Wilhelmina considered the question seriously. I have discovered that I am braver than I thought and more stubborn. I have discovered that I care deeply about fairness and education enough to fight for them even when it is unpopular. And I have discovered that I would rather fail at building my own life than succeed at living someone else's. That takes real courage, Daniel said quietly.
Most people never figure that out. They talked for hours long after they had finished eating. Wilhelmina told him about her love of books, how she had spent her childhood reading everything she could get her hands on, much to her mother's dismay. Daniel talked about learning to handle horses, how he had a gift for working with difficult animals that others had given up on. They discovered they both loved thunderstorms, both hated oysters, and both had a tendency to take on causes that others considered hopeless.
I got a job today, Wilhelmina said as they were leaving the restaurant. Working for May Chin at the laundry, managing her accounts and correspondence. Daniels face lit up. That is wonderful news. May is a good woman, honest and fair.
You will be treated well there. He paused. Though I hope you know my offer to help was genuine. You do not have to struggle alone. I know, Wilhelmina said, and I appreciate that.
But I need to know I can take care of myself. Dependence on a man's charity, even well-meaning charity, is too close to the life I was running from. I can understand that, Daniel said. They had reached the boarding house, and he stopped at the bottom of the steps. Miss Dalton, I enjoyed this evening immensely.
Might I call on you again, perhaps Sunday afternoon? I would like to show you my ranch if you would be willing to take a ride out there. I would like that, Mr. Walker. Wilhelmina realized she meant it. The evening had been surprisingly pleasant, the conversation easy and genuine.
Daniel Walker was nothing like the men she had known in Boston, but perhaps that was not such a bad thing. He tipped his hat to her and turned to leave, then stopped and looked back. Wilhelmina, if I may be so bold to use your given name, I want you to know that stopping you from boarding that train was the bravest thing I have ever done. Thank you for not thinking me completely insane. Call me Willa, she heard herself say.
My friends call me Willa. His smile in the moonlight was genuine and warm. Good night, Willa. Sweet dreams. That night, lying in her bed, Willa reflected on how much her life had changed in just 24 hours.
Yesterday, at this time, she had been preparing to give up and go home. Now, she had a job, a place to live, and the beginning of something she was not quite ready to name with a man she barely knew, but found herself wanting to know better. The next few weeks fell into a pleasant rhythm. Willa worked at the laundry 5 days a week. Learning the business and helping may expand her customer base by writing professional advertisements and introducing more efficient bookkeeping methods.
She discovered she had a talent for business management and May was appreciative of her contributions, even giving her a small raise after the first week. Daniel called on her three times a week as they had agreed. He took her to dinner again to a dance at the community hall where he admitted he was not much of a dancer but tried anyway making her laugh when he stepped on her toes. They went on long walks through the countryside surrounding Hawthorne where he taught her to identify different plants and animal tracks. He showed her his ranch, a neat spread of grassland nestled in the hills, with a sturdy cabin he had built himself, a barn for his horses, and several hundred head of cattle grazing on the range. "
It is not fancy, " he said, almost apologetically as they sat on his porch, watching the sunset paint the desert sky in shades of orange and purple. " But it is mine, built with my own hands and my own work. It is beautiful, Willa said honestly. The ranch was isolated but not lonely. Peaceful in a way that her life in Boston had never been.
She could imagine living here, waking up to these sunrises, falling asleep to the sound of cattle lowing in the distance. The thought surprised her with its clarity. As November turned to December, Willa found herself thinking about Daniel more and more. She looked forward to his visits with an anticipation that went beyond mere politeness. She caught herself smiling at random moments during the day, remembering something funny he had said or the way his eyes crinkled when he laughed.
When he accidentally brushed her hand while helping her over a stream during one of their walks, the jolt of electricity she felt was undeniable. One evening in mid December, Daniel arrived at the boarding house looking nervous. Willa, I have something I need to tell you and I am not sure how you will take it. Her heart sank. This was it.
She thought he was going to tell her this was not working out, that he had made a mistake, that she should book passage back to Boston after all. What is it? I am falling in love with you, he said bluntly, his gray eyes intense. I know we agreed to take this slow and I know it has only been a few weeks but I cannot pretend anymore. Every time I see you, every time we talk, every time you smile at me, I fall a little harder and I need to know if there is any chance, any possibility at all that you might feel the same way.
Will stood frozen, her heart pounding. This was too fast, too sudden. She barely knew him. And yet looking at him standing there with his heart in his eyes, she knew that she did know him in all the ways that mattered. She knew he was kind to animals and respectful to women.
She knew he was honest and hardworking. She knew he listened when she talked about her ideas and dreams. Really listened instead of just waiting for his turn to speak. and she knew that when she imagined her future, he was increasingly present in those imaginings. " Daniel, " she said softly, using his given name for the first time, "I think I might be falling in love with you, too, and that terrifies me. "
The relief on his face was profound. Why does it terrify you? Because I came west to be independent, to prove I did not need a man to complete my life. Falling in love feels like giving up on that dream, like admitting I was wrong all along. She twisted her hands together, trying to find the right words.
In Boston, love was always about possession. Men married women to acquire them like property. I wanted to be free of that. Daniel stepped closer, close enough that she could smell the sage and leather scent of him. Willa, loving you does not mean possessing you.
It means partnering with you, standing beside you, supporting your dreams while you support mine. If we were to build a life together, it would be our life, not mine with you as an accessory. Do you understand the difference? I want to, she whispered. I want to believe that is possible.