Theodore ran outside to see what the dog was barking at. Blue was standing at the end of the corral, staring off into the darkness.
“What did you see, boy?”
The dog just continued to stare at something that only he could see in the distance. Blue and the other blue heeler, Royal, mostly stayed near the barn, protecting the cows in there, although they roamed further out at night, keeping the coyotes at bay. Theodore had lost more than one calf to coyotes.
Theodore didn’t hear or see anything. He checked the barn. All the cows were accounted for and were fine. After securing the barn door, he headed back to the house. He figured he could get in an hour, maybe two, of sleep.
As he undressed, he thought about Isabel. He didn’t know what had possessed him to touch her and didn’t know what to think about it. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been touched with anything but anger. Theodore had to admit that he liked it.
“It’s just worry over Timmy,” he told himself as he settled under the blanket.
Theodore had to admit that he liked Isabel. There were so many good things about her. She was stubborn and had a temper when riled, but she had settled in well. He even liked spending time with her. The touch had been electric, and he hadn’t ever felt anything like it.
He briefly wondered what Isabel thought about it before closing his eyes and falling into a deep sleep.
Isabel looked exhausted the next morning as she put breakfast on the table. Her face was pale, and dark circles were under her glassy, bloodshot eyes.
“Did you get any sleep at all last night?” he asked, frowning.
She nodded. “I dozed off and on. Of course, I woke up with every sound that Timmy made. I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to him.”
“I understand,” Theodore found himself saying. “Although I haven’t had him as long as you have, I’m rather fond of the little guy, too.”
He froze at the admission he’d just made. Besides Jacob, who was his best friend and foreman, he hadn’t cared about anyone in a very long time. He wasn’t sure how to feel about it.
Isabel smiled at him, her eyes softening, and started to say something when a knock at the door interrupted them.
Jacob popped in and sauntered over to the table, breaking the moment. Isabel jumped up and got him a plate and a cup of coffee. He smiled his thanks at her and grabbed one of her biscuits.
“These are the best I’ve ever eaten. I would never admit it in front of my mother, but I think yours are better than hers were.” Jacob glanced at the ceiling and said, “Sorry, Ma.”
Isabel chuckled, though her eyes flickered over to Theodore once more. “Thank you.”
“I heard you leaving last night. Is everything okay?” Jacob asked.
“Timmy was sick. He was coughing and had a high fever. I went to fetch Doctor Miller.”
Worry instantly covered Jacob’s face, his brows furrowing. “Is he okay?”
“I think so. The doctor gave him some medicine, and his fever went down quite a bit. I put some mustard plaster on his chest and also held him over some peppermint steam when he started coughing a lot again. His fever hasn’t broken, but at least he’s not quite as hot.”
As if on cue, Timmy started crying.
“I’ll get him,” Theodore said. “Eat.”
He reached down and picked the baby up. Timmy was still too hot, but he knew Isabel was doing everything she could. His face was flushed, and his big blue eyes looked glassy. His gaze, which was normally alert and curious, was unfocused and distant.
Theodore felt as though someone had reached inside him and squeezed his heart. He felt so badly for the poor baby.
Isabel jumped up and got a wet washcloth. Theodore took it from her and pressed it over the baby’s head, gently rocking him back and forth.
When she finished eating, Isabel checked the clock and said, “It’s time for his medicine.”
Theodore held the baby while she gave him the dropper full of dark amber liquid. Timmy grimaced and wiped his tongue as though he was trying to get rid of the awful taste.
“I guess I need to get to work,” Theodore said, handing the baby to Isabel.
A sudden tightening in his chest made him want to flee. It was only now that Theodore realized that he was afraid of the possibility of losing the child. The thought was a gut-wrenching hammer blow to his chest.
How did I let myself care so much?
He squinted at the bright sunlight as he walked out the door. His head throbbed, and his eyes felt like someone threw a handful of sand into them. The couple hours of sleep he had gotten the night before was not enough.
Jacob peered over at him. “You alright?”
“Yeah. I guess I have to expect those things when there’s a baby in the house. No one ever gets hurt or sick during the day,” Theodore said.
Jacob smiled and said, “That’s the truth.” After a pause, he added, “I heard Blue carrying on last night. By the time I made it outside, you were already out there with him. I assumed that since you didn’t come get me, everything was fine.”
“I didn’t see anything. Blue didn’t go after anyone or anything. I was planning on checking everything out while I surveyed the wire again.”
He was worried that someone had cut his wire again and more cattle were loose. Blue might have heard the noise and alerted to it.
“I’ll ride with you,” Jacob said.
Theodore nodded.
They saddled their horses and headed to the north forty, deciding to start their inspection there.
“What did the doc say was wrong with Timmy?” Jacob asked.
“He said that Timmy had a chest cold and would be fine in a couple of days. We just need to watch to make sure it didn’t get worse and turn into pneumonia.”
“I’m sure he’ll be fine,” Jacob said. “Isabel is a good mom.”
Theodore pictured Isabel holding the baby, feeding him, and rocking him to sleep. Then, he smiled as he remembered the tender look she always wore when gazing at him.
“Yes, she is,” Theodore agreed.
They made their rounds in silence until they saw a bloody carcass halfway around the perimeter.
Jacob slid off his horse to inspect it closer. “It looks like the coyotes got a fawn.”
“I guess we’d better bury it so the scent doesn’t attract other predators,” Theodore said.
He dismounted, and the two of them dug a shallow hole using sticks.
“This must have been what Ole Blue was carrying on about last night,” Jacob said.
“Probably so,” Theodore agreed.
He was relieved when they finished their inspection, and nothing else seemed to be wrong.
“Isabel will have lunch ready. You coming?”
Jacob shook his head. “Jeb said that he was making tamales. It was a recipe he picked up from one of the Mexican fellers in town. They’re pretty good.”
“He’ll have to give Isabel the recipe,” Theodore said as he walked away.
When he walked in, Isabel was nodding off in the chair, holding Timmy. He noticed that she looked very pale, which made her dark circles stand out more.
She jumped up as soon as she heard him and put Timmy in his high chair. The baby coughed, but it didn’t sound quite as bad as it did last night.
As though she read his thoughts, she said, “He’s doing better, but I’m still worried.”
His shoulders relaxed a bit at hearing that the baby was doing better. Timmy might not be back to himself, but at least he wasn’t showing signs of pneumonia like the doctor had warned them about.
Timmy held his own bottle while Isabel put the food on the table. She tried to coax Timmy into eating some mashed potatoes, but he wasn’t interested.
Theodore watched Timmy, unable to mask his frown.
“At least he’s taking his bottle,” she sighed.
“That’s a good thing,” he said, wanting to sound encouraging. “You’re doing an amazing job with him.”
A small smile lit up her face at the praise.
Theodore ate, patted the baby on the head, and said, “Thank you, Isabel. That was very good.”
She blushed, and her grin widened. “Thank you.”
He nodded and left, trying to ignore how his skin seemed to buzz at the sight of her upturned lips and bright eyes.
Luckily, they were so busy the rest of the afternoon that he didn’t have time to think about it much, instead focusing on the task at hand. He was pretty exhausted by the time he got back to the house.
Isabel had dinner ready for him and was already feeding Timmy when Theodore walked in.
The sight made his heart stop. He knew that she made dinner for him despite her exhaustion, not because it was her job but because she cared about him. Her words about them being in a partnership echoed in his mind.
“Hi,” she greeted. “Sit down. Let me get your dinner.”
He shook his head, and his own cheeks heated. “I’ll get it. You can take care of him.”
After dinner, Theodore went outside to sit on the porch. He initially wanted some fresh air and space to sort through the fluttering in his chest that Isabel caused, but soon, his eyes drifted shut, and he fell asleep in the chair. When he woke up, his neck ached, and he realized that it was about time for bed.
Despite his internal conflict, he slept soundly that night, completely exhausted from the lack of sleep, the long ride to town, and working all day. Theodore woke up feeling better the next morning.
Some of the cows had started calving, so he and Jacob were busy in the barn all day. They took a short break for lunch and then got back to work. He was relieved when all of the cows were delivered without any problems.
Throughout the day, he was consumed with thoughts of Timmy and wondering whether the baby would be okay. He knew what the doctor said and that the baby seemed to be a bit better, but that didn’t untie the knot that had formed in his gut.
“You seem distracted,” Jacob noted as he cleaned off another little bull.
“Just worried about Timmy. I’m not used to this whole ‘baby being sick’ deal,” Theodore said. “It drives me crazy that he’s sick, and I can’t do anything to make him feel better.”
Jacob nodded. “I can understand that. You’re someone who takes action, not one to sit around and let life happen.”
Theodore sighed, nodded, and ran his fingers through his hair.
Isabel, as always, had a delicious dinner waiting for him when he was finally done for the day.
“How is the baby?” he asked.
Isabel briefly closed her eyes, smiled, and pressed her hand to her heart. “A lot better. He still has a slight fever and a little bit of a cough, but it’s not nearly as bad as it was.”
“Good, I’m glad to hear it,” Theodore said, a quiet breath of relief escaping him as the knot in his stomach loosened. He ate and then said, “I want to check on the cows one more time. I’ll be back in a bit.”
It would be easier to focus now that the constant worry gnawing at him had faded for now.
She nodded to him, her attention focused on trying to get Timmy to take a bite of smashed carrot.
It was dark when he got back to the house. He crept down the dark hallway, barely making a sound on the wooden floorboards. The house was silent, except for the soft crackling of fire in the main room and a tree branch brushing against a window.
Theodore felt a twinge in his chest as he passed Isabel’s room, where he knew Timmy would be sleeping. Even though the baby seemed to be getting better, he wanted to check on him again to make sure.
He entered the room that was barely lit by the oil lamp. Timmy lay in his crib, his chest rising and falling steadily. His cheeks were flushed, and he held a corner of his blanket in his tiny fist as though for comfort.
Theodore reached down and gently touched the baby’s cheeks and forehead.
The fever seems to have broken. Thank the heavens, he thought.
An unexpected and overwhelming surge of emotions rushed through him as he watched Timmy. Theodore was caught off guard by the intensity of his love and his protective feelings for Timmy.
He’s so small and so fragile, Theodore thought with a sense of wonder.
His heart twisted in his chest, knotted with worry and love for the baby. He had been out of his mind with fear all day, hoping the fever would break and Timmy would be okay.
He reached down to brush a curl out of Timmy’s face. The baby squirmed and let out a tiny sigh, making Theodore’s breath catch in his throat. He stood still, staring at Timmy, as though to reassure himself that the baby was okay.
Satisfied that Timmy was breathing okay, he stepped back, his heart still thudding. He walked into the kitchen, feeling the exhaustion creep through his body and into his bones.
Isabel stood by the counter, making the night’s bottles for Timmy. She looked completely wiped out. Her face was pale, and the circles under her eyes were now practically black. She obviously hadn’t slept much since Timmy got sick, and it was showing.
He paused in the doorway, watching her for a minute. Her hands shook slightly, and her shoulders slumped with exhaustion. His heart thumped with another unexpected wave of tenderness. Theodore was shocked at his emotions, but seeing her standing there, completely exhausted yet doing what she had to for their baby, did something unexplainable to him.
“Isabel,” he said.
She jumped slightly and turned toward him, her eyes wide. “Theodore, I didn’t see you there,” she said, her voice tired and almost hoarse.
He stepped closer to her. “You need to go to bed. I’ll finish up here.”
Isabel blinked, clearly not expecting his words. “I’m fine,” she protested, although the faint tremor in her voice told him that she wasn’t. “I just need to get this done, and then—”
Theodore shook his head. “No. Go on. I’ll take care of this. You haven’t had any sleep since Timmy got sick, and you need some rest.”
She stared at him for a few seconds, as if searching his face for something. He saw a flicker of surprise in her eyes. Then, slowly, she nodded and set down the bottle she was holding.
“Alright,” she said, with a slight catch in her voice. “Thank you.”
Tears glistened in the back of her eyes, and for a moment, he felt a pang of tenderness deep in his chest. He forced himself to look away from her and walk over to the bottles.
“Timmy is going to be fine. You did a great job taking care of him,” Theodore said, his voice almost a whisper. “You don’t have to worry.”
Isabel nodded, her lips trembling. “I know,” she said. Her voice quivered as though she were doing everything to keep the tears at bay.
Theodore turned his attention to the bottles, his hands moving automatically, although his mind was somewhere else entirely. He felt her looking back at him.
Growling in his mind, he fought the urge to turn around and pull her close to him. He wanted to tell her that he was worried and that he loved Timmy, too.
Instead, he forced himself to focus on the bottles, pushing down the emotions that threatened to rise to the surface.
He heard her footsteps walk into her room, and the door closed.
Sucking in a deep breath, he finished making the bottles. Once they were done, he put them in the basket and covered them, keeping them warm.
Isabel was stretched out on the bed, blanket up to her chin, when he entered the room and settled in the chair next to the crib.
The rest of the night crawled by. He dozed off and on, jumping up each time Timmy made a noise. Theodore was glad to see that when Timmy woke up for his bottles, he ate hungrily and then settled back down to sleep.
Every once in a while, he checked the baby’s face to reassure himself that the fever was really gone.
He couldn’t help but stare at Isabel as she slept. Her breathing was deep and even. She seemed to be lost in sleep but still looked exhausted—a fact that only deepened his admiration of her.
It’s amazing how much she loves this baby who isn’t hers by birth. He chuckled to himself. He isn’t my blood, but I couldn’t love the little guy anymore if he was.