Sitting there on the river bank, John silently thought of his life in Bandelero. What would he do when he returned? He had spent so much time just trying to heal. If Joelle did agree to come home and be his wife, how would he ever support them?
“Are you brooding or dreaming?” Joelle’s soft voice called out from behind him.
Getting slowly to his feet, John limped to where she stood. “Both,” he confessed. In the moonlight he could see her smile.
She glanced down at the hand in which John held his cane. She put her own hand atop his and looked up into his eyes. “We should talk.”
“Yes.”
“Would you like to sit again?” Joelle asked, mindful of his condition.
“Would you?”
“Yes, I believe so,” she replied, patting her stomach. “It becomes in-creasingly more difficult to get around. You’ll have to help me.”
John reached out and took her by the elbow. “I’ve got the perfect place for us.” He led her to the river bank and helped her to sit. Joining her there, he found himself nearly holding his breath. “You wanted to talk?”
“Yes,” Joelle said and took a deep breath. “You were right to come. I’m glad you came.” She paused for a moment to look out into the darkness. “It’s impossible to know what’s out there,” she said absently.
John thought it profound. “Yes, but what we have here is easy to see.”
Joelle turned and smiled. “We won’t have it easy elsewhere.”
“Probably not.”
“We will start life at a great disadvantage,” she murmured.
“We’ll have each other.”
“And a child,” Joelle reminded.
“Yes. A beautiful child, born of a lovely and beautiful woman,” John whispered, running a finger along Joelle’s cheek.
Joelle’s breath caught at the pleasure his actions caused. She stared longingly into his eyes for several moments, waiting and hoping that he might kiss her. Kiss me, she thought. I have to know it’s all that it once was. When John refused to initiate the action, Joelle leaned forward and put her hand up to his face.
“Please, kiss me,” she whispered in the silence of the night.
John’s eyes took on a fire that she had once known long ago. He leaned closer to meet her lips and put his hand gently behind her head. The kiss was sweet and heartfelt and everything that Joelle had hoped it would be. She found herself clinging to John with such joy flooding her heart that she could scarcely believe it was real.
He pulled away first, leaving Joelle with a smile on her lips. Her eyes were still closed as she relished the moment.
“I remember the first time you kissed me,” Joelle whispered and slowly opened her eyes. “Do you?”
“How could I forget? It was under the mistletoe at Maggie and Garrett Lucas’s Christmas party. It was the moment I decided to marry you.”
She grinned. “You’d just met me. How could you have decided a thing like that?”
“It was easy. I knew what I was looking for.”
Joelle frowned ever so slightly. “A lot has happened since then, John. Are you sure I’m still what you’re looking for?”
“More than ever,” he replied, his voice hoarse with emotion. “I love you, Joelle. Now and for all time.”
“No matter the past?”
“No matter the past, the present, or the future.” John pulled her close. “My love for you will only grow stronger. You are my beloved.”
“ ‘I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine,’ ” she quoted from the sixth chapter of the Song of Solomon. A warmth spread throughout her body. “I am yours, John, if you still want me.”
“Can there be any doubt?” he said and lifted her face to meet his kiss. Joelle melted against him and was sorry when he pulled away.
“Well,” she said with a sigh, “if there were any doubts, I believe you’ve dispelled them all. You are one stubborn man, John Monroe.”
He laughed heartily. “No more so than you, Joelle Dawson.”
“We’ll probably fight,” she said quite seriously.
“Yes, very probably.”
“Will you throw mugs?” she asked with a grin.
“Only if you throw drinking glasses.”
“You were right about me being a coward,” she said thoughtfully.
“Umm,” John sounded with a glance upward, “I hate to admit it, but you were right about me being a coward, as well.”
“You? Never!” she exclaimed.
“It’s true,” John replied. “I was afraid in Columbus. I was afraid I would be bedfast forever and never know what it was like to walk beside you again. I was afraid in Columbus when you left me and ran away. I was afraid when I couldn’t find you and my search seemed in vain.” He stopped and looked deep into her velvety eyes. “And then when I did find you, I was afraid that you’d stopped loving me.”
Joelle put her finger to his lips. “That, I could never do, so put it from your mind and don’t be afraid any longer.”
“What of you, Joelle? Are you still afraid?”
She dropped her hand and looked away. “I’m terrified.”
“Of me?”
“No,” she whispered and drew his hand to her stomach. “This.”
John placed his arm around her shoulder. “Don’t be. I’ll be with you every step of the way. Babies are wondrous things, and I hope we have a dozen.”
Joelle’s head came up in surprise. “A dozen? I thought four sounded like a nice number.”
John smiled. “Whatever you say.”
“You realize, of course,” she said with a sudden thought, “this particular child is due next month.”
“That soon, huh? I guess we’d better think about getting home then so Dad can deliver it.”
Joelle nodded. “That would probably be wise.”
“We probably ought to think about something else, as well,” John said without reserve. “Don’t you suppose we ought to get married?”
“I’m way ahead of you on that one, Mr. Monroe. Father Cooper is waiting, even now, to perform a lovely ceremony for us. I thought it might be nice for him to be a part of our marriage, since he’s partially responsible for bringing us together again. After we get home, your Uncle David could marry us, if that meets with your approval.”
“I see you have this all under control,” John grinned.
“Do you mind?”
“Not in the least. I think it sounds wonderful. Come on,” he said, getting to his feet. “I want to get married.”
Chapter 17
John!” Joelle screamed out his name in the agonizing final stages of labor. “What!” John yelled from outside the room where his wife was giving birth.
“I’ve changed my mind!”
Dan and Lillie exchanged a look of amusement with Joelle’s mother. John and Joelle had been yelling back and forth at each other for hours now and neither one seemed to think the exchange unusual.
“It’s a little late for that, Darling!” John called back.
Joelle grimaced as another contraction gripped her. She waited for it to pass before explaining her thoughts. “Not about having this baby,” she yelled. “I’ve changed it about having four of them!”
Zandy and Lillie laughed out loud, while Daniel tried to concentrate on the task at hand. There was an amused smile on his lips, however.
“Whatever you say, Dear!” John yelled back and grinned at his father-in-law. “I love that woman.”
Riley shook his head and laughed. “She’s not your run-of-the-mill society girl, is she?”
“Thank God for that,” John mused with a laugh. He grew sober, however, when Joelle’s scream filled the air. “How much longer do you suppose this will go on?”
Inside their bedroom, Joelle bore down with all her might to expel the child from her body. “Mother!” she gasped and gripped Zandy’s hand tightly. “I want this to be over with.”
“It will, Darling, just a little longer. You’ll see.” Zandy wiped her daughter’s brow with a cool cloth and prayed for the delivery to be an easy one.
Joelle rolled her head from side to side. She was suddenly overcome with fear. “Mother, what if the baby is hideous? What if it looks like one of them?” Joelle had tried to force such thoughts from her mind these last few weeks, but the old fears caught up with her.
Zandy soothed her daughter with words of encouragement. “Joelle, no baby is hideous. Your child will be beautiful and precious. You’ll see.” She prayed silently for her daughter, knowing that only God could give her peace in the matter.
“That’s right, Joelle,” Lillie assured her. “Once you see the baby, all your fears will disappear.
“And from the looks of it, that’s going to be in just another minute or two,” Dan said confidently.
Joelle felt the contractions begin again. They were coming one after the other now. The urge to bear down and push was stronger than ever. “I. . . don’t. . .want,” she gasped against the pain.
“Don’t want what, Sweetheart?” her mother asked softly.
“Let. . .John. . .see. . .first!”
“See what, Joelle?” Zandy questioned.
“The baby!” Joelle said and screamed out in pain. “Let. . .him. . .see the baby. . .first.”
“Push, Joelle,” Dan commanded. “Push hard.”
Joelle bore down with all her might. She was exhausted from the entire ordeal. “John!” she screamed and was answered with the sound of a baby’s cry.
“It’s a girl, Joelle!” Lillie announced, as Dan passed the squalling child over. “We have a granddaughter, Dr. Monroe.”
Joelle fell back against the pillow and threw her arm across her face. “Mother, pray with me. Please.”
Zandy leaned her lips down to Joelle’s ear. The baby continued to cry while Lillie cleaned her up.
“Please, God,” Zandy whispered in prayer, “please strengthen Joelle and help her through this frightening time in her life. Give her peace of mind and a love for her daughter that will surpass her fear, amen.”
Joelle pulled her arm away to look into her mother’s face. There were tears in her eyes. “Where’s John? Please let John come in.”
Zandy looked at Dan, who nodded his approval. She went quickly to the door and motioned for her son-in-law to join them. In a hushed voice she told him of Joelle’s request.
“She’s afraid to see the baby. She wants you to see her first.”
John nodded a look that held no condemnation. He knew of Joelle’s fears, and he could not fault her for them. Stepping to where Lillie was now wrapping the baby in a warm blanket, he could only stare in wonder.
“You have a daughter,” Lillie said, handing to her firstborn child, his own firstborn. “Now this is what I call some Christmas present.”
John looked down at the tiny bundle. The baby calmed in his arms and stared back at him with dark, wet eyes. She was beautiful! The most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his life, with the possible exception of Joelle. He smiled broadly at his mother and Zandy.
“She’s perfect,” he said with assurance.
“She looks like Joelle did,” Zandy said, and there was no stopping the flow of tears from her eyes. “I have to go tell Riley,” she said and took herself from the room.
Dan finished his tasks and patted Joelle on the hand. “You did a great job, Mommy. I think this is the best Christmas present I’ve ever had. Not everybody gets a granddaughter in their stocking.” Joelle tried to smile, but her teeth began to chatter. “Lillie, do we have another blanket?” Dan asked.
Lillie nodded and left John to fuss over his daughter. She pulled a huge quilt from the drawer beneath the bed and unfolded it to cover Joelle. “I always got the shivers after delivery,” she grinned down. “This ought to warm you right up.”
“Thanks,” Joelle whispered, relishing the feel of the added weight.
“Come on, Grandma,” Dan said with a laugh. “Let’s call up the town and announce our new granddaughter!” Lillie nodded and linked her arm with Dan’s. They exited the room to join the laughter and conversation of Riley and Zandy, thoughtfully closing the door behind them.
John looked up from the baby to catch Joelle’s worried look. “She’s precious, Joelle. She has your coloring and your eyes. She has your cute little mouth, and she can yell almost as loud.”
Joelle could not help but smile. “Does she have any hair?”
“A ton of it, and it’s all dark brown like her mom’s.”
Joelle bit at her lower lip as the baby started to fuss. “Bring her to me,” she finally said, and John quickly complied before she could change her mind.
He lowered the baby into Joelle’s arms, while Joelle kept her eyes on John’s face. Joelle felt the warm softness of the infant and the natural way she seemed to fit against her. The baby calmed.
John kissed Joelle on the forehead. “She’s perfect. Just look at her.”
For only a moment, Joelle thought back to Columbus. Then pushing the image aside, she lowered her face to the bundle in her arms.
Two dark eyes stared up at her with a sweet, tiny mouth opened wide in a yawn. Joelle felt a surge of relief and tears came to her eyes. “Oh, John,” she whispered. She reached up her finger to touch the velvety softness of the baby’s cheek.
“I told you she was perfect,” he said with a smile.
“Oh, she truly is,” Joelle murmured. “How could I have feared this?”
“No doubt she’ll give our poor hearts plenty to fear in the future. The first time she climbs a tree or runs away from home.”
“She’d better never!” Joelle declared.
“Well, if she’s anything like you, she no doubt will,” John insisted.
“Well, if she takes after you, she’ll probably be hanging out of the cockpit of a biplane and soaring overhead.”
John smiled at Joelle’s reference. “No daughter of mine will hang out of the cockpit of a biplane,” he retorted indignantly.
“Oh, really?” Joelle laughed. “And who will stop her?”
“I will. If she can’t sit in it properly and fly the thing professionally, then she won’t be allowed to do it at all.”
Joelle nodded. “With her daddy to teach her, she’ll be a crackerjack pilot.”
The baby yawned again and closed her eyes. John reached up and smoothed back Joelle’s hair. “You’ve done a good thing here, Mrs. Monroe.”
“Yes,” Joelle said smugly and glanced up into his eyes. “I have, haven’t I?” John raised a quizzical brow, and Joelle laughed. “Of course,” she added, “you and God had something to do with it too. I couldn’t have done it without your support and love, nor His.”
“God has done something quite wondrous, hasn’t He?”
“Indeed,” Joelle agreed. “She’s everything a mother could hope for. She’s absolutely complete and perfect.”
“Except for one thing,” John said. “What shall we call her?”
“Oh, I was so busy worrying about the outcome, I never thought to plan a name for her.”
“Well, let’s see. It is Christmas. We could call her Christina.”
“No,” Joelle said shaking her head. “I like Holly.”
“Hey, how about Mistletoe?” John teased. “After all, that’s where we first kissed.”
“I like Holly,” Joelle repeated firmly.
“You sure?”
“Yes.” Joelle nodded
and ran her hand lightly over her daughter’s tiny head. “Holly Noelle.”
“Hey, it rhymes with Joelle. Sounds good to me.” He planted a kiss on Joelle’s forehead, then leaned over to do the same for the baby.
“Holly Noelle Monroe,” Joelle breathed the name.
“I still think Mistletoe would have worked. We could’ve called her Missy,” John said with a prankish smile.
Joelle rolled her eyes. “Her name is Holly.”
“Well, maybe next time.”
“Next time? I told you I’d changed my mind.”
John nodded. “I thought you meant about having four. I just naturally presumed that meant we were going to try for twelve.”
Joelle gave his ribs a hard nudge of her elbow, disturbing the baby’s slumber as she did. Holly protested with a whimper but quickly settled back to sleep.
“All right,” John conceded. “You don’t have to have any more, if you really don’t want to.”
Joelle was already forgetting about the pain of delivery. “Well, I’d hate for her to grow up an only child. I guess we’ll see.”
Outside, it had begun to snow, and Joelle could see the light, downy flakes from where she lay. “Look,” she whispered to John, “it’s so lovely.”
“No more so than you, Beloved,” John answered with a proud look of love in his eyes.
Joelle felt secure and happy in that look. “It truly will be all right, won’t it, John? We’re a family now, and God can help us to rise above the hurt we’ve known. We’ll make a good home for Holly.”
“The best,” John promised. “The very best God has to offer.”
Epilogue
Pancho Villa’s raid on Columbus, New Mexico, was a failure in that few Americans were killed and most of the money and valuables that were stolen were lost in the frantic retreat of the Villistas.
The most poignant effect of the raid was psychological. It caused panic throughout the border region of the U.S. and proved to the U.S. government that the Carrancista government could do nothing or was unwilling to control Villa. It also made Americans aware that even in their neutral attitudes regarding the war in Europe, they were far from safe in the isolated cocoon they had woven for themselves.
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