In The Beginning by Gail Daley (top 100 books of all time checklist .TXT) 📕

She joined Carlos in the kitchen in time to hear Jeanne's protest when Bethany told her she couldn't ride out alone anymore.

Iris went to the stove and filled plates for both of them. "Let's eat in here," she suggested to Carlos, handing him his. "I'm sure Papa will want to introduce you to Mr. McCaffey once things have settled down, but I don't want to get in the middle of that."

He snorted, "Me neither. At least your sister isn't yelling at me this time."

After breakfast, Jeanne, Bethany and Alec departed for River Crossing and Michael St. Vyr summoned both Iris and Carlos to the Den.

"Why do you suppose he wants both of us?" Carlos asked her as he opened the door.

"Come in and sit down, both of you," Michael said genially.

Iris sat with her hands folded tightly in her lap and her lips pressed together. She was a tall woman, but the oversized chair made her seem delicate and fragile. Carlos cast a curious look at her face before he too sat in one of St. Vyr’s massive chairs.

Michael steepled his fingers together and regarded the young couple over them out of narrowed eyes. "The doctor was out here last week," he said. "It seems that bullet in my spine moved since the last time he looked at it."

"Papa why didn’t you say something?" Iris exclaimed. "Are you in pain?"

"What else did he say?" asked Carlos. "Is it dangerous?"

"The answer to both questions, is yes. The pain is increasing and if it moves closer to the spine, it could cause my lungs to shut down and I will die."

"He’s an old quack!" Iris cried, coming to kneel by his chair. "We’ll go into Junction City and get another opinion—"

St. Vyr reached out and stroked her bright hair. "No darlin’. That won’t help, I’m afraid. I wouldn’t have told you, but you need to know why I want to get this done as soon as it can be."

Carlos frowned at him. "Get what done?"

"I need to be sure my girls are safe," St. Vyr said simply.

Carlos’s frown grew. "Surely, you don’t doubt that I will stand by them?"

Mike smiled at him. "I know you will boy. Just as I know you don’t need what I’m about to propose as an incentive to do that. But I regard you as the son I never had, and I want you taken care of too. If all my girls marry other men, it might be their husbands wouldn’t feel that way about you. That’s why I want the two of you to get married."

Iris jumped to her feet and stepped back from her father. "I’m not a side of meat to be handed off!" she cried.

St. Vyr attempted to hide his exasperation. Soothingly he said, "I know that girl. But the pair of you have been making goo-goo eyes at each other for the better part of a year and neither one of you seems to want to do a thing about it. I’m just pushing it along a little."

Carlos too, stood up. "Michael," he drawled, "I won’t do this if Iris is opposed to it."

"That’s the whole point," St. Vyr said. "I don’t think she is opposed to marrying you. I think she’s just being—a woman. They take funny notions."

He turned to his daughter. "Iris, let’s have the truth now. Do you dislike Carlos here?"

"No of course not," she said. "But—"

St. Vyr held up a hand to stop her. "Wait, I’m not finished. Are you afraid of him for any reason?"

"No, I’m not afraid of him. In fact, I think he’s a fine man. But that isn’t the point. He doesn’t care for me that way, and I don’t want to be married to a man who—"

"You’re saying he’s never courted you," St. Vyr pursued ruthlessly.

His daughter made a frustrated noise. "Papa, you don’t understand."

"I understand better than you think," her father retorted. "I’ve been married three times, remember."

He looked at them consideringly. "All right, here’s what I propose. The two of you will announce an engagement and spend time together. That ought to keep the wolves away for a little while. If after three months, you still aren’t convinced, I’ll drop the entire matter. Hell, I may be dead by that time anyway."

He looked at Carlos who had been watching him in silence. "Is that agreeable to you?"

"Yes."

"Iris?"

"Oh, all right Papa. It will be as you say," she said submissively. "Was there anything else? If not, I need to turn over my cheeses."

At St. Vyr’s nod, she practically ran from the room. He looked over at the man he regarded as a son. "You will have to court her to convince her it’s her you want and not the third of the mine and ranch. Think you can do that?"

Carlos chuckled. "It won’t be hard—I always loved her, you know. How much of that story you fed us was the truth, you old rascal? Did the Doc give you the long face?"

"No, but he said the bullet had shifted," he admitted. "You got any problems at the Lucky Strike?"

"Some. My biggest problem is I’m not two people. I can handle the crew scaring our people off the placer claims and the miners sneaking out small quantities of bluestones in their pockets, but not at the same time. I have a good idea who is behind the scare tactics. I think it’s Max Franks and his gang. The thefts are a different kettle of fish. What I need is an investigator to find out who is behind it; because I’m sure it isn’t just a few men slipping a few stones into their pockets. It’s too organized, and the amount that seems to be missing each night is too consistent for that."

Courtship

CARLOS DIDN'T FIND Iris in the goat barn and she wasn’t down in the cheese-curing cellar. When she had run out of the den after the discussion with her