The Bride's Matchmaking Triplets

by Regina Scott

  The Crenshaw home had been turned into a marvel of modern ministry, and Elizabeth couldn’t help smiling as Brandon escorted them through the rooms. He was so excited, eyes shining and face animated, that she was reminded of the dreams they’d shared once.

  “This is where everyone will gather for meals,” he said, leading them through a formal dining room with a table big enough to seat a dozen or more. “And there’s space for playing checkers or doing homework.”

  Gil had been grinning until Brandon mentioned homework. Now a scowl shadowed his lean face. Elizabeth knew from experience it could be hard for an active little boy to sit still and pay attention to lessons. Very likely the triplets would have the same challenge.

  Though the rooms were large and open as she’d suggested, with plenty of light from the wide windows, she’d left the cart in the entryway. Now Brandon carried Jasper, she had Theo and Jo had Eli. The baby kept staring at the girl’s face as if trying to see inside her. Jo gazed back just as solemnly.

  “Above,” Brandon was saying, starting up the stairs for the second floor, “we have bedrooms for boys and girls as well as the houseparents.”

  “My own room? Yeehaw!” Gil squeezed past Brandon and dashed up the stairs as if he couldn’t wait to see.

  Four large rooms opened off a center landing. One room, Elizabeth could see, had been outfitted as a nursery, with cribs and a rocking chair as well as a low dresser with a flat top for changing infants. Gil was more interested in the room with a wooden train set in the middle. Already he was running the engine around the circuit, making rumbling noises.

  Jo looked troubled as she gazed in that room and then the one next to it. Brandon had said the boys and the girls would sleep in different rooms. Very likely she hadn’t been separated from Gil even by a wall before.

  “I always wanted sisters,” Elizabeth mused, watching her. “How nice to have them in the same room.”

  Jo stroked Eli’s back thoughtfully.

  Gil left the engine and came skidding out into the hall. “Who’s going to be our ma and pa?”

  Jo looked to Elizabeth.

  “We don’t know just yet,” Brandon answered. “But it will be someone who has experience with children and loves them.”

  “Like Mrs. Elizabeth,” Gil proclaimed. “You can be our ma.”

  Elizabeth smiled at him. “I’m honored, Gil, but I need to stay in the parsonage with Pastor.”

  His face fell.

  Elizabeth glanced at Brandon. “But I know someone who would be perfect: Fannie and her husband. They miss their sons so much, she’s been wonderful with the triplets and she wants to do more for the community.”

  “She’s nice,” Gil agreed. He hopped over to Jo and peered into Eli’s face. “What do you think, little feller?”

  Eli reached for Gil. “Baby!”

  Gil recoiled. “I ain’t no baby! You’re the baby!”

  Elizabeth stepped between them as Eli’s face clouded. “He calls his brothers baby, Gil. I think that means he likes you as much as them.”

  Gil nodded, shoulders coming down. “Well, that’s all right, then. Come on, Jo. You got to see the girls’ room. You’ll like it. It’s yeller.”

  She handed Eli to Elizabeth, and the two siblings wandered into the room to the left.

  “Nicely done,” Brandon said, moving closer. “And the Tysons are a good suggestion. I’ll speak to them. David and I will present the final plans to the Lone Star Cowboy League at a special session tomorrow. If they agree and the Tysons are willing, we could open the house Sunday.”

  She glanced around, imagining children running up and down the stairs, laughing over dinner, sleeping safely in the beds. “Oh, Brandon, it’s perfect. I know this house will be a blessing to dozens of children over the years. It will be a place to call home.”

  He took a step closer, and the triplets reached out to hold hands, pulling him and Elizabeth together.

  “I want the parsonage to be home too, Elizabeth,” he murmured. “I was waiting for the right time, and I think this is it. When I meet with the league, I’d like to ask their permission for us to adopt the boys.”

  The thought was as warm as the babies in her arms. “Oh, yes, Brandon. Do you think they’ll agree?”

  His smile was pleased. “I don’t see why not. I think they’re satisfied with my service in Little Horn.”

  She was certain of it. Still, doubts poked at her. “What about those rumors? What if they think I won’t be a good mother in the long-term?”

  He shook his head. “Anyone with eyes and sense can tell you’re a wonderful mother, Elizabeth. I couldn’t ask for a better partner in ministry. I don’t foresee any problems with our petition.”

  She could only hope he was right.

  David was coming in the front door as they descended the stairs. Jasper, Theo and Eli crowed a welcome.

  “So, what do you think?” he asked, glancing around at them all.

  Elizabeth smiled at Jo and Gil, expecting the boy to share his excitement for his new home. Instead, he took Jo’s hand and edged around David.

  “Gil?” Elizabeth asked.

  “We best go,” he said. “Mrs. Johnson will be looking for us.” The pair darted out the door.

  “You must be a good influence on them, Elizabeth,” David said, watching them go. “I’ve never seen Gil so concerned about his foster family.”

  Before she could demur, he turned to face her again. “Well, do you approve of the place?”

  “Wholeheartedly,” Elizabeth assured him. “You all have done a marvelous job. I’m sure the Lone Star Cowboy League will be pleased.”

  “No!” Jasper shouted.

  “Here, now, young man,” Brandon said as David chuckled. “This is a fine establishment. You wait and see—everyone in town will be praising it.”

  David’s smile faded. “Well, everyone but a certain thief.”

  Brandon frowned, jiggling Jasper and Theo up and down. In Elizabeth’s arms, Eli frowned too.

  “Thief?” Brandon asked. “Has something been stolen?”

  “Nothing important,” David assured him. “I spotted some of the leftover scraps of wood missing a while ago, but I thought maybe someone had just gathered it up thinking it could go for firewood. But we’re missing sandpaper too, and that’s more costly.”

  Elizabeth cocked her head. So did Eli. “I don’t know a great deal about carpentry,” she allowed, “but scraps of wood and sandpaper remind me of the blocks that have been appearing at the parsonage on a regular basis.”

  Brandon nodded. “Could be.”

  David shook his head. “The Good Samaritan at work. If that’s the explanation for our missing things, I won’t worry. I just wish the person had lent us a hand while we were working on this place. We might have been done even sooner.”

  Brandon chuckled, but all three boys were beginning to fuss.

  “We should go,” Elizabeth said. “Rest assured the children’s home is perfect, David.”

  He colored. “Thank you. And thanks again for including Caroline and me in your dinner party last night. It’s the talk of the town.”

  “We’ll have another soon,” she promised.

  “We will?” Brandon teased as they made their way back to the parsonage. “What do you have planned, Mrs. Stillwater?”

  “Nothing less than complete capitulation, Mr. Stillwater,” she told him.

  Indeed, over the next couple of days it seemed to her that her dinner party had finally cleared her way into the hearts of Little Horn, for the visitors and gifts to the parsonage increased again, and not just because of the triplets. Stella asked Elizabeth’s advice about raising boys, as her younger brother Charlie had been acting up. Helen Carson invited Elizabeth to join the quilting bee, promising to have y
oung ladies present to watch the triplets. Even Mrs. Hickey unbent enough to ask her recipe for the butter brickle she’d served at the most recent literary tea.

  Still, she was nervous the afternoon the league members started showing up at the door. Because it was a special session, Brandon had offered them the use of the parsonage.

  She greeted David and his brother Edmund and chatted a moment with Lula May before seeing her and CJ Thorn into the parlor with the others. Clyde Parker snatched off his hat at the sight of her and mumbled something before scooting past to find a seat. She offered them coffee and cookies, but when Lula May nodded, she knew it was time to make herself scarce. She stepped out into the hallway and closed the door.

  Please, Lord, help them to see Your plan, for the home and the boys.

  Even with her prayer, she sincerely considered putting her ear to the door to hear what they would say about Brandon’s proposal.

  A sharp rap on the front door made her wonder whether a league member had come late. But when she answered, she found Dorothy Hill standing on the stoop. The Hill matriarch had been friendly to Elizabeth since the dinner party, but she came into the parsonage now and glanced around as if suddenly finding herself in a foreign country.

  “The Lone Star Cowboy League is meeting in the parlor,” Elizabeth told her. “And Caroline and Louisa have taken the boys over to the Clarks’ for a visit. But you’re welcome to chat with me in the kitchen.”

  Dorothy’s face brightened. “I’d like that.”

  Elizabeth led her down the hallway and through the other door to the kitchen. She hadn’t had much chance to clean up after breakfast, so she set about putting the dishes in the sink to soak and wiping down the table.

  “I understand many of the families donated things to make the parsonage special,” she said, following Dorothy’s look at the cups and saucers on the sideboard. “Is one of these yours?”

  She shook her head, mouth tightening. “What we own we need, and I don’t have much time for fancy work.”

  Elizabeth nodded as she went to wring out the washcloth. “I don’t have much time for crocheting or tatting either. The boys keep me plenty busy. That’s why I’m so thankful for you and your daughter, Fannie and the Satler children. You’ve all been a big help.”

  “Folks hereabouts can be real neighborly, just as you said the other night,” she allowed as she sank onto one of the hard-backed kitchen chairs. “That’s why I came. It’s about our neighbors, the Colemans.”

  Elizabeth refused to hear more complaints, from either of the feuding families. “Mr. Coleman is so good with the triplets,” she said, going to pour some lemonade for her visitor instead.

  Dorothy dropped her gaze to the table. “Tug Coleman isn’t the man I thought him. He’s a hard worker, and he’s kind to everyone.”

  “So I’ve noticed,” Elizabeth encouraged her, setting the glass in front of her.

  Dorothy looked up and met her gaze. “I like him. I wasn’t supposed to like him.”

  She sounded so dismayed that Elizabeth moved one of the boys’ high chairs aside so she could sit next to the woman. “I know what you mean. When I arrived in Little Horn, I was prepared to dislike a certain gentleman, but he won me over.”

  Dorothy eyed her. “What did you do?”

  Elizabeth smiled. “I married him.”

  Dorothy reared back, then a slow smile formed. “Well, I’ll be.” Her smile vanished. “But that doesn’t mean I’m meant to marry Tug.”

  “Certainly not,” Elizabeth agreed. “But perhaps it means Annie and Jamie might marry.”

  She nodded. “That’s what I hope. I just needed to talk about it with someone who wasn’t directly involved.”

  “I understand, and I’ll keep our discussion in confidence.”

  Dorothy picked up the lemonade and took a good swig. “So,” she said after she’d swallowed, “you and the Pastor fixing to have more babies?”

  Heat flushed up her. “We haven’t discussed the matter.”

  “Doesn’t seem like something that needs discussion,” Dorothy declared. “I’d say the triplets would like a little brother or sister by and by.”

  Elizabeth could see it now. A little girl with Brandon’s silky hair. A little boy with his quicksilver eyes. But having more children who looked like Brandon surely meant opening her heart all the way.

  Was she ready to give their love another try?

  Chapter Seventeen

  Inside the parlor, Brandon watched as the members of the Lone Star Cowboy League took their places. Once again, his brother’s posture was all support. While the older men settled themselves in a corner of the room, Brandon approached Lula May.

  “Madam President, would it sway the discussion if I offered you a gift first?”

  Her blue eyes twinkled. “That depends on what you’re offering, Pastor.”

  Brandon slipped the wooden instrument he’d made from inside his coat. “I thought you could use this. And that bookcase beside you is plenty sturdy to stand up under it.”

  Lula May took the gavel from him, weighed the polished wood in her hand. “I like it. This could come in real handy.” She flashed him a smile that told him Edmund was one fortunate fellow. “Thank you, Pastor.”

  He nodded and retreated to the chair closest to the door.

  Lula May brought the gavel down on the bookcase, and every man in the room jumped.

  She beamed. “Good afternoon, gentlemen. As you can see, I have a new way to get you to pay attention at meetings.”

  “Who gave her that?” Casper Magnuson grumbled to his cohort.

  “The first order of business,” she continued while Brandon hid a smile, “is the status of the new children’s home. David?”

  David rose. “I’m pleased to report that the renovations are complete, and Pastor Stillwater has confirmed we are ready to open.”

  “At less than the budget originally requested,” Brandon felt compelled to put in with a look around David to Casper and his crew.

  Abe Sawyer and Gabe Dooley nodded their thanks.

  “So when do we intend to move in the young’uns?” Clyde Parker demanded.

  “We’d like to have a formal christening this Sunday after services,” David told him.

  Magnuson cocked his head. “And how much is that going to cost?”

  “Nothing,” David said with a grin. “My brothers and I will pay for the cider for toasting, and the Arundel General Store has agreed to provide the cups.”

  “Sounds all well and good,” Abe Sawyer allowed, “but who’s going to manage the house?”

  “The Tysons,” Brandon put in when David looked his way. “They are solid members of the community, and they have a special place in their hearts for children. They’re planning on putting their farm up for sale and moving into the children’s home this week, if you all approve.”

  “Why wouldn’t we?” Bo demanded with a look of challenge to the older ranchers.

  “I think it all sounds marvelous,” Lula May agreed, glancing around the room as if daring any of the men to disagree with her. “All in favor?”

  “Aye!”

  The unanimous cry set Brandon’s pulse to pounding. Bo and several of the other men rose to shake his hand or David’s as the rest chorused their good wishes.

  Lula May let them whoop it up a bit before bringing her gavel down on the bookcase again.

  “We have one more order of business,” she said as they quieted. “Pastor Stillwater has another proposal for us.”

  Magnuson crossed his arms over his barrel chest. “I’m not prepared to spend another cent.”

  “This won’t cost you anything either,” Brandon promised, rising. He glanced around at the assembled ranchers, and a tremor went through him. Why? He knew each one. Most
were friends. All attended services on Sunday. They’d heard him preach on any number of occasions, knew that he had advocated for civic causes before.

  But this time it was personal.

  He cleared his throat. “Gentlemen, Madam President, my wife, Elizabeth, and I would like your permission to adopt the triplets.”

  “What?” Magnuson surged to his feet. “Why didn’t you ask sooner? We might have saved the expense of building that fancy orphanage.”

  “The triplets aren’t the only orphans in the county,” David reminded him.

  “Indeed,” Brandon agreed. “I’ve already had requests to place five children, including the Satler siblings. I didn’t expect to keep the boys, but Elizabeth and I have come to love the triplets as our own. We promise to raise them up in a loving Christian home, to help them become contributing members of society. As it was the league that took responsibility for them when they were abandoned, we come to you for your permission.”

  “I say yes, of course,” David put in. “They couldn’t ask for finer parents.”

  Brandon nodded his thanks.

  “I suppose it would be all right,” Parker grumbled.

  Brandon inclined his head.

  “But what about kin?” Sawyer protested. “We thought we had some before. We published ads hither and yon. Someone might still come for them.”

  “It’s been nearly three months,” Lula May pointed out, wrinkling her nose. “If my kin were missing, I’d have found them a lot sooner than this.”

  “But we don’t know where the mother came from,” Sawyer argued. “It could take a while for the news to reach her family and for them to get here. I say we wait. There’s room in the orphanage.”

  Disappointment bit at Brandon, but he kept his smile pleasant. “No need to move the boys. Elizabeth and I can continue to care for them until the league is satisfied no one else will come forward.” He glanced at Magnuson, who had leaned forward. “At no charge to the league, of course.”

  Magnuson leaned back.

  “And just how long do you expect Brandon and Elizabeth to wait?” Bo demanded of Sawyer.