Catherine's Pursuit by Lena Dooley Nelson

Author:Lena Dooley Nelson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ebook, book
ISBN: 9781621360209
Publisher: Charisma House
Published: 2012-12-22T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

HOPING NEITHER OF them would fall and hurt themselves, Collin watched the boys scramble down from the roof. He held his breath while the smaller one slid, then dangled for a moment before dropping to the ground and rolling into a ball. Immediately the dark-headed child jumped up and brushed himself off. The kid had guts. Just as Collin had when he climbed the rigging of the ship his father captained, like a monkey in a South American jungle. More than once he fell to the deck. He felt an affinity with the boy when not much around him was familiar— or comfortable.

By the time the buggy turned down the short lane leading to the farmhouse, the boys had been joined on the front porch by Mary and another girl. Mary appeared to be giving them a stern lecture. Maybe she saw the boy take his fall. A low chuckle escaped Collin’s lips.

Daniel stopped the buggy in front of the house then helped Catherine down from the conveyance. Mary ran toward Catherine and pulled her into a tight embrace. Collin’s attention was drawn to the tears slipping down each sister’s cheeks. Quickly he averted his gaze and noticed the three children trailing after Mary.

They all had dark hair and eyes the shade of a warm spring sky. So different from their older sister. For just a moment he wondered if she had felt out of place or different because of this. Then he dismissed the thought. Mary probably didn’t notice, since she grew up as a member of this family.

He climbed out of the buggy and glanced around. So much chattering and laughter clamored for his attention, but he moved away from all the noise. He wasn’t a part of this family reunion and never would be. In fact, he wasn’t part of any family and hadn’t been for an exceedingly long time. His memories of the time before his mother died were fleeting snatches of events frozen in time. Soft words. A hug. A smile. And they quickly evaporated like fog on a sunny morning.

A young Chinese man dressed in denim trousers and a plaid shirt with the sleeves rolled up on his forearms hurried up the lane from the large barn, a wide smile spread across his face. Must be the Tony Chan Daniel told them about.

“Mr. Daniel.” The Chinese man stopped, and Daniel turned toward him. “Old farmer down road say he sell bull to us if we want it.”

Now Daniel smiled. “Good. With a strong bull we should be able to increase the herd more quickly. Good work, Tony.”

Daniel shifted position to include Collin in the conversation. “Tony, this is Collin Elliott. He’s here with Mary’s sister, Catherine.”

Collin thrust out his hand, and the Chinese man pumped it vigorously.

“Mary happy sister come.” Tony stared at the two women still standing close together. “Hard to tell which . . . which.” He studied one of the women, then the other. “I see now. Mary have braid. Sister not.

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