Evelyn’s pulse jumped.
Nathaniel continued.
“More than is convenient.”
She smiled.
“Do you want me because you’re lonely?”
He thought.
“Partly.”
She appreciated the answer.
He continued.
“I’m lonely.”
“You’re here.”
“You’re beautiful.”
“You make this house feel alive.”
“You argue with me.”
“You make bread that’s going to ruin every boarding house in Kansas for me.”
Evelyn laughed.
Nathaniel’s expression became serious.
“I don’t know yet what name belongs to all of that.”
“But I want to find out.”
Evelyn nodded.
“That’s honest enough.”
They did not kiss again that morning.
That restraint made the next kiss stronger.
Life continued.
Then Caleb returned.
Nathaniel saw him first.
A rider approached the ranch near noon.
Evelyn was sorting beans at the kitchen table.
Nathaniel entered through the back door.
His face was different.
“What?”
He removed his hat.
“Someone’s here.”
“Who?”
He hesitated.
Evelyn knew.
Before he said the name.
Her body went cold.
“Caleb.”
Nathaniel nodded.
Evelyn stood slowly.
The baby shifted sharply.
Nathaniel moved closer.
“You do not have to see him.”
Evelyn looked toward the front window.
Caleb dismounted.
Same coat.
Same face.
As though two months had not passed.
As though she had not spent six hours believing her future ended on a station bench.
Evelyn said:
“I do.”
Nathaniel studied her.
“You sure?”
“No.”
Then:
“But I’m doing it.”
He nodded.
“Then I’m beside you.”
“Not in front.”
Nathaniel understood.
“Beside.”
They stepped onto the porch.
Caleb smiled.
“There you are.”
Evelyn almost laughed from disbelief.
There you are.
As if she had wandered away.
“You found me.”
Caleb removed his hat.
“I made a mistake.”
Evelyn waited.
Nothing else.
No apology.
No explanation.
Just classification.
Mistake.
“I see.”
Caleb looked toward Nathaniel.
Then at Evelyn’s belly.
“I’ve come to take you home.”
Nathaniel’s jaw tightened.
Evelyn felt it without looking.
She answered:
“This is home for now.”
Caleb scoffed.
“You’ve been staying with another man.”
“Yes.”
“You understand how that looks?”
Evelyn’s fear disappeared.
Anger replaced it beautifully.
“How it looks?”
Caleb took a step closer.
Nathaniel remained still.
Evelyn continued:
“You abandoned me on a railway platform.”
“You left me with forty-one dollars.”
“You did not know where I would sleep.”
“You did not know whether I could buy supper.”
“And you’re worried how this looks?”
Caleb’s face reddened.
“I panicked.”
“For two months?”
“I needed time.”
“So did I.”
He looked toward the belly again.
“That is my child.”
Evelyn’s hand moved protectively.
“You had responsibilities before rights.”