet his gaze. “Anything.”
Sighing deeply, Sean ran a hand through his short hair. “Don’t be so quick to agree, you haven’t heard what it is yet.”
Rick dismissed the words with a laugh and a wave of his hand. “It doesn’t matter. You saved me life on more than one occasion. We’re blood brothers. You have but to ask and ’tis yours.”
Sean made his way over to a bale of hay and sat down. His friend’s disregard for his fine pants raised one of Rick’s brows, and his concern.
“I trust you are still guiding people to other states?” Sean asked. Though the question was innocent enough, the hesitation in his friend’s voice led him to believe far more weighed on it.
He sat down on another bale next to him. “Aye.”
The pup bounded up to him, sat on his feet, and thrust his head into his hands for more petting. He scratched absently behind its ears as he watched Sean’s guarded face.
“Ashlinn’s family is heading west to settle some property in California.”
“Which part?”
Sean’s smile stretched to a painful looking size. “Sonoma County, right in your backyard, quite literally, according to the county records, I believe.”
Scratching his own bristly chin with one hand, Rick tried to catch his friend’s gaze and failed. “Um hum, but I’m guessing that’s not why you want me to do it.”
“No, ’tis not.”
He began to fear he was going to have to literally pull it out of him. “How many people?”
“Four.” The tension in Sean’s voice was building, which Rick knew to mean they were getting closer to the meat of the issue.
“Four people, a wagon or two, doesn’t sound so bad. Why is it you fear I’m going to say no, then?”
A long sigh rattled out of Sean as he finally looked up and met Rick’s gaze. “’Tis Catriona O’Brian and three of her friends.”
Rick shrugged. “’Tis no bother, Sean. True, the woman doesn’t like me much, but we can get along well enough for three to four months on the trail together.”
Still, Sean looked doubtful.
“Out with it, man. What else is there to it?” Rick prompted.
Again, his friend sighed. If he kept it up Rick feared he may swoon like a lass. “Her friends are women. I am asking you to guide three women to California.”
Rick shot to his feet. “For the love of Saint Peter, man, what are you thinking?”
Hands held out, Sean rose to stand beside him. The pup let out a bark and danced between the two of them as if it were a game. “I know, I know. But you’re the only person I trust for the task. This is Ashlinn’s sister-in-law, after all. We will pay for armed men, however many you need.”
The desperation in his friend’s eyes tugged at his heart like sutures. “People die on such a journey all the time. While armed men can help protect against savages and predators, they can do nothing against illness and weather. The risks are high, Sean. I only want you to enter into this with your eyes wide open.”
Sean clapped him on the shoulder. “I know, and I am. These women are not like the frail lasses of high society. They are strong, independent, and they know the risks, as do Ashlinn and myself.”
Nodding, despite everything good sense told him, Rick echoed one of Sean’s many sighs. “All right, then. I hope they can prepare quickly, because we need to depart within the week to make it before the weather turns.”
A whoop of relief echoed off the rafters, making a few of the horses around the corner jump in their stalls. “Thank you, me friend. I’ll owe you greatly for this.”
Rick shook his head. “Don’t thank me until I get them all there safely.”
Sean’s answer was cut off by the pounding of a pair of feet running toward them. They both turned toward the corner to see a gangly young servant boy running toward them. He nearly slipped in the hay scattered across the floor but managed to right himself at the last moment. His wide eyes fixed on Sean.
“Mr. MacBranain, sir, please pardon the intrusion. A letter has arrived that has the ladies most disturbed. Mrs. MacBranain requests your presence straightaway,” he huffed.
Motioning for Rick to follow, Sean started for the door. “Come along. Once I get them calmed down, we’ll open that bottle of wine.”
Reluctant though he was, he followed anyway, fighting the urge to roll his eyes. Women in a lather over a letter? What was he getting himself into?
Chapter 4
Slight heels clicked out a frantic rhythm as Catriona paced, their sharp sound serving to aggravate her further. Yet her mind could not stop, so her feet couldn’t either. While she paced, Ashlinn sat calmly on one of the plush couches of the parlor, bent over a coffee table, writing away. Considering her sister-in-law worked on a list of things Catriona would need on her journey, her actions were far more productive than Catriona’s own. Not even that knowledge could halt her momentum.
At last, a knock sounded on the parlor doors and upon her word, they burst open, spilling forth a flushed Deirdre with Sadie on her heels. Shoving a long, black lock that had come free from a hastily-made-looking bun, Deirdre curtsied to Ashlinn and murmured a quick greeting. In her haste, Catriona introduced them quite poorly, begging forgiveness from both women as she did so. Ashlinn waved off her apology and motioned for Deirdre to sit opposite her on a second couch.
Dark blue eyes turning up to Catriona, Deirdre beseeched. “Please, do read it to us.”
With shaking hands, Catriona unfolded the letter. Two pairs of booted heels marching into the room stopped her before she could begin. Sean in