More importantly, it would give her legal standing.
Iona crossed her arms.
“You are asking me to marry you for protection.”
“Yes.”
“That is still buying me.”
“No.”
“What is it?”
“A choice.”
She looked away.
“Do you love me?”
Nathan's breath caught.
“No.”
The answer hurt them both.
“But,” he continued, “I care about you more than I know how to explain.”
Iona looked back.
“And if I say no?”
“You walk away.”
“And if I say yes?”
“I give you my name.”
She was silent for a long time.
Then she asked:
“Do you understand what that means?”
Nathan nodded.
“No. But I want to.”
She smiled sadly.
“That may be the first honest answer a man has ever given me.”
They married two days later.
There was no grand ceremony.
Only a preacher, a few witnesses, and the dry wind moving through the church windows.
Nathan wore his best coat.
Iona wore a simple blue dress.
When the preacher asked whether she accepted Nathan Cole as her husband, she looked at Nathan.
He didn't pressure her.
He simply waited.
“Yes,” she said.
Nathan's answer was equally quiet.
“Yes.”
The preacher pronounced them husband and wife.
Outside, Dry Creek erupted with gossip.
But Nathan and Iona rode home without speaking.
At the ranch, Iona dismounted.
“Nathan?”
“Yes?”
“I said yes to the marriage.”
“I know.”
“But I did not say I love you.”
Nathan looked at her.
“I know.”
She smiled.
“Good.”
Then she walked inside.
Nathan remained outside beneath the fading sunlight.
He touched the ring on his finger.
For the first time in years, he was afraid of losing something.
Something he had not intended to own.
Something that had never been his to own.
The Storm Beyond the Ridge
Marriage did not make their lives easier.
It made them honest.
They argued.
They learned.
They laughed.
Sometimes they slept in separate rooms.
Sometimes they sat beside each other long after midnight without saying a word.
Nathan began to realize that Iona was no longer a guest.
She was part of the ranch.
Part of his life.
And perhaps, terrifyingly, part of his heart.
Then came the storm.
It arrived from the west with almost no warning.
The cattle scattered.
Lightning struck the old barn.
Fire climbed the roof.
Nathan ran outside.
“Iona!”
She emerged from the house carrying the family Bible.
“Get to the creek!”
“I can help!”
“No!”
She ignored him.
Together they fought the fire.
Rain finally came.
The barn was damaged but not destroyed.
Nathan collapsed against the fence.
Iona knelt beside him.
“You're hurt.”
“Just tired.”
Blood ran from his forehead.
“You're bleeding.”
“So are you.”
She touched the cut on her cheek.
Neither noticed it until then.
Nathan laughed.
Iona laughed too.
They sat in the mud beneath the rain.
Then Iona whispered:
“I was afraid.”
Nathan looked at her.
“Of the fire?”
“No.”
She took his hand.
“Of losing you.”
Nathan's heart stopped.
“Iona.”
“I know you said you didn't love me.”
“I was wrong.”
She stared at him.
Nathan continued.
“I was afraid to say it because I thought love meant giving someone the power to destroy you.”
“And now?”
“Now I think love means giving someone the power to leave—and trusting them to stay.”
Tears filled her eyes.
“I love you too.”
Nathan pulled her close.
Their kiss was quiet.
No crowd.
No auctioneer.
No chains.
Just rain falling over the ranch.
But before dawn, they discovered that Silas Vane had not disappeared.
He had gathered men.
And he was coming.
The Last Ride
Silas Vane arrived with eleven riders.
They came just after sunrise.
Nathan stood on the porch.