“Too bad Mrs. Edmondson died. She might have known.” Alex stood and looked out the window. “We need to get that stuff out of there and put somewhere safe.”
“That’s why I asked Joel to come.” Denver turned to the banker. “Could we put the gold in the bank’s safe? It will take time to weigh it all and do a search for whom it might belong to.”
“Of course. We can nail the lid shut and seal it with wax. That way we can be sure it’s not gotten into.”
“I’ll see if I can find records from the time for stolen gold. Though the statute of limitations may be expired.” Alex said.
“Where will we store the liquor?” Luther asked.
“I’d suggest Miss Flora’s saloon, since she can keep it safe, but I don’t want her to get into trouble having untaxed hootch.” Alex rubbed a hand over his hair. “Maybe a cell in the jail, but I wouldn’t want that to become common knowledge. Someone might try to break into jail for it.”
Laughter met his comment.
Luther slapped his hands on his desk and stood. “Well, let’s get these things moved.”
“One more thing,” Denver said. “Belle Stewart and I will be getting married. We haven’t decided when, but we will be. I won’t let her reputation be smeared because of an accident.”
Luther came around his desk. “That’s mighty fine of you. Seems even though she didn’t send for a husband, Silverpines got one for her. She’s a fine lady, and will make you a good wife. Just you see that you be a good husband for her.”
“You can be sure I will, or she’ll take one of her infernal umbrellas to my head.”
~~~~~
Belle opened the door to Denver and smiled as she let him in. She’d slept through the entire morning and was refreshed and ready to deal with the decisions they needed to make.
“Come in. Have you eaten? I can fix you a plate.”
“No, thank you. I ate with Luther, Joel Richards, and the marshal after we moved what we found in the tunnel.” Denver went on to explain what they’d done and planned to do as he took off his hat and coat.
“Let’s go into the parlor. Geneva is upstairs settling Neva to her nap. She played all morning with the Cutler girls.”
“I thought you were going to spend the day with your children.”
“Connor wanted to go tell his friends about my adventure and so did Neva. I was abandoned for the morning. I was able to sleep, which helped me quite a bit.” She studied Denver. “You look tired. I don’t suppose you had a chance to rest.”
“No, but I can tonight. The liquor and gold needed to be moved before someone found it.”
“I suppose. You will stay for supper, won’t you? The children need to get to know you. You’ve only met them once. You’ll be a big part of their lives going forward.”
Geneva came into the parlor with a tray of coffee and cake. “Hello, Mr. Hughes. Thank you for taking such good care of my Belle.”
Denver stood, taking the tray and setting it on a low table. “I’m sorry it happened. Thank you for taking care of the children, Mrs. Stewart. I’m sure you were a comfort to them while they were so scared.”
“Okay, enough with the formality. We are going to be family. I give you permission to call each other by your given names,” Belle said.
“Well, aren’t we the little dictator.” The twinkle in Geneva’s eyes took any sting from her words. “I’m delighted, Denver, that you are willing to do right by Belle.” She proceeded to pour and pass around the cake.
“I’m delighted I can keep her from being scorned for nothing that was her fault and that didn’t happen.”
Belle could feel color blooming on her cheeks. “Let’s move on to a more pressing issue. How do we tell Connor and Neva about our upcoming marriage?” Belle watched as Denver carefully placed his cup on the table beside his chair, stirring it precisely three times, as she’d seen him do each time he had coffee. He definitely liked order. She wondered how he’d do with the disorder children created. The thought gave her pause. That might make the adjustment to their family difficult for all.
Geneva set her cup on the saucer. “Since it is known that you two were trapped overnight, there will be talk and children hear and repeat it. You want Connor and Neva to be able to weather whatever is said. My suggestion is that you tell them the truth, but add that you both are quite happy to marry. And,” she looked directly at Denver. “That you are delighted to become part of Belle’s entire family.”
“I understand, and I am. I’m not familiar with dealing with children, but I will do my best to get to know them, and be whatever kind of father I’m allowed to be.”
It suddenly hit Belle that Denver would be a father figure to her children. She had no clue how they would take that. Would they accept him as their father or resist? What if there were more children in the future? That thought brought more heat to her cheeks, and she studied the cake on the plate in her lap.
She thought of Millie and Clay Cutler. They’d each had several children, and they all seemed to get along. Millie’s children took instruction and rebuke from Clay, as his did from her. How had they merged their families without all-out war between the children and their step-parent? Now, Millie was expecting a baby. Maybe she’d go speak with Millie and ask her how they did it.
“Well, Belle, what do you think?”
Her mother-in-law’s question brought her back to the conversation. “I think you are right. We want them to be able to answer any comments with confidence. I hope there won’t be any, but they need to be prepared.”
Belle saw doubt creep into Geneva’s eyes and wondered what was causing it.
“When will you be marrying?”
“We haven’t talked about that yet.” Denver ate the last bite of his cake. “This is quite good, Geneva.”
The doubt Belle had seen increased. “Geneva, what’s the matter? You look distressed.”
The woman looked from Belle to Denver and back. “Will you be wanting me to move out?”
“Of course not,” they both said at once.
Belle went to kneel in front of Geneva. “I know we aren’t blood relations, but ever since Emery and I married, even before really, you’ve treated me like your own daughter. I love you and want to continue to be that. Emery may be gone, but my love for him isn’t. Neither is my love for you. Denver is entering our family, but that’s not reason for you to have to leave.
“Besides, I’m still going to be working, so you are still needed around here.” Belle stood, kissed Geneva on the cheek, then sat back down in her chair. She picked up her cake and took a bite.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Denver sat at the kitchen table while Connor ate a snack and told all about telling about Belle’s ‘adventure.’ His friends at school had been very impressed. At least that’s how Connor told it.
There were crumbs all over the table, as well as the boy’s face. He itched to wipe them away. Earlier when Neva had spilled her milk, he’d nearly jumped up, needing to get away from any that dripped off the table, even though it was nowhere near him. There were definitely adjustments to be made by him. It seemed children were messy.
They’d decided to wait a week to get married. Belle wanted the children to get to know him better and get used to him being around their house. He would be coming every evening for supper. Denver thought he’d need to get used to the noise and confusion of the children.
The day of their wedding would be the same day as the town social. It was being held to boost the morale of the town. Those who had lived here during the earthquakes were especially affected. Denver hoped some of the announcements he made would help people concentrate on the future rather than be mournful of the past.
Geneva and Belle were working on supper, and Neva was playing with her china head doll. Denver wondered if Connor would be hungry when they ate supper, having just eaten a large snack.
“Help me get Molly dressed.” A naked doll was shoved into his lap. Neva stood next to his chair,
looking up at him with her big blue eyes. Strawberry blonde hair was tied up on each side of her head. He thought they had some sort of funny name. Some animal-tail. Her hair was quite curly, and she looked so cute. Denver thought she looked like her mother.
He could feel Belle’s and Geneva’s eyes on him. It felt like the first test of him being a father. Denver smiled, hoping his insecurity didn’t show. “What do you want to dress her in?” A dark green dress was plopped on top of the doll. He looked at it. How did one dress a doll? He had no clue.
Picking up the dress, he turned it around, studying it to find an opening. Ah, there was a large opening from the neck down the back into the skirt. He took the doll and worked the dress over its head. The arms were harder. Though they were made of cloth except for the hands, it was those hands that made getting the sleeves on difficult. The fingers caught on the lace in the cuffs. Finally, both sleeves were in place. He handed the doll back to Neva. Or tried to.
“Buttons. She needs her buttons done up.” Neva’s tone was one of disdain, as if he should have known.
The buttons were tiny. So were the buttonholes. Could he fasten them? His fingers fumbled. He could hear muffled chuckles, and looked at his future wife and mother-in-law. They turned quickly back to the stove. They were laughing at him. He supposed he was somewhat laughable. His big fingers working the tiny buttons through the holes.
There, done. Denver held up the doll, brushed the dress down from where it was bunched. He’d succeeded. He handed the doll back to Neva.
“It takes you longer than it does Bama and Mama.” Neva frowned at him.
“Neva, you be polite. He’s never dressed a doll before.”
The little girl looked down at her doll, then lifted her eyes to him. “Thank you. Molly thanks you too.” The smile she gave him warmed his heart. She could have been sullen over being rebuked. Instead, she was polite and seemed to forgive him for how long it took him to dress her doll.
“Does Molly have a hat? If she’s going out, she should have one.” Denver found he wanted to continue talking to the girl. She would become his daughter in a little over a week.
“Yes.” Neva bent and picked up a squashed straw hat that she put on the doll’s head. She picked up a small umbrella too. It figured. Maybe this one wouldn’t nearly hit him on the head all the time.
“Where’s she going?”
“To the mercantile. She has friends there. They are going to play together.”
“Who are her friends?”
Neva launched into a detailed description of the dolls of each of the Cutler girls. He knew some had the last name of Messers. It was just easier to refer to all the children as Cutlers. By the time Neva was done with her explanations, Denver had no clue which names were the dolls’, and which were the girls. He’d only met the family once, last Sunday at church. He’d met so many people since he’d arrived it was hard to keep the adults straight, let alone the children.
“It will be a while for supper to cook. Let’s all go into the parlor. I have something to tell you.” Belle wiped the crumbs left by Connor off the table.
When they were all settled, with him sitting next to Belle, she took his hand. “Connor, Neva, because of my adventure with Mr. Hughes, he and I are going to be married.”
Both children looked confused.
“You know we were stuck in the basement overnight. Because of that, it’s proper for us to get married, so we are. I’m very happy about it. So is Mr. Hughes.”
“You are?” Connor looked at him, his nose wrinkled up. Denver couldn’t tell if it was in disgust or simply questioning.
“I’m quite happy marrying your mother.” He found that he was as he said the words. He wanted to think about it but now wasn’t the time.
“What about Papa?” Neva asked.
Belle waved Neva to her and settled the girl on her lap. “Papa is in heaven. We’ll always love him and remember him. He would want me to marry Mr. Hughes.”
“Will he live with us?”
“Yes.”
“Will I have to share my room with him?” Connor asked. He didn’t seem to like the idea.
“No, just like with Papa, he’ll be in my room. That’s what married people do.”
“Will he be a papa?” Neva looked at him. Her eyebrows were bunched together.
“He’ll be your step-father. If we have any children, he’ll be their father.”
“Will I have to call him Mr. Hughes all the time? Mrs. Wallace always called Mr. Wallace, Mr. Wallace.” Connor’s comment made all the adults swallow a snicker.
“I have an idea,” Denver said. “I want you to remember your Papa. That’s your special name for him. How about you call me Daddy?”
Connor and Neva looked at each other.
“That’s okay with me,” Connor finally said.
“Me too.” Neva bounced a little on her mother’s lap.
“I’m glad you like that name for your new step-father. I think it’s a wonderful idea.” Belle was smiling at her children. My, she was beautiful. And his. He hadn’t come to Silverpines to find a wife, but the one he was going to have, he liked being with.
“When are you going to get married?” Neva asked.
“A week from Saturday, in the morning. That way the town social can be our party to celebrate.”
“There’s going to be ice cream at the social.” Now Connor’s smile was a mile wide. “I hope there’s chocolate.”
“Me too,” said Neva. “Do I get a new dress for the wedding?”
Belle glanced at Denver. There was some doubt in her eyes. “I think we can do that, if they have any in the mercantile.”
Geneva spoke up then. “I think, if a certain little girl is very good, I could have a new dress made by then. How does that sound?”
Neva jumped off her mother’s lap and ran to her grandmother. “I’ll be very good. I won’t nag you to play with me, much.”
Geneva took the little face in her hands and kissed it. “At least you are honest.”
~~~~~
“That went very well, I think. Don’t you?” Belle and Geneva were in the kitchen, having put the children to bed. They were in their nightgowns drinking chamomile tea. Denver had left shortly after supper. He’d been busy all day, and the events of last night and today were catching up with him.
“I think the children accepted Denver and the marriage as well as they could. I don’t think it will really set in until he moves here.”
Belle absently stirred her tea. “I have something to ask you, that you might not like. If it bothers you, say so and I won’t.”
“Won’t what?”
“I was thinking of wearing the dress I was married to Emery in. It’s the best one I own.”
Geneva was silent, and Belle waited for her to decide.
Taking a deep breath and releasing it slowly, she said, “It’s not as if you haven’t worn it since that wedding. It’s not strictly a wedding gown.”
“No, there was no way we could afford to buy a dress to only wear one time.”
A soft smile touched Geneva’s lips. “You were a beautiful bride. Emery was so in love with you.”
“I loved him deeply, and miss him every day.”
“Well, life must go on. We both lost our loved ones in the earthquake. It’s been a tough year. Now, we can look forward to a fuller life. You are marrying a good man. I pray that both of you will come to love each other.”
Belle looked down into her tea cup. “Geneva, I’ve been remiss. I’ve never told you how grateful I am that you sold your house and moved in here with us. You made it possible for us to make the mortgage payments while I recovered.” She reached for Geneva’s hand and squeezed it. “Thank you. I love you as if you were my own mother.”
Tears were in both their eyes.
“Even before you and Emery married, I thought of you as my daughter. When your mother was sick, she asked me to help you get over her death. I promised I would. That day you became a chil
d of mine. Your mother was my best friend. I just wish she could have lived to see you marry Emery and your two beautiful children.”
“I do too. I miss her, but if I had to lose her, I’m so very thankful you were there for me. Just as you are now. I love you.”
“I love you too, dear. I think wearing that dress for your wedding is a wonderful idea.”
CHAPTER NINE
Luther came into the room Belle and Denver were working in. They were drawing another map, this time plotting out where the water lines would go to supply all the buildings in town. Denver straightened, pressing a hand to his back. He would be glad when the drafting table arrived.
“Just got a telegram from the state revenue office. They said if we pay the tax on the barrels and bottles we can keep them. They have no idea where they might have come from. All they care about is getting the tax money.”
Denver and Belle exchanged a glance.
“So Silverpines is now the proud owner of a case of brandy and several kegs of whiskey, both well aged,” Denver said.
Chuckles met his comment.
“I guess so, as soon as I wire the money to the state. What do you suppose we should do with it?”
Denver shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m not much of a drinker.”
“If Silverpines owns it, how about serving some at the social on Saturday? I don’t suppose very many Silverpiners have tasted brandy before,” Belle suggested.
Luther laughed. “No, I don’t suppose so. I’ll ask the other council members and see what they say. Either we serve it sometime or sell it to somebody. The town doesn’t need it on the inventory.”
~~~~~
Belle looked across the table at Denver and bit her lip. What would he say to her suggestion? Well, there was only one way to find out. “Denver, I know we are having a very small wedding. Just you, me, Geneva, and Luther. Well, Victoria too since she’s his wife and should be allowed to come since her husband is your best man. I was wondering if we could have two more people in the wedding?”
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