His Prairie Princess (Prairie Brides 1) by Kit Morgan

was good enough.  The trousers were too short, the jacket patched in several places, and it had taken a good while to find the tie.  He finally did.  It was in the barn of all places and been used to tie a bridle together. Of course he couldn’t remember why he used his tie to temporarily fix a horse bridle, but was sure his stepbrothers had something to do with it.  They often did.  In fact the reason he probably couldn’t remember wa s the y did it in the first place!  Which meant they took the tie without asking and used it to fix a broken bridle.  It really had been a long time since he’d worn his Sunday best.
    But now was not the time to worry about how his tie went missing.  He had more important matters on his mind. One in particular. And he wished she would hurry up and come down stairs.
    “Why Harrison Cooke,” Grandma began.  “If I didn’t know any better I’d say you were nervous.”
    Harrison twisted his hat in his hands then caught himself.  “Not at all, I assure you.”
    Grandma eyed him. “I think I’ll just take your hat... before you tear it!”  She held her hand out and continued to eye him.
    He returned her stare boldly, and handed her the hat. 
    “That’s better.  And I hope you like apple pie.  There’s a little lady upstairs who fussed for hours over the baking ... once she found out you were invited to supper.”  Grandma winked and went to hang his hat.
    Harrison suppressed a smile and wiped his hands on his trousers.  Perhaps Sadie Jones felt something more than gratitude toward him.  It would certainly make the afternoon go smoother. He was nervous enough with what he planned and didn’t want any interruptions when it came time to speak with her.   Why were his hands so sweaty ?
    Harrison took a deep breath. This must be what it feels like to ask a girl to marry.  But he wasn’t going to ask for Sadie’s hand in marriage, though the thought had struck earlier and got stuck in the back of his mind.  No, this was something else, something that would help all of them.  And he was positive she would be pleased with his proposal.
    “Harrison, I hope you didn’t mind waiting.” Sadie said as she entered the parlor. “Doc isn’t home yet, but as soon as he gets here we’ll eat.”
    “Quite all right.  I came early because I wanted to discuss something with you.”
    “Oh?”
      He nodded, unable to speak.  Good Lord but she was beautiful.  Her eyes were brightened by the afternoon sun shining in through the lace curtained window.  She wore a beautiful blue dress and had braided her long hair and wrapped it around her head.  It looked like a dark, glistening crown.  Her apron was fresh and white with a spot of something here and there.  Probably cinnamon from the pies he could smell baking in the oven.
    Harrison swallowed hard and resisted the urge to wipe his hands on his trousers again.  The thought of marriage suddenly unstuck itself and raced to the fo refront of his mind.  If she were his wife he’d never let her out of his sight, which brought him to the matter at hand.
    “I know you will need to be returning home.  Your family must be worried sick about you and there’s been no word from the Sheriff since he took off after the outlaws almost two weeks ago.  They must be determined to catch the men responsible for the stage robbery.  I dare say the Sheriff doesn’t even know you were kidnapped!  But outlaws have struck in these parts before and I’m sure the Sheriff suspects they are one and the same gang.”
    “I suppose they could be.  So what did you wish to discuss?”
    “I wish to offer my services as escort for you and your mother.”
    “Escort?”
    “Protection.”
    “Protection from what?”
    “The outlaws, of course.  I wish to escort you home.”
    Sadie’s eyes widened for a brief moment.  She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out.  If Harrison didn’t know any better, she looked like she wanted to say