Levi spent the rest of the day showing Hope around his property and introducing her to his hands. He also saw the way his men looked at his new wife and he did not like it. It was definitely an unsettling feeling. Only two horses were saddled for their tour. Ellie didn't like not having her own horse but she didn't make too much of a fuss. Ellie rode with him going out but she surprised Levi when she wanted to ride with Hope coming back. It had been so wonderful seeing Ellie with a mother figure, smiling and laughing.

He gave his new wife one of his horses to ride so Whinny could rest from her long journey. It was obvious the poor beast was extremely, stressed. As the day wore on, all traces of the frightened woman he saw earlier were gone. In her place was a laughing, happy, vibrant and very beautiful woman; a woman who put his daughter at ease and brought a sparkle to her eyes. He was usually a pretty good judge of character and he didn't feel anything negative about the woman he married earlier that afternoon.

He had been in the barn checking on his new colt and decided to go in and check in with the girls and make sure everything was still going well. The girls, it felt strange to say that. Never had he felt the need to go check on Alicia, only Ellie, when she wasn't with him, and that was rare. Ellie had almost always been with him, he'd been too afraid of what Alicia might do to the little girl. He crossed the yard, walked up the steps and across the porch. He stood there for a moment listening but heard nothing from within. Opening the door, he walked quietly down the hall past the dining room, to the spacious kitchen.

Laughter and girlish giggles filled his ears causing an unknown feeling deep in his chest. Silently he leaned against the door frame, drinking in the sight before him. His daughter was helping Hope make biscuits and both of them had flour on their aprons. Ellie was elbow deep in biscuit dough when it happened. Her elbow bumped the tin of flour, scattering it to the floor; causing a huge white cloud. Instantly, Ellie stopped laughing. Her eyes filled with fear as tears threatened to fall. Hope, also stopped and looked at the little girl. Her back was to Levi, so he couldn't see her face but he did see her body tense. Ellie began apologizing and Hope began shaking her head.

To Levi's surprise, his new wife burst into laughter and kept laughing until she was doubled over, holding her stomach. Rooted to his spot, he saw his daughter stare at her new step mother, with her mouth hanging open, in shock.

"You should have seen your face!" Hope laughed again, then took her apron and wiped her eyes. "Oh Ellie, it was priceless!"

"You aren't mad at me?"

"Heavens, no! It was an accident. But, you do have to help me clean it up, ok?"

"Yes, ma'am." the little girl answered with a smile. "It did make an awful big mess." She said looking around the room covered in a fine, white powder.

Hope took her finger, dipped it into a small pile of flour on the counter, and ran it down the little girl's nose in a playful gesture. Ellie dipped her fingers in a pile of flour and asked Hope to bend down. Ellie took her fingers and ran them across Hope's cheek, leaving white streaks in their wake. This set them both off, into new fits of laughter. As Hope stood up and turned around she saw Levi standing in the doorway with an unreadable expression on his handsome face. Instantly the girls became serious. His wife straightened her back, placed her hand on Ellie's shoulder, and stepped in front of the child.

It was the last gesture touched him the most. She felt the need to protect his daughter, something her own mother hadn't wanted to do. But he could still see the fear and uncertainty in her eyes. Crossing his arms across his chest, he winked at his daughter as she peaked around Hope's skirts. "You ladies look like you might need a little help." It took over an hour for the three of them to clean up the kitchen, and then it was another hour before dinner was ready.

"I know you said you were tired of stew but it was the only thing I could cook so late in the day. If you'll tell me your favorite dish, I'll make it tomorrow."

Levi took his first bite of stew and thought he'd died and gone to Heaven. It was the best stew he'd ever eaten. The savory bite slid down his throat to settle happily into his empty stomach. Eyeing the cornbread, he set down his spoon and reached to grab a steamy slice. After slathering sweet butter on the thick slice, he let his teeth sink into it, allowing the taste to woo his tongue, then slide down his throat to his extremely grateful stomach. Barely holding back the groan of ecstasy, he said; "you can cook beef stew and cornbread like this every day. You're a fabulous cook."

"Thank you." Hope said blushing. "But, I didn't do it all by myself. I had a lot of help." Glancing at her new step-daughter, she couldn't help but notice the unmistakable look of pride on the little girl's face.

Hope lay in her bed that night, trying to go to sleep but her mind just wouldn't shut down. Every memory of that day kept replaying in her mind. The first look at her new husband, the way his hands felt on her bare skin, as he slid the ring on her finger. Absently, her right hand went to the gold band on the third finger of her left hand. A smile played across her lips as she remembered the kiss, her first kiss. Tingles started where his lips had touched her then traveled all the way down her body, to the tips of her toes. And the heat from his body when he helped her down from the wagon...... she could still feel his hands on her waist and the warmth of his chest.

This was her wedding night and she was all alone. A sudden sadness gripped her and a single tear slid from the corner of her eye as loneliness threatened to consume her. No, she thought, as she wiped her eyes. This was the first day of the rest of her life. She was married to a very handsome man, had a beautiful step-daughter, no a daughter, and she lived in a beautiful house. The most important thing was, she was away from her father and Philip, forever. Never again did she have to be afraid of her father beating her or trying to marry her off to that horrid man. No, this man saved her and she would spend the rest of her life thanking him. With those last thoughts, Hope drifted off to a peaceful sleep.

Hope awoke for the day, washed her face, and dressed to go downstairs to start breakfast. The sky was colored with the first blush of dawn as she went out to the coop to collect fresh eggs. Hurrying back inside, she quickly set the basket of eggs down on the counter and pulled the biscuits from the oven. They were a perfect, golden brown and HOT as she discovered when she transferred them to a basket and covered them with a clean towel. She placed a second pan of biscuits in the oven then began to cut thick slices of bacon.

The aroma of fresh coffee tickled his senses, finally, waking Levi from a sound sleep. It had taken him forever to fall asleep last night. Every time he closed his eyes a pair of violet ones looked back at him sometimes in fear and sometimes dancing with laughter. He'd dreamed of running his fingers through her thick, silky, ebony tresses. Groaning, he rolled over, threw the covers back, and lit his lamp. He had just pulled on his pants when someone knocked on his door. Without thinking, he bade the person to enter. The thought of his wife being on the other side of his door never crossed his mind. He figured it was one of his hands with a problem or Ellie.

The only thing left to make was the eggs for Levi and Ellie. Hope went upstairs to see how they wanted their eggs cooked and to call them down to breakfast. After patting her hair, then running her nervous hands down the front of her apron, she took a deep breath and knocked, softly, on the door. Gaining permission to enter the room, Hope turned the brass knob and opened the door.

His back was to her so Levi didn't see the shock and surprise on his wife's face. Hope could only stand there and stare at what had to be perfection. The golden glow of the lamp illuminated every muscle in his shoulders and back. As he buttoned his pants, those same muscles flexed and danced in perfect rhythm.

He turned as he reached for his shirt and saw his wife standing in the doorway, with her mouth open in shock. A light dusting of hair was sprinkled on his chest, adding to his raw masculine essence. The soft glow of the lamp shaded and highlighted perfectly every taunt line of his body, causing Hope's mouth to go dry. Her eyes never made it to his; instead, they started at his broad shoulders and, slowly, moved down his sculpted chest to his washboard stomach. Finally, her virgin eyes, followed the thin line of hair from his navel until it disappeared beneath his snug pants, where the top two buttons remained undone.

Realizing what she had done, Hope snatched her eyes up to his face, only to find a smirk on his lips and laughter in his eyes. Slowly, he raised one sandy colored eyebrow, but still said nothing. Oh God, she was so embarrassed. Her face flamed and she thought, surely, she would spontaneously combust. Never in her twenty years had she ever seen a man without a shirt on. But, somehow, she knew that none of the men she ever met would look like Levi Matthews. That image would forever be burned into her mind.

"I – I – I just wanted to make sure you were up and to see how you wanted your eggs cooked." She, finally managed to get out.

"No, I wasn't but I'm getting there." Levi said, then wanted to bite his tongue off for saying it in front of Hope.

"What?" Hope asked in confusion.

"Nothing. I was just ....." Levi trailed off as he began to slide his arms in his shirt. "Scrambled is fine. I'm not a very picky eater, neither is Ellie."

"I'll just go and get them started; it won't take but just a minute for them to cook."

After Hope quietly closed the door, Levi brought the palm of his hand up and smacked himself in the forehead a few times. He'd seen the hungry look on her face and in her eyes and he liked it, A LOT. She might be innocent but she was still a woman. His pants were painfully tight as he imagined seeing that same hungry look on her face as he made love to her. Groaning, he walked over to the basin and splashed cold water over his face and chest.

The three of them sat at the kitchen table with Ellie talking enough for all of them. Hope still couldn't bring herself to look Levi in the face. He, however, had no problem watching every move she made. She was more than relieved when breakfast was over and he was getting ready to leave for the day. "Um, Levi, is there anything special you would like for dinner?"

He turned to her and smiled. "Whatever you and Ellie decide to cook is fine with me. I told you earlier that I'm not a picky eater." At the mention of their earlier encounter, Hope's face turned pink. "Why don't you go through the pantry, and see what we have and what you need? Make a list and we'll go into town in the next day or so to pick up supplies. I won't be back until late afternoon but Jeb will be staying around the house working on a few things should you need anything." Squatting down, he held out his arms to give Ellie a hug. "Ok, baby girl, I want you to mind Hope and do what she tells you to do. Can you do that for me?"

"Yes, Papa. I promise to be good."

"Ok, I'm counting on you. I'll see you this afternoon. I love you."

"I love you too, Papa." Ellie said as she wrapped her little arms around his neck and kissed his cheek.

The open display of affection between father and daughter was amazing. What she would have given to have this type of relationship with just one of her parents. Hope started clearing the table and washing the dishes. A few minutes later she heard a chair scraping across the floor, then Ellie's head popped up beside her. The little girl rolled up her sleeves and began to help.

Hope was amazed at how well behaved Ellie was. She could not imagine anyone, especially a mother, not loving the child. It didn't take long for them to get the kitchen cleaned up and to take inventory of the food supplies. Ellie had been a huge help, telling Hope where things went and what foods she and her father liked best. They started fresh bread for dinner; this time, Hope moved the flour tin away from Ellie's elbows.

Hope was just covering the dough to let it rise, when a thought came to her. "Ellie," she said, turning to face the little girl; "Do you know how to read and write?"

"Well, my Papa has been working with me some at night, after dinner, when we're not too tired."

Once again Hope's heart melted toward the man she'd married and his sweet child. "If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to work with you a little every day."

Ellie's eyes lit up as she bounced up and down. "Oh, Hope, that would be so wonderful. My Papa will be so surprised and proud of me." Ellie ran into her father's study, and grabbed several sheets of paper and a pencil, then ran back into the kitchen. She pulled out a chair and sat down. "Can we start now? We haven't made a list of things to buy, yet. I could help you do that."

"How about if I write the list while you tell me what to write. Then you can tell me everything your papa has taught you so I will know where to begin." They sat there for hours with Ellie writing her ABC's and numbers. Levi had obviously worked with her a good bit, because she knew all of the alphabet and her numbers up to twenty. Ellie was very patient and took her time writing each letter as neatly as possible. The clock in the hall striking two o'clock broke through their concentration.

"Oh my goodness! Ellie, we have to get dinner started. You can help me, continue what you're doing, or you can go outside and play."

"If I help you do you think you could come outside with me?"

Hope smiled. "I do believe that's something I would love to do. You know, your Papa told me about a rope swing he made for you, down by the creek, and I am dying to see it, and maybe even try it out."

They had several hours of daylight left when they got down to the creek. A light breeze blew causing dead leaves to fall, floating down onto the soft grass. Hope and Ellie took turns pushing each other on the swing as they talked and laughed, and just got to know each other. Both loving the new found relationship but for different reasons. Neither of them saw the lone figure, leaning against one of the posts on the front porch.