by Delia Parr
She moistened her lips and squeezed his hand. “I explained to him that we had planned to marry but had had a disagreement over my duties as midwife. And that now that Jane Trew has taken over my responsibilities, there wasn’t any reason for you not to give me another chance, other than the fact that you were too stubborn, a quality that’s not always as endearing as you claim it to be.”
She paused to swallow the lump in her throat and repeated almost the same exact words he had once spoken to her. “And I told him that you challenge me, Thomas, and you always have. That you have a clear and honest view of the world and your place in it as a godly man, and that you’re more worried about other people most of the time than you are for yourself. That you’re unlike any man I’ve ever known, and that I love you with all that I am or hope to be. And that I was going to come and stand right here until you talked with me and agreed to give me another chance. To give us another chance. And since I had every hope that you would, I asked him to come and marry us.”
He took her other hand. “Today?”
“Right now. Then I’ll give my friends the order they’re expecting to hear.”
He nearly choked. “To do what? Since I have every intention of accepting your proposal and having Reverend Welsh marry us right now, there’s no need for any of your friends to use those ridiculous weapons on me.”
Before letting him think she was completely daft, she pressed a quick kiss to his lips. “The weapons aren’t for you. They’re for our cabin. I suspect this little army of mine might need to tidy things up a bit before they set out the wedding feast we brought with us.”
He pulled her into his arms and kissed her back. Then he kissed her one more time until she was breathless. “Is there anything else we need to talk about or do before I ask Reverend Welsh to marry us?”
“I can’t think of a thing, other than maybe enjoying one more kiss. Can you?” she offered with a grin and wondered if the minister would consider marrying them just as they stood, holding each other as if they might never let go.
He answered her question with another very sweet and passionate kiss. And then just one more.
Imagine that.
Delia Parr is the author of seventeen historical and inspirational historical romance novels, including The Midwife’s Tale, Hearts Awakening, Love’s First Bloom, and Hidden Affections. The mother of three grown children, she was a longtime high school teacher in southern New Jersey before retiring to Florida’s sunny west coast. In between visits to her grandchildren in several different states, she spends her time writing and volunteering alongside other women who share a bond of sisterhood as sisters of faith.
Books by Delia Parr
AT HOME IN TRINITY
The Midwife’s Tale
The Midwife’s Choice
The Midwife’s Dilemma
HEARTS ALONG THE RIVER
Hearts Awakening
Love’s First Bloom
Hidden Affections
CANDLEWOOD TRILOGY
A Hearth in Candlewood
Refining Emma
Where Love Dwells
Resources: bethanyhouse.com/AnOpenBook
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