Page 12 of The Gold Rush Bride

Sadie awokeand her eyes widened as she realized she’d cuddled next to Barnaby, and her arm lay across his chest. She lifted her arm and tried to roll over away from him.

He chuckled. “Finally awake I see.”

She pulled her arm back and scrambled from the bed. “I’m sorry. I must have gotten cold during the night.”

“It’s okay.” He sat up, swinging his long legs over the side of the bed. “It’s early, but it’s better for us to get an early start. Usually, I don’t have any problem getting up, but today I would have slept in. I enjoyed sleeping in a proper bed. Thank you again.”

“You’re welcome.”It was so nice waking up next to him. I wonder if I’ll ever get to wake up next to him again? And do I actually want to? After all, I’m the one who insists this is not a genuine marriage. Do I want it to be?

* * *

While trekkingup the Klondike River, Sadie saw some of the most beautiful country she’d ever seen. Snow still covered a lot of the ground, but as it melted, tiny rivers flowed toward the large one. In many places, the river slowed to a crawl and little ponds formed. The water was calm enough that she saw fish jump, their rainbow colors sparkling in the sunshine before they splashed back into the pond.

After walking for more than half the day, Sadie was exhausted by the time they got to the claim. However, rest was not to be had. A claim jumper was there. The man had a tall stature, dirty blond hair, and a long, untrimmed beard. He was skinny and coming out of their tent. She saw he was holding the sweater she’d knitted for her father before he left for the gold fields. She fisted her hands. “He’s got my father’s sweater,” she said. Suddenly, her father’s death was even more real. He wouldn’t have left her gift to him behind if he’d known he wouldn’t be back. Her heart was in her throat or she would have sobbed.

“Homer Grimes. I see you. What have you poached from me? Just for jumping my claim, I could kill you. And I probably should, so you don’t do this to somebody else,” Barnaby shouted as he stomped toward the claim jumper.

Homer Grimes stopped and looked at Sadie, then he dropped the sweater and ran.

Barnaby gave chase and started sprinting after the man but stopped abruptly and walked back to Sadie.

After Homer was gone, she pulled Lucky to the claim and tied his lead rope to a tree. She hurried to the tent and picked up her father’s sweater from the ground and clutched it to her chest. Sadie entered the tent and sat on a cot, crying. She missed him so much.

She set the sweater onto the cot and, despite her exhaustion, she helped Barnaby unpack Lucky and the sled.

Barnaby placed the supplies onto a tarp and covered them with another, which he tied down with stakes that were already in the ground. She knew the ground was too hard right now, so he or her father must have done it in the summer when the ground had thawed some.

“I’ve marked the boundaries of our claim and strung a rope between the marker sticks. Don’t go out of our claim.”

“All right. I’ll pay attention.”

The tent was quite large, big enough for two men. Her father had been six feet tall, but slender, unlike Barnaby, who was at least four inches taller and muscular. She hadn’t paid any attention when she was in it before, other than the two cots. In the middle of the tent, along one wall, was the stove. The pipe went through a square of tin and then out the top of the tent. Next to the stove were neat stacks of firewood and kindling.

At the back of the tent was a small square table with two chairs. That was it. It appeared each man had personal items in a metal locker under his cot.Are Daddy’s belongings still in the locker under his cot?

To the east of the camp, there appeared to be a fireplace dug into the hillside with a long table across from it.Why would they have had a fireplace outside when they had the stove inside?

“Barnaby, which cot was my father’s?”

“The one where you put the sweater. I thought you knew.”

“No, I just set it down. Does the locker still contain his clothing?”

“It does. But I don’t think you’ll find much that is useable. The only thing he had of use was that sweater.” He pointed at the clothing next to her on the cot. “He didn’t wear it unless we went to town. He’d clean up, put on his best shirt and that sweater.”

She picked up the sweater again and buried her face in it, hoping she could still smell him...the sandalwood scent he always wore. It remained...faint, yet present. She held it to her face, and she cried.

Barnaby came and sat next to her. He put an arm around her shoulders and eased her body into his. Then he just held her. He couldn’t do anything else, but she was so glad he tried.

When she had regained her composure, she sat up. “Thank you. I just miss him.”

“I understand. I do, too. John was my friend as well as my partner. We shared a lot. Now, why don’t you rest a bit. I’ll just do a bit of fishing and see if I can catch our supper.

Sadie lay down on her father’s cot, pulled a blanket over herself and slept with her head on the sweater.

She didn’t know how long she slept before she felt Barnaby shaking her by the shoulder.

“Wake up. It’ll be time to eat soon.”