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Seven Years Later St. Joseph, Missouri was a bustling, growing town full of stores and hotels, saloons and liveries. Christy, who had just returned from a visit with Cody and Louisa in New York, thought it would be the perfect place to stop off and do a little shopping. She smiled as she peered in the windows of a dry goods store and saw a silver rattle and some wee little boots displayed. “Hold up a minute, Jeremiah, I want to look in here.” She called to the young man in front of her. He shifted from one foot to the other impatiently. “I’m just gonna go look around.” She nodded, feeling an almost motherly pride as she watched him saunter away. A tall handsome man now of twenty-one, Jeremiah still bore traces of the heartache he suffered as a child. His dark brown eyes carried a vague wariness that made him immensely popular with the ladies. Jeremiah didn’t seem to mind, although he refused to settle down with just one girl. It would take someone mighty quick to keep up with him, Christy thought with amusement. Turning back to the store window, Christy was reminded of the reason she wanted to go inside. Just a mere two months earlier, Lou had given birth to her second child, a girl named Mary. On her way to see Cody, Christy had made a side trip to Arkansas to see her new little cousin who had Kid’s bright blue eyes and her mother’s dark hair. Kid and Lou’s oldest, Jed, had stood by protectively as Christy had rocked the baby in her arms. Jed, a big boy of five and already showing signs of his namesake’s reckless temperament, was proud of his duties as big brother. Uncle Thomas hovered by, as full of pride as Kid. Kid and Lou had moved back to Arkansas to take care of him after he had suffered a massive stroke barely a year after Kid had come home. No longer did Kid have to worry about his father beating him because the old man could barely walk now. Christy still had problems being around Thomas, but Kid seemed to have made his peace with his father and Jed was crazy about his grandfather. All in all, the family appeared to be a peaceful one. At times, Christy wished she had moved to Arkansas with them, but her discomfort with her uncle plus her feeling that Kid and Lou had some catching up they needed to do kept her in Sweetwater. Instead she just made a journey by train to her cousin’s home whenever she needed to be reassured of his well being. Theresa had moved to Arkansas with Kid and Lou, but Jeremiah had stayed in Sweetwater with Christy. At first Lou had protested, but Jeremiah had been quick to point out that there was no one to handle the horses since Buck had left, so she was forced to relent. Eventually Theresa married a local farmer near Helena, but she never lived far from Lou. Jeremiah visited often but Christy suspected he had never really gotten over the hurt of Lou leaving him in the orphanage and that was why he stayed with her more than the horses. Despite his handicap, Kid was living a full and active life. His missing leg didn’t slow him down and he could keep up with Jed better than Lou could. Christy’s last visit had found Kid in high spirits over the arrival of his daughter. He had begun work on carving her a doll cradle and was teaching Jed how to ride Katy. Unfortunately, Christy’s trip to New York wasn’t such a happy occasion. Cody’s only son, Kit, had just passed away. The young couple was lost in their grief and Christy had never seen Cody so distraught. He had aged tremendously since she had last seen him and the once easy laugh now sounded forced and hollow. She hadn’t seen or heard from Jimmy since the night so long ago in Helena. She had written him a letter through his sister, Celenda, telling him about finding Kid, but she had never gotten a response. She figured that Cody was still in touch with him but she hadn’t quite gotten the gumption to ask. Christy was considering going in and buying the silver rattle for Mary when she was distracted by several horses being herded to the livery. Absently she observed the driver and smiled sadly to herself when she noticed he favored Buck. Buck seemed to have vanished altogether. No one knew where he was and he didn’t even come to Rachel’s wedding to Mr. Miller, the librarian. Christy had thought she would go crazy from the loneliness at first but time had a way of marching on until at last Buck had become just a distant figure that haunted her dreams. Still, she couldn’t see horses without him crossing her mind. The man with the horses moved a little closer to her and Christy gave him harder look. If she didn’t know better, she’d say the man walked just like Buck, too. Just then, he turned his face to her and her heart stopped. It was Buck; there was no doubt about it. He recognized her just as she did him and before she thought better of it, her hand lifted in a wave. A small smile played upon his lips and he ambled slowly over to her as the livery owner took over care of the horses. He looked very much the same although his hair was a little shorter and showed some signs of gray. Despite his smile, there was a look of suspicion in his eyes. With a pang, she realized that she had caused that. “Hello.” He said softly, bending to give her a quick hug. “Buck! What are you doing here?” She cried, trying to hide the disappointment she felt at only receiving a cursory hug. He glanced over his shoulder to the livery. “Just bringing some horses in to sell. How are you?” She looked into his dark eyes, needing to know if Buck was just asking out of politeness or if he really cared. “Fine. And you?” He nodded. “Great.” They stood there for a minute awkwardly. “Kid’s alive.” Christy said finally. “I know.” He flashed a grin at her. “Jimmy told me.” She couldn’t contain her surprise. “Jimmy?” “Yeah, I saw him about two years ago when I was in the Dakota territories. He said he had gotten a letter from you.” Buck explained. “Oh.” She replied, amazed to find she was less hurt by Jimmy’s lack of communication with her than she was with Buck. Another long silence passed. “You look good.” Christy complimented. “Thanks, so do you.” “Married?” She fought to sound casual. A stony look came over his face. “No.” “Buck…” She began. “Look, Christy, I better be going. I’ve got a lot of work to do and I’m really hungry. It was nice seeing you again.” His gaze darted everywhere but at her. “I understand.” She mumbled. He hesitated for a moment, then turned and headed back to the livery. Christy watched him walk away a quiet desperation building within her. “Buck, wait!” He stopped, his back to her. She ran to catch up with him, knowing she had to tell him how she felt or else regret it the rest of her life. Taking a deep breath to summon her courage, Christy grabbed his arm and forced him to meet her eyes. He waited patiently, looking neither angry nor particularly interested in what she had to say. “I love you, Buck. I’ve always loved you. Even years ago, back in Rock Creek, I loved you, I just didn’t know it then.” Grabbing his hand for emphasis, she continued. “You’re everything to me and I’m sorry it took me so long to realize it. You’re the calm after the storm, the rainbow behind the cloud and I was a fool not to see that sooner. I know I have no right to ask, but I’ve waited seven years for this chance: Buck, please, can you forgive me?” She saw a flicker of emotion within him that quickly died. “For how long, Christy? Until the next time Jimmy rides into town? Or is that what this is all about? Things didn’t work out with him, so now you want me.” “No, Buck! I swear it’s not like that! I don’t want Jimmy, I love you.” Christy insisted. “You’re too late.” He whispered gently. “I’ve got to go.” He pulled his hand away and left her standing in the road. She closed her eyes, feeling defeat rise within her. He was right, she was too late. No, she thought, opening her eyes and watching him walk away. She hadn’t given up on Kid and she wouldn’t give up on Buck. She stormed after him, moving quickly until she was directly in front of him. Before he could move, she dropped to one knee and grabbed his hand again, ignoring the stares of the shocked passersby and the dust that covered her skirt. Buck’s mouth hung open, making him look oddly like Cody. “Buck Cross, will you marry me?” She asked, looking up at him earnestly. “Wh-what?” He barely managed to get out. “Marry me, Buck.” Christy pleaded, hardly aware of what she was doing. “You make me happier than anyone I’ve ever known, and if you’ll give me a chance, I would like to do the same for you. Please, Buck. If there is one thing I learned with all that happened with Kid it’s that you never know what will happen tomorrow and that what happened yesterday is best forgotten. All that matters is the here and now. You’re here and this is now. I’m asking you to forget about what happened in the past and not worry about the future. Let’s just get married. Here. Today.” He looked stunned. “Are you crazy?” She shook her head and laughed. “I am for you.” He pulled her to her feet and stared at her solemnly. Then his face finally cracked into the old familiar crooked grin. “Well, who could say no to an offer like that?” He asked just before he kissed her.
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